Huron Expositor, 2003-12-17, Page 1R1NTER
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Huron
East man, 22,
charged
after he and
i8 -year-old
Seaforth
woman are
found on 401
with stolen
vehicle
A 22 -year-old Huron
East man has been
-charged after he was
stopped on the 401 near
Toronto on Dec. 9 at 1:15
a.m. and the stolen vehicle
he was driving was
recovered.
The man was charged
with possession of stolen
property, careless driving
and driving a motor
`vehicle with no licence.
An 18 -year-old Seaforth
woman was in the car
with him.
The red four -door 1988
Chrysler LeBaron he was
driving was stolen from a
John Street residence in
Seaforth sometime
overnight on Dec. 8. The
vehicle had beenleft
unlocked on the street
with the keys in the
ignition.
Two other reports were
received from the Huron
OPP the same morning
that attempts were made
to steal other cars in the
area. •
Toronto OPP stopped
the man on the 401 after
receiving reports of a
possible impaired driver.
He is scheduled to
attend court in Toronto on
Jan. 29.
Seaforth
firefighters
extinguish fire.
at golf course
A small fire at the east
side of the top floor of
the clubhouse at the
Seaforth Golf and
Country Club Monday at
6:50 a.m. was
extinguished by Seaforth
firefighters.
Acting chief Tom
Phillips said the cause of
the fire is still
undetermined.
He said the fire had set
part of the floor, the
carpeting and a tablecloth
ablaze and that smoke
filled the building.
Damages have not yet
been determined.
Firefighters were on
the scene close to an
hour.
0
Council
tabies motion
to rescind
trust bylaw
Steffler asks for 'stay of execution'
for Seaforth development trust
By Susan Hundertmark
Expositor Editor
A motion to rescind the
original bylaw that formed
the Seaforth community
development trust and bring
forward a new one that
mirrors how the Brussels
trust operates
was tabled
after a
recorded vote
by Huron East
council last
Tuesday.
Only the two
Seaforth
councillors
disagreed with
tabling the
motion.
The issue
was raised by
Deputy -Mayor
Bernie
MacLellan
who said
public concern
about the
secrecy surrounding the
Seaforth trust is causing him
to want to make changes to
the bylaw.
"It was a major topic
throughout the election with
a number of ratepayers
concerned that there was too
much privacy. The public is
concerned that the money is
not in the public eye," he
said.
MacLellan suggested that
the trust's bookkeeping be
done by
Huron East
staff and that
trust
motions be
brought to
council for
final
approval.
Seaforth
Coun. Joe
Steffler, who
recently
became the
acting chair
of the
Seaforth
trust, asked
council for a
"six-month
stay of
execution" before council
makes any decisions about
the trust.
"I've heard it on the street
too and I made an election
promise that the Seaforth
'Ask me any
question and ('II
answer it.1
don't think we
need to be_..
managed
council,'--
Seaforth Coun. Joe
Stoffler
See MACLELLAN, Page 2
Masons keep coats
for kids in Huron
By Sara Campbell
Expositor Staff
Despite concems that the distribution of coats in Huron
County for children in need would not be possible this year,
the Seaforth Masons have pulled through.
"We wanted to ensure that the coats we collected stayed in
the county and we did," said Bruce Whitmore, organizer of
the Seaforth Masons' Care for Kids program.
The Masons collected more than 450 new and used coats,
hats, mitts and scarves this year along with several toys and
monetary donations.
After the Masons expressed concerns last month about
local distribution, Whitmore said the Salvation Army in
Clinton contacted him, stating they would act as a
distribution point for the county.
"Since the Huron United Way announced that they had to
drop the Coats for Kids program, we wanted to do anything
we can to keep it going," he said.
SM CLINTON, Page 2
Susan Hundertmark photo
Not too sure about the big guy
John Thomas Chambers, nine months of age, works up the courage to take a peek at Santa
during a visit from the jolly old elf at Northside United Church's Christmas concert Sunday night.
Huron farmers donating
culled cows to food banks
By Sara Campbell
Expositor Staff
Huron County farmers with culled older
cows are being asked to help contribute to the
Donate -a -Cow program that will benefit food
banks in the county.
