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economist sunsuntribune crime saturday march 20 2004 inside of grow house raided march 4 on ascot crescent in birchmount roadsteeles avenue area of markham police found 203 plants with a street value of 200000 officers found childrens clothes inside the house york regional police photo growing linked to other crimes from page 1 found plants with a street value of 52 million crimes including murder rob bery and home invasions have all been linked to local grow opera tions chief la barge said he added although police are often just arresting crop sitters in connection with the operations the force has been aggressively pursuing the organized crime element involved however with the average con victed marijuana grow operator receiving as little as 90 days to nine months in prison he said officers still need help from their judicial partners there needs to be a twoyear or oneyear minimum sentence to act as a deterrence he said some growers are just getting house arrest or fines they get house arrest and are forced to sit around the same house they were growing marijuana in its not right grow houses melt snow from roofs york regional police chief armand la barge said the force discovers most marijuana grow labs through tips from the pub lic in fact he said the heat from inside a grow operation is enough to melt the snow off of the roof in the winterf making them easy to spot here are other signs the chief said may mean a house in your neighbourhood is a marijuana grow op lights on 24 hours a day covered windows heavy condensation on win dows neglected lawns people coming and going at odd hours and only entering thorough the garage strong smell often covered with laundry softener and evidence of hydro meter tam pering anxietypanic twelve years ago mike glugosh was a hostage to his own fears and depression constantly worried about his health and his own state of mind he found himself wanting to avoid situations that made him feel anxious such as being alone going to work and socializing in time mike realized he was not alone in his suffering anxiety disorder is the number one emotional problem in our country today mike will share the story of his recovery and provide coping skills at a free seminar open to the public in your area symptoms of anxiety panic and depression include heart palpitations chest pains dizziness stomach problems bewildered spaced out feelings confusion shortness of breath scary thoughts trembling or shaking nervous or panicky feelings feeling helpless and hopeless loss of appetite excessively tired and easily prone to guilt generally people fear what see mike glugosh at mike calls losing control having a heart attack embarrassing themselves or losing their minds the midwest center for stress and anxiety with whom mike works has done stress and anxiety seminars for companies such as chrysler at t and mcdonalds they have also been featured on oprah regis and kathy lee and the view with barbara walters if you cannot attend please call 18008298137 for information the midwest center specializes in programs for anxiety panic and depression free seminar no reservations needed should you suspect a marijua na grow lab is in your neighbour hood call police at 905-764- 1300 martin derbyshire mon mar 22 73091 5pm tues mar 23 73091 5pm thur mar 25 7309l5pm sheraton parkway hotel holiday inn yorkdale delta toronto east 600hwy7east 3450 dufferin st 2035 kennedy rd markham north york scarborough teachers fill mpp wong in during visit to public schools by mitchell brown staff writer if parents want to enrol their children in the program for autistic students at markham district high school they have to pay 500 a year to cover the costs of field trips to places such as the grocery store and community centre the school wont turn away a student whose family cant afford that says teacher tracey brake adding they will find a way to defer the cost but if we have to pay for a bunch of students we cant run our department she said even if all the families could manage the cost there is still the renovation costs to consider about 15000 to install a timeout room and other things neces sary for the comfort and safety of the stu dents some of whom require constant oneonone attention from the five staff members it took a lot of jumping up and down but we got what we needed she said but while the school is finding a way to meet the needs of the six students cur rently in the program more are on the way due to both the areas growth and improved methods in detecting autism meaning more money will have to come from somewhere ms brake shared her concerns a week ago thursday with markham mpp tony wong who visited the high school as part of a factfinding mission late last month premier dalton mcguinty urged mpps to visit schools in their ridings and see for themselves how teachers and students are coping ontarios schools and classrooms have changed a lot over the years mr mcguinty said noting the average mpp graduated from high school in 1971 mr wong who also visited three ele mentary schools earlier in the week spent the morning touring markham high talking with teachers and students about their projects and asking what they need to make their jobs easier marty kates a special education teacher working with two assistants in the schools program for developmental- ly delayed students said teachers are struggling under the paperwork required to apply for special education funding which at markham district eats up a solid month and a half of the school year it was disastrous as far as i was con cerned he said referring to the conservatives introduction of the new funding system there are quite a number of things that have to be addressed but to us education is no 1 there has to be some functionality beyond paperwork for the sake of paper work you dont need a phd to figure out what these kids need mr wong also visited a science lab a music room and several classrooms in the schools technical wing dropping in on a music practice and admiring a totem pole carved by students some groups including toronto- based people for education criticized the visits arguing the public education system has been studied enough students dont need more photo ops spokesperson annie kidder said what the premier needs to do is act on the recommendations in the reports and fulfill his promises to the students of ontario but mr wong defended his visit to the school calling it a valuable prioritizing exercise for mpps there are quite a number of things that have to be addressed but to us education is no 1 he said canadian breast cancer foundation ontprio chapter york region branch invites you to meet at horrv e ja martini csm- f 1 m f wf 3 7 95 if- w hi r v black tie optional saturday april 3 2004 830 pm 130 am town country bmw 811 1 kennedy road markham ne corner of hwy 407 kennedy road ff t sponsored by remax allstars realty inc youre invited to meet and mingle at an event that promises to be full of fun and excitement the evenings emcee will be dan matheson ctv newsnets well- renowned primetime anchor the event offers an array of entertainment including a live jazz band and dj dancing theme bars sumptuous hors doeuvres bache- lorbachelorette and silent auctions hurrydatespeed dating and a variety of other funfilled fundraising activities valet parking available for tickets please call our canadian breast cancer foundation office 9059402741