The Rural Voice, 2000-05, Page 70People
Two share Tommy Cooper Award
Claudia Staines (centre)
presents the Tommy Cooper
Award to Wayne McCausland
and Jack Westlake, co -
winners for 2000.
Wayne McCausland, who helped
reorganize 4-H in Ontario and Jack
Westlake, Grey County's last Ag Rep,
have been named co -winners of the
Tommy Cooper Award for
contribution to agriculture and rural
living in Grey and Bruce Counties.
The award, named after the
legendary Grey County Ag Rep and
donated by CFOS Radio and the Owen
Sound Sun -Times, was presented April
7 at the Grey County Federation of
Agriculture's Members of Parliament
Dinner.
There were nine other nominees:
Barbara Barfoot, Hepworth; Bill
Davis, Dobbinton; the late Walter
Hamel, Elmwood; Joan McKinley,
Ravena; Heather Parkin, Owen
Sound; Elva Robinson, Dundalk and
John Vander Wielen, Elmwood.
McCausland, a Meaford-area dairy
farmer, co-chaired the management
committee of the Ontario 4-H Council
when it developed plans to take over
administration of the 4-H program.
He also co-chaired the Grey County
Agriculture in the Classroom program.
Among Westlake's contributions
were his work as program co-ordinator
for Grey -Bruce Farmers' Week, co-
ordinating the Grey Bruce Woodlot
Conference and chairing meetings
leading to the formation of the Grown
in Grey education program for county
school children. With the closing of
the Markdale office Westlake has
retired to Owen Sound.0
Warren Stein honoured with OSI award
The late Warren Stein of Woodstock was a visionary in the swine industry
and that vision was honoured when Ontario Swine Improvement Inc. named him
the first winner of an award for outstanding contribution to the industry.
In presenting the award to Rosemary Stein, his widow, OSI chairman Jim
Whitehouse recalled Warren telling him "go as far as you can see, and you can
see further". Warren always lived in the future, not the past.
The past started when 17 -year-old Warren, with his 12 -year-old brother
Richard, picked up the the pieces after his father died of a heart attack. Six years
later they bought a 40 -sow certified SPF Yorkshire herd and in the next 30 years
built it into one of the foremost, and largest, purebred operations in North
America. He also was worked with OSI and the Ontario Pork board.
Since Warren's death in 1998, Richard runs the operation and Rosemary and
the next generations continue to be involved in the farm that has been in the
family since 1856.0
Perth men lead
Ontario Pork
Perth County's leadership of the
pork industry continued when the
Ontario Pork Producers' Marketing
elected its new executive in late
March and both the chair and first
vice -chair were from Perth.
Clare Schlegel becomes chair of
the 5,100 member organization
succeeding Will Knapp. Schlegel
who has represented Zone A and
served as vice -chair since 1998,
runs four hog finishing barns and is
a participant in a small multi -site
production loop. He has been a
pork producer since he and his wife
Catherine married in 1979. They
and children Adam. Toby and Ben
live on the farm near Tavistock that
was bought from the crown by his
great great grandfather. He is
currently working on his MBA.
Taking over as vice -chair is
Larry Skinner of Listowel. A pork
producer since 1985, Larry, with
his wife Nancy and their children
Stewart, Donald and Kathleen live
on a 190 -acre farm and run a 400 -
sow farrow -to -wean operation.
A graduate in 1980 from the
Ontario Agricultural College,
University of Guelph, he worked in
agricultural banking for five years
after graduation and brings a
wealth of business knowledge to
the post. In the past year he served
as chair of the newly formed
biotechnology committee as well as
being a member of the
communication, hog marketing and
environment committees.
Others on the executive include
John Boer who operates a 2500 -
unit finishing operation in Lambton
County, Mary -Ann Hendrikx who
operates a 750 -sow farrow -to -wean
and partial finishing operation near
Strathroy, in Middlesex and
Helmut Spreitzer who runs a
farrow -to -finish farm near New
Dundee in Waterloo. Harry Stam
of Haldimand-Norfolk, Curtis
Littlejohn of Brant and Marion
Myers of Glengarry round out the
board of directors.0