Times-Advocate, 1980-01-30, Page 19Page IA
VICKIE MILLER
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terrupting an act with her ankle, and spent a few
spontaneous applause, days sitting in her hotel
In Russia, Vickie twisted room. She decided to put her
Hospital receives
8.6 percent boost
"I'm really pleased," was
administrator Tom Hudson's
comment on the budget
allocated to South Huron
Hospital for 1980. The
Ministry of Health has given
the hospital an average
increase of 8.6 percent.
Thia..ywAheiwspit01, wj11..
be'Working with $1,310,446 as
compared to $1,207,079 last-
year. "We're much better off
than a year ago," Hudson
said.
The 8.6 percent increase is
weighted, Hudson explained.
All hospitals in Ontario
received a 7.5 percent in-.
crease in their budgets, and
hospitals'under %beds were
given an additional one
percent increase. South
Huron Hospital has 44 beds.
The hospital was also given a
nine percent adjustment for
out patients, and when the
two figures are weighted
and averaged, they result in
the 8.6 percent Increase.
"No one is losing money,
it's nothing like last year,"
Hudson said. Last year at
this time Exeter's hospital
'was given an increase of only
5.3 percent on their budget.
At that tinie Hudson said the
increase really amounted to
very important as long as
you're, smiling, Rule number
two is "Don't gain weight".
Size is very important in a
chorus line, because the girls
have to be graduated in
height, , Vickie varies little
from her 115 pounds. She' is,
five foot three and' half in-
ches tall.
Since joining Holiday on
'Ice she has been home for
several visits. She left the
company just before
Christmas, and she's now
preparing to join a new
group called Paradise on Ice.
This' is an American group
which will be travelling
through, the southern states.
In the meantime, she rents
the ice surface at the rec
centre in Exeter, to make
sure she can de 'all the
routines.
After a week of training in
Rio, she knew six numbers;
in another week, she had
picked up all nine. The show
was in Rio for five weeks,
and from there she travelled
throughout South and
Central Anierica, as well as
some of the islands.
She stayed with the group
until March of '78 when she
came hoine for a fonr week
rest.
They usually do nine Shows
a week. Mondays are free,
and they do any travelling on'
Mondays. They do one show
a night, and two shows on
weekend days. In some big
cities they do three shows on
a Saturday. The time of the
show varies with the
country--depending on the
custom in that country for,
going out. The days are free
for sight seeing,
The skaters are left pretty
much i on their own, Vickie
sayss Holiday on Ice pays all
their travelling expenses,'
but when they're brought to
titYA.44%.-011,49,Al.R, maividuals to find their own
accommodation's and
transportation. Vickie now
that she is third year chorus
girl, gets paid about $200•a
week. They are paid, more in
countries where inflation is
bad, such as Japan.
Vickie rejoined her group
in Yugoslavia in the spring of
"78. Then she got the op-
portunity to join another
troupe who were about to
travel to Russia. Because
people from East Block
countries cannot go into
Russia, the troupe was short\
of girls, so Vickie joined it.
Holiday on Ice has six dif-
ferent companies travelling
around the world.
The group travelled to
Leningrad, Vilneius, and
Riger, staying four weeks in
each place. Vickie says that
Russian audiences are very
cold-they clap only at the
end of the show, never in- a cutback because it
wouldn't keep pace with
inflation.' He was also con-
cerned with the operational
costs of the hospital's new
wing, and the suggestion that
the number of beds would
have to be reduced. Later in
the year the hospital was
@llow.O.,. to. keep. all the
Hudson said that. this,
year's 8.6 percent increase
will make up for ad-
justments in inflation and
price and wage increases. If
there are funds left after
covering inflation costs,
Hudson said that hiring more
nursing personnel is a
possibility. "Wei are in the
process of looking at nursing
staff in emergency," he said.
There is a complete'
change of philosophy in the
Ministry of Health, ac-
cording to Hudson. He said
that health minister Dennis
Timbrell .is more realistic
about community hospitals
than ministers' in recent
years. Hudson said that
smaller hospitals are
gaining respect because of
this change in concept. "It's
fine to have University
Hospital to look after acute
cases, but communities need
SOUVENIRS FROM AROUND THE WORLD — Vickie and Dianne Miller sit among the Souvenirs they colletted while
travelling with "Holiday on Ice", Vickie skated with the troupe for two and a half years and Dianne worked with them for
several months as a dresser. Vickie is wearing wooden shoes from Holland and is showing' a Musical instrument she purchas-
ed in Russia. Dionne is holding a toy Kuala bear from Australia, and behind them is a gown from the btiehf. The girls have
many photographs of the ice skating group and their travels. T.A photo '
Skatin
By MARY ALDERSON
What's a girl from Dash,
wood, Ontario doing in
Russia selling her old
clothes? Ice skating, of
course,
Vickie Miller, a 21. year old
Who graduated from South
Huron District High School,
has spent the last two and a
half years seeing the better
part of four continents.. She
has been travelling with
Holiday on Ice, a group much
like Ice Capades or.Ice
Follies, which most o us
have seen. But you probably
haven't seen Holiday on Ice,
because Vickie explains,
they have an agreement with
the North American groups
to stay out of this continent.
Vickie says that anypne
wearing denim in Russia, will
be approached to sell it. She
sold a pair of Levis for $150.
"It would have been more,
but they weren't faded
enough," Vickie says. A
blouse which she had pur-
chased op sale for $2.99 five
years before sold for $25, and
a T-shirt with a Canadian
flag on it also brought her •
$25.
