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oe GLB ENTS NE 7 by Murray Moore Staff Writer Last Thursday evening's meeting of the Concerned Citizens for Bilingual Unity featured the sitting MPPs for Simcoe Centre and Simcoe East, a federal liberal and a federal NDP candidate, and a lot of emotion. The meeting was advertised as an in- formation session for the purpose of learning the positions of the main political parties through their representatives on the issue of the unbuilt French high school slated for Penetanguishene. Latecomers The hall of the Penetanguishene Legion was full. Latecomers had to stand near the en- tranceway. , Mayor Ron Bellisle, who emphasized he was not appearing in his capacity as mayor, wearing a CCBU button, sat at the front on the left of CCBU chairman Bruce Tinney. When asked how he thought the meeting went at its conclusion, he replied, looking to the half of the hall recently occupied by Ecole Le Caron students and French high school emotion- supporters, "About the way that I thought it would."' National interest George Taylor, Conservative MPP for Simcoe Centre, which includes Penetanguishene, said the Premier and the _ Minister of Education decided to order the school built after considering the national interest. He reviewed the Simcoe County Board of Education's recommendation that a French language high school not be built. The board, he also pointed out, also said that the province might consider such a school to be in the best interests of the province and of the country. The board, he concluded, said it would do its part in running the school if the money to build it came from another source. | Legion hall filled for CCBU packed Politicians Gordon Smith, Conservative MPP for Simcoe East, was the only one of the four politicians attending in answer to an in- vitation from the CCBU to wear a CCBU button. Minister of Education Bette Stephenson was also invited to attend but she failed to show up. Smith reminded the crowd that the Con- servative government has only committed itself to erecting a temporary school. A permanent school would be built at the end of two years, if the numbers warranted the building of a permanent school. He mentioned 250 as the necessary number. He reaffirmed his stand, given previously at a CCBU summer meeting, that he would support a temporary school, but not a per- manent school. The second public meeting to discuss plans for Winterama was held a week ago at noon at the Hotel Brule. Despite the bad weather there was a good turnout. The local radio station will be sponsoring a snow sculpture contest open to all residents of Penetanguishene. There will be two categories; one for the school children (sculptures to be built on the front lawns of the various schools); one for families (sculptures to be built in own front yard). Those interested in caught Winterama Roadblock Construction of the school was supposed to start last year. Penetanguishene council has put up a roadblock by rejecting an application to rezone a section of property beside the town's high school. A school cannot be put on the property until the zoning is changed. Jack Harber, picked last September to be the provinced Liberal candidate in Simcoe East in the next provincial election, suggested efforts should be concentrated on providing jobs for high school graduates. His party's position, he stated, is that French schools will be provided where numbers warrant a school. Another Liberal policy determines what number is needed in a particular case before a school will be built, she said. Partisans Fayne Bullen, a past federal candidate for the NDP in Simcoe North, urged the half of the hall filled with French high school par- tisans to create a facility somewhere in Simcoe County where people of all ethnic backgrounds could immerse themselves in French. Winterama countdown planning continues, timetable is on target... wearing a remaining profit will button, support prizes and Full hall Bruce Tinney and Ron Bellisle, on the far end of the head table in the Penetanguishene Legion, along with two elected politicians and two can- didates, were the centre of attention in the crowded Legion Hall last Thursday, when CCBU members held a public meeting on the French high school issue. Fr. high school supporters' feelings clear at CCBU meeting Moments of laughter shared by all the people who attended last week's Concerned Citizens for Bilingual Unity meeting were few and far between. More supporters of the unbuilt French high school in Penetanguishene helped fill the hall of the town's Legion than did sup- porters of the CCBU. Staff and students from Ecole Secondaire Le Caron, French Language Advisory Committee chairman Claudette Paquin, and Centre d'Activites francaise founder and president Roland Desroches were among the group that cheered and pounded table tops when a speaker said something favourable about the controversial school. Jack Harber, who will be the Simcoe East Liberal candidate in the next provincia! election, started his speech by describing his preparation