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

Canada Trust Realty accountants and consultants provide a full range of financial and business services. F; OAKVILLE TOYOTA Canada Trust Realty Inc./Realtof Julie Skupin, sales rep. recognizes Sarah‘s initiative and supports her involvement with Class Afloat Coopers Lybrand Sem%Oalwlfle for Power Play YValue Days Make The Big Save At Oakville Toyota 1091 Speers Rd. A Proud Sponsor of the Class Afloat Lyorand 201 City Centre Drive Mississauga, Ontario LSB 214 (416) 2734611 project letters hom e from Sarah Crothall, a grade 12 student _ Oakville currently spending 10 m onths aboard the S/Â¥ Concordia visiting 40 ports of call on 4 continents! Dear Oakville: . After our adventures getting free from the coral reef in San Blas, we arrived at our first port in Central America, Limon. On the first morning of our stay in Limon, we took a 4â€"hour bus ride to the capital of Costa Rica, San Jose. The bus wasn‘t air conditioned so it was very hot until we drove up into the mountains and through the rainforest. We made one stop for lunch and arrived in San Jose late afternoon. Immediately we were posted to host families for our home stay. I stayed with two other Class Afloat students at the house of a girl named Rosanne. It was very nice. Everyone enjoyed staying in a real house with real home cooking and real beds. The next day we all met back at the International School and from there took a bus to the base of a volcano where we hiked up the mountainside. It was freezing cold, which was actually a welcome change from all the hot weather we‘d been having. The vegetation there was very interesting. We were told to look out for snakes, this region being the habitat for several venomous species. We didn‘t see a single snake, but perhaps that was because we were looking too hard. They probably watched us warily from all sides! In the afternoon we stopped at an artisan village. There many students bought Christmas gifts of wooden carvings, including the local craft which was miniature ox carts with brightly painted wheels. We arrived back at the boat late that night, and the next day went shopping in Limon. Everyone ended up spending their last few colons on pineapples and so we had a pineapple party on board. That afternoon we set sail for Cozumel. Until next week, Plans to reduce the Halton Board of Education‘s 1993 budget by $1 milâ€" lion through individual donations of one day‘s pay by teachers received a major setback when the local teachers‘ union rejected the request. The position was arrived at during a special March 9th meeting of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers‘ Federation (OSSTF) and was released Thursday afternoon. BY ANGELA BLACKBURN Oakville Beaver Staff Won‘t give up day‘s pay teachers‘ union says Our Oakville head office staff, branch staff and associates wish Sarah more memorable adventures, and continued smooth sailing. aaaaaa "I‘m disappointed, not discourâ€" aged," said education director Bob Williams at Thursday night‘s Halton Board of Education meeting. He levelled his criticism at the union‘s provincial body and accused them of interference. "I strongly resent that kind of strong arm tactic from what I once considered a professional organizaâ€" tion," said Williams. "I strongly resent interference in a local situation." Williams, who said he‘s been a voluntary member of the OSSTF since he left teaching approximately 15 years ago, said, ‘"They didn‘t even The staff at Royal Bank wish Sarah all the best on her exciting and educational The director said he learned of the decision during the course of the board meeting Thursday night. _ Williams said he remained conâ€" vinced that "in the clear light of day", local teachers would weigh the inforâ€" mation and said he "hoped they‘d make a decision of conscience." Over the past two weeks, Williams has with staff members from the board‘s 11 employee groups, associa tions and unions to explain the nwd for a charitable donation to reduce the do me the courtesy of giving me a Grou Suite 505â€"710 Dorval Dr. Oakville (OTIS Building) seafood aft its best, as well as a variety of other dishes. Wishing you smooth sailing throughout your travels Bronte Harbour 49 Bronte Road, Oak. 8252727 A Proud Spon?tpr supporting Sarah on her voyage Start Your 570 TRAFALGAR RD AT QEW Call for more information The budget now sits at $291â€"milâ€" lion which represents a 2% spending increase. This translates to a 4.01% millrate increase or $50 more in taxes for the average household. However, this won‘t be achieved, warns Williams, unless the board recovers $1 million through the chariâ€" table donations from teachers or lays off 75 staff. The request was changed from a general agreement from the employee groups to an actual individual written charitable donation. The OSSTF Halton District Council was the first board employee group to reject the plea. "While we would like to be helpâ€" ful, we feel that the trustees will need to look to the entire citizenry to underwrite the cost of education," said a statement from the Ontario Secondary School Teachers‘ Federation (OSSTF), District 9 Halton. : "The idea of a charitable contribuâ€" tion to the Halton Board of Education was rejected," said the statement. _ "Teacher representatives indicated that fairâ€"minded citizens would see the inequity of teachers being asked to subsidize the board more than other taxpayers," said District 9 presâ€" ident Sally Rewbotham. Earlier, Rewbotham called the process "bruâ€" tally difficult" for everyone involved. 1993 school board budget. While Rewbotham originally came out advocatmg the plan, she has become more quiet after the provinâ€" cial body of the union began looking closely at Halton. "Any voluntary contribution will be gratefully accepted, but it will be just that, a voluntary contribution," said Reid who said she has put forâ€" ward numerous budget amendments to find other ways of reducing the board‘s overall budget. The first tally of just how much of the $1 million the board expects to raise through the donation process is expected at the next finance commitâ€" tee meeting slated for March 22nd, said Williams. The board, says it has already received back about 800 of the letters that went out last Monday to the over 4,000 board staff asking for the chariâ€" table contribution. The whole issue left Ward 2 trustee Cheryl Reid who is chair of the board‘s salary committee, making a public statement during Thursday‘s board meeting. Reid said she wasn‘t consulted by board administration about the chariâ€" table donation plan nor had she been made aware of the 75 layoffs promised if the $1 million wasn‘t The elementary teachers unions in Halton have also contacted their membelshxp, but have left the deciâ€" sion on charitable contribution in their hands. A week ago, Barrett said there was "a lot" of pressure from union groups outside the region and conâ€" firmed that both the secondary and elementary teachers unions had been contacted by their provincial bodies. "Basically, we‘ve left it up to our teachers," said Bill Barrett president of the Ontario Public School Teachers‘ Federation, Halton District/Halton Elementary Teachers Association (HETA). 486â€"8742 a For babies or y very young children 6 monthsâ€"3‘/; years old Register now Classes start MARCH 29 _ Maplegrove United Church _ Young Children‘s Creative Music Movement Classes® Musical Beginnings" Dance Beginnings= (est. 1972)