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The Oakville Beaver EXPRESS H O T E L -S U IT E S Stay Smart 'f- f tu 'a r d - ti/h f tw ty O w fftfH M H ty ffle u e p H y e w OmCttL MEDIA OF A Metroland Publication Vol. 37 No. 89 WEDNESDAY, JULY 28,1999 C r i m e r a t e f a l l i n g in H a l t o n /£> kr a i f fToughest Lake Rousseau swim worth effort for Camp Trillium, women say Joy Greene & Debbie Bang battled high winds in nine-hour crossing By Howard Mozel OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Joy Greene may not have shattered any speed records Saturday during her annual swim of Lake Rousseau but after fighting persistent winds and stroking with a broken hand, finishing was more than enough reward. The same goes for training partner Debbie Bang, who completed the 22- kilometre ordeal alongside Greene after nine hours and 14 minutes in the water. The pair's satisfaction was fur­ ther buoyed by the fact that their efforts raised more money for Camp Trillium, two support centres for chil­ dren and teens affected by cancer. "It was brutal. It was the toughest swim ever," said Greene, who swam Lake Rousseau last year in eight hours, seven minutes. "But the feeling was there that we were doing this for the kids." Over the last five summers, Greene has raised more than $12,000 for Camp Trillium. This year's total has yet to be tallied. She was inspired to tackle the swim by her godmother's granddaughter Traci who, in 1995, was diagnosed with leukemia af age 10. Traci remains in remission. This year, though, Greene broke a Joy Greene and Debbie Bang at Falgarwood Pool. bone in her hand after fainting from eight-hour period if it wasn't for the the heat and falling six weeks before the swim. She and Bang continued training anyway, with each determined to see the swim through. "We both knew we could do it," said Greene. The pair went into the water around 7 a.m. There was plenty of sun and the water was warm. But about four miles into the swim the lake became choppy with two-foot swells and a strong cross-wind picked up to 30 kms/hr at its worst. "The waves felt like bucket' of water pouring over our heads," said Greene. "All in all, it was worth it though. It was tough, but we made it." Despite the conditions, the swim­ mers were 20 minutes ahead of last year by halfway through the event, but the day eventually took its toll. "We could have made it within the wind," said Greene, whose strokes were clocked at 60 to 63 per minute the entire swim. "My hand held up well and I didn't have to tape it." Near the end of their effort, Greene and Bang stopped momentarily at the lighthouse and decided to swim toward the finish line together. 'There were tears in our eyes," said Greene. "We knew we were going to finish it, to do what we came to 4 d." When the swimmers' hands finally touched the dock, both were elated. 'The boats all sounded their air horns and everyone clapped," said Greene, who definitely plans to do it all again next year. "It was an amazing feeling. I'm a little sore muscle-wise and I have a little sunburn on my back, but nothing I couldn't handle." Anyone wishing to donate is encouraged to do so through the Photo by Ron Kuzyk Canadian Cancer Society, 190 Memorial Ave., Unit F, Orillia, Ontario, L3V 5X6. Cheques should be made payable to the Canadian Cancer Society - Swim For the Kids. You can also call 1-800-555-7922. Camp Trillium offers week-long day camp sessions, residential week­ end programs, one-week family camps, pre-school groups, teen weekends and more. There is even a camper and staff exchange program with other oncology camps across North America. Garratt's Island is located on West Lake near Sandbanks Provincial Park an hour west of Kingston. It accommodates 1,500 campers each year. Rainbow Lake - a 140-acre facili­ ty with a 35-acre lake - was donated to Camp Trillium by the Long Point Region Conservation Authority. In total, v i o l e n t c r i m e o f f e n c e s h a v e decreased by 5.2%, or from 922 cases at the mid-point of 1998 to 874 ^ Ambulance service operator wants to improve training for paramedics By Irene Gentle SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER The downloading of ambulance services could bring advanced level paramedics to north Halton, the Region's new ambulance director said. Advanced paramedics can provide a higher level of life support than basic paramedics. Under the current, provincially run system, the more highly trained paramedics are centred in the south. Taking a look