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www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Thursday, November 8, 2012 · 6 The Oakville Beaver 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. Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5566 Classified Advertising: 905-632-4440 Circulation: 905-631-6095 Neil Oliver Vice-President and Group Publisher, Metroland West David harvey Regional General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief Daniel Baird Advertising Director ANGELA BLACKBURN Managing Editor Riziero Vertolli Photography Director Sandy Pare Business Manager RECOGNIZED FOR EXCELLENCE BY: Ontario Community Newspapers Association MARK DILLS Director of Production Manuel garcia Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution KIM MOSSMAN Circulation Manager Website www.oakvillebeaver.com The OakvilleBeaver is a division of E Canadian Community Newspapers Association Suburban Newspapers of America THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: United Way of Oakville ATHENA Award ERIC RIEHL / OAKVILLE BEAVER / @halton_photog Helping friends: Balletomane Studio dancers held a fundraiser for the Oakville & Milton Humane Society at Towne Square Sunday. Here, in back, from left, Cameron Currie and Caroline Bentley; in front, from left, Minori Akogi, Katrina Del Villar, Shelby Ward, Ani Ghaloosian, and Anny Bernier. ach Remembrance Day people across Ontario pause to recognize the men and women who gave their lives in the service of this country and its ideals. This day is of particular significance to St. John Ambulance, which helped prepare many Volunteer Aid Detachments (VADs) in past war efforts. At the beginning of the First World War, St. John Ambulance was mobilized to train and organize local VADs. These dedicated volunteers worked tirelessly sewing uniforms, assisting in hospitals and meeting troop trains. The work of St. John Ambulance-trained VADs during the Great War went above and beyond caring for the troops, to assisting with home healthcare. By 1918, Canada was in the grip of the Spanish Flu and St. John, a leading member of the Emergency Volunteer Health Auxiliary, placed volunteers in homes and staffed hospitals to help care for the overwhelming number of sick. At the outbreak of the Second World War, St. John Ambulance once again prepared a new wave of VADs to mobilize. It saw an overwhelming number of female volunteers who anxiously sought to serve their country. Many of these women were called upon to fill vacancies at military hospitals at home and overseas. St. John Ambulance also trained VADs for home-front safety efforts. First-aiders in specially equipped, mobile first-aid posts were activated to respond in case of air raids or other war-related disasters. For St. John Ambulance, the hard work and dedication of the VADs it trained was truly humbling. These men and women volunteered enthusiastically despite lacklustre working conditions and the potential danger of death or illness. Their selfless efforts will never be forgotten -- be it by the sick and wounded they cared for or the organization that had the distinct honour of training them. Today, St. John Ambulance continues its tradition of supporting members of the Canadian Armed Forces by assisting with first-aid training to soldiers at home and awaiting deployment to regions far and wide. This Remembrance Day, St. John Ambulance will pause on the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month to remember the heroic men and women who came before, and to hold quiet vigil for the safety of those who are still serving in areas of conflict. For more than 125 years, St. John Ambulance has been training more than 135,000 Ontarians annually in first-aid and other healthcare-related courses, and remains dedicated to saving lives at work, home and play. With more than 4,000 volunteers contributing more than half a million hours of community service a year, St. John Ambulance is an integral part of the community, offering such unique and innovative programs as: medical first response, disaster response, car-seat safety training, health- and safetyrelated youth programs and therapy-dog services. As a charitable, humanitarian organization, proceeds from St. John Ambulance's firstaid training and first-aid product sales directly support these vital community services programs. For more information on St. John Ambulance training courses and volunteer opportunities, contact the Oakville-Milton & Halton Hills Branch at 905-469-9325 or visit www.sja.ca/on. -- Submitted on behalf of St. John Ambulance, Oakville-Milton Guest Column St. John Ambulance remembers The pressure and expectations facing university applicants he's personable and engaging, a bright young woman with all the power and potential to go out and knock the world's socks off. Alas, of late she's been somewhat anxious, under pressure, and buckling a bit under the weight of unrealistic expectations. Pressure? Expectations? As she goes about the business of prepping to apply to universities, and selecting a field of study -- so many impressive universities, so many interesting academic options -- she feels she's expected to know exactly what she wants to do with the rest of her life, even though she only recently turned 17. Truth be told, she has no notion. Honestly, who has that kind of insight (indeed, clairvoyance) at that tender age? I know people twice her age who don't know what they want to with the rest of their lives. Historically speaking, I've always encouraged students to go off to university and take the courses that most interest them. Music. Art. English. Philosophy. Whatever. Find your passion. Then pursue it. But nowadays, I'm caught -- and talking with other parents, I find I'm not alone -- between advising our daughter to find and pursue her passion, or follow a more practical, prudent path; that is, get a degree in an area that might actually (gasp) lead to gainful S employment. The other day I was in a grocery store. A young man was stocking shelves and the middle-aged salesman of the product he was stocking was asking why he was not back at university. The young man replied that he had finished university, and had in fact earned two degrees. To which the older Andy Juniper guy, bewildered, blurted: "And you're still stocking shelves?" Ah, a conversation killer. Personally, I know quite a few young people who are in possession of a degree or two who are unemployed, or underemployed, juggling multiple poor-paying jobs just to try and make ends meet. According to The Globe & Mail, underemployment may well be a nastier problem for this generation than unemployment. "Today's youths are much more educated than generations past. But -- unlike other countries -- the advantage in the jobs market of having a higher education is diminishing." And this is the shark tank into which we should be advising our offspring to jump? Obviously, I'm of two minds. Mind A: Advise my daughter to pick a practical field that will lead to work. Mind B: Remind my daughter that education isn't all about employment, it's about learning for the sake (and wonder) of learning -- about the world around you, the things in that world of interest to you and, most importantly, things that set your world on fire. Regardless of whether they translate into a big salary. As our daughter inches closer to making these big decisions, Mind A and Mind B engage in loud debates inside my head. Not surprisingly -- as someone who has followed his heart more often than his head, and typically chosen the path of passion over prudence -- Mind B often wins. In part, because I think of my own parents encouraging me to pursue a career in writing (not practical then, not practical now). And in part, because she has all her life to be, say, a knock-'em-dead business tycoon. Whereas now the time is ripe for her to don a beret and lose herself for a while in ancient art, timeless literature, modern music, or... whatever. Andy Juniper can be contacted at ajjuniper@gmail.com, found on Facebook at www.facebook.com, or followed at www.twitter. com/thesportjesters.