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

Chamber doesn't include Tiny rep by Robert Risk Staff Writer The Penetanguishene-Tiny Chamber -of Commerce doesn't have official represen- tation from Tiny Township, a situation which has existed at least six years. At the Jan. 17 meeting, Penetang coun- Aj y True North The barbershop quartet True North sang at Georgian Manor cillor Bob Klug pointed out Tiny is a charter member of the organization, which was formed 42 years ago. "The letterhead right on our minutes says Penetanguishene-Tiny Chamber of Commerce. A lot of Tiny has benefitted from commerce in Penetang."' As a result, the chamber sent a letter to Tiny council, requesting it to send a coun- as part of the home's furnishings fund gala. From left, Harold Writing is on wall for smokers by Robert Risk Staff Writer The Penetang arena and parks commit- tee will severely limit smoking at Brian Orser Arena possibly banning it altogether. The announcement was made at Mon- day night's council meeting after reading a letter from David Butler-Jones, the Veteran cop resigns by Robert Risk Staff Writer An eight-year veteran of Penetang's police force resigned Jan. 13, citing per- sonal reasons. Chief Bob Cummings said Sgt. Robert Skeaff had some problems he felt he couldn't resolve while working as a police officer. However, while he was aware of Skeaff's difficulties, Cummings said the resignation came very unexpectedly. As a result, the police have advertised for another officer and Cummings will con- sider one of the present constables for promotion. The chief didn't anticipate any problem in getting enough applicants for interviews by the Feb. 24 cut off date. "When we looked for a position in 1985, we had 48 applications. The benefits are good and the work is interesting, so I can see why the numbers are there." Once the applications close, Cummings said about six or seven will be chosen for interviews. Candidates will be reviewed by Mayor Bob Sullivan, Cummings and the public safety committee before a selection is made. cillor or official representative to the joint meetings. Tiny Reeve Anthony Lancia, who 'hap- pens to be last year's chamber president, supports the idea. "It's mutually beneficial and working together has all kinds of advantages. A lot of township residents work in Penetang, so cooperation only makes sense." Bertram, Ken Simmonds, Jim Doyle and Sandy Widmeyer. medical officer of health for Simcoe County. Butler-Jones commended Penetang council for earlier efforts to limit smoking in the arena. He said this helps in two ways. First, it improves air quality both for athletes and spectators. Second, "'it helps to set an example for young people that smoking is not consis- tent with health and sports." Deputy reeve Bob Cascagnette, chair- man of the arena and parks committee, said the decision on how to limit smokers will be made soon. The tough restrictions should take effect next winter, he said. Cascagnette said he didn't want to step on any toes but that limiting smoking made sense. "Our bleachers are made of wood and have to be checked after every event for lit cigarettes. Not allowing smoking might even lower our insurance premiums." Cascagnette pointed out that the Brian Orser Hall is often used for stag parties. Expecting party-goers not to smoke would be too much to ask, he suggested. While president, Lancia said requests for financial assistance from Tiny had been refused. "It was ridiculous. Even $100 would have been a symbolic gesture. We've been taking and not giving, which is something we're changing," he said. Another example of this, he said, is the $3,000 donation the township is giving the parks board for the arena in Penetang. "I was told that out of 300 boys who play hockey there, about 200 were from Tiny Township." Lancia said it was likely the issue of membership on the chamber and a dona- tion would be discussed at the next coun- cil meeting. French Centre is. celebrating anniversary © by Robert Risk Staff Writer The Centre d'activites Francaises celebrated its 15th anniversary in Penetanguishene Friday with a ribbon cut- ting ceremony. Co-founders Joan Northcott and Roland Desroches were present at the event, which began modestly years ago. "We started in a storefront on Simcoe Street. Back then it was just Roland and I," said Northcott. This soon changed, due to the growing success of their operation, which was largely involved with French nursery schools. "There are a lot of parents concerned about their children losing their French language. It's easy to learn at an early age, so that's where we started them," said Northcott. The popularity of learning in this en- vironment spread and presently there are two French nursery schools; one at St. Joseph's school in Penetang and another in Barrie. Two more are scheduled to begin in Oc- tober and an expansion for Le Caron is also expected to house a French day care centre. By 1977, the group needed a larger loca- tion and applied as a French group outside of Quebec for grants to bid on the old post office building on Main Street. They were successful, which was for- tunate for the community, said Desroches. "The centre now employs more than 20 full and part-time people, with lots of spin off jobs in the summer." Northcott agreed and said the French community was especially in need of a focus for their culture. "This was a viable French community that was fast losing its culture and language. A permanent presence that would help every facet like arts, music and theatre was needed." The centre's officials said there will be 15 more symbolic ribbon cuttings this year, the next which will take place during Winterama.