Page 4, Terrace Bay-Schreiber News, Wednesday, January 16, 1985 TerraceBay -- Schreiber The Terrace Bay-Schreiber News is published every Wednesday by: Laurentian Co. Ltd., Box 579, Terrace Bay, Ontario. POT 2wo. I'ma hockey addict ... In my own life, I've waxed enthusiastic over the likes of Jean Beliveau, Howie Morenz, Mike Bossy, Nels Stewart, Gordie.Howe, Johnny Bower, Larry Robinson, Bobby Orr ... the list is endless. However, I never dreamed that hockey would become a vehicle for faith sharing. In 1978, I met Sammy Rothschild _ of Sudbury, the first Jewish player to ever don skates in the NHL (Montreal Maroons, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Americans) back in 1924. Dur- ing an interview with Sam, he shared of his belief in God with me. With his wife ill and in hospital, Sam spoke of God's presence in his life, a presence that sustained and nurtured him through many adversities. As a student-minister in Sundridge, I encountered Bucko McDonald, whom oldtimers will remember was a stocky, barrel-chested Red Wing who helped Detroit defeat the Maroons in '36. In a game that lasted well past 2:00 a.m. at the Forum, Bucko "bounced the burly Maroon forwards around like ten pins on a bowling alley.'" Bucko was heavily involved with his United Church Conference when I saw him. Once a month, he acted as host to Christians of all persuasions at giant breakfasts. Bucko knew his Lord as well as a puck, and alluded to his faith in a pragmatic way. "You witness by liv- ing your faith,' he told me, while turning eggs over light in the frying - pan. In the Muskokas, Bucko lived his Christian committment by shar- ing of himself with others ... in a cof- fee shop, at the local service center, wherever he might be. In my research, I've come to know some sensitive folks in hockey organizations. On the afternoon of my ordination (May 12, 1984), Camil ' Desroches, Publicity Chairman at the Forum, phoned me with these words "Bill, may you be blessed by God in Arthur Black | Telephone: (807) 825-3747. : GENERAL/ADVERTISING MANAGER ........ Seger Vivian Ludington CN i a Ss ot Ss i we Kelley Ann Chesley Gg PRODUCTION MANAGER ............-.----- ee ee cee eeeeces Mary Melo "/') Not SURE IF 119 CONING OR GOING ockey addict your ministry." People like Claude Mouton, Camil Desroches and Jean Beliveau maintain a Christian lifestyle ... hot by being religious, but by liv- ing the Gospel of Jesus Christ out in their lives. On two occasions, I con- - tacted Jean Beliveau for souvenirs of the Habs. One child had M.S., the other was dying of leukemia. Both times, the Canadiens responded with warmth and generosity. Having worked in research with the Canadiens, I can vouch for their kindness and sense of compassion. Certainly other N.H.L. teams have people with a keen sense of Christian responsibilities. Toronto's Harold Ballard frequently receives the "old rhubarb' from the press for his an- tics and comments. However, one of the best kept secrets in Canada has been Harold's personal endorsement of the "March of Dimes"' and pro- - grams to help victims of M.S. Dur- ing the Stanley Cup finals last year, the Oilers and Islanders met with a sick child from Sudbury, giving him souvenirs and a prominent seat to watch the sizzling Islanders in action. Hockey is also famous for "The Flying Fathers", a group of en- thusiastic priests who practice part of their Mission on the ice. Crowds have packed many a small town arena to. support the Flying Fathers in their quest to help people in need. Aurel Joliat, young in his eighties, still plays in games for charities. At a time when professional sports are rift with demands for high salaries, with drug abuse and other forms of materialism and commer- cialism, it's good to know that some leaders in hockey - at every level - are living their faith in hockey. It . gives us pause to consider the Good News of the Gospel, on the rink as well as in our lives. Bill LeGrand St. John's Anglican Church ~ Schreiber By TONY CARLSON Watchdogs ' deal in information. Rover, whose senses are Untie the Watchdog for some months now, a storm deepened by his an- naua report to his master, Parliament. on Parliament Hill. He accused bureaucrats of playing with numbers in real estate deals, failing to IN METRIC OR IMPERIAL {" speak their minds and receive advice from civil servants free from the pressures that public infinitely more attuned than Behind all the numbers' report budget changes for scrutiny brings to bear. ours to things that gobump = ~-- and there were some fighter planes, using slop- But balanced against that in the night, receives infor- shocking stories of waste py accounting intravelex-. is the equally admirable mation through his nose, | 4nd mismanagement -- are --_penses, and so on. principle of accountability ears, eyes, andeven some some issues of key impor- These are, unfortunate-. .