The Huron County Federation of
Agriculture (HCFA) along with the Huron
County Dairy Producers have launched the
Donate -a -Cow program to give hundreds of
pounds of free ground beef to county food
banks that will help feed the needy.
"We hope to be able to distribute the beef
to all the food banks in the county," said
Seaforth-area farmer Bill Wallace, a member
of both the HCFA and dairy producers.
The Seaforth-area farmer is working along
with John Klaver, of Kippen, to help get the
program started in the county. He said he is
expanding the program, which was
spearheaded by three Perth County farmers,
to bring it to Huron County.
The Perth farmers started the program as
new approach to slaughtering their cattle.
Because of fears of bovine spongiform
encephalopathy (BSE), the provincial
government ordered that cattle over 30 -
months -old must be slaughtered by Dec. 31,
2004.
Dairy farmers have to cull their herds after
a cow has stopped producing milk. The
farmer usually then sells the animal which is
slaughtered. However, as cattle prices have
dropped, farmers are receiving little for their
animals.
"So far, we have three cows going in to be
processed which we plan to distribute before
Christmas but we hope to have more," said
Wallace.
He said cattle are being processed at
Thames Road Country Meats and Dashwood
Meats, both near Exeter. He added that in
support of the program the two abattoirs are
butchering the animals at a reduced rate of
$250, less than half of the regular cost.
"If the meat is going to the food banks, the
abattoirs will take the cow straight to the start
of the line," he said.
Wallace said the HCFA and dairy producers
will be fundraising tohelp cover the
processing costs and are asking individuals,
businesses and organizations or service clubs
to help contribute.
Angeline Swart, volunteer coordinator at
the Seaforth food bank, said she's pleased to
see area farmers starting the program in
Huron.
See FEDERATION, Page 2
Steckle wonders why he's shut out of Cabinet
Huron -Bruce. MP puts on brave face about Prime Minister Martin's choices
By Matt Shurrie
Goderkh Signal -Star Editor .
Huron -Bruce MP Paul Steckle did his best to put
on a brave face last week after Prime
Minister Paul Martin shut him out of his
new cabinet.
"I guess when you find yourself after 10
years and you see new people coming in
and these people find themselves in the
inner circle immediately you have to ask
yourself (why)," Steckle said.
Widely rumoured to be a leading
candidate to replace Lyle Vanclief as
Canada's new agriculture minister, Steckle,
chair of the standing committee on
agriculture and agri-food, never received an
interview for the post.
Instead, Martin gave the agriculture portfolio to
Haldimand-Norfolk-Brant MP Bob Speller, a former
member of the standing committee on agriculture
and agri-food and a former member of the sub-
committee on international trade, trade disputes and
investment.
"I know that both Mr. Speller and the
parliamentary secretary have both lobbied
long and hard and while I'm not privy to
(some) information I know that a lot of
people are where they are today because of
their lobbying," Steckle said. "I will not do
that. I've worked hard to get what I want
and I made it very clear to (Martin) many
months ago that I was not going to stand in
his way in my adamacy about taking on a
certain position because I felt he should
have the right to make choices based on
how he knows his members."
Steckle said while he sympathized with Canada's
21st prime minister for having a tough job choosing
between 170 people for 70 cabinet and assistant
positions, he said he was surprised that some MPs
tnded up in certain portfolios.
"I know all of these people and I know their skills
and I know their expertise and if I was to place them
I would have placed them a little differently than
what they're placed," Steckle said. "I don't know
the reasons for doing this but I do know that there's
people with expertise in fields that they're not
representing in cabinet so I guess that's why I'm not
the prime minister."
Steckle said last week's defection of former
Progressive Conservative leadership contender Scott
Brison to the Liberal Party and his subsequent
promotion to parliamentary secretary just days later
was certainly hard to swallow.
"He's a very bright lad and obviously he chose to
come tot us," Steckle said. "I think for those of us
who have been there and done our duty with the
party and been faithful to the party and then
See STECIOS, Pegs $
r
4