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PAGE 10, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 1981, WHITBY FREE PRESS Winter blames F airman morale problem on parents' complaints Recent complaints by Otter Creek parents concerning the quality of education, wash- rooms, and lunchroom facilities at E.A. Fair- man Public School have been labeled as un- founded by the chair- man of the Durham Board of Education. In fact, Art Winter told the board last week that the parents' com- plaints have created some morale problems at the school. While the Oshawa trustee said that he would like to see a public school built in Ot- ter Creek, some of the complaints "are exagg- erated." The parents told the board earlier this month that conditions at E.A. Fairman are "border- ing on the unbearable." TYPEWRITERS ADDING MACINES • CALCULATORS SA LES • SERVICE • RENTALS AVAILABLE AT: 4 - PR IN TING AND _OF FICE SUPPL IES 218 H ar*wood Ave S Ajax, Ontanoe 683ý1968 PROFESSIONAL ujWEIOHT WCONTROL VCUINICS VCHECK US OUT A Canadian company, established 1978 Free consultation and a review of your medical history by registered nurses & nutritioniSts. I ditions are taxed tocull capacity, and indeed, the whole issue of quality of education gets called into question un- der these strained con- ditions," the parents said. The brief said that some 350 grade school students were bussed from the subdivision to either E.A. Fairman or Whitby Senior Public School. 0f these, 246 at- tend Fairman in kinder- garten to grade 5 and 102 are enrolled at Whitby Senior in grades 6,7 and 8. The board has said it agress with the parents but added that the final decision belongs to the Ontario Ministry of Education. The board requested approval for six schools earlier this year - one of them Otter Creek - but only three were approved, exclud- ing Otter Creek. Winter said that he "sympathizes with the Ii Marjorie Thaler lost Sharon Smith lost 173 Ibs 751Ibs.1 Pro gram introduction and analysis of nutritiona & behavioura patterns Philost • to success by you. Iost 103 Ibs. / Daily visits & monitoring of weight loSS, Marlene Chan 4 ILs blood pressure & ketones on a one toost one basis by registered nurses & nutritionists. TOTAL396bs STABILIZATION & MAINTENANCE INSURES LONG TERM SUCCESS AT YOUR IDEAL WEIGHT GOAL. " NO CONTRACTSRESULTS BEGIN WHEN YOU DO " NO FAD DIETS C4LL NOW 29 CLINICS IN CANADA " NO SHOTS " NO STRENUOUS EXERCISE 8 a m to 7 p m MONDAY Io FR!DAY MASTER CHARGE/VISA L2 irncoe St., OE "NSS AIC.I.B.C. Building ROMIGHNLsecond f 1oor CONTROL Oshawa - A NICaaTel. 571-3300 Pofe sseon ateontd with any othef weight "NO PROMISES, JUST RESULTS , .4"ciintc im the gieat@f TOrOnIO 4Ia I 1 I cause" but has concerns about some of the in- formation provided by the parents. While he admits that some of the classes have more than 30 students, Winter said there is no evidence to support the claim that Fairman's quality of education is poor. The chairman said that he has been to the Palace Street School and found that not only were washrooms in good condition but that there were two super- visors on duty at lunch- time. Jim Russell, the board's superintendete of plant, said in a report that there were no problems win the wash- rooms. However, he admitted that they have a limited capacity and could probably only accom- modate just one more portable classroom. Winter said that the board will send a letter to the parents saying that the complaints aren't accurate. Whitby Trustee Ian Brown told lthe board that a letter correcting the facts will not help the situation. He claimed that such a letter would put the board "in an adversial Brown also believes that the parents' con- cerns come from a sen- se of "frustration" and that the problems should be resolved by the school's principal and staff. Winter replied saying that the staff have at- tempted to resolve the problems but were seeking the board's support. Parlk gets bridge The Town of Whitby will construct a foot- bridge over the Lynde Creek in D'Hillier Park. Last week, Whitby Town Council awarded a tender for $23,339 to Winvalley Construction Limited of Whitby to build the bridge over the stream. The project will also see the installation of gabion walls on the east side of the creek at a cost of $2,500. Prior to awarding the tender, the town had provided $17,000 for the grading, seeding, minor drainage work and asphalt walkways for the park. The project was given a $60,000 allocation in the 1981 capital budget. A lot of people cail life "The Survival