The Citizen - February 16, 2024

4 • Editorials 8 • Sports 12 • History 15 • Obituaries

The

THIS WEEK

Citizen

Huron County’s most trusted independent news source Volume 40 No. 7

Friday, February 16, 2024

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Playoffs begin for Crusaders

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen

Let’s jam A tradition unlike any other, the Blyth Brussels Crusaders hosted their annual U6/U7 and U8 Jamboree tournaments in Blyth and Brussels last Saturday, welcoming youngsters from all over the province to the communities for some stellar hockey

action. The days were successful, as they always are, and provided a day to remember for those who took part, like the U8 Listowel Cyclones and Mitchell Meteors, above, who played each other in Blyth over the weekend. (John Stephenson photo)

This week, the playoffs began for a handful of Blyth Brussels Crusaders teams, meaning that another hockey season in the community is drawing to a close how successful of a season it will be, however, is a chapter of the story that has yet to be written.

On Feb. 16, the U11 Rep Crusaders will welcome the Saugeen Valley Steelheads to Brussels for their first playoff game of the year before taking on the Bruce Peninsula Predators in Wiarton on Feb. 18.

On Feb. 20, the U13 Rep team will open its playoff journey with a game against the Huron-Bruce Blizzard in Brussels, followed by a game with the Goderich Sailors on Feb. 27, also in Brussels.

The U15 Rep team will open its playoff run on the road with a game against the Goderich Sailors on Feb. 25, followed by a game in Blyth with the Minto Mad Dogs on Feb. 26.

The U18 Rep team will play its first postseason game of the year on Feb. 17, welcoming the Drayton Defenders to Brussels, before a Feb. 24 game with the Mitchell Meteors, also in Brussels, and a Feb. 25 game with the Mid-Huron Huskies in Clinton.

The U21 team also has playoff Continued on page 16

‘Citizen’ a four-time provincial award finalist On Wednesday morning, the Ontario Community Newspapers Association (OCNA) announced its 2023 Better Newspaper Awards shortlist and The Citizen has placed in four categories for its work from October of 2022 to September of 2023.

First, The Citizen is a finalist in the General Excellence category for its circulation class, which is 1,999 and under, alongside the Haliburton County Echo and the Listowel Banner. The New Liskeard Temiskaming Speaker received honourable mention.

The nominations called for issues to be submitted from March and August of 2023 and The Citizen put forward its March 3, 2023 and Aug. 11 issues.

Citizen Editor Shawn Loughlin has been honoured for two stories.

First, his feature on Jeff Linton and Linton Pasture Pork, included in The Citizen’s “Huron Farms to Tables” section last July, has been shortlisted for Best Business or Finance Story. The other finalists

are stories by Joe Konecny of The Aylmer Express and by Elisa Nguyen in The Fort Frances Times.

Second, Loughlin is shortlisted for Best Rural Story. Published in The Citizen on May 26, the story featured an interview with renowned rural planning expert Wayne Caldwell regarding the dangers of the provincial government’s proposed expansion of farmland severances and the effect it would have on Huron County and all of rural Ontario.

Fellow finalists include a story by Somer Slobodian in The Lake Report (Niagara-on-the-Lake) and a Mike Renzella piece for The Haldimand Press.

Regular history columnist Karen Webster is a finalist for the best heritage writing of the year. The submission was Webster’s July 7, 2023 installment of “Glimpses of the Past” entitled “That’s Cool”, about the ice harvest families engaged in years ago. Webster finds herself as a finalist alongside Debbi Christinck of The Eganville Leader

and Wendy Van Leeuwen of The Listowel Banner.

The three writing categories do not include circulation classes, so they are province-wide awards.

A date for the final awards announcements has yet to be set, but has traditionally been held in the spring.

This will be the sixth time in the last nine years that The Citizen has won a provincial newspaper award, in addition to Stops Along The Way being honoured with a 2021 award, a silver medal in the Best Vertical Product category.

The Citizen’s website received an honourable mention at the 2021 awards in addition to the Stops Along The Way win.

In 2020, The Citizen placed second in the Best Special Section (circulation under 9,999) for its special section on the annual reunion of the Huron Pioneer Thresher and Hobby Association.

At the 2019 awards, The Citizen placed third in the General Excellence category for its

circulation class and Loughlin won a bronze medal in the Best Sports Photograph of the Year category.

In 2018, The Citizen placed first in the Best Rural Story category for newspapers with a circulation of 9,999 or under for a story on rural homelessness written by Rural Voice Editor Lisa Boonstoppel-Pot, while in 2017, the newspaper won first place in the Best Community Website category for a newspaper with a circulation under 9,999.

In 2015, The Citizen placed third in General Excellence for its circulation class, as well as in the Best Community Website

category for its circulation class.

In 2019, The Citizen won a News Media Canada national newspaper award in the Best Rural Story category, which followed several years of national honours.

The Citizen received secondplace finishes in the Best Overall Newspaper, Best Front Page and Best Editorial Page categories for its circulation class at the 2014 awards before triumphing in all three categories the following year, being named the best newspaper in Canada, the best front page and the best editorial page in its circulation class that year.

Budgets discussed

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Central Huron Council is moving ahead with its budget process, honing in on some specific departmental budgets last week after deliberations began last year.

While councillors have not yet discussed an increase to the tax rate amid ongoing financial pressures, numerous times during the course of the special meeting, held on Tuesday, Feb. 6, members preached patience on spending, saying that Continued on page 3

PAGE 2. THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

M-T pens letter of support for Braemar

By Scott Stephenson The Citizen

Quite an honour With the passing of George Skinn earlier this month, the Wingham Ironmen sought to honour one of the team’s founding fathers and its very first head coach with a special ceremony before Friday night’s game with the Walkerton Capitals. Members of Skinn’s family, including his wife Sharon, were on hand to drop the puck and engage in a moment of silence to honour the giant of local hockey. (John Stephenson photo)

Pullen updates ACW Council

By Scott Stephenson The Citizen

A recent presentation by Huron County Forestry Conservation Officer Dave Pullen offered Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh (ACW) Council an update on the current state of the county’s 14 community forests, as well as an overview of the highs and lows of ACW’s centuries-long efforts in forestry stewardship.

Pullen explained that forestry conservation in Huron County has many facets. Obviously, protecting local woodlands using forest conservation bylaws is paramount, but outreach to woodland owners and groups is also essential. “We protect our existing woodlands and help people with management concerns…. One of the best parts about this job is that every day is different!” he exclaimed. Pullen even enjoys dealing with the county’s various invasive plant species and numerous noxious weeds - a task that is the bane of many a farmer and gardener.

Pullen also came armed with an array of old photographs, some of which date as far back as the 1800s.

One depicted settlers in the future ACW as they squared off logs and prepared them for use in construction. One photo, depicting some men as they prepared logs destined to become coffins in Goderich, was taken in a stand of trees near what is now Benmiller.

“That woodlot was completely wiped out by the 2011 tornado,” said Pullen, “and it’s making an incredible comeback now - partly due to natural regeneration, and partly due to the introduction of a number of tree species that we were able to assist in planting.” He also pointed out that some of the funds used for that reforesting initiative were actually raised through the sale of wood from tornadodamaged trees.

While he applauded the grit and perseverance of these pioneers, Pullen reminded council that their efforts were far from the beginning of land stewardship in Huron County, saying, “I also want to

acknowledge the Indigenous agriculture that happened many, many years before - in fact, a couple centuries before early settlers showed up. Because of the loss of Indigenous populations to disease and European contact, there was a period of about 200 years that they referred to as ‘The Rewilding Period’, where a lot of the Indigenous agricultural areas filled in again.”

The European approach to these lands was a very different one from that of their native predecessors prior to modern land use planning, widespread clear cutting was common in the area. Bylaws regarding forest conservation, like the Trees Conservation Act, were first enacted in Ontario in the 1940s. “ACW, in general, was always ahead of the curve on a lot of these reforestation efforts,” Pullen explained, pointing to photographs from the early days of lakeshore property reforestation, some of which date from as far back as 1923.

He went on to explain how these early efforts at conservation created new woodlots and forests that have become part of ACW’s natural infrastructure, which protects built infrastructure through flood control, prevents erosion of valuable farmlands and offers a habitat for wildlife while contributing to cleaner air, cleaner water and an overall more healthy environment for residents. Modern photos showing mature forests flourishing on what were once fragile lands illustrated the impact reforestation has had on the landscape of Huron County.

“We’re sort of returning to these times when the resiliency of that landscape is so important, with some of the heavier rain and storm events that we’re getting.

And, as was the original intent of a lot of the reforestation effort, protecting those valuable agricultural soils with natural infrastructure is key.”

Due in part to a sharp decrease in outside funding in the 1990s, reforestation has slowed considerably in recent years.

A local long-term care home is gaining allies in its effort to plan for operations beyond 2025.

The Municipality of MorrisTurnberry is advocating to the Ministry of Long-Term Care on behalf of Wingham’s Braemar Retirement Centre, a facility that has served the community for over 30 years, now facing an uncertain future. Council discussed the issue at a regular meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 6.

According to a report authored by CAO/Clerk Trevor Hallam, recent changes in provincial regulations have left Braemar owner/administrator Archie MacGowan looking for clarity on the facility’s ability to operate beyond the expiry of its current licence in June 2025.

MacGowan, frustrated by the absence of a reply from the ministry, expressed concerns to representatives of MorrisTurnberry, the Municipality of North Huron and MPP Lisa Thompson at a meeting on Aug. 25, 2023.

Hallam’s report notes MacGowan has invested considerably in upgrading and retrofitting the facility to meet the ministry’s new requirements. Further investments are stifled by the murkiness surrounding future licensing, he added.

Per the report, Hallam and Mayor Jamie Heffer maintained correspondence with MacGowan.

As of Feb. 6, there still has been no reply from Minister of Long-Term Care Stan Cho. Hallam acknowledged limitations in Morris-Turnberry’s ability to offer assistance, but highlighted advocacy as an available option.

Heffer agreed with the merit of that approach, saying it can go a long way toward showing people that council is paying attention and cares about the area’s aging residents.

Councillor Jamie McCallum said replacements are never guaranteed when facilities like Braemar are lost, a threat that is further compounded by an aging local population.

Council agreed to send a letter in support of Braemer to Cho, with a copy also going to Thompson.

“We’ve plateaued in Southern Ontario in terms of reforestation,” said Pullen. “It’s not keeping up with the bits of woodlands that we’re losing, not only to natural pressures, but also to development.”

Despite years of stagnation, Pullen is hopeful about the future of reforestation in ACW and Huron County. “There’s quite a bit of funding available out there, including through our own Huron Clean Water Project. This is a great time to be planting trees!”

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THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024. PAGE 3.

CH tight with money until full budget scope is clear Continued from page 1 an increase in excess of 10 per cent could be possible, so, until that was settled, council didn’t want to commit too much money to any one project.

The special meeting began with Treasurer Jeff Boyes detailing operating budgets, beginning with the environmental services budget, which will be impacted significantly by the implementation of the producer-pay recycling system that has recently been introduced by the provincial government. This system, in essence, charges corporations for the recycling materials they create, rather than provincial or municipal governments which were buckling under ever-rising recycling costs.

As a result, the Central Huron environmental services budget will see a decrease in expenses of nearly 26.5 per cent. The Bluewater Recycling Association (BRA) collection costs for the year will be $318,261, while the Waste Management estimated tipping fees are just over $90,000 for a total of $408,558.

Boyes told council that he anticipates a waste collection surplus of $52,427, which is down from $88,248 in 2022.

As the decommissioning of the Blyth-Hullett landfill continues, Boyes said the municipality will save money to decommission a well on the property, spending $3,000 rather than the $20,000 that had been anticipated. (Central Huron picks up 50.48 per cent of the costs related to the landfill while North Huron pays 49.52 per cent.

For the municipality’s fire department, costs are anticipated to rise in 2024 by 11.9 per cent, Boyes told council. This includes a 3.1 per cent increase to volunteer firefighter pay, which has already been approved by bylaw.

Central Huron’s shared services agreement with Bluewater will increase by $8,829 this year for a total of $155,323, while the agreement with North Huron includes a decrease of just over $54,000 this year for a total of $138,381.25. Some members of council were concerned about the high costs associated with new personal protective equipment (PPE) for firefighters, with an expenses line of nearly $891,468 in the fire budget for this year with contributions to reserves of nearly $145,000.

Fire Chief Jeff Lipskie said he could certainly split the PPE purchase in half, buying some this year and the rest in 2025. However, he felt that the municipality would pay more in the long run by not buying in bulk, which he told council. Furthermore, he said that not buying enough equipment for the department would create a tough situation in which he would have to hand out the equipment to some firefighters and not others. In addition, he said, the new equipment would maintain service levels and help firefighters on the scene of a fire by being lighter and relieving cardiovascular pressure and, in the end, it’s all about the safety of the firefighters.

Council didn’t disagree with Lipskie, so the equipment remains included in the budget, though nothing has been finalized yet.

Boyes reported a 100 per cent increase to the municipality’s emergency management budget, but put it into context for council, saying that represented an increase from $3,000 to $6,000 as a relatively small line item in the Central Huron budget.

He noted that none of the money in the 2023 budget had been spent, though corrected himself, as he remembered that coffee had been purchased during a mock emergency exercise for about $37.

The reason for the budget increase is that iPads will be purchased in 2024, with more to come in 2025, for the emergency operations centre (EOC), providing members with “portable content” in the event of an emergency.

The municipality’s recreation and facilities operating budget is anticipated to rise by 4.39 per cent in expenses this year, which includes a wage increase of nearly 8.5 per cent, on average, for unionized facilities staff, which has already been negotiated by the municipality.

Boyes is anticipating a 1.95 per cent decrease in the parks operating budget. This includes over $3,000 to repair damage to the flag pole at the Clinton cenotaph and a $2,500 grant for the Clinton Lawn Bowling Club. He also noted that students will be brought on to help with garden maintenance again this year after success in 2023.

The general facilities and libraries budget will decrease by 4.39 per cent. This comes after window painting at the Clinton

library in 2023 was significantly under budget, though the municipality had to pay for an unplanned replacement of the furnace and main-floor air conditioning at the library. There is also a library check-out desk reconfiguration scheduled for this year.

For the recreation facilities and halls operating budget, Boyes is anticipating a 15.15 per cent increase based on the assumption that rentals in 2024 will be similar to what they were last year.

He also noted that the Auburn Hall budget has yet to be finalized and expenses in 2024 will include additional cleaning at the Holmesville Hall due to increased usage, exterior work at the Sloman School Car and the replacement of the exterior door at the Londesborough Hall.

The operating budget for the Regional Equine and Agricultural Centre of Huron (REACH) is set to decrease by 1.33 per cent, though he noted that the loan payment totals this year will be $251,842.98 ($104,771.97 in interest and $147,081.01 in principle). He reminded council that the loan term doesn’t end until 2036.

