Ontario Community Newspapers

Port Perry Star, 5 Jul 1978, p. 5

The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

w------------ pA A, t Td adel AAA [LF ati sdvswmerice tans od cenit dnoeusddioey Fifty years ago this picture was taken of the Manchester Public School students. The school was located on Durham Road 21, west of Highway No. 12 and there-are now two homes 60 YEARS AGO Thursday, July 4th, 1918 An autoist had the misfortune to run into and break the plate glass window at Byer's Drug Store. A defect in the steering apparatus was the cause. Mr. Jos. Stone has bought the St. Charles Hotel located on the property. The picture was taken in September 1928. Do you recognize any of the students? Photo courtesy Mrs. L. B, Roberts. business. The transfer takes place July 25th. Mr. George Kilpatrick of Vancouver, B.C. was in town visiting Mr. J. Rolph. Mr. Kilpatrick learned harness-making with him 26 years ago. A Continued on page 6: aes ~ PORT PERRY STAR -- Wednesday, July 5, 1978 -- 5 letters " Dear Sir: Sr Apartment location not convenient for Seniors os Many older people do not So the Griffen lumber drivea car and Iask you how yard on the Lake front has many of these folk could been sold. walk eight or ten blocks for Many towns people think their mail? it would have been a perfect Perhaps am wrong, but location for a new Sr. citi- my impression was, these zen's House Apt. So close to apartments were built for shopping, the Post Office, the convenience of older citi- Churches and the I.G.A. zens and to aid them in their Why would anyone con- advancing years. template for one moment of putting a Sr. Citizen's House a hill, and away at the north end of the town. Sincerely, H. Dhel Bentley Need You! Feel like doing something nice today? The Port Perry Kinsmen Club are holding their annual summer Blood Donor Clinic today [Wednesday] at the Immaculate Conception Church and would like to see a good turnout for this very worthwhile project. Remember, "Your blood is the gift of life." Take a few minutes of your time and attend the clinic which will be open from 2:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Don't forget ... do it now! COURAGE Here's a story that might bring a lump to your throat and maybe even a tear to your eye. I came across it the other day, buried on the back pages of a daily newspaper, tucked away beneath a column by Ann s Landers and an ad for discount carpet. As far as I'm concerned these kind of stories should get prominent coverage in the media, not only because they are. .. of interest (or should be, anyway) to people, but also because they can serve as a lesson to us all. The story is about a 13-year old boy living in Ottawa, and the fact that he is now attending a regular school, and getting along just fine. So, what's so special about that? Well, the youngster has a bit of a handicap: he was born without arms and legs. Two, years ago, he was taken out of a school for the handicapped. He couldn't study and progress because ther students were constantly shrieking. His parents searched for several months before they could find a conventional school that would take their son, and when he was finally admitted to a private Catholic school that has classrooms and washrooms all on the same floor, things apparently have gone just fine. He gets around in an electric wheelchair with special controls. He taught himself to write at age five by holding a pencil between his stump and his chin; he types by holding a ruler the same way. He swims in the pool every Tuesday, plans to attend high school next year, and hopes to become a translator, after training at University. He is already off to a pretty good start to this end as he speaks English, French, Arabic (from his parents) and German, which he taught himself. From the newspaper account thirteen-year old Paul Haddad sounds like a pretty remarkable young man, He says that despite the fact he has no arms or legs, he doesn't feel like he is handicapped. All he wants is a chance to do things, see things, be entertained, and he says he speaks for all people who spend their lives in wheelchairs: 'We have a right to some joy in life." Right on. That is exactly what people with various kinds of handicaps have been trying to tell the rest of us for years. "Never mind what we can't do, but just take a look at what we are able to do." i I'know that many handicapped people don't like to be fussed over; they don't like special attention, they don't like newspaper stories about their accomplishments and their skills. They would rather simply be accepted for what they can do and left alone to lead a normal life. On this point I have to disagree, for I feel that any accomplishment these days deserves attention, and no matter what anybody says, overcoming a severe physical handicap takes a special kind of person. It takes courage, dedication, patience, and an iron will to succeed. Why shouldn't the rest of us sit up and take notice? THE KOOKS Heaven knows, the cranks and complainers, the screw- balls, the faddists, the criminals, and the assortment of other social misfits are getting plenty of ink and air-time in the press and electronic media these days. You want to get your name in the paper? Go blow up a jumbo jet, kidnap a bank manager, skulk around the streets of a city blowing away strangers with a .44 Magnum; or threaten to kill a politician. 2 These are the ways to get your name in the paper. Do something evil or criminal and the press will come breaking down your door; youll have a small army of psychiatrists, psychologists, socialogists, economists and the odd political scientist saying it's not your fault, you're the victim. You'll have a book publisher fighting for the story of your sordid life, and film makers fighting for the rights to capture the sordid story of your sordid life, and they'll end up making millions showing it in movie houses to people just like you who might promptly run out and do somethihg equally as evil just to get their names in the paper. Somehow our system of rewards is swinging up-side- down. Why just the other day I saw a picture of one of the participants in the Great British Train Robbery. He was sunning himself in South America, smiling, chatting to reporters. Gary Gilmour, remember him? He got more ink a year or so ago, because as a convicted murderer, he demanded that the State carry through on its death sentence. Thankfully, they finally did put him out of his misery and off the front pages. The idiot Son of Sam is another case. He's been sentenced to hundreds of years in prison for a series of cold-blooded murders in New York City. Theoretically he could get parole in 25 years. I'll bet anything the story of his life will be out in hard cover just in time for the Christmas rush on | @cw : (oun) : chotterbox ..... books, the paper back version will be out in time for the following Christmas, and the movie a couple of months later. They might even get him to direct it, or better yet, star in it, on weekends, of course, when he's out of the slammer on two day passes. I'm stretching things a little, I know. But the point is that society has more interest in anti-social behavior than it has for positive accomplishments like those of a thirteen-year old Paul Haddad, who despite the fact he has no arms or legs, is finding himself a place in this crazy, mixed up world. Good for him. (port perry star 3) Company Limited 0 Phone 985-7383 Sam, 1 (2 7s, Cag asd Serving the Township of Scugog J.PETER HVIDSTEN Publisher Advertising Manager J.B. McCLELLAND Editor Member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association and Ontario Weekly Newspaper Association Published every Wednesday by the Port Perry Star Co. Ltd., Port Perry, Ontario Authorized as second class mail by the Post Office Department, Ottawa, and for payment of postage incash Second Class Mail Registration Number 0265 Subscription Rate: In Canada $8.00 per year Elsewhere $10.00 per year. Single copy 20¢ danlA ML hs a RE I Dh i? A Er re ed Sav ~ vs SY

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