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st take time to give thanks for environment we enjoy the tribune tuesday october 7 1997 p 17 thanksgiving has traditionally been a time to move indoors and gather our friends and family around us turkey dinners with all the trim mings are generally the centrepiece of the celebration and the festivities arent complete until at least one per son moans i shouldnt have eaten so much at our house things are a little dif ferent when my husband and i first got together 1 5 years ago we decided that it was important to reserve at least one holiday a year that we could cele brate alone and while we still have a traditional turkey dinner the focus is not on whats on the table but how it got there for us thanksgiving dinner is a cel ebration of our interdependence with nature as the turkey cooks we gather together in my husbands carefully- tended garden and pick the rest of our dinner and while this is a fairly regu lar ritual for me it takes on a whole new meaning when you give thanks for each vegetable that is offered up from the soil beneath our feet i understand that i speak from a position of privilege it is no accident that it wasnt until i moved into the country that i found my ecological self and i began to appreciate my impact on the environ ment as a whole while i am not advocating that everyone move out and join me i believe that until each and every one of us understands this relationship we can neither acknowledge nor respect the balance of nature our ritual took on a whole new meaning last year when we added a your earth suzanne ehton family picnic to our celebration the day was unusually warm so we decided to pack up the children and head for a walk through the family woodlot as we sat down for a picnic lunch in a sunny clearing our son peter requested the opportunity to say a grace we bowed our heads and he began but rather than giving a traditional blessing peter offered up a special prayer of thanks for the woods that surrounded us and the privilege of sharing them i was amazed as our remarkable young son spoke profoundly of our connection between earth and sky and the world between where we live as he concluded my husband and i looked at each other in amazement without prompting our nineyearold son had just beautifully articulated the essence of why we had chosen to raise our children in the country we truly felt blessed making the decision to live in the country was easy sticking to that decision is often hard particularly when you have small children the convenience of neighbourhood friends the safety of sidewalks and residential streets are all given when you live in a subdivision living in the country just isnt convenient some times and at other times its really hard work for my husband and i the sacrifices mediator named to talks between board teachers a provincial agency is sending a former labour ministry mediator to assist stalled contract talks between york regions catholic school board and its teachers olive chester was a mediator with the ministrys office of media tion for 18 years the education relations commission said as it announced the appointment last week she has been involved in assist ing negotiations in a large number and wide variety of labour relations contexts the commission said in a release the teachers and the york region roman catholic separate school board are deadlocked over salary increments frozen during ontarios social contract years global choirs raise voices on oct 18 1997 at 8 pm choirs in over 35 countries on all five continents spanning every time zone will join together to sing for hospice concerts will be held beginning in new zealand creating a wave of song encircling the globe until the final con cert in hawaii the voices for hospice concert in york region will be held at st mary immaculate church in richmond hill and will be a singalong of handels messiah the seven hospices in york region are joining together to sponsor this event marta mccarthy conductor is music director of the university of waterloo choir university of guelph choir and chamber singers and blessed trinity church choir of toronto church choirs throughout york re gion are encouraged to participate in this special occasion for every ten tickets purchased the choir will be pre sented with a complimentary vocal score of the messiah watkins shawnovcllo edition join the hospices in york region as they lift voices for hospice tickets are 1 0 and can be purchased from the hos pice office for information call hos pice markhamstouffvillc at 4725014 that we have made living in the coun try all seemed worth it when we heard peters prayer elizabeth roberts wrote when we say thank you we are really saying we belong together this weekend celebrate thanksgiving by trying to understand how dependent we are on the environment take a walk in the country and see the glory of the changing colours visit a local farmers market and take the time to talk to the people who grow your food start a fall compost heap or plant some spring bulbs take your children to the public library and find out more about this magnificent land we live in its climate its chal lenges and its beauty have a happy thanksgiving river valley restaurant bring the family out for special thanksgiving dinner your choice of entrees live music from 8001200 am lunches also available starting friday oct 10th october dlllllllirft ive 17 18 19 itljtlllli music special german foods beers call for reservations or just drop in river valley restaurant 39 toronto st uxbridge 9058524343 v-ir- r 11 r in i bloomington gospel church agc 13660 ninth line south of bioomington rd sunday oct 12 1997 pastor dr john howarth 945 am sunday school 11q0am thanksgiving sunday dr stephen roy ots 164th anniversay speaker dr john moore music mr ralph sider oct 1997 everyone welcome stouffville united church 34 church st n 6401163 rev robert nightingale sunday oct 121997 1030 am morning worship world wide communion service rev robert nightingale sunday school from baby fold to the grade 8 level everyone welcome wideman menn0n1te church 10530 hwy 48 north of major mackenzie phone 6406219 pastor lawrence burkholder 2940649 sunday oct 121997 1045 am pastor lawrence burkholder 700 pm pioneer village video everyone welcome the anglican parish of christ church 2msut bhd 254 sunset blvd stouffville the rev robert a shields 6401461 october 12 1997 thanksgiving sunday 800 am holy communion 1000 am choral eucharist with church school nursery provided jx everyone welcome vivian baptist church 4733543 on hwy 48 at vivian rd pastor robert okum holding forth the doctrines of grace 945 am sunday school 1100 am pastor robert okum 700 pm pastor robert okum everyone is welcome parkview village 12184 ninth line south stouffville sunday october 12 1997 700pm- services held in the village auditorium stouffville baptist church a fellowship church 6273 main street pastor rev gordon bickle asst pastor gordon maccormack sunday oct 12 1997 1000 am sunday school 1 1 00 am thanksgiving service message rev ross hewlett music ruth fockler wednesday 730 pm hour of power were richer when we give and poorer when we keep we care welcome to 51 james presbyterian church our church school program resumes on every sunday 945 am worship services are held each sunday at 1100 am child and nursery care is provided visitors always welcome 6432 main st 6403151 springvale baptist church stouffville rd at kennedy rd 8875651 senior pastor associate pastor associate pastor bob flemming bill thornton student ministries interm worship music co ordinator visitation pastor brian g simcoe heather thornton bill smith sunday oct 12 1997 845 am pastor bill thornton 1 1 00 am series getting back on track 1000 am 600 pm family bible school no evening service l for wednesday program information please call 8875651