New novel from local author tells tall tails

Wolves, gold, pioneers, prospectors, pick axes, romance, dog sleds, log cabins, Mounties, mountains and Malamutes come together to make an authentic and riveting Canadian adventure written by Beaver Valley author Dorris Heffron.

City Wolves follows Meg Wilkinson as she leaves home and tragedy in Nova Scotia for the rough and wild territory of the Yukon during the Gold Rush of the 1890s. Meg's trailblazing tendency, both literal and figurative, leads her to become the first female veterinarian in Canada.

Meg discovers men and women of all kinds who prove there is no mold for human beings. She falls in love with the independent, spirited sled dogs of the north whose history was inspiration for her veterinary studies.

Meg's story is laced with the Inuit tale of Ike and Piji, an ancient couple of the Malamute tribe who raise wolf pups as children.

It's a beautiful picture of the variety of the human race and the importance of that unique mix.

Heffron's history as an author is one of pioneering. She wrote three books for teenagers, at a time when literature was labelled "children's" or "adults" and nothing in between. She then wrote an adult novel, A Shark in the House, about a female dentist.

She started working on the idea for her latest book after her beloved dog, Frauzie, died. She got an Alaskan Malamute pup and called her Yukon Sally. Her vet told her that the Malamute would be an independent thinker, more like a wolf than any other dog. She fell in love.

Heffron discovered that the Malamute glory days were indeed the days of the Klondike Kings and the Gold Rush. She took a trip to the Canadian North, going as far north as one can on the mainland. Yukon Sally led Heffron along the trails, and the pair marveled at the great white north.

She came up with the story of Meg Wilkinson, the first female veterinarian, so she could take her reader across Canada and then into the Gold Rush.

"People expect that you're going to do it in that extreme feminist way - how hard it was for her," said Heffron from her home near Thornbury in between book tour stops. "Women weren't always oppressed; there were always men who thought they were really cool because of [what they were doing] and facilitated them."

Heffron doesn't try to make her wolf characters and her human characters the same. She says the theme of her book isn't that people are just like wolves or that women are just like men.

"It's really about the two different sexes and all that's between their needing each other," said Heffron. "And that's the deeper theme - the interconnectedness of people and animals. That's what we need to recognize."

There isn't a specific audience for City Wolves, and Heffron wrote her novel so that the meaning would be infinite, because the people she writes about are infinite.

She calls the book her collective novel, and says although it was a 10-year project she's been writing it all her life.

City Wolves is an historical fiction novel with some characters from history and some from Heffron's imagination. And much of the plot is based on real events.

"I thought it made the story more engrossing and artful," said Heffron.

The read is easy, but the digestion lasts long after the pages are turned. The real-life aspect of the story makes it a compelling and authentic tale.

Heffron and her husband Don Gauer live in a home they built at Little Creek Wolf Range off the Beaver Valley Road with their Malamutes Yukie two and Jake.

City Wolves was published by Blue Butterfly Books and is available by order at most bookstores or online at Amazon.com.

Heffron will be at the L.E. Shore Library on Sunday, Nov. 16 to read passages from her book at 1:30 p.m.

The people at Passchendaele

November 12, 2008

I saw the film, Passchendaele this week. It’s a Canadian made film, actually one of the most expensive ever made. It was written and directed by Calgary born Paul Gross, who also plays the lead.
It’s an incredible film, shot mostly in Canada. It follows Gross’ character Michael Dunne from the battle to a hospital in Calgary then back to the fighting again. Dunne was Gross’ grandfather, and the story is based on his own.
Gross told Now Magazine almost ten years ago about his grandfather’s confession before he died.
“He went completely out of his mind at the end. He started telling me about a hideous event that happened during a skirmish …He’d killed someone in a miserable horrible way and that had obviously haunted him throughout the rest of his life, “ said Gross. “It really affected me and I’ve not been able to get it out of my head.”
Gross ends the film at the battle of Passchendaele, with his characters fighting chest deep in shell craters filled with brown water in an endless field of grey unforgiving mud.
The Canadian troops were called to the battle when others had failed to win. They won the fight at a cost of nearly 16,000 men and a battle that lasted months, gaining the Allies about nine kilometers of ground. Five months later, the Germans re-took the ground they lost.
Intertwined in the war story is a love story.
Gross does a brilliant job of conveying Canadian courage and spirit in the film. He reminded me of the importance of Remembrance Day.
Gross’ film was not inspired by the muddy battle of Passchendaele, but by his brave, tortured grandfather who survived The Great War.
It’s not about remembering all the battles that were fought, but about the Canadians, and others who fought in them, who made sacrifices and showed courage.
We wear a poppy today because one Canadian medical officer looked up one day to see the red blooms amidst a grey field of dead, and thought, “we’re going to have to remember these people somehow.“

'Tis the season. 'Tisn't it?

