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PAGE 10, WHITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, MAY 13,1987 Brookhin Profile ROXANNE REVEL.ER News & Fetures Eio rhtor5-33 NEVER MIND - you.'re okay. Karolin Batty of Bald- win Street reassures Ziggy that getting his rabies vaccination at the annual clinic at Luther Vipond Arena last week was well worth the effort. The clinic is sponsored eaeh spring by the Durham Region Veterinary Association. See story for details. Rabies clinie disappointing The rabies clinic held last week at Luther Vipond Memorial Arena was a disappointment, according to one Brooklin veterinarian. Dr. Jim Wells of Brooklin Village Animal Hospital on Winchester Rd. West said the turnout at the sub- sidized clinic was "around 100 or 150", the same as last year. With the number of rabies cases repor- ted in the general area of Brooklin last year, this turnout was far from encouraging, said Wells. "Personally, I would like to see a municipal bylaw making it man- datory for all family pets to be vac- cinated against the disease" said Wells, adding he was not too op- timistic of such an act taking place within the near future. The rabies clinic held last week was sponsored by the Durham Region Veterinary Association. The Durham branch holds their clinic each spring during the month of May. According to Wells, the nearest place offering such a ser- vice will be the Pickering area this fall when the Toronto Academy holds their rabies clinic. Local sciencé fairs excellent The annual science fairs were an integral part of Education Week at both Brooklin Schools again this year. While the entire student body was involved with projects at St. Leo'sCatholic School, Meadowcrest Public School held the junior scien- ce fair, the intermediate age fair having been completed earlier in the year. The winning exhibits at Meadowcrest were: Gr. 4, first, Tracey Bajcar; second, Julie Ren- nie; third, Peter Owens. Gr. 5; fir- st, Kelly Hodgson; second, Aaron Darling; third, Jarrett Walker. Gr. 6; first, Matthew Schloen; second, Shari Batty; third, Lori Carnegie. In the intermediate division of St. Leo's Science Fair, Catherine Campbell placed first in the biology section answering the question "Does photosynthesis occur when the stomata are covered?" Second in biology was the team of Paul Greco and Christopher Brady using the topic "How steady is the human hand?" In chemistry, "States of Matter" by Erika Haase placed fir- st, with the topic "What are acids and bases?" by Kelly Tait and Diane Tomas, taking second spot. In the junior division, Claire Grif- fin placed first with a project on Learn how to b Steps toward becoming a better babysitter will be offered at the Brooklin Branch Library next mon- th. The library, in association with the Whitby Red Cross, will present the Red Cross babysitting course, starting Monday, June 8 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. and Tuesday, June 9 from_ maple syrup, David Leedle and Martin Leedle took second place honors with their topic of plant growth and the duo of Scott Boeh- mer and Robert Tomsic came third with a project on estimating time. Receiving honorable mention were Matthew Sorichetti and Eric Niepal for a project on solar energy and Joseph Jedinak for "How do you build an AM radio?" )e a "sitter" 6:30 to 8 p.m. for the month of June. Registrants must be age 12 at the time of registration and the fee is $8 at the library's children's desk on Monday, May 25 from 2 - 9 p.m. There are only 12 openings available. For more information call the library at 655-3191. Reflections of a Golden Age By MABEL M. McCABE I'm one of many women who have lost a loving husband and being well over 65 1 live on a pension. My man was not working full- time when Canada Pension was started. This means that I survive on whatever the government thinks fair. I know there are many of us throughout Canada and I also know we are living at or below the poverty level. I wonder if the majority of people who are still too young for pensions realize that we are not supposed to have any other income if we want to take advantage of the housing assistance offered. Our raise due to inflation last month was approximately $2.75 a month. In this supposedly senior's building I've just made out my rent cheques for the balance of 1987 and 1988 till May. My rent is up $6.50 per month. Now that is in- flation. Most of us were raising families and trying to make ends meet when we were in our earning years and with the death of our spouses we found we had no place to turn. Who would hire a wonan who was out of the work force for many years and whose skills had faded? So here we are not wanting to be a drain on society or our children, but having to live nonetheless until life is over. It could be years or it could be months but we would like to have some in- dependence and dignity. We were brought up during the days when one had some pride and wanted to give something to the community. It pains me to see that many of my contemporaries are barely making it. Some even have difficulty getting into subsidized housing. There are not many vacancies. In the Whitby area I've notice that some of the spaces are taken by people who are definitely not 60 and others"really do not qualify because they do not have the ability to look after them- selves. I'm not referring to older tenants who over the years have developed problems but those new ones who are really taking the spaces that the senior women need so desperately. I know that many people are homeless