Clinton News Record, 2015-01-07, Page 3Upcoming show at Blyth
Festival honours those
who have mastered the
ivory keys
Fans of Billy Joel, Elton
John, Burton Cummings and
other piano greats are in for
a treat when Billy Joel and
The Piano Men comes to the
Blyth Memorial Hall on Sun.,
Jan. 25 for a special matinee
performance at 3 p.m.
Starring piano wizard and
vocalist extraordinaire Bruce
Tournay, this theatrical per-
formance combines live
music with humour, cos-
tumes, and stories about the
songs and performers being
highlighted.
True to the shows name,
the Piano Men perfor-
mance features a wide vari-
ety of musical styles from a
diverse range of piano leg-
ends. In addition to Billy
Joel, Elton John, and Bur-
ton Cummings, Tournay
will perform songs from
other piano greats includ-
ing Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats
Domino, Little Richard, Ray
Charles, Nat King Cole,
Floyd Kramer and even the
flamboyant Liberace.
Backed by the amazing
Memphis Cats band, song
highlights include
Crocodile Rock, Great Balls
of Fire, My Own Way To
Rock, Georgia, It's Still Rock
and Roll To Me, Blueberry
Hill and of course, Billy
Joel's signature song Piano
Man amongst many other
classic piano songs.
Tickets to see Billy Joel
and The Piano Men are on
sale now, value -priced at
$29. Tickets are available
for pick-up at the theatre
box office, 423 Queen St.,
by calling 519-523-9300 or
online at www.BlythFesti-
val.com.
Wednesday, January 7, 2015 • News Record 3
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Local MP says 2014 was a successful year
Dave Flaherty
QM! Agency/For The News
Record
In many ways 2014 was a
year of highs and lows for the
country.
Speaking with Huron -
Bruce MP Ben Lobb, he
believes there was more of
the former than the latter.
"Overall it was a very suc-
cessful year," Lobb said.
Lobb said with the Con-
servative government reach-
ing a balanced budget in the
2014 fiscal year, they were
able to "implement some
further tax reductions that
we committed to in 2011."
The six-year MP said the
government's income split-
ting program and increases
in the Universal Child Care
Credit would help families
who are facing tighter budg-
ets every year.
Another highlight in
Lobb's opinion was the dou-
bling of the Child Recreation
Credit from $500 to $1,000.
The credit is now fully tax -
refundable as well, he said.
Lobb said these types of
programs are key in keeping
children and youth active.
"Take hockey for example,
it has become a very expen-
sive sport to take part in."
In his home riding, Lobb
organized the successful
"Raise A Little Health" fund-
raising hockey game in July.
In all it raised $41,000 for
Alexandra Marine and Gen-
eral Hospital, the Gateway
Centre for Rural Health in
Seaforth and the Goderich-
Huron YMCA.
He also had a hand in the
successful baseball camp,
led by former Toronto Blue
Jays all-star third basemen
Kelly Gruber, held in Clinton
during the summer.
A proud accomplishment
for Lobb is that his office has
processed 12,000 passports
since 2008.
"That is a good milestone
for us," he said.
Lobb said there has been a
number of organizations
and groups that have
stepped up in the local com-
munities as well.
He was very impressed
with the galas held in sup-
port of the hospitals in Clin-
ton and Goderich.
Lobb also spoke very
highly of the continued revi-
talization of Camp Klahanie
just south of Goderich.
"Our service groups and
clubs have raised tens of
thousands of dollars each
and every year," he said.
While municipalities are
being greatly affected by
reductions in provincial
funding, Lobb said the fed-
eral government's gas tax
fund is "stable and consist-
ent funding, indexed to
inflation:'
"There was $6.6 million
returned to Huron -Bruce
this year, which is double the
amount from 2003," he said.
Lobb believes the new
Canada -Korean Free Trade
Agreement will have a huge
impact on the Canadian
agricultural sector, some-
thing that will be important
for his riding.
There were some more
sombre moments through-
out 2014, however, namely
Oct. 22 when Cpl. Nathan
Cirillo was shot dead while
standing guard at the
National War Memorial.
Lobb, who was in a caucus
meeting during the shooting,
heard the gunfire and was
one of many people who
were holed up in a room for
several hours.
This came only a few days
after another soldier, War-
rant Officer Patrice Vincent,
was killed in a hit-and-run
incident.
Both were killed bymenwho
have been described as "radical
extremists"
As devastating to the country
as those incidents were, Lobb
said Canadians are resilient by
nature and have forged ahead.
"Terrorists won't intimidate
us;" Lobb said, noting that MPs
returned to the House of Com-
mons the day after Cirillo's
death.
The threat of "terrorist"
organizations such as ISIS will
be an ongoing issue in Lobb's
opinion.
"It's had a terrible impact on
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the Middle East and has reared
its head in all Western democ-
racies either with acts of vio-
lence or threats of violence'
Lobb said he was also
extremely saddened by the
death of former Finance Minis-
ter Jim Flaherty.
The economy will continue
to be the focus of the federal
government in 2015, Lobb said.
"Continued momentum is
our focus, "he said. "The prov-
ince
rowince and the municipalities will
have their roles.'
While plunging gas prices
has "helped a lot of Canadians';
Lobb said it won't likely be per-
manent, noting that if the price
of oil stays at its currently levels,
it will eventually have some
economic consequences.
With 2015 being an election
year, Lobb will be out on the
campaign trail soon just like all
other MPs.
"To be frank, you are being
judged from the day you are
elected;' Lobb said. "Since I was
fust elected in 2008, I worked as
hard today as I did the day I
started as an Miy'
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