October 30, 2008

Behold, I bring you good tidings and great news, there's only 56 more sleeps until Christmas.

It's lucky I was at Sears the other day to see the holly jolly figures of everything festive being poured onto the shelves, or I might not have started the countdown in time for this week's paper.

I used to wait until I bought all the half-price post-Halloween candy before I started thinking about Christmas candy to come. I'm starting to think that stores would save a lot of trouble re-merchandising if they just lobbied for a change in fall colours.

Garland makes good spider webs, and the pilgrims probably wore Santa hats. We could simply say, "Happy Hallow-days-giving," and have candy, corn, turkey, and figgy pudding for three months.

I'm sure the trick-or-treat Elmo would be a big seller.

Speaking of big sellers, 42 Meaford residents and 25 from Thornbury joined over 90,000 Canadians in spending a combined $18 million ordering Christmas gifts from one catalogue - the World Vision Gift Catalogue. It's an international wish book, but contrary to so many others, it's filled with gifts people need.

This year, World Vision's catalogue, available online, features a few new gifts. For $75, donors can pay for one child soldier to be "restored to safety and hope" through a reintegration program. For $60, donors can help an Afghan farmer grow pomegranates, saffron, pistachios and more.

There are many other practical and much-needed gifts available for purchase in the gift catalogue including goats, fruit trees, village latrines, shelters, warm clothing, emergency supplies, clean water equipment, solar panels for power generation and school supplies.

Here's the only statistic I'm going to quote, because I think you already know the dire need of so many people across the globe.

World Vision Canada conducted a poll with the help of survey experts Ipsos Reid and found that seven in 10 Canadians say they don't need anything for Christmas.

Of course, Christmas is a time for giving gifts, and it's an exciting thing to do. Why not add one or two gifts to your list from the gift catalogue?

Charities like World Vision give Canadians the opportunity to give even more at Christmas time - the chance to give sweaters that won't be returned and food that won't go bad. There are lots of charities to give to this Christmas, including local food banks, outreaches and churches.

It's the tradition that St. Nicholas started and the reason for those city block sized department stores drowning in cinnamon candles and glittering plastic icicles.

Give some extra love this Christmas.

Superman, eh?!

October 5, 2008

I was chatting with an old friend at a Terry Fox event last week. He told me he just heard the cutest thing. He was standing near a little boy who had finished his run when the boy exclaimed between breaths, "Wow, I'm so good at running, I should just run around Canada."

Now, that's Canadian courage.

The kind of courage that Terry Fox himself displayed when he dipped his artificial leg into the Atlantic Ocean at the start of his iconic journey across Canada. Fox was once heard saying, "I remember promising myself that should I live, I would prove myself deserving of life." He dreamed that each Canadian would give $1 to Cancer research so that one day, a cure would be found.

Fox didn't make it across Canada, but a few months before he died, his dream was realized.

Canadians had donated over $24 million to the Marathon of Hope, the population at the time was 24 million.

The Marathon of Hope is and always was about more than cancer. It's about the little boy who now believes he can just run around Canada. Terry's courage is the part that people remember - the thing that makes him a hero.

Heroes aren't too rare a phenomenon in Canada. In fact, the nation is more like the planet Krypton than most may think.

Superman's creator was actually an average Canadian Joe ... Joe Shuster. I'm sure many remember that Historica moment on TV at the train station when the lady says " a hero in tights? It'll never fly." And the young man says, "Fly, no, but he can leap over tall buildings."

Then he hands a sketch of the Man of Steel.

Shuster moved to the United States and worked from there to sell his hero and start a comic book trend. Superman, however, was decidedly Canadian.

Canuck novelist Mordecai Richler said Superman's extraordinary strength, speed and superhuman powers hidden under a modest, even bland, alter ego makes him an archetypal Canadian personality.

The Man of Steel is a universal hero known as the champion of virtue completely content to take no credit for his deeds and instead live as a quiet and subtle man.

I like Canadian heroes. For some reason, they get their head on right and it stays that way. They see enough of reality to stay grounded, but dream big enough to defy odds. Maybe it's because they aren't chased everywhere by paparazzi and they rarely have to get restraining orders against 12 year-old girls and their mothers. Maybe it's because they are Canadians first, and heroes second.

Lucille Teasdale was Montreal born, and despite growing up in a working-class family in the 1930s, she was determined to go to medical school. She graduated at 26 and while interning decided she wanted to be a surgeon. Canada and the U.S. refused to admit her, and she later moved to France where she was accepted by two hospitals and licensed as a surgeon.

She married another doctor and moved to Uganda to start a hospital. She treated 13,000 patients throughout her career in Uganda. She worked through wars, AIDS epidemics and unimaginable carnage.

