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

YOUR COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER READERS CHOICE IS COMING FRIDAY ... EXCLUSIVELY SERVING THE READERS OF HALTON HILLS See all YOUR FAVOURITES in this Fridays paper 905.873.0301 Independent & Free Press, Wednesday, February 27, 2008 3 then our long-term viability would be in jeopardy, he added. The original Acton store employs about 50 people in its peak season and Brison was unsure of how many full- or part-time workers may be affected, or whether the Toronto and Vaughan locations would remain open after the liquidation proceedings are completed. Its not the first time that the olde Hide House has sought court protec- tion from its creditors; in 1993, the flagship Acton outlet closed briefly as the company restructured its finances. The firm of Ira Smith Trustee & Receiver Inc. has consented to act as monitor under the current arrange- ment. The Hide Houses 2007-08 leather collection of short and full- length coats, leather and suede sports- wear, shearlings, bombers, motorcycle apparel, wool coats and the entire line of furniture will be put up for sale at significantly discounted prices. Theres probably never been a bet- ter time to shop at the Hide House for good deals and I know its a heck of a way for us to be doing it but thats just the process were following in trying to restore the business, Brison said. The history of the Hide House dates back to the mid-1800s when a tannery operation that was the most modern of its time was established, and by the turn of the century, it housed the largest tan- ning company in the British Empire, leading Acton to become known as Leathertown. In 1980, the old tannery warehouse underwent an extensive restoration and was transformed into a retail business that for 13 years also housed a 300-seat restau- rant Jack Tanners Table. As well, the advertising slogan, Its worth the drive to Acton, popularized the town as a tourist destination. Carolyn McTavish, 50, of Halton Hills was killed Thursday when she was struck by a Jetta driven by a Toronto man on Winston Churchill Blvd. near Five Sideroad. The car (above left) ended up in the ditch and struck a guy wire. Photo by Eamonn Maher A 50-year-old Halton Hills woman is dead after she was struck by a car while getting her mail at her Winston Churchill Blvd. home Thursday afternoon. Carolyn McTavish was struck about 1:30 p.m. by a Jetta, driven by a 29-year-old Toronto man, while she was standing by her mailbox near the end of her driveway, located north of Five Sideroad. Halton Detective Const. Steve Anderson said the vehicle had veered off the pavement before striking the woman and continued on the shoulder for another 50 metres before hit- ting the guy wire to a power pole. The pole was knocked down and crashed onto the roof of the Jetta causing extensive damage to the vehicle. The driver, who wasnt injured, made no attempt to flee. When the woman was struck, the mailbox was also knocked down, as well as another pole holding a sign with rural emergency numbers. When police arrived at the scene the woman was lying at the side of the road with life-threatening injuries. Officers provided first aid until paramedics arrived and transported McTavish to Georgetown Hospital where she was pronounced dead. Police are looking for witnesses to the collision and Anderson, an accident reconstructionist, is still try- ing to determine why the driver lost control. He said theres a slight rise on Winston Churchill Blvd. before the collision scene as well as a row of trees at the side of the road. Theres no indication the driver had been drinking, but police are still trying to deter- mine whether speed was a factor. Anderson said he wont be in a position to decide whether charges will be laid until hes completed his investigation. McTavishs husband, Moe Rivet, a trans- port driver, was in Pennsylvania when state troopers tracked him down and gave him the grim news about his wife. I thought it was about my dad, said Rivet, adding his father has been very ill. Rivet immediately got in his truck and drove the four hours home, but said he has no real memory of that trip. The police officers said I must have been in a state of shock, he said. Rivet said he and his wife had lived in their Winston Churchill apartment for about a year, and before that, in Terra Cotta. McTavish worked part-time delivering mail in the rural area. She was coming home from work when she stopped to get her own mail and was hit by the car. Everybody that knew her loved her, said Rivet. She was a gentle person, soft-spoken. He said his wife was very devoted to him, and she was an animal lover. My wife was a real horse person, he said. McTavish, originally of Kingston, is sur- vived by Moe, her mother Ila, siblings Donna Burns, Judy Judd and Rob McTavish, her two daughters Kim and Christina Johnson and stepchildren Anthony and Jennifer Rivet and Christy-Ann and Kris Palmer. A funeral ser- vice was held Sunday in Kingston. Eight-year-old Audra Jander and seven-year-old brother Christian of Acton were among hundreds of people (below) who lined up to get autographs from Toronto Maple Leaf Nik Antropov Friday evening during his visit, along with teammate Kris Newbury, to the Georgetown Market Place. Photos by Jon Borgstrom Woman killed after being struck by car Leafs can still draw a crowd CAROLYN McTAVISH LISA TALLYN Staff Writer Stores stock up for sale Continued from pg. 1