For solar panels, Boyes is projecting a 5.42 per cent decrease in expenses, while he reminded council that solar panel revenue is, as always, weather dependent.

The operating budget for the municipality’s crossing guards will rise by 21.10 per cent, which comes as a result of the increase to the minimum wage and the municipality’s pay equity review.

Boyes projects a 1.64 per cent increase in expenses to the wastewater operating budget, noting that he is expecting a significant decrease in legal costs this year when compared to 2023.

He also noted that a four per cent rate increase will be included in this year’s budget and that the average wage and benefit increase in the department is 9.9 per cent.

The budget also includes a loan payment for the utilities work centre in the amount of $71,795.19 ($22,587.80 in interest and $49,207.39 in principle for a loan that will not be repaid until 2033), a new staff member, a planned lagoon clean-out this year and emergency repair work in January, in addition to ongoing pressures due to inflation and rising supply and material costs.

In the water department’s operating budget, Boyes is planning for a 12.68 per cent increase in expenses for a budget that already includes a four per cent rate increase, beginning in July, and an average wage and benefit increase of 9.9 per cent.

This department also includes a loan repayment for the utilities work centre in the amount of $107,692.77 ($33,881.69 in interest and $73,811.08 in principle and the term also ends in 2033). Boyes also noted that additional building maintenance work is scheduled for the water plant this year.

As part of the meeting, council also pre-approved a pair of equipment purchases: a used, oneton pick-up truck, complete with a landscaper box, for an estimated

$75,000, and a used grader for an estimated $325,000. A one-wheel loader with an estimated cost of $300,000 was removed from the pre-approval budget and will be reconsidered later in the budget process.

Council also pre-approved the purchase of a new pick-up truck for $58,016.52 and the purchase and installation of a new bulk water fill station.

At the next budget meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 21, budgets for roads, roads sheds, planning, drainage, economic development and community improvement, cemeteries, the building department and other protective inspection, general government and council, and street lighting will be presented.

Your beloved!

(By Henry Mahan) Every soul has a beloved; something or someone in which to glory, rejoice, and enjoy.

With some it is THE WORLD (its vanity, materialism, and honours).

With others it is THE FLESH. They live to entertain the flesh, to satisfy the flesh, and to pamper the flesh.

With others it is THE FAMILY. Close and distant relatives, family trees, family reunions make up their past, present, and future.

With others it is RELIGION and works of righteousness. Their religion is not a PERSON; it is a CAUSE to which they are devoted in hope of a suitable reward.

Ane with some it is SELF, pure and simple; what can we do for me?

To a believer, it is CHRIST! He worships, loves, rejoices, and glories in the Lord Jesus above all things.

Christ is my Beloved and I am His. Christ, His fellowship, His love, and His approval, are preferred above people, possessions, pleasures, or pursuits. Could One so illustrious and supreme deserve any less? “Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is none upon earth that I desire beside You!” (Ps. 73:25) A Grace Gem Submitted by: Immanuel United Reformed Church, Listowel, ON 519-291-3887

Our offices will be closed for Monday, February 19th

Deadline for

The Citizen’s You can’t score ’em all The U15 BB Huron Heat continued their playoff journey last Sunday in Clinton, taking on the South Huron Sabres, and, while this one didn’t find the back of the net, hence the (John reaction from the Heat, the team did go on to win the game by a score of 2-1.

Stephenson photo)

February 23rd issue will be Tuesday, February 20th at 2:00 pm 405 Queen St., Blyth 519-523-4792

PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

Editorials & Opinions

Founding Publisher: Keith Roulston Publisher & President: Deb Sholdice Editor: Shawn Loughlin • Reporter: Scott Stephenson Advertising Sales: Brenda Nyveld

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Zero stars, never been there Once upon a time, when manners prevailed and politics were slightly less polarizing, it was considered an honour to host a celebrity, a person of note or even a politician. Heck, a business that was lucky enough to get a visit from a Premier or the Prime Minister could consider the free publicity a blessing to their bottom line. That time seems to have passed.

Cue the anger that the mere presence of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau instills in so many angry citizens, that a humble brewery in Bowmanville has been dealing instead with the backlash after being asked to host an event for Robert Rock, a local Liberal candidate running in an upcoming by-election. Trudeau stopped by to support the candidate, in what would normally be a celebrated endorsement.

The owner of The Brewer’s Pantry was overwhelmed with negative reviews, hateful comments and endless offensive e-mails and phone calls after simply posting a photo of Trudeau and Rock in the establishment.

Fortunately, the backlash was met with an outpouring of support from customers, friends and even strangers to try to offset the damage.

No one is asking you to support the Prime Minister if you are opposed to his policies, but taking your hatred out on a small business that just happened to be the venue for an event is crossing a line. This business is probably just beginning to recover from the pandemic and to receive hundreds of negative reviews from people who have never even done business with it could do irreparable damage. The backlash that The Brewer’s Pantry had to endure was immature, mean-spirited and incredibly rude and, in the end, has accomplished nothing for the keyboard warriors who mounted the nasty campaign. – DS

Pleased to meet you At a time when interest in municipal politics has hit rock bottom and interest in being a municipal politician is even lower, some character traits are slipping in under the radar because, frankly, nobody cares.

People with all kinds of unsavory characteristics are finding their way into office because people aren’t bothering to vote and many of those who do bother don’t read up on candidates or attending meetings to discern problematic candidates from good ones. On that note, we direct our attention to Pickering, where Councillor Lisa Robinson recently penned a piece for a newspaper calling for, among other things, Black History Month to be cancelled. Her opinions have been widely criticized as racist by residents and some fellow councillors.

The controversy has accomplished something, though, as it’s shown residents (and voters) the kinds of ideas that Robinson espouses.

Locally, in recent years, there have been candidates for both council and school board seats whose opinions are questionable at best, making it clear that they would push an agenda, rather than represent. Knowing the difference between these candidates and those who have the community’s best interests at heart takes some work and, with the help of your friends in the media, you can make informed decisions.

The best thing people can do is listen to candidates when they speak on issues of interest. They tend to reveal themselves to you. – SL

Just when I thought I was out The oft-repeated saying “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer” is sometimes attributed to Sun Tzu - a military philosopher of the Eastern Zhou Period credited with writing The Art of War. Others say the phrase was actually coined by Niccolo Machiavelli - a 16th century Florentine philosopher known for penning (a different) The Art of War. Yet another faction feels the quote’s rightful attribution belongs to mafia kingpin Michael Corleone, a fictional character from Mario Puzo’s seminal saga, The Godfather. Regardless of the quotation’s authentic origin, contemplating its implications grows increasingly relevant to residents of member-states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), including Canada, ahead of a consequential American election.

Recently, a leading contender in the race for the White House said that he would “encourage” Russia to do “whatever the hell they wanted” to any NATO nation deemed delinquent in achieving its commitments to the mutual defence organization. This candidate is well-known for outlandish rabble-rousing and inflammatory, controversial and uncouth statements - occasionally, his words are vaguely threatening; other times, overtly threatening. He has many supporters and many detractors. In November, he could be elected president. It’s happened before.

Notwithstanding some bumps along the road and the War of 1812, Canada - the “True North, strong and free” - has enjoyed a long and mutually beneficial relationship with its neighbours (or ‘neighbors’ for American readers) to the south. This friendship is founded in shared democratic ideals and has endured decades of threats levied against it by our neighbours (or ‘сосед’ for Russian readers) to the north. With the election nine months out, right now is an opportunity for Canadians to consider which nations are our friends and which are our enemies. Come November, it may no longer be possible to tell them apart. – SBS

Looking Back Through the Years February 19, 1969 The Blyth Legion Squirts engaged in an exhibition match against the Belgrave Squirts, resulting in a 2-2 tie. Goals for Blyth were netted by Terry Pierce and Kevin Carter.

Member of the Ontario Pedigreed Seed Section within the Canadian Seed Growers’ Association R. N. Alexander, hailing from Londesboro, was honoured with the "Outstanding Service Award” by the association.

The Blyth Fire Brigade responded to a call at the farm residence of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Clark in Hullett Township shortly after eight a.m. the previous Thursday morning. The alarm was raised due to a fire erupting in a building utilized by Mr. Clark for his upholstery business.

The fire was suspected to have originated from an oil space heater employed for heating the structure.

By the time the firefighters arrived, the flames had engulfed the building. Only a newly upholstered chesterfield suite could be salvaged from the inferno. Among the losses were all of Clark’s tools and equipment, along with several pieces of furniture awaiting upholstery or recently completed, some of which were valuable antiques. The estimated loss was approximately $4,000.

February 16, 1977 At their meeting on Feb. 7, the Morris Township Council approved a grant of $500 to the Huron Federation of Agriculture. During the session, three representatives provided an update on the Federation’s ongoing activities.

Additionally, the council agreed to donate $25.00 to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

During the Canadian Figure Skating Championships held in Calgary, Carol Wheeler from Brussels and Blaine Moore from Wingham achieved seventh place in the Novice Pairs category nationwide.

The F.E. Madill Safety Awareness Team journeyed to London and emerged victorious in the interregional championship. They secured their title by first defeating Woodstock, followed by a triumph over the Southwestern Ontario champions, Saunders Secondary School of London.

February 15, 1989 A fierce blizzard that shut down several roads and deterred many drivers from venturing out also provided cover for one or more individuals who broke into a Brussels store and stole merchandise valued between $10,000 to $12,000.

A representative from the Wingham detachment of the OPP stated that the perpetrator(s) entered McDonald Home Hardware and Lumber by forcibly breaking the lock on the store’s main entrance.

Clinton Public Hospital was selected as one of 38 hospitals across Ontario to be awarded a grant for the installation of a computerized patient information system dedicated to emergency care.

Health Minister Elinor Caplan extended an invitation to hospitals to apply for grants, offering up to $40,000 to aid in the acquisition and implementation of emergency patient information systems.

In the instance of Clinton Hospital, the full $40,000 grant was allocated. According to the Ministry, these computer systems

would enhance emergency service planning and streamline administrative duties.

A sizable gathering of family and friends congregated at Knox United Church in Belgrave on Sunday afternoon, Feb. 12, to commemorate the 88th birthday of Mrs. Alice Procter. The Belgrave Women’s Institute arranged a delightful lunch, while Mrs. Sarah Anderson served tea and coffee to the joyful attendees.

February 19, 2004 Piano students, under the tutelage of Sue Mason, delighted the residents at Huronlea with a recital on Saturday afternoon.

The Belgrave Playground Improvement Committee hosted a Sweetheart Breakfast in celebration of Valentine’s Day on Sunday.

Blowing snow on Feb. 13 kept Huron OPP officers occupied. From approximately 9 a.m. until around 9 p.m., they investigated 21 crashes spanning the entire county. Five individuals sustained injuries and were transported to the hospital, where they received treatment for minor injuries before being discharged.

“Many of these accidents could have been prevented if drivers had reduced their speed and exercised caution,” stated Sr. Const. Don Shropshall.

Nearly four years after provoking discontent among numerous students and the local secondary school teachers’ union - and after enduring intermittent opposition from both factions - the Avon Maitland District School Board effectively reversed its decision made in January 2000 to abolish semestered timetables from its secondary schools.

THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024. PAGE 5.

Other Views

Fewer local owners, less local news

I

didn’t get to my normal routine this past weekend when I sat down to watch the local news (either on CTV-2, London or CTV-1 on Kitchener) because there was none.

Boy, did Bell Canada act quickly after announcing just Thursday that it was planning 4,800 job cuts, including to the TV stations it owns in the CTV network.

The cessation of local news broadcasts on weekends, along with the sale of 45 of its 103 regional radio stations, were among many cuts Bell promised.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau didn’t hold back, calling it a “garbage decision by a corporation that should know better.”

“We’ve been advocating for reform for years,” he claimed. “It’s not coming fast enough and when it does come, it doesn’t provide meaningful help” The company shot back, blaming regulators and policymakers in governments for its decision to announce the layoffs after federal and provincial politicians accused the company of unnecessarily killing off local journalism.

Facing $40 million in annual operating losses, Bell Media’s parent company, BCE Inc., has an operating revenue totalling $6.7 billion, up from $6.44 billion a year earlier.

“Executives and shareholders are doing just fine while our members are being thrown out of work, including once again in the media,” said Lana Payne, president of Unifor national, the union which represents some 800 of those laid off. “Our union does not accept the use of government policy changes as a smokescreen to justify the company’s actions,” she said.

The company is also sharing in $100 million paid by the federal government. Broadcasters are expected to receive $30 million through a side deal the government struck with Google to

Keith Roulston

From the cluttered desk cover the vast amount of content the international giant picks up from Canadian media.

If it all boggles your mind, welcome to the club. The media world has changed in my time, thanks to the fact young people now turn first to giants like Google and Facebook for their news, not local newspapers, radio and television stations.

Changes came quickly to the newspaper business after I had my first job as a summer student with A. Y. Maclean at The Huron Expositor in Seaforth in the summer of 1967.

He still printed his own newspaper on his own press in his own printing shop. By the time I graduated in 1969, the community newspaper business had changed.

Bob Shrier had bought the Goderich SignalStar in Goderich and, seeing the future, had bought a new web offset printing press. That press was so much faster than the old flat-bed hot-metal presses used by other newspapers (they printed two pages at a time, the SignalStar’s press printed the entire newspaper in less than an hour) that he needed more volume. One by one, Shrier bought the newspapers that had been printed on those old flat-bed presses.

My first job in the weekly newspaper business was as editor of the Clinton NewsRecord which had been sold, separate of the

printing business, to Bob Shrier who eventually bought newspapers from Owen Sound to Grand Bend and as far east as Mitchell, and built a bustling new building in Goderich’s industrial park.

But Shrier needed to sell out and sold to someone bigger. They, in turn, sold to someone bigger, who sold to someone even bigger. A decade or so ago, that owner closed the printing plant and the shrinking began. Today there is no office (and no staff) in Goderich or Clinton or any of the other towns of the newspapers Shrier once bought. And the local printing operations have also closed. The one in Clinton is now the office of an insurance company.

In television, Doc Cruikshank started a station in Wingham in 1956 to go with his radio station. He offered all sorts of local programming from shows featuring cooking and fashion, to country music live broadcasts to farm shows. But, by the late 1970s, he was getting old and had no kids who wanted to take over. He sold to CFPL in London, who, in turn, sold to someone bigger, who sold to someone even bigger and eventually, Bell Canada became owner.

All the big guys wanted to get into the radio, television and newspaper business, but not because they loved their local community and wanted to provide a valuable service, but because they wanted to make money. People like A.Y. MacLean and Doc Cruikshank loved their communities. They wanted to provide service.

But we can’t forget the other side. Younger residents get news from Facebook or Google and never think about where that comes from – like local media. What happens if there’s no local media left to collect local news?