at the level of training across the region, there's certainly a discrepancy now, in that the south has advanced paramedics and the north does­ n't," said Jim King. The Milton resident who has been on the job since June 28th, said that could change when Halton grabs hold of the steering wheel, said King. The Region is expected to assume land ambulance operations as early as Jan. 1, 2000. At that time, Halton will be looking at ways to bring about 60% of area paramedics up to an advanced training level without bankrupting the sys­ tem, said King. Currently, a costly provincial program takes para­ medics out of the system for an 18-week training ses­ sion. A self-directed learning approach may be a less expensive option, said King. One of his first tasks on the job will be to begin contract negotiations with the Region's current sup­ pliers, Halton Hills Ambulance Service and Mississauga Halton Ambulance Service. Both are run by Canadian Medical Response, which is owned by Laidlaw Inc. Robbery, auto theft on the rise while sex assaults decline Halton Regional Police report­ed this week that criminal activity such as sex offences and domestic assault has dropped during the first half of 1999. While some crimes - like robbery and auto theft - are on the increase, the more violent offences are down. Sex crimes, for example, dropped 28.4% (58 from 81). Domestic assault also decreased by 6.4% or down from 140 to 131. . . Also good news is the 9.6% drop in impaired driving occur­ rences, or 161 from 178. Hit-and- run incidents are actually up 7%, however, or 615 to 663. this year. These crimes accounted for 11.9% of all criminal offences. Fraud cases declined 25.5% (298 to 222) while property damage incident dipped 14.8% (1,076 to 917) and theft dropped 9.8% (2,569 to 2,316). Overall, the police report indicates a decrease of 369 criminal offences (4.8%) during the first six months of this year, from 7,701 in 1998 to 7,332. Also good news is the 9.6% drop in impaired driving occurrences, or 161 from 178. Hit-and-run incidents are actually up 7%, however, or 615 to 663. Some crimes have increased over the first half of this year. Robbery, for example, jumped 31% (55 from 42); break and enters rose 7.8% (862 from 800); auto theft increased 24.1% (510 from 411) and offensive weapon cases rose 7.4% (73 from 68). The year-to-date clearance rate dropped slightly from 45.4% in 1998 to 43.8% this year. At the same time, the total number of calls for service have crept up by 1,270 occurrences (3.2%) in the first half of this year. ( S e e 'P r o p e r t y ' p a g e 5 ) Give blood today Although you may take a vacation this summer, car accidents, emergen­ cies and surgeries won't, so the Canadian Blood Services is asking for blood donors to make a special effort to donate through the holiday season. A blood donor clinic will be held today at the Croatian Parish Hall, 2110 Trafalgar Rd. N., from 12:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. All blood types are needed, with a special need for donors with type O blood. Healthy individuals between the ages of 17 and 71 can give blood every 56 days. First time donors much be 60 years or younger. today's paper Jim Kingidifference in paramedic training across "I think what we want to do now is contract with the existing operators because it is the least risk option," said King. "We have good providers in the Region." That will buy Halton enough time to consider eventually taking the whole system in house, main­ taining the status quo or contracting it out through a request for proposal process. No matter which option the Region chooses, it will not likely jeopardize the job security of paramedics, region Photo by Ron Kuzyk said King. "I don't think the paramedics at this time have a lot to worry about." An aging population will create more work in the health-care field and there just aren't that many para­ medics to go around, explained King. "If the contract was awarded elsewhere, it would be difficult for the supplier to plop in the para­ medics." (S e e 'S k i l ls ' p a g e 2 ) taitonais.____ Focik............... ---- -A6 __ B1 Entertainment.... ...... B4 Civie Holiday ..... r*f Classified.......... __ C4 Automotive.......... ... m rn Business.____ For Home Delivery: The Brick, The Bay Partial delivery: Lansing Buildall, CIHS Guardian, Future Shop, Little Caesars, City Parent Canadian Publications Mail Product Agreement #435-201 Elisabeth Hibbert B.Sc., D.Ch. 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