PAWS Day and literacy testing

Principal’s Page
By Jeff Reaburn

On Thursday afternoon of this week we are holding our second annual PAWS Day (Panther Active Winter Sports) as part of our goal to encourage healthy active living. Students and staff will be participating in a series of outdoor winter games, intended to promote active living, teamwork, and school spirit. We had a wonderful time last year when we held the first PAWS Day, and we hope that it will be equally enjoyable this year.
We will run all five classes on Thursday, but will shorten the period lengths so that we can start the outdoor activities shortly after 1:00. If students try to tell you that we have no classes at all (which some have been known to say in the past,) this is your notice that this is not the case. We are encouraging all students to take part, and there will be friendly competitions between classes in each grade level. Students are asked to pay attention to the weather and to dress appropriately for the conditions on Thursday - boots, hats, winter coats, and gloves or mittens. If by chance the weather should be nasty on Thursday, we will postpone the event to a more suitable day, but we do want to have snow on the ground for most of our activities. We are looking forward to a great day of activity and spirit-building.
On Thursday evening, the Students’ Council is hosting a night of video game competition. Students will be demonstrating their skills in Halo 3 and Guitar Hero, which promises to be a fun way to end our PAWS Day.
Preparations are also under way for the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test, which will be written this year in the morning of Thursday, March 27. Students in their second year of high school and those who were unsuccessful last year will be required to write the test. Successful completion of the OSSLT or the literacy course (OLC 40) is a graduation requirement. Students in Grade 11 who were unsuccessful last year have been attending weekly skills workshops to help them be more successful this year. Soon, these workshops will happen twice a week. Teachers of Grade 10 classes have been given literacy test preparation activities to use in their classes to help Grade 10 students get ready for the test.
Parents of students who have to write the test are asked to ensure that any medical or dental appointments scheduled for March 27 are cancelled and re-booked for an alternate date. Students are permitted to write the OSSLT on the scheduled date only: those who miss it will be required to take the test next year; so it is very important that they be present on March 27.
The Interim Report for Semester Two is scheduled to be distributed on Thursday, March 20, the day before Good Friday. Once again this will be an informal report, intended to give parents a “snapshot” of student progress, and to inform them of any concerns that teachers may have about student progress. It will not contain a mark but will let parents know how their sons or daughters are doing. Parent- Teacher interviews are scheduled for the following week on March 27, the same day as the Literacy Test.
Finally, the deadline for next year’s course selections is now past. Any students who have yet to turn in their choices for next year are asked to do so as soon as possible. The process of creating next year’s timetable will get under way shortly after March Break.

An Evocative Story Very Well Told

Hana’s Suitcase
Adapted by Emil Sher, from the book by Karen Levine
Performed by Burgandy Code, Jennifer Dzialoszynski, Jan Filips, Nicco Lorenzo Garcia, Gil Garratt, Matthew Gorman, Manami Hara, Janet Lo.
Directed by Susan Ferley
Grand Theatre Production
Grand Theatre, London
February 12 to March 1, 2008