of the Fittest". You know, a lot of people are right .II 'nJmn Lady knew young Diefenbaker Forty is the old age of youth; Fifty the youtb of old age. We spent a deligbtful afternoon this past week witb Miss May E. Brown wheis living at tbe retire- ment lodge, Ballycliffe, in Ajax. Miss. Brown was born in November, 1888 at the family farm in Greenwood about eight or fine miles north west of Whitby. She has many memories of our town of many years ago. A very short distance these days but long ago quite a way by horse and buggy. -Whitby was the centre, the largest town and by far the most impor- tant, the County Town. Oshawa, a small place, did not come into its own until the McLaughlin Carriage business began and expanded. I am sure an eternal optimist, Miss Brown is bright, cheery, interested it seemed in any topic, radiates energy and goodwill. Her appearance belies her age; she looks years younger than she is. After our visit she took us on a tour of the lodge and explained its operation, introduced us to some staff members whose names she had on the tip of her tongue. A damp, grey day she accompanied us outside as we made our way to the car and insisted as she pulled her sweater closer that she was quite comfortable. I hope she is in contact with children and young people as her "joy" in living would do them all good. No doom and gloom here and I'm sure if this was mentioned she would say, "no time for that, I'm much too occupied for that sort of thing." The local school was two miles from the farm, the church about two and a half. Walking was the order of the day unless the weather was very bad and if there was a heavy snow storm everyone stayed home. The time was made up by opening the school - on the third Monday of August at the end of the summer holidays. We tend to forget these days that roads had to be cleared out by people, not plows. To shop, visit or attend to anything outside of the home horses were used to pull a buggy or carraige in good weather and in the winter a cutter or sleigh. Although Greenwood had several stores, the women shopped in Whitby for dress goods and the men went to the tailor for suits or other articles of clothing to be made up or bought off the rack. All things pertaining to sewing, buttons and bows to name two could be bought in this thriving County Town. Whitby had mills to grind the wheat and to sell flour as did Greenwood. I was amused to hear her tell of the smoke billowing out of the Hatch Buckle Factory, clouds of it, so pollution has been an ongoing thing for 100 years or so. At the public school in Greenwood, Miss Brown's teacher for a time was William T. Diefenbaker, father of the late Canadian Prime Minister, John George Diefenbaker. A fine man and a good teacher he had a shock of black curly hair and those bright blue eyes; he too was tall and thin much like his son as we knew him. John Diefenbaker was a small boy at the time, toc youn gto go to school but on Friday afternoons some of the children would take him to concerts at the school. At other times he was allowed to sit in or classes and this gave his mother a break for a fevm hours as she had a younger son to care for too. Miss Brown said the young John Diefenbaker waç a very fair minded boy and when the boys playec "«war" he liked to see justice done. At this time, th( Boer War was being fought in South Africa and th older boys spent many hours playing the war gamg and as Miss Brown said it was a "game" to then because it was so far away and communication wai slow and very poor, it seemed quite unreal unti later on. No doubt as the casualty lists went up an the men returned home the reality set in., Many of the children on "public school leaving' were able to take two extra years rather than go ta Whitby for further learning. If the teacher couli manage to teach them they would enter high schoc in Whitby in grade 10oor il rather than nine. Commutinig, of course, was out of the question fo Sthese students so they had to live in Whitby wit very few visits home to Greenwood until the Chrisi mas holidays. No doubt the school was a centre of activity the and students were expected to produce. An exar every Monday morning, probably a very good ide for both student and teacher. At this time a salar of $300oor $5a year was the going rate and Imigl add with no benefits 7Miss Brown spent ber hîgh school and mod, years living in Whitby when school was i eso Then on to Normal School in Toronto where st , graduated with a teacher's degree. For a time st CONT'DON PG. 1: p9