The Huron Expositor, 1997-04-16, Page 1Sports
Carolanne Doig
returns with
golf column
to open season.
See page 8
Education
SPS students
train to be
peacemakers.
See page 2
Entertainment
Blyth Festival
chooses new
artistic director.
See page 15
Your Community Newspaper Since 1860 Seaforth, Ontario
Briefly
No quorum for
annual meeting
Not enough people showed
up to make up a quorum so
the annual meeting of
Scaforth's Business Improve-
ment Association (BIA) had
to be abandoned March 25.
Coun. Heather Robinet
called it "disappointing"
when reporting to the regular
meeting of Seaforth Council
last Tuesday night. She said
the BIA members who
attended waited around for
about an hour in hopes a quo-
rum would materialize.
It didn't. So the local busi-
ness association couldn't
approve its 1997 hudget.
Coun. Robinct told council
the BIA hopes to do so at its
next scheduled meeting.
This proposed budget has
"no tax incrcasc...(and) is
nearly identical to last
year's," according to the
BIA's March newsletter. "The
amount being collected
through taxation has not
changed. There arc. however,
some minor changes in how
the funds are being •allocated
this year."
Seaforth Cubs
have good rally
The First Seaforth Cubs had
a successful outing at the
Perth District "Kub Kar"
Rally held recently.
Sixteen members of the
Seaforth Cubs built model
cars made of wood and raced
them here before competing
in the Perth rally.
Seaforth cub Mark Jansen,
10, received the trophy for
third in the races. He can now
advance to regional competi-
tion on May 10.
Nick Giller, 10, was pre-
sented with a trophy for
"Futuristic Design."
Races were also held for
cub leaders who had to build
18 -wheel trucks. Seaforth
cleaned up in that depart-
ment. First prize went to
Lesley Ash and second went
to her husband Mikc.
"Our pack made a good
showing," said leader Lesley
Ash.
Town hires lawyer
Town council carried a
motion at its April 1 tneeting
that "Scaforth does hereby
authorize the Administrator
to hire Mike Mitchell
(lawyer) to act on behalf of
the Town and Jim Crocker in
a claim from Robert Bell
Industries."
Brick thrown
through window
Someone thrcw a brick
through a front plate window
of the Stedman's store on
Scaforth's Main Street early
Saturday morning. '
The Huron detachment of
the Ontario Provincial Police
says the big window was
smashed and a brick was
found about 10 feet inside the
store. Nothing is apparently
missing, no entry was gained
and there are no suspects.
Police say a shelf of ciga-
rettes just inside where the
brick went through does not
appear to have been touched:
The incident happened at
about 6:45.
April 16, 1997 — $1.00 includes GST
PHOTO BY GREGOR CAMPBELL
GAGGLING AT AGRIPLEX : Michael Vincent of Seaforth takes a gander at some of the vaned poultry at the Agriplex
Saturday morning where the Huron County Pet and Poultry Association held a first-ever buy, sell, trade event for poultry
and small pets for Seaforth. One of the organizers, Fred Peel, termed it a success despite the wet and cold weather,
which he felt cut down on attendance. In any event, as Michael found out, there were lots of strange sights to behold.
Why education taxes continue to increase
BY TRISH WILKINSON
SSP News Staff
Provincial downloading and
its effects on local residents'
property taxes was the topic
highlighted at the Huron
County Board of Education's
puhlic information meeting
Thursday night.
School trustees, municipal
representatives and a handful
of thc puhlic turned out to
hear information on 1997
hudget estimates, as well as
why their education taxes
continue to increase despite
thc hoard's reduction in
expenditures.
"Over the past four years,
we have reduced our expendi-
tures almost 10 per cent...one
would reasonably expect
taxes would go down corre-
spondingly, and yet they don't
do that," Superintendent of
Business Janet Baird -Jackson
said. "Thanks to this down-
loading by the province, even
with almost $1 million in
reduction in expenditures, our
local mill rate is still going
up „
One of the messages of the
meeting, Baird -Jackson
explained, was to clarify who
actually sets the majority of
the mill rates when dealing
with education. She said that
unlike municipalities, three
times the amount of the taxes
people pay every year arc
determined by the province
over the trustees.
"In terms of provincial sup-
port, the property tax level
determined by the province
far exceeds the amount that
the province itself puts into
the education system." Baird -
Jackson stated.
April 20-26 National Physiotherapy Week
Baird -Jackson went on to
note that the province's
downloading effects the
board, and residents' taxes, in
many different ways. She
noted that it includes the per
pupil ceiling, which although
it has raised $37 per pupil
from ,1996, it is still down
from 1995.
"Even if the board spent the
same amount of dollars, with
a decrease in ceiling that
automatically directs those
over ceiling dollars to the
local property tax payer," she
said.