Warning! Warning! Warning! Warn

G

ood morning, good afternoon, good evening and good night! Right now it’s Chaff o’clock, so let’s celebrate accordingly with another dip of just the tip into the infinite abyss.

Warning: no warning could possibly prepare you for what comes next, so we’ll cancel this warning right now to conserve our warning budget. You’ve been semi-warned.

(Phone call from ChaffAlert Warning Alert Systems Inc.) Turns out, we’re not able to divide warnings, so we’ll go ahead and use up the rest of the warning that we already started. You’ve been fully-warned.

(Phone call from ChaffAlert Warning Alert Systems Inc.) Pretty annoyed over here at the moment. Just got off the phone with ChaffAlert and they said that once a warning has been issued, its use may not be extended to any subsequent warnings. Long story short, they’ve charged our account for two warnings. Ridiculous!

We’re going to look at ending our contract with ChaffAlert after this Chaff is thrust into the void of eternity. ChaffAlert, consider yourselves warned!

(Phone call from ChaffAlert Warning Alert Systems Inc.) Yikes! Just got off the phone with ChaffAlert and they said that we’ve exceeded our weekly warning allotment and that additional warning charges will be included on the next invoice. They also warned us to not warn them because they have seen every single warning in the “warn-o-sphere” due to extensive experience in the warning industry.

They are fully prepared to warn further, if and when they are warned further first.

(Phone call from ChaffAlert Warning Alert Systems Inc.) Exciting news! ChaffAlert wants to work

Scott Stephenson The Chaff together with The Chaff to produce a trilogy of films about warning. The first is The Warnerer: Throwing Caution to the Warn. It will be a beautiful film.

The follow-up is The Warnerer II: Warnageddon, a dark turn into a twisted dystopian future in which human-based warning is outlawed and the government controls an army of warn-bots and cautionclones. Definitely some cool effects in this movie but the plot is all over the place and the writers really could have worked harder to make the jokes land. Some of the performances in this film raise the question: “Is it okay for the director to be doing this?

This doesn’t feel okay.”

The dramatic and gratuitous conclusion is shamelessly presented in 3arnerer: Triangle of Warnness. Pretty clear this is only being made to launder money.

(Phone call from ChaffAlert Warning Alert Systems Inc.) ChaffAlert called to say it’s going in a different direction, canceling its contract with us and moving on. On their way out the door, they offered one final warning for free. They said, “You are doomed.”

The Chaff is known for telling it like it is, pointing a gun at the truth, lassoing the facts and dancing all over them until dawn, dusk and dawn again. What you see is what you get and what you get to see is what’s seen being gotten by seers and getters alike. The Chaff

never gets it wrong. Looking for boners, blunders, goofs, oopsies, flubs and uh-oh’s?

Look elsewhere, fella!

Something that happens almost all of the time here at The Chaff are Chaff Gaffes! It’s when we get it so wrong that we legally need to clean up the record. Here are a few recent Chaff Gaffes that even made us wonder, “is everything okay?”

We recently did a profile on Dervid Hamson’s extensive work in the community.

Since that time, Hamson has been fully disgraced for his involvement with a string of fraudulent real estate deals. Our story advocating for the erection of a bronze Hamson statue with the headline, “In Hamson we trust: a fraud he be not” needs to be refiled!

Open up the Chaff Gaffes chute, we have a juicy new entry ready to get soggy!

A couple of weeks ago, we ran a piece about Chaffhog Day. It turns out, after doing some additional research, we found out that there actually isn’t a Chaffhog Day at all. It’s not real. So, technically, we’re going to file this one under Chaff Gaffes.

Breaking Chaff Gaffe News!!! We’re going to add the above paragraph to the Chaff Gaffes file because, as we all know, Chaffhog Day is very real and important. Everybody loves Chaffhog Day. One thing we all can agree on is that Chaffhog Day is real, very fun and a wonderful opportunity to spend time with family, friends and Chaffhogs.

Let’s sing: Chaffhog Day is very real. It’s important too.

Chaffhog Day is time to feel what is false and what is true!

This concludes our comprehensive look back at Chaff Gaffes. Everything else you can take to the bank to tell the teller: “You want the truths? YOU WANT THE TRUTH?! YOU CAN’T HANDLE THE TRUTH!”

Shawn Loughlin Shawn’s Sense

The toddler’s mind

L

ast Friday, Cooper, our son and second child, turned one year old. Some of his family was around on Thursday for a little party and then, on Friday, I took the day off so we could spend it together.

He seemed to have fun, though he has a number of teeth coming in all at the same time, so that’s been tough for him. Aside from that, though, he had a great day with his family.

Over the course of the day, we marvelled that we had a one-year-old in the house, asking him if he could believe he was one year old now and asking his sister, Tallulah, if she could believe that her brother had turned one.

As he played one of his favourite new games (crawling around the floor as we stack Jenga blocks two, three and four tiers high for him to topple over - his face just lights up as he sees one of us building a stack and he starts crawling over quickly so he can be the one to take it down), I couldn’t help but think about how much he had grown in the past year. Sure, he had gotten a lot bigger, but he had learned so much. Even right there, he was crawling.

Then, a silly thought popped into my mind as I watched this unbelievably happy boy play with his blocks.

Here we were, on his birthday, assuming that he is really happy about it. Turning one - hey, it must be exciting, right?

But... what if we’re wrong. Coop’s a quiet little guy (when he’s not laughing hysterically while playing with his sister or grumbling because his teeth are bothering him), so I got thinking that maybe he’s one of those old souls you hear about and that he was thinking of the passage of time on the event of his birthday and questioning what it means to be one.

When a child turns one, a baby becomes a toddler. As Coop sat there, clanking shaped blocks together or pressing buttons on his phonics bus, was he lamenting the loss of his baby days? Sure, it’s great to crawl and have agency over more of your movement, but will he miss all that time in his parents’ arms?

Looking ahead, is he not quite sold on what being a toddler will mean to him? Is he thinking, in the most pensive Larry David (cocreator of Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm) way possible, about his newfound moniker?

“Am I truly a toddler? Sure, I’ve dabbled in toddling, I’ve toddled before, but does that make me a toddler?” Plus, just as he’s become a toddler, Tallulah has been exiting toddler status and moved on to being a pre-schooler.

Will he be lonely as the only toddler in the house, or will he welcome the monopoly?

Maybe he thinks, like we do, that this unstoppable freight train called time is moving entirely too fast. Toddler today, pre-schooler tomorrow and a high school student before long - where does the time go?

Perhaps he thinks we’ll be expecting more of him now. Crawling is great, but surely it’s just a gateway to walking, so that will be next on the list. Is he worried it will take him too long to learn? Is he really hoping that he does it the right way, so he doesn’t disappoint us?

Man, it’s hard to be a toddler.

Well, hopefully he hasn’t let any of these pesky existential concerns creep in, ruining the first in what will hopefully be a very successful series of birthday celebrations.

Then again, maybe his quiet time was just him wondering when more food was coming or why his parents and sister weren’t stacking up blocks for him to knock down when he clearly - clearly - wants to be doing that. How could there be any confusion around this?

Ah, the mind of a toddler - it’s all about food and Jenga blocks... at least, we hope so.

PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

Columnist says ‘carpe diem’ in the face of very weird weather A NOTE FROM BETTY

By Betty Graber Watson Call 887-9231

Jamboree The U6/U7 Blyth Brussels Crusaders hosted their annual Jamboree at the Brussels, (John Stephenson photos) Morris and Grey Community Centre on Saturday, Feb. 10.

At the Branch

Glousher takes home jackpot

By Jo-Ann McDonald The exciting news at the Branch is that the ace of spades has been found. It has been hidden for 38 weeks but, on Friday night, the lucky lady to find it was Karen Glousher.

She chose envelope number 20 to look in and there it was! She won the jackpot of $10,137 plus the weekly prize of $393 for a total of $10,530.

Congratulations to Karen, who has been a faithful supporter of the Catch the Ace draw for all 38 weeks. We thank everyone for their support and the next Catch the Ace draw will start in March.

The draw was conducted by Comrades Jo-Ann, Judy and Jamie and it was exciting to draw the winner. The pub grub was chili and next week it will be pulled pork.

The rest of the week was tame, with Cadets on Tuesday and Thursday night darts. There were 16 darters out to have fun and the winning team was Paul Willie and Janet Ericson. The second-place team was Lynda Davis and Sandra Brown. The high shot of the night was by Tim Nyholt, hitting 117. It wasn’t a great night for a pair of players, with Randy White and partner Louise Poirier earning a skunk for the evening, but it was reported that they still had a good evening!

Euchre is on tonight (Feb. 16) and karaoke is coming next Friday night.

The Branch will host its annual

public speaking competition on Feb. 28 and doors will open by 6:30 p.m. We hope to see lots of young people participating.

Just a reminder to all that the Lions Club collects old glasses.

There is a collection bin in the lobby of the Foodland. The Legion accepts pop tabs that are shipped to Elora and proceeds from the sales go to purchasing wheelchairs for those in need. The Cadets collect pop cans to put towards Corps supplies and or trips. They can be dropped at the Branch on Tuesday evenings.

I have put it out there about gathering information about your loved ones or relatives that served in the war, to have it included in the

Military Service Recognition Books, prepared by Ontario Command. This is a free publication available to anyone who wishes a book. It is also a good time to consider whether you would like to have a banner made. It would be hung before Remembrance Day and all that is required is a photo, name and maybe unit, war and rank. Call the Branch for more information on either of these projects.

Early ordering for banners is very much appreciated because companies become very busy in the fall. The service information has a deadline of June 1. Contact Jo-Ann if you’re in search of more information.

Brussels Royal Canadia an Legion Branch 218

Public Speaking g Contest Wednesday, February 28 6:30 pm - Doors open for registration 7:00 pm - Speeches begin Open to all school-aged children Public Welcome Questions regarding public speeches call Brussels Legion 519-887-6562 Tuesday to Friday after 4:00 pm

The bikes and rollerblades have been sighted; even the birds were heard singing one day last week.

Weird weather once again. Just seize the day, check it for safety and then get on with what you were going to do. The weather is not in our control. Lucky - aren’t we?

I have volunteered at 5Rs thrift shop for years and, on most visits, I am humbled, amazed and thankful for the donations we receive from our generous community. The odd time I wish I could personally return a bag or two with the dirty, worn out and broken things that folks leave for us to “sell”.

This past week it was the opera glasses, Cabbage Patch dolls, cookbooks and the over-the-elbow gloves from Paris that caught my fancy. Like all the people we know, each article has a story and that for me is what makes any thrift shop a mystery tour of the day.

After-effects of the COVID-19

pandemic are surfacing. People not keeping up with needed immunizations is one that really concerns me. We get a little slack when childhood diseases have lost their scare factor. Death, brain damage and deafness frighten me.

Additionally, the prevention is a simple injection and free! This is a public health issue and, for everyone’s safety, encourage, remind or escort the unvaccinated for their shot.

Take care of yourself.

Bye now. Betty GW

NEWS FROM BRUSSELS

Brussels Legion 218 Catch the Ace Winner The Ace has been found!

Karen Glousher chose envelope #20 and won $10,137 and the weekly prize of $393

THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024. PAGE 7.

Hakkers wonders if mild February temps might turn frosty in March

Jamming!

The U8 Blyth Brussels Crusaders hosted their annual Jamboree at the Blyth Arena and Community Centre on Saturday, Feb. 10. (John Stephenson photo)

The Reading Web with Cindy Norgate

A

little girl was sitting on the playground one day in 1974 with a sombre look on her face. Miss W, her teacher, scolded her because of misbehaviour in class, so there she was, riding the bright red see-saw with her friend with a look of dread on her face.

Her parents had certain expectations for her behaviour, and, when those expectations were not met, her parents never blamed the teacher. They never once marched down to the school to see, “Why is that teacher picking on my child?”

You see, there were rules at school, and the little girl was expected to obey. That’s it. There’s no magic reason. It’s very simple, actually. I still remember that day when I saw my father pull into the driveway. I knew the news my mother had to share, and I knew the consequences would not be good.

Before anyone sends any negative comments my way, I want to say this article is, in no way, advocating corporal punishment. Let’s take that off the table. What it is about, however, are expectations that a North American society has seemingly given up on or, even worse, become disinterested in trying any longer. Please keep in mind that I am no expert, but I have raised children, and I am melding my experiences as a parent and teacher and the research I have discovered with you - a new or relatively new caregiver of children, in mind.

As you and I continue our conversation from last week about character, I want to ask: What do you think are the five most important character traits a child should have? According to mentalhealthcenterkids.com there are 15 which are most important for children to learn. I will share one today, and my plan is for you and I to discuss one each week, covering the top five, and how to incorporate them on a daily basis with your child, but, before we continue, I’m going to be direct and ask you a

question. Are you willing to put the time into your child’s upbringing and do everything in your power to teach them? It’s going to be a rigorous task. If no, then you can stop reading. If yes, then please continue.

Honesty. Don’t put them to the test. Alldadpro.com suggests, “Though it’s tempting to test them, try to avoid asking questions that give your child a chance to not be honest. You saw your daughter spill red juice on the couch. No need to ask, “Did you just spill your juice on the couch?” This leads her to believe she might have a way out and possibly could pass blame elsewhere. Just tell her to clean it up.

She’ll have enough opportunities to tell the truth.”

Give consequences. We all make mistakes. Remember, children are learning. They will lie to you, and you will eventually catch them. It’s important that there be consequences for their actions, so be proactive and have some guidelines set in your family for what is acceptable punishment. Taking away privileges or whatever you think works well for your child, but, in no way, ever deny your child the basic needs of life as a means of punishment. Appropriate discipline should be carried out and followed through. Make it so it is not worth it to lie and be consistent.

Reward good behaviour. I’ll be the first to admit when I learned this at university, I thought it was a bit difficult to swallow. Why would I want to bribe a child? That made no sense to me, however, as I sat back and pondered this situation, I discovered that a “bribe” is a reward for doing something you shouldn’t.

A reward is recognition for good behaviour. Remember, times are different for children nowadays. My father never rewarded me. In fact, my reward was that I followed the rules and didn’t get into trouble with him or Mama, but remember last week when I said society is much different nowadays for a child.

“Catch them doing good things.”

This also lifts self-esteem as well.

Lastly, if you want to be trusted then keep your promises. Teach your children to be people who consider their word sacred. When they give it, they don’t break it. The best way to teach this is by modelling it yourself.

As I leave it here for this week, take some time and consider how much time you are willing to spend implementing steadfast characteristics in your child. This will be time that is not wasted.

Remember, I'm always cheering for you. You can do it.

“Being honest may not get you a lot of friends but it’ll always get you the right ones.” - John Lennon

By Deb Hakkers We have had another week of notvery-February weather. At least the temperature is more normal than it was. Someone told me that there is an old wives’ tale that a green Christmas leads to a white Easter, so who knows what March will bring!

