Clinton News-Record, 1979-12-27, Page 4PAGE 4 —CLINTON NEWS-RECOR'7►,' URSPAY, DECEMBER 27, 1979
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Clinton News -Record
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What about the kids?
The statistics recently made public
by Douglas Barr, Executive Director
of the Children's Aid Society of
Metropolitan Toronto, are shocking:
between 1976 and 1978 the number. of
13 to 15 -year-olds in foster care in
Metro Toronto went up from 205 to
510, an increase of 150 percent in tyvo
years.
The old image of the Children's Md
was one of child -snatchers who took
children from their homes over the
protests of parents.. The new problem
for the '70s is children so out of control
tFat their parents request that they be
removed from their homes and
,`straightened out' in foster care.
Or social.workers may have to take
young children into care out of con-
cern for their safety. The 13 to 15 -
year -olds are not babies, but some
cannot speak up about parents who
batter them or sexually abuse them.
When a child is taken into care, the
choice is not between a troubled•home
and an ideal situation in foster care.
Children' take their troubles with
them and often go through two, three
or four foster -placements, becoming
more and more rejected .and
disturbed. Foster parents can only
take so much before their family is in
danger of breaking down as well.
The agenciies attempt, under ex-
treme shortages of budget and staff to
keep children in 'their own home by
giving the parents support andr
guidance. As well, .a number "of n.
alternatives are • attempted, such as
boarding schools; temporary group:
homes, stays in shelter -type homes
during crisis periods. But isn't it time
for the rest of us -to ask ourselves,
"What is happening to the children?"
If they are in trouble, they need our
help every day in every way, too.
Often we are mean-spirited when we
hear a neighbor's teenager exploding
in anger, using fbul language or we
express disgust when we See a 12 -
year -old temper tantrum. Agencies
cannot work in a vacuum. It is up to
all of us to create an atmosphere of
love for the children around us.
As parents we can guide them,
laugh with them, correct them in a
generous manner. As good neigh-
bours we can alleviate little tensions
that could grows= lending an .ear or a
hand to a depressed or worried
mother. We can spread calm to
achieve peace..
The professionals can best handle
crisis situations: But surely parents
and neighbours can prevent many
from reaching the boiling point by
living love. Perhaps we can begin to
turn around Doug Barr's statistics in
this Year of the Child. (from the
United Church)
Do you have an opinion? W1 y not
write us a letter to the editor, and
let everyone know. All letters are
published, providing they can be
authJenticated, and pseudonyms
are allowed. Ali letters, however,
are subject to editing for length
or libel.
Aommwormaimij
sugar bndspice
Growing apart -
Isn't it strange, in modern times,
how families can grow apart and be
little more than well-acquainted
strangers when they do meet, with
nothing more in common, nothing
more to talk about, after the family
gossip has been exchanged, than their
physical problems: partial plates,
bursitis, high blood pressure, piles?
These are the very people who slept
two or three to a bed when they were
growing up, fought bitterly, had the
same parents, endured the same ups
and downs of the family fortune.
Weird.
In most of Canada today, the old
family unit has pretty well disin-
tegrated. Those of us whowere
brought up with grandparents,
legions of aunts and uncles, too many
sisters (or brothers), and dozens of
cousins, are scattered into thousands
of tiny, one -cell units, with little or no
connection with the other old familiar
cells except for the occasional phone
call or Christmas card.'
I find this a little sad, but it doesn't
really destroy me. The times they are
a-changin'. Our once -warm, once -
large, once -close families broke into
fragments and we just had to accept
it, as we did the pill, deodorant and
ring-aroundAhe-collar commercials,
women's lib, and other great steps
forward by mankind.
That's what I thought. In fact, "I
didn't mind it that much. Families
can be a pain in the arm. An older
sister who still thinks you are 12- .
years -old and need straightening out.
A younger brother who doesn't realize ,
that under those dull gray socks of
yours is'another dull gray --- clay.
