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Home My WebLink AboutClinton News Record, 2016-08-03, Page 44 News Record • Wednesday, August 3, 2016 r� www.clintonnewsrecord.com Clinton News Record Justine's Thoughts: Hot weather and grass-roots community projects PUBLISHED WEEKLY — EST. 1860 53 Albert St. P.O. Box 39 Clinton ON NOM 1L0 (519) 482-3443 www.clintonnewsrecord.com rp] POSTMEDIA CURTIS ARMSTRONG Group Director of Media Sales 519-376-2250 ext 514301 carmstrong@poshnediacom 4 NEIL CLIFFORD Advertising Director NClifford@postmedia.com JUSTINE ALKEMA Journalist jalkema@postmedia.com DAWN JOHNSTON Sales Representative DJohnston@postmedia.com TERESA SMITH Front Office TSmith@postmedia.com SUBSCRIPTION RATES 1 YEAR $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GST) 2YEAR $95.00 (90.48+4.52GST) SENIORS 60 WEEKS $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GSI) 120 WEEKS $95.00 (90.48+4.52GS1) Advertising is accepted on the condition that in the event of a typographical error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged but that balance of advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographic error advertising goods or services ata wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Ad- vertising is merely an offer to sell, and may be withdrawn at any time. The Clinton News -Record is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproducing purposes. Publications Mail Agreement No. 40064683 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT 53 Albert St., Clinton ON NOM 1L0 (519)482-3443 Clinton News Record is a member of the National Newsmedia Council, which is an independent ethical organization established to deal with editorial concerns. For more information or to file a complaint go to www.mediacouncil.ca or call toll free 1-844-877-1163. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canadian Periodical Fund (CPF) for our publishing activities. Canada Aocna Member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association and the Ontario Community Newspapers Association There's a couple things on my mind this week, so I've decided to write about both of them. I've sec- tioned the topics off for your convenience. Hot weather Since I am a Canadian, I love to talk about the weather. It's been stereotyped as the go -to, awkward small -talk topic when there's nothing else to tallc about, but I enjoy chatting about it. It's relevant and una- voidable for everyone. So this summer it's really hot. I have been spoiled with air con- ditioning for my entire life, and this is my first summer without it. I am way grouchier about this than I thought I would be. I live on the second floor of a build- ing, and without a basement, there is no escape. I have always loved hot weather, so I thought it I would be fine without air con- ditioning, but I think this sum- mer has killed my love of hot weather. I miss wearing sweaters and sleeping with blankets, and I never thought I'd say it, but I just want to feel cold again. I made a pact to myself to have a better attitude and stop complaining about the weather, and then the air conditioning in my car broke. One hour long trip later, my pact was all but a memory. I've always thought that I Column Justine Alkema could live somewhere south where it's warm all the time, but after this summer, I don't think I could. My dad has several coworkers who have moved south, and they say the thing they miss the most is the changing seasons. After struggling this summer, I feel more grateful than ever that this weather only lasts for a few months. I will be in sweaters again shortly, with a new, crisper air and differ- ent scenery. As my friend loves to say, variety is the spice of life. I don't know about you, but I am sure ready for that variety. Grass-roots community projects Although weather is of course locally relevant, to be more spe- cifically locally relevant, there's a few grass-roots community pro- jects going on right now in town. I'm always interested in these types of projects because they're a beautiful example of dedica- tion to a community, creativity and proactivity. From the archives... 15 years ago... • Central Huron Council and local school representatives were opposed to a new provincial regu- lation that prohibited smoking by schools. Council and the schools wanted students to smoke on school property so they didn't dis- turb neighbours on private prop- erty and could be close enough to the school to be supervised. • Women across Huron County were encouraged to speak out if they had experi- enced abuse for a research pro- ject called Domestic Assault Review Team (DART). They wanted to speak to women about if they used any services, why or why not, what worked and what didn't. 25 years ago... • Council gave permission to a chip truck to run his business in town. • A story ran on HELP (Huron Employment Liaison Program.) This program was to help unem- ployed residents overcome employment barriers. "We've found the most common barriers for people entering the work force are health and lack of informa- tion," said HELP employee Valeria For example, all the groups coming forward to improve the Clinton community park; there's a piece about it on page 2. That's a huge endeavour to undertake, and it's not lead by politicians. Local politicians are thrilled about the initiative, however. They don't have money to redo an entire park, and they are always trying to get people involved. It isn't every day that these initiatives come up. The people who are organiz- ing these committees are very normal residents who are doing something that is very different for them. They aren't business owners (though Linda Renkema is the director of a non-profit,) and they aren't politicians. They're parents, mostly. Another cool project I got to witness this week was the making of 600 clay poppies as a memorial for every life lost from Huron County in WWI. These poppies are beautiful! Each one is a piece of pottery, carefully crafted, cut and painted by volunteers. This community art project, though initiated by the Huron Arts & Heritage Network, was put together by a group of peo- ple from Huron County. To assemble the committee, people were called up, including a local teacher, someone from the Huron Historical Society and more. Bolton. • A man from Hullett Township, Bob Elliot, was the fastest sports car driver in Canada. He set the world record for speed and had been clocked at 320 mph. He owned a Northern Force Jet Funny Car. 35 years ago... • The first phase of constructing the Hullett Marsh had just been completed. The article stated that the result would be "1714 acres of marshland" constructed over three years. • Dog fines for dogs that ran away doubled from $5 to $10. As I talked with one woman involved, she said she was help- ing out because someone called her and asked her to. When I asked her where all the clay came from for the poppies, she said, "Oh, I bought it:' She put in her own money and effort for the art. To make the 600 flowers themselves, an open call went out through a press release for volunteers to show up in Holm- esville from 10 - 4 on four days in July. Anyone could come. When I visited, dozens of people were there for the day to help out. I think that's what makes a community thrive, though. It takes people who go out of their way to come up with new ideas for their community and people who will participate in these activities. One practical way for people to get involved right now is support the fund- raisers of the new Clinton park improvement committee with time and finances, particularly if you know you will use the skate park, splash pad or play- ground equipment in the future. Don't assume that politicians are the only ones who can create new programs, infrastructure and events. Don't assume that other people can take care of these things. When everyone takes responsibility for the space they live in, it thrives. Thoughts, observations or concerns about this commu- nity? Share them with Clinton and the surrounding area. Email your letters to the editor to Justine at jalkema@postme- dia.com. Help For Today. Hope For Tomorrow. Alzheimer Society CLINTON NEWS RECORD - HOURS OF OPERATION MONDAY: 9:00-5:00 • TUESDAY: CLOSED • WEDNESDAY: 9:00-5:00 • THURSDAY: 9:00-5:00 • FRIDAY: 9:00-5:00 • SATURDAY & SUNDAY: CLOSED ADVERTISING DEADLINE: FRIDAY 2:00 P.M. ADVERTISING BOOKING DEADLINE: FRIDAY 1:30 P.M. www.clintonnewsrecord.com