 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON April 21, 2012 It was her first book reading. She was in Burlington at the Different Drummer to celebrate the launch of her first novel; Rachel’s Secret. The small room at the Drummer was packed with at least a third of the audience made up of people who knew the author but that didn’t deter them from buying books. Many, many people bought three and four copies of Rachel’s Secret by Shelley Sanders.
 Shelley Sanders wait for a book buyer to say what she wants the inscription inside Rachel's Secret to say. Sanders began her presentation with a short visual presentation about the background of the time period the book was written about which made the point she wanted to make. She then stood there looking at her audience and they sat and looked back – this went on for a few minutes and then Sanders moved abruptly and said: Oh, I`m supposed to read from my book now” and began her reading which went just fine.
 New Canadian author Shelley Sanders signs books at Different Drummer launch. Missing her cue made the occasion just that much more real and pleasurable. The book will sell well enough and one should expect to see a second title from this author.
The event had a nice home spun feel to it. The refreshments were made by the author and she explained in some detail what was in each, and one expected her to say that she would pass along the recipe if you wanted it.
Set in pre-revolutionary Russia, where tensions are high between the Jewish and Christian populations. Rachel, who is a Jew, and Sergei, a Christian, find their worlds torn apart by violence as lies about Jews leap off the pages of the local newspaper. Vicious riots break out on Easter Sunday, 1903, and when they finally end, almost three days later, Rachel finds that the person she loves most is dead and that her home has been destroyed. As she struggles to survive the aftermath of the riots—or pogroms—support comes from someone totally unexpected, as Sergei turns against his father to help Rachel. With everything against them, the two young people don’t want to fight the bond that is growing between them, one of the few signs of goodness and hope in a time of chaos and violence.
The basics of the story are factual; there is some novelization needed to ensure this wasn’t just a history book. The editor of the newspaper in the town of Kishinev continually published brutally damaging headlines that built the tension in the community around the murder of a young man is a true and terrible example of the lies that drove much of the anti-Semitic literature that was behind the Nazi ideology. On that level alone the book is a good example for young readers of what vicious propaganda can do to a society.
 It was THE best selling book at the Different Drummer Saturday afternoon when Shelley Sanders launched the book. The grandmother, the story is built around, was Shelley Sanders’ grandmother which is what inspired the author. Her grandmother`s horrific experience may have been what more than 100 years later launched a new Canadian writer.
Ian Elliot, proprietor of A Different Drummer is using the launch of Rachel`s Secret at his book store as the first step in the creation of a Teen Book Club.
The Kirkus review, a literary publication librarians rely upon for reviews of new titles had this to say about the title: “Sanders’ debut has generic prose and occasional anachronisms, but nonetheless adeptly conveys the history, from Mikhail Rybachenko’s real name to the bitter bigotry and bloodbath”, which is not bad for the first effort by a new Canadian novelist.
 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON April 19, 2012 Can you be sustainable and profitable at the same time ?
Some organizations think of sustainability as philanthropy that they can afford when times are good. Leading companies are investing more into sustainability through the downturn because they have found that sustainability can expose rich veins of cost savings within inefficient buildings, processes and supply chains.
 Is sustainability a nice to have when you can afford it or does it work its way to your bottom line? Chamber Seminar offers some insight. Those companies have also found that the sustainability lens is an effective way to attract talent, appeal to green consumers and play an important part of your brand image improvement.
The Burlington Chamber of Commerce is hosting a special “Think Sustainable” seminar with James Gray-Donald, Vice-President & Sustainability Leader with Sears Canada, outlining real-life examples of how sound sustainability practices can improve your company’s bottom line.
There are Burlington businesses that understand how having environmentally sustainable business practices is good for the bottom line.
The seminar is being held at the Waterfront Hotel Downtown Burlington. Registration desk opens at 7:30 a.m. with a full buffet breakfast running from 7:30 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. The presentation runs from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and is followed by a question and answer session. The price to attend is $25.00 (+HST) for Chamber members and $35.00 (+HST) for non-members. You must sign up in advance. The event is sponsored by the CMA Certified Management Accountants.
Check in with the Chamber of commerce at www.burlingtonchamber.com/
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON APRIL 19, 2012 Sometime over the weekend of March 6th, someone snuck onto the grounds of St Patrick’s Elementary School located at 200 Kenwood Drive and spray painted racist graffiti on the brick walls.
Despite the immediate removal of the graffiti the school was targeted three weeks in a row. While the property damage is bad enough, it is the thinking behind the spraying of racists graffiti on a school that is the most troubling.
 School targeted with racist graffiti - three weeks in a row If caught early enough the behaviour can be corrected. If left to fester in the minds of whoever did this – it can lead to things like the trial going on in Norway where a racist individual committed a horrendous crime.
Catch it now before it gets out of hand. The person behaving like a racist learned this behavior somewhere – he or she didn`t pick it up from a doorknob.
 Anyone with information on this or any other crime is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON April 12, 2012 Literally hundreds of people continue to register for the Business in Burlington MeetUps that are currently being held at the Waterfront Hotel in Burlington. But no one, not even the man that made it all happen, is really certain where this is all going to go.
It’s clear that the people who take part have decided against organizations like the Chamber of Commerce; they don’t see any value in the $400 membership fee. The Chamber argues that there is a lot of value for that membership fee. We will let the different opinions stand.
James Burchill is delighted with the growth in his membership which has reached more than 1,000 individuals following his grouping. That’s pretty close to what the Chamber has.
 They shouldn't have worked - but they are most certainly working. For how long - no one knows.. Until they no longer serve a purpose says James Burchill. So what’s going on? Why do people want to be part of this and why do they register for MeetUps that are taking place more than two months later? Well they want to be certain they can get in, space at the MeetUps is limited, mostly because the size of the room they use.
Burchill thinks there is more to it than that. “I’m meeting a need. These people have chosen what I have to offer over what organizations like the Chamber offers. Burchill doesn’t have a membership fee and he doesn’t make a dime out of what he has created.
He is also very quick to tell you that when he started this – less than four months ago he “didn’t know what he didn’t know”. This has been like flying in the dark with no instruments and as you listen to Burchill you get the impression he just loves it that way.
“We are all in this together” claims Burchill – he just wants to mobilize people and thinks social media, which means different things to different people, is a tool that can be used. At this point everyone is dipping their toes into social media. The big brand corporations are pretty sure there is something going on out there – but they really don’t know – have decided to throw some marketing dollars at it anyway.
Burchill is putting time and energy into this because he thinks there is a group of people who want to be part of something – even if they aren’t sure what it is they are becoming a part of. There is no membership, they aren’t asked to be on a committee – it’s all quite loose. And yet every month a couple of hundred people arrive at the same place, spend a couple of hours together and go their own way when it’s over. The cash bar is open but you can walk in and not spend a dime – and throw back some of the nibbles that are set out by the hotel. They love the traffic – they fill a space that is close to empty on a Wednesday between five and seven.
 It's 50% business and 50% social - and that's about all I can tell you, says Burchill Burchill did little to no research on this project. “They shouldn’t have worked he will tell you. They aren’t a “will I manage to make out” evening – even though there is a bit of that evident. Burchill thinks his MeetUps are 50% business and 50% social and behaving like the “benevolent dictator” he describes himself as – he thinks he can guide this in a direction that will become a service to people who aren’t part of any of the mainline social groupings. A MeetUp is certainly not a Rotary meeting, nor is it a country club. There are no rules – you just show up and be who you are.