That's the way I thought. But once
in a while, for "some reason, or no
reason, the whole fam damily comes
roaring out of, the woodwork, all at
once, and your phone IS so hot the
wires are melting, while Ma Bell sits
back with °'satiated leer, almost, post-
coital and you take out a third mor-
tgage on your telephone bill.
Families don't Write any more.
They telephone. With,the state of our
mail service, it's no wonder. You
could send two Christmas cards, .in a
row to Uncle Ed, before you got the
letter from Auntie Agnes, mailed 13
months'bei'o e, telling yoU that he was
either ead, r ha¢ i'un oil with a strip
tease List
That e w at happened to us
,t
"I think we can afford to make it through this Christmas if we give up one little thing F
Christmas!" 1
remembering
our past
5 YEARS AGO
December 24, 1974
Clinton's .100th birthday officially starts
next week, and already preparations are
in full swing for the. Centennial
celebrations.
The first of the celebrations starts later
this week on‘ December 28, with the beard
growing contest; The contest will be
judged:during the. Centennial celebrations
week, which gets underway on July 25.
There will be at least six, classes that the
men may participate in, everything from
the most colorful to the scruffiest.
Mr. and Mrs. Gerritt Beimers of Auburn
were honored last Friday evening on the
occasion of their 40th wedding anniversary
with a dinner at the home of Mr. and Mrs.
Lloyd Machan of Blyth.
ru YEARS AGO
December 22, 1969
Holmesville Public' School held their
Christmas concert on Tuesday. In the past
the school held annual concerts usually in -.�.
the springtime, but last week's event was
the first one, at Christmas. Mrs. Bonnie
Jewitt was the director.
The , .much needed cOmpulsory breath
test legislation : has come into force in
Canada. Its main aim is to reduce traffic
accidents caused by drinking drivers.
Chosen as the most active member of the
recently. My kid brother had been
taken suddenly and rather violently
ill. We had a couple of $34 con-
versations from his hospital room in
Montreal. He was to let me know of
any change. Total silence. -
After a month of this, I phoned my
older sister and asked whether he
were dead. She hadn't a clue. Said
he'd just vanished. Fair enough. I
wasn't going to phone.
Then my daughter began phoning
from Moosonee, telling my wife about
.her troubles with beating pff the
bachelors and telling me innocuous
stuff like she was going to buy a
snowmobile, and would we take the
kids while she attended a weekend
(conference, and asking me how to
' cope with students who threatened to
shoot the principal if she kicked them
out of class.
Each of these calls was returned,
almost nightly, by my wife, who had
thought up more piercing questions
and answers in the intervening 24
hours. And I had to talk to the gran-
dboys, find out what they wanted for
Christmas, who had won the . latest
fight, and such -like.
Then came a call from my son,
collect, as usual, who said he was in
Florida, on the way home from South
America. When he'd arrive he didn't
know. Grind, grind. Teeth.
Then a close relative jumped
through the window of a fifth -floor
apartment and was pronounced
D.O.A. at the hospital. This spewed a
frenzied round .of long-distance' calls
to police, relatives, her son and so. on.
It also elicited similar calls' on the in-
line for us. "
. Just got over this, intermingled
with frequent calls to a great-
grandad, telling him we'd be over any
weekend now, a call from a brother-
in-law to ask if he 'could sleep at our
house on the way back from a music
festival, arriving at 3 a.m., a call
from another brother-in-law to ask .if
he could help about the suicide, and a
dejected call from a daughter to say
her conference was washed out and
we couldn't see them until Christmas.
Prodigal son phones, now 100 miles
from home, collect, broke,
unrepentant, Re's now home, driving
his mother crazy because he's a
health -food nut and, won't eat any of
the great meals she is busting to
prepare. Result, she cooks one pork
chop for me with a baked potato,
some squash and a bit of broccoli with
geese, she eatsthe'sawdust and stuff
h eats and 1 feel like a pig.
Kid brother calls, from James Bay
project to tell me he's alive, but has
had serious surgery and medication,
but now feeling great. He's two years
younger than I, and is going to retire
next July with a fat pension. This goes
over big as you can imagine.