Live! On Stage!
Review by Mary Alderson

Right after a show, friends sometimes call or email me with questions before I get the review written. Did you like Hana’s Suitcase? No, it’s not likeable. Was it well done? Yes, absolutely.
Hana’s Suitcase, now playing at London’s Grand Theatre, is by far the most emotionally draining show I have ever seen. I knew I was going to see a play about the holocaust. Obviously, this was not a comedy with a fairy tale ending. But I was certainly unprepared for how Hana’s story gripped my heart, how moved I felt, how many tears would flow, and how it still haunts me days later.
The story begins in Japan, where Fumiko Ishioka (Janet Lo), a teacher at Tokyo’s Holocaust Education Centre, displays some artefacts, which are on loan. Two school children, Maiko (Manami Hara) and Akira (Nicco Lorenzo Garcia) are fascinated by an old suitcase bearing the name Hana Brady, her birth date of May 16, 1931 and the German word for “orphan”. Their many questions stimulate the teacher to try to learn more about Hana. They write letters to Auschwitz, and other museums in Europe to find out Hana’s fate. Sadly, they learn that Hana was killed in the gas chambers at the concentration camp, but they are able to trace her life back to Czechoslovakia, and eventually they discover that she has a brother George, still living in Toronto, Canada.
George writes to the school children, and tells them of his and Hana’s idyllic childhood, pre World War II. He also tells of the ever-increasing Nazi regulations – they aren’t allowed to go to movies, then they can’t play in the park, then they can’t attend school and see their Christian friends. Finally, they must wear the Star of David at all times. Their parents are both arrested and taken away to concentration camps, but they stay on briefly with their Christian uncle. They, too, are taken away, first to a concentration camp in Theresienstadt, and then in 1944 both ended up at Auschwitz. Hana is murdered immediately, but George, as he is able to do work, is spared. The Japanese children, so moved by Hana’s story, decide to share it with other school children across Japan.
CBC reporter Karen Levine heard about the Japanese project and turned the story into a radio documentary. In 2000 she published a children’s novel, intertwining the Japanese school children’s story with George’s sad account. The play follows the same format. In the first act, we hear the Japanese children, and see them in their research, while the characters of Hana (Jennifer Dzialoszynski) and George (Matthew Gorman) move silently about the stage. In the second act, Hana and George have voices, as the Japanese teacher reads the adult George’s letter.
Burgandy Code is exceptional in her many roles as the various museum curators, but most effective and endearing as Marketa, Hana and George’s mother. A new mother herself, she portrays both the unbelievable pain and the strength she had to summon to say a final goodbye to her children. As Karel, Hana and George’s father and the older George, Jan Filips is also very good. Gil Garratt does excellent work as several male characters and Uncle Ludvik, who has the horrific task of sending off his niece and nephew. Lo as the Japanese teacher is very successful in showing her concern about the children taking the news that is “sadder than sad” as she unravels the tale for them.
Dzialoszynski and Gorman as Hana and the young George and Hara as Maiko are all very effective in the difficult task of playing children and capturing the essence of youth. However, Garcia was not convincing as the Japanese schoolboy, perhaps because he appeared too old for the part and therefore his child-like antics came across as awkward and uncomfortable. Adults playing youth caught in very un-childlike situations can be a challenge for actors.
Director Susan Ferley has probably created one of her most memorable shows. Anyone in the audience will be unsettled by this poignant play for a long time. The stage is very plain yet very fitting – with several sliding doors, it is suitable for Japanese rooms, also appropriate museum storage, and even convincing as a train carrying crowded Jews to the camps.
Normally, opening night audiences at the Grand are generous with their appreciation. Standing ovations are usual. But on the opening night of Hana’s Suitcase, there was even a hesitation before applause filled the theatre. Clapping hardly seemed appropriate for such a gripping tale. There was no standing ovation, not because the cast didn’t deserve it, but because we were too drained to get to our feet.
Hana’s Suitcase continues at the Grand Theatre in London until March first. Tickets are available at the Grand box office at 672-8800 or 1-800-265-1593.

Mary Alderson offers her view of area theatre in this column on a regular basis. As well as being a fan of live theatre, she is a former journalist who is currently employed with the Ontario Association of Community Futures Development Corporations.

Strip among top three in Ontario for photographer and photo layout

Grand Bend Strip publisher/editor/photographer Casey Lessard has been named one of the three best photographers among Ontario’s community newspapers, the Ontario Community Newspapers Association announced Thursday. The OCNA also named the Strip’s photo page from the Parkhill fair (with photos by Casey Lessard) one of the three best in the province. The winners will be announced April 5, 2008 in Toronto.
This is the second year Lessard has been among the top three for the photographer of the year category at the OCNA awards; he was named second best in 2007 for his work with the Haliburton Echo. Lessard took top honours last year in the feature photo category for a photo from the high school prom.

