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The Citizen, 1999-12-15, Page 24PAGE 24. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 15, 1999. Little voices The sweet small voices of the kindergarten students at East Wawanosh Public school rang out loud and clear last week as they performed for the annual Christmas concert. They are, in back from left: Nicholas Frischknecht, Desiree MacDonald and Heidi Raynard. In the middle: Gabriel Carter, Wesley Thompson and Daryn Jorna. Seated in front: Ben Pletch and William Haines. (There will be more pictures next week.) Festival’s news good, bad There was good news to report at the Blyth Festival's annual meeting Thursday night in that attendance was up this past year but the bad news was attendance didn't increase enough to offset drops in fundraising and government sup­ port. In the long run the Festival’s operations ran a deficit of $22,418 for the year. Additional fundraising of $50,750 for Endowment Fund helped offset a $39,898 summer festival deficit. On the go'od news side of the ledger, ticket revenue increased by more than $50,000 to $374,538 but this was based on five main stage shows in 1999 compared to four in 1998. The additional revenue couldn’t make up for a reduction in revenue from fundraising events and arts council grants. A special program called the Silver Ticket Campaign had been planned to make up the difference but the ini­ tiative fell short. The problem for the Festival, auditor Ron Burt of Takalo and Burt Chartered Accountants point­ ed out, is so many of its costs are fixed and can't be cut back if rev­ enues are not as high as expected. He praised Karen Stewart, adminis­ trative director and Anne Chislett, artistic director, for reacting quick­ ly and making what cuts they could when they saw the box office was not going to be as high as hoped. “I can't stress enough that cash­ flow is going to be very, very tight,” Burt warned. Still, he expressed “every confidence that the current board and staff can deal with it.” Chislett, in her artistic director’s report, said continued government cuts have thrown additional burden on fundraising yet there is so much competition for available funds because so many sectors of the not- for-profit sector have also been cut and need to raise funds privately. At the same time, she said, compe­ tition for audience has grown expo­ nentially. Chislett announced the two sold- out productions from last year will be return at the beginning and the end of the 2000 season. Death of the Hired Man will be seen early in June, before the season officially kicks off and When the Reaper Calls will transfer from The Garage to the main stage and follow the regular season. Jim Swan of London was elected president of the board of directors. Vice-presidents are Carol Oriold of Wroxeter and Judith Walker of Bayfield. Secretary is Joe Wooden of Grand Bend. Treasurer is Sara Trainor of Listowel. Past President Keith Roulston and member at large Marg Webster of Wingham round out the executive. Daylight burglars hit area homes Three area homes were burglar­ ized last Monday when a thief or thieves took advantage of empty houses during daytime hours. One homeowner on County Rd. 25 just west of Walton discovered the break-in when he returned from work at 5:30 p.m. The front door had been smashed in and two rooms entered, said the OPP. A Kenwood stereo, Sharps television and VCR, Bell ExpressVu satellite receiver, 200 CDs, jewellery and cash with a total value over $8,000 were stolen. OPP estimate the break-in occurred between 2 p.m. and 4 pm. A break-in on Cone. 14. Col- borne Twp. was reported at 1:30 p.m. the same day. The back door had been forced open, and a Sony portable stereo, valued at $500, was taken. There was $700 damage to the door. It is believed the incident took place between 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Less than an hour later, a bur­ glary was reported at Cone. 1 1, Tuckersmith Twp. Upon returning from work, the owner found a door kicked in and $5,000 worth of property taken. The items included golf clubs, 25” RCA television, Sansui VCR, Pentium computer, Hewlett Packard printer, Sega sys­ tem and jewellery. Corrie's & Brian's 23 Huron St., 55 Josephine St., Clinton Wingham SPECTACULAR SAVINGS! IVe are committed To Reducing Your Grocery Costs BANANAS INSIDI a a■ M m m CanadaWfl A, AA, AA; H LB. 4.38 kg ROUND TS4 99 T|■ LB- TIDE 26-32 washes BREYEF ICEC £99 IS REAM 249 U.S. A. BICK'S SE LETTUCE PlCKL .69 LECT VARIETY ES 4 99 BLACK DIAMOND NEILSO CHEESE^ 40 EGG N( 225 gm H 1 L N .99 Specials in effect from Saturday, December 11 ~ Friday, December 17 STORE HOURS MON.-FRI. ...8:30 AM - 9 PM SAT. ............8:30 AM - 6 PM SUN.................12 PM - 5 PM CORRIE’S 23 Huron Street Clinton, Ontario BRIAN'S 55 Josephine Street Wingham, Ontario STORE HOURS MON.-WED. .....8 AM-6 PM THURS. - FRI....8 AM - 9 PM SAT..................8 AM - 6 PM SUN.................11 AM - 5 PM