HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1979-07-26, Page 1r.
rax
SEAFORT a OMTARIO,,, THURSDAY, 4LILY 260.11791-20 PAGES,
$13,.* year . 1 advance.
$111$e copy 30
on it
ire
BY WILMA OKE
Representatives of four townships have
declared they won't buy fire protection from
Seaforth if it goes ahead with plans: to
withdraw from the area fire board at the end
of this year.
At a closed meeting Wednesday, Seaforth
council confirmed its decision to terminate'
the 10 year agreement with its four,
neighbouring townships, Tuckersmith, Me,
Killop, Hibbert and Hullett. Council pre.
rented them with a proposal under which the
townwould sell them fire protection.
The townships have 30 days toreply to the
proposal, but Hullett reeve Joseph Hunking
said he told Seaforth Mayor John Sinnamon
we don't need 30 days to. decide.
"We hate to -see it (the area fire
agreement) fall through," Reeve Hunking
said, but the townships are prepared to set
up their own fire board, Even if they don't,.
he said, his township "won't buy fire
protection under their (Seaforth's) terms—
it's
erms—it's too much money.".
TO the proposed 1979 budget •of the
present Fire Area Board, McKillop's share
of fire cpsts is $7,253.OS or 35:4 per cent.
Seaforth now pays $6,831:81 or 33.4 per cent
of the FAB's costs. Tuckersmith's present
share. is $3,345.36 or 16.3 per cent; while
Hibbert pays $1,74.8,34 or 8,5 per cent and
Hullett now pays 51,269,85 or 6,21; per cent
of the, 1979 FAB budget;
The agreement proposed by Seaforth
bases its fees for .1980 on the average
number of fires each township had during
the past five years and charges S1,000, per
(Continued on Page 3')
Turns rural. at
F
RETIRED -INTO FARM
NG Herb Gottschall stands before
the
asparagus field at his vegetable farm near Cromarty:. He left a business
management Posltion in'the city for the rural life at age 58.
,., BY USE GUNBY
There is .a great sense of satisfaction
that, "all's well with the world kindof
feeling - driving south and east of Seaforth
passing fields of burnt -yellow wheat and
sleek emerald corn, barley fields gray with.
tassels and the village -of Staffa, comfort-
able under summer sun:
And turning south and east again;.
there's something new, a farm with.
different fields, different crops, and a
different farmer.
Herb Gottschall became a farmer two
years ago when he was 58. Originally from
New Jersey, he first encountered the rural:.
life when he was transferred to"Stratford,as
the manager of Novatronics, an industrial
electronics plant, and rented a farmhouse
. near. Mitchell.
Then, in 1977, he purchased 75 acres of
land in Hibbert Township in Perth County:
"It's beautiful: I' mean, look out," he.
said,: as we sat at the kitchen table before a
picture window framing an, asparagusp
g
field.
His former job and his new life are
totally unrelated, he said, "but I'drather
be outside than inside,"
He's no hobby farmer. He made his
decision to grow vegetables . only . after
talking with experts from Ridgetown
College and Guelph- University, experts
from the agriculture offices, and experts
who are farmers.
They were all very helpful then,•he said,
and: if it hadn't been for the help of
neighboursand friends since, he' wouldn't
have had a chance:
"I know very little at this point," said
Mr. Gottschall, "I can't see how i survived.
last year, because I knew even less:"
This is his second season. Last year, he
had 7 acres of cauliflower, 11/2 of broccoli, 5
of asparagus, 1 of squash, 33 of .white.
Pipes- in park
highlanders here
A concert to stir the blood! of Highland
Scots, or people, who wish they were
Highland Scots, has been planned Sunday
night at Victoria Park 'as part of the
continuing Seaforth Chamber of Commerce
sponsored band concerts:
The City of London Police Highland
Band will be making its only appearance in
Seaforth this summer and the concert
starts at 7:30 p.m. Concert. organizer Dr,
Charlie Toll says band members and their
families plan to have a picnic in the park
before their show. '
"We'd like to 'have a really good
audience to welcome this fine highland
band," Dr, Toll Said. He urged local people
to bring their friends and theits lawn chairs
.and attend,
This expert band will be a very good
finale to Seaforth s West Branch MI
Branch rhigan
exchange weekend, Dr, 'Toll said and he
, extended a special al welcome to citizens of
,Seafotth's sister city to attend the concert.
beans and 2; of corn.
