December 5, 2003

Special Feature!
Index
Holiday section on page 13 - 28
News ... Page 2
Viewpoints ... Page 9
Entertainment ... Page 32
Sports ... Page 35
Hospitality and Tourism
Awards
More on page 39
Niagara News
Volume 35, Issue 6
Free
www.niagara-news.com
Friday, Dec. 5, 2003
Talks of teachers’ strike looming at Niagara
By JASON RUMLEY
Staff Writer
Just weeks before exams in April, students may be affected as 8,000 faculty members from all 24 community colleges in Ontario may strike.
Support staff at Ontario’s 24 community colleges will
take a strike vote Dec. 10 in support of contract demands.
They are members of the Ontario Public Service
Employees Union (OPSEU). The faculty strike vote is
slated for Feb. 17.
The support staff group is seeking parity in benefits with
the faculty and administrative groups at the colleges.
According to the council negotiating on behalf of the colleges, the faculty union is looking for a pay hike of 16 per
cent over two years, while council has offered three per cent
hikes in each of the next three years.
The main issues in dispute for faculty include the increase in
use of part-time teachers, larger class sizes, faculty copyright for
material used in Internet classes and pay levels for college
teachers, who, at slightly less than a maximum of $80,000 a
year, now earn roughly the same as high school teachers.
OPSEU negotiators maintain they want a five per cent
pay hike for members this year and next for an increase
closer to 10 per cent, which would keep salaries for college
faculty slightly higher than the maximum pay for high
school teachers.
Adding to the speculation on a strike, on Nov. 26, at the
Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology (CAAT)
Pension Sponsors Committee meeting, composed of representatives from CAAT Support, CAAT Academic,
OPSEU, the colleges and management staff approved an
increase in the pension contribution rate effective Jan. 1,
2004, by 1.5 per cent.
For a person earning $40,000 in 2004, the increase in
rates will mean a pre-tax increase in CAAT pension contributions of $600 a year. The pre-tax increase for a person
earning $60,000 a year is $900.
Sherri Rosen, president of the faculty union OPSEU
Local 242 at Niagara College, says she’s hopeful they can
achieve a contract without a strike.
“We don’t bargain for a strike; we bargain for a contract,”
says Rosen.
Kilty receives award
By GREG VALLENTIN
Staff Writer
With five other graduates of
Ontario colleges, Niagara College
graduate Dr. Heather Kilty will be
presented with a Premier’s Award
in Kingston, Ont., on Feb. 23, 2004.
As a graduate of the Social
Service Worker program in
1969, Kilty moved on to get her
doctor of philosophy degree
(PhD) in health services from
the University of Walden, in
Minneapolis, Minn., in 1997.
Kilty can be found at Brock
University in St. Catharines,
where she is working as an assistant professor teaching leadership to undergraduate nursing
students, workplace health, and
ergonomics.
Kilty is also an entrepreneur,
running her own business, Kilty
Resource Associates, which
offers research services, counselling and training.
“We are not only very proud of
Dr. Kilty’s accomplishments, but
also of her support of the vision
and mission of our college,” says
Jamie King, manager of alumni
development and student awards
at Niagara College.
“She is one of many examples
of Niagara College alumni achieving tremendous success within our
communities.”
Founded in 1992, the Premier’s
Awards are presented annually to
six graduates from Ontario colleges to recognize their contributions and accomplishments.
The categories for the Premier’s
Awards include community services, health sciences, creative
arts and design, business, technology and health sciences.
Winners of the award will each
receive $5,000 to be given as a
student bursary to the college of
their choice.
Continued on page 2
The 6,500-member support staff bargaining unit has been
without a contract since Aug. 31. Key issues of the support
staff negotiations include money, job security, benefits,
vacation and workload.
Members of the support staff group provide a wide range
of services at the colleges, including information technology, maintenance, technical, early childhood education, and
clerical support for student loans, library, registrar’s office,
accounting, bus drivers, security staff and other areas.
“I hope we don’t have to do a strike vote, but I’m hoping
that if we do, we will get a strong strike mandate,” says Vera
Kalenuik, support staff president OPSEU Local 243 at
Niagara College.
Kalenuik says a strike vote is scheduled for Dec. 10 from 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Welland campus. If the vote is passed,
support staff faculty can go on strike five days later on Dec. 15.
