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Come CelebrateCome Cel Open House WeekOpen House at a The Georgetown Seniors Centrehe Geo wn Senio s Cent 318 Guelph Street (Indoor Mall - rear of building) For more information 905-877-6444 Lots of programs andLots o p ams an activities to participate inactivities to pa te i Friday, Sept. 12 join us forrida , Sept. 12 join us 50/60 luncheon provided by 50/60 lun heon p vided by Corn on The Cob n on he Cob also entertainment by Liz Tildenalso ente tainment by Liz Tilde Everyone 55+ welcome!Everyone 55+ welcome Sept. 8 to 12Sept. 8 to 1 Georgetown, Ontario Saturday Sept. 13th from 2:00 PM 7:00 PM We are celebrating diversity and all residents from Halton Hills and surrounding areas are invited! The celebration begins at Remembrance Park at 2 pm for a ceremony and flag raisings, then a march down Main St. to Cedarvale Park. This event is hosted by POSSE, a youth peer outreach group operating in Milton, Acton and Georgetown. People are encouraged to bring flags of various countries, the Pride flag, or signs supporting human rights issues. The musicians featured at Cedarvale (starts at 2:45 pm) will be ShureLock Groove; Curtis Maranda and Renee Cross playing world music and rap/hip hop artist Chris Golden. Speakers include Aaron Bell, an Ojibway storyteller; Lauren Boyce, a Georgetown resident speaking on 'ability'; Christopher Stillar, a renowned spiritual medium; and Pardeep Singh Nagra, a diversity and human rights expert. This is a family event, so bring the kids. There will be face painting, a reptile party, and a magician doing balloon animals for the kids. Admission is free. All are welcome (of course!) For more details, please call POSSE at 519-853-5908. A MARCH and PICNIC Celebrating Diversity By Cory Soal R.H.A.D. . . . Lend Me Your Ears We care about your hearing! Professional Arts Building 99 Sinclair Ave., Suite 210 Georgetown (905) 873-6642 Noise induced hearing loss is insidious because its invisible; we dont necessarily know its happening to us and the damage is permanent. The two factors that cause no ise induced hearing loss are the intensity of sound and the duration of sound - often we dont protect ourselves from either. We risk permanent hear ing loss when we re regular ly exposed to sounds of 110 decibels or greater - a power saw, a rock and roll concert - for more than one minute at a time. Exposure to such noise is like wearing a path through a fine carpet: your inner ear contains minute hair cells which help transmit sound to your brain, and every loud sound or session with the leaf blower is similar to parading heavy feet back and forth on those hairs. Eventually, the wear and tear is permanent and cant be reversed. Several studies indicate this wear and tear is showing up at younger ages, due mainly to the noise we listen to for fun. A study of 15 -23-year olds by researchers recently confirmed higher levels of hearing loss among youth due to exposure to rock concerts, discos, car and home stereos and Walkmans. Of course, you can sustain as much damage listening to Beethoven as Oasis if you pump up the volume. The Georgetown 14 Independent & Free Press, Wednesday, September 10, 2008 Continued from pg. 12 By focusing on actions that are PAREE (Practical, Affordable, Reasonable, Enforceable, and Educational), the Green Plan pro- vides a framework to guide the Town on future green strategies. From 11:40 to 12:15 p.m., Kathleen Lidbetter Lawrence pre- sents Community Gardening- How, Why and Where? Community gar- dens can aid in the greening of forgotten urban spaces and foster the support for locally grown produce. From 12:30-1:05 p.m. Leslie Adams speaks about BioDiversity Matters. Biological diversity or biodiversity is the vast array of life on earth in water, air, soil, food etc. Adams explores how to make all elements of biodiversity more sustain- able from international to personal perspectives. From 1:15-2 p.m. Huston Eubank discusses What is Green Architecture? An architect with extensive experience in sustain- able design of buildings, communities, and businesses, Eubanks green credentials include serving as executive director of the World Green Building Council and is currently creating a radical new web-based green building tool for the property industry. From 2:10-2:40 p.m., Christine Upton from HOPE (Healthy Options for People and the Environment) talks about her work with the locally-based environmental group, which has devel- oped community gardens, and worked for pesticide reduction and organic turf care trail projects. From 2:50-3:30 p.m. Wally Seccombe will speak about organics and local farming. Seccombe is visiting professor at the Ontario Institute in Education. He is a founding member and chair of the Everdale Environmental Learning Centre and served for 15 years on the board of the Ontario Natural Food Co-op. He is also a member of the Toronto Food Policy Council. From 3:40-4:20, a representative of Bullfrog Power will talk about energy options and wind power and finally, from 4:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Joanne Aldridge Weber will ask participants to take on David Suzukis Natures Challenge. Learn how you can easily get involved in the Challenge in your home or business. For details go to www.williamsmill.com or swakefieldart- works.blogspot.com. Environment speaker series Saturday CARMEN HICKSON WEIGHT OF THE WORLD Where Child Abuse Hurts Most Sometimes the worst scars of child abuse cant be seen. Whether physical or emotional, abuse attacks a childs self-esteem and emotional development, leaving long-term emotional trauma and pain. You can help prevent child abuse by being a nurturing parent or caregiver. By letting children know they are special, competent and loved, you can help them develop positive self-images and happier futures. If you feel overwhelmed, angry or frustrated as a parent, help is out there for you. Look in your area for support groups and services, or talk to a trusted friend, family member, pastor or doctor about what you can do to protect and support your child. If we all do our part to prevent child abuse, well get to the heart of the matter.