B4 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday September 12, 2001 please mum + Arlene Duncan returns to her roots at St. John's When the congregation at St. John's United Church hears Arlene Duncan sing at its 169th anniversary service on Sunday, Sept. 16, it will be with an extra note - a note of history. The guest soloist is the great-granddaughter of Benedict Duncan, who had been a slave in Maryland. A four-month trek landed him in Oakville, circa 1870 and, shortly after, he became St. John's Church sexton. Benedict Duncan put down Oakville roots. Five generations have lived here. Benedict's son, Alex, took organ lessons at St. John's. The church has the only such instrument in Oakville at the time. Later he became the organist at the former Turner Chapel, the African Methodist Episcopal Church on Lakeshore Road West. Alex's son, Alvin, a present-day resident of Oakville, has lived here his entire life except for his wartime service years. His daughter, Arlene, by her presence and per formance on Sunday will bring some of St. John's history full circle. St. John's is Oakville's longest established congregation, founded in 1832. Arlene Duncan was bom and raised in Oakville. Her singing, songwriting and acting career has taken her away to Toronto, where she now resides. She has perform ed across Canada, Europe, the United States, as far south as New Zealand and as far north as the Arctic. Her theatrical credits include: The Sunshine Boys, A Raisin in the Sun, Sophisticated Ladies, and produc tions of A in ' t Misbehaven and The W ho' s Tommy. Her film and television credits include: the role of Harriet Tubman in Sing Out Freedom Train; Enslavement; The True Story o f Fanny Kemble; FX the Series; and Sesame Street. W hen she sings at St. John's United Church on Sunday, it will be a return to where her singing career began, recording and touring with the original Tempus Youth Choir. Under the direction of Brian Turnbull, St. John's choir director and organist since 1971, they practiced at the church. Sunday's anniversary service starts at 10 a.m. with a recital by Arlene Duncan. She will also participate in the worship service beginning at 10:30 a.m. St. John's is located in downtown Oakville on Dunn between Church and Randall Streets. 1/2 price clearance s e le c t ite m s room with a view By Kym Funnell ADVERTISING FEATURE he new millennium proved to be a fabulous new beginning for Sheila O 'Brien, one o f the first residents at Queens Avenue Retirement Residence. The previous year, 1999, had been draining; caring for her beloved husband at home who was diagnosed with Alzheimers and was beginning to require more care. She had many difficult decisions to make, including which long term care facility her husband would move to and where she would go herself. Being in good health and fairly mobile (she sull drives her own car), she wanted to remain independent but knew it was time to sell the family home. So with her husband placed in a beautiful facility nearby, she went about the daunting task o f finding herself a new place to call home. And then she heard about Queens Avenue Retirement Residence. "I absolutely love it here!" Exclaims Sheila, "and it was a tremendous lift at a difficult time in my life." She admits downsizing was difficult, and it was hard to sell the house and most o f her furniture, but she feels she couldn't have made a better choice. "This is simply a wonderful place," says this ener getic senior, "from the activities, exercises, crafts, entertainment, and the beauty salon located on the main floor, Queen's Avenue has everything." Besides being within minutes from the GO Station, her doc tor' s office, a shopping centre, and many other amenities, her son lives in Toronto and her daughter lives in Hamilton, so she's directly between both. The location is very convenient for me. I've lived in Oakville for over 50 years, so I know the area really well, and it' s convenient for my family," she contin ued. It' s convenient for Sheila too as she only has to prepare her breakfast and lunch, because dinner is always served in the elegant dining room - which · · · · · ... And a view o f Queens Avenue R etirem en t Residence boasts a beautiful outdoor terrace. The Queen' s Avenue offers gracious retirement living, with beautiful suites (studio, one and two bedrooms) ranging from 370 to 775 sq. ft. "Because I was one o f the first residents here, I got my choice and I have a beautiful, bright corner unit with lots o f big windows!" Commented Sheila adding "I can see all the