The Citizen, 2006-01-19, Page 1,
LET :435 ESTABUSIED 1877
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NORTH HURON PUBLISHING COMPANY INC.
Inside this week
e Citizen
Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County
Volume 22 No. 3
Thursday, Jan. 19, 2006
$1 (93c + 7c GST)
I Variety store gets
Pg. A, new owner
D I-, Early Years comes to
Pg. ILI Bps gym
i i Farmers' take case
8• to candidates
County seeks Pg. 1, c
Greencover funds
pg Hullett students get
• 17 reading
HE hears
concerns
about
plant
By Heather Crawford
- Citizen staff
An Ethel man addressed Huron
East council at the Tuesday, Jan. 10
meeting about concerns as to where
money for the new beef plant was
coming from.
"I am objecting to my tax dollars
going into the plant," Glenn
Howling said.
Huron East mayor, Joe Seili said
that the $10,000 put towards the
plant from Huron East is a loan and
will be paid back.
"If the plant doesn't go," Seili
said, "we have our homework done,
the research is done and there are
plants in other areas to pick up the
research we have. It's called
economic development and we've
been pushing it. It's the best money
we've spent in years."
Councillor Mark Beaven added to
Seili's comments.
"Rest assured that your money is
not going to the beef plant," he said.
"It will be paid back to the
municipality and it is going towards
creating new jobs. The money is
going towards the benefit of the
community and that is a good
investment."
Seili addressed the concerns of
where the money for the plant was
coming from. Concerns have risen
from the idea of a farmer-owned
plant since many area farmers are
struggling to make ends meet, the
man said.
"The $35 million (the amount of
money the plant is expected to cost)
doesn't have to be paid at once,"
Seili said. "The plan has a lot of
equity before we even put the shovel
in the ground.
"I've been in the agricultural
business for over 30 years now and
there hasn't been one sector that
Continued on page ?!?@>
By Heather Crawford
Citizen staff
Recently, the Wingham and District
Hospital has set up a primary care
clinic for unattached patients (those
who do not already have a family
doctor), in an effort to meet the needs
of people in the community.
"[We started the clinic] because
physician retirements have left a lot of
unattached patients," Liz Phelan, vice-
president of patient services said. "I
don't see this as a short-term solution.
I see this as being on-going."
The retirement of Dr. Ping, a family
physician working out of Wingham
has left 2-4,000 patients unattached,
Mike LaPaine acting CEO of
Wingham and District Hospital said.
"It's difficult to say how many
because there could be patients he
hasn't met with in over a year."
Getting doctors to work in rural
areas is definitely a challenge for
health care in the area. "Right now, we
require three to five family
By Bonnie Gropp
Citizen editor
It was with deep regret that North
Huron council at its meeting
Monday night accepted a letter from
clerk-administrator John Stewart
stating that he would be retiring
effective May 31.
"I'd like to say thank you for the
work you've done over the last
number of years," said reeve Doug
Layton, responding to the letter on
council's behalf.
Stewart, who was clerk of
Colborne Twp., then the separate
municipalities of Blyth and
Wingham before the latter two
amalgamated with East Wawanosh,
stated that he has "enjoyed the work
immensely, but after due
physicians," LaPaine said. "This isn't
something that is unique to our area.
It's a provincial-wide problem. There
was an enrollment drop [at medical
schools] about 10 years ago and that
coupled with the fact that not a lot of
doctors are going into family
medicine, as well as the retirement of
other physicians, leaves a fairly large
gap."
LaPaine said enrollment has gone
up recently "but it takes about five
years for us to see any change because
that's how long it takes to train a
doctor. We're caught in a time crunch
basically."
Ron Lavoie, CEO and chairman of
the Seaforth Community Hospital
Trust said Seaforth is also trying to fill
a void in family physicians. "There is
a critical need for two physicians and
we are actively and aggressively
recruiting," he said. "Recruiting
doctors is critical to the function of the
hospital. We can't operate without
physicians."
Finding physicians is a growing
consideration and discussion with
my family, I have decided that the
time is right to explore other
business opportunities."
Stewart extended his thanks to all
the councillors he has worked with,
saying they should be commended
for putting forth "the time and effort,
for very little monetary reward, to
make their community a better place
to live, work and play."
He also said that he wanted
to make it perfectly clear that
his reasons for retiring were
strictly personal and were not a
result of any action or decision by
council.