“I’m sure the bargaining team won’t take us (support
staff) out before Christmas, but probably in early January
before classes start,” says Kalenuik, adding, “We are in a
legal strike position.”
Continued on page 3
Niagara College is coming up poinsettias
First-year Horticulture Technician program students (from left) Matt Bakker, Meg Wyatt, Joelle
Beischlag and Josh Van Den Nest are working hard selling and preparing holiday arrangements
at the Glendale campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
Photo by Sarah Allingham
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Page 2, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
College graduate wins prestigious award
Contined from page 1
Kilty is being recognized for her
outstanding achievements in the
category of health sciences.
“Dr. Kilty is a wonderful exam-
‘Dr. Kilty is a
wonderful
example of the
important role
that
college graduates
play in all
aspects of our
lives,’
— Dan Patterson
ple of the important role that college graduates play in all aspects
of our lives,” says Niagara College
President Dan Patterson, in a
recent press release.
“We have always urged our students and graduates to make the
most of their education, to pursue
lifelong learning and to serve the
communities in which they live.
Dr. Kilty embodies all of the qualities to which we hope our students and graduates will aspire.”
Kilty has volunteered for
countless causes, including the
set-up of the Niagara Regional
Youth Home for teens with drug
addictions.
As the owner of the Leadership
Institute, Kilty has provided a
leadership development course
for more than 4,000 nurses.
“On behalf of the over 45,000
alumni of Niagara College, I would
like to congratulate Dr. Kilty for
winning a Premier’s Award,” says
Niagara College Alumni President
Wayne Chapman.
“Being recognized among so
many deserving candidates is both
a compliment to Dr. Kilty’s
accomplishments and Niagara
College alumni. The success of
our alumni is something to be celebrated, and for Dr. Kilty to be recognized at such a high level is a
proud moment for Niagara
College alumni.”
Kilty found out she won the
prestigious award through an email, sent by the college.
“I’m really humbled that I was
chosen,” says Kilty. “I’m one of
Niagara College graduate Dr. Heather Lee Kilty, who will be
receiving a Premier’s Award in February, is shown at her office in
the nursing department at Brock University in St. Catharines.
Photo by Greg Vallentin
many people who walked
through and built their dreams in
the college.”
Five other notable Niagara college graduates were nominated for
the 2003 awards.
They are Bernie McNamee, a
graduate of the Advanced Radio
and Television program and a
Canadian Broadcasting Corp.
(CBC) broadcaster; construction
executive Mel Yungblut, a graduate
of
the
Construction
Engineering Technology program; former Niagara Regional
Chair Debbie Zimmerman, a
graduate of the Journalism-Print
program; housing executive
Betty Ann Baker, a graduate of
the Advanced Theatre Art program; and winemaker Lindsay
Puddicombe, a graduate of the
Winery
and
Viticulture
Technician program.
The five other Niagara College
nominees will be accompanied by
Kilty and honoured at the award
ceremony in February.
“I’m honoured to have had the
opportunity to get an education,
and that someone is saying that
they recognize some of the work
I’ve done in the community and
for human services, for social
action is really worth something,” says Kilty.
Even with her success, Kilty
says she is still challenged every
day and continues to be “challenged as a learner.”
Kilty was in Newfoundland for
a one-week course on leadership
skills for nurses this week.
The last time a Niagara college
alumna received a Premier’s
Award was in 1995. That year the
recipient was Carol Alaimo, a
graduate of the Journalism-Print
program.
Once again it’s time for the Student Administrative Council’s (SAC) annual Toys for Tots drive. The drive gives toys to the less fortunate children in the
Niagara Region. The Welland Community Christmas Toy Chest and the Glendale Community Cares are the two charities that will benefit from the the
drive. Look for the Christmas tree in the Learning Resource Centre (LRC) at both campuses. Take a name tag and return the tag with a new, unwrapped
toy and place it under the tree. SAC will send the toys to the agency, to ensure that each and every child has a Merry Christmas.
The Toys and Tots drive ends on Dec. 11.
My sincere best wishes to all
students and staff for a
warm, safe and peaceful
holiday season. I look forward
to seeing you in the new year
re-energized and ready
for success.
