Clinton News-Record, 1979-05-24, Page 3Marion Thompson has stuck to home for many years through her round-the-
clock work, operating the answering service for the Clinton Police. Although
the hours were long and the work often quiet, Mrs. Thompson kept herself busy
for the nine years she had the service with her handicraft work and the com-
panionship of her faithful dog Jeff. (News -Record photo)
Moira C�uperpleased at vote
Although NDP can- Zurich area won the
didate Moira Couper, a riding for the sixth
community educator consecutive time with a
from Bayfield, came in majority of 9,000 votes in
third in the Huron -Bruce the Huron -Bruce riding.
riding, both Mrs. Couper Mrs. Couper said one
and her party are pleased interesting result of the
with the upswingin party election is that Huron
support. County will have a
government represen-
tative this time instead of
a member of the op-
position. She said when
In past campaigns, the
most the -.NDP party
received was six per cent
of the popular vote ,in.:this. . sh.e ;was campaigning
:1,1-Waft:Hi this campaign, many, people told..: her that__
. the_ •percentage-- was i u r o n County
almost doubled. traditionally goes against
the government in
electing their
representatives.
Mrs. Couper and NDP
supporters gathered ate
the Bayfield town hall tb
listen as polls reported
the election results.
When asked,if she will
run for political office in
Mrs. coupgr, said the
increase in voter support
"represents some results
for all the work that was
done (in the campaign)."
She said the overall
results - didn't surprise
her, since they were as
expected. PC candidate
Robert McKinley of. the
McKinley wins...
• from page 1
He said he expected to do "much
better than he did" and that he ex-
pected the race in Huron -Bruce to be
"close". He said he felt the national
trend towards the Conservatives didn't
help his campaign here. He said he felt
voters' doubts about Clark's ability to
lead the country would counter any
anti-Trudeau sentiments in the riding
quipping that he was "obviously not
right".
the future, Mrs. Couper
said that decision would
depend a great deal on
her pwn personal.
situation at the time. She
said her husband is
retiring next year, and
the couple will be making
some decisions at that
time. Mrs. Couper said
she is interested in
continuing her
association with the NQP_
organization, saying the
-party-in this -riding -needs
building. She said some
new blood is needed, and
"I hope to tap that."
Mrs. Couper thanked 1,
both her campaign
workers—and supporters
who worked with her on
the campaign.
She admitted she's
relieved the campaigning
is over, since "it seemed
like a long, long time."
McKinley felt the anti-Trudeau
sentiment earned him 3,000 to 4,000
votes.
Craig said he didn't know if he would
take another shot at upsetting
McKinley here. He said he would have
to take a look at the situation when the
next election rolls around.
Couper said she found the campaign
a "really interesting experience" and
that she "might run again in the next
election".
DUCATION FOR EMPIDYMENT
Conestoga College Certificate Programs
Would you like to upgrade your lob skills? Get back in the work force?
Or move ahead in the work force?
You can do it...in Clinton
Conestoga College, Clinton Campus, offers the following Certificate
Programs on a continuous entry basis throughout the year.
Academic Upgradiig
English, Mathematics and Science
to College entry level
*Programs are offerecton a continuous intake,.basis throughout the year.
*Contact the Clinton Campus for the date of the next openings.
*Testing and counselling are available to help you select a program.
*Funding assistance may be avallable. Check to see tf you are eligible.
Call or write to arrange an interview, or drop In to the Clinton Campus on
Vanastra Road, 482-3458, for more Information on these or any of our other
programs.
*
Conestoga College
of Applied Arts
and Technology
We've gota lot to share.
41
People in Profile,:
78,840 hours by phone enough for Marion
CLINTON'NEWS-RECORD, THURSDAY, MAY 24, 1979 --PAGE 3
by Shelley McPhee
Marion Thompson wasn't trying to
set a world record, but for the 78,840
hours, give or take a few, she operated
the Clinton Police answering service.
Mrs. Thompson retired this spring as
modern technology took over the
service she gave for nine years, 24
hours a day.
Most people would not have the
patience or time to take on the work
that Mrs. Thompson did, but for this
lady helping the police and the public
was a job that she enjoyed.
"The answering service wasn't a
burden for me. I couldn't go out
anywhere by myself anyway," she
explained. Mrs. Thompson has suf-
fered from poor; eyesight and cataracts
most of her life and is registered with
the CNIB as partially blind.
"It was a job I could do with my
handicap and something I could do at
home," she explained.
Mrs: Thompson took over the an-
swering service in 1970 after her
retirement from the Department of
National Defence, a 14 year job. She
was working in the mess hall at the
Clinton Forces Base when poor
eyesight forced her to retire.
Shortly afterwards, her husband
Russell Thompson, former Clinton
Police Chief, MI6 -had been operating
the answering service since his
retirement, died and Mrs. Thompson
took over the job.
"It (the equipment) was in the
I
stuck in
the middle
house," she reasoned.
Mrs. Thompson successfully held the
position until this spring when the
Clinton Police department made a
progressive step and became part of a
county -wide police communications
system.
"She was a very conscientious
worker and I felt that the town was
very fortunate to have her for the time
we did," Clinton Police Chief Lloyd
Westlake explained.