At 'the time she was in
Russia, in the spring of '78
souvenirs were very inex-
pensive. She brought home a
wooden musical instrument
something like a' guitar,
which only cost about $3,
among other things.
Vickie 'started figure
skating lessons in Exeter at
the age of 11. She is the
daughter of. Hubert and
Vesta" Miller. Brad Loosley
of Woodstock was her in-
structor. When she reached
18, Brad was convinced that
she, could get a job with a
professional troll/le. He
wrote letters and she went
for the auditions.
In the spring of 1977,
Vickie was accepted bY.Jca,,,,,_
'spades; ;1Zrwe s to
might have to wait for an
opening in the chorus line.
Then an offer came from
Holiday on Ice. They needed
girls in South America.
Vickie stayed in school until
she was sure of getting her
grade 1.3 diploma, and until
after the spring prom-where
she was a princess.
Soon after her 19th bir-.
thday, she found herself in
Rio I de Janeiro, learning the
steps 'to becoming a chorus
girl.
According to Vickie, there
were 19 different
nationalities represented by
the girls on the chorus line.
There are about 80 in a show-
-30 chorus girls, 20 chorus
boys,and several soloists and
pairs skaters.
Vickie says the first rule
she learned was "SMILE"!
It doesn't really matter what
. your feet do--although that's
e wonl
time to good Wle, and wrote
about ten letters home to
friends and relatives. Very
iif nte ofb:oltam sco thee:geihnlee . dktthtere s emVaeirl,maandde
those that did Were censored
iike they were
inawar,"Vickie says. There
were tanks,, jeeps and
soldiers everyWhere: Most of
the scenery Was dull and
grey. The peciple's clothing
was about ten' years out of
style, and Vickie says, this is
why they wanted to buy
'clothes from the girls in the
ice show.
After the ,Russian trip, ,
Vickie tookthe summer off,
and met her s#ster Dianne in
EuroPe. Thei.v two travelled
throughout .;'Europe and
ended up in. Greece.
Both girls' are amazed by
the number-of people they
met travelling that summer.
One girl they met was from
Mitchell, and another fellow,
Who was , wearing a
University,of Western
Ontario T-,,SIrt,, even knew
where Dashwood was.
The girls— Caine home in
September 478 and Vickie
decided to stay. But after six
or seven weeks as a
reception*, she couldn't
settle clown; She called the
Rngland officeof Holiday on
Ice and soon she was in
Munich rehearsing, a . new
shoW.
The show opened in the
Philippines' on Christmas
Day. The ice show was so
popular a there, that their
three week' 'stay 'stretched
into two months.
After thati they played in
Singapore and then on to
Australia. There Vickie
made* arrangements for
Dianne to join the group as a
dresser. Dianne left, her
secretarial job in Toronto
and fIew to Australia,
it ~TsilaA locathelP.ishired at ,
their own WWage rate, ir
because the`miniinum wage
in Australia is high;. Dianne
was able to earn a living. In
some . other countries,
Dianne says, she would not
have been able to' afford to
travel with the company.
The girls .spent three
months travelling in
Australia and made many
new. friends. They par-
ticularly enjoyed the
Australian accent and
unusual words. "They'd say
things like "We'll get some
tinnies, go to a footy, and
have a barbie," Dianne says.
Tinnies, she explains, are
cans of beer,, a footy is a
football game Which is really
like our soccer; and a barbie
is a barbeque.
Dianne returned home
after the Australian tour,
and Vickie wen't on to Japan
with the company. Crowds
were very poor in Tokyo
their hospitals," he said. because of the lack of ad-
vance advertising. In an
arena which seats 4,000 only
about 65 people showed up.
"We had a joke--we'd say we
had to stop the show because
the audience went to the
bathroom," Vickie says.
She says that the group got
very depressed--"it's hard to
keep, smiling when there 's
no one smiling back." So
Holiday on Ice brought' in
Tollar Cranston--he at-
tracted the crowds and
cheered up the group. Vickie
liked Tollar very much and
she's hoping he can visit her
in Dashwood this summer.
After Tokyo, they went to
Ngoya where the advertising
had been good, and they
played to a full house every
night.
After the Japanese tour in
September '79 Vickie came
home again, bringing along a
girlfriend from the chorus
line, whose home was in
Dallas, Texas. After a rest,
they returned to the group in
Luxemburg via Iceland.
Dianne went along again
this time, and she stayed
with friends in Austria while
Vickiereheargedia new show.
This was a totally new show-
costumes were made' and
fitted, and props Were built.
Vickie say6 that it is
sometimes difficult to
persuade a choreographer
that you can't skate carrying
heavy lighted fans and
wearing heavy headpieces.
They travelled throligh
France--a new show always
opens in Paris, Vickie says.
Then they Went on to Holland
where audience's were Very
warm. Dianne again worked
as a dresser and the girls I
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a
enjoyed Rotterdam "and
Eoschede very much.
Mr. and Mrs. Miller were
able to visit their daughters
for ten days while they were
in Holland. "We went to
cheese farms, tulip fields,'
and the` place where Delft
pottery is made," Dianne
says. After a lot of sight
seeing Dianne and her
pantsw ereed v eak imee lbeaf ck t t ht eo D
group
ash-
before Christmas, and is now
looking forward to joining a
new company in New York
city.
She has just one worry--
instead of taking their own
ice making' equipment, the
new group uses plastic ice.
While she was with Holiday
on Ice they played in
warehouses or storage
buildings-anywhere that ice
could be made. With
Paradise on. Ice, Vickie Will
be able to carry her, own
plastic tiles to practise on.
But one of her friends tells
her that, it's like skating on
glue.
Fitness fits in.
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