Time to get serious

View from the Strip
By Casey Lessard

The Grand Bend winter carnival was a great success; I haven’t seen so many different people involved in local activities since the summer. Congratulations to the organizers for great work.
Congratulations also to my parents for sticking it out for 45 years. They’ve been able to make love work through the good and bad times, and they deserve a lot of credit. Joanne (Morgan) Smith has similar sentiments for her parents in a touching letter inspired by Valentine’s Day.
Now I’d like to get serious for a moment, and hopefully more. You expect a certain standard of journalism from this newspaper, even if we’re reporting on the fun things that happen around here. I would like to feel that the hours that go into this paper are making a difference, and as a result plan to tackle more serious issues in the future. We’ve touched on some in the past, but there are many concerns you have about what affects your daily life in this community. I’m not only talking about beach enhancement and town revitalization, although those are major concerns, for sure.
I don’t want to give away too many of my ideas, but you can expect to see more stories that will be the result of investigative research this year. Our goal will be to bring to light issues you may be aware of, but which you may not understand or appreciate. There will be articles you won’t want to read because they take you out of your comfort zone, but I challenge you to read them anyway so at least you can verify your opinion about them. Not happy I ran the story? Tell me. Letters are always welcome here.
I have my ideas about what should be discussed in the Strip, but I want to hear from you, too. What are the issues that are ignored but which affect you and your neighbours? Send me a letter by post or email, or call me directly (see bottom of page). Your ideas are safe with me, and if they belong in the public spotlight, I’ll do my best to tell the story.
For those of you who just like a fun newspaper, we’re not abandoning that aspect. You’ll still get the information you need to have a good time in Grand Bend and area, and we’ll keep covering the great events you attend. The only change will be stories about more of the challenges your neighbours face daily.
For now, here’s hoping you enjoy sharing the good times featured in this edition of the Grand Bend Strip, and hope you have a great Valentine’s Day and Family Day.
See you in March!

Lessons in Love: A tribute at Valentine’s

With Valentine’s Day this week, there is a lot of emphasis on being in love; I would like to share what true love means to me.
I was an observer, an outsider, to the secrets of love. I watched as daily kisses and hugs were exchanged and tender embraces were given. I watched as coffee was poured and icy car windows were scraped off to make someone else’s morning run smoothly. I heard the laughter over a new experience enhanced by the past they shared together.  I watched as baths were run and phone calls were answered just to say hello.
It was not only the happy times that taught me about romance; it was also the arguments, which left someone sitting coolly quiet, and the stares that meant someone had done something unacceptable to the other. There were the irritations of nights of listening to snoring or extended time playing Scrabble on the computer.
These were as much in abundance as the kind words of encouragement to find a new job, to overcome illness, and to make it through another difficult day of winter driving. I watched as obstacles were tackled and resolutions found.
I did not learn about love watching romantic movies where passion leads the path to happiness; I watched real life from the comfort of my own home. I watched the mutual respect that my parents had for one another. Love did not mean that feelings were never hurt and anger never arose. It was simple: there were two people who had learned to put someone ahead of him- or herself. That meant that someone was always looking out for them and their best interests. 
I was fortunate enough to find a man who shares similar love lessons. We have molded our marriage around what we have been taught and a shared sense of camaraderie.
Love is perfect! People are not. Every day we need to make a decision to create love, to live putting someone ahead of ourselves with the knowledge that someone has put us ahead of them. Happiness will always follow love.
Thank you to my teachers of love, Mom and Dad, and to my amazing husband Jamie, who continues to make me want to strive to make him as happy as he makes me.
Joanne (Morgan) Smith
Kincardine

Elevator first sign of things to come

February at last in Grand Bend! and I am reminded of the big heart and grand spirit of this village.
Although great controversy and vast fundraising has been undertaken, the new public elevator at the beach house at the foot of Main Street is near completion. In this formidable season, it’s a powerful testament to the local economy, and to the service groups that raised the approximate $80,000 to get this first fresh aspect of the beach enhancement underway. Surely it will be completed by the hot summer season that awaits our summer village and the impending onslaught of cottagers and tourists we so love and anticipate. The aged and disabled will soon be equally enabled to view the beach and lake from the upper deck. We all can agree that this will be the first jewel of many planned to enhance and embellish the waterfront experiences we all love to see and be a part of, especially in the dog days of summer.
As I type this letter to the editor, snow is causing tremendous problems around the province, but that signals FUN weather for the winter carnival, celebrating the off season fun and friendship throughout N0M 1T0. Grand Bend will be alive and prospering in opposing weather conditions, but in a very similar spirit as that which the warm summer brings to Main Street Grand Bend.
Rob Webb
Grand Bend