Teasdale contracted HIV in the 1980s, probably while operating on a soldier. She was given two years to live. She continued to perform surgeries in Uganda until 1993. She said simply, "If I didn't do it, the patients would die." When surgery became too difficult, she and her husband set up a foundation to guarantee the future of their hospital, and for the last two years of her life, Teasdale toured the world to raise funds for the foundation. The hospital is now one of the largest medical centres in Uganda.

Fox and Teasdale were both recipients of the Order of Canada, the nation's highest civilian award. The order recognizes lifetime achievement and merit in service to Canada or humanity at large. There's a motto for order recipients - a member of the Order of Canada must desire a better country.

They prove not only that they are deserving of life, but also that life is worth desiring.

Rocks in the treasury

I walked into a store the other day.

I guess it was a flea market.

I'm ruining this, aren't I?

Well, there was a section for "treasures." And behind a few "you break it you buy it" notes, the shelves were crowded with trinkets, some shiny, some dull. Some half and half, depending where the dust had settled.

There were many shelves full of books, and one decrepit, thick black spine caught my attention. The tired book was completely ordinary. Once a textbook, once pristine, with white pages tightly bound, it probably arrived in the mail wrapped brown paper and tied with string.

It was probably discarded as soon as the graduate received their certificate.

Now it's on a shelf with other books, some standing a little straighter than others. Across the aisle are the lazy typewriters with dented cases, the threadbare chairs, frayed ticket stubs with washed out ink and thousands of teacups. All in a section called "treasures."

What keeps these faded memories from ending up in the junkyard? Maybe chance. Maybe more.

When I was young, my family had a Black Lab. We called him Tar. He called us obvious.

He loved swimming and chasing sticks, but toward the end of his life he slowed down a bit. He couldn't swim as far, but he still loved the water. We used to take him down to the beach near Thornbury Harbour. It's very rocky there, we often wished for sand, but Tar thought it was perfect.

While we sat on the beach, skipping rocks off the shore or wishing for sand to make castles, Tar would stand knee deep in the water staring into the waves. His ears fell forwards to cover the side of his face.

Labs have adorable ears.

His brown eyes watched the bottom of the lake, his head moving slightly as he searched the rocks. Then one would catch the sun, and sparkle like he wanted it to. He would shove his ink black head under the water and stay there until he had that grey rock in his jaw.

Then he would bring it to a spot on the beach, near enough so we knew it was a gift, but far enough away to keep it safe. After it was placed neatly on the pile - and they were neat piles - he trotted back to the water to wait patiently for a new gem.

The rocks chipped his teeth, the water got in his ears and made them ache, and the piles always tumbled when we left for home, but on our return, Tar made more treasure piles for us, his family.

I've heard it said that one's heart is always found in the same place as one's treasure, and that makes me think that something precious is that way because our heart decides it.

Teacups, typewriters, ticket stubs and Tar. Perhaps value is found where value is placed.

Questions not watered down for meeting

October 23, 2008

Clarksburg residents put some tough questions to Town of the Blue Mountains staff and council at two meetings about plans for the water and wastewater servicing project.

The meetings, on Saturday, Oct. 18 and Monday, Oct. 20, were held at the Marsh St. Centre and were a result of a growing list of questions and concerns over the cost of providing town water and sewer services to Clarksburg residents.

Reg Russwurm, director of engineering and public works for The Blue Mountains, made the presentation and fielded questions with the help of Deputy Mayor Duncan McKinlay.

The plans, thus far, are not specific. The next step in the process is to make preliminary designs, and decide on the best option. Ideas to phase the construction to include just the downtown area in the beginning and/or to only install lines for water and not wastewater are a few options town staff will look at.

The cost of servicing seemed daunting to the residents present at the meetings. The town has estimated that if it was to proceed with the plan today, and achieved provincial funding in addition to the federal government's contribution of $5 million, each Clarksburg resident would have to pay $22,825 for service to their property line.

They would then have to arrange and pay for a contractor to connect the service from the property line to their home or business, and to decommission their existing septic system and well.

The few residents already legally connected to the town's water and sewer service, will not be charged a capital charge for the new system, since a portion of their monthly bills is set aside for replacement and repair.

The existing pipes in Clarksburg are smaller than the planned pipes and will be replaced should the project be approved. A key component in the plan, according to Russwurm is fire safety and larger pipes are required to meet safety standards for emergency situations.

Russwurm assured the residents that the plan would be unlikely to proceed without provincial funding. The town's applications to the province have been denied three times, but they will make another application in November for funds from a project called Building Canada. The plan released by the town projects a three-way split in the cost, $5 million from the federal government, $5 million from the province, and another $5 million from the town.

All the costs released to date are estimates and could change based on the many variables in the project, not the least of which is the current state of the economy.