He does think that in the not too distant future he might be able to offer this crowd services and information that they need and can opt into if they wish. Burchill who has a publishing background thinks the people who attend his events have a need for information but don’t want to spend a fortune on accountants or lawyers.
Take the HST rules – Burchill thinks he could put together a document that would sell for a couple of bucks – would have everything you needed to know without all the “what does this mean” words that the bureaucrats drop into what they write.
Less than the cost of a beer for the report – but something that would produce revenue for Burchill who strives to make the point that he isn’t in partnership with anyone and is not working his way through some grand plan.
There is a vision but it isn’t crystal clear. The vision is being shaped by what he sees from the people that turn up for his events. “There’s something going on here, that much I know” says Burchill. Other than that – he’s just riding the wave and having fun along the way.
Having fun – that could be the vision.
 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON April 5, 2012 An exceptionally successful fund manager couldn’t decide which she wanted to be when she went to university; a business person or a lawyer. Her Dad asked which she wanted to do: write the cheques or ask for the cheque. I want to write the cheques the woman decided and she became an entrepreneur. Her Father explained that lawyers ask for cheques – business people write cheques.
Burlington lawyer Rick Burgess, a former candidate for the office of Mayor has decided that he just might be able to have it both ways by putting on a seminar for entrepreneurs ” like you”.
Burgess points out that entrepreneurs start their company with a great idea and work many, long hours to build a successful company. They have a few successes. They also make costly mistakes that could have been avoided if they had known what the experts Burgess has assembled have known for some time
Burgess believes that time, money and frustration can be saved if you have the right information before you start and he has put together a seminar at which you can gain that valuable insight.
Burgess wants to:
Let our panel of experts and colleagues share with you how to avoid costly, common mistakes entrepreneurs make at different stages in their business. They have seen it before and can help you identify future opportunities so that you are better prepared to meet those challenges.
The panel will discuss:
• Getting Started Right
• Managing Growth
• Preparing for Times of Crisis
• Planning Your Exit Strategy
Come and join this interactive panel discussion. Learn how to take advantage of the opportunities these milestones create. Turn the unexpected into opportunities with the help of our experts and other entrepreneurs like yourself.
The Panel of Experts includes:
Richard Burgess. BA (Honours), LLB, Burgess Law Office Professional Corporation
Doug Gowman, HBA, CFP, Investment Advisor and Financial Planner, RBC Dominion Securities
Greg Clarke, BCom., CA, Partner SB Partners
Stan Lang, Senior Account Manager, RBC Royal Bank (Halton)
Doug Robbins, President, Robbinex Business Intermediaries
Spaces are limited to 25 attendees per meeting to allow for participation and discussions. Please register early to avoid disappointment. If you have any questions please contact Kristine at 905.523.7510 x217.
 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON April 4, 2012 Prolific, widely honoured publisher, writer and historian Hugh Brewster, an internationally recognized authority on the Titanic, brings us his vivid examination of the people and the ship known to all after the events of April 1912.
On the Centenary of the tragedy, Hugh Brewster visits the Different Drummer Bookstore Engaging Ideas series at the Burlington Central Library on April 16th at 7:00 pm, to discuss his superlative new book, an absorbing document of the passengers’ stories, RMS Titanic: Gilded Lives on a Fatal Voyage.
 Tickets are $10, available at the bookstore and at the third floor Information Desk at the Library.
Brewster has worked closely with Robert D. Ballard, the discoverer of the remains of the Titanic, and has created several acclaimed books about the vessel, for both adults and young readers.
The author has an extraordinary gift for storytelling and for recreating history, both in person and on the page. His other subjects have included Grand Duchess Anastasia, John Singer Sargent, Mozart, and the First World War.
To reserve seats in advance, please contact us at (905) 639 0925 or diffdrum@mac.com.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON April 2, 2012 The flyer reproduced below was handed out at the Mayor`s Economic development luncheon last week where a group of students from different Burlington schools listened to an invigorating speaker who buzzed the crowd with a solid presentation of information bombardment.
 Not exactly inclusive or all that "politically correct is it? There was a certain irony to a presentation on information and a flyer that surely gave the wrong information to the audience
The Halton District School Board was one of the sponsors of the event and were entitled to have some of their promotional material put out on the tables in the room. It wasn’t a pretty picture.
We have people from dozens of countries sharing the community with us and while Burlington is, for the most part, a pretty white community there are many people of colour who have chosen to make Burlington home. They are for the most part quiet and unassuming. We don`t hear a lot from them.
Bringing about a sense of inclusion is not something the private sector is very good at – it is not in their immediate best interests. They don`t avoid changes in the social make up of a community – they just adapt to the change.
The leadership in bringing about more inclusive community has to come from the public sector in its hiring and promotional practices.
The police hire men who wear turbans; the school boards strive to hire teachers who are people of colour who reflect the change taking place in the community.
Thus it was with some surprise and concern that we see a flyer being handed out at an Economic Development luncheon promoting a Pathways program, which in itself appears to be an excellent way to tie the private commercial sector to the educational system. The problem with the flyer was that everyone in the pictures was white – and mostly male. It was as politically incorrect as you can get.
If people of colour and diverse backgrounds do not see themselves in the literature put out by the public sector – it doesn’t take them very long to translate what it means – if you don`t see yourself in the picture it`s because you are not in the picture.
Burlington needs to take another picture.
Sarah O’Hara, a Burlington Mother of two, who is completing a joint Arts Degree/Teaching certificate program at York University, will be our “Critical Consumer” with regular contributions once she has finished her studies this April. A hearty welcome to her. This lady has a keen eye for value.
 By Sarah O`Hara
BURLINGTON, ON March 31, 2012 When a friend sent me an email about a Momstown clothing sale, I thought I’d check it out. Last summer my daughter still fit into the shorts, Capri’s and sundresses from the summer before, although they were much shorter than they were originally. I know I won’t luck out again this year, so I am going to have to buy some new things. My friend Christy’s son is three years older than mine, and she hands down all of his clothes to us. We aren’t fortunate enough, however, to have a close friend or relative with a daughter slightly older and bigger than mine, so we have to shop for my six-year-old, Laura.
I have to admit, I do love to shop. Usually I go from Burlington Mall to Mapleview Mall and buy whatever is cute or on sale or durable – all of these are factors in my decisions on clothing for Laura. However, this year we have a different financial situation in my household, so I have to pay more attention than usual to price tags. Thus, when I found out about the Momstown sale I decided to go.
 The dream view for every Mother shopping for childrens clothing at bargain prices. The email said the first hundred people would get a goody bag. I like to get anything for free so I resolved to be there right at eight o’clock, when the sale began. However, when setting my alarm last night I was hesitant to set it too early. After all, it has been a busy week with six a.m. wakeups – Saturday is my morning to sleep in a bit. Besides, would anyone actually show up to buy used clothing and toys at eight o’clock on a cold Saturday morning?
As luck would have it, my kids woke me up by seven thirty anyway, and by eight o’clock Laura and I were out the door. It’s only a few minutes from our house to the Angelic Treasures Christian Childcare Centre on Mountainside Road where the sale was held. We turned onto the street just after eight and immediately saw cars and minivans being rerouted from the already-full parking lot. I groaned inwardly but was determined to follow through on my aim to be financially smart and buy some decent second hand clothes. After all – how long do kids actually wear their clothes? I have donated outfits that have been worn less than a handful of times. Kids grow – fast. It seems silly to pay full price for clothes that only last one season.
