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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, June 21, 2013 | 6 An ounce of prevention Recent news of three con rmed cases of the measles in Burlington is a reminder to residents who are not vaccinated to seriously consider taking preventive action. The Halton Health Department warned people about potential exposure to measles if they visited any of the following locations on Saturday, June 8: · SportChek in Burlington Mall, Guelph Line and Fairview Street, at 1 p.m. until approximately 4 p.m. · The Collector's Vault, near New Street and Guelph Line, between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. · Al's Source for Sports, 3485 Fairview St., between 1 and 4 p.m. According to the health department, the three conrmed Burlington measles cases involve children under the age of 16 from the same family. Measles is preventable through two doses of measles vaccine. Symptoms of measles usually start with a cough, a runny nose, red, watery eyes and a fever. After about four days, a rash begins on the face and moves down the body and there can be white spots inside the mouth. Infants under one year old, pregnant women and those with weakened immune systems can get very ill if they contract measles. Complications of measles can include middle ear infections, pneumonia, croup and inflammation of the brain. About one-in-1,000 measles patients die of it. And those who have measles need to isolate themselves while they are ill and for four full days after the rash first appears, according to Halton's Medical Officer of Health Dr. Bob Nosal. While Halton's vaccination rate is about 90 per cent of the population, some people don't get vaccinated for reasons that include an allergy to the vaccine, religious beliefs, lack of faith in its effectiveness and those with a weakened immune system during cancer treatment. Anyone who believes they may have measles should call their doctor. All that said, it's also time to think about taking precautions against West Nile virus -- and again Halton Region's Health Department is on the job as we wrote about in an edition earlier this week. Mosquitoes have the potential of carrying West Nile virus (WNV), a potentially deadly illness that infected 23 Halton residents last year, according to Halton Region's WNV surveillance. Although 80 per cent of people who become infected with WNV do not experience any illness, Nosal said about 20 per cent will develop West Nile fever. Halton's health department is monitoring and treating mosquito-breeding sites like stormwater, catchbasins, and natural surface waters. Residents can protect themselves by covering up, wearing light-coloured, long-sleeved shirts and pants. People should make sure they wear insect repellent when outside and avoid areas where the mosquito population is high. Mosquitoes are most active during the evening and in shady, wooded areas. Residents should make sure their windows and door screens are tight and without holes. Up-to-date information on WNV , is available on the health department's website at www.halton.ca/wnv or by calling 905-825-6000. Editorial "Connected to your Community" 467 Speers Road, Oakville ON, L6K 3S4 General Inquiries: (905) 845-3824 Editorial Department: (905) 632-0588 Classi ed Advertising: (905) 632-4440 Circulation: 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington (905) 631-6095 Volume 51 | Number 74 The Oakville Beaver is a division of Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Vice ­President and Group Publisher of Metroland West Regional General Manager Halton Region Editor in Chief Advertising Director NEIL OLIVER DAVID HARVEY JILL DAVIS DANIEL BAIRD Managing Editor ANGELA BLACKBURN RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director Business Manager Director of Production SANDY PARE MARK DILLS MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager Used book sale was huge success, thanks Thank you, Oakville. This year the generous contributions and involvement of countless numbers of individuals and businesses in our community, including this paper, made the Oakville Literacy Council's 2013 Spring Used Book Sale fundraiser more successful than we dared to hope it might be. We raised close to $19,000. For many years our community-based charity has relied heavily on the proceeds from this annual event to fund operating costs associated with providing free one-on-one tutoring in reading, writing, basic math and computer skills to adults in Oakville. Since its inception, we have held this major fundraiser at Hopedale Mall, relying as much on walk-through traf c as returning customers to buy our books. This year, due to construction at the mall, we were forced to move our venue. We were most thankful to be able to hold this year's sale at Queen Elizabeth Park Community and Cultural Centre -- a beautiful facility that has not reached its potential in daily use. So people had to nd us, rather than just stumble upon us. For this reason, we did not expect to, nor did we raise the funds we had in the previous two years. Nevertheless, it was an extremely successful event. And not just because of the money it brought in. The Oakville Literacy Council's Spring Used Book Sale is a community builder. It spreads passion for grass roots involvement in a local cause that brings tangible results to people in need. It brings together a core group of almost 100 volunteers whose enthusiasm and tremendous hard work inspires all who witness it. It provides a recycling opportunity for many thousands of high-quality books, and makes them accessible -- at a price of $1-$3 -- to many people who might not otherwise be able to afford them. The books we do not sell in our four-day event, we offer to other charities that distribute them to needy communities or sell them for see Literacy on p.7 Letters to the Editor Director of Distribution CHARLENE HALL KIM MOSSMAN Circulation Manager Proud Official Media Sponsor For: Canadian Circulations Audit Board Member Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association Canadian Community Newspapers Association Proud Official Media Sponsor For: The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to: The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville ON, L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to; ablackburn@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline.