The Times-Advocate, 2002-10-23, Page 6Granted, my grandson’s parents realize their
mistake by not registering him, even though they
were told there was no team for him in Hensall. I
believe that the five members of the executive:
Terry Caldwell, Heather Caldwell, Randy Parker,
Darlene Renning and John Coleman are being
very unreasonable not releasing him when they
had already, a week earlier, released 10 other
players.
So come on out to the Hensall arena and watch
the Hensall Midget team. It won’t be crowded on
the ice or in the stands as there is only one player
on the team.
What a great way to build team spirit and a
child’s self esteem.
I hope these mature adults will realize their
mistake before it is too late and grant this boy his
release so that he may be able to play hockey this
year.
Respectfully yours,
WAYNE D ICKINS, Hensall
Municipal sewage
bypassing
Dear Editor:
This letter is in response to the letter published
in last week’s paper by Joel Rochon about the
water quality in Lake Huron and in all the great
lakes. The following is a report published in the
Aug/Sept. issue of the Better Farming Magazine.
It seems there is a double standard when it
comes to sewage. While farmers face huge fines
for discharging manure, Ontario cities are rou-
tinely dumping sewage overflows into the
provinces waterways. In 1996 the city of Stratford
held the unenviable position near the top of the
list of cities where sewage bypassed treatment.
On 44 occasions, which were reported to the
Provincial Ministry of the Environment that year,
the Stratford sewage plant was overwhelmed by
rising waters, the regular flow of sewage plus
storm runoff from streets and parking lots.
Stratford is not alone as this bypassing has been
going on for years. In 1996 municipal sewage sys-
tems operators in Ontario reported they bypassed
treatment on 850 separate occasions. They also
reported 265 accidents. In 1999 the ministry’s
statistics reported 489 bypasses as well an addi-
tional 198 accidental spills. No details were pro-
vided. The Ministry of the Environment keeps a
close watch on agriculture but seems to turn a
blind eye to the way human sewage is handled.
Paul Verkley of Atwood, who is chairman of both
the Ontario Federation of Agriculture’s environ-
ment committee and the Ontario Farm
Environment Coalition nutrient management
working group, doesn’t share this complacency.
He gets furious when he reads about municipali-
ties bypassing their systems to put sewage direct-
ly into Lake Huron. The town of Goderich’s
sewage had bypassed its treatment plant more
than 13 times by the end of June but, notes
Verkley, “Of course, that doesn’t pollute the
beach. They still find ways to blame the farmer as
well.” It was also reported that South Huron
Municipality bypassed treatment four times in
2001 and in 2002 from January to June 30, three
times. The city on top of the list is Niagara Falls,
where in 2001 there were 54 bypasses and in
2002 from January to June 30 there were 26. It
makes you wonder what’s in the mist at the falls.
Surface water pollution is a society wide problem,
not just agriculture’s fault. More detailed infor-
mation can be received from the Better Farming
Magazine, Managing Editor, Robert Irwin at
21,400 Service Road, RR #2 Vankleek Hill,
Ontario, K0B 1R0.
RUTH HAIST,
RR 2, Centralia
6 Wednesday, October 23, 2002Exeter Times–Advocate
Opinion&Forum &News
Panther Profile
EXETER — Halloween is an exciting time of
year at SHDHS, especially if you wear a cos-
tume to the Halloween dance on Oct. 30 and to
school on Oct. 31.
Dressing up as a student does-
n’t count!
This week Mrs. Cator’s CLN
class will take a field trip to
O’Sheas Farm in Brampton.
On Tuesday, Oct. 29, a Student
Financial Services Officer from
King’s College will visit SHDHS.
This presentation is for graduat-
ing students planning to apply to
any university or college. The
first presentation is at 2:05 p.m.
in the small gym intended mostly
for students.
At 7 p.m. there is a presentation for parents in
the small gym.
If you can’t make it to one of the presenta-
tions, please feel free to listen in on the other.
Anyone who did not attend commencement
and has not picked up their diploma may do so
at the main office.
Students are reminded to pay their $20 stu-
dent fee at the main office. Only then will they
receive their student card.
Parent-teacher interview night is Nov. 7.
Please mark the date on your calendar to meet
with your child’s teachers.
Coming Events:
Oct. 23 - Girls Basketball: South Huron
at Goderich
- University Presentation: York at 2:05 p.m.
Oct. 23 - 24 - Grade 10 Literacy Test
Oct. 24: University Presentation: Brock
at 12:40 p.m.
Oct. 28 - Girls Basketball: Central Huron at
South Huron
- College Presentation: Georgian at 1 p.m.
- Early Dismissal Day
Oct. 29 - Boys Volleyball at Stratford Central
- South Huron vs. Stratford Central
- South Huron vs. Northwestern
- Student Financial Services Officer: for
students at 2:05 p.m., for parents at 7p.m.
Oct. 30 - Girls Basketball: South Huron
at St. Anne’s
- Halloween Dance
Nov. 5 - Student Health Clinic: 11 a.m.
