"A Family Tradition for 130 Years" y New c Nancy Fair By Chris Hall Port Perry Star With one very big part of her life behind her, Nancy Fairburn is ready now to turn the page and start a new chapter. Teachingchildrenin the Kindergarten level up to Grade 6 for the past 29 years, the Montreal native has decided that it is time to move on, making Dec. 20 herlastday. Ms. Fairburn was em- ployed by the Durham Board of Education in 1975, and began to teach students at Port Perry's R. H. Cornish Public School in 1978. She began her own schooling when she was three years old when her mother convinced the principal of a local school to allow her to enter the school system early. After completing elementary and high school, Ms. Fair- burn found her way to the Ontario College of Art in Toronto. She later started her Bachelor of Arts at Queen's University in Kingston and completed it at Trent University in Pe- terborough. Upon acquir- -ing her B.A., she went to the University of Toronto and received her Masters in Education and Arts Specialist Degree and fi- Ah ended up at York University, where she got her Special Education Specialist Degree. After nine years in vari- ous post-secondary insti- tutions, she was finally ready to teach. Starting off in Pickering Township School #2, Ms. Fora p found herself Shop Downtown Sout Sevy for a Dickens of a Chiistmar! Always Fresh LAURA SECORD CHOCOLATES 207 Queen St Pore Perry aes 9 Sumcoe St. moving to Scarborough, and then on to Oshawa in the mid-'70's, before arriv- ingin Port Perry. Having gaally found her niche, Ms. Fairburn took on the job of teaching gifted children, whom she believes need to be treated like everyone else. "It's really important that the gifted children have their educational needs met and the gifted class is a good way to achieve that," said Ms. Fairburn. "They have so much creativity and energy that it's a challenge. They made me more creative; made me into a creative problem-solver." Taking 10 years off to raise a family, the energet- ic mother of two -- and grandmother of two more -- is aware that the future of education may be stormy. "I hope that we're not headed into another dark age in education, but it's not looking too good right now. But if we do, I know there will be a renaissance atthe end of it." Once she puts away her chalk, Ms. Fairburn, who's in her late 50's, wants to turn her full at- tention to her art. A tal- ented painter with water colors, she has painted many pictures and sells them locally, and also makes designer T-shirts and sweaters. Besides her art, she also has plans to see her grand- children more, return to Europe, and maybe spend a few winters in Mexico. But as she gets closer to re- COME AND MEET Saturday, Dec. 14 - Sunday, Dec. 15 from 2pm to 4pm es "939 Queen St., Port Perry 085-3475 \J pter for teacher rn retiring after 29 years CHRIS HALL / PORT PERRY STAR R. H. Cornish Public School teacher Nancy Fair- burn bids farewell as she will retire on Dec. 20 af- ter teaching at Cornish since 1978. Planning to travel and paint when she leaves, all her col- leagues wish her well. tirement, Ms. Fairburn is happy for all the memories she has from over the past 25 years. "I love teaching, espe- cially the gifted. It has been a real privilege being associated with these chil- dren. They are just a won- derful bunch," she said. "I'm sorry to be leaving. I feel like I have more to of- fer; there is so many more things [could do." CTION V CORRE - NOTICE We wish to draw your attention to the following in our current 'Christmas Countdown Sale' flyer. Page 4. Heavy Duty Vinyl BBQ Cover, 85-1236. Copy reads: Reg. 24.99, Sale 14.99, Save 40%. Should read: Reg. 22.99, Sale 14.99, Save 34%. Page 4. Item 3, Large Rope Bone, 42-6338-2. Copy reads: Reg. 6.99, Sale 4.99, Save 28%. Should read: Reg. 5.99, Sale 4.99, Save 16%. Page 25 - lems #1 & #2 price boxes should be transposed. cnote350-96 20 A 4 CORRECTION NOTICE We wish to draw your attention to the following im our current 'Scrooge's Best Buys' flyer. Page 2. Item 1, 12V VAC, 37- 0164. The accessories shown in the flyer are "not included". cnote3 50-96 All Zones We sincerely regret any inconvenience we may have caused you. unused 1997 2 unsold 1996 ¢ Effective | Sales Department open Mo Fri. until 5:00pm & Sat. until 4:0 . and Thank You for sh