The squash failed. Although pepper
squash will; matureon time, he said, there
is too much already on the market. And..
butternut is borderline, and without
enough time to full, mature, doesn't have
the :best of flavour.
This year, he's planted 25 acres of white
beans, 25 of sweet corn, 12 of asparagus. 6
of cauliflower, 2 of broccoli, and 2 of
cabbage.
He's had problems, but problems that he
has plans to overcome. The biggest,and
one he shares with many others, is the
weather.
"I should have : irrigation: for 'these.
crops," said Mr. Gottschall, "without it,
you're really at the mercy of getting rain at
the exact time you want it for vegetables,
because you're not digging deep enough.
Although it's good, soil, the problem, 'is
that the day tends to crust. In a 20 year old.
gravel pit adjacent to his house, he said he
is going to try digging for water. If he finds.
enough, it will be a simple matter of a "big
pump and a pipe" to soften up the tough
g
crust of clay.
GREENHOUSE
He is also going to build a little
greenhouse, where he will start seeds, and
latertransfer them to the field. There are
three advantages to this plan, he said.
Crusting of the soil will not prevent the •;
seedling from breaking through. He can
schedule his crop a week earlier or later,
giving him some flexibility, and the results
of dry periods' can be minimized.
When he seeded cabbages directly into
Perth' Board is concerned
(Expositor photo).
i
In 1939, a young priest. Peter Oostveen,
+as appointed to assist .an, elderly pastor at
.St. Anthony's parish, Ulft, near the Dutch-
German border. The day after his appoint-
ment, Adolf Hitler invaded ; Poland and
Holland was torn by war until 1945, when
tie country was finally liberated by the
Canadian army under General Foulkes.
Ilii' week, Father Oostveen recalled his
cart', daysin the priesthood' when he was
honoured by the St. Columban parish for 40
sears of ministry, The priest was honoured
by a special mass and dinner. at the church
on Monday night, followed by speeches and
presentations honoring his service to the
church.
Father Oostveen, who was born in Rolland
in 1914, was ordained to the priesthood by,
His Eminence, John Cardinal DeJong,
Archbishop of Utrecht, in July, 1939,
His .first appointment, as already merit-
ioned, was to the parish of Ulft. The second.
parish he served -was as an assistant at
Wageningen, Holland, where hundreds of
- students attended an agricultural college
similar to the University of Guelph, The
father said his ten years in Wageningen,
from 1942-52, were "the best years of his
life" in spite of the many hardships of war,
BATTLE OF ARNHEM
Wageningen is located only 10 miles
from the town of Arnhem and the father
recalls seeing paratroopers and, glider
landings about five miles awa. on
� Y
Septemberm
17, 1944 -the beginning of the;
famous battle of Arnhem, which:. is described
in 'Cornelius' Ryan's book and. movie, "One
Bridge Too Far,'' '
the field this year, June 8 there was :a„
heavy rain, which washed away some a.
the seeds, and then a li hf rain onl ,: he
g y
plants, which normally emerge in 5 to 10
days "Just sat there .until they got some
moisture.'
During that time, he said, "the weeds,,
of course, paid no attention to the fact that
conditions weren't right for the plants."
And weed control, isdifficult awith: veg-
etables.
With grain .corn, for example, you can
use 24-D herbicide on bindweed, but with
sweet corn,the only way to clean out the
weeds is with a backpack and a spot
sprayer.
,"If I can't beat this with transplants; the
vegetables are no good in this soil," 'he
said.
June 10 he planted the beans and May
,
y
16 the , sweet corn. Because they are
planted deep they are doing fine, said. Mr,.,
Gottschall. The other crops, planted only a
quarter to half-inch below sthe surface, are
susceptible to dry weather despite the soil,
capable of holding water,
With normal crops, its .a tremendous
advantage to have soil that will hold
water' he said: The asparagus is also
planted deep, He's not sure how high, the
yield will he in this soil as Opposed to.,
moresandy earth in southern areas,
"But it looks awfully good out' there, 'lie
said;
He lights his pipe, looking solidly.
healthy, tanned, white-haired; and re-
flective, "Farming is something that in 20
years, you're still. learning, "he said, "I'm
Stresses opening exercises
A major topic of concern at the .July
meeting of the Perth County "Board of
Education was the report of the committee
on Opening exercises in Perth County
Schools.