Dan Patterson
President
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 3
Possibility of Ontario college strike looms
Continued from page 1
There are roughly 167,980
full-time students enrolled in
college
programs
across
Ontario, and an estimated one
million Ontarians take courses at
provincial colleges.
Darrell Neufeld, manager of
corporate communications at
Niagara College, in an article in
the St. Catharines Standard, says
while a strike vote for support
staff has been set, the process is
still working.
“I really can’t speculate on
whether a strike will happen or not.
We hope that will not be necessary
and that both sides come to an agreement without any disruption to the
college,” says Neufeld.
“Even if (support staff) were to
vote for a strike, it doesn’t mean they
will be going on strike.”
Neufeld says he can’t speculate, but it’s business as usual, in
response to the possibility of the
strike affecting January enrolment at Niagara College.
Neufeld says all 24 colleges in
Ontario bargain collectively through
the Colleges Compensation and
Appointments Council, formerly
known as the Council of Regents,
adding that college presidents have a
“huge influence” over the position
taken by the council in negotiations.
Niagara College President
Dan Patterson says in an email
interview, “It’s not all uncom-
mon for negotiations on a new
collective agreement to go on
after a contract has expired. The
bargaining between the colleges
and the support staff and academic unions began several
months before the end of
August.”
“I am pleased to report that a
tentative agreement has been
reached with support staff. While
this agreement will need to be ratified we are pleased with the
development,”says Patterson.
“I hope and remain optimistic
that an agreement will be
reached with our faculty union
without any disruption to the
colleges. That’s the goal for both
sides.”
“Negotiating is about resolving differences and it can take
time, but, again, I’m hopeful an
agreement will be reached that’s
fair to both sides,” says
Patterson.
Get your news one day early in new delivery format
By HEATHER CROLE
Staff Writer
Two Niagara College employees make viewing the Niagara
News online quicker and easier
than it has ever been.
They are Kevin Romyn, a computer technician at the college,
and Mike Boldin, a professor of
the Computer Engineering program. Boldin said, “In my spare
time, I’m also the webmaster for
the CIT (Computer Information
Technologies) division, specifically for technology and niagarac.on.ca.”
Before, the Niagara News website was similar to but not an
exact visual version of the newspaper. It didn’t look the same as
the hard copy newspaper nor have
all the same articles or content.
Now, the same articles, photos
and designs that the Journalism-
Print students create for the
Niagara News are transferred to a
new site.
It looks exactly the same as the
hard copy newspaper that students and the community can pick
up from the newsstands when the
newspaper is distributed throughout the college and local areas on
Fridays.
The new site will use a PDF,
which is a portable document format. The site address is
http://technology.niagarac.on.ca/
niagaranews.
“It’s a fairly new idea. There
were some PDFs on the Niagara
News site, but they didn’t always
work. It wasn’t the best place for
it to be,” said Romyn.
“We use the exact same files
that go to CanWeb to be printed.
It’s cost-effective and done pretty
much all at the same time. It takes
Steve Hudson
Andy Neale
Chief Information
Officer
very little time to do,” said
Romyn.
“He (Boldin) made it so easy
for us to do it. Phyllis (Barnatt,
co-ordinator of the JournalismPrint program) sent him an email, and he sent back directions.”
This new version of putting the
newspaper online happened last
Thursday. Romyn said it took a
few days to complete.
“We’re hoping it will be ready
for the next paper and that it will
be linked to the (current) Niagara
News website (http://www.niagara-news.com).”
Romyn said it looks exactly
like the Niagara News newspaper
because the website presence is to
be the same as the paper.
Links in the PDF file documents can link to other parts of
the college website.
Barnatt said it makes the
Niagara News available on the
web in a format that mirrors our
hard copy newspaper.
She said employers, editors and
advertisers who are hiring can go
through the new site and look at
the page and designs of the students, as they designed it.
“The old way was mailing them
a copy of the paper. Now it’s
available to everyone,” she said.
“It’s a leap forward for us
because it provides an opportunity for communication, to see our
archives back to September 2001,
including our special editions for
the horticultural open house and
for the career fair.”
“The alumni can go back and
see what the college has been up
to while they’ve been gone,” she
said.
