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stouffvffletribune a metroland community newspaper 37 sandiford dr suite 306 stouriville onl l1a 7x5 publishen ian proudfoot general manager alvin brouwer editor in chief brenda larson director of advertising debra wetter deputy editor debom kelly editor julie caspersen production director cherikay distribution director barry goodyear online publishing manager brian kirlik classified manager ann campbell retail sales manager stephen mathieu inside sales manager staceyallen business manager margaret fleming office manager vivian cfneil letters rain darkened festival of lights but did not dampen spirits re festival of lights short on lustre for markham resident letters dec 2 unfortunately our annual festival of lights was all but rained out this year a great many of our entertainers vendors and activities had to be cancelled due to the rain as well major lighting had to be disconnected for safety rea sons due to the weather all of this indeed made for a darker street than is normally enjoyed for our festival old tree lighting was removed for two reasons dying trees have been removed anticipating the planting of new trees in 2000 and vandal ism to the lighting on remaining trees forced a change the new lighting on the street has created a lot of excitement in the community and many positive comments have been received next years initiatives will allow an even more spec tacular display if you have further comments good or bad please feel free at any time to contact the markham village bia at 4722462 to the thousands of people who did turn out we thank you and hope you had an enjoy able evening frankierose markham village bia beautification committee teachers play key role jn student achievement re crosby students tops in test nov 27 the article was in general a fair represen tation of our discussion about eqao test results in response to the question about how i would account for the roy h crosby results i identified three factors capable and motivat ed students supportive parents and strong staff i am sure your reporter is faced with a num ber of challenges in preparing such an article and she did not intend to overlook the role teachers play in student achievement the teachers at this school know that their conscientious and skillful work is valued by the community specifically in the past three years the staff has worked hard to implement the opinion changes brought about by the ontario curricu lum if our grades 3 and 6 students were success ful in the 1998 eqao tests it is due in equal part to the talent and dedication of their teachers charles smith principal royh crosby public school future of oak ridges ecosystem depends on our help re protesters arrestedas clearcuttingbegins nov 30 i must thank reporter mike adler and pho tographer jim ross for their excellent coverage of the jefferson forest protest and the markham economist sun for its thorough coverage of the oak ridges moraine issue in general as one of the protesters trying to protect part of the forest from being cut down i was encouraged by the support expressed by motorists as they drove by the site last week if the hundreds of people honking and wav ing are any indication many york region resi dents want this area protected and with good reason as the largest natural remnant of the oak ridges moraine in richmond hill the jefferson forest area contains many of the headwaters of the rouge river watershed and some of the highest concentrations of rare plant and animal species anywhere in the region the forest is home to oldgrowth trees whitetailed deer cottontail rabbits coyotes yellowspotted salamanders and interior dwelling bird species such as the scarlet tanag- er which cannot survive in forests fragmented by urbanization the health of this wonderful ecosystem has an impact on everything downstream includ ing markhams rouge park unfortunately it is too late to save the sec tion of forest that was clearcut last week but it is not too late to stop the bayview avenue extension from being built next spring if con structed this road will not only destroy habitat in its path it will open up the rest of the 800- acre forest to development we must stop this from happening over the past 15 or so years more than 15 million trees- have been cut down in york region we simply cant afford to lose any more i urge everyone who cares about clean rivers green space and forest cover to write or call premier mike harris asking him to stop the bayview extension halt development on the moraine and create a 2700acre kettle lakes park that would protect jefferson forest and the headwaters of the rouge valley system for more information on how you can help please call 7803938 as members of the voting public we have tremendous power to effect change and guar antee our childrens future lets use it ramonawall richmond hill letters policy stouffville tribune welcomes your letters all submissions must be less than 400 words and must include a daytime telephone number name and address the newspaper reserves the right to publish or not publish and to edit for clarity and space write utters to the editor 37 sandiford dr suite 306 stouffville ontua 7x5 email letten4stoufftribcom stouffville tribune serving the community since 1888 3seb one canadian circulations l audit board member ontario press council canadian publications man product sales agreement 1403419 subscription rates by mat 1 year 6955 tuesdays only stouffville tribune published every tuesday thursday and saturday is one of the metroland printing publishing and distributing ltd group of newspapers which includes the ajacpickering news advertiser alliston heraldcourier bafrie advance barrys bay this week bolton enterprise brampton guardian burlington shopping news burlington post city parent collingwoodufesaga connection east york mirror erin advocatecountry routes etobicoke guardian flamborough post georgetown independentacton free press kingston this week lindsay this week mktlandpenetanguishene mirror milton canadian champion milton shopping news mississauga news newmarket- aurora georgina erabanner northumberland news north york minor oakvibe beaver oakviile shopping news orillla today oshawawhitbyclaringtonport perry this week peterborough this week richmond hillthomhillvaugrian liberal scarborough mirror stouffville tribune todays seniors uxbridge tribune and city of mark guardian phone 905 6402100 fax9056405477 classified 18007433353 distribution 905 6402100 telephone i 905 6402100 fax 905 6405477 email nevkroornstoufftribcom columnist school violence hitsfrighteningly close to home but for a twist of fate would markham have joined the tragic hall of infamy that includes tabor alta and columbine high school in colorado i know i sound melodramatic but there have been far too many disturbing incidents involving youth and violence in the past year far too close to home i know im not the only parent feeling edgy about this subject at the moment i cant forget jonathan wamback still struggling to recover from brain injuries he received after being beaten up in a newmarket park last summer and marti baranovski beaten to death last month in a bathurst street- finch avenue area park and there was the newmarket ele mentary school which saw two stu dents arrested after a bomb threat was received by fax last spring on friday a teenager was arrested after his brother was stabbed at middlefield collegiate in markham and last week a 17yearold former markham district high school student was arrested after threatening to shoot students and bum down a house after his arrest his parents turned in the nine rifles they had in their home it sends cold shivers through you doesnt it how close did we come to a tragedy of enormous proportion am i overreacting emotional maybe so but its by recognizing and reacting to these feelings that we can avert tragedies the last thing we should do is sweep our unease under the rug we must be in the faces of our young people according to york region public school board spokesperson brian jamieson educators students and school councils are now learning through workshops to be alert to the signs that indicate a young person may be dangerous to himself or others just in case the images that filled tv screens and newspapers following the slaughter at columbine are beguuiing to fade lets remind ourselves that all of us parents siblings friends teachers neighbours have a part to play here we must pay attention to whats going on around us and we must speak up about our fears unease and concern we cant afford to take anything for granted anymore underlines york regional police detsgt wayne kahnski we took this incident seri ously from the beginning he said officers in the markham districts core community oriented response unit had heard the word on the street that threats had been made after stu dents came forward with the details they were quick to make an arrest we will never know just how thankful we should be for that 1 wm9mw mn