Mom remains a patient in Clinton Public Hospital. For right now, the MRSA infection is gone so the focus now is to build stamina and regain mobility. She appreciates all the phone calls, e-mails and visits that help her stay in touch with the world outside of the hospital.

This week we wish a happy birthday to Evelyn Popp on Feb. 16 (a little bird told me she will be 88), Marilyn Craig on Feb. 18, Christine Hoba and Vaughn Toll on Feb. 19, Agnes Wharton, Tom Hallahan and Scott Armstrong on Feb. 21, and Sharon Jackson, Robbie Laurie, Bryce Toll, Joan Caldwell and Shirley Giilick all on Feb. 22.

The Loonie Twoonie Auction in support of the Coldest Night of the Year was a great success and a lot of fun. Congratulations to the organizers! It was a great night!

The Legion euchre results from Feb. 5 were: first, Evelyn Blake (70) and Steve Hasyj (78); second, Jean Hallman (69) and Kevin Smith

(76); lone hands, Virginia Caesar (three), Dianne Clark (three). Share the wealth went to Shirley Wood and Gord Haggitt.

To have something added to this column, please e-mail mcraig1@tcc.on.ca, or call me at 519-525-8640 (evenings only please).

Happy Family Day and, until next week, take care of yourselves and each other!

NEWS FROM BLYTH

MAITLAND M AITLAND V VALLEY ALLEY C CAMERA AMERA C CLUB LUB

Photography by Liz Allan

PAGE 8. THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

Sports

U13 C Heat win two of three to open playoffs

Flying high It was a good day for the U15 BB Huron Heat on Sunday as the team beat the South Huron Sabres by a score of 2-1 in their playoff clash. There will be an exact rematch of the game this Sunday, also in Clinton, as several local Heat teams continue their playoff journeys. (John Stephenson photo)

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen The playoffs continue for a number of Huron Heat teams who have earned themselves a spot in postseason action.

The U13 BB Heat will open their playoff journey with two games against the St. Thomas Panthers in the coming weeks - first in Seaforth on Feb. 20 and then in St. Thomas on Feb. 28.

The team then plays the Lakeshore Lightning in Clinton on March 3 and then the London

Devilettes on March 9 in Seaforth and again in London on March 10.

The U13 C Heat won their first two playoff games - Jan. 28 over St. Thomas in Clinton by a score of 31 and Feb. 10 on the road over Chatham-Kent by a score of 2-1 before losing its third, a home game in Clinton against the Lakeshore Lightning on Feb. 11 by a score of 1-0. The team then played the St. Marys Rock in Seaforth on Feb. 13 and the Upper Maitland Mustangs in Howick on Feb. 14, but scores were unavailable for those games at press time.

Then, on Feb. 18, the girls will play the B.A.D. Blazers in Clinton, followed by a playdown on Feb. 20 against the Mitchell Meteors on the road.

The U11 BB Heat will play their first playoff game on Feb. 18 in Clinton against the Ayr Rockets.

The U11 C Heat have four playoff wins and a tie under their belts.

They beat the St. Marys Rock 2-0 in Clinton on Jan. 21, the Lambeth Lancers 6-0 in Seaforth on Feb. 3, the St. Marys Rock again 2-0 on the road on Feb. 5, tied the Lucknow/Wingham 86ers 1-1 in

Wingham on Feb. 9 and beat the Mooretown Lady Flags 3-0 on Feb. 11 on the road.

On Feb. 17, they will take on the South Huron Sabres, followed by a game with the Stratford Aces on Feb. 24, both in Seaforth.

The U18 BB Heat play their first two playoff games this weekend, taking on the South Huron Sabres on Feb. 16 in Hensall and Feb. 17 in Clinton, followed by a home-andhome series with the Stratford Aces on Feb. 23 in Seaforth and Feb. 25 in Stratford.

The U18 C Heat won their first playoff game on Jan. 27 over the Sarnia Lady Sting by a score of 3-1 in Sarnia, followed by a 1-1 tie with the Lady Sting in Seaforth on Feb. 4 and a 2-0 loss at the hands of the Upper Maitland Mustangs on Feb. 8 in Blyth.

On Feb. 16, the team will welcome the Wilmot Wolverines to Seaforth, followed by a Feb. 17 game with the Upper Maitland Mustangs on the road, a Feb. 18 game with the Tillsonburg Lightning in Seaforth, a Feb. 21 game with the Lambton Attack on the road and a Feb. 22 game with the Tillsonburg Lightning again in Seaforth.

The U15 BB Heat won their first playoff game against the South Huron Sabres on Feb. 11 by a score of 2-1 in Clinton. The two teams play again in Clinton on Feb. 18 and then the Heat play the Waterloo Ravens on the road on Feb. 21 and again in Clinton on Feb. 24.

The U15 C Heat tied their first playoff game with the Lambton Attack at one on Jan. 27 on the road, followed by a 2-1 loss to the Wilmot Wolverines in Seaforth on Jan. 30, a 4-1 loss to the ChathamKent Crush in Seaforth on Feb. 2 and a 1-0 win over the Upper Maitland Mustangs in a Feb. 4 playdown in Clinton.

They’re back in action again on Feb. 24 on the road against the Grand River Mustangs and in Clinton on Feb. 25 against the Kitchener Lady Rangers.

The U13 HL Heat have five wins and a tie thus far in their playoff run, beginning with a 4-0 win over the Ilderton Jets on Jan. 27 in Goderich, a 1-1 tie with the Lucan Irish in Clinton on Jan. 28, a 3-0 win over the Woodstock Wildcats on Jan. 30, a Feb. 3 win over the Wallaceburg Lakers in Goderich by a score of 5-0, a 7-1 win over the Lucan Irish on the road on Feb. 4 and a 5-2 victory over the St.

Thomas Panthers in Goderich on Feb. 10.

The team is next in action on Feb. 23 with a game against the Woodstock Wildcats in Blyth and then again on Feb. 24 against the Wallaceburg Lakers on the road.

The U11HL Heat won their first two playoff games against the Mooretown Lady Flags by a score of 1-0 on Jan. 27 on the road and 50 on Feb. 3 in Seaforth. The team then lost to the Lucan Irish on Feb. 4 on the road before beating the Ilderton Jets on Feb. 10 on the road by a score of 4-0 and the Bluewater Hawks, also on the road, by a score of 4-2 on Feb. 11.

The team will then play a homeand-home series with the North Middlesex Junior Stars on Feb. 17 in Seaforth and Feb. 18 on the road.

The Senior team will be playing Milverton in the playoffs, beginning with a Feb. 18 contest in Hensall, followed by a game in Milverton on March 1 and a return to Hensall on March 3 for another game.

This weekend in regular season action, on Feb. 17, the U9 B Heat will play the Grand River Mustangs on the road and the U9 HL Heat will play the Sarnia Lady Sting HL Hurst team in Seaforth. The next day, the U9 C Heat will play the Stratford Aces on the road and the U13 BB Heat will welcome the Woodstock Wildcats in Clinton. On Feb. 20, the U9 HL team will host the Central Perth Predators in Seaforth.

Looking back, on Feb. 11, the U9 HL team beat the Lambton Attack on the road by a score of 5-2. Also that day, the U13 BB Heat lost to the London Devilettes on the road by a score of 4-0, the U18 BB Heat beat the Waterloo Ravens on the road by a score of 3-2, the U9 B Heat tied the Woodstock Wildcats at four on the road and the U11 BB Heat played the London Devilettes on the road, but a score for that game was unavailable at press time.

On Feb. 10, the U9 B Heat lost to the Kitchener Lady Rangers by a score of 2-1 on the road, the U9 C Heat lost to the Chatham-Kent Crush on the road by a score of 4-1, the U18 BB Heat lost to the Orangeville Tigers on the road by a score of 5-0 and the U11 BB Heat played the Grand River Mustangs on the road, but a score for that game was unavailable at press time.

On Feb. 5, the U18 BB Heat lost to the Owen Sound Ice Hawks on the road by a score of 1-0.

BRUSSELS MINOR BALL 2024 REGISTRATION NOW OPEN Visit www.brusselstigersfastball.ca to register online, or attend in-person registration on

Thursday, February 22 from 6-7:30 pm

Tight margins On Sunday in Clinton, the U13 C Huron Heat welcomed the Lakeshore Lightning to town for a playoff game, but the home team came out on the wrong end of a 1-0 score. The playoffs continued for the team on Tuesday with a 7-0 win over the St. Marys Rock.

(John Stephenson photo)

at the Brussels Morris and Grey Community Centre, 800 Sports Drive, Brussels All registration closes March 1, 2024.

Kids born between 2003-2020 Follow Brussels Minor Baseball on Facebook for more details.

THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024. PAGE 9.

Sports

Ironmen to host alumni game, public skate

Incoming The Ironmen had a successful return to Wingham last Friday night, beating the Walkerton Capitals by a score of 2-1 before falling the next night at the hands of the Mount Forest Patriots, on the road in Mount Forest, by a score of 2-0.

(John Stephenson photo)

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Next weekend will be a big one for the Wingham Ironmen as the team continues playing

through its 50th anniversary season.

On Saturday, the Ironmen will welcome the Fergus Whalers to Wingham for a game that begins at 8 p.m. However, at 6:15 p.m., just prior to puck drop, the Ironmen will

host an alumni game between members of the 2003/2004 and 2013/2014 teams. Then, on Monday, the Ironmen will host a Family Day Skate with the Ironmen from 10-11:45 a.m. before they take on the Mount Forest Patriots, also in Wingham, beginning at 12:30 p.m.

The Ironmen will bring their 1618-3-1 record into the weekend, as the team sits in sixth place in the North Pollock Division of the Provincial Junior Hockey League.

This comes after a weekend during which the Ironmen split their games, beating the Walkerton

Capitals by a score of 2-1 at home last Friday night and falling to the Mount Forest Patriots on Saturday on the road by a score of 2-0.

On Friday night, the Ironmen and Capitals exchanged goals in the first period. Wingham’s Tayt Bramhill scored his third of the season at 16:15, assisted by Noah Bloemberg and Nigel Kreager, followed by Aiden Stanley scoring his sixth goal of the season for the Capitals at 18:11, assisted by Austin Drew.

Just before the five-minute mark of the second, Noah Wettlaufer won it for the Ironmen, scoring his eighth goal of the season, assisted

by Micah Kraayenbrink.

Kaleb Meyer won the game in the Ironmen net, stopping 29 of the 30 shots he faced, while Vance Meyer stopped 15 of the 17 shots he faced for the Capitals, being assessed the loss.

Wingham’s Josh Dales was called for cross-checking at 6:38 of the first period, followed by a slashing penalty called against Walkerton’s Austin Drew at 9:07, a too-manyplayers penalty against Wingham’s Brandon Bishop at 13:22 and a boarding call at the 20-minute mark of the first period against Dales again.

Nigel Kreager of the Ironmen was called for interference at 2:54 of the second period, followed by a tripping call against Wingham’s Nate Bloemberg at 6:13, a slashing call against Walkerton’s Nate Binkley at 9:58, a 10-minute misconduct for unsportsmanlike conduct against Wingham’s Nate Bloemberg at 17:40 and a slashing call against Walkerton’s Markus Grajnar-Ptok at 19:12.

Walkerton’s Brayden Harrow was called for too many players at 3:02 of the third period, followed by a roughing call against Wingham’s Damon Murray at 8:34 and a tripping call against Wingham’s Austin Becker at 14:35.

On Saturday, the Ironmen were in Mount Forest to play the Patriots and came back on the wrong end of a 2-0 shutout.

After a scoreless first two periods, Matthew Weiler scored his fourth goal of the season at the fiveminute mark of the third period.

Brody Leblanc provided the assist on the shorthanded goal.

Leblanc then put the game away with an empty net goal at 19:36 of the third period, assisted by Cameron Lytle and Jaxon Gawel. It was Leblanc’s 45 goal of the season.

Marshall Nicholls stopped all 30 shots he faced for the win, while Garrett Golley stopped 27 of the 28 shots that came his way for the loss.

No penalties were called in the first period, but, in the second, Coleson Fischer of the Ironmen was called for goaltender interference at 3:11, followed by a tripping call against Mount Forest’s Aaron McGuirk at 7:41, an interference call against Mount Forest’s Joseph Weiler at 11:07, a tripping call against Mount Forest’s Matt McLellan at 15:08 and an interference call against Wingham’s Owen Rahn at 16:08.

At 4:26 of the third period, Mount Forest’s Reid Caswell was called for goaltender interference, followed by a tripping call against Connor Paige of the Patriots at 10:10.

The Hanover Barons remain atop the North Pollock Division standings in the Provincial Junior Hockey League with a record of 334-0-2 and 68 points, followed by the Mount Forest Patriots in second place with a record of 28-7-2-0 and 58 points.

The Kincardine Bulldogs are in third place with a record of 21-112-5 and 49 points, followed by the fourth-place Walkerton Capitals’s 38 points and 17-18-2-2 record, the fifth-place Fergus Whalers at 1616-3-2 and 37 points and the sixthplace Wingham Ironmen with a record of 16-18-3-1 and 36 points.

The Mitchell Hawks are in seventh place with 27 points and a record of 11-23-3-2 and the Goderich Flyers remain in last place with just nine points and a record of 3-32-1-2.

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Stephenson photo)

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PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

Some maple syrup producers tapping early PEOPLE AROUND WALTON

By Jo-Ann McDonald Call 887-6570

Griddle me this The Auburn Lions Club hosted a pancake breakfast on Sunday, Feb. 11 ahead of Shrove Tuesday on Feb. 13 and Valentine’s Day on Feb. 14. Travis Teed was on pancake duty.

(John Stephenson photo)

Firefighters notified by smartphones not sirens, Readman tells council

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Huron East Fire Chief Kent Readman provided council with an update on fire sirens in Brussels and Seaforth at council’s Jan. 23 meeting after councillors had requested more information on the sirens’ absence of late.

Readman said that, when the municipality changed its dispatch centre from Stratford to Owen Sound in 2022, changes and upgrades were made to the communication system, one of which was the loss of the townwide fire sirens in Brussels and Seaforth. In his report, Readman said that the sirens were one of the “antiquated parts of the system” that were “no longer compatible with the current system.”

He told council that firefighters are now notified of a call by their smartphones (and mobile radios and pagers before them) so they are no longer informed of a fire by way of the siren.

The issue was raised last year by Seaforth Councillor Bob Fisher, who said he had heard from many Seaforth residents on the streets who missed the siren and felt it still had a place. Then, at the Jan. 23 meeting, he further stated that he felt the siren was more for the public than the firefighters, letting people know that vehicles may be coming into the village and to the fire station and then heading out to the fire. As a result, people would keep watch and perhaps pause for a minute or two while the firefighters made their way out to the emergency.

