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6 stouffville suntribune thursday dec 15 2005 suntnhune a metroland community newspaper 34 civic ave 3rd floor stoufmlle on l4a 7z5 publisher ian proudfoot editor in chief debora kelly business manager robert lazurko director production interactive media john futhey advertising director distribution director markeringpartnerships retail flyer sales nicole fletcher advertising director classified real estate events management gord paolucci circulation barry black director circulation systems lynn pashko director debra weller york region printing general manager bob dean editorial municipalities must react tony wong is sorry and the liberal mpp for markham should be sorry mr wong parliamentary assistant for the ministry of research and innovation called communities suffering from job losses crying babies it goes without saying that commu nities have suffered a loss of jobs but what they should do is look for new ways to create jobs to develop their economy and not just come as crying babies to the province mr wong said in response to questions from the conservatives it was as even mr wong acknowl edges the wrong thing to say its no wonder some of the 52000 workers who have lost their manufactur ing jobs in the past year took the com ment to heart and its no wonder some hardhit municipalities took umbrage as well labour groups opposition politicians even the liberalleaning toronto star called for his head but mr wong insists he didnt mean the remark the way it came out during the heat of debate i was not referencing any individual workers or particular municipality he told the york region newspaper group tuesday while mr wong publicly apologized for his comment hes not sorry about the message behind it i truly believe that the federal govern ment the provincial government municipalities and industry need to work together he said hundreds of millions of dollars are poured into programs to help workers make transitions through apprentice ships and other support programs and according to mr wong his min istry provides financial support and human resources to help municipalities find innovative ways to diversify their economies but much of the forethought should come from the local level in that mr wong is correct in a cutthroat competitive global economy it isnt difficult to predict ontario will continue to lose highpaying manufacturing jobs so municipalities must predict future trends and react now markham itself where mr wong sat as a municipal councillor is credited with creating its own niche in the hightech industry economic upheaval especially in oneindustry towns remains inevitable the key however is to make sure secure wellpaying jobs arent always replaced by serviceindustry jobs which tend to pay less and are often less stable letters to the editor community craftmanship on display at christmas events some of the best examples of stouffvilles country close to the city appeal took place over the weekend of nov 25 to 27 at the whitchurchstouffville museums victorian tea in vandorf the country pastimes craft show at lemonville community centre and lunch served at lemonville united church within walking distance of the craft show visitors to the sale were greeted by a door man complete with top hat they were served tea fancy sandwiches and plum pud ding on fine china by hostesses dressed in victorian styles a tour of the museum buildings after tea gave a real sense of stepping back two cen turies especially in the historic brown house with its traditional christmas decorations and toasty woodstove a wonderful variety of handmade christmas decorations sewing preserves and baking was showcased at the craft show friday to sunday in the historic community centre visitors were greeted by the fragrance of evergreen boughs complimentary cider and a friendly welcome by participants in the show admission was free many attending the craft show walked up mccowan a short distance to the lunch avail able on saturday in the basement of the united church the church was decorated beautifully for christmas the church women had prepared half a dozen types of homemade soup as many bowls as you wanted sandwiches and the stouffville suntribune welcomes your letters all submissions must be less than 400 words and must include a daytime telephone number name and address the stouffville suntribune reserves the right to publish or not publish and to edit for clarity and space write letters to the editor 34 civic ave po box 154 stouffville l4a 7z5 email jmasonyrngcom or fax 9055137525 home baking for dessert and although the lunch was well attended and tables at a premium there was no sense of haste communicated by the gracious vol unteers serving there the light snow which had just fallen on the countryside and trees was visible through the church windows it all added to the ambience and country charm of the occasion events like this remind us of the enduring value of craftsmanship in a world flooded with disposable junk they demonstrate the generosity of volun- teerism at a time when so many seem to have time only for themselves they also reinforce the sense of communi ty and heritage so important to the town at a time when massive development threatens to obliterate the small town character so many of us cherish thanks to all who contributed to a won derful weekend jill mcwhinnie stouffville editorial editor jim mason jmasonyrngcom administration office manager vivian oneil imieilyrngcom events management shows manager bonnie rondeau brondeauyrngcom production manager pam nichols pnicliolsyrngcom advertising classified manager ann campbell acampbellyrngcom retail manager staceyallen sallenyrngcom managing director new business flyer sales dawna andrews tlanilrcwsyrngcom managing director real estate mike rogerson mrogersonyrngcom fdsflo editorial 9055131717 1 9055137525 advertising 9055131717 classified 1800743335311 9058531765 distrihution 9055131717 cktulieons ls3euj fast boari member onurio press cocnch suntnbune a york region newspaper group community newspaper the suntribune published every thursday and saturday is a member o the metroland printing publishing and distributing ltd a whollyowned subsidiary of torstar corporation metroland is comprised of 70 community publications across ontario the york region newspaper group includes the liberal serving richmond hill and thomhillvaughan citecnthe economist sun markham the era banner newmarketaurora stouffville suntribune georgina advocate york region business times north of the city yorkregioncom and york region printing off the top with jim mason luckily columbine didnt come to stouffville secondary panic was understandable in the voice of the parent whose child had just called home it wasnt the usual looking-for-a-ride- homefromschool or going-to-a- friends-home-for-dinner-to-kick-off- theweekend call parents of teenagers know so well it wasnt even a phone call it was a text message sent from under a desk in a classroom at stouffville district secondary school friday morn ing in emergency lingo it was a code red the school had been locked down meaning students and staff remained where they were until further notice that turned into two nervous hours of wait and see unable to get more information at the scene or by calling the school some parents called the suntribune includ ing the one with text message visions of the movie bowling for columbine or other school slayings in red lake minn or taber alta sprung to mind at least in our york region newsroom with two reporters and a photogra pher at the bramble crescent school we were able to provide parents some of the facts as we knew them at the time ver bally and through our website yorkre- gioncom a male student was allegedly discov ered holding a female student at knife point in a school washroom another student coming into the washroom reported the incident to school officials the york police emergency response unit and nine cruisers responded by early afternoon the situation was calming down the flackjacketed and helmeted eru officers were leaving the school students would soon come and go at will deep breaths all around the incident remained the talk of the weekend at the junior hockey game or in line at the a r no arrests had been made no one in a school of 900 could figure out who the attacker or victim were normally verbose york regional police hadnt issued a news release by monday afternoon the jig was up principal arlene smith issued a letter to parents and copied the suntribune saying the incident never happened there was no victim or attacker just a false story that sent a school and a community spinning no columbine ii but a moment to reflect on what we have and how it could change in the blink of a text message jim mason is editor of the sun- tribune