I parked on the street and Laura and I trudged through the still-snowy grass to the back of the Centre, following bright orange signs hung with balloons directing us toward the entrance. As soon as we turned the corner I groaned again – this time out loud. There were at least sixty people queued up at the entrance. Mothers, grandmothers, women with very pregnant bellies, a few men, strollers, toddlers, and women with politely unobtrusive lumps under their jackets obviously concealing babies. We made our way to the end of the line. I spoke to the woman in front of me who told me she is not a member of Momstown, the hosts of the sale, but that she often comes to these types of sales. The woman behind me told me she is from Lindsay and is staying in Burlington with her in-laws for the weekend. She is not a member of Momstown either, but heard about the sale on Kijiji. She often finds out about such sales through the Internet and plans for them when she comes to Burlington, as she said there is very little of this sort of thing in Lindsay.
 This isn't the line up outside the Angelic Treasures Christian Childcare Centre on Mountainside Road but it paints the picture our Critical Consumer, Sarah O'Hara wants to pass along - the line ups were just too long. By this time I counted forty people in front of us and forty behind us. It was ten after eight. Slowly, slowly, the line moved. When we were close to the doorway a Momstown representative came around with a clipboard and ballot entries for a draw. With fingers numbed from the cold I filled out my information and asked her if this type of lineup is usual. She assured me these sales always draw such a crowd. Unfortunately, due to space restrictions, only a few shoppers are allowed into the sale at one time. Laura and I finally gained entrance and were relieved to feel the warm air. However, we were then stuck in a tiny vestibule for about ten minutes. This was both the entrance and the exit, so we were routinely pushed up against the wall while people left with sacks full of goodies from clothing to ride-on toy cars.
One of the people exiting was an old high school friend, Lee-Ann. She stopped to chat for a moment and told me she used to be a member of Momstown, but because she worked she was able to make very few of the scheduled events. She told me the meetings are generally held on week days in the afternoons and because of her hours as a working mother she was never able attend. She felt the group is best for stay-at-home mothers or those still on maternity leave with young babies.
We eventually made it to the table in the lobby where we could choose which draw to put our ballot in. I let Laura pick and she chose an Avon draw. I’m sure the stuffed panda in the basket helped to sway her vote. I paid my Toonie to the volunteer at the desk, and then we lined up again to wait for a certain number of people to leave before we could enter the sale proper. A volunteer told me that to my right was the boys’ clothing, across the hall toys, and through to the left girls’ clothes. After that I could continue through to check out.
In about five minutes, after receiving some signal I was not aware of, the volunteer told us we could go in. Laura and I entered a small room lined with racks of boys’ clothes. They started from 0-6 months, 6 months to a year, and so on. The final rack held clothes for ages five and up – this was the one rack that applied to my family in the crowded room. I rummaged through the hangers of assorted clothes, each marked with a price and the identification number of the seller. The clothing ranged from brand new looking to very well worn. I finally found a pair of camouflage shorts for $2.
 Mothers shopping for clothing. This wasn't a photograph of the Monstown sale - but it's what you run into when there are crowds looking for bargains. We then moved into the toy room. This room had games, books, videos, puzzles, cars and dolls. It also held exersaucers, playpens, bicycles, vibrating “bouncy” chairs and safety gates. The prices ranged from a few dollars to about fifty dollars. I saw a bouncy chair for five dollars sitting right beside one nearly identical for thirty. I am not sure who set the prices but the range didn’t make sense to me. I browsed through a table of toy cars and was surprised to see some broken cars for $3. I saw a large tent-like castle which looked like fun but it was $45 – far more than I would pay for such a toy. The toy room was well organized however, and had many books and toy animals neatly packaged in zippy bags at reasonable prices.
Finally Laura and I entered the room we had come to see – girls’ clothes. Again the racks were organized by age. The racks with clothes for young children were bursting at the seams, while the one we were interested in – age five and up – had very little on it. I managed to find two cute pairs of Capri pants for $2 each.
I spoke briefly with Andrea Kovacs, who told me she owns Momstown Hamilton. Momstown is a franchise. The first one was started right here in Burlington, and now there are twenty chapters nation-wide. She told me the $45 per year membership fee pays for all the events and get-togethers members can enjoy. There are both on- and off-line programme events for members, and each event aims to include six pillars that are fundamental in infant and child development. These include literature, nutrition and fitness, art and music, play and socializing, math, and science. The programme also helps mothers to make connections with others. She further informed me that a recent study by the University of Waterloo confirmed that Momstown plays a distinct role in helping new mothers deal with illness such as post-partum depression. Andrea told me that they had thirty sellers there today, and that sixty per cent of their sellers were not members. They have this sale biannually.
 Momstown seems to be geared to the stay at home Moms with younger children When my children were babies we frequented the Burlington Family Resource Centres. Laura was just two weeks old when we first attended “Calling New Parents,” where I learned all the ins and outs of being a new mother. I met many new mothers there whom I still call friends today. We met at each others’ homes, took our babies on walks and to movies. The Centre grew with our children and we were able to register for programs such as Mother Goose, Creep Crawl and Toddle, and Creative Movement and Arts. There are no fees involved and it is a fantastic network for new parents who want to seek out connections and learn about parenting. I guess the biggest difference from the Early Years Centres and Momstown, besides the fee, is the on-line connection. Momstown also hosts events and field trips (which cost extra on top of your yearly fees).
After speaking with Andrea, Laura and I moved on to pay for our three pairs of pants. Of course we were met with yet another line up. A volunteer took the tags off my clothing and put them in an envelope. Then I moved to another line where a volunteer behind a table totaled my bill and gave me a receipt to take to yet another volunteer, whom I paid. She cheerfully asked me if I got the information for another sale just a few blocks away hosted by BAMOM (Bay Area Mothers of Multiples). I replied just as cheerfully that I did, but inside I was aching for the anonymity of a good old mall where I could walk in and out of stores at my will without having to pay to get in, nor wait in lineups to enter and pay, or collect stacks of flyers and coupons (which is pretty much all my “goody bag” held).
 This lady was NOT at the Momstown sale - her pet would not have put up with the lineups. Don't think she would have either. So I spent six dollars for three items – a very good deal. But it took me an hour, and about forty-five minutes of that was spent in lines or shoulder-to-shoulder with other people. I think I will make my way to Burlington Mall next week and see if I can get good deals for Laura’s summer wardrobe without this hassle. I am all for recycling and up-cycling, and for new mothers I would highly recommend buying second-hand items such as cribs and high chairs. But for me, as the parent of a four- and six-year-old, this was more hassle than it was worth. In the future if I want to buy used items, I will do it from the comfort of my home and shop on Kijiji.
The Burlington Momstown can be found at: https://burlington.momstown.ca/
An excellent little shop on Main Street in Milton has no line ups and a very wide range of slightly used and new clothing at bargain prices. SnailsnPails 221 Main Street East, Milton – https://www.snailsnpails.com/
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON March 21, 2012 Three or four weeks ago there was a sudden unexplainable burst of traffic from Brazil of all places to the Our Burlington web site. At one point there were over 350 hits to the web site from Brazil. They’d get to the Home page and leave.
We get traffic from more than 20 countries but usually nothing more than two, maybe three except for those bandits from Ukraine – they are always prowling.
 Some of the art work from Burlington public schools and our twin school in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands, on display at city hall. Then we noticed there was an increasing number from Holland and it climbed and they were drilling down into the web site and we began to watch carefully and took a second look at our anti-virus and hacking software defences. We got just a little nervous after five days of consistent growth in traffic from Holland while other countries were stable in terms of traffic. Why were those wooden shoes walking across our screen?