Sixteen phone calls for prodigal son,
from friends who seem to have
received news of his arrival by tribal
drum. He's never here when they call.
They all want him to call back. On our
bill. •
As though Ma Bell wants to rub it in,
a bell telephone crew, complete with
huge trucks, backhoes and other vile
machinery, arrives at 8 a.m. every
morning, sdunding like Revelations
will, and tears great holes in my lawn,
to plana a cable, cutting the roots of
my maples, so they'll all die.
It's nice to have family. But if I'd
cut the phone line 20 years ago, and
put the money into its stock, I'd be a
major shareholder in Bell of Canada
today.
a look through
the news -record files
Clinton Branch 140 of the Royal Canadian
Legion, George Brown last week received
the Dqug Thorndyke plaque. At the same
meeting, president Percy Brown won a
p3•ovincial command award for sponsoring
five or more new members during 1969.
After 51 years in continuous business,
the Auburn Hardware Store, which has
been operated by the late Jas. H. Johnston
and Son and Thomas S. Johnston since
September, 1918, has been sold tq,Mr. and
Mrs. Elmer Trommer, formerly of
Hespeler. -
We -welcome the. Trommers to the
community, but will see Tom for a few
months as he assists the couple in their
new business.
The late Jas. Johnston and Son pur-
chased the business from the late George
Denstedt, the father of the - late May
Munro.
25 YEARS AGO
December 30, 1954
E. Beecher Menzies, lt.A., has acquired
the law practice of F. Fingland Q.C.,
Clinton, who has practiced here for the
fst 25 years.Mr. Fingland was recently,
pointed J'lrcl,e of ltrrion County.
4114r. Menzies is the son of Rev. A.E. and
Mrs, Menzies of Ailsa Craig, formerly of
the Londesboro pastoral charge of the
United Church, who were very well-known
and highly respected in that area.
Chairman of the Huron County Good.
Roads Committee, John W. Nediger,
Reeve of Clinton, has announced that the
large county bridge at Auburn will be
officially opened on December 30.
Warden W.J. Dale, Reeve of Hullett
Township, will unvieled the, plaque in
memory of the late Roy Patterson of
• Goderich, former county engineer after
whom the $220,000 bridge is being named.
50 YEARS AGO
• December 26, 1929
There is much street talk about elec-
tions, Clinton's oldest industry is talking of
running a man for the council; Mr.
Langford may come out again as can-
didate for the council; Mr. Cooper may
aspire to the reeveship and the present
reeve may decide to "stick" if he can. The
mayoralty will offer some excitment as a
danightrk. horse may appear on nomination
The Hydro power was turned on in
Holmesville recently, although not all who
wish to avail themselves of the benefits of
Hydro have been' able to get their houses
wired. A couple of street lights at the main
corner would be a great advantage to
everyone.
St. Paul's Church has been newly
decorated and•reopening services will be
held on Sunday next, the services having
been held in the vestry for the past few
weeks. •
Mr. Michael Stock of Holmesville had
his car badly damaged last week on the
Xmas reflections
Jean Kyler McManus wrote:
"We know when it's Christmas
By so many signs...
The lights in the windows
The long shopping lines...
The street corner Santas
The bells in the steeple
The laughter we hear
From the jostling people
We know when it's Christmas
The spirit is there -
A wonderful feeling
Of warmth everywhere
And there's no nicer time
In the year to recall
Our friends and our dear ones...
God bless one and all!"
But another Christmas is, alfnost
over. The tree is leaning precariously
toward the window. One branch is
bare, where a delicate golden ball was
shaken loose and shattered on he
floor. The carpet iS festooned With
more icicles now than the tree.
The brightly wraj ped parcels that
highway when a car from near Goderich
crashed into it.
Friday evening last. was Christmas Tree
night in Clinton, four of the Sunday Schools
having their Christmas entertainment on
that date. It was anything but a fair night
for the purpose. It was too stormy to allow
,for
people coming in from the country and
baskets had to be laid aside to be delivered
to the children later.
