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The Oakville Beaver, W e d n e sd a y N o v e m b e r 7, 2001 - A 3 Congregation pumped $150,000 Victim-less conference speaker: into fixing old church (Continued from page 1) People can change the world By Kim A m ott SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER Small groups of people - like the 100 or so registered for the Victim-less con ference held last weekend - can change the world. At least that's what award-winning journalist and magazine editor Sally Armstrong believes. Armstrong who has reported from some of the most oppressive countries in the world - countries where people are routinely denied basic human rights and dignities - told the Oakville audi ence at the annual community policing conference that they could make a dif ference. Toward the end of the 1800's, she told the gathering, a small group of women in China stopped the centuryold disabling tradition of foot-binding. The women, calling themselves the Healthy Foot Society, publicly declared they would no longer bind their daugh ters' feet, nor allow their sons to marry women with bound feet. Within nine years of that declaration, foot-binding had basically been eradi cated across China, said Armstrong. A similar group of women in Africa may soon put an end to the ritual of female genital mutilation. "It's small groups coming together," she told the audience Saturday morning. "Groups exactly like you." This year's conference, organized jointly by Halton's police department, health department, multicultural council and sexual assault services, focused on violence and hate crimes. Armstrong told the audience about her experiences reporting on violence around the world. Long before Sept. 11th turned the public eye to Afghanistan, Armstrong visited the country to report on how women's lives were being destroyed by the Taliban government. Women are forbidden to work or attend school, and can be publicly stoned to death for being in the compa ny of a man who is not their husband, brother or son. Many health care services are no longer available to females, who must spend their lives hiding behind black ened house windows and in head-to-toe clothing. It is forbidden to listen to a radio, to the Independent Anglican Church in 1991 for its then newly-established St. Columba's Church. The Rev. Salm, who was told last week by the AME Church based in Indiana of its plans to sell, said the For Sale sign went up on Monday. "I think it's kind of a shame that his tory falls by the wayside," he said. "It's a real blow to the congregation. It leaves us sort of out in the cold to say the least." The historic church, which seats 72, will remain the spiritual home of 25 area families until the property is sold. What happens after that remains uncer tain at this point, but the Rev. Salm explained that they w ouldn't wait long to start formulating a contingency plan. "The parishioners do need a place that's decent in which to worship," he said. St. Columba's congregation - which originally met at Grace Lutheran Church for four years - has been renting the Lakeshore Road church from AME since 1991. When the congregation first moved in, the historic building was in such sad shape that some people thought it was in danger of collapsing. Since then, the church has sunk more than $150,000 into the structure to ren ovate it and restore the intimate house of worship to one of character and sim ple warmth. The roof was repaired, the floor rein forced and windows - many of them broken - were replaced with stained glass. An old oil heater, which sat where Sally Armstrong watch television, or even dance or sing. Although many people are now aware of those horrors, few in positions of power were listening five years ago when she told her stories. "We've known since 1996 that the Taliban were fundamentalist nutbars," said Armstrong. "But when it was only women they were targeting, no one paid any attention." She urged the audience, gathered at the Halton Regional building, to speak out against local and international injus tice. "Moments when a very useful con tribution can be made never wear a name tag. They always look like they belong to someone else," said Armstrong. "But in the absence of protest, evil is nourished and can flourish." In a Friday night address to the con ference, police officer and author Chuck Konkel also spoke o f the need to acknowledge evil in the form of hate crimes. Konkel, who helped develop Canada's national hate crime legisla tion, said that an appropriate police response to hate crimes is only part of the solution to the problem. "Education is as important as enforcement," he said, noting that young people need to be given the tools to assess information critically, particu larly in the days of the Internet. Along with speeches by Konkel and Armstrong, the conference included forums on homophobia, ageism, bully ing, ableism and stalking. The For Sale sign went up in front of Road on Monday. the organ now stands, was replaced by a new furnace and air conditioning unit. The past was retained, however, in the form of original wainscoting, front doors and a pair of minister's chairs. The altar and pulpit were kept as well, Photo by Riziero Vertolli St. Columba's Church on Lakeshore although these are not believed to be original. A pair of pictures by local artist Wendi Thomson, entitled Resurrection and the Ascension of Mary, also hang inside the church. RealMen willprove they can cookSaturday Real Men Can Cook, a special fundraiser where local, male celebrities display their culinary skills, takes place Saturday at Halton Regional Centre. The event, which runs from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m., will bene fit the Children's Wish Foundation of Canada, the Halton DARE program and the Women Survivors Advisory Group, Halton. Emceed by CITY TV's Mark Dailey, the event will fea ture participants (all male) creating appetizers, soups, entrees or desserts that will be sampled by the attendees. Between 35 and 40 men will demonstrate their culinary prowess including Chief Ean Algar of the Halton Regional Police Service, retired Argo Granville Liggins, James Duthie of TSN, plus local businessmen, police officers and members of the RCMP. Participants will be vying for the People's Choice award, chosen by attendees, and the Chef of the Year award, cho sen by the judges Tickets are $30 each in advance only, which includes 10 food-sampling tickets. 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