-- that the men and women bone in his body which tance as we continue to ly, the familiar horror we elect and who are hired somehow alerts him to an COMe to grips with thisnew stories we have come toex- {0 serve the public are event before it happens. Age of Information. pect from these annual responsible for their ac- If he decides the infor- Emerging from the _ reports. tions and have a duty to mation is important, he public accounts with his But they were played out _face the brickbats as well as passes it along to his master = usually vocally - and together they seek a sen But Rover can't do his job with a stuffy nose, or if he's been deafened; that is, if he can't get the infor- mation to pass on. And that is at the nub of the controversy between our government and our top watchdog, the auditor- general. The current Rover, Ken- neth Dye, has been in the centre of a raging brouhaha fine-tooth comb full of dan- druff, Dye observed that -members of Parliament cannot do the jobs for which we elect them if "'they are misinformed -- or not informed at all' abouto certain government activities. He complained with justification that the government's financial statements are "neither fair _ nor complete", are full of distortion and therefore make it at least difficult for MPs to assess properly the efficiency of the little shop this time against the backdrop of a larger issue -- Dye's determination to get access to cabinet documents on the Petro- Canada deal to take over Petrofina. Three prime ministers had refused to let the auditor-general examine critical information on this enormously important tran- saction, citing the principle of cabinet confidentiality. There is some merit to this precept, giving as it does our senior officials a forum in which they can Arthur gets letters A few months ago, during a slow news week, I mischievously decided to fill this space with something that would "ruffle the waters" as it were. I wrote an attack on the Northern Pike. I called it the most overrated fish in the history of angling. I said it was a bore to catch, a chore to clean and a life-threatening experience to eat. I claimed the fish was ugly, chicken-hearted, bony, squint-eyed and probably had bad breath too. I ain just now digging my way out from under the flood-tide of outrag- ed cards and letters that poured in. What follows is the last (Please God, make it the last) word on the subject. It comes from the pen of a pretty notorious pike-baiter in his own right: the infamous Doctor Skinner of Longlac and Clarkson Avenue: Great Northern Pike is not the most net in the boat and for real fun, a flowing faster than to be just about > collect the bouquets. To be accountable is, simply put, to provide in- formation on_ one's activities. To be sure, the right of access to information can be abused, but the same can be said for cabinet confidences. And in the long run, aren't the perils of too much silence greater than those of excessive openness? Just ask the master who has lost his watchdog. rg 28d RAND "Aad ae stead of two perch skins. Whereupon beautiful thing in the water. Especial ly if he has just swallowed your favourite lure and you have to per- form a Tonsillectomy to retrieve it ... Be that as it may, I disagree with your comment that pike have 'squinty lit- tle eyes' ...-Pike caught in our nor- thern waters have fairly large yellow- green eyes, like a pure bred tomcat and he will outstare you anytime you want to eyeball with him. The only Ontario fish that have to squint are the fish in Lakes Erie and Ontario where the water is so thick they have to squint to see six centimeters in any direction. Your reference to.the pike having about as much fight as a rubber boot is wrong and proves you have never done battle with a Great Northern ... I can attest to some pike landings tak- ing the best part of an hour ... [have twenty pound fish running loose around a couple of highly in- dustrialized sportsmen from the Ex- cited States ... tops any TV show I have seen. Another event that is great for a smile or two is when you decide to have lunch in the boat, sort of drif- ting ... When you have a few keepers on.the stringer and you are hungry and a bit tired. This is when an ex- perienced guide will let the boat drift along a weed bed, especially if his guests have laid their rods crossways, with the lure dangling about four in- ches above the water. I have had fishermen throw their sandwich over- board and their coffee straight up when a big pike, from nowhere, would suddenly splash up at the side - of the boat and disappear with the lure -- and sometimes the entire rod. Mga. PEER: Lea ey Se: to slide a walleye into the net and have a big pike grab it crosswise, like a dog carrying a bone ... you can im- agine the yarns that are told in homes and bars south of the border after such a trip. In closing, Arthur, I think your idea of tanning pike hides and mak- ing them into purses and other female accessories, is not a good one. I say this from experience. Back in the summer of '43, we sponsored a Fish Bikini Contest in Longlac. Professor Eddie Oddnutt, retired trapper of Pagwa, was Master of Ceremonies and Judge of the Con- test. He got in quite an argument with the winner, Lizzie Centerfire, wno modelled a pair of Whitefish skins for a Bra, which was held together in front by a love knot of tanned Smelt. The Judge told her he reckoned the bikini part of her get-up should have (ee Pe -- ee ee ee Ms. Centerfire lost her temper and told old Ed where to shove it. It was bad enough being followed through town, she said, by a covey of cross-eyed tomcats without having to be insulted by an Old Goat. (Whiffle-Tree Annie, also of Pagwa, came in second in an ensemble of Red Horse Suckers, made especially for the occasion by Moe's of Longlac.) So you see, Arthur, why I think you ought to forget about pike purses and pike fashions -- even if the govern- ment gaye the nod in the form of a grant. C'est la vie mon ami, and ... Vive La Bonne Poisson de Nord. Signed, Doc Skinner Well Doc, your French may be a little rusty, but your fish lore isn't. You're right, I'm wrong. Je m'ex- cuse ... and I promise never to: say anything rotten about the noble pike aacainm <