When I leave a Council or a committee meeting, I usually have a word or two with Bob, the security guy at reception. Monday evening there were a bunch of partitions on wheels scattered about the atrium that could be rolled around with what looked like art from elementary school students on the panels. “The ones with the red borders are from school kids in Holland, they are part of something being done by the Mundialization Committee” explain Bob.
A quick email to the security people – you can stand down fellows, there is nothing wrong with the traffic from Holland, it’s legitimate but it is sure playing havoc with our day to day, hour by hour analytics. School children were given an assignment that had to do with Burlington, Ontario and if you want to know anything about Burlington, Our Burlington is the place to go.
 The Dutch students took an interesting approach - half of each piece is a photograph the other half was drawn in by the students.. The traffic was the result of the student art exchange that had students from John T. Tuck Public School in Burlington and the Heuvellaan Public School students in Apeldoorn. The Apeldoorn works explore war monuments while the local art is inspired by Burlington landmarks.
The student art exchange is one of many events organized by the city’s Mundialization Citizen committee to celebrate Burlington’s twinning relationship with the cities of Apeldoorn, The Netherlands and Itabashi, Japan.
This is the first of several art exhibitions planned this year. The next exhibition will be held in May and will feature art from four Burlington elementary schools and six Dutch schools. In June, there will be an elementary art exhibition that will also feature art from Japanese elementary schools.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON March 19, 2012 They are the men and woman who see our kids safely across the street morning, noon and at the end of the school day. They are there when the weather is nice; they are there when the weather is not so nice and they are there when the weather is terrible.
They are the set of eyes that keep an eye on your child and while they aren’t a part of the team that educates your child they perhaps should be, because they see behaviour that a classroom teacher might miss and that a parent would like to know about.
 Christine Hopwood is the woman that ensures there is a crossing guard for your child at every school in the city. The school crossing guard program is run out of city hall where Christine Hopwood and John Crass, Manager of Traffic Services for the city, oversee the 114 crossing guards that make the three trips a day needed to ensure that traffic is aware that children are crossing the street and that everything stops.
There are days Hopwood will tell you “when we get the phone calls telling us that a particular guard can’t make it to their station and then the team swings into action. Dennis Ward is the first replacement to go out followed by Emily Keith and then I am in my car. If we need more help I call the Burlington detachment of the Halton Regional Police and they get an officer out to the intersection.”
“Some days” Hopwood adds, “it gets a little hectic’.
“We are constantly looking for crossing guards” says Hopwood, who adds that “we have a pressing need for guards in the Orchard community. If you know anyone in the area please have them get in touch with me.
Crossing guards are usually seniors who have the time and find the income helps. Guards are paid between $10.54 an hour up to $13.17 They are given the uniforms they need which consists of a vest a hat and of course the STOP sign. They are paid mileage to get to and from their crossing station. “We look for people in the community so that they don’t have to drive very far and people in the community know the children as well” explains Hopwood.
“We are concerned about the workplace safety of the people who stand out in the middle of a street or road – we have, thankfully” adds Hopwood, “never had a guard injured by a vehicle.”
Every August we bring all the crossing guards in for an instruction session where we review the job they have signed up to do and listen to their concerns and complaints. “There are some complaints” admits Hopwood “but we always get them resolved. We have a structure in place where Zone leaders are the first response to concerns a crossing guard might have and if they can’t be resolved at that level they come to me and they do get resolved.”
Christine Hopwood is a “resolver” if she is anything. She brings a cheerful voice with a distinct accent and a fast walking pace to everything she does. One doesn’t see Christine standing around – unless she is out on a street filling in for a crossing guard who couldn’t make it to their station.
The crossing guard programs costs the city $1.1 million annually and covers every school – even the private schools.. “For the most part” explains Hopwood “the private schools don’t need any help from us because they bus their students in.”
The key issue for the people that administer the crossing guard program is the safety of everyone involved. “Slip and Fall accidents are what plague us” explains Hopwood “and we have very few of those.”
 John Crass, Manager of Traffic Services has oversight of the school guard crossing staff as part of his file Each year there is an Awards Dinner for all the crossing guards.. “These men and woman are a part of the community adds John Crass who supervises the work Christine does and manages issues that come from the public and council members who may have concerns. Hopwood is the face of the program out in the field. John is the “inside” man.
Sgt Chantal Corner, the liaison with the Burlington detachment of the Halton Regional Police, speaks to the crossing guards each year. Last briefing session a crossing guard who didn’t measure much more than 5’2” asked if she could do a “citizen’s arrest” if she saw someone doing something she thought was wrong. The Sgt, a good 5’10” didn’t miss a beat when she responded: “It would be better if you gave us a call”.
Those crossing guards are they eyes and ears of the community standing on the street watching over your children. In the weeks and months ahead we are going to profile many of those men and woman for you. They are a remarkable bunch.
One last word – if you know anyone in the Orchard community that you think would be a good school crossing guard – have them give Christine a call at 905-335-0172. We asked Christine if there wasn’t a web site people could go to and she replied. “I’d rather talk to people directly. I’ll personally take all the calls” – so there you go – if you think you’d like to be a crossing guard – Christine Hopwood is your gal. Give her a call.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON February 25, 2012 For those who are of a monarchist bent – there is an opportunity for you to be the “Queen” at Ireland House on Mother’s Day. The event is one of three Museums Burlington is putting on with funds they received to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee.
Barb Teatero, Director of Museums for Museums of Burlington, made the application for the funding of a program that has three parts and was given a grant of $20,400 which allows the Museum to put on the events with no entrance fees.
Along with tea being served at Ireland House on Mother’s Day, with someone impersonating the Queen, there is going to be interactive activities for the student crowd during the March break as well as an exhibit that will tour the city with a probable stop at Tansley Woods and City Hall – the details are still being worked out. Teatero just got the cheque on Friday and it hasn’t cleared the bank yet – so details aren’t cast in stone yet.
The Jubilee is a government program designed to focus on the 6o years that Queen Elizabeth has worn her crown. That’s a big deal and the government is right to spend money on marking this occasion. The current government has decided it wants to make the relationship between Canadians and the Monarchy a little tighter than previous governments. Relationships with the Monarchy are quite specific for Burlington. While the city had never had a “royal” visit, it has had a citizen who saw quite a bit of the Royal Family even if those visits were a couple of hundred years ago.
 In this portrait Joseph Brant is seen wearing the gorget given to him by King George III. That gorget is the most important piece in the collection at the Joseph Brant Museum. In the 1700’s Joseph Brant, an aboriginal who spent a lot of time in Burlington and was given 3,500 acres of land at the “head of Lake Ontario” for his service to the King. That land is basically what we know as Burlington. Elizabeth and James Streets were named after two of Brant’s children.
Not much attention is paid to what Joseph Brant actually did – it’s quite an impressive list of feats and worth knowing more about. Most Burlingtonians know that the hospital was named after the guy and that’s about it.
 Given to Joseph Brant by King George III with the inscription: "A Gift from a friend to Captain Brant`. Brant travelled to England on two occasions and met with King George III in 1775/6 and again in 1785/6. The practice in those days was for gifts to be exchanged and George III gave Brant a gorget made of silver with the inscription: “A gift from a friend to Captain Brant”. A gorget is a piece of equipment that is worn around the throat by warriors. The item is the most important piece in the Brant Museum and is something borrowed by other museums around the world. It is a priceless piece of history.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON February 17, 2012 The Burlington Fire Department has an idea for your family on Family Day. Not quite the same as goofing around and doing nothing.