There is only one way to God - letter writer

Unity. Peace. Understanding. Tolerance. Cooperation. These are things that all, or at least most, of us want in our world. I’m in favour of all of the above. However, what I’m about to write is going to sound intolerant and probably politically incorrect.
Recently, World Religion Day was observed locally. There is a reason why I have annually chosen not to take part in this event. It isn’t because I hate any particular person or group. In fact, I follow a risen Saviour who has taught me to love other people. But love does not necessarily mean promoting or affirming all ideas and teachings as equally valid. Now, I do realize that the intentions of those involved in efforts such as World Religion Day are pure: “To foster the establishment of interfaith understanding and harmony by emphasizing the common denominators underlying all religions.” Sounds good. Sounds positive. Sounds comfortable for everyone concerned. Unfortunately, comfortable messages, while good to hear, aren’t necessarily true. Those “common denominators” only go so far, and there’s very little that underlies all religions.
Now, of course, there is some amount of wisdom to be found in all faiths. However, it’s dangerous to imagine that all faiths are equally valid ways of getting to God. There are too many inconsistencies for that to be possible. Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). Not everybody believes that, but what I’m getting at is: how can I put my faith in Christ as the Son of God, and the only way to God, and still affirm every other faith at the same time? It just doesn’t fit. Pretty intolerant, isn’t it?
Why do I believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of the living God, and more than just another prophet? Because He’s the only one who died in my place so that I could live for eternity with Him, and He’s the only one who rose again from the dead. Muhammad may have been wise, but he didn’t do that. Neither did Baha’u’llah, Zoroaster, Gautama, Abraham, or Moses. Wise and enlightened people they were, but none was God in the flesh, except Jesus Christ. And none other has offered salvation as a free gift rather than something to be earned.
One might say that the claims Jesus made about Himself are terribly arrogant. Not if they’re true. And proclaiming one belief system as superior to others sounds intolerant. Not if it’s true. And while unity of all mankind is a noble goal, which I share, I also believe in truth.
There are three basic ways to achieve unity. One is to compromise and water down all the various teachings to the point where none of us really stands for much of anything. Another is to “agree to disagree.” But again, where is truth in that? The third way is to unite, once and for all, behind the truth; and you can imagine that I’m going to proclaim Jesus Christ as the embodiment of that truth.
“How dare you?” someone might say. Isn’t that insensitive to someone who believes differently? Let me ask this: if you knew the cure for cancer or AIDS, would you tell anybody? I believe that Jesus is the answer for all that plagues mankind, so I’m going to tell people about it. Or someone might say, “That’s not very loving.” Another question: if a close friend or family member is doing something with dire consequences or moving in a wrong direction, would you correct that person? And is that intolerance? …or love?
History is full of examples of people who have proclaimed nice, comfortable, messages that people wanted to hear. Those messengers are usually popular, but not necessarily right. Meanwhile, there have been many others who have proclaimed the truth and been very unpopular for it. I, for one, wish to err on the side of truth, even if it be unpopular. That’s because I follow a risen Saviour who set just such an example.
Finally, one could point to Christianity as a whole, and say how fragmented and lacking in unity we are. Any disunity amongst Christians comes from man-made doctrines and petty disputes, not from God. Thankfully, we are not called to follow Christians; we are called to follow Christ, who teaches unity, peace, and love, through Him.
This has been an intolerant, yet loving, message, brought to you by just one Christian, and has not been paid for by anyone.
Thomas Bailey
Grand Bend

Grand Bend Strip comes to the classroom!