"I wish her all the best in her
retirement," he added.
Mrs. Thompson hasn't found her life
after retirement much different. She
still spends most of her time at home,
but now, she can sleep through an
entire night without having to answer
the police telephone and she no longer
has to call the police to make
arrangements to leave her post.
"She always used to call and tell me
when she was getting her hair done,"
Chief Westlake laughed.
Mrs. Thompson noted, "I still find
myself wondering if I should go out. It's
only been a month since I was
through.
"Next fall and winter when the days
are long, it gets dark early and its
rainy, I might miss the work but now I
can go outside and putter around," she
said.
It wasn't often that Mrs. Thompson
didn't answer the telephone while she
was on duty. If she didn't hear the ring,
her faithful companion Jeff, her 10 year
Since my visit to Ottawa over the
long weekend, I've been faced with
one repetitious question, "Isn't it a
beautiful city."
I nod my head in agreement,
remembering the majestic
parliament buildings, the luxurious
homes of the political leaders and
the ambassadors, the spacious
green parks, .the well kept roads, the
decorative street lights, the clean
waterways and the interesting
shops.
Ottawa is beautiful, but it is also a
city of contrast to the observant eye.
Within a block of the tutor styled
homes of foriegn ambassadors, the
poverty seems to stand out like a
sore thumb. The.,.. poor:_s.ection of
town; M—with old ., :delapitated.
to.wnkhouses—and apartP its;" -twit -
much different than that of any
other city, but it stands ant sharply.
Across the Ottawa River, many of
the small Quebec farms sit on a feyw '
acres of rocky, uneven land while in
the background the Gatineau Hills
attract tourists and nature lovers,
who wind their way through the
smooth paved roads over acres and
acres of heavily forested land.
Ottawa people tease, "Now you
see where your tax money is going."
Perhaps there isn't enough money
to go around? Or maybe too much
money 'is being spent, maintaining
the beautiful parks and homes in-
stead of the residences of Canada's
poorer people? Then again maybe
the money should be spent, making
our nationaYcaptial a worthy place
to be proud of for Canadian people
and foreign visitors alike?
The problem is not a unique one.
Nearly every country faces it. The
same cries of dismay and support
are . heard in London, England
regardin _.,Bueki.ngham-Palace
India over the Taj Mahal, even in the
United States over the grand White
House.
I don't know the answer to the
problem. Lie the average person
I'm easily/ �inpressed with grandeur •
and too busy quietly gawking at all
the splendor of Ottawa.
1147S factory
MAY
IS
DOUBLE
MONTH!
NOTICE
We're now open Thursday & Friday for lun-
ch...11:30 A.M. to 1:30 A.M.
OPEN:
Sunday through Wednesday, 4 p.m. -12 mid-
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Saturday 4 p.m. -2 a.m.
factory
14 HURON STREET, CLINTON
PHONE 482-3565 OR 482-3558
old Pug dog, was always on guard.
Jeff took it upon himself to notify his
mistress with a few barks and a frantic
dance that the telephone was ringing. It
was probably though his sensitive
hearing that Jeff could distinguish the
ring of the police telephone for he never
moved a muscle when Mrs. Thomp-
son's private telephone rang.
Chief
"HeWeswas part of the system too,"
tlake joked.
Jeff is suffering from old age now,
and may have to be put away, but he
has given Mrs. Thompson years of
friendship.
Along with looking after Jeff's needs,
Mrs. Thompson has kept herself busy
over the years with craft work, taught
to her by the CNIB. She hooks rugs,
crochets and knits for her two sons, six
grandchildren and two great grand-
children, She has also enjoyed reading,
made possible through cassette
recordings of magazines and novels
prepared by the CNIB.
"I can do two things at once, read a
book and hook a rug," she teased.
Oddly enough, Mrs. Thompson
doesn't spend much time on her own
telephone, unless someone calls.
"I very rarely call anyone and it it
wasn't for help in emergencies I
probably wouldn't have a telephone,"
she admitted.
But when the police telephone rang,
all else was abandoned, even sleep and
Mrs. Thompson was on duty.
"If she sent someone out on a call
she'd never go back to bed at night until
the situation was cleared up." Chief
Westlake said.
"The job involved long hours and
sometimes there weren't many calls,
but she was always there. She was
faithful," he complimented.
Mrs. Thompson added, "I'd give the
boys 10 minutes on a call and if I hadn't
heard from them by that time I'd look
for more elp."
The r lationship between Mrs.
Thompso and the police was more
than ju a voice at the end of the
receiver.
"She called us her boys and she
always had to look after us," Chief
Westlake remembered fondly.
"She was a good friend and I knew
her husband for many years," he
added.
"The police were always good to
me," Mrs. Thompson explained. "If I
got stuck and really needed something,
they would help."
Mrs. Thompson's faithful work did
not go unnoticed by the Town of Clin-
ton. For her long hours of handling
everything from crank calls, serious
and silly matters, she was honored by
the policemen and their wives and
Mayor Harold Lobb and his wife at a
special luncheon held at The Mill in
Benmiller on May 2. As appreciation
for her work the town presented Mrs.
Thompson with a braille watch and the
police department gave her a radio.
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