Volume 2, Issue 3 - Sept 2011

1-877-828-3924
7346 Arkona Rd. PO Box 218
Tel: 519-828-3923
Arkona, ON N0M 1B0
Fax: 519-828-3927
Goodbye Summer 2011...it’s been nice!
Hello Autumn
News from Port Franks
Along with day excursions around our
beautiful area of the province, Stephen
went on a vacation to Bracebridge. He
had a relaxing yet fun packed 4 days
visiting Santa’s village, relaxing in several of the park/beach areas of the
town and evening hikes on the historic
nature trail that goes around the waterfalls in the centre of town.
the trip to Kincardine.
Thanks to Rose Burton, Deb and Paul
will enjoy front row tickets at the
Arthur also spent a day at African Lion
Grand Ole Opry to see Alan Jackson,
Safari with Debbie and Eddie.
Montgomery Gentry and some of the
They spent the day at Erie Beach un- older country singers.
derneath a beautiful shade tree with
Deb will also being spending some
all his peers. He really enjoyed the
time at the Chattanooga Aquarium and
meals at Erie Beach and the vast
maybe a day of shopping. Deb also
went to see Hairspray at the Huron
County Playhouse and really enjoyed
At the end of August Stephen will be
the music and dancing.
heading to Paisley to the Christian Horizons camp for a week. In July Eddie
Everyone in Port Franks have been
and Arthur rented a cottage right on
enjoying their summer and have all
the beach in Kincardine. They had a
spent some time at the beach here
great time and the weather was good,
relaxing and listening to the waves lap
raining only at night and seeing beauthe shore.
tiful sunsets.
Signing out for now...Eddie, Arthur,
Eddie also went to Sarnia Bayfest and grounds to wander on.
Debbie and Stephen ;)
saw Tragically Hip and is looking forDeb is heading to Tennessee with Paul
ward to Blue Suede Shoes at the
Ladouceur September 8.
Huron County Playhouse, along with
Arkona News…..Yes they were busy!
The Arkona house has had a busy fun
summer so far! Shannon participated
in 5km Walk for “Autism Speaks” in
London with Kimberly, they had a
great time. They plan on going again
next year!
Shannon and Frank got to go
see Glee 3D this month and
they both give it two thumbs
up! They loved the songs and
Frank even got up and danced
along. Scott, Shannon, and
Frank also enjoyed spending
the hot days this summer relaxing in the pool.
Scott went to Toronto to see the Blue
Jays game and got a hat and tee shirt! Hope everyone else has had a fun
Shannon also went camping in Tober- Frank really enjoyed going on the Duc summer!
mory for three days and two nights in D’Orleans boat cruise with E.S.O. He
June. One of the highlights was going loved standing by the railing and lookon the glass bottom boat cruise.
ing at all the interesting things around
him.
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 3
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Volume 2, Issue 3
St. Francis Advocates
September, 2011
The St. Francis Advocate
The Wheels on Woodslee’s Van GO ….
Lions and Tigers and Bears oh my....
are only a few of the animals that we
saw at African Lion Safari in early June
when our summer travels began. If
you have never been to African Lion
Safari we highly recommend you go!
Where else can you stand and have
eight GIANT elephants walk past you,
arms length away on their way for a
swim? We
have never
laughed so
hard watching
all those silly
monkeys
jumping on
the tops of
cars and going for rides.
just to get away and RELAX. Some of
our most favourite things to do here
are; having campfires, singing to our
radio’s, going to the beach for swims
and of course sitting on the porch and
having a little siesta ZZZZZZZZZZ!
We had picnics at Seacliff Park in
Leamington and spent plenty of time
at the new splash pad and pavilion in
Belle River not to mention all of the
family BBQ’s we had at our house!
But before we knew it was time once
again to load up the van and this time
travel to Erie Beach to the Annual St.
Francis Advocates Camp. We always
enjoy this part of the summer; this is
where we get to see all of our friends
from St. Francis; friends that we don’t
get to see as often as we would like
Next we loaded up all the van and
to. We go fishing and swimming totravelled to Doc’s on the Bay in
gether, we watch movies and have
Mitchell’s Bay. This is the cottage that
sing a long’s, we tie dye shirts and
we have started to stay in for a week,
lounge in our chairs. We stay a couple
Digging summer in Dresden
The Dresden men have been very
busy the past months. David, Dennis and Bob enjoyed track & field
activities with the Special Olympics. David enjoyed meeting new
friends at the Olympics.