snow on peo ple's roofs in the winter and watch all the birds in the summer." The Queens Avenue offers a safe, secure and elegant environment with a warm and inviting lobby entrance with reception services, auto matic keyless building door entries, beauti fully landscaped grounds, an elegant main lounge with a double sided fireplace, activity and recreation facilities and a guest suite for visitors and short-term stays. .x "The fellowship among residents is probably my favourite part o f The Queen' s Avenue," says Sheila. "I can spend as much time alone in my apartment but I know there's always someone downstairs in the lounge. I never get lonely! And the staff is wonder ful. They're all warm, friendly people and very inter active." There are many services included when taking up residency at The Queen's Avenue Retirement Residence. For more information regarding occu pancy, visit them at 1056 Queen's Avenue, or call 905-815-0862 Oakville Place Mall / 8 4 5 -9 2 9 2 T Homebuilding Career Your career. Your choice. Your life. The Centre for Skills Development & Training has an exciting program to prepare students in a number of related occupations: Wacky hockey If you can't get enough of hockey, then catch the action Friday at Power Play for Easter Seal Kids. This you-have-to-see-it-to-believeit event gives new meaning to the term `Ultimate Power Lunch.' On Sept. 14 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. the parking lot in front of Philthy M cNasty's at the QEW and Dorval will be transformed into a street-hockey stadium. Oakville's business and industry hotshots will leave the workplace to face off against their industry rivals in this 4-on-4, double elimination streethockey tournament. And the wackiest part - their hock ey uniforms are their business suits and/or work attire. This lunchtime showdown will fea ture Marcel Dionne, NHL Hall-ofFamer as the top fundraising team 's seventh player. Proceeds from this sporting fundraiser will help fund essential equipment needs, a week at one of five fun-filled Easter Seal Camps in Ontario and training in independence and life skills for Easter Seal kids. Registration is open now to organi zations interested in entering a team. For more information, call Daniel Wickie at 1-800-816-4149 ext. 24. Carpentry Trowel Trades Hvac Electrical Plumbing We have employers ready to hire successful graduates! ATTEND A FREE INFORMATION SESSION 905 - 333 - 3 4 9 9 / 878-1240 www.thecentre.on.ca jiawa.j Still Time to Register jjjfij The Centre Skills Development & Training OAKVILLE & DISTRICT HUMANE SOCIETY 0 1 Join the fun! Leash-up your pet and enjoy a great 3.5 km walk... and help eliminate violence against animals! W a l k A g a i n s t V io l e n c e 2 0 Saturday , S eptember 29,2001 Why can't I seem to change? Changing is the most important and most difficult part of living. All of us have hang-ups and habits that can be harmful to our relationships and even ourselves. So why don't we just change? Good question. Beginning this Sunday, The Sanctuary will begin a new series on the subject of Changing For Good. Pastor Jeff Christopherson will share four practical messages on how to cooperate with God to experience the change that we all want to see. Church is not your thing? This just might be the change you've been waiting for. We invite you to dis cover Your Sanctuary. -- r Thank you to our generous sponsors! /^Oakville Beaver IAMS COMPANY A l g o n q u in P o w er C o r po r a t io n Sanctuary Series: "Changing For Good W h ite O a k s at RBC Financial G rou p ANDERSEN *How much could 1matter to God? The process of permanent change. Overcoming the dark side. How Jesus restores His masterpieces. September 16 September 23 September 30 October 7 Pn' am Jeffrh ,, J e t t C h " s o p h e rS o n 0ral Sfaft Ba , °'V 'euc/r/ng T * * to » g f Pastor Wnrck;^ n Ga"y Koib *ln lig h t o f th is w e e k 's tra g ic even ts, w e w ill be a d d re ss in g th e issue o f 'h a v in g fa ith in G o d w h e n life d o e s n 't m a ke sense.' lm hnielson Ba Executive Pastor ' Jf m b .A. Youth Pastor u " 9:30 am at the Glen Abbey Recreation Centre, 1415 Third Line rain or shine. A Church for Your Heart. Mind tfind & Spirit ^ uary r ,, n l oil 9 0 S _ For more information, please call: 905- 845-1551 s a n c » t u » a r y \ s a n (k )-c h e -w e r -e \ n , 1: a s a f e h a v e n a: a p la c e o f s e c u r it y o r r e fu g e ; 2 : a s e tt in g o f sp ir itu a l im p o r ta n c e . The Sa nctua ry is a ffilia te d w ith the C a n a d ia n C onvention o f Southern Baptists be Y