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1tic, UAJS. VLLLt BfcAV t.K Wednesday May Zi, 2001 Union Ga AND S p a n i s h flu k ille d 2 0 m i l l i o n p e o p le (C o n tin u e d fro m p a g e A 1 ) BAR-B-Q GAS GRILL &FIREPLACE!NAPOLEON GAS GRILLS Photo by Peter C. McCusker Inaugural G olf Tournament hosted by Travel Guard Canada and Travelweek M agazine held its inaugural golf tournam en for Operation Herbie Friday at Glen Abbey. Pictured here with the $15,630. proceeds of the tourney is founder G ina Godfrey, Jan Bassett, David LaFayette and Michael Butler. H E L P FOR H E R B IE : Last season, only two 'flu out breaks were investigated -- in local high schools: Appleby College and W hite Oaks Secondary School. The 'flu has been around for centuries, causing illness, and even death, especially among seniors and the debilitated, in North America. World-wide epidemics have happened for centuries, too. Three occurred last century -- the Spanish (1918); Asian (1957); and Hong Kong (1968). They spread quickly despite a lack of sophisticated global transporta tion. "The Spanish 'flu, in two short years, wiped out an estimated 20 million people world-wide," reported Nosal. Carson said it's been more than 30 years since the last pan demic. "That's approaching one of the longest intervals," she said. P ro g ra m struggling to find volunteers (C o n tin u e d fro m p a g e A 1 ) all of Canada. Today, the Block Parent Program of Canada Inc., with its 500,000 police-screened par ticipants, is the largest, volunteer operated child safety crime prevention program in Canada. At its peak about six years ago, Oakville boasted approximately 1,800 volunteers but since then their numbers have tailed off drastically to only about 175. "I don't think people know how few there are," said Damoff. At one point, the Oakville chapter didn't even have an executive, no overseer of the program to co ordinate efforts and information. That prompted Ontario Block Parents to run an ad in the Oakville Beaver asking for help and explaining that without assistance the local program could disband. Only 10 people attended a November 1999 meeting but out of that group the new executive was formed. As registrar, Lee followed up with her list of about 770 volunteers and ended up with 175 people who wanted to remain involved. "One misconception is that Block Parent must be a stay-at-home parent, available from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.," said Lee. "You put the sign up when you're home and available. It can be five hours or five min utes a week. It's not a big dme commitment." Those interested are encouraged to call 905-4651770 or email oakvilleblockparents@hotmail.com. According to the executive, in a perfect world there would be a Block Parent on every block, but failing that, they are aiming for 2,000 members. Funding will see more students leave system (C o n tin u e d fro m p a g e A 1 ) a public school. "This will earn the governm ent a profit and induce parents to go to the private system," she said. The public system offers help to any stu dent, noted Andrew. "Public schools accept whoever arrives," she said. "Private schools do not take trouble makers, or students with special needs or low marks." And if a student does cause trouble in a pri vate school, they can be expelled, said Andrew. The trustee said Prem ier Mike Harris often refers to the quality o f the workforce and qual ity o f life in Ontario. "He is bragging about graduates o f the public system produced in the years prior to his com ing into power," she said. Chair Ethel G ardiner agreed with Andrew's sentiments. "Bravo, bravo to those remarks." The provincial tax credit will be phased in over five years and is for fees paid to indepen dent schools in Ontario. Janet Ecker said last week her education m inistry has undertaken num erous public school reform s and has increased the system 's funding by $360 million for 2001/2002. "But just as we are supporting and encour aging parental involvem ent and choice within the public system, we also respect the choice made by thoseparents who choose to educate their children in an independent school," she said. INV1DIATA TEAM R F /M fiK "Versatility" PRESENTS ym c a OF OAKVIU-E W ORLDS LARG EST RUN" J U N E · 2 · 2 1 LEXMARK TROJAN SPORTS MARKETING LEPAGE'S GLUE DR. MURRAY YULL KOHLER CUMIS SHARKEY'S D0CKSIDE CAFE LONGO'S FANTASY FRUIT MARKET FRANK'S FOOD BASICS PERSONAL SERVICE COFFEE SID'S TROPHIES MOTT'S GLAXOSMITHKLINE HEALTHCARE THE INV1DIATA TEAM RUNNING ROOM NEW BALANCE OAKVILLE BEAVER OAKVILLE SHIATSU PURE WATER MONASTERY BAKERY · 5K RUN · 5K FUN W ALK/RUN · IK CHALLENGE 410 Rebecca Street, Oakville, Ontario RAIN OR SHINE ENTRY FORMS AVAILABLE A T ... YMCA of OAKVILLE 410 Rebecca Street Ittw & y j L * e * h o re YM CA o fO A K V ILLE Sat., J u n e 2, 2001* 9a.m . T h e O a k v il l e B e a v e r 467 Speers Road Road, East Race Hotline: 905 -845 -3417 , ext. Fax: 905 - 842-6792 399, Oakville Town Centre I · 338-0322 xmvw.toronto.com/bhizerformen