The fire department is asking families to make a home fire escape plan and practice it as part of their Family Day activities on Monday, Feb. 20.
 This little girl got out of the house - the tragedies are when people don't make it out during a fire. Plan an escape on Family Day “Everyone is responsible to ensure they know what to do if a fire occurs in their home,” said Public Education Officer Lisa Cockerill. “If there is a fire in your home, it’s important to be alerted by working smoke alarms so you can quickly execute your family’s escape plan.”
Simple steps for home fire escape planning include:
Install smoke alarms on every storey and outside sleeping areas. It’s the law. For the best protection, install smoke alarms in every bedroom.
Develop a home fire escape plan; discuss it with the entire family and practise the escape plan.
Check that all exits are unobstructed and easy to use.
Determine who will be responsible for helping young children, older adults or anyone else that may need assistance.
Choose a meeting place outside, such as a tree or a lamp post, where everyone can be accounted for.
If caught in a smoke-filled area, get low and go under the smoke to the nearest safe exit.
 You can too escape safely from fires that rage like this. Call the fire department from outside the home, from a cell phone or neighbour’s home.
Once out, stay out. Never re-enter a burning building.
Doesn’t sound very cool does it, common sense seldom is “cool” to the younger people. But we’re not talking to the younger set; we are talking to parents and as you take the GO or drive to work on Tuesday you might think about the important thing you did for your children – and it could be made into a fun event.
You may have only seconds to safely escape your home. Practice your home fire escape plan and know where to meet outside the home to save your life and the lives of loved ones.
ItCanada.ca publishes more than half a dozen technology magazines including CIO Canada and Network World. They are a reputable publisher that has been in business for quite a while. They recently did a piece on securing your Facebook data.
Our Burlington is about to embark on a series about Identity Theft and this is as good a way as there is to get you started on securing your identity. Most of us use Facebook and like the way it allows us to keep in touch with people we don’t see very often. Louise tells me about how she takes care of pets; Cory inundates me with things about the NDP that I really don’t need to know, Brian somehow digs out trivia stuff that I usually don’t get and I’ve got a guy in Spain who shares a family name with me – and that’s about all. I enjoy the service but really resent someone using the information and comments I put up on the web site to their advantage. If I’ve made you a Friend then be my friend and respect my privacy.
Set out below are five ways to secure your new profile
By Logan Kugler
With the ongoing rollout of Facebook’s Timeline feature, security and privacy have never been more important to your digital life. The new layout presents all of your current and past activities on Facebook — posts, photos, comments, likes and so on — in a handy timeline format to anyone with access to your profile, which may include friends of friends, colleagues, executives at your company, a potential future boss … well, you get the idea.
If you’ve made the jump to Timeline — and if you haven’t, you will within the next few weeks, like it or not — you should know that Facebook has changed a few things, and there are certain settings you need to pay attention to if you’re concerned about what parts of your life others can see. Here’s how to lock down your profile in the post-Timeline world.
1. Limit your connections
Most key privacy settings are accessible by clicking the arrow in the upper right-hand corner of your profile screen (next to your name and the Home button). From here, select Privacy Settings in the drop-down menu.
 Protecting your Facebook data: Rule # 1 - Limit your connections Click on Edit Settings next to the How You Connect option to begin your profile lockdown. This section contains five privacy settings.
The first three settings govern who can look up your profile and see your contact information, who can friend you and who can send you messages. For maximum privacy, change the first and third settings to Friends, thereby preventing anyone else from looking up your profile or sending you messages.
The second setting governs who can send you Friend requests. The more secure choice is Friends of Friends, but it limits your connectivity on the world’s largest social network. If you’re worried about losing out on friendship opportunities, keep it set to Everyone.
The last two settings dictate who can post on your timeline and who sees those posts. Only Me is the safest option, but choosing it severely reduces the number of interactions Facebook offers. If you’re seriously considering limiting your timeline posts to you and only you, it might be time to leave Facebook entirely.
Setting both of these options to Friends is relatively safe while still allowing the sharing that makes Facebook fun. And there is a way to review posts from friends before they appear on your timeline, as you’ll see in the next section of the story.
2. Tailor your tags
An easily missed entry in the Privacy Settings is one innocuously labeled How Tags Work. However, it is essential to tweak the settings found here if you want to take control of your profile’s privacy, as some tagging actions can be pretty invasive.
 Protecting your Facebook data. Rule # 2 Tailor your tags. The first two settings (Timeline Review and Tag Review) are particularly useful. When you enable them, you can review posts and photos that friends tag you in, as well as the tags friends add to your own posts — all before this information goes public. That’s especially valuable if you have well-meaning friends who think tagging you in those Vegas party photos is a good idea.
The third setting, Maximum Timeline Visibility, should be set to Friends or customized for certain friend lists or networks to ensure that these tagged posts, once approved, aren’t seen by everyone.
Disable the fourth setting on the list, Tag Suggestions. It makes it harder for friends to tag large quantities of photos featuring you or people that look like you. But it also takes some of your profile’s privacy out of the hands of others.
The last setting on the list is seriously important: It determines whether or not friends can check you in to places. Turn it off. The only thing worse than constantly broadcasting your location is having someone else do it without your express permission.
3. Rein in app permissions
Speaking of permissions, the permission window that used to appear frequently when Facebook apps wanted to access your profile information is pretty much MIA now. Currently, apps need to ask you only once for permission. Once they do, they’ll mine your profile information as often as need be, sometimes even when the app isn’t being used.
 Protecting your Facebook data. Rule # 3 - Rein in your app permissions. Fortunately, there’s a privacy fix. Unfortunately, it’s not a quick one, since you’ll have to tweak each app’s settings individually.
In the main Privacy Settings, click on Edit Settings next to the Apps and Web sites entry to bring up the Apps, Games and Web sites privacy settings page. Next to “Apps you use,” click on Edit Settings again to access a full list of apps running on your profile. Each app is accompanied by an Edit button, which displays the app’s permissions when clicked. Each app has different permissions enabled, so you’ll have to check each one individually.
Here’s the bad news: Some permissions, such as sharing basic profile information with the app, cannot be altered. These are marked by the grayed-out word “Required” next to the particular permission.
Other settings, however, have the word “Remove” next to them — click on it to remove any permission. These are the only items that can be changed, so you’ll have to take a hard look at what permissions an app deems a necessity. If you don’t like what you see, click “Remove app” at the top of the same page and learn to live without that app.
For the apps you do keep, it’s important to control who sees the information that the apps share — many of them are designed to broadcast your activities on your timeline and in the “ticker” on the right side of users’ home pages. At the bottom of each app’s permissions page is another important option entry titled “App activity privacy.” Click on the drop-down menu and select Only Me to be sure your app activity isn’t seen by anyone else.
Similarly, if you install any new apps, be sure to select Only Me under “Who can see activity from this app on Facebook” on the installation page.
4. Stop others from taking your information with them
The Apps, Games and Web sites privacy settings also contain some other features that security hounds would be wise to disable.
 Protecting your FAcebook data. Rule # 4 Stop others from taking your information. Click on Edit Settings next to the entry labeled “How people bring your info to the apps they use.” Other users may be able to bring your personal information with them when they use apps and Web sites. It’s all in the interest of making things more social. It can also be invasive. Uncheck the box next to each information category listed (there are 17 of them) to prevent others from using your personal data.