Bob was very happy to take part in
the camp at
Erie
Beach.
All four men
took a great
vacation
at
Mitchell’s Bay
where
the
week
was
filled with many activities, relaxation, and good weather!
Russell’s family from British Columbia came to visit him in July and
everyone had a wonderful visit.
The men loved the annual golf
tournament and the pizza party.
Bob planted a garden this summer
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 3
and we were
able to enjoy the fresh veggies
that he grew. The men, with assistance from personnel, Mary
Reaume,
have been
d o i n g
small projects with
the Chatham Kent
Children
Services.
This venture has been very positive for
everyone involved and may have
opened the door for future community networks.
Russell celebrated his 57th birthday
in June. Dennis turned 61 on August 26th.
Everyone in Dresden hopes all is
well with everyone else.
~Dresden House~
of days and then return home with
smiles on our faces!
This year it feels like we have blinked
our eyes and summer is just about
over although I know our travels and
our fun are not. Here comes the FALL,
where will it lead us???
_______________________________
Congratulations
Beth Lucan (from the Farm) who
received the Volunteer of the Year
for Lambton County. She was
nominated by Rebound for all the
years of dedicated in assisting in
Youth Programs.
Harrow
Harrow has been a whirlwind of
activities. So many events and fun
activities enjoyed this summer! Dave
went to T.O. to see the Blue Jays
play but his biggest accomplishment
was to have a large crowd of family
over for a BBQ that he cooked himself. Gerry visited with friends in
Chatham, went to a hockey game
and to the old SRC with Donnie E.
just to check it out. Paul had a big
trip to Tennessee where he saw the
Oakridge boys. Fred had a busy
summer too. He visited both his Uncle in Zurich and his Aunt in Rockwood. Fred took the train home by
himself. He went to Stratford to see
the play Camelot as well as celebrated his 60th birthday with a big
bash. Nick went to T.O. To see the
band “Within Temptation” Yes we’ve
been very busy but enjoying all the
while. Let’s see what autumn brings.
~The gang from Harrow~
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Keri’s Kolumn
Summer camp
Alhambra Day was a
was
a
blast
great start to sumagain
this
year,
and
I
would
personally
mer time fun. We all
like to say thank
enjoyed the weather,
you
to
Paul
activities and meal again. The special
time they put into this day is amazing
and it is appreciated immensely. The
Alhambra group also sponsored a day
of boating in La Salle this year, and we
enjoyed ourselves a lot. P.S. if you
ever get the chance to go, don’t wave
to the fire men. They will turn the
Gagnon for volunhose on you and soak you.
teering his time to
There have been many days of fishing
make sure we all
ate well. J.P. and Ken, as always your
music was spectacular! After a few
technical difficulties we even got up to
dance. The natural smoke show was
and swimming this amazing; I don’t know how you did it!
year as well. Derek found a playmate, I got to go see Julio Iglesias at the
and Sandor found a cement shoe LOL. Windsor Casino this summer, and
Derek enjoyed a Drake concert there.
We have had many BBQs this summer,
and a Hawaiian Luau.
We went to a BBQ in Erie Beach one
night, and then went to see Andrew
play baseball. His first time at bat he
hit his pitcher with a line drive, and
then he tried to run over the first base
player. “I don’t think you are cut out
for the majors”. Well summer is almost over, but there is still much to
do. I just got back from Niagara Falls,
and am now looking forward to Special
Olympics and all the upcoming Alvinston dances. We have all done so
much this year I could never write it all
down, but here’s to a wonderful event
rich summer!
So until next time, see you all soon
and enjoy the sun while you can
“SNOW” is in the air HEHEHE! Keri
Charing Cross
The News from Belle River Way
The Belle River house has had a
busy summer.
Terry enjoyed visits from his family,
wine tours, going out to have a beer
or two with the guys. Terry also has
a new job at Forest Glade Fire Place
in Windsor. Terry has been planning
a trip out west to see his family.
Terry attended several musicals and
plays through the spring and summer and of course a few ball games!
Gary has been enjoying making his
projects and he had a yard sale and
sold key chains , making some
money. Gary visited with his family
in Windsor and had several visits
from his niece. Gary went to many
ball games with his favorite personnel and friends.
David relaxed and enjoyed his new
swing on the deck this summer. He
went on a few day trips to Chatham
and Windsor.
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Paul visited his
family
often.
