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The Huron Expositor, 1997-02-26, Page 44 -MS HURON EXPOSITOR. February St„ 1M7 Your Community N vespapor Since 1860 TERRI•IYNN DAt • Genual Manager & Advertising Manager KEVIN CARDNQ - Advertising Soles PAT ARMES - Office Manger DIANNE McGRATH - Subscriptions & Classifieds PAVE SCOTT - Editor GREGOR SAMPBEII • Reporter BARB STOREY • distribution A Bowes Publishers Community Newspaper SUBSCRIPTION RATES LOCAL 32 50 a year, in advance, plus 2.28 G 5.T. gNoas - 30.00 o year, in advance, plus 2 10 G.S T VSA Foreign. 28.44 o year m odronce, plus $78.00 postage, G 5.T. exempt SUBSCRIPTION RATES Published weekly by Signol-Sar Publishing at 100 Main St , Seaforth. Publication moil registration No. 0696 held of Sea(ortit, Oratorio Advertising is occpMd on condition that in the event of o typographical error, the advertising ►Pone occupied by the erroneous item, together with o reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged, but the bolorxe of Me odvertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate In the event of o typographical error, od+rlisrng goods or services at wrong price, goods w services may not be sold Advertising is merely on offer to sell and may be withdrawn at any time. The Huron Expositor is not responsible for the toss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other moterak used for reproduction purposes Chonges of address, orders fur subscriptions and undeln- roble copies are to be sent to The Moron Expositor Wednesday, February 26, 1997 Editorial and Business WFices • 100 Man 5treet.,5eafodh Telephone (519) 527-0240 Fax (519) 527-2858 Moiling Address - P.O. Box 69, Seaforth, Orion*, NOK 1W0 Member of the Conodian Community Newspaper Assonafion, Ontorio Commonly Newspapers Association and the Ontario Press Council Views expressed on our opinion page(s) don't necessarily represent those of The Huron Expositor or Bowes Publishers. The Huron Expositor reserves the right to edit letters to the editor or to refuse publication. Editorial Local solution is preferable A letter to the editor in this week's Clinton News -Record calls for an end to the "stone throwing" over hospital restruc- turing, and this is an idea that receives our full support. As was suggested this week by Janice Cosgrove, on-site administrator for Clinton Public Hospital, it is necessary for the eight hospitals in Huron and Perth to continue restructur- ing discussions, and to come up with a kcal solution. While there was concern voiced regarding the change in bed allocations from the hospitals' plan, to that released by the DHC, this should not mean the end of group discussions. it is not realistic to think any one hospital will be able to come up with a solution that will meet with the requirements of the provincial commission. It is not even a given that a plan reached in cooperation by eight hospitals will be passed, but a united front is sure to pull more weight. With that in mind, it was good to hear that all eight hospitals are back at the table and working with a facilitator. Cosgrove stated that the hospitals have a "tremendous opportunity" to have a local solution come alive, and this is an opportunity that should not be missed. All hospitals, we hope, are working towards a winning solu- tion for all, and a solution where every hospital remains open would he the best result for all. Turf protection and "stone throwing" must come to an end, because without a united front, we would hate to think how the face of health care in the two counties could change if left in the hands of a provincial commission. A local solution for local health care is a preferable option by far, so let us hope hospital discussions progress, and that the provincial body agrees that cooperation has resulted in the hest answer for Huron and Perth. - TDE, Clinton News Record. Letters to the Editor All must be treated alike Dear Editor: Whatever happened to com- Congratulations Scaforth, munity forums? Note, I say you have a lot to be proud of forums (ply it will take more - athletes Eisler, Driscoll, than one to sift through the McLlwain, Watt, Devereaux, amount of verbiage, legalize, Murray, et al. We should also (you name it) before the be proud of concerned citi- majority understand the tens who actively participate import of the proposals, suffi- in the daily Iifc of the com- cicntly enough to make an munity. Particularly in