Living in Balance
By Jenipher Appleton

Balanced literacy for Ontario students

The latest and most unremitting thrust from the Ontario Ministry of Education is indeed the ‘balanced literacy’ movement. In a nutshell, balanced literacy in the elementary grades must provide opportunities for daily reading including: independent, guided, and shared reading, along with read-alouds. I won’t even begin to go into the definitions of the foregoing or how they are implemented. Suffice it to say that I have been training and practising balanced literacy over the past several years in my classroom at East Williams, and that as a result, my learning curve has continued to expand and develop along with the children. The reason for balanced literacy as an educational directive is to improve overall literacy skills in our Ontario students and to deepen their levels of reading comprehension. Sound dry? On the contrary, it is really quite exciting.
I’ll get to the point. Shared reading essentially means that everyone is looking at the same piece of text at the same time. It could be a big book, overhead projection, or any other piece of text that has been reproduced for all to see. Recently I have been using my own pieces of writing from the Grand Bend Strip for some of my shared reading experiences with the students. An integral part of the balanced literacy thrust is that teachers should model writing. I feel that the content of my articles, containing information about nature and ecology, is an appropriate model for the ten- and eleven-year-olds in my Grade 5/6 class.

Recent article “Owls – a guide to local hooters”

When my students read the article about owls, many made connections to owls they had encountered in our area. The students showed enough interest in our local species that they were inspired to do further research in our next computer lab. Not only did they find more information about owls, but also they wanted to draw pictures from the images they found on the Internet. The following are some quotes written by students about our local owls:

“I am an Eastern Screech owl. I eat insects, arachnids, small mammals and amphibians. One of my physical characteristics is my small ear tufts.” (By Kylee Arthur)
“I am a saw-whet owl. I eat small rodents, large insects, birds, and bats. I am only 20 cm long. I am named for my call which sounds like a saw being sharpened or whetted.” (By Carly Whitmore)
“I am a Great Horned owl. I eat house cats, skunks, porcupines and other animals bigger than myself. Some of my physical characteristics are my large ear tufts, and my massive length up to 64 cm, my 150 cm wingspan, huge, yellow riveting eyes, and my familiar ‘whoo-whoo!’” (By Jake Gregory)

The drawings included here, by Mackenzie Siddall and Evan Scott, demonstrate the greatest attention to detail and a wonderful sense of appreciation for these animals in their natural habitat.

Media literacy using the Grand Bend Strip

During independent reading, students are allowed to read other articles from the Grand Bend Strip. They show enthusiasm for the human interest stories and articles, but are especially taken with Casey Lessard’s fabulous photographs, candidly capturing community members of all ages taking part in a huge variety of activities. The photos are always informatively captioned, and my students are able to learn from this excellent example of media literacy.
The content of this family newspaper encourages knowledge of current events common to our community and stimulates conversation amongst students about such current events, basic science, and nature. It helps to develop a passion for exploration into different media, communication, and life-long learning. In short, the Grand Bend Strip provides a vehicle for students to be aware of the ‘balance’ between living and learning.