In presenting the report to the board,
committee chairman, Bruce Buckingham,
told the trustees that the teacher is the key to
success in opening exercises.
"The teacher is the key in this area and we
found that many of them have taken up the
challenge with a variety of scriptural' texts."
• Buckingham then presented a list of some
200 books Which are presently beingused in
Perth County during morning opening.
exercises.
Buckingham stressed, during his opening
remarks, that it was hot compulsory for
students to take part in'the exercises and
that Students may be exempted from the
exercises if their parents object.
"The most important thing we can do is
find a way to inake the opening exercises
relevant and meaningful to the students and
the way to do this is by variety,"
Buckingham said,
in concluding the report, Buckin hatn'
made this summary of recommendations for
the board's consideration,
1. All schools and staffs be made aware of
ministry regulations regarding epening
exercises. At present there ate three basie
requirements set down by the mini§try for
1.
opening, .exercises. The National Anthem
must be played; the Lord's Prayer read; and.
scripture readings.
2. Opening exercises will be done by the
teacher in the classroom rather than over
P.A. system.
3, All teachers conducting opening exer-
cises will be issued a copy. of the book list
compiled by -the he committee, the ministry,
List of Bible Readings for Schools, and a
modern'translation of the Bible and encour-
agement must be provided to 'teachers by
principals for experimentation in approach
and materials on the understanding that
principals be kept .inferrred of the progratml.
being used,
5. The board should be prepared to make a
central fund available to schools so that they
might acquire additional resources,
6. Within a year" the committee would
meet to reassess the effectiveness of the
materials used and the opening exercises
generally.
7, The board inform the public of its
directives regarding opening exercises and
the 'ministry regulations underlying them,
y g
Trustee Bob .McTavish, who was inst
ra,
;Mental in the Creation of the committee also
Suggested that teachers and princi also be
presented with this information 'at a work«
p u,_ on piofessio
shopset .; p nal development
day, p
trying things that. I guess if 1 knew better I
wouldn't do,",:
He's trying filberts,which grow on a
bushy tree, walnuts„ and pecans this `year,;:
The pecans died off, leaving "one :Little
survivor... but the walnuts; he said look
excellent.
• "We'll see what happens .,, ;I think.
there's a chance for them," •
Mr. Gottschall has also planted .a few
hcartnut :trees, which yield a fruit that
tastes like .a cross between walnuts and
brazil nuts. He first thought about planting
nuts when he read an article looking,. for
anyone interested in the project. It was 'a
request from a "nut club."
"I guess the name appealed to me, he
laughed:
CABBAGE CROP
Mr. Gottschall plans to keep his cabbage
g
crop, stored in a brown building, over
the winter: The cauliflower, broccoli, and
sweet corn he will ship. He hopes to get the
winter cabbage -off by the ' middle of
(Continued on Page 3 )
The St. John the Baptist church where
Father Oostveen was assistant priest was.
destroyed: in the war, but was gradually
rebuilt in the late 1940's. By 1948. a trend
Was apparent -many Dutch people wanted to
start life anew in other countries, and
immigration to New Zealand, Austrailia, and
d
especially Canada became a fact of li fe.
In the early 1950's, a number of Father
Oostveen's :close relatives emigrated to
Canada, including his elderly mother.
Father Oostveen was faced with deciding
whether to stay in his homeland or to take an
assignment in Canada, to work with Dutch
immigrants,
In 1951, 12 priests died in the London'
diocese, and there was concern over the
shortage of priests:. in the area" Father
Oostveen corresponded with Bishop Cody,
and with the encouragement of the
Archbishop of 'Utrecht, decided to move to
the London diocese,
MOVES '
In' 1952, a telegram ws sent to .him that
provided him with, a kind of "working
permit to come to Canada. The telegram
read: '
The Rev. P.A. Oostveen is a priest..9f the
R.C. Church, now residing in Wageningen,;
Holland Because of the larBe numbers of
Dutch people comingto the Diocese of
London, it isnecessary, that we have in the
Diocese a priest, who is familiar with the
Dutch language, to attend to their spiritual
welfare, Father Oostveen has signified his
willingness to come ;to the. Diocese of
London, and as soon as he arrives he will be
permanently employed with the R.C, Church
in the Diocese of London.
