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E44 Vol. 14, No. 1, Folio 2 Wednesday, January 7, 1981 32 pages, 25cents Anniversary of c Ne w Year's child Stephanie Maurice, right, nine pounds, was the first baby born in Penetanguishene General Hospital in 1981. Stephanie is the fourth child of Pauline Maurice, R.R. 1, Perkinsfield. Stephanie joins Rachel, nine, Gerard III, six and Suzanne, 3. and her husband, Gerard, of New teachers victims of declining enrolment by Murray Moore Penetanguishene and Tiny Township, Simcoe County Board of Education trustee Alvin Gravelle said yesterday that the lack of room for novice teachers in the county's school system is one of the serious problems caused by a shrinking student population. The recent graduates of the province's schools of education are the last to be hired and the first to be fired when shrinking student populations means some teachers are surplus, he said. Also, as the number of students, especially in the county's high schools, continues to decline, the board of education, Gravelle said. is faced with having to drop programs because there are not enough students to make offering some programs feasible. Because the new teachers are apt to be let go first, the county teaching system, he explained, is in danger of not getting new blood, losing the benefit of the new ideas and new teaching methods that the recent teaching graduates _ represent. Teachers "There are some very terrific teachers coming out of the teacher's colleges, and it's a real shame that there is no room for them,' he said. The newer teachers also tend to be the teachers who supervise after-school activities, he said. Representatives of the county's elementary and secondary school principals, and of trustee-teacher _relat- ions committees, ex- pressed their view of the declining enrolment's effects on their teachers Monday evening before the Simcoe County Board of Education. Sessions Monday night's program was the second of three information sessions organized for the benefit of the board to help it come to terms with the problem of declining enrolment. A sharp decline in enrolment is projected for this coming fall, Gravelle said. Gravelle said of Monday's meeting that the board was presented "with legitimate con- cerns that we are going to have to grapple with."' He was unable to say what declining enrolment means specifically for this area. The information sessions are intended for the information only of the trustees. No action is being for- mulated by the trustees during these meetings in response to the problem. The meetings are for the purpose of educating the trustees so that they can better make decisions in the future. ontre d'Activites Today in town Centre d'Activites francaises in Penetanguishene is marking its seventh anniversary of existence today. Invited to the midday celebration are Mayor Ron Bellisle, town clerk Yvon Gagne, the cen- ter's employees, and its administrative com- mittee. The center has six full-time and _ four parttime employees. It runs nursery schools in Penetanguishene, Lafontaine, Perkinsf- ield. Barrie and Orillia. The center started as a store-front operation on Simcoe Street. It moved into the former post office building on Main Street on Nov. 1, 1977. The old federal building has been changed since the supporters of French language and culture moved in. The basement has been remodelled and turned into a boutique selling French or French-made products, such as traditional sashes. The impetus for the establishment of the center seven years ago was the desire of area residents to establish a permanent presence for the French culture, which some French- speaking citizens felt was in danger of disappearing, due to cultural factors such as Sesame Street on television. Supporters of the center soon learned parents wanted more comprehensive pre- school education in French than was then available. A co- operative nursery with 12 children started in Penetanguishene within a month and nursery schools in Lafontaine and Perkinsfield soon followed. Two full-time nursery school teachers, Celine Leblane and Debbie Charlesbois, rotate among the three local nursery schools through the week. Citizen briefly Winterama group meeting today Winterama Carnival Committee is holding a meeting at noon today at Hotel Brule. Plans for next month's annual winter carnival are well in the works although organizers are still looking for volunteers to help make next month's event the biggest and best vet. Snowmobiles stolen from storage shed Midland OPP reports the theft between Dec. 23 and Dec. 31, 1980 of two snowmobiles from a storage shed situated on the property of Weston resident Joseph Dexter on Lakeview Crescent in Tiny Township. Stolen were a 1981 Yamaha Exciter 440, black in colour, registration number 422544, and a 1978 Yamaha Exciter 440, white and red in colour, registration number 318252. Investigation continues into the theft of the snowmobile, since recovered, the property of Medonte Township resident Paul Neelson. On Dec. 30, 1980 Gregory Thornton, of Waubaushene, notified the Midland OPP of finding an abandoned snowmobile on Tay Township's Concession 10, near Waubaushene. A Midland OPP officer found Neelson's 1980 Yamaha 440 Exciter one kilometer south of Highway 12. The theft of the machine was reported at 1:30 p.m. Dec. 30 to the Orillia OPP detach- ment. The investigation continues, says Midland OPP. Traffic moves at snail's pace Traffic between Midland and Penetanguishene last Friday travelled at a snail's pace for most of the day because of a snowsquall that swept into North Simcoe during the wee small hours of morning and hung around for most of the day. Canadiens take pair Paul Watson of the Canadiens of Penetanguishene Minor Hockey's eight-year- old section scored a pair of goals when his team defeated the Leafs 4-2 Friday in Penetanguishene Arena. Keith Robillard assisted on both of those goals' as well as scoring a goal himself unassisted. Doug Lunnie got the other Canadiens' goal, that one unassisted too. Rov Mundy scored both of the Leafs' goals, Danny Charlebois assisting on one and the | other one coming unassisted to Mundy. The following night, the Canadiens con- tinued their winning ways as they blanked the Nordiques 2-0. Aaron Brophy got the shut out for the Canadiens while Paul Watson scored both markers for his team unassisted. Future games will see the Nordiques challenge the Canadiens again Friday night in Penetanguishene Arena while the Nor- diques will take on the Leafs the next night. New Year's baby arrives The newest resident of Wyebridge in the new vear is a baby girl born to Mr. and Mrs. Paul Knowlton. The baby girl arrived Jan. 1 at Huronia District Hospital in Midland at 5:45 a.m. and was delivered by Doctor McTavish. For Mr. and Mrs. Knowlton, the baby girl represents 3.130 grams of joy. That converts to six pounds, 12 ounces. The Knowltons have two other girls at home. And the snow keeps coming! Just for the record a total of 202 centimeters (78.78 inches) of snow has fallen on North Simcoe since snow first appeared this winter on Nov. 24, 1980. All of last winter only 95.5 inches of snow fell on Penetanguishene and surrounding district. Inside the Citizen Editorials Page 4 Classified/Real Estate Page 21 Sports Page 25 Huronia Calendar Page 31 ee a a4 im) ) 1), i