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2 - Orono Weekly Times, Wednesday, January 30, 2002 Weekly Times Subscriptions $28.04 + $1.96 G.S.T. - $30.00/y6ar Publications Mail Registration No. 09301 Agreement No. 40012366 . Publishing 50 Issues Annually at the Office of Publication .. "We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada, through the Publications Assistance Program (PAP), toward our mailing costs." . 5310 Main Street, P.O. Box 209, Orono, Ontario LOB 1M0 E-Mail Address: oronotlmes@speedllne.ca Phone/Fax (905) 983-5301 Publisher/Editor Margaret Zwart Serving East Clarington and beyond since 1937 m O™ W^k,, Time, wdcome, l*», » », =di« m ^ JT, forth, fat üm=,pl^ch.d I c™H y .No to of»^m»b«g i v„Mo«^»«.i«- 8 oe, to print. The Orono Weekly Times will not be responsible for the loss or damage^fsuchjtems^ He gave us his best # While you'll not often find items of a national scope in the pages of this community newspaper, it is very fitting that the passing of radio broadcaster Peter Gzowski be recognized recognized in all communities that dot this nation. Gzowski brought all the regions of this country together five mornings mornings a week through his morning long radio show and made us feel connected as a country. He came through our radios into our homes, cars and places of work, dealing with his guests and listeners on a one to one basis. While he was far from polished, he was very professional yet personable in all his radio pieces. When word came over the CBC last week Wednesday, that Peter Gzowski had been admitted to the hospital with a serious lung ailment, we all knew the end wouid be near. When I came home from work on Wednesday evening and mentioned that Peter Gzowski was seriously ill, my teenage son said, "When he dies you could sell your Gzowski coffee mug on e bay. You might get something for it." ■" ' ' . . . ' : . The lad is too young to have developed any appreciation for what Gzowski stood for and accomplished. The Gzowski period triggers memories of being an unwilling victim, waiting in parking lots for interviews to end. Though that was a common occurrence during the years I listened to Momingside, the only time since 1997 I satin a parking lot waiting for an interview to end Was this Monday, when Shelagh Rogers replayed an interview Gzowski did with Alice Munro. • When regular CBC radio programming, was interrupted late Thursday afternoon with those unsettling sound bites that can only mean bad news* we all knew that Gzowski had died. Since then the tributes to him have, been gushing across the airwaves. The CBC provided a number of opportunities opportunities this past weekend through phone-in programs for listeners to share What G meant to them. For every person * who got on the air, I'm sure there were thousands more who did not get through. Gzowski gave me the courage to push the limits and do this newspaper stint. He brought people into our homes daily, who had been confronted with huge challenges, and survived. While I didn't realize it at the time, I was being taught the craft of interviewing by one of the very best in the business. Gzowski was a journalist/broadcaster/writer, but first and foremost he was a Canadian. The CBC was the perfect fomm for Gzowski to impart that spirit of nationalistic pride to listeners from coast to coast, from the 49th parallel to the north beyond the tree line. If the powers that be ever want to fragment this nation, they should keep chipping away at the CBC. Where else but on national pyblic radio could a program. like the Red River Rally have-been pulled off. Through the magic of radio, the concert to raise money for the victims of the Manitoba flood in the spring bf 1997 brought us some of the best musical talents in Canada, playing live from various studios across the country, . _ ' Though I've missed Gzowski ever since he disappeared from my radio, I remain an ardent CBC fan, and hope that someday another voice will take up where Peter's left off, building this nation. Putting Shelagh Rogers in the morning slot is a move in the right direction, though there is still room for improvement. And shame on^any government, present or future who dares to cut any further into the bones of the CBC. HOCKEY HEROES Dear Editor, Scanningthe death notices, which is such an important reality check for those of us in the four score plus category, often yields most interesting historical footnotes. (Why do newspaper newspaper publishers persist in Writing things off with the altogether deadly term "death notices" when the more constructive constructive "obituary" might persuade their authors to recapture so much more of life?) A recent Globe and Mail notice featured a vibrant photo of a memorable To-Jo Graboski who died at the' age of 87, leaving seven children oi-iri an enlf a.ntl ",Io-Jo Will forever be reinembered for his love of and contribution to the hockey world." Jo-Jo played for the famous Oshawa. Generals in the mid- nineteen thirties. He was a brilliant player though equipped with only bne sighted sighted eye. This hé had converted converted into a formidable hsset. Well before the invention of radar he had developed a rapid-fire side to side sweep of the head which apparent- ; ly told him everything which was takiijg place on the; icq and made it impossible for this hapless defenceman to have a clue as to how he was going to get around one and score the next goal. Come to think of it only two other such intimidating experiences come to mind. The first, the late great Syl Apps, playing pre-pro for the Hamilton Tigers, bearing down at ferocious speed with an unstoppable combination of force and finesse. The second. second. the St. Michaels Junior hockey dynasty who graduated graduated no less than five to the Maple Leafs the next year. Maple Leaf Gardens had just been built, and on its much larger ice these five and their pals simply skated around we Varsity Juniors for the largest score yet recorded (18-2). Jo-Jo was too much of a gentleman for that kind of .thing! A shining example to all those who experienced his play, may the mark he left on hockey, so briefly alluded to in his obituaiy, live on forever. Henry Sissons