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4- PORT PERRY STAR - Tuesday, October 24, 1995 "Scugog's Community Newspaper of Choice" > MMUNITY JEFF MITCHELL/PORT PERRY STAR GRASS FIRE BATTLE: Scugog firefighters were called out Friday afternoon to battle a grassfire that caught hold in the fields west of Old Simcoe Rd. behind Mother Jackson's. It's believe party-goers allowed a fire to get out of control, and flames spread through dry grass. They had departed by the time firefighters arrived. Ash St. neighbors complain By Kelly Lown Port Perry Star Off duty police officers will be on site starting to- day to slow down trafficon Ash Street. After numerous com- plaints from residents of the area about speeding delivery trucks, council warned Ribcor, the devel- opers of Victorian Village, that they would shut down Ash Street to traffic unless they did something to appease the residents. Construction site traffic has been using Ash Street as a throughway to Victor- 1a Street as the developers complete phase three of their sub division plans. Residents of the area feared for the school chil- dren as the trucks sped down the residential road. Both Ward 2 Councillor Ken Carruthers and Re- gional Councillor Marilyn Pearce called the develop- ers public relations tactics "about speeding truck traffic "disgraceful," as they were not keeping the residents informed on the construc- tion process. Councillor Carruthers said he was not satisfied with the developer's rea- sonings and wanted to close Ash Street closed apd have them find an- other entrance to Victori- an Street. The developers were told to have police officers on the site by today or they would take further action. (Commentary When will we wake up to pollution's threats? By Janet Banting Havingrecently returned from my sec- ond International Joint Commission Bi- ennial Meeting in Duluth, Minnesota, | realize that the very same things have struck me powerfully at both meetings. The IJC, a joint U.S. and Canadian body of six politically appointed Com- missioners one might expect to behave In ultra-conservative fashion, had once again organized a dynamic program guaranteed to convince even the most skeptical that the problem of persistent toxic substances poisoning .our Great Lakes and the health of all creatures in the Great Lakes Basin in both an enor- mous and urgent one. Respected scientists gave compelling evidence of a pressing need to put a quick halt to the chemical industry's con- tinued onslaught on our lakes and sur- rounding environment. Do these re- searchers have any doubts it is now past time to take urgent action? No. While continuing study is needed, they say, the time has come for new government strat- egies and policies to deal with the seri- ous problems chemicals are causing to our very ability to survive as a species. How did the U.S. and Canadian gov- ernment representatives (mostly men in suits) respond? More platitudes. More empty promises. An astonishingly casu- al reaction to the need for radical action to safeguard our very existence. What about the activists - the people who have seen at close range the damage these chemicals are wreaking on men, women, and children (not to mention the 'innocent wildlife we are thoughtlessly extinguishing?) The usual passion; emo- tional calls for action by activists young, old, and every age in between. What sort of results can we reasonably expect from this latest IJC exercise? Probably very few. Cancer rates will con- tinue to skyrocket, fertility of both wild- life and human beings will go on plum- meting, more and more species will falter and become extinct. And most citizens will continue to scratch their heads in wonder at the lev- el of feeling expressed by environmental- 1sts whose passion seems somehow mis- guided or extreme. How much longer will mainstream media and a majority of citizens ignore the stark reality that lies ahead? How long will "average citizens" continue to allow the frantic pace, information glut, and corporate control of late 20th centu- ry life to obscure the inescapable fact that humankind is on a collision course with the Earth's finite resources and healing powers? Sadly, the near future probably holds more of the same large-scale denial and distraction. As a citizen activist com-: mented at the 1993 IJC Biennial Meet- ing, "85 per cent of the human race is still asleep." It was only too true then, and little has changed in 1995. But no matter. Ever greater numbers of citizen activists are tuning in, educat- ing ourselves and others, and taking ac- tion on our own initiative. While what we manage to achieve may very well prove to be too little, too late, at least we can never be accused of that crippling human disease - apathy - or of a failure to fully engage our passions in meaning- ful (not merely self-centered) activity. Unlike all these "men in suits," we know exactly what's going on here on Planet Earth. The corporate raiders - with our (most- ly unwitting) complicity - are destroying the incredibly vast and beautiful gift we know of as the Earth. The only way this wholesale assault on Mother Nature can conclude is with our very own destruc- tion. Resource centre seeks community support Government funding cuts mean service charges for some area families By Jim Belyea Special to The Star A local family resource cen- tre is looking to the community for support now more than ever. Durham Farm and Rural Family Resources (DFRFR), ran out of government funding last March, president Andrea Ridenour said. [Family Resources had provincial funding from September 1994 to March 1995. The group also had federal funding for a pilot project when the resource centre started in 1991. Since March the centre has been surviving on membership fees and donations. Recently it became a charity, meaning receipts may now be issued to donors. With government funding drying up, the resource centre has to start charging user fees, something it hasn't done since 1991, Mrs. Ridenour said. The fee amounts to $25 per year for the drop-in centre and $15 for membership for the toy lending and resource member- ship. Some can't pay fee Those unable to pay for a full year will be able to pay a $2 fee per visit. The user fees kick in on Nov. 1. 'It's abig worry that families won't be able to pay that fee," Mrs. Ridenour said. She added the yearly membership would be cheaper than the per visit fee. The money goes toward the centre's rent, staff and craft supplies. Despite the lack of govern- ment funding DFRFR still operates its resource centre in Uxbridge Baptist Church from 9a.m.to3 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and its Cannington resource centre at Knox Presbyterian Church from 9 a.m. to noon on Mondays. The Uxbridge centre served 221 different families including 399 children from April 1994 to April 1995. In addition 40 caregivers and 100 children used the centre. In order to bolster its flag- ging finances, DFRFR 1s hold- ing a dance and silent auction Saturday, Nov. 11, at Uxbridge Community Centre. Prior Convictions featuring David Chester will perform. People and businesses are being asked to donate items for the silent auction. Some of the items up for bid include an cirplane flight, and art by Brenda Tucker. Fundraiser planned Tickets for the dance are available at Radio Shack, Presents, Not Just Card and Quaker Pharmacy, from resource centre staff of Mrs. Ridenour at 852-4175. 'It's really too bad because we do provide a great service here in town and support a lot of families," she said. Some other services DFRFR provides include an on-farm child care service and farm safety promotion. The group ran farm safety puppet shows at local fairs this fall. The on-farm child care ser- vice was hurt by cut backs this summer and the 1995-96 place- ments totalled 96 compared to 284 placements in 1992-93. That was a result of a drop in the number of care providers available due to funding cuts. The dance and silent auction 1s the only fundraising event planned by DFRFR for this year. The group will plan anoth- er activity in the new year. Donations are always welcome Mrs. Rindenour said. A: ARR VOB) SOT I TG Py aa A NE 2 CIR AL © SUR Ty PURE. DR RE SE a TR al a RN TTS LA A GT aa has tite _