Head back to the Apps, Games and Web sites privacy settings and click Edit Settings for the “Instant personalization” category. This option should be turned off by default, but check to make sure. You’ll first see a pop-up screen explaining the feature; when you close that, you’ll be able to see whether it’s enabled. If it is, disable it. This will prevent Facebook partner sites from accessing your public information to personalize your experience on their own Web sites.
5. Reduce your social footprint
Sharing is the whole point of Facebook, but the Timeline layout sometimes takes this to extremes, making it easy for others to see all your activity from years gone by. The good news is that you can disable Recent Activity updates, which broadcast new friendships, groups you’ve joined and any other changes in your basic information (such as relationship status or political views). Just click on the X next to a Recent Activity update on your timeline and select Hide Similar Activity from Timeline.
 Protecting your Facebook data. Rule # 5 Reduce your social footprint. This makes the process of hiding certain activities from your past a little easier. But here’s the bad news: Individual status updates or posts from, say, your less judicious days need to be removed individually by clicking the pencil icon next to each item and choosing Hide from Timeline — a process that could take you to the end of 2012 if you’ve ever been very active on Facebook.
There’s a limited solution, though: In the main Privacy Settings window, the second-to-last entry on the list is titled Limit the Audience for Past Posts. Click on the Manage Past Post Visibility link next to it. A window will appear giving you the option to change all past posts so that they’re visible only to friends. Click Limit Old Posts to do so.
That will at least prevent anyone other than people you’ve friended from seeing older items on your timeline. But considering that your boss, colleagues and other acquaintances may be among your Facebook friends, it’s still a good idea to review your entire timeline and remove compromising status updates, comments, links and photos. Start with the oldest items first. When you first started using Facebook, you probably had fewer contacts and might have posted and commented with less caution than you’ve done more recently.
As a last precaution, make sure that everything you post on Facebook moving forward is shared only with friends, specific networks or friend lists: Click the drop-down box next to your status update, comment, link or other shared content and select Friends or a group. For even more granular control over who can and can’t see a post, select the Custom option.
It bears mentioning that the last and best defense against digital privacy invasions is common sense. You may want to be a bit irreverent with your Facebook friends — and there’s nothing wrong with that. But ask yourself if you’d wave that questionable photo or say that pithy comment in front of someone who could affect your future hiring prospects. If not, think twice before you post it on Facebook.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON January 16, 2012 Literally thousands of Burlingtonians log into Our Burlington – and that pleases us. The analytical reports we get tell us how many people visited the web site and how many were first time visitors. We learn how long people stay on the web site and how many pages they look at. What we don’t know is who you are – and that is as it should be..
Today, we wish we knew if teachers at our high schools were reading us – because there is an event taking place later this month that we would really like every high school teacher with young women in their classes to know about.
The A Different Drummer Bookstore is bringing Michelle Landsberg to the city. This woman is a must for every women getting an education. Who is Michelle Landsberg and why would you want to listen to her?
We could fill pages telling you about her. Michelle is a Mother, a community activist, a book reviewer, a writer for the Globe and Mail, Chatelaine and the Toronto Star, appearing over more than forty years, Michele Landsberg has engaged with and exposed the injustices borne by women, seen in infamous events and present in the mechanisms of our society.
 Always the advocate - Michelle Landsberg take up the microphone and the pen - and brings aboiut change.. A speaker not to be missed. Many of gains made by women and for women came about because Michelle Landsberg was there, fighting the good fight. You may not want to be out there burning your bra – but you do want to hear what Michelle has to say. This woman isn’t a strident feminist but she is feminist advocate of exceptional courage, widely recognized and celebrated for the light she casts on the most troubling of iniquities.
Michelle will be talking about her latest book, Writing the Revolution. In her Toronto Star columns she continually broke new ground, ably and frankly delineating the social and legal status of women, with her cogent commentary from today’s perspective. She also has one heck of a sense of humour.
Michele Landsberg presents and discusses Writing the Revolution on Monday, January 23, at 7pm, in the Centennial Room at Burlington Central Library. Tickets are $10, available at the Third Floor Information Desk at the Library, and here at A Different Drummer Books.
To reserve tickets, please contact us at (905) 639 0925 or diffdrum@mac.com.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON December 7, 2011 – Nelson High School students got a chance to learn just what happens when there is more alcohol in your system than the legal limit and a police officer asks you to walk a straight line.
Part of the training session included a quick quiz that was set out in a different news story that you can find at: https://www.burlingtongazette.ca/?p=5920
 Two Nelson high school students do their best to stay on the green line wearing Fatal Vision goggles during a Halton Regional Police RIDE program. Here are the answers to the ten questions the students were asked:
Question 1 False
Question 2 False
Question 3 True
Question 4 False
Question 5 False
Question 6 False – A G1 has to have a qualified driver with them – and being drunk means you’re not qualified – bit tricky that one.
Question 7 False
Question 8 False
Question 9 False – the licence is suspended for a period of 90 days
Question 10 True – but if you’re drinking and driving and the police have the evidence – there isn’t a lot your lawyer can do for you.
The students will have had problems with some of those questions – the media officer we went to for the answers had to look up the answer on more than one occasion.
 Male students at Nelson High had just as much difficulty as female students trying to stay on the green line while wearing Fatal Vision goggles. They also got a very up close experience with a breathalyzer and came away with a firm understanding of what the police do if they pull you over and ask you to blow. And in the quick quiz the students did later in the training session they got to learn what they knew and didn’t know about the rules in place to control driving if you’ve been drinking.
It was a bit of fun and they got to laugh at their friends while they tried to walk the green line set out on the gymnasium floor. None of them could stay on the line and most were nowhere near the line.
The day was part of the Regional Police RIDE program that had police officers at several regional high schools as well as being out on the streets with their cruisers pulling drivers over to politely ask if the driver had been drinking. If there was any concern on the part of the police officer – the driver would be asked to breathe into a breathalyzer and perhaps try to walk a straight line. Failure to do either of the requests and they are placed in a cruiser and taken to a police station.
The vast majority of people have not been drinking, although this year on the first day of the program in Burlington, three people were charged with driving while under the influence of alcohol.
For those that are clear the police hand out a small card, created by grade four and five students in regional schools. The card does drive the message home.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, on December 7, 2011 – Nelson High School students – all 1500 of them were in the hands of the Halton Regional Police for a good part of Tuesday morning. They were being taken through some “experiential training” on what happens to a person when their drinking has gone over the legal limit.
The experience was a bit of a shock to many of them.
 This is the one thing you do not want to see should you be pulled over by the police. The smile on Cst. Mike Korda is nice enough - but that little grey box is not good news. If you don't drink and drive Korda will be your buddy. Halton Regional Police have been attending at Halton high schools and showing students what breathing into the breathalyzer was all about; what happens to their bodies when they have consumed alcohol and are asked by a police officer to step out of the car and attempt to walk in a straight line and then to write a short quiz on what the rules are when it comes to drinking and driving.
Many of the parents of these students can remember a day when it was very common to say to a guest at a house party to “have one for the road” which meant you threw back a drink, thumped your chest and got behind the wheel.
Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD) brought a very painful and realistic look to what happens when people drink and drive and as a result of their efforts we see programs like the one at Nelson High School.
 HRPS Cst. Mark Vegso holds the "Fatal Vision" goggles students at Nelson High experimented with earlier this week. It was a strong lesson. Each year the Halton Regional Police roll out their RIDE program – this year HRPS arrested three people for drunk driving on the first day of the program. Seems like we have some distance to go yet before we rid ourselves of this menace.