Anyone will be able to see the
TO THE STUDENTS, FACULTY
AND STAFF OF
NIAGARA COLLEGE:
Vice President
Corporate Services
At this special time of year,
we wish you
Dr. Alan Davis
Vice President
Academic
Martha Casson
Vice President
Enterprise and
Student Services
paper Thursday, before it goes out
on the street on Friday, from anywhere in the world.
Barnatt said she is “very
pleased” with the new idea.
“I’m appreciative to Paul
Dayboll for the Niagara News
online edition and for training
students with that format using
HTML coding. Now using PDFs
opens avenues. We’re pleased to
offer both versions to our readers.
“I want to thank Leo Tiberi for
his support (of this idea) and
Mike Boldin, who helped make it
happen.”
Dayboll is a college professor
who teaches desktop publishing
on the Apple Macintosh computer
platform.
Tibeiri is the director of the
School of Media and Design and
publisher of the Niagara News
here at Niagara College.
- health and happiness
- festive celebrations with
family and friends
- peace and joy!
y
p
p
a
H ys!
a
d
i
l
o
H
Page 4, Niagara News, Dec, 5, 2003
Accomplishments
Business students place fourth in competition
By CHARLOTTE BRETT
Staff Writer
Niagara College placed fourth
overall against 15 other Ontario
colleges in the Ontario Colleges
Marketing Competition (OCMC)
held on Nov. 13 and Nov. 14 in
Peterborough.
A team of 14 students from the
Business
Administration
–
Marketing (Co-op) program
and the Business – Sales and
Marketing program, from the
Glendale campus in Niagaraon-the-Lake entered the twoday competition. The team
went home with three gold
medals, one silver award and
one bronze award.
Students participated in different competitions throughout the
two days and won medals in four
of them.
Mike Cameron, a third-year
student, received first place in
the Sales Presentation competition, and third-year student
Ian Christie and second-year
student Jayme Morrison won
first prize in the Advertising
Case.
Nancy Trani, a second-year student, won second prize in the Quiz
Bowl, and second-year student
Brett Stewart won third prize in
the Job Interview competition.
Cameron, who is in the Business
Administration – Marketing (Coop) program, says he was excited
when he received first prize.
He says it took him about a
month to prepare for the competition, for which he was
trained by Steve Champion
and Meghan McCready, a former winner of the competition
and a graduate of Niagara
College.
Niagara College has been competing in the OCMC for four
years, and Beth Pett, program coordinator, says the college will
continue to do so.
Pett says each year the college’s
team gets “consistently better.”
Pett says most colleges from
around the province send 20 to
25 students per team to the
competition each year, whereas Niagara College sends 15.
“We do so well compared to big
schools.”
Pett says, in the future, the
teams will just keep getting
better, and eventually “we’re
going to dominate.”
In addition to the hardware they
received for winning, the students gain recognition from
the judges that may help in
their careers and get a valuable addition to their resumé,
Pett adds.
Jamie King, manager of Alumni
Development and Student Awards
at Niagara College’s Glendale
campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
“I feel totally honoured,”
Verhoef said when accepting the
cheque. “I just feel so special.”
Verhoef says she didn’t think
she had a chance of winning the
scholarship. She says she thought
that a lot of other students had better writing skills than she did,
so someone else would probably win the scholarship.
Beard was a dental hygienist at
the Welland Mews Dental Office.
She died in 1999 in a car accident
Back row, from left, are Denise Beard, Ed Beard, James Beard,
and Bill Stuart. Front row, from left, are Alice Verhoef, Jacquie
Vanderweir, Karen Verhoef (Vanderwier), Tina Bruzzese and
Justine Beard.
Photo by Sarah Allingham
ceed in life are those who take (go)
that extra mile.”
The college’s team was sponsored by Casino Niagara,
which donated a total of
$3,000 for expenses and purchased the team’s shirts.
Front row from left, Carl Cota, Barb Smith, professor, Ian Christie, Cameron Donald, Adam Stouffer,
Nick Kenyers, Jayme Morrison. Back row from left, Bret Stewart, Malcolm Howe, professor, Tia
Sheppard, Nancy Trani, Jen Yanulionis, Gosia Puzio, Bobbi Petherick, Terri Champion, Sales and
Marketing co-ordinator, Rahul Seith, Beth Pett, third-year Marketing co-ordinator.