in this day and age but if we do not talte care of the aged we will not have them with us long. Older folks need those who can relate to the same time frame and the experiences that are similar gives them a chance to reminesce. experiences that are similar gives them a chance to reminisce. We do not need to be accosted by remarks like one I heard in the lounge - "I need a woman in my bed" - made by one person. I'm not the type to be frightened easily so I walked away. Some here would have been terrified. Many of the ladies myself included, have been bothered by obscene phone calls. Isn't that silly at our age? It can make one afraid to walk the halls after dark or come home late. I do not know why the folks in charge have deregulated the standard of qualification or why they are mixing the tenants. I do know that it is uncomfortable for everyone. It was not too long ago that several seniors were attacked in Belleville. We read the papers and wonder could it happen here? I understand that unstable people have to be housed but I feel a screening process is necessary and that a senior's building should remain just that. Keep the rules that most of us complied with and don't leave the elderly hanging on the bare edge where they must depend on friends or rfelatives. If we are to have a fair system the rules must be the same for all. I'm sure many of you out there know of someone who is on a waiting list for housing. Please don't let it be theîolder ones who wait too long. As I said before they may not have too much time and you'll find they make the best tenants. They are used to looking af- ter a home and would be delighted to have a little spot to call their own. own. VIEWPOINT Mother's Day...bah...humbug. It's all a lot of bunk dreamed up by merchants who want to unload their wares on a gullible pullic. The same thing goes for Father's Day and Valentine's Day. P'il bet al you mothers out there got the card right? And some of you even got the present. But how many were treated special for the whole day. The name does, after all, suggest that the entire day be devoted to mother. But Ill bet dollars to donuts there aren't many of you who didn't make a bed, wash a dish, or otherwise look after some form of daily household chore. You don't get that privilege until your children are ail grown up. You see, I have this theory that you are truly not a mother until your own mother and mother-in-law have passed away. For how can you sit back and revel ina day that is yours when it is not yours alone? For the few moments indulged on you by your crew, there are hours that must be spent dragging the gang around to visit the nannas. 'Personally, I think the whole thing would be better if abolished, or at least replaced with something more ap- propriate. Say a personal free-for-all day whereby you could do your own thing regardless of what anyone else demands of you. Now that would be more along my line. Anyway. Without that one day a year set aside on the calendar to supposedly 'remember mom', maybe a few more would start remembering, or at least thinking of her more often during the remainder of the year. > bYROXANNE REVELER Mother's Day? Before closng down the file for another week, I have a thank-you to bestow. As mostdof my readers know, I can dish out the complaints pretty darn good, but I hope when I give a complement it can be recognized as sincere. • My thanks go out to Whitby Fire Department, par- ticularly its volunteer staff in the Brooklin area. As most of you know by now (frorm the number who have stopped me on my travels and commented, I think that is most of Brooklin), we had a fire in the bakery recently. Bright and early on Satinday morning to be precise. Now, you must be made awareethat the one thing any business person on the main street of Brooklin fears is fire. The buildings are ail old, set close together, and mainly built ef wood...old, dried wood. A fire in one would most assuredly spread down the line encompassing all witnun a short amount of time. When number one hubby roused me from my sleep with the words fire, I nearly had a heart attack on the spot. I· grabbed the first clothes I came to (nothing of which mat- ched as it later turned out) and raced for the telephone while he ran for the fire extinguishers. The call went out to the fire department where a cool and calm dispatcher took all the pertinent info from me. Without a word of a lie, firemen came walking through our doors within seven minutes. That included a permanent unit from the main station in Whitby and our volunteers from Brooklin. I don't know how they got here.so fast, but they did. As it turned out, the fire was confined to the baking ovens and had been put out by the time they arrived. It was just a matter of getting rid of all the obnoxious smoke and double checking everything out. But that wasn't the point. If it should have happened that the fire broke out in an area that was not so easily contained, the speed with which the firefighter arrived could have made the dif- ference between having the bakery, and possibly most of the Brooklin business district, still standing. Apart from the fire trucks that had initially been dispatched, it was also reassuring to learn from the captain on duty, that it had been arranged for another six to stand by in case the fire spread. So thank you to all Whitby firefighters. Not only the ones who showed up during our little catastrophe, but to all of you, fuil and part time, regular and volunteer who are there to help. I'm sleeping a little easier these days. -1