Many of the people at the meeting voiced their concerns about the cost of the project especially in light of the recent economic uncertainty. One person suggested a five-year moratorium be placed on the plans, and could not believe the plan was being considered at the present time.

McKinlay said he would not stop moving forward with preliminary plans because there was no way to tell what was going to happen in the economy in the next five years or what the governments will do for economic stimulus. He stressed, however, that drafting some preliminary plans did not mean they were committing to any construction date, or even to a definite plan.

Town staff have been pursuing the idea of servicing Clarksburg for a number of years, even surveying the well water and septic treatments that exist now. An independent consulting engineering and planning company, the Ainley Group, found that almost a third of the residences in Clarksburg had water that would not pass the Ministry of Environment standards for water quality.

Russwurm reasoned that the survey, conducted about six years ago, showed the majority of people in Clarksburg had acceptable water quality, but still showed concern about the properties below standard.

"We want to provide good water quality to everyone," said Russwurm. "Not just the majority of people."

Councillor Cameron Kennedy told the crowd at the meeting that his biggest concern as a council member was the health of the citizens, more than the cost of the project.

"It's not a decision that council will make easily," he said. "If we have one person sick from water or septic ... I don't want that on my shoulders."

One resident said the plan was being pushed on the town, and that many of the residents he knew didn't even want water and wastewater servicing. He asked for a show of hands at the meeting to see who wanted the service. His survey was cut short, however, by McKinlay who said that private comment forms were available for all local residents and the town council and staff would carefully consider all the comments they received.

Mayor Ellen Anderson cautioned her constituents to approach the issue carefully.

"It's always an emotional issue when money is involved," she said. "We are trying to do the right thing ... I don't want to see human beings in my municipality arguing about water."

She said the costs of a septic system and a well are sometimes hidden, but must be considered to make a fair and balanced decision. She added that she pays for a water softener and the salt to go in it, that she must constantly replace rusted fixtures, and that a new septic system can cost about $15,000.

Another resident said he was one of several in the area "hanging by his toes" when it comes to his septic system and well water. He asked about the time frame for the plan, because if he were to replace his systems, he would not want town service, but as it stands now, he wants town service "yesterday."

Russwurm explained that the federal government requires the town to use the funds they have been granted by March 2011, which means the construction will have to be complete by November 2010.

Residents would be billed by March 2011, and will have the option of a payment plan or paying the cost upfront. They will have to be connected to the system within 11 months of receiving a bill for the capital sum.

If they choose not to connect to the system because they are satisfied with their current system, they will be billed a sum of $24 a month for water/sewer maintenance, and may connect at any time once they have paid a contractor to install a connection from the property line to their home or business.

The ultimate decision for the go-ahead on this project rests on the shoulders of The Blue Mountains town council. McKinlay urged residents to fill out comment forms or write letters to the town expressing their opinions on the matter and including their situations for consideration.

After a public meeting in May on this same issue, the town received just 15 comment forms.

The forms are available on the town website or at the town office on Bridge St. in Thornbury.

Letters are also accepted, and may be sent to the office or e-mailed. The town asks that comments be submitted by November 14 so they can be reviewed as soon as possible.

McKinlay closed the meeting saying there was some historical momentum behind the servicing project and that nothing has convinced him, thus far, that the council should stop considering it.

He made it clear that he had not made up his mind to go ahead with or delay the project, and urged residents to send in comments to help the council make an informed decision.

Beaver Valley home burns in early morning

An historic home in Beaver Valley was all but obliterated in an early morning fire.

All that remains of the 125-year-old home is a portion of the walls and a newer addition on the rear of the building.

The Blue Mountains fire department received a call about the house on the intersection of Beaver Valley Road and Epping from a neighbour at about 4 a.m. on Thursday, October 30.

The owner, Dr. Peter von Bitter, was away at his other home in the Toronto area. No one was injured in the blaze. By the time the neighbour noticed and phoned 911, the flames were through the roof.

When firefighters arrived, the flames had consumed most of the front section of the house, including the roof, a side addition and the top floor. Firefighters managed to save the newer addition at the rear of the house by cutting a hole in the roof to allow heat and smoke to escape.

Windows had already started to crack in the addition indicating high levels of heat, according to A.J. Lake, fire prevention officer for The Blue Mountains.

There was a propane tank at the back of the house that remained safe, but firefighters had to manage tanks of fuel oil in the basement, which did catch fire.

The house, locally known as the Londry home, was built circa 1885 by the original owners Clara and Clarence Londry with additions constructed in 1957 and about 10 years ago. Von Bitter has owned the home for about 20 years, and said he was spending more time in the area now that he is retired.

All that is left standing of the original part of the home is the half stone - half brick walls. Von Bitter said there were several theories about the unusual construction of the home. Some assume it was supposed to be a barn, others that they ran out of stone.

Firefighters are still investigating the cause of the fire.