Sub -agents in Clinton and surrounding
villages to sell Stewart -Warner radios.
Don't apply unless you mean business.
H.A. Hovey, Clinton. •
75 YEARS AGO
December 29,d 1904
There has been considerable confusion
this year about the proper date for holding
the nominations. Some legal lights said
Friday, while others just as prominent'
contended Monday alone was legal. 'Twas
a case of choose one and may you wish you
had selected the other. Clinton, Hullett and
Goderich Township decided for Friday,
but Stanley held to Monday.
Most of the children in Hullett Township
have had a bad attack of Whooping cough:
$25 diamond rings. The stone is .a fine
white color of the first grade. Is perfectly'
cut and proportioned. Set in 14k cold
setting for $25.
100 YEARS AGO
November 27, 1879
On Wedensday a small dog belonging to
Mr. A. Clark, and supposed to be mad, was
killed to prevent it doing any damage.
We do not think there is any person in
town that, would steal wood or coal.
Nevertheless there are different ones that
complain of frequently such, and there are
those residing in town, who seldom buy
any, which makes it look Sather
suspicious.
In Goderich Township last week some
mean wretch entered the Methodist
church at Tipperary, and stole therefrom a
table cover.
The other day several intending
passengers in Holmesville waitedthe
approach of the morning train, for the
purpose of going east, but the train did not
stop to allow them to get on, although the
semaphore was raised. The reason for this •
unusal preceeding is best known to the
railroad authorrties'`hut the practice will
not raise them in the eyes of the public.
The Central Hotel - late Farlmer's -
Albert Street, Clinton. S. Pike, proprietor.
This hotel has bedn greatly improved and
thoroughly refurnished and possesses
every requisite for the convenience and
comfort of the travelling public. Good
stabling and attentive hostler.
An unknown person was confined in
Goderich jail as a lunatice last week. He
was not able to tell his name.
On Monday there were 1,000 turkeys
shipped from Exeter station for the old
country.
Heritage Canada .
Dear Editor,
Heritage Canada has beenin
operation six years, has a milllonx
dollar annual budget, a staff. of 20 at
its Ottawa headquarters, and a
membership in excess of 10,000, yet
I'd guess that mostpeople don't know
who we are.
A lot of people think we are a
government organization. Even
Sinclair Stevens, a senior cabinet
minister, wanted to know what
departmentwe came under when I
mentioned The organization to him the
other day.
He seemed surprised when I ex-
plained we were a private charitable
foundation totally separate . from
government.
I can't blame him, since our name
suggests government. It's almost a
cliche these days: Parks Canada,
Environment Canada, Transport
Canada there's no end to it.
Actually, we are in the tradition of
such voluntary associations as the
National Trusts of England, Scotland
and the United States.
But if we called ourselves a
National Trust, people would confuse
us with the financial institution of the "
same name.
In spite of all this confusion and
obscurity, I'm proud to say we've
made an impression on the Canadian
landscape since we came into
operation Six years ago:
elaine townshend ;£}. .
had been carefully arranged beneath
the tree have disappeared. In their
place is paper - rolled and tossed and
scattered about.
But it doesn't matter. The sparkling
eyes and gleeful grins, the oohs and
aahs, were worth the mess.
In the middle of the floor, Tommy
and his dad are setting up the new
racing car track, while Jim marches
around with R2D2. Susie insisted -on
trying on her pretty blue sweater the
;'"Minute she unwrapped it and she
refused to take it.off. She's dragging
"Cookie Monster" behind her. .
The adults are stretching and
yawning and trying to hide their
discomfort. They don't want to admit
they ate too much this year. But the
evidence iS in the kitchen - a drum-
stick, a wing, a 'few crumbs of pud-
ding and not much else.
A stack of dirty dishes on the .
cupboard brings a touch of reality to
the scene. Excitement is winding
down; the climax has been reached;
Christmas.1979 will scion be a thing of
the past.