Readman said that, in addition to Fisher’s concern, he had identified some others within the current system.

“The fire chief has identified a number of concerns with the current communication system used by the Huron East Fire Department, including the sirens, and has been in communication

with the communication system provider to address the concerns,” Readman said in his report to council. “A full audit of the communication system, including testing of all of the hardware, was scheduled to take place on Jan. 9, 2024. The audit was to include a review of the Seaforth fire siren system and options for bringing it back online. Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances by the communication system provider, this audit did not take place as scheduled. The audit is now scheduled to take place on Jan. 29, 2024.”

Readman told council he would bring a full report back to council once the audit has been completed. *** At the Jan. 23 meeting, Director of Finance and Treasurer Stacy Grenier provided council with an update on the fundraising efforts in regards to the renovation and expansion of the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre.

This came after Councillor Ray Chartrand, at a previous meeting, asked for an update regarding fundraising levels and the status of pledges being paid by donors.

She noted that pledge reminders were issued to all pledge donors last November and then secondary letters were sent on Jan. 16 to any donors with outstanding pledges. If pledges remain unpaid, a third round of letters will be sent out in May. However, she noted, the status of the pledges actually being paid is good.

“For 2023 pledges, it was anticipated that we would receive $282,400 in pledge donations. We have received $224,400 to date, in addition to new single donations of approximately $47,400,” Grenier said in her report to council.

To date, she noted, the municipality has received just over $1.5 million in donations for the project, with $258,983, $291,483 and $307,733 projected to be

received in 2024, 2025 and 2026, respectively. *** Council authorized the closure of Sports Drive between McCutcheon Drive and Market Street in Brussels between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. on Saturday, June 1 for the annual Brussels Minor Ball Day. Krissy Rammeloo from the Brussels Minor Baseball Executive Committee wrote a letter to council, asking for the closure due to the sheer volume of players, parents and spectators who will be near the ball diamond on that day.

Council approved the request at its Jan. 23 meeting with little discussion.

We’ve had another great week of weather. Driving the roads was a pleasure. It is making for a short winter of difficult driving, but I am sure some nasty weather will still happen. We will just look back and remember the sunny and mild days of January and February.

I wondered whether many were tapping trees because of the mild weather and the answer is yes.

Some are hard at it, but one producer has not started. They have decided to wait until after the next cold spell. I don’t know enough about maple syrup production, so we will just have to wait and see.

We send our get-well wishes to Gary McCutcheon, who has had some heart surgery. We hope he comes along well and will be out and about again soon.

It was time for the Coffee Chat at the Walton Hall again last weekend and there were almost 20 folks there for coffee and snacks. It is great to see old friends, neighbours and

others. The good weather probably helped with attendance. We will be back again on Feb. 24.

Celebrating birthdays this past week includes Mike Alexander, Sheila Bauer, Kendra Warwick, Michael Beuerman, Weldon Black, Maleah Taylor, Brady Dalton, Joyce Tipple, Christine Lee, Mary Baan, John McCall MacBain, Barry Skinner, and then lots of Valentines Babies including Betty Glanville, Krista Fraser, Val Pethick, Gary McNichol, Betty Graber Watson, followed by Hayden Lee. Happy birthday to all.

NEWS FROM WALTON

ESTATE FIREARMS SPECIALISTS FIREARMS WANTED FOR OUR 202ϰ AUCTION PROGRAM

ZŝŇĞƐ͕ ^ŚŽƚŐƵŶƐ͕ ,ĂŶĚŐƵŶƐ͕ ŶƟƋƵĞƐ͕ DŝůŝƚĂƌŝĂ͕ ŽůůĞĐƟŽŶƐ͕ ƐƚĂƚĞƐ͕ ^ŝŶŐůĞ /ƚĞŵƐ Ĩ Žƌ ƵĐƟŽŶ Žƌ WŽƐƐŝďůĞ WƵƌĐŚĂƐĞ CONTACT: SWITZER’S AUCTION dŽůůͲ&ƌĞĞ ϭͲϴϬϬͲϲϵϰͲϮϲϬϵ ŵĂŝů hƐ Λ ƐĂůĞƐΛƐǁŝƚnjĞƌƐĂƵĐƟŽŶ͘ĐŽŵ sŝƐŝƚ hƐ Λ ǁǁǁ͘ƐǁŝƚnjĞƌƐĂƵĐƟŽŶ͘ĐŽŵ

Youth Winter Sports Pages Coaches and parents ~ we need your team’s picture and players’ names 1. Please submit team photo A.S.A.P. 2. Please include players’ and coaches’ names for under the photo.

Deadline March 29

Please help us get ALL the Winter Sports teams published.

The Citizen

405 Queen St., Blyth 519-523-4792 info@northhuron.on.ca

THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024. PAGE 11.

Brussels Curling Club wraps first draw of season

By Jo-Ann McDonald The Brussels Curling Club concluded its first draw of the season on Jan. 15.

It was a great six weeks and the winner of the draw was the team of

Matt Cardiff, Steve Bowers, Chris Jutzi and Danielle Jutzi. The second-place team consisted of Merv Bauer, Diana Dolmage, Andrew Fear and Steve Steiss.

Third place went to the team of Jack

Pipe, Tyler Jutzi, Jeff Cardiff and Gary Pipe.

The fourth-place team included Mike Alexander, Reg Vinnicombe, Dona Knight and Sarah Alexander.

Fifth place went to the team of

Steve Knight, Katherine Thomet, Brendan Howson and Mike Thomas.

The sixth-place team was Brent Alexander, Martin Thomet, Jo-Ann McDonald and Darcy Fear. Seventh place went to the team of Don Chesher, Douwa Top, Paul Fear and George Zwep.

The last-place team of the draw was Doug Bremner, Mary-Ann Thompson, Alex Jebson and Jill Wageman. A lovely social time followed the final game with lots of snacks to enjoy.

The second draw has since started

and we have eight teams again and some spares. We are thrilled to have six new members for this draw and we hope they enjoy their time at the Brussels Curling Club. We could use a few more bodies and then all sheets could be filled for a full slate of 10 teams. If you would still like to come out and join us for the next four weeks, please do - a reduced rate will be in effect.

It would be great to have a full house and it will give you a chance to see the beautiful new facilities at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre!

Games with parents to follow provincials

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen This weekend, nine Blyth Junior Broomball teams are destined to travel to Belleville to take part in provincial championships tournaments, bringing another successful local broomball season to a (hopefully) satisfying close.

The U12 Bullets, U12 Ice, U12 Silver, U14 Boys, U14 Girls, U16 Boys, U16 Girls, U20 Boys and U20 Girls teams will all be heading east for the year-end tournaments.

After that celebration of all things

Hairpin turns The Regional Equine and Agricultural Centre of Huron (REACH) played host to a barrel racing and roping competition on Sunday in Clinton, welcoming equine enthusiasts from all over the province to Huron County. Next week, REACH will welcome the Stoneboat Pullers for some rare winter tractor pull action. (John Stephenson photo)

broomball, the teams will play exhibition games against their parents on the weekend of Feb. 2324 before the league’s annual awards banquet, which will be held on Sunday, March 3 at the Blyth and District Community Centre.

This comes after a relatively quiet weekend in Blyth due to the ice being used by the Blyth Brussels Minor Hockey Association for its annual U6/U7 and U8 Jamboree tournaments. The lone game was played by the U9 team in Mildmay, which resulted in a 1-0 win for the Blyth team.

PAGE 12. THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

Is there a doctor in the house?

Glimpses of the Past with Karen Webster

O

n July 1, 1895, proud parents James and Emma Vokes, of Toronto, named their son Hadfield Arnold Samuel Vokes. That was quite a long title for the young lad to wear, but perhaps it was a precursor to the varied and rich life that he would have. Eventually, he landed on using Arnold as his moniker.

When Arnold enlisted at the Niagara Camp in July of 1915, he was a 20 year-old student with six weeks’ experience with the 13th Canadian Field Ambulance Brigade.

While in France, he served at the #10 Canadian Stationary Hospital.

Post-war, after he returned to Canada, he continued his studies at the University of Toronto, graduating as a medical doctor in 1925.

The following year, he married Louise Hoskins, who was a nurse.

The young couple journeyed to China on a medical mission, but they were only there one year when ill health caused them to return to Canada, landing in Vancouver on April 17, 1927.

After one year on staff at Toronto General Hospital, Arnold and Louise moved to Dungannon, where he took over the practice of Dr. T. E. Case.

These were busy years, as the Vokeses were raising their son, Robert, and being involved with the activities in the community as well.

Arnold often was a guest speaker at gatherings where he was able to share his knowledge of and love for the Chinese people. Louise capably served as the president of the Home and School Association for SS#8 School during this time.

After nine years in Dungannon, Arnold moved his practice to Blyth.

Again, the family participated in

community life. There, they attended Trinity Anglican Church, where Louise was organist. Robert was a member of the church choir and also attended Scouts there.

Numerous school reports cite his high marks in his school studies.

A country doctor has many challenges. For example, during a March snowstorm in 1940, an Auburn-area resident was ill and in need of medical attention, Dr. Weir, the Auburn physician, had been called to Goderich. A Goderich doctor tried to travel to Auburn but found the roads were impassable.

Dr. Vokes was able to get to Auburn from Blyth on the train and, although he had to wait two hours for the trip, he was able to attend to that patient and she recovered.

Besides his medical practice, Arnold Vokes served on many boards and committees, including the Huron County Boy Scouts and the TB (Easter Seals) Association.

He also was the Medical Officer of Health for the Township of West Wawanosh. In addition, Arnold was one of the local doctors who ran blood donor clinics in the county.

Not only did Arnold work on committees, but he also took time to appreciate nature. Some folks remembered that he had a great fondness for flowers and even offered a prize at the Dungannon Fall Fair for the best arrangement of cut flowers.

In the fall of 1941, Arnold formed the Bird and Nature Club. At one meeting of this group, held at the home of Fred Toll Sr., talks were given by various members: Mrs. Boyle on the sandpiper, Mrs. Laughlin on the cardinal, Dick Leggett on bird feeding stations and William Gow on

animal tracks in the winter.

By August of 1944, Arnold was ready to move on once more and, after selling his practice to Dr. Hodd of Hamilton, he once again went on the staff of Toronto General Hospital.

In 1948, Toronto Sick Kids Hospital announced that it would be moving and getting all new equipment.

Watkins Roberts conceived the idea that the old equipment could be sent to overseas missions. This was the start of Evangelical Medical Missionaries’ Aid Society (EMMAS). Dr. Arnold Vokes looked after the reception and distribution of this equipment when this charity began.

As always, Arnold was very interested in Chinese Christians, so, in 1954, when Paul Wong and some associates planted the Toronto Chinese Gospel Church, Arnold Vokes gave the church $5,000 to help purchase a house to worship in.

Through the years, he and his wife continued to support and encourage

Rural practitioner

the people who founded the church.

Dungannon must have had some inviting qualities for, in 1958, the Vokes family returned to resume practice there until 1962. On a personal note, I can remember being a patient of Dr. Vokes’ when I had a bad cold. After he had injected penicillin into my arm, he asked me to open my mouth. There was no way I wanted that needle in my mouth but I relented and to my surprise, he took the needle off of the syringe and just squirted the rest of the penicillin onto the back of my tongue. Apparently this was a common practice of his, as I have talked to others who had the same

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The U15 BB Huron Heat played the South Huron Sabres on Sunday in Clinton in playoff action as the winter draws to a close. The home team was victorious by a score of 2-1. (John Stephenson photo)

experience. He would also tell children that he was cleaning their ears out so they could hear the birds sing.

The Vokeses maintained a summer home in Dungannon for several years after he retired and they had moved to Toronto.

On May 3, 1974, Dr. H. A. S. Vokes died in Wellesley Hospital, Toronto, in his 79th year. There was a private funeral service and as well a memorial service was held at the Toronto Chinese Gospel Church.

This was a very fitting tribute because of his lifelong association with Christian Chinese.

Enjoy some great Reading

THE BLACKSMITH’S CRAFT Blacksmithing is a romantic and practical skill and it still has many applications today. This comprehensive book is a primer of the tools and methods of the blacksmith and provides tips on how to make this skill pay. $27.95

Heads up!

Dr. Arnold Samuel Vokes practiced medicine in Huron County for many years. (Archival photo)

A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO SHEEP DAIRYING A book that will examine all aspects of dairy sheep farming and useful information on different sides of this type of farming including what you need to get started, feeding and management, lambing and more. $25.00

DRAGGING MASON COUNTY At turns touching, sharply funny, and a little absurd, Dragging Mason County explores the pains and pleasures of queer community through one teen’s journey to self-acceptance. $18.99

The Citizen

ULTIMATE GUIDE TO HOBBY FARMS ANIMALS What’s a hobby farm without a small flock or herd (or several)? Five experienced hobby farmers and writers share the wisdom and knowledge gained from years of animal keeping for pleasure and profit. $40.99 The Little Book of BACKYARD BIRD SONGS Keep this enchanting introduction to backyard birds on your windowsill for the whole family to enjoy and see who becomes the bird-song expert first. $19.95

SOMETHING I’VE BEEN MEANING TO TELL YOU Nobel prize winner Alice Munro shares the mysteries, dangers, joys and bewilderment in the lives of ordinary girls and women in this collection of thirteen rich stories. $20.00

HOW TO RAISE A READER This book shows you how to instill the joy and timestopping pleasure of reading. Divided into four sections, from baby through teen. Beautifully illustrated. $29.95

405 Queen St., Blyth 519-523-4792

THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024. PAGE 13.

BLYTH Y 519-523-4244

+XURQ7UDFWRU FRP

519-523-4311

www.ruralvoice e.ca

OFA Roadshow to tackle succession planning

By Sara Wood, Vice President, Ontario Federation of Agriculture For any business owner, planning for the future involves serious decision-making about what will happen to the business. Whether it’s a transition to a next generation family member or a sale to a new owner, the process requires careful thought and planning.

For farmers, business transition or farm succession planning comes with some added layers of complexity. Most farmers live where they work, so it’s also about the family home, and, in the case of a farm that’s been in the same family for multiple generations, an emotional attachment to the land and to family history can also be at play.

It’s a daunting task, making it tough to know where to start and, let’s be honest, most of us are uncomfortable facing the thought of our own mortality and of handing over control of what we’ve built to someone else.

That’s why the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) has teamed up with Farm Life Financial again this year to offer a Financial Literacy and Farm Succession Planning Roadshow for farmers, with seven in-person education days across southern, central and eastern Ontario, in addition to a virtual session.

It’s a topic near and dear to my

heart. Having gone through a farm family succession process, I know firsthand how important it is, how hard it can be, and why proper planning is essential to keeping both the business going and the family together.