Meaford Hall does the Wright thing for Christmas

This Christmas, Meaford can expect more than a jolly fellow in red for the holidays: Michelle Wright is coming to town.

Wright is touring Ontario this December and plans to make a stop at Meaford Hall on Dec. 6 as part of the "I'm dreaming of a Wright Christmas" tour. It's sure to be a great holiday event.

"I believe it's music for everybody," said Wright in a phone interview with The Express from her home in Nashville. "It's a show for family and for people who enjoy good music performed by a group of great musicians that like to have a good time."

Her Christmas album, A Wright Christmas, features her interpretations of famous carols like Joy to the World and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, most of which are Wright's favourites. She is looking forward to a second Christmas album, which she hopes to start recording this summer, as long as her European tour goes according to plan.

Wright says the Meaford show will be about 70-per-cent Christmas songs and 30-per-cent hits.

"It's a wonderful music experience," she said, adding that she enjoys touring. "I love it all, I really do."

She is glad she will make it home for Christmas this year. She plans to be back in Nashville on December 20, and says she celebrates Christmas like many faith-based households, and enjoys "all the rest" of the Christmas traditions.

"Food, family, gifts, decorations, hanging around in flannel pajamas, watching Christmas movies," she said. "I love to decorate."

Wright is a great Canadian success story, launching her cross continent career in the country music industry in 1990 with a debut, self-titled album. She previously released an album in Canada called Do Right by Me. She went on to record eight other albums including two greatest hits discs.

She's had 25 top-10 Canadian hits, including the famous, Take it Like a Man, and has received about 30 awards.

Wright now lives in Nashville with her husband and white German Shepherd, Winter.

Tickets are $48.50 and available at the Meaford Hall box office. Showtime is 8 p.m. Click her link for more information.

Green forum at Blue Mountain welcomes red-ribbon advocate

Social justice advocate Stephen Lewis visited The Blue Mountains for the opening night of the Go Green at Blue environmental forum as the keynote speaker.

Lewis, founder of the Stephen Lewis Foundation - a charity known for supporting community-based programs fighting HIV/AIDS in Africa - began his speech with stories from his many trips to South Africa where he visits orphans, women and grandmothers affected by AIDS.

He said he always asks them what he can do for them and they always ask for the same thing - food.

"The environment can't be separated from other issues," he said. "100 million more people have been thrown below the poverty line in the past months because of the rising cost of food."

He added that the destabilization of societies is increasing as water conflicts become prevalent, and that leads to inhumane behavior. Droughts and famines only add more pain to communities torn apart by the AIDS virus.

"It's important to green ourselves, but as vital as all that is ... it just isn't enough," he said, encouraging the crowd to become advocates themselves.

"There are certain struggles worth throwing oneself into," he said. "There's no value in embracing futility ... you just have to grit your teeth and keep on fighting because you know that eventually the pendulum swings."

The dinner served at the Blue Mountain Convention Centre Friday night was a special 100-mile diet with all the ingredients purchased and grown locally.

The forum lasted Friday through Sunday with workshops on topics such as the water stream, greening homes, agriculture and culinary moves ahead, greenway land use and youth. The Community Foundation Grey Bruce presented the forum.

Town makes plans to grow landfill

November 5, 2008

The Blue Mountains is seeking approval from the Ministry of Environment for expansion and mining projects at the current landfill site in order to make the site last for another 25 years.

Jeffrey Fletcher, manager of solid waste and environmental initiatives for the town, said at the rate things are going now, the site, without any modifications, will reach capacity in three or four years.

The plan is to ask the MOE for permission to expand the capacity by 100,000 cubic metres, and to mine the current site to regain an additional 100,000 cubic metres.

The expansion could come in several forms. The town may expand the outer boundaries of the footprint and/or change the elevation of the current site. Mining involves sorting through what is already in the site, using newer technology to re-compact it all and removing excessive fill.

Fletcher noted this is also an opportunity to put in place a better collection system for the leachate that may flow outside of the footprint. Leachate is essentially rainwater that flows through the waste and becomes tainted. There are measures now, including liners and landscaping methods to prevent this tainted water from having a negative effect on the environment surrounding land fill sites.

The current maximum capacity of the site is 380,000 cubic metres.

The town is currently engaged in a proposal process with a consulting group to take ideas and plans to the MOE for approval. Once they are granted approval, the town will then begin to plan the engineering and the science of the projects with the help of a consulting group.

Fletcher says this process won't begin until September 2009.

The town began using the land in the current site in the 1970s; Fletcher said they probably didn't start thinking about measuring the use and estimating the life of the site until the 1980's.

Now the town is required to submit annual reports and conduct regular tests to determine the health of the site, the surroundings and the projected lifespan of the site.