Signed; Very Rev. J, Austin Roney DP
Chancellor
Father Oostveen's first parish in Canada;
was the. Sacred Heart parish in Parkhill,
where.' he assisted an elderly pastor, Father
priest.
i
bilee
,.
Joe Paquette„ The majority of members of
the parish were immigrants from Belgium
and Holland, In addition to the parish, the
church also had a mission in'Bornish, where
Scotch families had settled since the 1840's.
When Father Paquette died in 1954,
Father Oostveen was made administrator of
the parish • and served there until 1956.
The priest's next parish was Oar Lady
Help of Christians Church, Watford, which
was :a new. parish created from the joint
Watford Alinston parish.
Since there wasn't a parish house, the
father lived in an apartment over MacTait's
Egg Grading, Station, just off the town's
MainStreet.
During the years. Father Oostveen served
in this parish, the 'Watford. church was.,
enlarged and removed, a modest iectory
built and St. Peter Canisius Separate
School was built with seven classrooms,
library and gymnasium'. By 1969, the church
and school owned almost a complete block.
In 1969, Bishop Emmert Carter of London
appointed Father Oostveen to the St..
Columban Parish, :in a period when the
guidelines of Vatican 11 were gradually
being iimplemented.
In the mid 1970's, the interior of the
church was remodelled by local craftsman:.
'The old rectory was demolished in 1977 and.
a new ..home built by . Clarence Ryan
Construction Ltd. The new rectory was
provided by the estate of the late Thomas J.
Moylan: The new. St. Columban school was
built in 1966, and although enrolment at the
schoolhas dropped from 135 in 1969, to 63 in
1979, the population `of theparish has.
remained 'almost the same in the last
decade;'
. In honor of his years of service, the St:
Columban parish presented Father Oostveen
with a watch, a television set and a gift of
money.
�r
a ur .X
OL
Inside this wee'N
Goodbye to kindergarten -
Chicken' biginB
rodhagen. ,
My rabbits
t
On_ aribeef o congress 'r
g ess .
•
Expositor wins
odor
P.3'•..
..P°.5,
P,' 8..
:11, & P. 15
r� 'ribbon
The Huron Ex ositor stood in 5th. place as with the annual convention of the Canadian
P
best round newspaper in its circulation class Community Newspaper Association in;
in competitions carried out in connection Toronto last week and received a Blue
Ribbon Award.
The Goderich Signal Star received third
place awards for best women's content and
also for best Christmas edition..
Community newspapers from . across
Canada submitted a total of 371 entries in
the competitions.
The Expositor was represented at the
convention by .Mr. and Mrs, Ax. McLean,
Susan Whitt and, Alan McLean,.
JUNIOR HO RTICULTURALISTS LEARN THE ROPES --Children- from
the piayst:hool program, sponsored by the Seaforth recreation
dear 1.
department, .visited MacLean$ w F o err last week to learn something
about the art of gardening.The Children were eachgiven a ... ...
_geranium
plant so green thumbs should be a Common phenomenon around town,
(Ekpbtitor photo)
Biles. needed.
for West Branch
Billets, are still needed for about 25 of the
young West Brand Michigan people Who'll
be competing in the sister city games in
Seaforth this weekend.. •
Temporary homes for Friday, Saturday.
and. Sunday nights are needed, sec, director
Clive Buist told the Expositor. Homes in
town or of people who,have children already
involved in the games are ideal, Mr. Buist
said, but anyone who can spare room for a
sister'. city visitor will get an enthusiastic
welcome.
Host families can choose Michigan guests M,
from ages 8 to 18, girls or boys, and games
activities should keep the youngsters busy
all weekend,
Anyone who has room for a West Branch
visitor for three nights is asked to call Clive
at the sec office, 527.0882 for details.
At least 100 West Branch youngsters and
their Seaforth
counterparts will be involved
in ball games, soccer,basketball, volleyball,
and track and field events throughout the
weekend, Special events include a 6.S km.
fun run for ail ages starting Saturday at the
Optimist Park at 9:30 a free dance; alio for
all ages at 8 p.im. at the arena and a free
heritage walking tour of Main $t, and the,
Whitman house Sunday from 10 to 40 which.
leaves from Victoria Park,
Buses carrying West Branca pact' '
icl!`wathM
arrive here Friday afternoon and leash'
Monday morning
_r.