Submitted photo
Program graduate wins $1,500
By SARAH ALLINGHAM
Staff Writer
Karen Verhoef (Vanderwier),
22, of St. Catharines, is the winner
of the Carolyn Anne Beard
Memorial
Scholarship.
She
accepted the cheque for $1,500 on
Nov. 7.
Verhoef is a Dental Hygiene
program graduate from Niagara
College’s Welland campus.
She heard about the scholarship last year and wrote an essay
about her idea of what a good
hygienist should be. Her essay,
selected from 40 other essays,
“was found to be superior,” says
Niagara College President Dan
Patterson says, “It’s a tremendous
accomplishment. Congratulations
on behalf of Niagara College.”
Patterson says they should be
“very proud” of themselves.
“Students who are going to suc-
on her way to work. Co-workers
say she was an “exceptional
employee.” Beard’s co-workers
and family members organized the
scholarship in her memory for her
hard work and commitment.
Tina Bruzzese, manager of
Welland Mews Dental Office and
good friend of Beard’s, says Beard
“went the extra mile.” Beard
would take her lunch hour to work
on patients who could not afford
the treatment. Bruzzese says
Beard was “people caring.”
The essays are aimed at
determining who stands out
the way Beard did, who “goes
the extra mile” as Beard did,
and who puts as much commitment into the work as Beard
did, says Bruzzese.
Beard’s widow, Bill Stuart, and
two of her three sons (Ed, the
eldest, and James, the youngest)
attended Verhoef’s award ceremony. Along with them were Beard’s
daughter-in-law, Denise Beard,
and Denise’s daughter, Justine
Beard.
Verhoef’s mother, Jacquie
Vanderwier, and her mother-inlaw, Alice Verhoef, accompanied
Verhoef to the award ceremony to
congratulate her.
“I am really pleased for her,”
says Verhoef’s mother, who, with
her husband, is a missionary. “She
(Karen) is blessed.”
Verhoef says she will spend the
money paying off her debts, “considering I just got married,” and
help her parents with their missionary work.
“It is a very generous award,”
says Verhoef.
Verhoef has been working at
Doctor Tester and Doctor Diston
Glendale Dental Centre in St.
Catharines since September.
Winery teacher
brings attention
to program
By SHEENA WERNER
Staff Writer
Between 1989 and 2001, the
number of grape-based wineries
in Ontario grew from 18 to 72.
The total value of Ontario wine
sales grew by 64.1 per cent.
Ontario’s wines have won hundreds of awards. Niagara
College’s winery teacher is one
of those wine creators.
Jim Warren, winemaker/professor, has made one of the most
exciting white wines of the year
and daily shares his magic with
his students.
Niagara College has 95 varieties and the top 12 viniferas are
undergoing an array of clonal,
rootstock and other experiments.
Niagara College’s programs
cover cellar operations, viticulture and marketing.
The wines the college produces are the true testaments to
the Winery and Viticulture
Technician program at the
Glendale campus at Niagara-onthe-Lake.
Receiving particular notice are
the 2002 Barrel Fermented
Chardonnay, the 2002 Barrel
Aged Merlot, the 2002 Barrel
Aged Pinot Noir Wismer
Vineyard and the 2002 Barrel
Aged Cabernet Sauvignon, as
listed in the winery retail outlet.
All of these wines are available at the college’s winery retail
outlet at the Glendale campus.
Store hours are Monday to
Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and
Sundays 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The college makes 900 cases
of wine a year and, Warren says,
he hopes to double this production next year.
The revenue from the sales of
the wines helps to buy equipment.
“It’s a wonderful blend of the
practicum and academics, where
students are allowed to experience New World wine techniques
at facilities that are state of the
art,” says Ed Pietrobon, student,
Winery
and
Viticulture
Technician program.
“The students from the
Niagara College Winery and
Viticulture Technician program
have been very hard working,
full of high energy and enthusiastic. The future of the Ontario
wine industry is in good hands
with these students,” says Tom
Seaver, winemaker, Jackson
Triggs Niagara Estate Winery, on
Niagara College’s website.
To contact the Niagara College
Teaching Winery, call 905-6412252, extension 4070.
Classes begin again Jan. 12, 2004
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 5
PR committee member wins Woman of the Year Award
By HEATHER CROLE
Staff Writer
The Niagara area’s businesswoman of the year is a member of
the advisory committee to the
Public Relations (PR) (Post-graduate) program at Niagara College.
