Clinton News-Record, 1985-6-26, Page 36i
Centre offers
PAGE ELEVEN
general and individualized program
children will go to the Tuckersmith Day
Nursery so they can have the chance to in-
teract.
Prior to this year, the Lady Diana
Nursery ran from September to June,
however, this year organizers are trying to
obtain funding to allow the nursery to run an
extra month.
From page 10
Today there are 12 children attending, with
two-way transportation being provided.
The Lady Diana Nursery is operated by
the Goderich and District Association for
the Mentally Handicapped and is sponsored
by Tuckersmith. This means that
Tuckersmith looks after the administration
end of the nursery.
The Goderich and District Association
also provides 13 per cent of the funding with
Community and Social Services picking up
the remaining 87 per cent. Some of the
money paid by the Association is raised
through area fund raising events.
The nursery has two teachers, Brenda
McEwin and Mary Ann Drost. They teach
children with speech disabilities to multiple
disabilities and their coverage area ranges
from Goderich to Dublin and Blyth to Kip -
pen.
Other similar centres can be found in
Wingham and Huron Park.
Explaining the operation, Ms. McEwing-
McConnell said, "There is one main pro-
gram for all of the children and then there is
individualized programs for their special
needs."
As part of the children's therapy, they go
swimming once a week.
"Sometimes I wish we had our own
The Lady Diana Nursery, operating out of the Vanastra Recreation Centre building, is a
special nursery for the handicapped. It Is open to children with physical or mental
handicaps. Teachers Brenda McEwin (left) and MaryA.nn Dorst, give each child the care
and attention they need. (Anne NareOko photo)
building, but the recreation centre location
does have advantages such as the pool and
the gym," confessed Ms. McEwing-
McConnell.
The closness of the two nurseries also has
its advantages. Once a week some of the
"We've found that the two months during
the summer causes the children to lose (the
knowledge) that they have gained," said
Ms. McEwing-McConnell. However, she is
still awaiting confirmation on the funding.
The Tuckersmith Day Nursery and the
Lady Diana Nursery have a smooth history.
The closest they have come to a major inci-
dent was an electrical fire in the building
during December, 1977.
"The fire was detected in the morning by
one of our staff members, Debbie
Denomme. Electrial wiring in the ceiling
had caused the fire and the heat melted the
plastic on the water pipes, putting a lot of
water on the floor. But we just closed down
for the one day," said Ms. McEwing-
McConnell.
The future of the nurseries located in
Tuckersmith looks bright, adding a needed
service to its residents.
Good friends, good neighbors mean a lot
Sometimes life on the farm can get a little
lonely. Not lonely in the way that there isn't
any work to occupy one's hours, but the
distance between neighbors and friends
means a special trip for a casual talk.
For this reason, the Tuckersmith Ladies
Club was formed in 1915 and tradition has
carried the club through the years.
Approximately 25 ladies of all ages gather
at a members home for four meetings a
year. The club avoids the busy farming
months, so the meeting are held in January,
April, September and November. There is
also a pot luck supper held in August.
Ten year member Brenda McIntosh ex-
plained that in the beginning, the club in-
volved ladies who lived on one side of
sideroad 25-26, giving it the name of the
West End Club. But now the area has been
extended, probably due to modern
transportation, allowing more ladies the op-
portunity to spend time with their
neighbours.
Turn to page 16
Serving
Tuckersmith and Surrounding Areas
Sales, Service, Satisfaction
"After we sell we service"
FARM EQUIPMENT LIMITED
Seaforth 527-0120 C3al�i•