But before it slips away, take a
moment to si back, relax, watch6the
happy faces anf'listen to the laughing
voices.
It's a good time to ponder inother
thought written by Jean Kyler
McManus :
"If we could make it Christmas
Not only fora day
But guard' that precious spirit -
Never let it fade away...
If we could make it Christmas
For all the ones we love
And help them find the special joys
Their hearts are dreaming of...
If we could make it Christmas
So the whole wide world would glow
With the wonder and the beauty
Of that day so long ago...
Then love would rule in every home
And nothing would go wrong...
If we could make it Christmas
In our hearts the whole,year long!"
While we still feel the spirit of
Christmas, it's also good to
remember: "There will always be a
Christmas with the lovely shining
star, So full of happiness and hope, no
matter where we are."
An ancient blessing seems a fitting
close: -May the blessed Light be on
you, Light without and Light within,
May the blessed sunlight shine on you
and warm your heart until it glows
like a great fire, So. that a stranger
may warm himself at it, And also a
friend—May God always bless you,
love yntr and keep you."
We've helped push through heritage
legislation in most provinces so that it
is easier to prevent: buildings of value
being bulldozed down.
• We've invested fairly hefty sums
as much as half a million dollars — in
various conservation areas in major
Canadian communities across the
country: St. John's, Charlottetown,
St. Andrews, Winnipeg, Strathcona,
Dawson City.
We've acted as a catalyst to spark
heritage preservation in Halifax,
Montreal, Annapolis Royal, Ottawa
and Vancouver.
We've launched a massive
education campaign — a "university
without walls" to train or 're-train.
artisans, developers, and architects
in the techniques of preservation.
We've been able to persuade local
and provincial governments to save
older buildings of merit.
We've published books, pamphlets
and our own Heritage Canada
magazine.
We are engaged in experimental'
pilot projects to find new uses for old
buildings, to preserve streetscapes,to
engage the private sector in. new
forms of profit-making preservation,
and . — perhaps the most exciting
project of all — the establishment of
the world's first live-in park 'in
-Vancouver's west end.
Now we're trying to get the income
tax act changed. It is hard to believe
that it's cheaper, under our tax
system, to tear down a building and.
put up a new one than it is to save it.
Heritage Canada doesn't believe we
can afford that kind of tax structure.
We're also doing our best to make
Heritage Day a holiday; if we suc-
ceed, I doubt if anyone will again be
confused as to what we are and what
we do. .
Sincerely,
Pierre Berton,
Chairman of the
Board,
Heritage Canada.
Technocracy
Dear Editor:
Thirty-five years ago, technocracy
came into prominence as a proposed
solution to the economic dilemma that
plagued rus during the Great
Depression.
Since that time, our economy has
been shored up by successive wars
and threats of war: World War II, the
Korean police action, our in-
volvement in Southeast Asia, and the
Cold War. The United States is 'the
world's largest exporter of arms.
Meanwhile, the underlying cause of
economic dislocation - the social
impact of the use ant the misuse of
technology - is still with us. More than
half our labor force is not employed in
the production • industries.
Increasingly, our material and
energy resources are being over-
exploited and it is becoming more and
more difficult to ensure adequate
imports.
As Howard Scat, the founder of
Technocracy Inc., used to say, "We
don't need a new deal. We need a new
deck of cards."
It is the contention of Technocrats -
that that "new deck of cards" is
Technocracy's technoligical social
design. In the light of our many
current social problems, we invite
you to lookInto Technocracy. You and
all of the rest of us have nothing to
lose and everything to gain.
For; further information, write to
either of the two addresses below:
Section 2, R.D.• 11833,
Technocracy Inc.,
435 E. Market St.,
Long Beach, Calif. 90805, or
Technocracy Inc., '
Continental Headquarters,
Savannah, Ohio 44874.
Your inquiries will receive prompt
attention.
- 1 . ,Sincere y,
.. W.E. Ada s, directoir
Section 2,
11.1). 11633
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