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In Focus, January, 2010 4 Letter from In Focus It's hard to be in a bad mood when you're surrounded by a crowd of cheering people. That's what I learned when the Olympic Torch Relay came through Halton Hills on December 19. When I woke up that morning, I was not a happy camper: it was early, it was dark and it was very, very cold. My mood didn't improve when I arrived in downtown Georgetown about 45 minutes later: it was still dark, there was a bitter wind sweeping up Mill Street and there were only a dozen or so people gathered to watch the torch pass through. My bad mood began to evaporate as the sun started rising and the crowd doubled, tripled and quadrupled in size. Before I knew it, I was surrounded by hundreds of excited, cheering, flag-waving Halton Hills residents dressed in their best red and white winter gear. Complete strangers chatted away like old friends, brought together by their shared Olympic spirit. Once the torch passed, the crowd dispersed as everyone headed back to their everyday lives. But for a few hours on that wintery Saturday morning, the whole town came together to witness an important moment in Halton Hills history. To commemorate this once-in-a-lifetime event, we have put together a special two-page spread in the centre of this issue of In Focus. The pages can be pulled out and saved as a memento of the Olympic torch's trip through Halton Hills. Also in this issue, we have photos from a variety of Christmas festivities, from the Light up the Hills Ignition Night at Dominion Gardens Park to Montgomery Christmas in Norval to the Old-Fashioned Christmas in Acton. As always, we want to hear from you. What was your Olympic Torch Relay experience? Do you have any New Years resolutions? Do you have an event you would like us to attend? Let us know. Welcome to 2010! Andrea Lefebvre (alefebvre@independentfreepress.com) Oxford's Trivia Contest Winners January 2010 VOLUME 4 ISSUE 1 IN FOCUS is published 12 times per year by the The Independent & Free Press A Division of Metroland Media Group Ltd. The Independent & Free Press 280 Guelph Street, Unit 29 Georgetown, Ontario, L7G 4B1 Telephone: 905-873-0301 Fax: 905-873-0398 Publisher Ken Nugent Special Features Co-ordinator Andrea Lefebvre 905-873-0301, ext. 236 alefebvre@ independentfreepress.com Cameron Gardilcic shows off the brand new iPod Touch he won in the contest. Design/Production Mary Lou Foreman, Shelli Harrison, Dolores Black, Kevin Powell Advertising Sales Representative Ron Stiel 905-873-0301, ext. 241 rstiel@independentfreepress.com Tyler King is already planning what to get with his $50 gift card from Squirt's Toys. Experience the Finest in Tanning & Skin Care Every Great Vacation Starts with a Base Tan at Bella Tan! The contents are protected by copyright and may be used only for personal non-commercial purposes. All other rights are reserved and commercial use is prohibited. To make any use of this material you must first obtain the permission of the owner of the copyright. For further information contact the Independent & Free Press at 905-873-0301. The advertiser agrees that the publisher shall not be liable for damages arising out of errors in advertising beyond the amount paid for the space actually occupied by that portion of the advertisement in which the error occurred , whether such error is due to the negligence of its servants or otherwise, and beyond the amount paid for such advertisement. GENERAL NOTICE: Copyright in letters and other material submitted to the Publisher and accepted for publication remains with the author, but the Publisher and its licenses may freely reproduce them in print, electronic or other for ms of publications. Vacation Special only 100 MINUTES * $ For 95 34 Ryan Oehrlein tries on the mittens from his Olympic gift pack. To celebrate the Olympic Torch Relay's visit to Halton Hills, Oxford Learning held a Torch Relay Trivia Contest. Congratulations to the winners: Cameron Gardilcic (iPod Touch), Adam Reid (free Oxford assessment), Brenden Geim (one month PowerZone membership), Margaret Bergsma (one month PowerZone membership), Pete Gombocz (one month PowerZone membership), Ryan Oehrlein (Olympic gift pack), Emily Rose Belbin (Sony clock radio) and Jeffrey Howson (Mini Cooper replica model). Photos submitted by Patricia Leggett Look Good . . . Feel Great! 905-873-4343 369 Mountainview Rd S., Georgetown South (Behind Tim Hortons) www.bellatan.ca Controlled Tanning without the Sunburn! IN FOCUS IS A PRODUCT OF