Baird -Jackson also stated
that the provincial govern-
ment's decision to remove the
annualization of Junior
Kindergarten (JK) from this
grant category and move it to
another left them down
$950,000, which was only
replaced with $250,000 in the
program specific grants.
The superintendent of busi-
ness noted that another
important factor is that in the
fiscal year 1997, the province
increased the standard
(Ontario) mill rate, which
"determines the minimum
amount that every local tax-
payer will pay", to about 3.3
per cent.
Other figures in the down-
loading include property
assessment values, that have
about a two per cent increase
on the local mill rate for 1997,
commercial tax sharing
between the the public and
private boards, and increased
interest charges.
Other concerns ranged from
transportation costs to ques-
tions about taxation under any
provincial reform. Various
trustees also spoke on issues
defending the board's current
situation.
Clinical services safe
No layoffs in
hospital plan
The 1997-98 operating plan
for Seaforth Community
Hospital "reflects a balanced
financial position and does
not call for the elimination of
any existing clinical services
or staff layoffs at this time,"
according to chief executive
officer Bill Thibert.
The board of directors of
SCH approved the plan at a
recent meeting. It covers the
April 1/97, to March 31/98
fiscal year.
As a result of an intensive
budgeting process, the hospi-
tal was able to absorb the
$285,786 (6.4 per cent) fund-
ing reduction from the
Ministry of Health,"
Monday's press release from
,the CEO states.
He said the hospital had
originally been advised of a
7.1 per cent funding cut
($317,886) but this was
reduced after further analysis
by the provincial health min-
istry.
Last year's introduction of
an early retirement program
saved about $200,000 which
was applied to this year's
budget. Thibert said about
another $22,000 is expected
to be saved in the Seaforth
hospital's,employee group
benefit program because of a
"cooperative venture" involv-
ing five other hospitals.
SIMILAR VOLUMES
The local CEO cautioned
the approved operating plan
"is based on similar inpatient
and outpatient activity to last
year's volumes and that a sig-
nificant increase in activity
could place the hospital in
financial difficulty."
The plan also supports the
future role recommended for
SCH by the Huron Perth
District Health Council
(DHC), according to the
press release.
Seaforth hospital "will pur-
sue, in collaboration with our
hospital, nursing home and
community agency partners,
the development of a regional
chronic care or geriatric ser-
vices program for our
region," Thibert stated.
All hospitals have to submit
this fiscal year's operating
plans to Ontario's health min-
istry and the local DHC by
April 28.
Physiotherapy helps with stroke recovery
BY GREGOR CAMPBELL
Expositor Staff
A wheelchair is a new
experience for Gladys'
Whittaker.
She wants to get out of the
one she's spending almost all
of her time in right now just
as fast as she can.
The spunky 82 -year-old,
who lives on Market Street in
town, is a patient at Seaforth
Eommunity Hospital these
0days recovering from the
stroke she 'suffered in early
March.
She hasn't been sitting still
the past six weeks, far from
it.
She is pushing herself, with
the blessing, prodding and
assistance of the physiothera-
py department at the lodal
hospital, to get home again
aitd do some of the things she
Gladys Whittaker at physiotherapy department
likes to do - like cutting the milk cows and pitch grain
lawn, or, maybe firing up the with the best of them. Both
tiller and getting at soma of her former husbands are
gardening, 'demised.. Whittaker had five
In.her younger days on a children, two boys and three
farm near Rental' she used to girls, one of Whom is Sharon
Medd.
NOT COMPLAINING
"I've never known anything
but work since I was nine,"
Whittaker says, not com-
plaining. "There is always
something to do."
So this stroke put a serious
crimp in her style.
Arteries carrying blood to
the brain either plug or burst
causing paralysis, Toss of
speech or other serious brain
problems when strokes occur,
at any age but especially
among those over 50.
BACK TO BASICS
Whittaker couldn't begin
to stand, let alone walk, at
first, immediately after her
stroke. To sign the consent
form for this interview and
some photographs Friday, she
had to write with her wrong
(left) hand. The stroke did a
number on her right side.
Getting the fingers of her
right hand to open is still a
big chore.
She says fighting back for
flexibility has been "extreme-
ly hard work."
"I'm just trying to do the
best i can," she says, noting
she knows of one person who
had a stroke at 20 and is still
going strong now at 60.
Whittaker still has her work
cut out for her but rehabilita-
tion has come a long way in
six weeks.
By the end of last week she
was almost standing on her
own, and taking a few tenta-
tive steps, also almost on her
own, beside the parallel bars
in the first of her now twice-
daily nearly one-hour ses-
sions at the physiotherapy
department *KSCH.
"I've noticed a big differ-
ence," she says. •
At. first she found even 15
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