My husband and I farm west of Stratford near the town of Mitchell where we raise broiler chickens and grow crops. We’ve taken over the day-to-day farm operations from my parents, but my mom is still involved in the business as an advisor and helps out when my other activities, like being a vicepresident with the OFA, take me away from the farm.

Our transition process started when my mom heard a presentation by a succession planning specialist in the U.S. who suggested farmers have to decide whether they are a business-first family or a familyfirst business. This means focusing on the future with a solid plan, versus relying on tradition and assumption and hoping for the best.

Together and individually, our family met with lawyers and accountants to figure out what our long-term vision and goals were for the farm; for my parents it was about the legacy of what they had built, and for us, as the next generation, it was about what we wanted to accomplish.

This helped us build a solid plan that has served us well and, although our son is only six, we are

already thinking about what a future on the farm might look like for him, and how we might handle another transition if he decides farming isn’t where his heart lies.

For the older generation of farmers looking to retirement, start your conversations early with both your kids who want to farm and those who don’t. Have a vision of how you want to see the future of the farm and how involved you want to continue to be in the decision-making process. Don’t just leave things in the will and hope for the best.

The younger generation has to be willing to listen and come into the process with open ears and minds.

Although you may have big plans for the future and how you want to put your stamp on the family business, you should respect that you’re taking over a legacy and the first cheque you write every year should be to the people who’ve made it possible for you to farm.

Above all, both generations have to be flexible and willing to embrace change - and a certain amount of creativity may be needed to pull it all off.

Succession plans take time, and they are emotional. As farmers, much of our identity is wrapped up in what we do and where we live, and it can be hard to think about a life that doesn’t involve running the farm.

That’s why I believe it’s important to look to transition planning specialists for help and workshops like the OFA Roadshow can be a great opportunity to start thinking about the process.

More information on workshop dates and locations is available at ofa.on.ca.

For your sweetheart The Auburn Lions Club held its annual Valentine’s Day breakfast on Sunday at the Auburn Hall. Next up, the club will mark St. Patrick’s Day with a pancake breakfast on Sunday, March 10. (John Stephenson photo)

BRUSSELS LIVESTOCK REPORT For the week ending February 9, 2024 Total Receipts: 1,460 cattle, 476 lambs and goats Tuesday - Fed cattle sold $2 - $3 higher. Cows sold on a steady market.

Thursday - Veal sold actively at steady prices. Lambs, sheep and goats sold steady.

Friday - Choice calves sold $5 - $10 higher, second cut calves sold fully steady. Yearlings sold $5 - $10 higher.

Fed Cattle: There were 75 fed cattle on offer: Choice Fed Cattle: $236 – $242 Second Cut Fed Cattle: $226 – $235 Aged and medium fed cattle: Too few to establish a market Holstein Fed Cattle: $145 – $187 Dwayne Dickert of Ayton, consigned four head. One black steer weighed 1,575 lbs. and sold for $241.

Hehn Farms of Walkerton, consigned four head. One charolais steer weighed 1,730 lbs. and sold for $234.

Cows: There were 180 cows on offer:

Stockers: There were 1,000 stockers on offer:

Good Beef Cows: $120 – $145 Good Holstein Cows: $125 – $135 Medium Holstein Cows: $112 – $124 Bulls: $133 – $192 Albert D. Shetler of Lucknow, consigned two head. Two simmental cows weighed 1,833 lbs. and sold for $136.

Evergreen Holstein of Ethel, consigned six head. One holstein cow weighed 1,890 lbs. and sold for $131.

Lambs: Under 50 lbs.: Too few to establish a market 50-64 lbs.: $335 – $350 65-79 lbs.: $315 – $400 up to $417.50 80-94 lbs.: $300 – $344 up to $355 95-109 lbs.: $275 – $291 up to $299 110 lbs. and over: $220 – $237.50 Sheep: $136 – $247.50 up to $335

Veal: There were 175 veal and 30 bob calves on offer: Beef Veal: $250 – $275 up to $280 Good Holsteins: $230 – $240 SL Heavy Holsteins: $220 – $235 Heavy Holsteins: $185 – $228 Medium Holsteins: $215 – $225 Plain Holsteins: $170 – $210 Drop Calves: $550 – $800 / HEAD Reuben S. Martin of Wallenstein, consigned seven head. One blue veal weighed 1,175 lbs. and sold for $280.

Bennewies Livestock Inc. of Bornholm, consigned seven head.

One holstein veal weighted 705 lbs. and sold for $240.

Top Quality Steers: Under 400 lbs.: $318 – $500 400 – 499 lbs.: $350 – $466 up to $497 500 – 599 lbs.: $350 – $459 up to $467 600 – 699 lbs.: $379.50 – $413 700 – 799 lbs.: $325 – $379 800 – 899 lbs.: $282 – $344 up to $353 900 – 999 lbs.: $286 – $325 up to $335 1,000 lbs. and over: $280 – $313.50 up to $314 Top Quality Heifers: Under 400 lbs.: $220 – $317.50 400 – 499 lbs.: $305 – $424 500 – 599 lbs.: $276 – $355 up to $365 600 – 699 lbs.: $300 – $330 up to $349 700 – 799 lbs.: $274 – $302 up to $308 800 – 899 lbs.: $263 – $306.75 900 lbs. and over: $262 – $308.75

Goats: Meat Kids: $400 – $515 Dairy Kids: $360 – $400 Mature Bucks: $290 – $400 Mature Does: $50 – $320

Fairview Farms Ltd. of Debert, Nova Scotia, consigned 71 head. Twenty-six charolais steers averaged 660 lbs. and sold for an average price of $412.

Andreas and Petra Aeberhardj of Neustadt, consigned 22 head. Three lambs averaged 66 lbs. and sold for an average price of $417.50.

Lamondeen Farms of Ripley, consigned nine head. Three charolais steers averaged 825 lbs. and sold for an average price of $353.

Maria Rebelo-Erb of Lucknow, consigned eight head. Three kid goats averaged 57 lbs. and sold for an average of $515.

Gary Zehr of Newton, consigned four head. Four charolais steers averaged 920 lbs. and sold for an average price of $335.

Brian Derbyshire of Melbourne, consigned 26 head. Four red heifers averaged 608 lbs. and sold for an average price of $349.

Marvin M. Martin of Clifford, consigned 21 head. Thirteen charolais heifers averaged 926 lbs. and sold for an average price of $308.75.

Elvin W. Martin of Clifford, consigned 12 head. Six charolais heifers averaged 1,020 lbs. and sold for an average price of $288.

BRUSSELS LIVESTOCK Division of Gamble & Rogers Ltd.

UPCOMING SALES TUESDAYS 10:00 a.m.

Fed Cattle, Bulls & Cows

THURSDAYS

9:00 a.m. Drop Calves 10:00 a.m.Veal 11:30 a.m. Lambs, Goats & Sheep

FRIDAYS

10:00 a.m. Stockers Visit our webpage at: www.brusselslivestock.ca email us at: info@brusselslivestock.ca

Call us 519-887-6461

PAGE 14. THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

Barnett Classified Advertising – RATES – coming events Help wanted Help wanted to speak

20 words or less only $8.00 + HST Additional words 20¢ ea. + HST

DEADLINE 2 p.m. Tuesday Phone 519-523-4792 e-mail: info@northhuron.on.ca

Articles for sale To all persons who have any houses, lands, tenements, farms, ships, vessels, goods, wares or merchandises to be sold or let, may have the same inserted at a reasonable rate.

North Huron Publishing 405 Queen St., Blyth for particulars.

-------------------------------------------GERBERS FIREWOOD SERVING you for over 15 years. Your number one source of quality slabwood and bodywood. Delivery available. No Sunday calls. 519-274-1236, 519441-2085. 01-50p -------------------------------------------WEBWOOD TRUSS WINTER SALE - 10% discount on roof trusses and floor joists. We do residential, commercial and agricultural. For details and/or quote call 519-3353551 and ask for Zach.

-------------------------------------------REPRINTS OF PHOTOS taken by Citizen photographers are available to purchase. All are in colour. 4x6 – $5.00, 5x7 – $6.00, 8x10 – $10.00. Phone to order 519-523-4792 or email: info@northhuron.on.ca tfn -------------------------------------------THE CITIZEN IS AVAILABLE TO purchase at these locations – Auburn Esso, Belgrave Variety, Blyth Variety, Blyth Food Market, Blyth Ultramar, Brussels Foodland, Brussels Variety, Clinton Convenience, Clinton Foodland, Charlie’s Variety in Clinton, Fogal’s YIG in Wingham, Wingham Mini Mart, Seaforth Foodland, Fincher’s in Goderich, Goderich Victoria St. Shell and The Citizen Blyth.

--------------------------------------------

coming events SING! SING! SING! Come sing with us. The Seaforth Harmony Kings. All welcome. Tuesday nights, 7:15 p.m., Seaforth Public School.

Experience the joy of singing 4-part harmony. For more info call 519887-9181.

-------------------------------------------World Day of Prayer will be held on Friday, March 1 at 2 p.m. in the lower level of Melville Presbyterian Church, Brussels. A Social time will follow. All are welcome!

--------------------------------------------

KARATE! IN-PERSON & VIRTUAL CLASSES AVAILABLE SCHWEITZER'S MARTIAL ARTS Self-defense, Self-discipline, Selfconfidence GROUP CLASSES FOR AGES 4 TO ADULT Taught by Renshi Becky Schweitzer, 4th Degree Black Belt and 12X World Karate Champion Location Fresh Wind Revival Centre - 21 Lloyd Street, Wingham 10 week session $125 + HST. Uniform extra Call 519-580-1418 or e-mail becky_schweitzer@hotmail.com www.schweitzersmartialarts.com --------------------------------------------

In memoriam

HALLAHAN - Remembering Sheila Hallahan, a dear wife and mother, who passed away February 21, 2014.

Cherished in our hearts forever.

Joe, Michelle, Kerry & family.

-------------------------------------------CAMPBELL - In memory of Mom, Grandma Izzy, Great- and GreatGreat Grandma Isabel Campbell, who gained her wings February 20, 2022.

Those we love don’t go away.

They walk beside us every day.

Unseen, unheard, But always near.

Still loved, still missed, And always dear.

With Love from Ron, Wayne, Marilyn, Carolyn, Murray, Dianne, Brian, Gayle and families.

-------------------------------------------STILES - James Gordon Stiles, April 12, 1932 - February 9, 2014. Gordon (Buzz), Dad, 10 years have passed since you left us. Not a day goes by that your name isn’t mentioned and one of your fancy sayings is said.

You are loved and missed.

Our lives go on without you.

But nothing is the same.

We have to hide our heartache When someone speaks your name.

Sad are the hearts that love you.

Silent are the tears that fall.

Living here without you is the hardest part of all.

You did so many things for us.

Your heart was kind and true, And when we needed someone We could always count on you.

The special years will not return When we were all together, But with the love in our hearts You walk with us forever.

The Citizen 519-523-4792 huroncitizen.ca

Until we meet again, Love your wife Jean, daughter Donelda, son-in-law Terry and Grand furbabies Otis & Jethro.

FALLS RESERVE Conservation Area

We’re looking for positive people who enjoy the outdoors and want to develop their skills.

Several seasonal positions are currently open at Falls Reserve Conservation Area (Benmiller). n Administrative Assistant

at Knox PEOPLE AROUND BELGRAVE

By Linda Campbell Call 357-2188

n Gate Attendant n Security / Maintenance n Maintenance

Students are welcome to apply. Job descriptions and application details are posted on the Employment Opportunities page at: mvca.on.ca

Robinson Chevrolet is seeking a bookkeeping specialist to assist in the accounting aspects of the business. We are a small but rapidly growing automotive dealership with a focus on customer service and community involvement.

Job Description • Assisting with payroll, monthly financial statements and account management • Reconciling monthly visa statements • Full-cycle accounting: AP, AR, billing, general ledger etc.

• Working to organize departmental finances and spot any discrepancies • Answering calls for sales and service departments.

• Work in our DMS (dealer management system) to manage vehicle service and sales Job Requirements: • Excellent phone and email etiquette • An accounting background education or work experience or both Job Type: Permanent Benefits: • Dental care • Extended health care • Life insurance • On-site parking Schedule: • 8 hour shift Work Location: In person Send resume to bevin@robinsonmc.com

The card results for Feb. 9 are: high gold card, Gayle Neil; most shoots, gold card, Blair Liebold; high white card, Mary Ellen Keller and most shoots, white card, Gord Machan.

Cards will be played again on Friday, Feb. 23 at 1 p.m. at the Belgrave Community Centre.

Everyone is welcome.

On Sunday, Feb. 11 at Belgrave United Church, the guest speaker was Rev. Bill McAuslan, United Church retired minister. Mackenzie Wightman accompanied all the hymns at the piano along with Lila Procter with her guitar. They played prelude and postlude music.

Scripture lessons were read from 2 Kings 2:1-2, Psalm 50:1-6, 2 Corinthians 4:3-6 and Mark 9:2-9.

Susan Barnett will be the guest speaker on Sunday, Feb. 18 at Knox United Church. Everyone is welcome.

Arlyn Montgomery’s daughter Karen Gagne of Texas, enjoyed visiting with her mother for 10 days.

We have heard the robins chirping earlier on, but we did actually see some on Saturday, Feb. 10. It does seem early, but with our weather being so changeable, anything is possible.

There was a good crowd at the coffee group at the Community Centre on Tuesday, Feb. 13.

Everyone enjoys the get-togethers.

It was Shrove Tuesday, so many enjoyed pancakes and sausage.

Enjoy Family Day weekend, whatever you plan on doing.

Hopefully the weatherman cooperates and gives us good weather.

“SWAP SHOP” ad Call 519-523-4792 or email: info@northhuron.on.ca

• Free ad up to 25 words, person to person only (no businesses), items valued at $1,000 or less. Price must be included in your ad.Your ad will run three times unless it sells faster!

• The Citizen reserves the right to limit the number of items or ads per person.

FOR SALE - Collection of 1,000 piece puzzles; Cobble Hill, Kim Nolan, Thomas Kinkade with beautiful scenery. $8 ea or 3/$20. 519-606-4849 Clinton.

7-3 --------------------------------------------FOR SALE - Olhausen pool table, plus balls, cues and more. $500. 519887-9615 7-3 --------------------------------------------FOR SALE - Cat/dog metal cage. 24” long, hardly used. Priced $80 - selling for $40.; Purestar air purifier with HEPA filter. Reg. $1,000, selling for $500. 519-482-7440.

7-3 ---------------------------------------------

FOR SALE - 24” Frigidaire dishwasher - like new, 2 years old.

Asking $300.; Lifetime water distiller complete with extra filters. Asking $500 obo; Stackable 24” Gorenje 7 kg. clothes dryer. Like new. Asking $400 obo. Call 519-357-3622 6-3 --------------------------------------------FOR SALE - Donald Sutherland Stamps. Post Office price - $1.05 each.