He has a new
responsibility
of volunteering
at Meals on Wheels for the Belle
River area.
Kristin has had
several
visits
from his family
and has enjoyed picnics at
the water front
in Belle River
and Windsor.
Kristin is very
proud of the garden he has
planted and taken care of all summer long and is especially enjoying
the end result of all his tomato
plants.
Highlights for the everyone this
summer:
the yard sale the men and staff
helped put together. They raised
money and got rid of lots of unused items around the house.
the ball games in Detroit with
friends and personnel.
the boat cruise in Amherstburg.
visiting and having BBQ’s at personnel’s houses.
camping at Erie beach was a blast
for all the men and they are still
talking about some of their favorite things to do there and what
they want to do next year.
Everyone enjoyed activities in Belle
River. There were parades, festivals and car shows that were close
to home and accessible to everyone.
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The Folks from Forest
This summer has been a busy one for
the Forest House as I’m sure it was for
everyone else as well!
We have had great weather and been
utilizing the sunshine for some great
outdoor activities.
Adam had planned a trip to Wonderland for 2 days. Adams favourite ride
was the “Back Lot Stunt Coaster”.
He just got back last week and had an
AWESOME time!!
Amy also went on a trip to Jelly Stone
Park camping. She stayed in a trailer,
which she loved! This was Amy’s 3nd
trip to Jelly Stone Park.
Michael is planning a trip for this coming October with some of his friends
from the other locations. He is want-
ing to go the
Great
“The
Wolf Lodge” in
Niagara Falls.
Mike enjoyed
going to Erie
Beach Camp
for the day as well.
Down the Pipeline from Petrolia
We have enjoyed a very busy summer as
usual at the Petrolia House. We started our
summer with a trip to Mitchell’s Bay. We
rented a cottage and enjoyed lots of fun
activities. We went to a car show, did some
fishing, (but unfortunately didn’t catch anything), went swimming at the beach, and
the people who owned the cottage had us
down to their place to swim in their pool.
We went to the flea market and bought
some new shirts and also had lots of fun
just relaxing in the cottage and around the
fire pit. We had lots of fun on our trip, but
we were happy to return our home.
We went on the Duc D’Orleans twice this
summer. The first time the band Third also. We have been going to the horse
Wave was playing and they gave us CD’s races in Sarnia and going to watch trick
and all the band members signed them for
us. We spent lots of time dancing and socializing on the cruise. The second cruise
was sponsored by Alhambra. We enjoyed a
nice guided tour down the river. It was
pretty neat standing at the very front of
the boat and seeing all the huge homes
along the river. A highlight of the summer
was going to the John Labatt Centre to see
the New Kids on the Block and the Backstreet Boys in concert. We had amazing
seats and we got to shake some of the
band members hands...we were thrilled.
We kept ourselves busy through the week
riders at the Fiddick Farm.
Our weekends have also been filled with
swimming, walks and bowling. We also
had a birthday here for Dave B, as he
turned 50!!! The next big event we are
looking forward to, is going to see Red
Green in October, we watch him every
morning and are so excited to see him live!
It is sad knowing that summer is coming to
an end, but we are happy for all the things
we have been able to do.
Dave and Dave
The Talk from Tilbury
Well it is hard to believe that summer is
almost over, after we were so excited to
see it arrive! Where does the time go? As
the nicer weather arrived we were busy at
the Tilbury home getting pots planted and
added some floral touches to our front
landscaping. We were excited to see a new
planter box arrive that Mr. Will Parney was
so nice to make and donate to our home
for our back deck. We planted some herbs
and cherry tomatoes in it Over time we
watched them grow and mature. It is great
to see things take on a life of their own.
We welcomed Monique Ellis, Tammy Chatterton and Joan Mcdonald to our team. We
are always excited to have new people
with fresh ideas and insight join us and the
people we support.
We have been very busy with many activities this summer. We started out in Dresden with the Big Bike Ride, and then followed with Alhambra day. We finished up
June with a Fun Fest in Tilbury with lots of
great music and enjoyed fireworks put on
by the Tilbury Fire Dept to celebrate the
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 3
upcoming Canada Day. We all wore our
Red and White with pride!
A visit from Jean, Maries sister is always a
pleasure, and she always brings a smile
and goodies for us to enjoy.
Carole was able to make a trip to Welland
to visit her penpal, Marjorie, and later in
the week she and Bob took a train ride in
Port Stanley.
