The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

6 Independent & Free Press, Wednesday, May 23, 2007 OPINION Wheels event opens eyes Fortunately, most of you reading this will never have to use a wheelchair. But, what if by some cruel chance of fate, you suddenly found yourself wheelchair-bound? Could you cope? Unfortunately, there is a segment of our population for whom life in a wheelchair is a reality. But have you ever stopped for a moment and wondered how difficult it is for someone in a wheelchair to do simple, everyday tasks such as grocery shopping, going for a coffee or going to work? Recently five able-bodied people--Georgetown District High School students Brett Reynolds and Joanna Meltzer along with Mayor Rick Bonnette, Georgetown Scotiabank branch manager Sandra Shulthies and Independent & Free Press writer/photographer Ted Brown-- each spent a day using a wheelchair as part of an awareness campaign organized by the Halton Hills Accessibility Advisory Committee. As Schulthies said, "It was an eye-opener." All five of the "test subjects' in this experiment found there were some places a wheelchair just can't go and others where it was a struggle to navigate. Meltzer found herself catching her fingers on doorframes, Schulties discovered wheeling while toting a cup of coffee was impossible, Bonnette and Brown both found washrooms a challenge and Reynolds said the simplest tasks were "some of the hardest while in a wheelchair." The Wheels for a Day event was designed to help bring awareness to the upcoming Rick Hansen Wheels in Motion event, planned for June 10 at the Gellert Community Centre. Sponsored by Scotiabank, the event will feature a pledged wheel and walk event to raise funds for spinal cord injury research and help those living with spinal cord injuries have a better lifestyle. See page 1 for registration details. It has been 20 years since Hansen staged his around the world tour to draw attention to those forced to live life in wheelchair and, while major advances have been made to ensure buildings are more wheelchair-accessible, one fact remains. Too many of us take our mobility for granted. www.independentfreepress.com Phone: 905-873-0301 Fax: 905-873-0398 Steve Nease STAFF DIRECTORY Publisher Ken Nugent Advertising director Steve Foreman (sforeman@independentfreepress.com) Retail advertising manager Cindi Campbell (ccampbell@independentfreepress.com) Managing editor John McGhie (jmcghie@independentfreepress.com) Distribution manager Nancy Geissler (distribution@independentfreepress.com) ADVERTISING Advertising co-ordinator Jennifer Christie (jchristie@independentfreepress.com) Retail Sales: Jennifer Spencer (jspencer@independentfreepress.com) Adam Spinney (aspinney@independentfreepress.com) Andrew Key (akey@independentfreepress.com) Amy Sykes (features@independentfreepress.com) Real estate: Sue Spizziri (realestate@independentfreepress.com) Classifieds: Kristie Pells (classified@independentfreepress.com) ACCOUNTING Rose Marie Gauthier, Michelle Wimmer EDITORIAL Cynthia Gamble: News editor (cgamble@independentfreepress.com) Ted Brown: Photography (tbrown@independentfreepress.com) Lisa Tallyn: Staff writer (ltallyn@independentfreepress.com) Eamonn Maher: Staff writer/sports (emaher@independentfreepress.com) PRODUCTION: Mary Lou Foreman, Kevin Powell, Shelli Harrison, Dolores Black, Debbie MacDougall LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Enjoy Homecoming 2007, says mayor Dear editor, Homecoming 2007 is coming to Georgetown this July 27, 28 and 29. I encourage everyone to not only come out and enjoy the festivities but to show your support and contribute to this wonderful event. I invite everyone with the financial means to help make this weekend a success by making a financial contribution. Proceeds of the event directly benefit the community and will go towards our local library. As mayor of Halton Hills, I am humbled by the sense of "community" I see from local businesses and residents daily. Georgetown is rich in history and in culture. With "deep roots" in Halton Hills, and your support, we can ensure that the spirit of this event becomes a time that is remembered by our community for years to come. I look forward to seeing you all at Homecoming 2007. It is going to be a fun weekend that promises to bring back old memories and create new stories that can be looked back on for years to come. Rick Bonnette, Halton Hills Mayor Something bugging you? Send us a letter! Letters to the editor must include an address and daytime telephone number. Unsigned letters will not be published. Letters should not exceed 200 words and may be edited for content and/or length. Mail or drop off: Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 29, Georgetown, ON., L7G 4B1 E-mail: jmcghie@independentfreepress.com Remember the hungry on June 5 Dear editor, National Hunger Awareness Day, June 5, is a day set aside for the direction of our thoughts toward the health and well being of hungry Canadians. Low wages workers, many with children, Canadians with disabilities, and new Canadians often turn to the food banks to feed their families. The Georgetown Bread Basket, in 2007, will serve more that 169 families with 130,200 pounds of food. We urge our citizens, all agencies and organizations, in meeting the needs of hungry people, to unite on June 5 in observance of such exercises as to support the work of the food bank in meeting food security needs of hungry children, and youth and families in the Georgetown area. This life-saving service will be accomplished by our continued work as a team. Marian Viant, director media co-ordinator Georgetown Bread Basket Pair will be missed Dear editor, Georgetown has lost two more long-serving and well-respected business owners. Mario and Karen Morra ran the Petro-Canada gas stations located at 189 and 259 Guelph Street in Georgetown for the last 23 years. Their final day of business was on Tuesday May 15. On behalf of all their friends and customers over the years I would like to wish them and their family all the best for the future. Good luck Mario and Karen-- you will be missed. Ian Williamson, Acton THE INDEPENDENT & FREE PRESS The Independent & Free Press is published every Wednesday and Friday at 280 Guelph St., Unit 29, Georgetown Ont., L7G 4B1. It is one of several newspapers published by Metroland Media Group Ltd. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with reasonable allowance for signature will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the acceptable rate. In the event of typographical error advertising goods or services at wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell which may be withdrawn at any time. Editorial and advertising content of The Independent & Free Press is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Price: Store copies 50¢ each; Subscriptions $26 per year by carrier; $92.50 per year by mail in Canada; $130 per year in all other countries. Plus G.S.T. Second Class Mail Registration Number 6869. The Independent & Free Press is a member of The Canadian Community Newspaper Association and The Ontario Community Newspaper Association. `Obituary' for Winston touched reader Dear editor, Having been out of town, I was catching up on my reading and was touched to read about the passing of Winston the dog. I didn't know him but I'm sure many people, that even the Fraser family wasn't aware of, did. I think of my grandfather's dog who used to sit outside the shops of Scotland waiting patiently for his master and the countless strangers (to me) who would stop to pet him and say hello to him by name. I am sure there are people out there who are grateful that you took the time to have his life mentioned in the paper, giving us a few chuckles and his picture to boot! I am currently the owner of a cat or shall I say Gidget is the proud owner of me. She is much a member of my family as any other member so I can empathize with your loss at this time. My condolences to the Fraser family and to Winston, may you find a bone on every cloud. Pauline Webster, Georgetown