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THURSDAY, JANUARY 19 2012 THE NEW TANNER 5 GRAPEVINE Dutiful donor When Acton's Bill Hunter attends the February 9 blood donor clinic in Acton, he will make a milestone ­ his 125th blood donation. Hunter began giving blood as a teenager in the 1970s when he saw a sign outside of the Streetsville church and decided he would give the gift of life. That first donation became "part of my life" Hunter said, adding it is a "good thing" to do. "Only three or four per cent of Canadians give blood and so any chance I get I do my spiel and tell people how easy and important it is," Hunter said, adding giving blood is quick and easy and really can save lives. "I do it because it feels good." To book an appointment for the February 9 blood donor clinic call 1-888-236-6283. Murder and mayhem? Playwright Neil Simon's four marriages ­ one to same woman twice ­ led to him pen The Dinner Party , a farcical comedy which may include some murder and mayhem. The play will be staged by the Georgetown Little Theatre at the Acton Town Hall Centre for three weeks with evening and matinee performances beginning February 3. Tickets are available by phone at 905-877-3700, online at www.haltonhills.ca/theatre or at Acton Home Hardware. Cultural connections David Prosser, the director of communications for the Stratford Shakespeare Festival is the keynote speaker for the Halton Hills Cultural Round Table symposium which begins tomorrow (Friday) at the Acton Town Hall Centre. Prosser will detail how Stratford was transformed into a world class arts centre, and how community leaders can create a common vision to help make dreams come true. Along with sharing experiences of volunteers working within local arts, culture and heritage, participants will take part in three learning sessions including how to engage, energize and keep intergenerational volunteers, how to understand and use the Celtic Wheel of Leadership, and how to quickly and effectively write grant applications that appeal to funders. For details call Beatrice at 416575-1232. Directory available The updated Halton Seniors' Directory will be ready for distribution later this month, offering a single source for all things seniors in the Region. The Directory includes information on financial aid programs, home and community support programs, housing, legal services, waste management, public health and more. For details visit www.halton.ca Teacher excellence awards Do you know a teacher or support staffer who has made a real difference in your school community and has demonstrated their commitment to students? If so, nominate them for a Premier 's Award for Teaching Excellence. Nominations will be accepted until February 6 for one of eight awards ­ including two new ones this year for Early Childhood Educator of the Year, and Full-Day Kindergarten Team of the Year. For details visit www.ontario. ca/teachingawards Dine and view Dinner and movie are on tap tomorrow (Friday) as Acton Together hosts another of its free community events. The dinner, hosted by St. Alban's Church and the Acton Hub team, begins at 6 p.m. The movie will be screened at the Roxy on Mill Street, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Door-to-door After an apparent dishonest hot water heater salesperson come to his door this week, Regional/Acton Councillor Clark Somerville cautions homeowners to carefully check credentials of people at the door offering deals. The salesperson said they worked for National Homes Services and was in the neighbourhood on behalf of Reliance Home Heating. Somerville said he called Reliance and was told that was not the case. Somerville said as with an unsolicited door-to-door salesperson ­ beware. Poise and power Acton's Rebecca Nelles.18, and her ice dance partner Nicholas Lettner take to the ice this week at the Skate Canada Championships in Moncton, New Brunswick. The pair, skating together since August 2010, is competing at the Junior level. ACTON ARTIST: The art work of award winning Acton illustrator Karen Reczuch is on display at the Halton Hills Civic Centre in the Mayor's Showcase. ­ Frances Niblock photo To the Editor, The Christian Education committee of Knox Church would like to sincerely thank all the talented participants in the Local Artists Benefit Concert that was held on January 14, with special thanks to our headliner, Darrelle London. All the performances were greatly Artists' concert a hit enjoyed by the audience. We appreciate all the families and friends coming out to support our local talent. Thanks also to our MC, Bruce Graham, everyone who made a donation, those that lent us their artwork for display, and to The New Acton Tanner and the Georgetown Independent/Acton Free Press for the great publicity, and to Giant Tiger and Sobey's for their donations The winners of the youth art contest are: Eden Christie, Veronica Hopkins, Sydney Furzer and Cora Bailey. Regards, Shirley Dyc Acton, ON Warm and full To the Editor, On behalf of St. Albans Church and the many residents of Acton and surrounding areas, who each Thursday rely on our free "Food for Life Groceries" and "Winter Clothing" ministries, I wish to acknowledge and send a huge thank you to the students, parents and staff of Robert Little Public School. Just before Christmas, as part of their "Good Citizenship" program, a Children's Winter Clothing Drive was launched which resulted in a very large quantity of winter clothing being brought to the church for distribution to the children of families in need. Items ranging from snow suits to hats, mittens and boots were all gratefully received and are now keeping children warm, who might otherwise have Thanks for donations Dear Editor, Thanks to the generosity of 149 sponsors and many financial donors, 203 families in Halton Hills benefited from the Links2Care Holiday Hamper Program this past Christmas. A total of 420 children, aged 18 and under, received gifts of new clothing and toys. There are many lower income families in our community who struggle financially throughout the year and this program helps to relieve some of the pressures during the holiday season. This program involves many hours of preparation in order to be successful and relies on countless hours of volunteer time, as well as the time spent by our wonderful sponsors, who generously shop for specific children and donate the clothing to our program. Two schools ­ Stewarttown Public School and St. Brigid Catholic School ­ donated toys to add to the clothing hampers and their generosity is very much appreciated. We would also like to thank everyone who provided monetary and gift item donations. We could not provide this program without the support from our community. The families who receive assistance through the Holiday Hamper Program are very grateful and are often overwhelmed when they come to pick up their hampers. It is gone cold this winter. What an excellent way for young children to learn that working together, we can transform society and make a huge difference in the life of others less fortunate than ourselves. Well done Robert Little Public School, for laying the groundwork of good citizenship. Regards, The Reverend Brian Galligan Acton, ON an amazing sight to see the look of relief in their faces when they pick up their hampers and see that they will have gifts for their children to put under the tree. On behalf of Links2Care I would like to say thank you so much to all of the generous sponsors and persons who made individual donations to the Links2Care Holiday Hamper Program and made the holiday season a little brighter for 203 families in our community ­ your support and generosity is so greatly appreciated. Sincerely, Cathy Gerrow Community Support Program Coordinator