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se ll. --7 Page 8 cNEIGHBORS By Ann Davelaar The Crerars Honey is their Beesness Ian Crerar, 46, senior partner of the Crerar Honey Farm near Vernon, has devoted his life to beekeeping. "You like your business. It's not all money, or you wouldn't do it,"' he says. Ian's grandfather came from Scotland and started keeping bees as a sideline to his dairy herd. Ian's father moved to the present site of the Honey Farm and kept sheep as well as bees. Sugar- 'rationing during World War II led to beekeeping as a full-time oc- cupation for the Crerar family. Today, Ian's wife, Bette, 45, and most of their children take part in the operation, which pro- duces 300,000 pounds of honey per year. Bette is the office manager and principal storekeeper. Janet, 18, a Grade 13 student, helps her mother in the store. , Danny, 24, does carpentry, electrical and mechanical work for the farm when he has time away from his job as carpenter. Jeffrey, 22, junior partner of the com- pany, looks after the bees. The youngest son, Kenny, 12, labels jars for money to buy hockey equipment. Ian himself goes out in his red truck to do wholesale and delivery. When he is. not out on the road, Ian supervises the daily work schedule. The Crerar family and their staff work very hard, especially from September to March. In _ September, after the honey has been gathered, Jeffrey and his crew prepare a thick syrup from sugar and water. They place a can holding about-70 pounds of syrup upside-down on each of 600 hives. Holes punched in the lid allow the 10,000 bees in each colony to feed during the long winter. Then the crew closes and covers the hives to make them wind-and- waterproof for the winter. The bees are left to survive as best they can until the following March, when the first flowers appear. During the winter months a lot of effort goes into processing the honey. The workers cut open the combs, extract the honey, heat and package it. They collect the wax and sell it to a dealer, so it can be used as foundation for the next season's honeycombs. The workers label the containers and store them in a large special room called a cooler. The store, conveniently built onto the house, is open all winter. Would you like liquid or creamed honey? Plain honey-butter or with a dash of cinnamon? Take your choice! They'll even fill up a plastic pail which you can bring back for refills. You may want to buy ready- made wax candles or get sheets of dyed wax, wicks and an instruc- tion booklet, so you can try to make your own creation. Perhaps . a special cookbook or a sampler- pack containing several kinds of honey may tempt you. The Crerar honey operation grosses about $200,000 annually. Ian regularly delivers his product to around 100 independent stores Russell, Ont. A. SS. Eldridge Cartage STONE, SAND, FILL, TOP SOIL & SNOW REMOVAL > Bob Eldridge 445-2864 90 Main St. N. Chesterville, Ont. 448-2349 BARIBAULT, BESEAU, CAMPBELL ; & McCUAIG Barristers, Solicitors & Notaries Public Industriel St. Embrun, Ont. 443-5683 E COMPTABLES AGREES CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS C.P. 128 (P.O. Box 128), Embrun, Ontario, Canada KOA 1W0 (613) 443-5201 PONTIAC BUICK % Representatives: Rob McVey -- 526-0076 Jim Senos -- 445-5372 NEW AND USED CARS AND TRUCKS GMC TRUCKS--DAILY RENTALS AND LEASING 1492 Youville Dr. Orleans 824-8550 and fruitstands, and the Honey Farm store accounts for approx- imately 25% of sales. But like every owner-operator, Ian is concerned about the future of his business. The cost of fuel and containers is constantly ris- ing. And the weather also plays an important part. Last year the Crerar family had a very small crop, like most other honey- producers in eastern Ontario and Quebec, because of the low snowfall of the previous winter. "It really puts you to the wall," Ian says. "If you have to buy honey to keep your trade and bor- row at 19 1/2%, your (profit) margin is very small. It was one of the toughest years we've ever had."' WINCHESTER TOURS Niagara in Blossom Time -- En- joy the Niagara Area in blossom time. Stay in the quaint beauty of Niagara-On-The-Lake. May 7-10. $210 per person, twin. Wonderland -- The Family Weekend. Canada's newest at- traction -- our answer to 'Disneyworld'? 370 acres of adventure, fun and fantasy for the whole family. Plus a, visit to the fabulous Metro Zoo. July 9-12, adult $152, child (under 16) $70. Penn Dutch -- Take a little time away from this world's hustle and bustle and come along with us to experience the simple life of Amish, June 15-18. $215 per per- son twin. New York -- Labour Day Weekend -- Come to "The Big Apple". Visit the city that's unlike any other city in the world. Sept. 4-7. $269 per person twin. WINCHESTER TOURS & Travel Agency Ltd. 14 Drentex St. Marilyn Sullivan -- Outside Agent Russell Area, 445-2017 Janet Crerar fills a honey jar. Hwy. 31 at Greely M.D. Ross Realty Ltd. FOR YOUR REAL ESTATE NEEDS 821-2362 VICE & GRAIG FUNERAL HOMES INC. WINCHESTER 505 Church 774-2120 CHESTERVILLE METCALFE 62 Queen Highway 31 448-2120 821-2120 Metcalfe RESIDENT FUNERAL DIRECTOR - CHRISTOPHER DUNCAN ASSOCIATE FUNERAL DIRECTOR - C. MELVIN VICE Serving the Metcalfe, Vernon, Russell, Gloucester and Osgoode areas since January 1966. Information on Funeral Pre-Planning available with no obligation Telephone 821-2120 Russell Area No Toll Charge Call 774-2120