519-357-1504 5-3 --------------------------------------------FOR SALE - Blundstones brown size 4 1/2, square toe, $75; Foosball table, $50; Storm Door - fits 36x80, 2 “thick”, white, $100. 519-357-4040 5-3 ---------------------------------------------

All word ads in The Citizen classifieds are put on our webpage at www.huroncitizen.ca

NEWS FROM BELGRAVE Celebrating A Special Occasion?

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THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024. PAGE 15.

Obituaries

SCOTT “BURT” MCCARTHY Scott “Burt’ McCarthy of Clinton, formerly of Mississauga, passed away peacefully, with his sister Donna and best friend Steve by his side on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, at Victoria Hospital in London at the age of 63.

Predeceased by his parents Ron and Jacquie McCarthy and his sister Diane McCarthy, Scott was the loving brother and friend of Donna (Dan) Taylor. In-laws, aunts, uncles and cousins of the Green and McCarthy families all survive Scott.

Scott was a quiet and private person with a wry sense of humour.

Still, he had many friends, all of whom will miss him dearly, particularly his Mississauga friends, Bill, Heather, Mariya, Rob and Sylvia, his college roommates Steve Bunn, Bill Devine, Scott Nellis and work colleagues, Gerry Parrott, Alyssa Ambrose and April Neary.

His family will remember Scott as a kind person and a superb athlete, excelling at every sport he tried. He truly was an amazing goaltender and a great golfer. He loved golfing at Woodlands Links in Clinton, where he felt like a member for years before he became one.

His work colleague and friend Gerry Parrott shared the following: “Over the last week since I shared the sad news about Scott’s passing with his colleagues, many anecdotes have been shared. It wasn’t hard to pick up on a theme.

Dedicated. Hardworking. Smart.

And never, ever did he say no.

Except if there was a golf game to be had or a Leafs game to watch!

Sometimes, but rarely, did that take precedent over work.

“And who did everyone want to train them? Yes, Scott. Why? Because of his kind demeanour, soft-spoken words and friendly approach. All new staff loved it when Scott could train them, not only because of his demeanour, but because he knew his stuff.

“Many good times were had over

the years - there were many fond memories having a cold beer and chicken wings after a long hot day in the field - I think Scott and I helped to keep the local pub in Belleville in the black for at least two summers! And who could forget Scott’s laugh? Like his character and wit, it was understated, yet sincere and knowing. He knew. And his smile and approach made others feel comfortable. We will always remember Scott fondly - a true gentleman.”

Cremation has taken place, and a celebration of his life will be held later. In lieu of flowers and as expressions of sympathy, donations to Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy, Clinton Public Hospital Foundation or KidSport Ontario would be appreciated.

Please send donation cheques to Box 340, Brussels, Ontario, N0G 1H0.

Condolences may be left at riversidefuneralhome.ca

MADELINE THERESA (BENEDICT) LAFFIN At St. Mary’s Hospital on Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, Mrs. Madeline Theresa (Benedict) Laffin of Blyth passed away peacefully at the age of 71.

The devoted wife of Harold Laffin, Maddy was the loving mom of her five sons: William and Rachael, Michael and Jess, Matthew and Tiffany, Patrick and Cheryl and Sean and Amanda. She was the cherished grandma of Bria, Jase, Carly, Cole, Cian, Eric, Andrew, Brooke, Jordyn, Lincoln, Natalie, Hope and Emilia. She was the dear sister of Herbert and Karen Benedict and the sister-in-law of Ann Marie and George Desveaux, Eileen and Ray Carrigan, and Patrick and Norina Laffin.

Maddy will be lovingly remembered by her many nieces and nephews.

She was predeceased by her parents, Herbert Benedict and Theresa (Halley) Benedict Barrett,

Hands up!

Trinity Anglican Church in Blyth was busy on Monday, Feb. 12 hosting a fundraiser in support of the Northern Huron Connection Centre in Wingham. (Scott Stephenson photo)

stepfather Eric Barrett, sisters Betty Vollmer and Dianne Benedict, brothers Gerald and Ronald Benedict, parents-in-law Patrick and Mary Laffin, and brother-inlaw David Laffin and his wife Myra.

A celebration of Maddy’s life will be held at a later date with details to follow.

Interment will take place at St. Michael’s Cemetery, Blyth, in the spring.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations to the Canadian Diabetes Association would be appreciated.

Online condolences at www.mcburneyfuneralhome.com

JUNE (JUDY) MARIE SPROUL (TAMAN) June (Judy) Marie Sproul (Taman) has passed away at the age of 77.

The beloved spouse of the late Delmar Sproul, Judy was the loving mother of David (Barb) Sproul, the cherished grandmother of Brad (Jessica) Bernard and she was loved beyond measure by her greatgrandson, Greyson Bernard.

Judy was the sister of Richard Taman and sister-in-law of Gary Sproul (Marg).

She was predeceased by her mother, Margaret Taman, her father, Wesley Taman and siblings, James Taman, and Lyle Taman. Judy was also predeceased by her mother-inlaw Mae and father-in-law David Sproul, sisters-in-law Eileen Sillib (Geordie) and Louise Schade (Delford) and brother-in-law Gordon Sproul.

She is survived by her many cherished nieces and nephews and longtime friends.

Judy enjoyed her bingo and card games with her girlfriends. She also loved to dine out with family and friends.

One of her last dreams was being in a dance competition with her

great-grandson Greyson and winning first place.

Judy enjoyed many vacations with her family and friends. She enjoyed and treasured the little things in life. She will be loved, and greatly remembered by all who were fortunate enough to spend time with her.

The family received friends at the McCallum and Palla Funeral Home, Goderich, on Thursday, Feb. 8 and the funeral service was held at the funeral home on Friday, Feb. 9.

Interment to take place at Dungannon Cemetery.

Donations to the Alexandra Marine and General Hospital Foundation’s “Dialysis Unit” or the Heart and Stroke Foundation would be gratefully acknowledged.

Friends may sign the book of condolences on the funeral home website at www.mccallumpalla.ca

ISOBEL (MACEWAN) ARBUCKLE At Wingham and District Hospital on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, Isobel (MacEwen) Arbuckle of Nine Mile Villa, Lucknow, passed away peacefully in her 99th year.

She was the beloved wife of the late Robert (Bob) Arbuckle (1992) and the loving mom of Margaret

and Rick Stapleton, Joan Arbuckle and Gary Adams, all of Wingham, and the late Douglas Arbuckle, who predeceased her in 2015.

She will be remembered by her grandsons, Daniel and Rachel Stapleton of Burnaby, British Columbia and Joey Stapleton and his fiancé Melissa Stocco of Kitchener.

Isobel was predeceased by her parents, John L. and Ethel (Stutt) MacEwen, her brother Tom and sister Helen, along with numerous in-laws.

Isobel was born on Dec. 23, 1925, on a farm near Wroxeter. As a girl, she attended Kirton’s School in Turnberry Township, the Wroxeter Continuation School and the Wingham High School. She attended the Stratford Normal School and later taught at Currie’s School, SS#9, East Wawanosh.

While there, she met local farmer, Bob Arbuckle, and they would marry in June of 1951. They ran a successful beef operation until 1983 when they moved to Wingham.

Isobel was involved in her Church, St. Andrew’s Presbyterian in Wingham, serving as an elder and as a life member of the Women’s Missionary Society.

Other community involvement included 12 years on the board of governors at Wingham and District Hospital and as a member of the hospital auxiliary.

Visitation was held at McBurney Funeral Home, Wingham on Monday, Feb. 12 and the funeral service will be held at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Wingham on Tuesday, Feb. 13. Interment will take place at Wingham Cemetery in the spring.

Memorial donations to St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church would be appreciated.

Remembering your loved one Honour your loved one by placing their obituary in

The Citizen.

This is a free service provided by The Citizen. We encourage you to share the story of your loved one in a special remembrance of their life.

Cards of thanks can be placed in our classified section, starting at just $8.00.

PAGE 16. THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

Students enjoy Valentine’s Day

On the run The Regional Equine and Agricultural Centre of Huron (REACH) in Clinton hosted barrel racing on Sunday to (John Stephenson photo) much fanfare.

Hullett Central Public School celebrated Valentine’s Day by encouraging everyone to come to classes wearing red, white or pink attire. The school leadership team treated the children from Kindergarten to Grade 4 with fun activities and a dance in the gym in the afternoon just before dismissal time. Over the noon hour and into the afternoon, the Grade 5-8 students enjoyed a movie together.

Feb. 28 is Anti-Bullying Day, also known as Pink Shirt Day. The children at Hullett Central will be encouraged to wear a pink shirt to classes that day in support of this idea. The school continues to work hard at creating a peaceful environment within its walls.

I like the advertisement that is running on TV right now around a fictitious/every school. The adults in it, who are involved with that school - principal, teacher, custodian, bus driver, coach - are stressing, “this is a safe place!”

Children need to feel that safety every day.

During the month of February, students and teachers will be talking about perseverance. The children will learn that perseverance means setting a goal and seeing that goal realized whatever the work around getting there.

The resilience and determination needed for this success are both great lessons for the future.

Stay tuned for news around the upcoming concert Seussical the Musical and the annual spring carnival.

Licensed Lay Worship Leader Sue Barnett led the morning worship at Londesborough United Church on Sunday, Feb. 11, which is also known as Transfiguration Sunday. The core of the service was the scripture passage from the Gospel of Mark 9:2-9.

Sue remarked on the difficulty church folk and leaders have around the idea of transfiguration or transformation. But this time alone on the mountain was the preparation of Christ for the events around the Crucifixion and ultimately His Resurrection. She stressed that being transformed through Jesus leads to contentment, for He is the greatest good.

Feb. 18 is the first Sunday of Lent in the Christian calendar.

During the children’s time, Sue

Two Ironmen teams coming to Blyth Continued from page 1 action scheduled for this weekend with a home-and-home series with the Mid-Huron Huskies, beginning on Feb. 16 in Brussels, followed by a Feb. 17 game in Clinton.

In regular season action on Feb. 17, the U7 Burgundy and White teams will welcome two Wingham Ironmen teams to Blyth, the U9 LL team will play the Mid-Huron Huskies in Brussels and the U7 Black team will play the Wallace Sabres on the road. The U8 Black and Burgundy teams will be in Clinton to play two Mid-Huron Huskies teams and the U9 MD team will play the Listowel Cyclones on the road that day.

On Feb. 18, the U9 LL team will play the Thunder in Zurich and the U8 Black team will host the Wingham Ironmen in Blyth.

On Feb. 21, the U9 MD team will play the Mid-Huron Huskies MD team in Bayfield, followed by a Feb. 23 game between the U7 Black team and the Howick Hornets in Brussels.

Looking back at some of the final regular season games of the year, on Feb. 12, the U13 LL team lost to the Central Perth Predators on the road by a score of 3-0, while the U18 LL team also lost by a score of 5-2 to the Mid-Huron Huskies in Hensall and the U18 Rep team beat the AEMHA Ice Dogs in Blyth by a score of 3-1.

On Feb. 11, the U9 MD team lost to the Central Perth Predators on the road by a score of 10-3, the U21 team lost to the Central Perth Predators on the road by a score of 4-2, the U15 Rep team lost to the Mid-Huron Huskies in Clinton by a score of 6-4 and the U18 Rep team beat the AEMHA Ice Dogs on the road by a score of 8-1.

The U9 LL team beat the Central Perth Predators on the road on Feb. 10 by a score of 3-0, while the U21 team lost to the Saugeen Valley Steelheads on the road by a score of 4-1, the U11 LL team lost to the

Wingham Ironmen Yellow team in Wingham by a score of 11-0, the U13 Rep team lost to the Capitals in Walkerton by a score of 5-3 and the U15 Rep Crusaders lost to the Huron-Bruce Blizzard in Blyth by a score of 14-0.

On Feb. 9, the U9 MD team lost to the Mitchell Meteors in Brussels by a score of 12-1 and the U11 LL Crusaders lost to the Drayton Defenders, also in Brussels, by a score of 4-0.

On Feb. 8, the U15 Rep team lost to the Saugeen Valley Steelheads on the road by a score of 5-3 and the U18 Rep team tied the Listowel Cyclones at three. The U8 Black team played the Wallace Sabres that day on the road, but a score was not kept for that game.

The U15 LL team tied the MidHuron Huskies at three in Blyth on Feb. 7, while the U13 Rep team tied the Minto Mad Dogs, also at three, on Feb. 6 in Brussels and the U18

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SUDOKU Fun By The Numbers Like puzzles?

Then you’ll love sudoku. This mindbending puzzle will have you hooked from the moment you square off, so sharpen your pencil and put your sudoku savvy to the test!

Here’s How It Works: Sudoku puzzles are formatted as a 9x9 grid, broken down into nine 3x3 boxes. To solve a sudoku, the numbers 1 through 9 must fill each row, column and box. Each number can appear only once in each row, column and box. You can figure out the order in which the numbers will appear by using the numeric clues already provided in the boxes. The more numbers you name, the easier it gets to solve the puzzle!

LL team beat the Listowel Cyclones by a score of 6-0 that day, also in Brussels.

On Feb. 5, the U11 LL team lost to the Mid-Huron Huskies in Blyth by a score of 6-1, the U11 Rep team lost to the Mid-Huron Huskies in Hensall by a score of 7-0, the U15 Rep team lost to the Mid-Huron Huskies in Blyth by a score of 8-2 and the U18 Rep team lost to the Huron-Bruce Blizzard in Blyth by a score of 3-1.

used the life stages of a butterfly to help them understand the concept.

Then they went downstairs with containers of Play-Doh with instructions to transform that lump into something else.

Following the service, the choir hosted a Valentine’s luncheon. The choir offers a big thank you for the donations congregants made for that time of fellowship.

If, by chance, you didn’t get out on Valentine’s Day to treat your mate, why not stop by the Londesborough Community Hall on Sunday, Feb. 18? The local Lions Club will be serving up its olde-tyme country breakfast from 8 to 11 a.m.

As I type this column, we are enjoying a balmy day with brilliant blue skies. Could Wiarton Willie be right after all?

NEWS FROM LONDESBORO Celebrating A Special Occasion?

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The Citizen 2023 PHONE BOOK

What does Huron County mean to you in one photo?

• AUBURN • BLYTH •BRUSSELS • CLINTON • GODERICH • GORRIE • SEAFORTH • WINGHAM

The winner will get the coveted cover spot

on our 2024 phone book (with credit) and a special North Huron Publishing prize package.

Submit your HIGH RESOLUTION digital photo (please email original size - do not crop) to: Citizen Phone Book Cover at: info@northhuron.on.ca Deadline is February 23, 2024

THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024. PAGE 17.

