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The Citizen, 2003-07-30, Page 1Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Volume 19 No, 30 Wednesday, July 30, 2003 75 Cents (70c + 5c gst) NORTH» HURON PUBLISHING COMPANY INC. | Inside this week Pg. 2 Pg-10 Pg-22 Regulations stonewall Quebec student Pg-3 Track athlete earns gold Cranbrook gets golfcourse An afternoon with the Society Pa 23 ‘Hippie’opens at rb’ Blyth Festival Man charged A 20-year-old Brussels man has been charged in connection to a break-in at the Hensail Liquor Store. Huron OPP were called by a citizen shortly after midnight on July 24. regarding a suspicious truck. Arriving a brief time later, the officer found the truck but no one was around A number of tools, including a pry. bar, hacksaw, flashlight and side cutters were found. Additional officers were called to contain the scene and canine handler Sr. Const. Woods and his partner Bandit conducted a search. Less than five minutes later they located two suspects hiding in a cornfield within 100 yards of the truck. In their possession were more tools and some workgloves. The Brussels man and a 22-year- old Howick man have been charged with possession of break and enter tools and possession of stolen property as it related to different plates on the truck. The Brussels man has also been charged with breach of probation. OPP credit the citizen who called. “Their call surely averted a break and enter to either the liquor store or other area businesses.” AMD SB names new director On the web Charlie Hoy and Alison Wainwright have got Brussels on the worldwide web. Having difficulty finding information on the village to send to Wainwright’s family in England, the couple, who own a web design business took matters into their own hands. (Bonnie Gropp photo) Farm crisis taking its toll By Janice Becker Citizen staff After 11 weeks of dealing with poor markets for beef cattle due to the single BSE case in Alberta, some producers are beginning to show sign of strain. According to Alex Leith of Queen’s Bush Ministries, the calls for support have started to filter in in the last few days and he expects there could be an increase. There are two kinds of calls, he said. They are either due to stress and dissension in the family or money problems. Queen’s Bush acts as a referral service, pointing callers in the right direction for the assistance they need. “Our first job is to determine the nature of the problem. If for example it is about not being able to meet a payment, we tell them to talk to Farm Credit or their bank. Bankers are more amenable to those who call to make arrangement then those who just let it slide by. They recognize the trouble is beyond the control of local people. It has nothing to do with (the farmer’s) ability to manage money. They are caught in a web,” said Leith. Stressing that they have not yet seen a large number of clients seeking assistance, Ross Carson, regional agriculture manager for the CIBC in Listowel said he is finding “individual solutions for a group problem.” “The number of requests for financial assistance has not been as high as expected,” he said, but the institution is aware there is an issue out there. The farmers “are managing to get through it for now.” Faith Matchett, district manager for the London area of Farm Credit Canada is seeing a similar trend. “We have not seen a lot of impact yet,” she said. “We have a lot of cow/calf operations that don’t market until the fall so there is a delay in the system.” She also cites the diversity of farm operations in Huron and Perth for helping producers to cope with low market prices for cattle, sheep and goats. A good crop can help cover some of the losses, she added. Both Carson and Matchett believe it is in the early days yet as far as farmers dealing with financial crisis. “We are in a wait and see pattern,” said Carson. Both institutions say they are hoping producers will come forward when they need assistance. “We will work with farmers once we see an impact,” said Matchett. “When they need us, we will be there.” Queen’s Bush Ministries can be reached by calling 1-519-369- 6774. Brussels gets new website By Bonnie Gropp Citizen editor With amalgamation Brussels may have been absorbed into the bigger Municipality of Huron East. But thanks to a local business the village of Brussels is alive and well on the internet. Charles Hoy and his partner Alison Wainwright moved to a home in Brussels from Waterloo a year ago. From there they operate Design Heaven Ltd., an internet web design and consultation business. Wainwright's family, who live in England, had asked them about their new home and the couple soon discovered that there was no website to direct them to. “This is what we do, so we bought the domain name and began talking to people. Now in its infancy stage www.villageofbrussels.ca is a look at various aspects of life in the community. However, it also provides opportunities to promote the area, from businesses to organizations. People are encouraged to add events to the calendar or the photo gallery. Though all items must go through an approval process people can add the information themselves or through Hoy and Wainwright. “People have uploaded and said they have had no problems,” said Hoy. The site also has places for questions and general comments. They are working on the village’s history and will be including photos of the walking tour conducted during homecoming with information on each of the stops. There is a section for business and organizations should they choose-to be included. Details on this haven’t been finalized, said Hoy, but the plan is that a business could have a listing with perhaps a coupon available only on the site. “The whole thing has kind of expanded from our original idea, so we thought why not go all the way and get pages for the businesses, community groups and churches to talk about themselves.” Anyone interested in finding out more is invited to e-mail to chart ie@villageofbrussels.ca By Stew Slater Special to The Citizen The Avon Maitland District School Board looked within as it replaced its outgoing director of education, choosing education superintendent Geoff Williams of Stratford. "There is no question in my mind but that Mr. Williams is the right person for the position,” stated chair Meg Westley, in a news release announcing the appointment at a special board meeting Tuesday, July 22 “I believe that not only his range of experience but his collaborative leadership style make him the ideal director for the board at this time.” Aug. I is the official changeover date, with Williams replacing Lome Rachlis, who returns to his family’s home of Ottawa to begin work in a similar position, but with the much larger Ottawa-Carleton District School Board. At the July 22 meeting, Westley said trustees were forced to choose among “some really excellent candidates, both from within our system and externally.” She went on to praise the 49 year- old Williams, a Toronto native who worked in northern Ontario and northern Alberta before coming to the Avon Maitland board in 1999, for his "sensitivity, insight and professionalism in carrying out” his duties in various different portfolios. Most recently, Williams has handled the often bumpy road of contract negotiations on behalf of the board. Speaking after trustees supported the appointment unanimously, Williams said he’s “thrilled by the opportunity to be the director and flattered by the support of trustees.” He pledged support for the board’s existing goals, as established during Rachlis’s five-year stay, but added he’s eager to work towards the newly-established goal of building good citizenship among students, and also hopes to build upon the board’s promotion of student achievement. One of his biggest initial challenges could be the re­ establishment of a leadership team. Not only has Rachlis left the board, but another superintendent who Continued on page 6 Farmers1 market Aug 9 Blyth will host its first farmers’ market in living memory Saturday, Aug. 9 at Memorial Hall. Organized by the Saturday Celebrations committee of the Blyth Business Association the market could offer everything from maple syrup, honey and meats to baked goods to home­ made crafts. “We don’t know for sure how many vendors will be there that day but from expressions of interest it could be as high at 10,” said organizer Keith Roulston. The market will be held from 1- 4:30 p.m. in order to allow vendors to offer their products to the Saturday matinee audience at the Blyth Festival as well as to local residents. “Since it’s bonanza weekend at the Festival we’re expecting a large crowd,” Roulston said. The committee is hoping this experiment could turn into something bigger in the future. “We’d love for this to be a roaring success and we might look at having a regular weekly farmers’ market next year,” Roulston said. It’s not too late for new vendors to be accepted. Anyone interested can contact Roqlston at 523-9636 or Melissa Boven at the Blyth Festival at 523-4345.