refer- informed decision, whether ence to this letter, persons to agree or object. who call our attention to My impression obtained town affairs and proposed after attcmpting to compre- changes to current zoning hend thc proposal is one that bylaws. (cads mc to believe that this is a very discretionary docu- To read and comprehend ment. the proposals outlined on the My final point would be hack page of January 29, "whose discretion" will be 1997 issue of The Huron the deciding factor in resoly- Expositor was a daunting ing any issues that will arise? proposition for most of us Our elected officials or ??? and much easier to accept the All taxpayers/citizens of "housekeeping activities" the community must be treat - explanation that wai prof- ed alike. One law for all - not fercd. different interpretations for Are we really talking of each party. "housekeeping activities" or Yours truly, sweeping things under the Shirley Ring rug? Seaforth Eager to attend Blyth Festival Dear Editor: playwright". I've marked this As i read Gregor on my calendar, so hope to Campbell's article in last week's paper, I am very eager to attend the Blyth Festival where you, David will have your play performed. Congratulations on "turning sec you in Blyth and enjoy your play. Thank you, Gregor, for alerting me to this upcoming play. Dorothy Dillon 'Dublin Checking (and chucking) the daily news I've got a mish-mash of dif- ferent items from various sources that have landed on my desk in the past weeks and have no real home except a mention in this column. • This particular press release was sent to the Expositor office four times in two days for some unexplain- able reason. - Airport Detector Dog Honored for Finding Undeclared Food and Agricultural Products - It's 10,000 detections and counting for Digger, Agriculture and Agri -Food Canada's (AAFC) airport detector dog, and his handler Howard Clark. Since teaming up at Pearson International Airport in July 1990, Digger and Mr. Clark have found approxi- mately 250 kilograms a month of undeclared products in the baggage of passengers arriving on overseas flights - a career total of approximate- ly 20 metric tonnes of sausages, butter, apples, dairy products, plants, plant cut- tings and other related prod- ucts. Digger is trained to rec- ognize the scent of these products while sniffing incoming baggage and sig- nalling with his paw when he finds something. The moral of the story is don't let Digger sniff your sausage. • Kathy Ferguson sent a clipping of strange stories from Toronto Star's News of the Weird which included the headline story "Free vasec- tomies honor the king of Thailand" - On Dec. 5, 1996, for the 17th consecu- tive year, hundreds of Thai men underwent free vasec- tomies to honor King Bhumibol Adulyadej on his birthday. The day -long festiv- ities included free food and drinks, and a condom -inflat- ing championship. The king, 69, has been praised by fami- ly -planning organizations for cutting Thailand's population growth rate by two-thirds during the past 25 years. • In the calendar of Canadian bank holidays, January 2 is listed as a "Traditional Holiday" in Quebec. (In Ontario, it's just called a two-day hangover). • And while "closely held" may be a term of affection for most of the world, bankers can't see anything romantic about the phrase. In the "Glossary of Banking Terms" in my own personal copy of Bank Facts - 1996- 97 edition, "Closely held" is defined as: "Schedule II banks may be closely held, i.e. one party (owner) may hold more than 10 per cent of the outstanding shares. Schedule I banks are prohib- ited from this type of owner- ship." (Thanks for explain- ing??) • And of interest to deer - hunting snowmobilers: A three-year study, "Response of White -Tailed Deer to Snowmobiles and Snowmobile Trails in Maine," conducted by wildlife scientists for the Maine Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, revealed that: "Deer consis- tently bedded near snowmo- bile traits and fed along them even when those trails were used for snowntobiling sever- al times daily. In addition, fresh deer tracks were repeat- edly observed on snowmobile trails shortly after machines had passed by, indicating that deer were not driven from the vicinity of these trails...The reaction of deer to a man walking differed markedly from their reaction to a man on a snowmobile... This decided tendency of deer to run with the approach of a human on foot, in contrast to their tendency to stay in sight when approached by a snow- mobiles, suggests that the deer responded to the machine and not to the per- son riding it." Three (or more) questions: 1) Where did the scientists hide to conduct these tests? Were they on snowmobiles? 