From the Minister’s Study

Stanley begins series on the Christian worldview

By Pastor Mike Stanley, Huron Chapel, Auburn Why am I doing this? I mean, why am I writing this article?

This is the honest question that I have been pondering as I contemplate what to write. Don’t think I am ungrateful; it is pretty neat to be given the opportunity to share my thoughts or perspectives with you… but, what’s the point?

Do I have a goal in this or am I just trying to say something that you might find somewhat interesting?

As a Christian pastor, I don’t just want you to learn something interesting about the Bible or the Christian faith (those are fine results if they happen), but, if that is all that happens, then how is that practically helpful for you? The real benefit to you is if you can use what you learn to help you practically in life.

The Bible uses a metaphor for the truth of the Bible as light. The picture that it is giving is that the truth that you learn from the Bible gives you understanding for the everyday situations of life. Another way of talking about it is that it forms your worldview.

All of us have a worldview. It is simply the way in which we view… the world. Our worldview is determined by a number of things: our experiences in life, our culture, what we were taught, as well as individual characteristics (say, are you optimistic or pessimistic?). All of these are influences on how you view the world. This is very significant, because our worldview determines our actions. There is no area of life that is not impacted by our worldview.

For example, your relationships are affected by if you view another person as worthy of your time, respect, compassion, etc. Your work is affected by if you view it as primarily to benefit yourself, or if you believe that your work is contributing to a worthy cause greater than yourself. Even the personal decisions you make regarding your appearance or what you might buy for yourself are significantly determined by how you think others will respond.

This is why I think that religious beliefs are so foundational to our lives; they have a great influence on our worldview. Most religions speak to how we are to approach the relationships in our life, our work and even our personal decisions.

Now, you might be thinking, “I am not religious,” and therefore this wouldn’t apply to you. But I would argue that everyone is religious in

Evangelical Missionary Church

the sense that they have some set of beliefs that they live by. For example, if you take the atheist belief that there is no God - that, as humans, we are just here by chance; that there is no ultimate Being that determines right and wrong and that when you die you just turn into dirt - these are beliefs that have a massive impact on how you go about your life.

We are all faced with the realities of life. We want to live a life that has meaning; we long to experience love and joy in life; we are faced with moral decisions on a daily basis and need some way to determine what is the right thing to do and we are all faced with the reality of our mortality and question of what happens when we die.

Every worldview (including ones that are influenced by religious views) is trying to guide us through these realities of life.

As a Christian pastor, this is what I am most passionate to share. I have come to understand and believe that the Christian worldview really does offer the best

explanation and guide to all the situations we encounter. It is like having a flashlight to navigate the dark and treacherous path of life.

Over the next number of months, my intention is to share aspects of the Christian worldview and how it makes sense of the human experience. I hope that not only will it give you some new understanding of the Christian worldview (and possibly correct some incorrect assumptions), but that it will also give you some practical truth to live by as well.

For this week, I will begin simply with the existence of God for you to think about from the very first verse of the Bible; it says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”. There is a lot to consider in this simple statement about God. We can actually put together a simple definition of God from this verse.

First off, we see that God existed before the beginning. Another way of saying that is that God is eternal, meaning that He is without beginning and has always existed.

10:00 am Worship Service 11:00 am Co ee Time 11:15 am Sunday School for all ages

o ’s Love God e dures en forever

The Regional Ministry of Hope Trinity Anglican BLYTH 9:00 AM

St. Paul’s-Trinity Anglican WINGHAM 11:00 AM

519-357-7781 • email: revjoann@hurontel.on.ca www.regionalministryofhope.com Weekly service live-streamed at 11:00 a.m. on our Facebook page or on youtube @St. Paul’s-Trinity Anglican Church Wingham.

All Are Welcome Interim Pastor Elwin Garland 250 Princess St., Brussels • 519 887 6388

BRUSSELS S

U United Chu ur urch Welcome to Worship W Sundayy, February 18 8 ~ 9:30 a.m.

Celebrating Comm munion s open to all.

Come, the invitation is Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. Organizatioon Meeting for a mid-week Children’’ss Program at Brussels United loooking for input from the communityy..

“Games TTiimee” Fridayy,, February 23 at 1:30 Contact Alex at ministter.brusselsandblythuc@gmail.com y @g Website: brusselsandblythuc.ca brusselsandblythuc b ca P.O. Box 359, Brussels ~ 519-887-6259 P.

Londesborough United Church 338 King’s Rd., Londesborough 519-523-4225

Worship Time & Sunday School 10:30 a.m.

Feb. 18: First Sunday of Lent

Everyone Welcome

MEL LV VILLE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH BRUSSELS

Sunday, February 18, 2024 11:00 am - 12 noon We extend a loving welcome to all to join us as Doug Sargent leads us in worship, prayer and praise to Good.

Snacks, coffee, and a time to visit will follow.

Soup & More 2 Join us every Friday from 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. for lunch. This free meal is made possible by the Brussels churches and many volunteers working together to serve our community. c All are welcome!

Sunday, February 18, 10:30 a.m.

Pastor Mike Stanley, "Children Obey" (Ephesians 6:1-4)

of which our minds can sort of conceive.

Once again, we immediately come up against the fact that science is not going to be able to help us verify this aspect of God. That doesn’t diminish the reality of God’s existence in any way though, there are lots of realities in our human experience that science can’t explain, such as love, morality or beauty. It doesn’t make them any less real; we just have to recognize that science has its purpose to explain the functions of the material universe, but be careful not to try to push it beyond what it is capable of.

Lastly, from this verse we can see that God is an intelligent Being. We can see this clearly as we use science to discover the vast complexities of the material universe in which we find ourselves. The more we discover, the more we realize how intricately and perfectly everything fits Continued on page 18

Come Worship with Us!

Worship with us at

Brussels Mennonite Fellowship

This immediately corrects the misunderstanding found in questions like, “who created God?” The very definition of God means that He is uncreated. Philosophers of old used the language of “first cause” to describe this. Now, it might seem like the idea of something existing for eternity past is hard to believe, but I would like to point out that it is unavoidable, no matter what worldview you have; at some point something had to be first.

The only other option is that something came from nothing… which is just as hard to accept.

And, by the way, both of those options defy the very laws of science and so they can’t help us.

Secondly, we see that God is not part of the material universe, for He is the one who created the material universe (that is what the “heavens and earth” language in the Bible refers to). The Bible would describe God as “spirit”, which is something

For pastoral care concerns please call 519-524-7512 2

Sunday, February 18 at 10 a.m.

BMG Community Centre (upstairs room) 800 Sports Drive, Brussels Childcare provided for children aged 0 to 4 during the sermon

Worship and Prayer Time Loving Fellowship Expository Preaching

For additional details please visit: brusselscommunitybiblechapel.ca

Blyth United Churrch Sunday Service at 11:00 am Isaiah 40:1 Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. Nursery & Sunday School during worship Sat. Feb. 24, 10-4 MARRIAGE ENRICHMENT DAY with Pete & Leah Humphreys! ($20)

On-site and online - live.huronchapel.com 119 John’s Ave., Auburn 519-526-1131

Outreach project for February is the Coldest Night of the Y Yeear e walk Contact Alex at: minister.brusselsandblythuc@gmail.com Facebook: Blyth and Brussels United Churche es blythunited@tcc.on.ca ~ 519-523-4224

Services are live-streamed and can be found by searching “Blyth Christian Reformed Church”

PAGE 18. THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

Auburn’s Bacherts mark 60th wedding anniversary

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen

A day to remember Keith and Janet Bachert, centre, recently marked their 60th wedding anniversary in Kitchener with their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. From left: Mark and Brenda Bachert of Nicaragua, Mike and Shellie Bachert of Maryland, Marvin and Wendy Bachert of Walton, Keith and Janet of Auburn, Sherri and Philip McKinley of New Hamburg, Sheila and David Ganoe of West Virginia and Shirlee and Brent Groothuis of Auburn. (Courtesy photo)

In January, Keith and Janet Bachert of Auburn, formerly of Walton, celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary with all 64 (and counting) of their children, grandchildren and greatgrandchildren.

The celebration took place at the Crowne Plaza in Kitchener over the course of the weekend of Jan. 5-7.

Family members came from Nicaragua, Maryland, West Virginia, Nova Scotia and throughout Ontario. The program included both dramatic and humorous skits that entertained everyone of all ages.

Keith and Janet Bachert were married in a church near Tavistock on Dec. 21, 1963. They first lived in Stratford, where Keith learned the trade of meat cutting from a skilled butcher in the meat department of a busy Red and White Grocery Store.

Janet was an elementary school teacher, first in Oxford County and later in Huron County after they purchased a farm just east of Walton.

HE implements universal rec. fees

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Huron East Council has approved a universal fee structure for its recreation centres, establishing a base level upon which additions can be included.

Director of Community Services Lissa Berard presented her report to council at its Jan. 9 meeting, recommending unification of recreation fees across the municipality.

“Throughout the Municipality of Huron East, there are variable fees for same or similar levels of service. Staff are proposing that all fees of the same or relative services be brought to a more unified

format,” Berard said in her report to council. “In 2023, both the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre (BMGCC) and the Seaforth and District Community Centre (SDCC) consolidated the ice rental rates to be the same; moving forward, rental space and programs need to be consolidated.”

Berard said the staff recommendation was to create a base hall rental rate with an optional hourly add-on rate for the use of the kitchen or for an event in which alcohol is served.

“Currently, the two auditoriums located at the BMGCC and SDCC have two separate methods for calculating rental rates and different

rate costs. One auditorium has a not-for-profit rental rate, while the other does not. There are also different set cost rates, and rates for different purposes (i.e. auctions, funeral luncheons, sporting events, use of kitchen and use without kitchen),” Berard said in her report to council. “Both of these spaces are similar in size and, regardless of how the space is being utilized, staff still have to prepare the space for use and clean it afterwards.”

She also noted that programs like swimming lessons, court sports and more should also be treated the same way and charged at the same rate, regardless of which municipal facility is being used.

In speaking with council, Berard told council that the way the auditoriums at the arenas are being used has been changing over time.

While it used to be rather common for the centres to be used for buck and does or wedding receptions, that simply isn’t the case any longer and the spaces are being used more for seniors’ recreation like pickleball and more.

Council approved the consolidation of the rates with little discussion.

This was just one of several adjustments to the municipality’s fees and charges bylaw. For a full story on those other changes, check out The Citizen next week to learn more.

Together, they developed a meat business at their farm, which kept their family busy, instilling the skills of the meat trade until the children ventured off in all different directions, using their learned skills, all while maintaining a base in Walton.

Keith and Janet then moved to a scenic hobby farm just outside of Auburn, where they enjoy meeting old friends and new guests at the bed and breakfast.

On their actual anniversary date, Keith and Janet hosted a dinner at Anna Mae’s restaurant with their Bachert and Bender siblings.

The couple says their 60 happy years together and every-growing family are a blessing from God and they give praise to their Lord and Saviour.

Timeless, immaterial, intelligent Continued from page 17 together. One of the implications of intelligent design is that of purpose.

If you design and make something, then it automatically implies that it has a purpose. How you designed it was determined by what you wanted the end result to be.

So then what we have is that God is a timeless, immaterial and intelligent being that has the power to create the universe that we find ourselves in, and that it would seem that in doing so, God had some kind of purpose… and that is where we will pick up next time.

We all need to wrestle with the fact that our very existence points to the reality of a transcendent Being outside our material universe (even if we can’t prove it with an experiment in a lab). If that is true, the next question to ask is, “If God exists, then what does that have to do with me?”

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THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024. PAGE 19.

Entertainment & Leisure

Large crowd attends sold-out fundraiser in Blyth

Helping hands There were very few empty seats available at the ‘Loonie Toonie’ fundraiser held in Blyth’s Trinity Anglican Church on Monday, Feb. 12. Proceeds from the event are supporting the Northern Huron Connection Centre in Wingham. In the photo to the right, (from left) Penny Chmilar, Cindy Soares and Lisa Harper welcome guests to the event. (Scott Stephenson photos)

By Scott Stephenson The Citizen

This year, Wingham, Blyth and Lucknow will all be participating in their own Coldest Night of the Year (CNOY) walks in support of the Northern Huron Connection Centre in Wingham, which works to provide a wide range of services to community members in need, from hot showers to mental health counseling. The Wingham walk isn’t happening until Feb. 24, but on Feb. 17, the Blyth Blazers will be starting their CNOY walk at 10 a.m. at the United Church in Blyth.

Lucknow’s walk will occur the next day, on Feb. 18, after service at the Presbyterian Church.

Since the early days of its planning stages, the Connection Centre has been bolstered by widespread community support in many forms, but the annual CNOY walk has quickly become a community fundraising favourite. It pairs a worthy cause with a simple and enjoyable outdoor activity that brings all kinds of people together during a potentially lonely time of year.

In these last days of lead-up to the walk, as those planning to participate in the big event prepare for possibly chilly weather, members of the community have been hard at work raising funds to show their support.

On Monday night, one such effort was the first annual, sold-out Loonie Toonie Auction. The evening saw 100 eager bidders fill the seats at Trinity Anglican Church in Blyth, each one equipped with a hand-made paddle, blue and white tickets, and more than their fair share of community spirit. That altruistic energy was met by the various local businesses that showed support through their generous and thoughtful donations.

The lead auctioneer, Penny Chmilar, maintained an energetic attitude throughout the entire evening, keeping the audience smiling and the tickets rolling in, until every item, from a timeless striped handbag from Pick-a-Posie

Vintage to a sassy bread mix all found happy new homes. Gourmet meal helpers from Epicure and cookware from The Pampered Chef were also popular items, as were unique art objects from Maple & Moose, Valentine’s Day-worthy chocolates from Sweets ‘n’ Treats and bussin’ Boot swag from The Blyth Inn. The church’s parish hall was also filled with the wares of all the local vendors who’d donated to the auction, offering a second chance of ownership to those who missed out on winning the item of their choice.

Chmilar was also the one to whip up the whole event in just under a month, which included organizing all the donations, obtaining a lottery licence, selling tickets and choosing her own items to donate. She was aided by a number of cheery volunteers as well as Lisa Harper of the United Way Perth Huron and Rev. JoAnn Todd, who played host to the event at the church.

Todd is also one of the driving forces behind the Connection Centre, and will be walking with

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The Loonie Toonie Auction was the kind of participation that breathes new life into the community, and allows the collective voices of people to rise in laughter and in joy, foam hands raised, minds and spirits converging together to forge a better tomorrow.

In this choir of unity, each individual contribution holds significance, even if it’s just a single ticket that cost you a dollar.

It was an evening of great fun, for a great cause, and there’s still time to sign up for one of this year’s CNOY walks.

Tour bus pick-up in Kitchener, Waterloo and Guelph phone Sue at 519-883-1168

PAGE 20. THE CITIZEN, FEBRUARY 16, 2024.

Scout/Guide Week

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