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THE STEVENS FAMILY have run Store for ten years On a busy Saturday Vi Stevens gets assistance from daughter Laura and son Peter GENERAL STOREand Tack Shop is situated at cross roads STORE is the family business of Jim Heather and Roy Knapton Betty Knapton was too busy to get in the picture Country stores survive as friendly oases by Jennifer Bair Its a wonder how the little comer store sun Ives Inter national chains of merkets owned by vast monopolies vie for our food dollar cutting prices and offering loss leaders to induce us into their colossal caverns Yet the number of tiny independentlyowned general stores situated at country cross roads remains stable They havent been swallowed up and their owners still seem to be able to make a living out of them even In these days of galloping inflation Whats their secret la It their convenient hours Most of them are open seven days a week Including holidays and stay open late in the evening Thats one of the ways they compete They certainly cant offer the prices or variety offered by the chains When this reporter visited several of the surrounding country stores recently the common denominator of them all was a slow easy friendliness Neighbours popped In rapped a little ex changed news had their health and that of the family Inquired after gathered a few groceries the news paper a couple of bolts for the manure spreader some candies for the kids and sauntered out Is this the secret A return to personal service where you feel like somebody instead of number three in the check out lineup Is It the fact that some body cares why youre buying the aspirin Perhaps The Knapton family at have run their store and gas bar for three years and are proud they deal in general service of all kinds Thia is quite true In the tiny store you can get groceries gift items jewelry fishing hooks mouse traps icecream cones hardware gasoline and oil and dog licenses Betty and Roy run filestore with the help of their children Heather and Jim Fran also looks after the store in order to give the some needed time off although Jim says they rarely get a chance to get away The store is open from 7 am to 8 m in winter on Sundays and 7am to m In summer Its no wonder they dont get many holidays General Store Is a century building and has always been a general store VI Turner says It used to be a real general store of the oldfashioned kind and she can still smell the coal oil at the back The Turners have learned what people want Its strictly convenience so mething to tide them over and dont try to compete with with the big stores Matt and Turner assisted by children Laura and Peter and Mary Turner keep the store open from am till noon to six on Sunday and have owned the for ten years The Post Office is housed in the store and the walls are awash with colour ful posters and community notices forming a background for the rows of neat groceries The Turners don t get away very much either but seem to enjoy the variety of people popping in and out One of the largest corner stores Is at The store dating back to 1909 has been in the family for nine yean and has been run by Shortill for the past eight years He a assisted by his mother Viola Marie and Maureen Buston Not only is Shortills a regular general store with groceries gifts magazines farm foods hardware and post office but a recently opened tack centre for re District Pages The Acton Free Press Wednesday Jan Rockwood hydro rate same expected hike too high for trustees Audrey creasing as expected on Betty Eastwood and Tony March the rate will be the and the Secretary Len same as last years This was Hockey were present at the the surprise news brought to monthly business meeting the meeting by Elton Phillips During the past two years there has been considerable comment from the surrounding townships about changing and simplifying road names When we moved to this country ten years ago from the Ottawa Valley one of the first differences we noted was the ease of finding our way around the rural areas The method of calling east west roads slderoads and the northsouth roads lines then numbering them from south to north west to east according to township made travelling ex tremely simple All you had to do was count the number of roads from where you there you Even If the road sign were down you could usually figure out where you should be And if I can find my way around without getting lost too often the system must be excellent because I still cant get out of Kitchener add colour However its nice to have the colloquial names for each road and comer too If townships want to spend money on new signs why dont they dig out the historical names and put them on the road sign under the line number I love living on the Peacock Apparently this road was called so by residents after the school at the gar end It had a beautiful stained glass window above the door In the shape of a peacock and was always called the Peacock School bo Im told However Im not too crazy about living so close to Starvation Corners The corner of Five SIderoad and Second Line now Highway was nicknamed thus when an old man starved to death in the winter some time ago His cabin no longer exists but apparently was situated on the north west comer When Wendy and Cord Thomson still lived here I used to envy their address they got a charge out of telling people to turn left on the town line Run that round your tongue a few times Isnt it delightful Wonder why messed up the old system of naming by renaming some roads as county roads Come to think of it so did Wellington I imagine the purpose was to simplify identification of the road the counties were responsible for If I were them I wouldnt brag about It But It Is confusing when a friend says We live on the Twenty Five SIderoad but Its labelled Halton Road something orother Why do we