- 1 p.m.
Nov. 7 - Parent-teacher interview night
Nov. 17 - Panthers Bands Concert - large gym
Nov. 28 - Flu shots
Teen corner
Exasperation
It's beginning to seem to me like this Double
Cohort business is an exhausted issue. Information
is being thrown at graduating students from all
sides, and processing the information leaves both
parents and teens stressed out and confused.
First of all, most of the universities that are giv-
ing presentations seem to be saying the same
things - that they are ready. Yet, the media, and
sometimes even the authorities at our own schools
are telling us differently. It's very difficult to get
useful information when you don't know who to
trust as a source. It's creating an atmosphere of
total chaos and confusion, and it's not too encour-
aging, either. We feel as though our dreams are
being trampled in the mud, picked up, dusted off,
and then trampled again by the very people who
were trying to help us. Is the situation good or bad?
We need definite answers.
The onslaught of worries about
the situation also seems a little
overemphasized, anyway. It's like
going to get a needle. We make a
huge fuss over it, we try to avoid it,
we even put it off, but we will have
to face it sometime. Things needed
to change, and we just happened to
be the people that have to do the
test run. Sure, it left us feeling a lit-
tle like crash-test dummies, but I
know that our generation can
tough it out. We've fought our way
through it so far. Some people have complained,
but my advice is just to give it your all and see what
happens. We have no choice but to face a future of
uncertainty, so why not at least fake some enthusi-
asm? After all, we did it when eating our vegeta-
bles when we were little, and we turned out alright.
Who knew what that green stuff would do to us?
But after all the fuss, it made us grow into stronger,
healthier people.
I suppose what I am trying to say is that we all
need to relax a little in regards to the "Double
Cohort" frenzy. Yes, the information is relevant to
us, and we need to know exactly what we are fac-
ing, but we do not need it in such a way that will
scare us out of fighting for our own futures.
Applying for universities and colleges is tough as it
is. We do not need people telling us that we won't
make it. What we really need, is for people to tell us
to fight harder for it.
JENN
BAKER
TEEN CORNER
BETH
HUNDEY
PANTHER
PROFILE
Principal’s Message
EXETER — The big event at South Huron this
week is the Ontario Secondary School Literacy
Test, which is being written by Grade Ten stu-
dents and by some Grade 11 students who were
unsuccessful on the test last year. The test takes
place on Wednesday and Thursday morning,
and it will be written in classrooms on the sec-
ond floor. Grade Ten classes will be cancelled
for the two mornings and several teachers will
have their classes moved in order to free up
classrooms for the test.
Last week we held a series of workshops for
the students writing the OSSLT to familiarize
them with the types of reading and writing tasks
they will face on the test. Over the past year
they have also been doing ‘literacy tasks’ in
their regular classes and in their TAP sessions;
so, we hope that we have prepared them well
for the OSSLT. We will see the results of our
efforts when we get the test results in March.
This is also a busy time of year for our gradu-
ating students and our Guidance staff. College
and university presentations are occurring
almost every week and we are working hard to
keep our students informed of their post-sec-
ondary opportunities. This is the dreaded “dou-
ble cohort” year, and it is particularly important
for students to be aware of their program
options, as well as the academic requirements
for admission into the various programs.
Recent news reports have suggested that a
significant number of graduating students will
not get into their chosen post-secondary pro-
gram, while the provincial government contin-
ues to maintain their position
that every student who ‘qualifies’
for a post-secondary program
will gain admission to it. Given
the uncertainty that exists
regarding this issue, we have
decided that the best thing we
can do is to keep our students
informed and encourage them to
consider their choices carefully
before applying. As new infor-
mation comes in, we will notify
the students as soon as we possi-
bly can.
We do have a session coming
up that parents of graduating students may be
interested in attending. On Oct. 29, we will be
hosting a ‘Financial Strategies’ session for stu-
dents at 2:05 p.m., with an evening session for
parents on the same day at 7 p.m. in the school
library.
These sessions will advise students and par-
ents of the costs of post-secondary education
and provide some strategies on coping with
these costs. A similar session last year was very
well received by students and parents alike. We
encourage you to attend.
On a separate note, I would like to congratu-
late a number of our students who entered
works of art in the Exeter Fall Fair competition.
Three students, in particular, did very well in
the judging: Kristin Regier won first prize in
painting, Cory King took first place in sculpture,
and Debra Toonk won second prize in drawing
and third in sculpture. Ms. Hone and the Arts
Department offer their congratulations to these
three young artists and to all the students who
entered artwork in the Fall Fair.
We have many talented student artists at
South Huron, and I am always very impressed
by the quality of the work I see on display in the
art room, in the halls, and at various showings
throughout the year. On behalf of the students
and staff at South Huron, I would like to add my
congratulations to all of our art students for
their ongoing efforts and my thanks to their
teachers for the guidance and encouragement
they provide.
JEFF
REABURN
PRINCIPAL’S
MESSAGE
Build self-esteem
Continued from page 5