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IllliÉllIllilllllÉ eiiiiiiiiliiE llllEliill liilfil msm ilillilll lllil ' S '\"A "V,. . *11 SpSSSi: BPI* " liilllllîl SBSÈiSl BlIfSflii üfiWiM! & - ' *V Bill , 111 ■ ô!»»» > % SV. N IIIÈIIBIIS wmSmw l* - Orono Weekly Times Wednesday. November 30, 2005 Subscriptions $32.71 + $2.29 GST = $35.00 per year. Publications Mail Registration No. 09301 • Agreement No. 40012366 Publishing 48 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. CanadS pcna ORONO WEEKLY TIMES - 5310 Main St., P.O. Box 209, Orono, ON LOB 1M0 E-mail: oronotimes@rogers.com or Phone/Fax: 905-983-5301 Publisher/Editor Margaret Zwart Sports and Display Advertising - Donna Wood Front Office and Classified Advertising - Rosey Bateman the Orono Weekly Times welcomes letters to the editor on subjects ofinterest to our "Le the right to edit for length Ibel and slander Ifyour retail Go to school--or mumble In last Friday's issue of the Toronto Star, columnist Linwood Barclay wrote about problems problems he was having with his phone and his frustrations in dealing with Bell Canada. Linwood's advise to readers, "If you happen to have been waiting a long time for Bell to fix your phone... go to journalism school and become a columnist." According to the column, Barclay says he waited around home on Saturday a week ago, for a Bell technician to show up between 1 and 6 p.m., as this was the period during which Bell had promised to show up. He had called Bell and complained about a host of problems with his phone including static on the line. When no one showed up by six o'clock, Barclay called Bell and was told a technician has been by that morning and fixed the problem problem from outside the house; except Barclay still had static on his line. When Barclay aired his frustration in dealing dealing with Bell in his Toronto Star column, he was flooded with messages from readers who had similar stories to tell. The day after the column ran in the Star, three Bell technicians showed up on Barclay's door step to fix his phone. Barclay attributed this response to the power of the pen. We at the paper are all too familiar with the power of the pen and the kind of response it can evoke in people who don't like what they read in print. Upon reading his column, I e- mailed Barclay and congratulated him on getting getting such a prompt response from Bell Canada. I also challenged him to see how quickly he could get any provincial or federal government department to respond to. a request within a week. If there is a message government staffers have received loud and clear, it's, "do not talk to the media." Each government department have their own media relations people whose job it is to field inquiries from the various news outlets. However, when you call these media relations departments, you never get to talk to a real person, so you're leaving a message message in someone's voice mail. These people also have no concept of deadlines. So imagine the shock when a few weeks ago, while working on the sound barrier story, I called the Ministry of Transportation, left a voice message, and someone called me back the very same day! When I expressed my surprise surprise to the media relations person on the other end of the line, he wasn't making any excuses, he just wondered why the New York Times had a 905 area code. Going to journalism school isn't such a bad idea either. Letters to the Editor "...paper with heart and spirit!" Dear Editor: I am sure you know this but, I will tell you again how special special you and your extensive staff are. I know with hockey being so busy in Orono at this time of year--a baseball story can only expect to share the sports page. When I saw what you had done with my article and the picture that accompanied it, I was so pleased. You people do great work. A newspaper is much more than ink and paper. It is the spirit of the community and even if our little village may not have a Home Depot or Wal-Mart we do have a paper with heart and spirit. Thanks again, John Witheridge Orono Re: Newcastle's new family Christmas tradition Letter to the Editor. Oh what a wonderful first Santa Claus Parade that came to Newcastle on Sunday evening November 27th. At 5:30 p.m., as we saw it, there was something for everyone, including a splendid response for donations to the Claring- ton East Food Bank. Despite varying amounts of rain, the streets were solidly solidly packed with happy onlookers onlookers ranging in age from babies to elderly folks. Just looking at the children's eyes, wide with wonder, gave us a warm feeling to know that traditional traditional Christmas celebrations arc very much alive and thriving In fklrt/l I hn rounding communities. Beginning with fireworks and spotlights, it set the tone for a very special evening. With 64+ entrants comprised of many children, bands, groups, elves, innovative floats, antique police cars, tractors, trucks, fire engines, a unicycle, choirs, caroling, wagons, camels, and a special "Year of the Veteran Float". Also, it was good to see our local politicians taking time from busy schedules to ride in the parade. Delightful first annual Newcastle Santa Claus booster buttons (designed with Santa riding a Massey- Harris tractor) were sold up and down the parade route with proceeds from these but ton sales helping to defray costs of bringing Santa to town. We have heard many great comments about this parade and add our own hearty congratulations congratulations to the Parade Committee and volunteers on their success as well as all the community groups, children and parents who put in long hours creating floats. In the spirit of the holiday season, we wish you all peace and goodwill. Sincerely, Donald (Luke) and Cynthia Prout Kendal