45 years of blessings

Anniversary a time to reflect on the joys of life

Advice from mom
By Rita Lessard

February is the month for love and sweethearts as we celebrate Valentine’s Day this week. February is also the month Tom and I celebrate our anniversary, celebrating 45 years February 8th. I imagine in this day and age, that’s quite a feat.
Tom and I got married in Germany, where Tom was stationed with the army. We had to get married twice: once at city hall (the legal ceremony), which we did in the morning, and then the religious ceremony in the afternoon.
We did have a few snags that day. For instance, I forgot to order the flowers, the bakers dropped the cake, and Tom dropped me when he was carrying me over the threshold I only weighed 105 lbs., so I don’t know how that happened; maybe it was the champagne or the beer, which were very cheap in Germany. As a matter of fact, liquor was cheaper than coffee in those days.
Despite the rough start, through the good and bad, sickness and health, richer or poorer, we’re still together.
We’ve had many blessings over the years, and the best of all was the great gift of our five sons, Tom, Glenn, Mike, Bill and Casey.
When Tom Jr. was in university and short on Christmas funds, he made us three family albums and described all of his brothers as he perceived them.
Casey was labeled Mr. Brain; when you look at Casey, you can see in his eyes his intelligence and the joy and happiness he has and gives to people.
Bill was Mr. Hockey or Mr. Sports; Bill loves sports and he was and still is quite an athlete. There was a time when I think he wanted to be a professional hockey player, but in the end he decided on a career in computers.
Mike was Mr. Lover. Mike loves life, and he especially loved the women; as a matter of fact, he had a girlfriend in kindergarten (Marion Steffans), who was the light of his life. Mike is always smiling and when you’re talking to him, even his voice smiles. From the time Mike was only a few days old, he smiled all the time. I kid you not! Maybe he was a comedian in a former life.
Glenn was labeled Mr. Ambition. This is very true; Glenn was always a hard worker and never afraid to get his hands dirty. When he was 10 years old, he helped me clean offices in Huron Park and in the summers, we cleaned the college for the hockey school. He made some money and that made him happy. By the time he was 17, he bought his own car with his savings. Although he was a metallurgist when he came out of college, he ended up in the banking business, which proved to be quite profitable. Tom was right when he said Glenn was Mr. Ambition because as of today, he has owned and sold six houses; not too bad for a 43 year old (as of February 19).
Tom described himself as an all-around great guy (Editor’s note: of course!), and this is so very true. Tom was my first child, and one of my greatest joys. Tom loves to play games; from the time he was 13 years old until he was 19, he played scrabble with me three or four times a week. He was always a good sport considering I beat him a lot. He’s gotten smarter over the years and I imagine it would be quite a challenge to play him today. Tom’s a super dad, a sweetheart of a husband, a great son-in-law (according to his father-in-law), a very kind, gentle, giving and caring son, and I might as well throw in handsome and distinguished man, too. So yes, an all around great guy.
So much for all of the sweethearts in my life. Happy anniversary Tom, happy birthday Glenn, and happy Valentine’s day to all of you!

Elmer’s wake

Keeping the Peace
By Tom Lessard

Many years ago, I had the good fortune of working for a window and door company on Highway 4 southeast of Centralia. At one time during my employment, I was given the task of building plastoramic picture windows. My department was very large in area because I needed room to build windows such as four 5’ by 6’ units with sliders, side-by-side. With the trim, etc., they measured close to 25’ wide by almost 8’ high. I had to do most of the assembling on the floor.
In my spare time, I ran draws and a newsletter. My boss told me that as long as I could produce 12 good units a day, I could spend the extra time selling draw tickets and finding stories for my newsletter. Every Friday, during our afternoon break, I held the draws and we usually had about 13 prizes. You had to be present to collect your prize, so very few people ever took Friday afternoon off.
One day, one of the other workers came to me holding a dead mouse in his hand.
“What in the devil are you doing with that?” I asked.
“This was found in the women’s washroom,” he replied.
I told him to leave it with me, and as a reporter (for the newsletter), I would investigate.
Well, during my search, I found out that the mouse had had a heart attack, supposedly after seeing one of our elderly female employees with her pants down in one of the stalls.
I felt that it would only be right to hold a wake and a funeral for the mouse, which we called Elmer.
Since I had extra room in my area, I set up a small table and draped it in purple cloth. I had an empty “T”-nail carton, which I filled with a block of Styrofoam. After cutting a portion out of the foam I laid Elmer to rest and placed the coffin on the table. One of the employees gave me a box of Kleenex for the mourners, which I also placed on the table. Two unlit candles appeared from someone else, and to top it off, I had a visitation book for guests to sign.
So many people came to pay their respects that the coffin was on display for three days. At lunch hour on the fourth day, I had a minister perform the service; two mourners and four pallbearers attended the coffin. We proceeded outside the building where a plot had been dug. A cameraman took pictures of the burial and the cross.
Elmer will live in infamy.

Happy 45th anniversary to my dear wife Rita!

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