always change something just because Its old If It works whats wrong with if Is modernization necessarily better But thats a whole argument In itself In the meantime lets leave the naming of our rural road system along of Ontario Hydro The rate increase which Mr Phillips had proposed to the trustees in December and which they had adopted was too high and did not conform to the Inflation Board guidelines Year end 1977 statistics were not available when Mr Phillips did his 1978 forecast How ever Ontario Hydros provln estimate for 1979s rate Increase is 12 per cent The secretary and the trustees questioned Mr Phil lips as to whether the rate could be increased some now so hat the rate jump would be cushioned in 1979 Ontario Hydros answer is No Trustee requested that Mr Phillips return to in July assess the six month audit and evaluate whether his 1973 estimates are in line Rate adjustments could be made at that time rather than having Hydro running in the red at he years end Mr Phillips agreed Len Hockeys reaction to the news was The villagers will think were crazy theyll wonder what were doing This the third mat consumers will have received regarding a Hydro rate change Betty Eastwoods comment was We can do what we want provided Ont ario Hydro approves The trustees directed the secretary to draw up terms of reference for a village by law regarding snow plow routes Trustee appeals to the villagers to please remove their street parked cars for snow removal It is imper ative that the roadways be kept clear for emergency vehicles such as ambulances fire trucks and the volunteer firemen The snow removal to the taxpayer rises when the road crew has to go back to clear areas which have been obstructed by parked cars Town hall heating bills have been extremely high averaging a day during thelaatalxweeks Plans were made to set the thermostat so that It can be raised to no than degrees Trustees recommended to township council that the water and sewer charges be computed on the same bill as the hydro charges There is space on the present bills to accommodate this and the costs involved is the price of programing the computer and the fee which the village will charge for their book keeping service This will be considered by council The Department of Health reported to the trustees that there was a leakage in the Hotels sewage holding tank Deadline for repair is January or charges will be laid by the health department A break in the pipe of the Plazas sewage holding tank has caused leak age This has been proved with the use of dye by the health department Deadline for repair is January or charges will be laid by the health department A letter was received from the health unit regarding the town hall It recommended first that self closing devices be Installed on the outside washroom doors and secondly that the fire chief review the installation of a bar handle on the front doors rather than the present turn knob and bolt system Fire Chief Carl Meadows will be asked to look Into the matter of the front fire door Trustee requested that a letter be sent to the health unit for clarification regarding item number one The Trustees received pamphlets from the Ontario Ministry of Housing regar ding housing for senior citizens In the future the pos slbility of such accom modation in may be investigated by the trustees A letter to the Ontario Min istry of Transportation and Communication will be sent by the trustees requesting a sidewalk on the east side of Highway from Harris Street to the bridge to be In stalled when the road crews are in the village this spring Villager Peg Dyer pointed out the need for a safe crossing place away from the brow of hill where the highway is narrow be seen coming in both cctlons Her re quest was backed by a letter from prin clpal Grant MacRne Betty Eastwood expressed her wishes that the trustees form a definite policy re garding planning En the lage of Rockwood This would be presented at the future combined meeting of tho planning board township council village trustees and the Ontario Municipal Board The trustees will compile a list of the number lots which can be severed within the village for the purpose of in filling Under the new by law a lot must have a min imum frontage of feet and maximum of 7 square feet according to Tony There arc three areas where new housing Is being proposed according to Mrs Eastwood the Scarfe pro perty at Jackson and St tho area mapped out on existing village plans bounded by the extended Frederick St the extended Carroll St and the yet to be constructed Henry St and the area of the old Lime Company cast of the end of Jackson St Guelph and Suburban Plan board have proposed that secondary planning be done In Rockwood Trustee Eastwood feels that this would be a great expense to the local taxpayers The trustees will acquire a copy of these proposals and research them There will be a further dis cussion of planning at a future meeting equestrians Is the sales nicely Shortills has always been noted for carrying items not found In more elaborate modern stares Items such as farm overalls serviceable gloves heavy boots snaps and bolts teapots and inexpensive halters tucked behind the cookies Now with a picturesque equestrian supply centre the reputation for providing excellent service at minimum price is being proven all over country side The store Is open from am to p m Monday Wednesday and Saturday from till p Tuesday and Thursday and From to p Sunday General Store is 130 old and has been owned by Peter Des Roches forthepaslear in law EUlc Ellen runs the store while wife Giselle assists father In law Alfred runs the garden centre in the summer Its family we all help each other Bays Mrs Hlen Dave Mldell runs the gas pumps and Howard Baynton leases the service garage out back The store boasts original woodwork Including cup boards drawers counters and lioors all