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A Metroland Publication Vol. 40 No. 78 'U SIN G C O M M U N IC A TIO N TO BUILD B E TTE R C O M M U N ITIES W EDNESDAY, 1U L Y 2, 2003 48 Pages $1.00 (plus G S T ) Educators frustrated with Fraser findings Nothing positive about report BY TIM WHITNELL SPEC IA L TO THE BEAVER A director of education and superintendents with Hal ton's two school boards are putting little stock into the findings or methods related to an inde pendent Canadian research group's ranking of Ontario's elementary schools. Neither Education Director Dusty Papke of the Halton District School Board, superin tendent Barry Finlay with the " Whoever referred to HDSB nor Elaine Hine with the Fraser Institute as a the region's Catholic board had think tank needs their anything good to say about the Fraser Institute's recently head read. They rank released report. nothing on the overall The 253-page document quality of education." produced by the Vancouverbased organization rates the · Dusty Papke majority of the province's ele Education Director mentary schools from No. 1 (the best) to No. 2,885. The primary criteria used was reading, writing and math scores on standardized provincial tests given to Grades 3 and 6 pupils during the 2001-02 school year. The principle of ranking schools has never sat well with Papke. Finlay and Hine. with their colleagues here or with their counterparts at other school boards. (See 'Fraser' page A7) Harrison Smith · Special to the Oakville Beaver Joy Greene, right, and Lauren Baker enjoy some quiet time in Lauren's backyard swimming pool. Greene will once again swim the 22kilometre length of Lake Rosseau to benefit Camp Oochigeas -- Canada's first residential cancer camp. Diagnosed less than three years ago with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Lauren hopes to swim the last leg of Greene's marathon which ends at the camp. Swimmer brings `joy' to young campers Teen hopes to join last leg of charity swim to benefit youth with cancer By Howard Mozel OAK V IL E BEAVER STAFF Debate heats up over downtown development By Kim Arnott SPECIAL T O THE BEAVER Is a 14-storey building a towering monstrosity that will loom over Oakville's downtown, shadowing both present buildings and future development? Or is an upscale residential building that offers much indemand one-storey living, exactly what the downtown core needs? The answer to those questions depends on whom you ask, but there's no doubt people on both sides o f the question are marshalling their arguments this summer. In September, the Town's planning and development com(See 'Developer' page A7) No one is more excited about Joy Greene's annual charity swim of Lake Rosseau than 13year-old Oakville teen Lauren Baker. Diagnosed less than three years ago with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Lauren hopes to swim the last leg of Greene's 22-kilometre trek which ends at Camp Oochigeas, Canada's first residential cancer camp. "This will be my first time seeing her swim and I'm really excited about that," said Lauren, who is attending "Camp Ooch" for the third time this summer. "I'll be cheering her on." Greene was originally inspired to tackle the swim by her godmother's granddaughter Traci who, in 1995, was diagnosed with leukemia at age 10. Today, Traci remains in remission. So committed is Greene to her cause that in 1999, she made the swim in nine hours and 14 minutes with a broken hand. In 2001 she com pleted the swim a year after seriously breaking her leg while skiing. Last year she was blessed with a warm and sunny day and calm water and managed to average 60 strokes per minute. Then, after seven hours and 58 minutes in the lake, the Oakville athlete was delighted by the heart warming reception from the Camp Ooch chil dren who waited on the dock. On July 19 at 7 a.m. Greene will be back in Lake Rosseau to benefit the summer camp named after a legendary aboriginal princess whose brave spirit and determination helped overcome physical hardships. A better role model for the special campers you won't find. Baker, however, would argue that Greene is easily on par. "What she's doing is awesome," said Lauren who, when interviewed recently, proudly dis played her Grade 8 graduation dress. Her mother, Nancy, is also knocked out by Greene's selfless contributions to the camp. "I think she's just the best," she said. "Of her own free will she trains and uses part of her vacation for the swim. Anybody who's that giving is just tops." Serendipity was working overtime when, two years ago, Greene was in the Oakville WalMart store and spotted a young girl who had no hair and displayed other "textbook" signs of cancer treatment. (See `Sponsors' page A8) Editorials....................... .A6 Focus............................... B1 Auto......................... B4 ArtScene.......................... Cl Classifieds........................ C4 Sports..............................C8 Students & Newspapers D1 Thomson victim o f tainted blood scandal O akvilere sid e n tlo s e slongbattlewithhepatitisC Daryl Thomson, a hepatitis C suffer er who made his fight for compensation public last fall, died last Friday o f the illness. He was 34. It is believed he was infected as a result of receiving a transfusion of taint ed blood on or near his 16th birthday in February 1985. Unable to work -- he gave up his job as a steelworker -- and receiving a disability pension, Mr. Thomson made his plight public by speaking with reporters at the Nov. 20, 2002. press conference in Toronto where charges were announced against those responsi ble for Canada's tainted blood scandal by the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police). The charges against four doctors overseeing Canada's blood supply came following a massive fiveyear criminal investigation. What has become known as Canada's worst public health disaster resulted in thousands being infected with tainted blood, however the federal government was prepared to compen sate only those infected between 1986 and 1990 from a $1.2 billion package. The RCMP launched its investiga tion after Justice Horace Krever recom mended in his report on the tainted blood scandal that all victims of hepati tis C caused by blood transfusions be compensated, however the federal gov ernment has stood firm on compensat ing those inflected only during 1986 1990. Thomson did not qualify for com pensation because it is believed he was infected 10 months too early. He fought to have that compensa tion extended to include all victims like himself who were infected prior to 1986. Thomson was diagnosed about four and a half years ago. "I was tested previously, but because the earlier testing was not as accurate as today's, the hepatitis C did n't show up," he said during an inter view with the Oakville Beaver last fall. In 2001 he applied for compensation on his own, and was refused. Last year he obtained the assistance of lawyer. "It's nice to see they are finally holding som ebody responsible." he told reporters at that Toronto press con ference. "But I'd like to see them focus on compensating some o f the victims." Thomson became ill at age 12, and received the first o f more than 50 blood transfusions following surgety to remove his spleen. Three years later, he began having liver problems, a disease which was diagnosed when he 19 or 20. The transfusion o f tainted blood Thomson received was traced back to a donor who had tested positive for hep atitis C some 10-12 years later. He had a life-long love of the out doors, especially fishing. Mr. Thomson was buried in Welland following a pri vate family funeral service on Monday. He is survived by his parents, Robert and Doreen Thomson, brother Darren and nephew, Eric, o f Oakville. In memorial donations may be made to the Canadian Liver Foundation. (S u p p ort Y o u r Local Carrier) SYLC DELIVERY For home delivery A customer service call (905) 845-9742 Mon.. Tues.. A Thun. 9 am . - 6 p.m.. Wed. A F ri 9 am . - 8 pjn. or Saturday 10 am . - 4 p.m. For new subscriptions. call (905) 845-9742 or subscribe online @ w * , .oak\nllebea\rr.com Ful Ddiven: Wheels. Sport M art Partial DeSvcn: Sport Chek. Bell Sympatico. G uardian Drugs. H om e Depot. H y <£ Zeis. K entucky Fried Chicken. The B ay R A M A D A ®IN N A CONVENTION CENTRE O A K V I L L E Barrie Erskine · Oakville Beaver Daryl Thomson, featured last year in the Oakville Beaver, contracted hepa titis C after receiving a tainted blood transfusion. He died Friday. Come See The Difference 905*845# 7561 URGE PIZZA ,0 FRESH TOPPM6S03SSML PEPS pub a cambook nod w in pizza - S tS f r g sh put*0TM iZ%Z Q ®O * f PtZZ4/ O O R//VG , `A d d i t i o n a l * CARPET · ORIENTAL RUGS · AREA RUGS · HARD SURFACES c a .G i A GALLERY OF ORIENTAL RUGS. UNIQUE AREA RUGS AND HNEI ! CARPETING 9671111 W 'iH OurAlready LowPrices · O N LYAT OUR OUTLET STORE 125 C r o s s A v e , O a k v ille (Across from Home Depot > 9 0 5 . 8 4 9 . 4 4 7 2