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Times-Advocate, 1980-06-04, Page 3McKnight's Store Wide Father's Day SALE MEN'S WEAR 372 MAIN St EXETER . C I IARGEX MMES. WM Now distribute literature,. hold public meetings Times-Advocate, June 4, 1980 Pao* Alcoholics anonymous strive to.. predicted that in 10 years, four times. as many treat- ment centres will be- required, AA has proven to be the most successful method of' overcoming, the 'problem of The key to the success of the group is that it provides Main N.; Doug Wedlake, 186 Huron W.; Basil Preszcator, 21 Huron E.; Tom Ellerington, 360 Andrew; Exeter Roofing also received approval for a sign permit. fellowship with other alcoholics and at the same time enables members to be anonymous. The only thing youhave to give away about yourself is your first name and that you're an alcoholic, One member of the group said, "Alcoholics Anonymous was so anonymous for so many years that no one could find it.". Now the group distributes free literature, gives lectures at high schools, puts up notices in places where there may be people with drinking problems as to where they can call for help, and has open meetings once a month where interested people can go for information, AA is funded totally by the members' own con- tributions. There is a limit of $300 per contribution to ensure that no one can try to take control of the group. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. Before an alcoholic can be helped, he or she must acknowledge the fact that he or she is an alcoholic and needs help. A member of the group said, "Anyone who has a drinking problem and wants to get sober can." But the group claims that . although they are victims of alcoholism, they have no profound knowledge of its cause or "cure". There is really no cure for the illness. Even though an alcoholic may stop drinking, the minute he takes his first drink again he is most likely in danger. help each .other The firm's solicitor said there was no thought of extending gasoline storage and said his client would be prepared to give the town any indemnity necessary regarding the prospect of damage 'from flooding, He appeared somewhat surprised the local Authority was still using Hurricane Hazel as the guideline for setting floodplain boun- daries, indicating that other authorities had reduced their requirements. A handsome gift for Father's Day JEWELLERS LIMITED CI inton /Exeter/Seaforth ,Walkerton MEMBER AMERICAN GEM SOCIETY PEWTER STEIN with glass bottom. We'll engrave it for you, right in our store...the first twenty-five letters are free of charge. ANSTETT $25. LEGION AUXILIARY EXECUTIVE — The new executive of the R.E. Pooley Exeter Branch 167 of the Royal Canadian. Legion Auxiliary was inducted Saturday night. Back, left, Elsie McDonald, Marg Wragg, Barb Hearn, Terry Heywood, Ber- nice Shipman, Peg Hunter-Duvar, Eva Triebner and Dorothy Pfaff. Front, Annie Lawson, Dawn Murray, president Janice Frayne, Wilhelmina Jaques and Anne Kennedy. ' Photo by Reg McDonald. Building permits approved LEGION EXECUTIVE INSTALLED — The 1980-81 executive of the R.E. Pooley Exeter Branch 167 of the Royal Canadian Legion was installed Saturday night. Back, left, Milt Sweitzer, Doug Wedlake, Walt Bentley, Harvey Pfaff, Pat Skinner, Ed Roberts, Andy Blommaert and Fred Chennell. Front, Vera Armstrong, Norm Ferguson, president Murray Greene, Sam Bower and Lee Webber. Photo by Reg McDonald Debate water line By MARY WARBURTQN About 40 people attended a community meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous (M) held at Exeter . United Church, Sunday night. The purpose of the meeting was to teach people about the. recovery program and how it A total of 15 building permits were approved by Exeter council, Monday, including a new hoase. It was the first new home approved in the past three months as local building has slowed considerably. The permit for the home was approved for Stoneyridge Development Ltd. at 313 Huron Street East. The plans had been approved by former building inspector Doug Triebner prior to his retirement. The other permits ap- proved were on the same basis that council had used since the town is without a building inspector. Taxes jump Continued from front page department projects this year and he termed this a good way to manage the budget by balancing in- creases in one department with decreases in another, Council members reacted to criticism from this newspaper regarding the mill rate increase and the fact the public was excluded from any of the budget considerations. Campbell said it was perhaps time to allow the press to sit in on budget discussions so they would have an indication of the thinking that went on behind the decisions'. Councillor Lossy Fuller said she thought that had been approved last year and her distaff cohort, Marilyn Williamson, suggested the press should be allowed at budget discussion meetings to get background in- formation but not to report the proceedings. Campbell outlined his disagreement with a T-A editorial which had suggested that the actual mill rate figures had to be considered more than the percentage increase. He said he was surprised that so many people held this misconception and said only the percentage increase told the story. The actual amounts are only good for short term consideration, he contended. On the Monday night agenda he was listed as giving comments on "elementary economics for newspaper editors and other. uninformed persons." He later suggested the press served a function as the "role of the op- position" for council. helps alcoholics to overcome their problem. The group was founded in 1935 in Akron, Ohio, by a doctor and a stockbroker whose jobs and family lives had been adversely affected by their alcohol problem. They found that they Applicants are responsible for upholding the Ontario Building Code and local bylaws. Permits approved were for JoAnne Taylor, 159 Continued from front page extended from Exeter. In addition to a • lengthy letter from the PUC on the matter, council also received a formal request supporting the water line extension from Usborne council. ' Another deferment Council also passed over to the planning board a request from C.E. McTavish, owner of the Save-U Gas Bar, for an addition at that facility. Again the question was one of water, but not of an adequate supply, but rather of the fear of flooding. McTavish and his lawyer, Robert Campbell, Lucknow, were told that the property on Highway 4 north• of the bridge lies within the floodplain of the Ausable River as recently mapped by the Ausable-Bayfield Con- servation Authority. Watershed planner John P. Small has recommended that an addition not be allowed as it would set "a potentially dangerous precedent for other such developments under similar situations." couldn't stay sober nnless they met regularly to' sup- port each other in, their effort to quit drinking. Now, as the group celebrates its forty-fifth anniversary, there are over one million members of AA worldwide. It has been Wellington W.; E. Kerr, 53 Gidley W.; Landrush Inc., 364 Main; Harold Harness, 34 AlexanderW.; Wes Wit- mer, 109 Park; Carl Stire, 296 Carling ; 'BP Canada, 210 Campbell said the firm headed by McTavish planned to erect an 8' by 10' office on a cement pad that was already on the property and suggested that the southern boundary of the firm's lot should be used as the delineation of the hazard land zoning. However, Councillor Jay Campbell said the drawings from the , Conservation Authority show clearly that the present buildings are well within the hazard line designation. He continued that it was up to the municipality to protect property owners from the prospect of flooding and said there was an added danger of gasoline being carried into the river if flooding did occur. Health unit Continued from front page could not be used for the new Health offices because Huronview is a Home for the Aged not an office building and renovations to house the Health Building would be impractical. The AA recovery program includes 12 steps. The steps involve admitting that they are powerless over alcohol and need help, submitting themselves to a Power greater than themselves, admitting their wrongs to God and others, asking Him to remove their short- comings, and making amends to the, people they have wronged, They also must continue to take per- sonal inventory and admit when they are wrong, seek through prayer and meditation to improve their relationship with God, and try to carry their "spiritual awakening" to other alcoholics. The group stresses that their spiritual awakening has nothing to do with any religion, "But there's a power here," one member of the group said. Some of the members gave an account of their ex- periences at the meeting. One of them said he had been an alcoholic ever since he was 13 years old when he took his first drink. Many agreed that what attracted them to alcohol was that they felt they could do anything when they drank. They were not subject to the same inhibitions and felt equal to everyone. Many of them had thought they could quit whenever they wanted. But one member said, "You can't just admit you're an alcoholic and then quit on your own." One member said that alcoholics who continue to drink are very slefish in- dividuals. "I couldn't have a friendship with ' anyone before I came to alcoholics anonymous ," one member said. "I was only out to use and abuse people, the same as with alcohol." But AA aims at getting alcoholics to accept themselves and, therefore, be able to have a harmonious relationship with other people. Many members said that it was their pride which kept them away from AA. They only saw the stereotyped version of the alcoholic--the filthy person who lies in the gutter and can't hold down a job or keep his family together. But they said that many alcoholics are able to hide it quite well and still keep their jobs and families. Several questions were asked at the community meeting. One person asked an alcoholic to explain the term "dry drunk." This is a condition which many alcoholics go through after they have stopped drinking. Although they aren't drinking, their thoughts and actions remain the same as when they were. Often this is because they continue to blame others for their condition and cannot live with their guilt. AA enables them to accept their guilt and overcome it. Another question was whether weekend drinkers could be considered alcoholics. One member of AA replied ,"See if they could • go for one weekend without a drink, and then you'll know." AA does not claim to have an official definition of alcoholism. But they do have 20 questions for people to answer to determine for themselves if they're an alcoholic. Another queston brought out the fact that the AA organization is actively involved in lecturing to' high school and other groups where it is needed. "Teachers are becoming more aware that there is a problem in the schools," one member said. There is only one AA group for all ages. And there has been a large increase in the number of young people coming in to the organization. "They don't have to go through the hell others have gone through," and AA member said. There are other organizations with which AA co-operates but is not af- filiated. Al-Anon is a group designed for the family of an COMING BACK? If these grade 9C girls of 1948 return for the SHDHS homecoming on June 21, they'll notice some changes from the spot they chose for this candid photo during a ball game in a physical education class. The ball screen has now been transformed into the foyer of the South Huron rec centre. Back row, left: Marilyn Pfaff, Miss lauretta Seigner, Elaine Gill, Marg Bray, Muriel Coward and Claudette Blowes. Front row: Marilyn Hem, June Sinclair, Aldeen Pym, Alma Turnbull, 'Nancy Armstrong, Elaine Geiger and Joyce Haugh. the race horse barn in the background has since been moved to a Highway 83 loca- tion. alcoholic. I.tteaches families how to live with an alcoholic in their household and helps. them not to put the blame themselves. Alateen is a similar group for teenagers. AA stresses that it believes, in co-operation but not filiation. From past ex-perience the group has found, that affiliation interferes with the recovery program. Thanks For Shopping At McKnight's On Our Entire Stock Of Low-Priced Clothing For Men ewe 20% From Now Until June 14 Come Shop! Come Save! During Len McKnight fa Sons Bringing you 32 flavors of delicious hard, hand scooped ICE CREAM NOW OPEN plus Banana Splits, Sundaes, Milk Shakes, etc. Please feel welcome to enjoy your cool treats in our open air patio. rw THE SCOOP kiCE CREAM PARLOUR OPEN. 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