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th ei fp .c a Th e IF P -H al to n H ill s | T hu rs da y, A pr il 8, 20 21 | 6 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the news- paper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca newsroom@theifp.ca IndependentAndFreePress @IFP_11 WHO WE ARE Publisher Kelly Montague Regional Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor Karen Miceli Distribution Representative Kim Mossman Real Estate Kristie Pells Regional Production Manager Manuel Garcia Halton Media General Manager Jason Pehora CONTACT US The Independent & Free Press 901 Guelph Line Burlington, ON L7R 3N8 Phone: 905-873-0301 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Fax: 905-873-0398 Letters to the editor All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at theifp.ca Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail lpolar@miltoncanadianchampion.com or call 905-234-1019. OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT THEIFP.CA Our community recent- ly received some long- awaited good news from the Ministry of Long-Term Care. After years of planning and months of advocacy, Bennett Centre Long Term Care at Bennett Village in Georgetown received min- istry approval to redevelop 66 spaces and add 94 new spaces. When completed, the new 160-bed Bennett Vil- lage will set the standard for compassionate care for our seniors. It will include a dedicated dementia unit, in addition to a dedicated Francophone unit to serve the needs of our French- speaking residents. Much of the credit for the announcement should go to Bennett Village's ex- ecutive director Soo Wong and the Bennett staff and volunteers. As a former registered nurse, MPP and deputy speaker of the Leg- islative Assembly, Soo brings a unique blend of skills and experience to her responsibilities at Ben- nett Village. Her passion for long- term care is matched by lo- cal Bennett supporters Bri- an Clark, Barry Dawson, Eunice McGowan, Ron Stitt, Rosslyn Dowell and Teresa Fritsch, all of whom played a significant role in the successful redevelop- ment proposal. The leadership of Hal- ton Hills Mayor Rick Bon- nette, town council and staff should also be ac- knowledged. My staff and I were very pleased to offer our support. All of us will be able to show our support for Ben- nett Village in the coming months, as their fundrais- ing campaign begins. By working together, we are meeting the future needs of our community. PROVINCIAL BUDGET DELIVERED On March 24, Ontario Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy presented the province's 2021 budget in the Ontario Legislature. The minister's speech was remarkable in several respects. He began by thanking the people of On- tario for "every act of kind- ness, consideration and pa- tience that made this tough time a little easier." While explaining the provincial government's policies to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, he went out of his way to praise the remarkable women who are leaders in the fight against the virus, including the Leader of the Opposition Andrea Hor- wath. For more information on the 2021 Ontario Budget, visit budget.ontario.ca. Ted Arnott is the MPP for Wellington-Halton Hills. He can be reached at ted.arnott@pc.ola.org. LTC FUNDING WELCOME NEWS BENNETT CENTRE TO REDEVELOP SPACES AND ADD NEW ONES, WRITES TED ARNOTT A dove visits the backyard of a home in rural Halton Hills. Do you have a great local photo you'd like to share? Send it to sleblanc@metroland.com, along with a brief description. Tony Fortunato photo SNAPSHOT One the most significant risks of investing is letting your emotions push you in- to panic selling. Another risk we face in life is fire; for that, we may be prepared because of practising a fire drill. The importance of being prepared can also be useful in managing your invest- ments. What type of "fire drill" procedures should be in place in case, suddenly, stock market values start to plummet and so does your portfolio? Here are a few sugges- tions. Start by managing your expectations. For example, looking at the U.S. stock market over close to 100 years we see a pattern. Markets suffer an annu- al decline about 25 per cent of the time. So, about one out of every four years you should expect to lose. Occasionally, the stock market has suffered back- to-back declining years. That said, there has never been a market decline that has not fully recovered and gone on to post new record highs. Having a well-balanced and diversified investment portfolio is key. Owning just a few companies can be risky. Focus on your long- term goal. Preparing for a retirement should not be negatively impacted be- cause you have a few bad years of investment re- turns. Those bad years caused by declining stock values should be considered as normal investment risk. A suggestion. Write out your own investment fire drill. Peter Watson is regis- tered with Aligned Capital Partners Inc. (ACPI) to provide investment advice. Investment products are provided by ACPI. ACPI is a member of the Invest- ment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada. The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of ACPI. Watson provides wealth management services through Watson Invest- ments. He can be contacted through www.watsoninv- tesments.com. FINANCIAL FIRE DRILL: BE PREPARED PLAN HOW YOU WILL REACT WHEN STOCK PORTFOLIO PLUMMETS, WRITES PETER WATSON PETER WATSON Column TED ARNOTT Column SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT THEIFP.CA