in soft well- rubbed pine and the owners don t Intend to change it Bright animal posters frame gifts and crafts In the window with hanging plants gracing the opposite window Groceries penny candy cigarettes nick are displayed spaciously on the old racks and counters and crafts are made by nearby school and are offered for sale The store even had an old fashioned Christmas tree with handmade ornaments at Christmas Being open dally from a am to m keeps hopping and she com mutes dally from and Donna Manes well known who have bought a wee store house and gas bar south of Brook vllle Tom formerly with the Acton moved Into Manes Country Mart three months ago with Donna sons Bill Brad Barry and baby daughter Janice who brightens up the store with her chatter and antics Tom has expansion ideas for the little grocery stare He wants to get a little bit of everything He says hed like to get into more hard ware and farm clothing He walling for a consignment of magazines and would like to convert the big freezer locker to a cooler Right now his store seems to have a little bit of every thing from axes to penny candy from cards to over coats from toys to lettuce The Manes enjoy the store so far and have no help yet to keep It open from till dally 10 to Sundays and holidays Its a lot of hours but I enjoy It says Tom I missed the people at the Cecile and George Crocker have run Osprlnge store and garage for the past two years II had previously been known as Robertsons for many years The have added a snack bar to the grocery store and are pleased with the results The gas pumps arc closed now but George is still busy with car maintenance and towingexpeclally towing The main feature of the store is Susie the friendly little miniature collie who greets everyone at the door with a wag of her tail store is open from to dally and to on Sundays I At Strattons comers on Highway north of Rock wood the store was run by Ken Stratton and his son In stare is run by the DesRoches and Hien families and boasts all the original woodwork from ago law Dick Dupuis for many Mrs Griffin likes the years The name people come Into the up there but its owned store Nobody says gim- Penny and Ed who love it it by the friendly They used to havo a larger banter offered every store with a staff of six in customer Hamilton but like the slower If we caht supply some thing I tell the customer we carry everything but were out of if pace of life here Were the only store around with hardware that open Sundays comments Mrs Griffin proudly That boll rack is a the The store hasnt changed Ihe country stores the day3 of Stratton Maybe its just a why change it but nice change of pace from the the garage and pumps are battle of the supermarket leased by Colin MacDonald a Whatever It works- class A mechanic and how nice that it still does Perhaps thats the secret of Many Rockmosa 100 Rockmosa Snowmobile Rally is this Sunday January It starts between and a at the Community Centre Lunches will be available Pledge sheets can be picked up at Garage Hard ware Royal Bank Rockwood M Winters Stratums or Country Mart ice jams Grand River Conservation Authority river control system is firmly In winter conditions As of January 1978 approximately percent of the capacity of and reservoirs was available for the impoundment of flood waters The first snow survey of the season was run on January 3 The results show ap proximately 3 30 Inches of water above Dam and Inches above the Dam This com pares with the past five year average of Inches and 2 inches above and Conestogo respectively A notable feature of this winter has been Ice jams Many Jams formed In early December Officials were able to influence their removal during a thaw prior to Christmas by the release of stored water Jams re formed between Christmas and New Years On December 1977 an advisory was given to the Region of Waterloo Police concerning a jam at West Montrose It was felt that the rapid changes In level warranted special attention until the situation stabilized The jam Is still in place along with many other jams throughout the system This Is affecting most gauge readings throughout the watershed THE SIGN SAYS STRATTONS but the new owners are Penny and Ed Griffin The store caters to customers north of on Highway opp Decrease in crime cooperation There was a slight decrease In crime within the Ontario Provincial Police jurisdic In according to Commissioner Graham In recent years crime has Increased at the rate of ten per cent per year he said In a press release A down ward trend was evident In 1976 when criminal offices Increased by less than one per cent Mr Graham contributed his reduction In part to the excellent cooperation and assistance the police officers have received from Ihe public and the media He also pointed out there has been a detachment planning pro gram which has been Imple mented With this program field members study local trends In criminal activity and develop methods of man power deployment to effect cope with problems In high crime areas The report stated there were 30 murders handled by the OPP In compared with In However attempted murders were up some five per cent from to Traffic accidents increased on highways There was In compared with 461 the year before However in spite of this increase fewer people were kilted lost year Personal Injury accidents increased by seven per cent during the same period and persons were Injured the report said During drivers received summonses for speeding violations from the and charges were laid for seat belt viola tions Legislation and en forcement alone will not reduce accidents on our high ways the commissioner noted Lower speed limits and mandatory wearing of seat belts will save many from serious Injury or death The most positive way to attack the problem of traffic accidents Is for everyone to be attentive considerate and drive defensively