before the meeting. He called a friend who lives in Tiny Township to ask his advice on the approach he should take at the meeting. Harber said he was advised his best ap- proach would be to find a big snowdrift along the way from Orillia to Penetanguishene and drive his car as far as possible into it. Another speaker who momentarily lightened the atmosphere was Ecole Secondaire Le Caron physics teacher Marc Llanos. He said he has been a teacher for 23 years, teaching nine of those years in French. Llanos spoke in a very animated manner, waving his hands in tune with his words. He didn't: need a microphone to carry his words to the fringes of the audience. _ At one point CCBU president Bruce Tinney asked Llanos what was inflaming -him. "I always talk like that!" he replied. Llanos spent part of his time replying to a CCBU speaker named Stella who spoke from her chair among the CCBU supporters rather than going to the front and using a microphone. She spoke of threats and harrassing telephone calls she had received from relatives because of her support of the CCBU, and gavea detailed description of an incident during which she said she was taken to task in- her home by a realtive. At one point during her speech another woman on the side of the hall occupied by French school supporters was heard to angrily protest "That's a lie!"' At another point, when Llanos declared in French that he spoke French, a woman in the CCBU_ section an- nounced indignantly to her neighbours "Je parle francais aussi." A man beside her said Llanos should be cut off when Llanos addressed a question to CCBU spokesman Gordon Press in' French. Someone else near him told him it wasn't possible. Tinney on several occasions drew protests when he cut from people standing in line to ask a question at the microphone, nearly all of whom were high school supporters, to CCBU supporters in the audience to get "a different viewpoint." "T think that's fair, don't you?,' he asked several times. The meeting ended a little more than two hours after it started with people standing in line to ask questions. Tinney said the meeting was worthwhile, that many views had been expressed, and that a lot of food for thought had been provided. He personally hadn't changed his views. entering can register by phone at 526-2268 or by sending a postcard with name, address, and telephone number to Tom Manton, CKMP, 490 Dominion Ave., Midland. The Commodore Hotel will be sponsoring a mechanical bull- riding contest. For more information, contact Bob Monteith at 549- 7458. Vincent Hair Design will be sponsoring a moustache contest. It is not necessary to start clean-shaven, just register with Vince at 549-8841. A popular contest to be sponsored by ,the Centre' d'activites francaises, -is_ the lumberjack contest. For entry forms and more information contact Jeanne Forget, 549-3116. To get everyone into the carnival spirit ESPSS students, under the direction of art teacher Hugh Niblock, will be painting the store windows. The Penetanguishene Legion will be donating the prizes to the win- ners. Spirit And _ speaking of spirit. Boutique Chez- Nous. 63 Main St, will be sponsoring a Carnaval Spirit Contest. Spotters around town will hand out entry forms for a lucky draw to anyone tuque. or carnival sash. Contest starts Jan. 20th so don't be caught without yours. (All these items are on sale at the boutique). Winterama buttons are now ready. When the school children approach you to buy a button please give them your support. Twenty-five cents per button sale will go towards their school activities and _ the trophies for Winterama. Volunteers are needed. Please contact Mr. Bob Delorme, 549- 3366 or Mrs. Joyce Sauve, 549-2232 and offer your assistance. This is a second of a series of weekly columns to keep you up to date on what's happening for Win- terama. VENEZ DONC AU CARNAVAL D'HIVER! $1,700 collision at Fuller and Robert Accidents of a noteworthy nature in Penetanguishene over the weekend were confined to Saturday. James Bouillon, of 4-22nd Street, Port McNicoll was unable to stop at the intersection of Fuller Avenue and Robert Street East in the late af- ternoon. His car slid into the intersection. The other car involved in the collision was driven by Linda Desrochers of Midland. Estimated damage to the Bouillon car was $1,200, to the Desrochers car, $500. No injuries resulted, and no charges were laid. Dorothy Cascagnette, of 22 Poyntz St., Penetanguishene, was charged with failing to yield to traffic on a through highway following a two-car collision at 12:30 p.m. at Robert St. West and Benson Drive. Damage to her car was $250. Damage to the car of Angeline Baycroft of RR 3, Penetanguishene, the other car involved, was set at $1.000. No injuries resulted. Investigation continues into a 1:45 a.m. accident in which a car parked in front of 1 Poyntz St., owned by Patrick Maheu of 615 Norman Cres. Midland, was struck in the left rear. Resulting damage was estimated to be $400. The identity of the driver of the other vehicle is unknown. Wednesday, January 14, 1981, Page 3