According to Fletcher, there are now about 60 or so conditions included on a certificate of approval for a municipal landfill site. This is in addition to the regulations and guidelines in the Environmental Protection Act.

The town met with local residents in close proximity to the site to notify them of the plans for expansion and get some feedback.

"They understood that it's a necessary evil," said Fletcher. "They want to see that, if anything, things will be improved."

Fletcher says that with the expansion and mining projects approved, they will be able to make the site better by reducing dust and odours, and they have already begun to make the improvements to the visual appearance of the site.

Last week a team from the town planted evergreen trees in a line on one of the ridges at the front of the site. Fletcher has more plans for improvement, including a more efficient drop-off area for residents wishing to bring waste to the site themselves.

Fletcher said the town will continue to have public meetings throughout the process, and hopes to get feedback from local residents.

When the town first started drafting a long-term plan for waste management, it looked at several options.

Fletcher said the town was too small to have an incineration facility, and sending waste outside of the municipality was a costly venture. He added that most of the feedback the town received already from a survey and from public meetings indicated that residents felt it was important to deal with the waste locally.

"I suppose landfill in general is a con," said Fletcher. "But it's the best way we've come up with to deal with our waste problem ... We have to deal with a problem without having the ability to deal with the cause of the problem."

The expansion and mining projects should make the site last another 25 to 30 years. Fletcher adds that this estimate is dependent on several external factors.

It is dependent on a 60-per-cent waste diversion rate and although there is some buffer room, Fletcher says he knows much of the commercial waste doesn't come to the local site, but is sent elsewhere, and those options may be disappearing in the near future, especially if the waste is sent across the border.

If the town is not approved for the two projects, the site will be full in about three years, and the only other option for the town will be to send the waste to an outside location, which will cost taxpayers more.

School board's surplus goes into deficit

November 26, 2008

The auditor and treasurer for the Bluewater District School Board (BWDSB) announced a surplus of $1.4 million at the last board meeting, but the final numbers are still in the red.

"It's an in-year surplus," said Treasurer Brenda Booth after the meeting on November 18. "It goes directly into the deficit that has accumulated."

The deficit she is speaking of goes back to 2002 when the two school boards of Grey and Bruce County amalgamated to become Bluewater. A pay equity plan left them in deficit, one that, until this in-year surplus, sat at $3.3 million. On the 07/08 financial statements, the debt is reduced to $1.9 million.

"This is the first year in a number of years we've been able to have an in-year surplus," said Booth.

BWDSB chair Ross King said he wants this year to start a new trend for the board.

"I'm really hoping we can get rid of all this ... I call it an albatross around our neck that's been with us for ten years," said King, adding that the board was aiming for a further reduction of $1 million for the 08/09 financial year.

Booth confirmed that goal, but said there was no way to tell if the board was on track, yet. They will be examining the budget and financial records of the board in the next couple weeks to see if the goal is reachable and what changes need to be made.

Booth said the Province of Ontario deems school board deficit illegal. She said a deficit that sits around one per cent of the operating budget tends to stay under the radar, and that it's important for the Province to see that a school board is making sincere efforts to reduce any existing deficits.

The BWDSB operating budget on the 07/08 financial statements was $190 million.

Elementary teachers only ones staying out of provincial talks

November 26, 2008

An ultimatum from the Ontario Minister of Education isn’t the way to earn a long-term collective agreement according to Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario president David Clegg.

The “ultimatum” he’s referring to is, according to the Ministry of Education, a voluntary deadline to sign a provincial framework agreement and work out long-term collective agreements locally.

Essentially, the ministry is acting as a facilitator for discussions between trustee associations, teacher federations and unions representing education support workers to work out province-wide issues to facilitate local contract bargaining.

The provincial framework agreements include salary increases of three per cent for each of the next four years compounding to 12.55 per cent, according to their website. As well, the agreements include funding provisions for additional teachers for targeted class size reductions in grades four to eight, literacy and numeracy coaches in grades seven and eight and additional arts and specialist teachers.

More provisions for support workers are also included. All funding promised in the provincial level agreements goes to the local board.

These framework agreements, once signed are not staff contracts; those must be negotiated locally through the various school boards, such as the Bluewater District School Board. Once a federation or association has approved of the framework agreements, they promise to work toward a new collective agreement locally by November 30.

The collective agreements reached are to reflect the provisions of the provincial agreement and are not to expire until August 31, 2012.

Education Minister Kathleen Wynne said in a statement that four-year collective agreements, such as the ones they were trying to facilitate in the province would deliver “peace and progress with improved student achievement.” She added that the ministry would keep working with education partners to achieve four more years of the same.

“But we believe that the people of Ontario understand that can’t come at any cost,” she said.
Minister Wynne announced in September that any organization that does not enter a voluntary provincial framework agreement and locally ratify collective agreements by November 30 will not be eligible for the provincial funding agreed upon in the agreements. Instead, the province will cut the salary provision to a four per cent raise over two years.