Stewart commended the staff that
he has worked with, and also
thanked the ratepayers. "It has been
an honour and a pleasure to serve
concern for health care facilities in all
of Canada. According to a study
released on Jan. 11 from the Canadian
Institute for Health Information
(CIHI), nine per cent of all physicians
in 2004 were located in rural and
small-town Canada, where over one-
fifth of the population lives.
"We don't have public
transportation in this area so [driving a
long distance] is certainly a problem.
If you are in Brussels for instance, you
are used to driving for services," Mary
Cardinal, site administrator for
Seaforth and District Hospital said. "I
think most people would like their
primary care physician to be close to
home."
LaPaine said Wingham has a large
and active recruitment committee.
"We have a five-year strategy and in
the mean time we are bringing in
locum doctors, (somebody who will
come in temporarily for about three
months for three to five days a week.)
That way they can see what the
Continued on page 6
you. I hope that in some small way I
have helped make your life easier by
addressing a concern or assisting
with a problem."
In making the motion to
regretfully accept the letter,
councillor Archie MacGowan
thanked Stewart for his leadership,
particularly in the early stages of
amalgamation.
"Your stewardship was
commendable."
MacGowan said he wanted the
ratepayers to know that "John, in
every effort and decision, has always
had the utmost input from the
ratepayers at the forefront of his
mind."
He also extended his own personal
accolade. "I hold you in very high
regard."
Candidates
debate
issues at
HCFA
meeting
By Heather Crawford
Citizen staff
Risk-management was the key
issue at the all-candidates debate in
Holmesville, Jan. 13.
The room was packed as farmers,
families and residents from across
the riding crammed into the
Goderich Twp. Hall in Holmesville
to hear the candidates speak about a
number of issues relating to
agriculture.
The crowd cheered those in favour
of risk-management and in stronger
representation for farmers in
Ottawa.
Liberal Paul Steckle agreed that
the current system of Canadian
Agriculture Income Stabilization
program is not working as it is but
can work with amendments. "We
have to put in place a repaired CAIS
program and have the risk-
management program which we
have fully supported," he said.
Conservative Ben Lobb said a new
program needs to be created.-"We
need to scrap the CAIS program. It
doesn't work. We need a new
program with income stabilization
and disaster relief," he said.
Grant Robertson focused on
leadership at the WTO. "For too
long we have been acting as the
surrogates for the United States at
the WTO rather than working for
our own allies and interests," he
said.
Christian Heritage Party candidate
Dave Joslin said if his party gained
power they would propose a five per
cent tax on food and work on a
better relationship with the US.
Victoria Serda, the Green Party
candidate kept most of her
responses brief. In regards to risk-
management she felt it was most
important to feed Canada first and
eliminate subsidies that supply
management provides.
Dennis Valenta, an Independent,
said although he doesn't understand
much about farming he has the
backbone to stand up to bureaucrats.
Other key issues discussed at the
debate include the future of farming
for younger farmers and global
warming.
There was a period for questions
from the floor.
Some of the concerns raised by
farmers were how prepared an
incoming government would be if a
widespread disease struck as well as
how much money could be spent to
reduce the $485 billion debt.
In regards to Canada's debt,
candidates all seemed to agree that
there needed to be a pay schedule.
"But we also need to invest in our
Continued on page 9
A promise remembered
The Blyth Heart and Soul Campaign got some big help recently when the Blyth Snowtravellers
came through on a promise made many years ago. In 1980, the snowmobile club purchased
a schoolhouse in East Wawanosh from the Blyth and District Rod and Gun Club. In the
minutes of that purchase it was noted that should the Club for any reason sell the schoolhouse
and then amalgamate with another organization in the future, the leftover funds would be
donated to the Blyth Community Centre. Since the Snowtravellers amalgamated with the
North Huron Trail Grooming Inc. a donation is being made to the campaign for the Blyth and
District Community Centre. On hand for the presentation of the $13,464.86 donation were,
from left: Derek Youngblut, Bruce Howson, Darryl Youngblut, Hebo Siertsema (treasurer), Ed
DeJong, Todd MacDonald (Heart and Soul), Paul Kerr, Steve Radford, Brad McVittie
(president). (Vicky Bremner photo)
Area's physician woes continue
Stewart retires from NH