The Rural Voice, 1990-08, Page 3R. V'.
general manager: Jim Fitzgerald
editor: Amber Underwood
contributing writers:
Adrian Vos
Gisele Ireland
Keith Roulston
Cathy Laird
Wayne Kelly
Sarah Borowski
Mary Lou Weiser -Hamilton
June Flath
Ian Wylie-Toal
Susan Glover
Bob Reid
Mervyn Erb
Peter Baltensperger
Darene Yavorsky
Sandra Orr
marketing and promotion:
Gerry Fortune
advertising sales:
Merle Gunby
production co-ordinator:
Tracey Rising
advertising production:
Rhea Hamilton -Seeger
office: 519-524-7668
laserset: with the McIntosh Plus
printed by: Signal -Star Publishing
Goderich, Ontario
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The Rural Voice
Box 37, l0A The Square
Goderich, Ontario
N7A 3Y5
BEHIND THE SCENES
by Amber Underwood
Editor
Someone commented once that
you can't say the word "slow"
quickly. August is the same. The
word demands that you say it slowly
and with a full sound, reminiscent of
a ripe berry. Do you feel the same
way or is it only a connection with
my personal memory bank?
August was the best month to
raid the mulberry tree which stood
outside our back door when I was a
child. My mother detested it because
of the mess the overripe berries made
on the clothesline and the resident
flock of birds made on both the
clothes and the windows. We loved
it because it offered a ready snack.
That meant we didn't have to run into
the house and interrupt our summer-
time games. The ultimate conven-
ience, of course, was its refuge
during hide -and -go -seek. Not only
was it a great hiding spot but you
could eat while you waited for "it"
to count to one hundred and venture
far enough away for you to make a
run for home.
August is also a personal favourite
because it is a harvest month. Some
field crops and horticultural crops are
already finished by now but other
crops are in full swing. Yet it doesn't
seem quite as rushed as the fall
harvest of corn and beans.
This month's bounty of The
Rural Voice articles captures the
fullness of August in this part of the
country. Sandra Orr offers advice on
picking apples and her memories of
the apple orchard. For those who
aren't quite so ambitious, Darene
Yavorsky provides a glimpse of a
farmers' market and opinions on what
makes a successful one. There is
promising news from Ian Wylie-Toal
in a research update on insect resist-
ant canola. Make sure you also catch
the reviews of Bill Stewart's auto-
biography and Brewster Kneen's new
book about the Cargill company.
Perhaps August is also the time
for me to start new ventures. (After
all, it is my birthday month.) This
marks my first issue of The Rural
Voice as editor. The previous editor,
Lise Gunby, is heading to teacher's
college this fall.
One of the questions in the inter-
view for this job was how my back-
ground and past experience were
suitable for The Rural Voice. I am
assuming my answer was acceptable!
I grew up on a dairy farm in Norfolk
County, belonged to 4-H and Junior
Farmers, and graduated from the
University of Guelph with my agri-
culture degree. The next nine years
were spent with the Ontario Ministry
of Agriculture and Food as an assis-
tant agricultural representative, editor
of the 4-H and Junior Farmer maga-
zine, and program development man-
ager with the Rural Organizations and
Services branch. Most recently, I
worked as an editor with AIS Com-
munications in Exeter. And I live on
a farm again, with my husband who
farms with his family near Wingham.
There are other changes at The
Rural Voice this month. This column
is usually filled with general manager
Jim Fitzgerald's comments. Jim is
currently seeking the Liberal nomina-
tion for the riding of Huron. While he
is on a leave of absence, Sheila Gunby
is back at the reins here.
As you can tell, there are some
new faces here and some familiar
ones. One thing I have noticed so far
though is a similar commitment
among everyone. And that's a com-
mitment to a quality product, fresh
ideas, and service to readers. We need
reader input to achieve that — please
continue to make your voice heard.
Hope your August is bountiful!O