The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO), representing 73,000 teachers across the province left the provincial discussion table in May of this year and has not returned. They don’t think the framework agreements are good enough.

Clegg toured the province to spread the word about the new ETFO campaign to close what he says is a $711 gap between elementary student and secondary student funding.

He stopped in Owen Sound and Chesley to address the Bluewater District School Board area on Thursday, November 20.

“The deadline is an artificial one, it’s not helpful,” he said. “Ultimately, if you are trying to establish a long term agreement with the complexity this one will obviously have, you need to have some patience.”

He maintained that the salary portion of the framework agreement is reasonable, but their plans to close the gap did not follow an acceptable timetable.

He calculated that according to the provisions in the agreement, it would take 21 years for elementary specialized teaching to be at par with secondary and 30 years for grade four to eight class sizes to be the same as secondary classes. Currently, Jr. Intermediate class sizes are about 25 students to one teacher. The ETFO wants to see that number brought down to 22.

“Salary is not the issue and has never been the issue. The real issue is fairness,” said Clegg in a statement. “When we were involved in provincial level talks earlier in the year, what was offered to elementary teachers fell very far short of what is needed to close the gap.”

According to Patricia MacNeil, senior media relations coordinator at the ministry of education, the funding formulas, also called Grants for Student Needs, for Ontario students are not calculated along elementary and secondary panels and are instead provided to boards with the flexibility to account for the unique circumstances – rural, urban, declining enrollment, large geographical area, etc – that each board operates in.

She adds that there are other grants for student funding through programs by the ministry’s Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat, which are directed exclusively to elementary boards.

“Also, there is no gap in student services,” she said. “For example, the average class size in K-8 last year was 22:1 versus the funded average for a secondary class size of 22 students. The ratio of students per adult was the same in both panels: 10.9:1.”

The Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation has signed a framework agreement for their support worker’s units, but left the provincial discussion table without signing an agreement for their English secondary teachers. The OSSTF teachers returned recently to re-engage in the provincial discussion tables.

“Staff from the Minister's office and the ministry will continue to facilitate that discussion and staff are confident English secondary students and boards can reach a common understanding that is in the best interest of students,” said MacNeil.

Catholic and French teachers have already signed the provincial framework agreement.

The Bluewater District School Board has ratified long-term collective agreements for all their support staff. Clegg said local negotiations for Bluewater would begin in December, after the deadline for provincial framework agreements. There’s no word yet on local talks with secondary school teachers.

“We’re hoping that come Dec. 1 the government will realize issuing an ultimatum is not the way to resolve problems of this nature and that they’ll make a commitment to eliminate the funding gap over a number of years,” said Clegg.

If the province does not make a commitment that the ETFO finds reasonable and indeed withdraws their funding as promised in the ultimatum, Clegg says the government “will not get a collective agreement with the elementary teachers in the province.”

“If the government believes that the future economically is so uncertain that they cant make a commitment, then equally they should not expect us to make that type of commitment,” he said. “But lets be clear it’s very obvious why the government wants the long term collective agreement – it gets them past the next provincial election.”

A strike is not in the bargaining cards yet, according to Clegg, who said they haven’t contemplated it and have not suggested they were going to take strike votes.

“It’s always an option that’s out there,” he said. “But not one that we’re exploring.”

Soccer boys all grown up

September 17, 2008

Erika Engel photo

Matt Paterson, Nathan Shaw, Shane Raymer and Shawn Roberts
played their final year in the youth soccer league.
They've been on a Beaver Valley team for 12 years
and won six championship titles.

The shoes hanging on the telephone wires at Tomahawk Park in Thornbury aren't just muddy old soccer shoes.

They're trophies, thrown to their proud pedestals by the under 18 Beaver Valley soccer champs.

It's a tradition started by the soccer boys in their final year playing youth soccer in Beaver Valley.

Shane Raymer, 18, Matt Paterson, 17, Shawn Roberts, 18, and Nathan Shaw, 18, joined the Beaver Valley Under 7 soccer team when they were six. Their friends Doug Collins and Gerbe Botden joined at the same time. Collins is now at Fanshawe College, and Botden moved to Ottawa to go to Carleton University.

The boys remember playing soccer at recess in kindergarten and pre-school. It seemed natural to join the Beaver Valley U-7 team 12 years ago.

Raymer remembers "dancing around and picking grass" for the first year, but something about soccer stuck with him, and he continued to play.

"Eventually it grows into something you want to keep doing," said Raymer.

Next year, he's joining the new adult soccer league in Thornbury, a competitive team in Collingwood, the high school team at GBSS and he hopes to be the assistant coach for one of the youth teams. Last year he was the head coach for an under 15 team. He is also trying to get a scout from Laurentian to watch him play - he's hoping for a scholarship.