Bev and Marie took the opportunity to enjoy some relaxing time on our front porch
with beautiful summer breezes. Ahhh life is
good!!
We attended St Francis Olympics for a day
of fun, festivities and food, yes 3 very important things in all our lives.
The tomato festival in Leamington, the
Balloon festival on the Windsor waterfront
and Wambo were among many things that
we attended.
Bob joined an aquafit group at the Tilbury
pool and had fun learning some new
moves in the water.
Camp in Erie Beach was again a great adventure this year, and our campers re-
turned home happy and tired from being
busy.
We finished up August with a LUAU at our
home, and many of our friends joined in
with cool Hawaiian attire. Lots of food and
fun were had, as I am sure all who attended would agree. Yes we were so
blessed to have great weather and the
party was a success!
A special thanks to Lisa, Melissa, Connie
and Denise for all the preparations this
event took, and to the rest of our personnel who made attending all these great
activities a possibility.
We close this newsy letter on a rather sad
note, as we were sorry to hear of the passing of Tammy Chatterton's Father. Our
thoughts and prayers are with her and her
family at this difficult time.
Carole, Bob, Marie and Bev have truly enjoyed a wonderful summer, and what is
most important is we have remained happy
and healthy through this entire season!
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Up-Coming Events
Halloween Costume Dance\
Alvinston Arena
October 21st
7 pm to 9:30 pm
$5/person
All welcome-bring family and friends
Treats and Refreshments available
For more info please call 519 312 5579
COSTUME PARTY—COME ONE COME ALL!!
Spooky food and scary snacks will be served
When: October 31st
(RSVP by Oct 21st)
Where: The Farm
Time: Open House 7-9 pm
Why: To have a Spooktacular Good Time!
Previously Enjoyed Events
2011 Golf Tournament - July 8 2011 Mackinac Races -July 22-23 2011
- Country View Country Club,
We wanted to thank our President, Pat Sloan and all of the people who supported this
Chatham
event by assisting in manning our tent during the 2 days of festivities.
We would like to take this opportunity to
express our sincere gratitude in your contribution towards St. Francis Advocates 5th
Annual Golf Tournament! This year we are
proud to announce that we raised just over
$6100!
Due to our newly found connection with Glenn MacKinnon from the band, The 3rd
Wave, we placed our tent in a prime location to be noticed by many who attended this
event. It is our goal to improve community awareness as to who we are as an agency
and to meet new people and with Glenn's help we were able to do this. Thank you
Glenn! The report is that the band was fabulous and the people we support all enjoyed
dancing to the music. We are very blessed to have met Glenn and his band and look
These funds will be used to assist in fund- forward to other opportunities where we may be jointly involved in the future.
ing extracurricular activities for people supDuc d'Orlean's II Cruise - June 16th 2011
ported such as our annual camping trip and
We would like to thank Jeff and Hi-Way Bowl for sponsoring us to be the beneficiaries
the St. Francis Olympics.
of the proceeds for the Duc D'Orleans Cruise II which sailed on June 16th.
A BIG THANK YOU again from all of us at
We were very honored and pleased to receive the generous donation of $700 from
St. Francis Advocates!
that evening. Everyone on board enjoyed the music and the people we support were
very excited to receive a copy of the CD Run for Cover from the band, The 3rd
Wave!
Thank you again for providing us with this golden opportunity and for connecting us
with Glenn from the band. Hi-Way Bowl has touched the lives of many and we look
forward to other opportunities where we many be involved in such a way.
Editors Note:
By: Alfred Haas
Music Review
By: Nick Shuurman
I went to see an awesome Dutch gothic metal band. It’s called
WITHIN TEMPTATION. They have a orchestra and a choir.
They played in Toronto Ontario on September 7th.. I have all
ten of their CD’s. When they go back to Toronto I will go see
them again. The concert was awesome. I cannot wait to see
them again so I will need to save my money.
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My oh my...everyone out did themselves. This has to be our
busiest summer yet! Not only was there lots of submissions
but each one was filled with so many activities enjoyed
throughout the summer but HAVING FUN was the main
theme!
Thank you for the pictures too. We tried to fit them all in.
It’s sad to say summer is over for another year but Autumn
promises to be just as fun. With the still warm days and cool
nights we look forward to apple picking, Halloween and of
course my favourite THANKSGIVING! I hope this season
brings just as much fun and excitement as the summer. Until next time this is Fred Haas ..over and out.
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