www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday October 25, 2006 - 3 Wilma is following a happy trail to retirement Continued from page 1 While she's excited about the move, there are a lot of things the avid outdoorswoman will miss like hiking, Oakville's trails and gardens. In fact, one of her fondest memories of work is her Happy Trails series, a look at Oakville's many hiking trails, which she called "a plum assignment." And of course, Blokhuis says she'll also miss her co-workers and the many friends she's made in town over the past three decades, all of whom she wants to thank for "long-time friendships." "I know she will miss her colleagues as she embarks on her new journey," said editor-in-chief, Jill Davis. "But I am not sure she realizes just how much we will miss her. She has brightened The Oakville Beaver's newsroom for so long, it is difficult to comprehend it without her." Blokhuis, who studied journalism at Sheridan College from 1971-1973, landed her first job at the Erin Advocate for a twomonth summer stint. After that, she worked for the Orillia Wednesday Nighter for eight months and then spent a year and a half at the Orillia Packet and Times before moving to Oakville. "Saying goodbye to those jobs was easy, because I didn't enjoy them. I didn't stay long," she said. Leaving The Oakville Beaver is going to be different. "I haven't cried yet and I just might," she said. Compared to her other jobs, Blokhuis says, Oakville had "much nicer people to work for, no comparison. "It was a much friendlier atmosphere. Oakville was a small, friendly little community. I enjoyed it, so I stayed. I loved it." Much has changed since Blokhuis' rookie reporter year in Oakville. "When I started I was using an old Underwood typewriter and a film camera," she said. "Then came the arrival of computers and e-mails, faxes. You wonder how you lived without them it makes the job so much faster. "Before, to look things up, you had to go to the reference library." Blokhuis has been in two different offices with The Oakville Beaver, which started on but "out- into the job to do the best I could." That's why when the Beaver's managing editor Rod Jerred nominated Blokhuis for the President's Award in 2005 the highest honour possible from the paper's parent conglomerate, Metroland Printing, Publishing and Distributing he called her "the heart and soul of The Oakville Beaver." Jerred says Blokhuis played a key role in "making Oakville the close-knit community it is today," by not only covering events but often getting involved in fundraisers, including the Terry Fox Run and various cancer fundraisers one year she even shaved her head for the cause. "Through her dedication, hard work and diligence, Wilma has brought the people of Oakville closer together," said Jerred. "In her more than 30 years at the Beaver, Wilma has helped numerous volunteer groups get their start and saved them from folding. She has helped make countless fundraising drives a success far exceeding their original goals. She has brought public awareness and assistance to some who had almost given up all hope for their cause." One of Blokhuis' favourite stories to cover was the work of Kerr Street Ministries, which helps rebuild the lives of those devastated by poverty or crisis. "They do such good work with disadvantaged kids and adults, it's like giving them a second chance," said Blokhuis. "For some of those kids, it's their only chance." It's shedding light on organizations like these and remarkable people that Blokhuis enjoyed most. People like Melissa Vassallo, who survived a serious car accident, Veronica White, who had what Blokhuis calls "a tangled web of blood vessels on her brain" but got through it after surgery and is now "very upbeat and happy" and David Visschedyk, who lost a leg to cancer at age See Meeting page 8 BARRIE ERSKINE / OAKVILLE BEAVER HAPPY TRAILS: One of Wilma Blokhuis' favourite assignments was hiking Oakville's Heritage Trails for her award-winning Happy Trails series. Here, she is pictured along the trail in Riverview Park near her Bronte home. grew its Church Street office" in 1977 and moved to its present location. "The paper's grown tremendously, much bigger than I ever thought it would grow. When I came it was a once a week, a small paper. It's become huge. It's no longer a little paper," she said, smiling. Oakville's population is also about 100,000 bigger than it was when Blokhuis first got here. "It's still such a pretty town, and people look out for each other, people help each other," she said. "If there's a fundraising endeavour, people rise up to the challenge. They're always there, ready to help out. I like that." The same can be said of Blokhuis, says Davis, who called her "one of the most genuine people I know." "She is the real deal a kind, caring soul who is deeply committed to the readership she serves," said Davis. "For 31 years, she has spun wonderful stories through the magic of carefully-chosen words. Insightful, compassionate and thoughtful describe this remarkable woman who has brought so much joy to so many lives through her work as a journalist." And while it was a job, Blokhuis says her time at The Oakville Beaver didn't seem that way. "It was more like my life," she said. 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