2) Why did it take them three years to do the study and did they dress up in deer suits? 3) And if that is the whole report for throe years, did they get paid by the weird, hour, month, year or deer'? • On a more seasonal note, Kathy Woldnik dropped off a copy of the February 3, 1977 London Free Press (that's 20 years ago if you can believe it) which highlighted the big blizzard which had just hit the area. Of interest is a story headlined: "Civilization returns to hamlet - Snowblower liberates Kippen" - This Huron County hamlet on Highway 4 was liberated at 4:05 p.m. Wednesday when a snow- blower punched a hole through the snow. Two plows were not far behind and behind them cars. A lot of cars. Civilization had returned to Kippen. The highway between here and Brucefield, four miles to the north, had been closed since Friday's blizzard. Motorists attempting to reach Clinton from Exeter have had to settle for a Highway 21 bypass to the west or, with the release of nearby Hensall from winter's snowy' rip a day earlier, through Seaforth to the east. "You might even say it was kind of quiet around here," quipped a resident. "I had difficulty falling asleep." (Try sleeping in a student dorm near the corner of Church and Gerrard Streets in Toronto with no air condi- tioning in the summer with sirens regularly sounding and prostitutes arguing under your window after midnight. But that's another story...) Outsourcing education jobs `despicable' Dear Editor: We. the education support employees of Huron County find the recent government proposal to outsource our jobs, a despicable -act: The Ontario government is drop- ping employees at will from health care, transportation, social services, municipali- ties, libraries, etc. while leav- ing gaping holes in the ever deteriorating fabric of Ontario. Bill 104, "The Fewer School Boards Act," current- ly being read in the House of Commons, gives specific powers to an "appointed" (not elected) Education Improvement Commission to: "consider, conduct research, facilitate discussion and make recommendations to the.Minister on how to promotts-and -facilitate the outsourcing of non -instruc- tional services by district school boards." Outsourcing means the hir- ing of people from private companies that hope to save money, but at what cost to the smooth operation and conti- nuity of the school? As education support staff (custodians, secretaries, edu- cational assistants) we are an important part of the school community. We work side by side with teachers and par- ents to nurture the children of our schools and communities so that they grow into con- tributing citizens in years to come. We are not asking for more money or better benefits. We are asking that our jobs not be spirited away by the pass- ing of treacherous legislation which would initiate the pos- sibility of the auctioning of our positions to the lowest bidder. Dedication and commit- ment to task are unimportant to the Harris government. They believe years of experi- ence can be learned by crash courses. We, as education support employees contribute extra to education in our own way, on an individual basis, and our local school board recognizes and supports that contribu- tion. We are the host volun- teers of parent nights, the' lunch-hour bulletin board designers, the drama seam- stresses and set builders after school. We are the wounded knee and broken heart menders who care deeply about the students we work with. We willingly forfeit our coffee breaks and lunch hours to help students and facilitate the smooth running of the school. We are often at school long after the invisible CONTINUED from page 5 Golding leaves base for final time in 1972 FROM THE PAGES OF THE HURON EXPOSITOR MARCH 12,1897 CHEESE FACTORY MEETING - At a meeting of the Winthrop cheese factory held on the 5th inst., the com- pany rented the factory to F. Millson, at $3 per ton of cheese made during the sea- son, he is to buy the whey at the same price, if over a cer- tain amount of cheese is made. He is also to make the cheese and pay for milk haul- ing for 2 1/4 cents per pound, and furnish all materials. The patrons