Roberts plans to play soccer on the GBSS team as well. Paterson is going to focus on Rugby this year, and Shaw is working full-time.

After a dozen years, with six championship wins, there's no shortage of soccer stories.

Like the time Paterson had to run six laps because he picked up Botden and dunked his head in a puddle. Or Raymers's famous red cards in the finals.

Shaw, when he wasn't scoring on his own net was hitting the post or the crossbar, earning him the nickname "crossbar." One day, coach Rob Ferris told the team they had to run six laps unless Shaw could score from mid-field. If he scored, the team only had to run two laps. True to his name, he hit the crossbar. Coach Rob made them run four laps.

The boys are proud of their team's aggressive group.

"Remember the Chatsworth game!" one of them interjects.

Raymer explains that for one game they played in Chatsworth the host club brought in an extra referee for the Beaver Valley game.

They boys remember several people for their dedication to youth soccer.

"Without them, nothing would have happened," said Raymer.

Thanks to Peter and Mary Lou Hibbard, organizers for youth soccer in Beaver Valley.

To Don Stevens - "He made sure we had a league to play in," said Paterson.

To their parents - "They always came out to cheer us on, and gave us snacks at half time when we were younger," said Shaw.

"Even when we started driving ourselves, they still came to the games," said Paterson.

The boys proudly announce that their team always had the best crowd turn out.

And to Coach Rob Ferris - He started a job in Mississauga, explained Raymer, but he still drove to Thornbury twice a week for practice and a game. "He did a lot for us," they all add almost in unison. "We didn't start winning until he started coaching us."

Now the 12 years are up, the boys are moving on to other things.

"It was fun while it lasted," said Raymer.

"We put Thornbury on every single trophy from U-13 to U-18," adds Paterson.

NHL officials train at Beaver Valley arena

Erika Engel photo

Kerry Fraser and Dennis La Rue are veteran
referees with the NHL, and part of the group
that came to the Beaver Valley Community
Centre this year for a week long training camp.

The NHL visited the Town of the Blue Mountains on official business this week.

For the second year in a row, the NHL Official Training camp for referees and linesmen was held at the Beaver Valley Community Centre.

Johanna Kytola, manager of officiating with the NHL, said there were 73 officials at this year's camp, which, until last year, was typically held in Fort Erie or Toronto.

NHL referees and linesmen from all over North America met in Toronto, then Thornbury, where they took turns playing and officiating full hockey games with NHL rules and participating in off-ice seminars.

"We want them to play the sport they are officiating, and have fun," said Kytola.

She said the NHL decided to host the training camp in Thornbury last year, after Senior Manager Terry Gregson, a Blue Mountains resident, scoped out the Beaver Valley Arena and thought it would make a good facility.

Kytola said she thought the Town of the Blue Mountains staff has been "phenomenal" and the officials loved having the camp in the area last year, so they decided to come back.

The group stayed at the Westin Trillium House while they trained.

Shawn Everitt, recreation director for the Town of the Blue Mountains, helped coordinate surprise events for the officials. Last year, they went dragon boat racing, and this year they went paintballing. He said the NHL's return visit to the area is a boost for the town and the arena.

"It shows that this is a good place for high-level professionals to go and train," said Everitt.

"It's a nice feather in our cap," he added.

The Refs
Dennis La Rue of Spokane, Washington has been an NHL referee for 20 years. He played hockey when he was young, and started refereeing minor hockey to work his way up to the NHL. He likes training in Beaver Valley because it makes the training camp more retreat-like.

"It's a chance to get things started off in a little less hectic setting," he said.

Kerry Fraser, who is originally from Sarnia, has worked for the NHL for over 30 years. He lived in Collingwood when he was 16 to play for the Blues. He says training in Thornbury is like coming home for him.

He remembers everyone in the area being very hospitable and welcoming the "imports" playing for the Blues. Now that he's back in the area for official training in Thornbury, he says the facilities are great, but it's the people that stand out.

"People make a place, the place doesn't make the people," he said.

Fraser and La Rue both love their jobs in the NHL.

Fraser said most of the officials never aspired to be referees or linesmen, but their playing careers didn't work out as planned. They still consider it a "tremendous honour" to be NHL officials.

"We're the best in the world," said Fraser. "We get to see what you watch on TV. We're rubbing shoulders with the best players in the world."

"They let you in the back door, they give you the best seats in the house, and every two weeks they send you money," said La Rue.

Fraser is part of a team headed to Europe at the start of this year's season to officiate a game in Prague - a first-class trip for he and his wife. It's one of the many perks for an NHL official.

The summer vacations aren't bad, either.

Both agreed the hardest part of the job was the constant travel and weekend work, but conceded that the pros far outweighed the minors - uh - the cons.