The police take their rotating RIDE crews around the Region and stop traffic, ask drivers if they have been drinking, and if they suspect any use of alcohol they invite the driver to breathe into the little grey box and see if they can walk a straight line.
If the driver can’t – their car is impounded and they get taken to the police station.
Cst. Mark Vegso is one of the Regional police officers who is assigned to a high school, in his case it is a school in Oakville, where he handles small discipline situations, trespass problems and is in the school regularly to keep an eye on things and to also serve as a contact for students who want to talk to a police officer but don’t want to go to a police station. Cst. Vegso also teach some law classes in the school.
Failure to provide a breath sample is also a criminal offence. The police officers doing the training make the experience very, very realistic – there is little doubt in the mind of the student just what they are being asked to do and why. Many of the students must have walked away from the breathalyzer table shuddering with the thought if they are ever asked to blow into the little grey box – they are in serious trouble. The objective is that hopefully they will look for a lift before getting behind a wheel if they’ve been drinking.
The goggles used to experience what it is like to be asked to walk a straight line with alcohol in your body. The goggles, which are made in Mexico and referred to as “Fatal Vision” goggles cost $1000. each. But they do the job.
 Staying on that green light with goggles that simulated an alcohol level over 70 was not quite as easy as this young lady thought it was going to be. The students found that they could not walk a straight line – more frightening to all of them was that they couldn’t really see the line – it was just a blur and kept moving out of their field of vision. The goggles used to simulate a situation where the user was slightly under the legal limit resulted in a scary experience. The goggles used to simulate situations where the user was well over the limit – like 2.0 and up – made it very clear that driving with that much alcohol in you would result in your death or that of someone else you ran into. And there was no doubt – you could not operate a car effectively or safely with that much alcohol in your system. It was a pretty blunt message.
One wonders what these students said to each other as they gathered in the cafeteria for lunch with their lap tops open in front of them. The Regional police wondered and at the end of the training sessions – they left hoping they’d done the job.
Part of the training session included a quick quiz on drinking and driving. Test results and more on the RIDE program are at: https://www.burlingtongazette.ca/?p=5937
1: The legal limit of alcohol to be present in your blood while behind the wheel of a motor vehicle is 100. T/F
2: The legal limit for a G1 or G2 driver is 50. T/F
3: A person can be charged with impaired driving after smoking marijuana. T/F
4: It is acceptable for open alcohol to be inside your car. T/F
5: It is not a criminal offence to be intoxicated in the driver’s seat.. T/F
 Friends look on a Nelson High student tries to keep his feet on the green line while using "driving under the influence of alcohol testing goggles". 6: G drivers who are accompanying G! drivers can be intoxicated while in the passenger seat. T/F
7: A person charged with Over 80 must always be charged with Impaired Driving. T/F
8: A person can refuse to provide a legally demanded breath sample and not be charged for refusing to provide a breath sample. T/F
 Nelson High students write the ten question quick quiz. How would you have done with the test? Try it. 9: Upon being charged with Refusal or Over 80, a person’s driver’s licence shall be suspended for a period of 30 days. T/F
10: A police officer shall read you your rights to counsel upon arrest for Over 80. T/F
Being charged with any kind of a drinking related offence and found guilty will impact your driver’s licence – which is nothing compared to what it is going to do to your insurance rate. While you may be allowed eventually to drive again – you may not be able to afford to – and if the car you were driving belonged to your parents – they are not going to be very sympathetic.
Drinking is not a crime – just do so responsibly.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON November 26, 2011 – Burlington`s Strategic plan calls for the city to set aside $10 million a year for the next six years to pay for a part of the upgrading of the Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital which the province has promised would take place in 2013. The Mayor`s Inspire series speaker last week seemed to suggest that an upgraded hospital was not what Burlington needed.
Globe and Mail health columnist Andre Picard, an eminent policy analyst in the health field and the recipient of numerous awards including the Michener Award for Meritorious Public Service Journalism, the Canadian Policy Research Award, the Atkinson fellowship for public policy research and the Centennial Prize of the Pan American Organization. He was named Canada’s first Public Health Hero by the Canadian Public Health Association and was honoured as a champion of mental health. He is a four-time finalist for the National Newspaper Awards. In other words he is thought of as someone who knows what he is talking about. So when he suggests that upgrading of the Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital was not necessarily the best thing to do with the limited resources available we might want to sit up and listen.
 Andre Picard, a noted authority on heath services policy and lead columnist for the Globe & Mail was just a little cool to the idea of a new hospital for Burlington at the Mayor's Inspire series last week. Picard outlined the need for community delivered health services which led to Our Burlington asking Mr. Picard this question: If you are calling for a community based system to deliver health service because that is more cost effective delivery and better health – then does Burlington need a major upgrade to the Joseph Brant Memorial hospital ?
Picard equivocated a bit with his answer when he said it would depend on there being hospitals close at hand that could deliver the kind of service that only a hospital can provide and then added that he thought an upgraded hospital in Burlington was probably a good thing, more or less. More or less? That wasn’t exactly a ringing endorsement was it?
Using his criteria – one could argue (and the provincial government might well do that) that there are excellent hospitals in Hamilton and Oakville which are a very short ambulance drive away. You can get to a Hamilton hospital from Lowville faster than you can get to JBMH.
Does Burlington then need an upgrade to its hospital? Asking that question in this city and you have really put the fat in the fire. All three candidates in the recent provincial election swore on their Mother’s graves that they would fight mightily to have the province give a firm commitment – with a date attached to it – guaranteeing that our hospital would get the upgrade it needs and which we were promised.
And now we hear from one of the best thinkers in the country suggesting that a new hospital in Burlington might not be what’s best for the community. Isn’t that ducky?
We know the province doesn’t have any money, and we know that our economy is getting more wobbly every week. But no one at the provincial level is suggesting that Burlington might want to look at a different model to meet the needs of its aging population.
The city did, what it thought was best, and what the province required them to do, and that was put up $10 million a year for six years to pay for a portion of the cost of the upgrade, we have been told was totally necessary.
The city and the hospital are still working out how the $60 million the city is going to put into the kitty will be spent. At this point it looks like the city’s money will be used to pay for the building of a parking lot, because the space now being used to park cars is needed for the expansion that is planned. The city hasn’t written the cheque yet – maybe they want to put a hold on it and ask the hospital to sit with them and take another look at the plans.
 Andre Picard, speaker at the Mayor's Inspire series has given Mayor Goldring much to think about, when he came out as less than enthusiastic about the planned JBMH upgrade. That will take a level of political courage that is seldom seen.
The long term outlook for a new hospital in Burlington just might need a real hard look before we do something really dumb. Added to Picard’s Wednesday evening comments, were remarks made in the provincial Legislature on Thursday, where an NDP member read out the list of hospital upgrades the province is talking about – more than 20 of them. In the economy we are in it just can`t happen. And someone needs to begin to be much more honest with the people who live here, pay the taxes and expect the public health services they need
Every candidate in the last provincial election said they would ensure that we got the hospital upgrade – what wasn’t asked was – do we need a hospital upgrade? Every candidate said, what they thought you wanted to hear. Not one of them had done their homework. One of them, Liberal candidate Karmel Sakran, used to sit on the hospital board and was as close to the center of political power as one can get – and he never suggested, that perhaps the hospital model we are working within is the wrong model.
All the candidates just mouthed, what they thought the voters wanted to hear. Should the province decide that Burlington is not the place for a large expensive hospital, and that we should have a number of community care centres spread throughout the city – – just wait for the political howling.