are to haul the cheese. A number of milk routes were let from five mills to one cent per gallon. The patrons appointed F. Millson, secretary and sales- man. LOCAL BRIEFS - A meet- ing of those interested in tem- perance was held in the YMCA rooms on Monday evening to discuss the new liquor license act now before the Ontario Legislature. The bill was thoroughly discussed and several amendments were suggested thereto, which will be forwarded to the Government. MARCH 3,1922 GW VA NOTES - The Challenge Euchre held in the club rooms Monday evening, was a decided success in every way. After two hours of euchre, won by Tuckersmith, by the close score of eighteen points, lunch was served at the forty tables. The dance following the lunoh was perhaps the most enjoyable part of a fine evening,•music being sup - (In the Years Agone plied by Miss Forsyth and Mrs. O'Connell, assisted by Messrs. Forsyth and Chesney, to say nothing of a solo effort by "Pansy" Hart. The Scotch Reel, danced by request by couples from Tuckersmith, was a fine effort well execut- ed showing the modern dancers that they really knew only the rudiments of the popular pastime. Ordained Forty-three Years Ago - The following from the Victoria Daily Times, of Victoria,. B.C., under date of February I Ith, will be of interest to many friends and former parishioners of Rev. Joseph McCoy, ft former pas- tor at Egmondville Presbyterian Church: "At Knox Presbyterian Church to -morrow will be observed the forty-third anniversary of the ordination and induction of the Rev. Joseph McCoy. Rev. McCoy was ordained on February 3rd, 1879, and inducted into the pastor chargi of the Presbyterian Church, Egmondville, Huron County, Ontario." MARCH 7,1947 Seaforth and district on Thursday was slowly digging itself out from the worst bliz- zard in thirty years. The bliz- zard which started Monday morning, had all highways and district roads closed by noon. Railways gave up a losing battle late Monday, and it was Thursday before plows had battled their way through the drifts between Stratford and Goderich. Canadian National Railways snowplow, driven by four engines, arrived here at noon Thursday, after leav- ing Stratford at 10:30 a.m. The plow reached Goderich about 6 p.m. and immediately returned to Stratford. The first train through Seaforth since Monday afternoon came into Seaforth at 11 p.m. that evening. John Francis Daly, Reeve of Scaforth, One of Huron County's most prominent business and public men, died at his residence, Victoria Street, on Friday morning, March 7, in his 75th year. Mr. Daly had been in busi- ness on Main Street, Seaforth for 57 years, first in the jew- ellery business, and then as Ford dealer. He had handled the Ford Motor Company's products for a longer period than any other Ford dealer in Canada and was widely known throughout Western Ontario. MARCH 9,1972 The Henderson trio of McKillop won top honours at the Western Fair Farm Show Junior Amateur contest in London last week. They are daughters of Mr. and Mrs. John Henderson, R.R. 5, Seaforth. In Class 1 or solo numbers with 25 dancers competing Donna Henderson took 1 at prize singing "Never Ending Song of Love" with 2nd prize going to Lyne Kernighan of Komoka who step -danced. In Class 2 or Group num- bers with 17 groups compet- ing, the Henderson trio con- sisting of Donna 11, Darlene 8 and Debbie 6, took first place singing "This Land is Your Land" followed by the Atwood Sweethearts, a step - dancing group, who took sec- ond prize. Major Frank Golding, the last commanding officer of Canadian Forces Base, Clinton, left the base for the final time Friday, Feb. 25th, on his way to a new posting. Although thc base has been closed as a military establish- ment since September I, 1970, Maj. Golding has remained as commander of a caretaking staff looking after the vital services of the base for Crown Assets Disposal Corporation. On Feb. 1, this task too had been completed. it was on Feb. 1st that Rodoma invest- ments officially took posses- sion of the Base and became responsible for such services as the heating and sewage plants and snow removal. Maj. Golding with three mili- tary and five civilians remained lit the Basc follow- ing the takeover to help smooth the transition period for the new owners and to remove the final pieces of military property to CFR London. This last military property included mostly vehicles such as snow removal equipment.