 JBMH president Eric Vandewall might want to have lunch with Inspire speaker and noted authority on public health service delivery and talk about the best form of public insitution to meet the needs of the community. Mayor Goldring might want to sit in on that lunch - even pick up the tab if some sensible thinking comes out of the meal. Picard`s comments suggest that Burlington might not have made the smartest move. Is the city – that means both the citizens, its city council and the senior hospital staff plus the Board of Directors – courageous enough to ask the hard questions like, is this really the best thing for the city and its citizens?
One would hope that the Mayor would take the opportunity to have dinner with Picard and ask some hard-nosed questions. Maybe even ask for some advice as well on how we determine what is best for the city. In the meantime, don’t write the cheque that would deliver the $20 million plus sitting in the bank.
Let’s be absolutely sure we are doing what is best for the community and not just what’s best for the medical community who would love to have a shiny new building.
 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON November 25, 2011 It might seem just a tad early to plan for Christmas Season events – but if you’re a busy household – then you need to plan and the Ireland House Heritage Holiday event is something that deserves a second look.
If you take the time to spend part of a day at Ireland House you will experience a much different Christmas spirit. The Ireland House goes back to the early to mid-1800s. It is an historic jewel.
 Tracy VanderVliet, an educator at Ireland House stands with the gift basket that is part of the Christmas Season holiday. It will be given to one of the free draw winners for all those who attend. The Heritage Holiday event is every Sunday in November and December up to and including Sunday, December 17, 2011 An Old-Fashioned Christmas & Santa’s Cabin. Ireland House is at Oakridge Farm, 2168 Guelph Line, just north of Upper Middle Road If you’ve got questions try calling them – 905-634-3556
The Sunday events started November 20, 11:00am to 4:00pm, and will be held every Sunday thereafter through to and including December 17th. There is a chance to see the historic home decorated as it would have been decorated in the mid 1800s Children can then scoot across to Santa’s Cabin and make a Christmas toy if they wish. There is a small fee for the toy making.
The day gives you and your children a chance to see the Christmas Season in a simpler setting to discover and celebrate the season while seeing the traditions and customs that shaped many of the Christmas celebrations around the world today… It’s a day away from the hustle and bustle back to a simpler time and enjoy the smells, sights, sounds and tastes of Christmas on a historic Farm!
The young ones get to make their own holiday arrangement, make a decorative wood snowman, make and stamp your own Christmas card, punch your own tin ornament!
Additional charges apply to some activities.
Ireland House is a city of Burlington initiative run by Burlington Museums.
 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON November 22, 2011 Carole Ward, Burlington’s 2010 Civic Recognition Award winner for community service once said that Canada is about to experience a tsunami of seniors and doesn’t think the community is at all prepared for the services and support they will need. “There will come a point”, she said, “ where seniors will need help dressing and feeding themselves and many will want to stay in their homes for as long as they can”, and Ward doesn’t believe the community is at all prepared for the number of people who will need care and support.
This generation of people, known ever since they were born as the Baby Boomers have changed every aspect of society as the moved from pre-school, to elementary, high school and on to university. Now that they are seniors there is no reason to suggest they aren’t going to continue to make waves which Ward calls a tsunami because she believes we are not at all prepared for the demands they are going to make on society. And if this crowd doesn’t get what it wants from its government – they will elect one that will give them what they want.
Keeping active and mentally alert is a part of getting older but there are only so many books you can read and most of the stuff on television is hardly worth the time.
Third Age Learning, Burlington (3ALB) is a new community organization dedicated to offering lecture series to the 55+ community. The inaugural series, An Introduction to Third Age Learning, begins Jan 19, 2012.
 Keeping mentally alert once you're into retirement and away from a job isn't always easy and television isn't going to cut it. A lecture series designed for seniors might be just the ticket for you. We increasingly live in a sound-bite world. The Third Age Learning model, however, offers the opportunity to delve into a topic in breadth and depth. Once the program is underway there will be as many as 8 expert speakers presenting differing perspectives on a single subject. Series 1 is an introduction. Going forward, each series will focus on a single theme.
Registrations for Series 1 is going well, although there are still have a few seats available. 3ALB is a registered non-profit, entirely run by volunteers who are seniors. Third Age Learning, Burlington – 3ALB – is the newest Canadian member of the Third Age Learning movement established in France in 1973. The movement rapidly spread throughout Europe and arrived in Canada, in Sherbrooke PQ, in the late 1970’s.
The audience 3ALB proposes to serve is the 55+ community. Multiple research studies indicate that for this community, preventing cognitive decline is perhaps the best strategy for aging well.
Each presentation series consists of 8 lectures offered over a period of 8 weeks. We plan our inaugural series to run from Thursday January 19 to Thursday March 8, 2012. When the project is fully implemented we anticipate offering two Fall and two Winter series, for a yearly total of 32 lectures.
Each weekly meeting consists of: An information-rich, entertaining, 45-minute presentation delivered by a subject matter expert – a respected economist, for example, or a working actor, a heritage gardener, or a professional historian – typically accompanied by PowerPoint slides or some other visual augmentation
A 15-minute break for coffee, chat, and the opportunity to write a question for the presenter that they hope will result in a lively, often provocative, and always informative Q&A session
Participants should leave with enough information and contacts to follow up on their own, or with friends and family, if they find themselves fascinated by a brand new interest. There are Three Age Learning groups in Guelph, Kitchener that have, for more than twenty years, consistently delivered sold out series to audiences of upwards of 200 members.
Registration fee is $40. For each 8 lecture series – five bucks apiece, less than a cup of coffee and a newspaper.
For registration and more information click here.
For more detail on the program click here.
 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON November 22, 2011 – The Halton Regional Police Service have started their holiday R.I.D.E. campaign – and have once again partnered with local students, businesses and community organizations for the sixth year to offer “RIDE 101”, a program designed to educate drivers, particularly young and future drivers, of the importance and responsibility while driving and the consequences associated to mixing alcohol or drugs and operating a motor vehicle.
R.I.D.E. is the acronym for Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere and was started in 1997 as a program to get control over the then increasing number of drunken driver fatalities on highways. There was a time when Christmas parties in private homes frequently had the host saying “Have one for the road”. Like ashtrays – that phrase has disappeared but drinking drivers have not – R.I.D.E. will be out there in force. If you’re dumb enough to drink and drive – keep your lawyer’s business card in your wallet – you will need it.
High schools from across the Region will be participating in the program. Burlington’s Nelson High will be the participating school December 6th.
 Amazing picture, amazing headache, amazingly stupid - a drunk driver. The official launch will take place at Iroquois Ridge High School, 1123 Glenashton Drive, Oakville, where Halton Police RIDE 101 officers will team up with students from Iroquois Ridge to distribute RIDE 101 educational information, provide students an opportunity to test roadside screening devices and put all students through a series of simulated ‘road side’ sobriety tests during a fun, yet educational format.
The night component will entail members of the student council assisting designated officers in speaking with drivers of stopped vehicles during a R.I.D.E. spot check and distributing ‘Think of Me’ cards and information pamphlets on the consequences of impaired driving. The ‘Think of Me’ cards are hand-drawn and coloured by grade four, five and six students and reflect on that child’s perception of drinking and driving.
The daytime component will be held within the school from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and the spot checks will be conducted from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. out front of the school.
The Halton Regional Police are grateful for the community partners who are supportive of this worthy endeavour, including: the Halton Catholic District School Board, the Halton District School Board, Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (M.A.D.D.), McDonald’s restaurants and Tim Horton’s.
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