Deborah Pratt, of Niagara-onthe-Lake, is the director of public
relations at Inniskillin Wines, in
that town.
Several of the college’s
Business Development Centre
staff and advisers, along with Bea
Clark, attended the annual Women
of the Year Awards and Women in
Business Awards held on Oct. 20
at the Quality Hotel Parkway
Convention Centre at 327 Ontario
St., in St. Catharines.
This annual event honours
outstanding women in the
Niagara region.
Clark, of Fonthill, has been the
director of the Ventures Division
at the college for over 20 years.
Clark said her division offers
assistance to businesswomen in
the community.
“I’m very pleased at Deborah
Pratt’s win,” she said.
Pratt received her award during
a ceremony luncheon, for which
she was the keynote speaker.
Pratt was nominated for the
award for her work in the wine
industry, because she has built
the wine tourism business for
Inniskillin Wines and increased
sales within the industry. She
was also nominated for her creation of the self-guided tour for
Inniskillin Wines.
She has worked at Inniskillin
Wines for 27 years, 16 of those as
the director of public relations.
Her job entails hosting visiting
dignitaries, government, media
and industry people touring the
winery and for wine tasting. She
keeps them up to speed about
what is happening at Inniskillin
Wines and in the wine industry,
writing media releases, maintaining media contacts, planning special events, selling wine, receiving
requests for promotions in the
industry, sending out information
and images for various articles,
taking part in committees,
fundraising and creating media
and tour packages.
“It’s about sharing your individual component,” said Pratt.
She said she has been a member
of the advisory committee for
Niagara College’s PR program
“for three or four years ... since I
am a former school teacher, I
believe in assisting where you
have expertise with those trying to
get into the field.”
Inniskillin Wines recently won
the award of New World Winery
of the Year from Wine Enthusiast
magazine, which is published in
the United States.
PR students have completed
co-ops at Inniskillin Wines in the
past and have worked directly
with Pratt. She says they’ve
worked out well.
She said, “I look for people with
creativity, initiative and who are
able to apply their computer and
people skills for unique ways of
promoting the winery. Some people are more creative than others,
some take the initiative and some
need to be told step by step.
“I look for those who take the
ball and run with it.”
Pratt said the best piece of
advice she’s ever received is “to
think before you speak, when
dealing with the media. When you
write something you can re-vamp
it, but when you say something,
that’s it.”
Is that your final answer?
Public Relations (Post-graduate) program students enjoyed a day of fun and games Nov. 26
preparing for exam reviews and exam week. Linda Camus, professor of the Mass Media and
Communications class, said because the students have so many essays and tests, she decided to
get them to produce their own material, for a good review. The games involved critical thinking and
problem solving skills.The 33 students, divided into groups, built the games using relevant information to the course, creating guidelines and instructions. The students evaluated each game, not
including the one they created. Camus said she got the idea from a book called Tips for Teaching.
Shown are Tony Basilone, Lana Macoretta, Jenn Murphy, and Rachel Mathews.
Photo by Heather Crole
Page 6, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Student recovering well from accident
Classmate says
she can give a
thumbs-up sign
By SARAH ALLINGHAM
Staff Writer
A second-year Niagara College
Dental Hygiene program student
continues
to
recover
at
Sunnybrook Health Sciences
Hospital in Toronto from extensive
injuries she received in a twovehicle accident on Nov. 18.
Willena VanHierden, 18, of Fort
Macleod, Alta., has numerous broken bones and slight head trauma.
The doctors say she has a fractured
skull but there is minimal bleeding
on the brain, which they are letting
heal without surgery.
VanHierden has two broken
ankles, a shattered heel, a broken
tibia and a broken kneecap. Both
of her femurs are broken, and her
pelvic bone is broken in numerous
areas. Her spleen was removed in
an initial surgical procedure. She
has had three surgeries to date.
VanHierden is making a good
recovery. Although she is still on a
respirator, she can open her eyes,
squeeze hands and “she can give a
thumbs-up,” Carla Pippel, 20, of
Ingersoll, who is one of
VanHierden’s classmates.
VanHierden
sustained
her
injuries on Nov. 18 in a two-vehicle
accident at the Allanburg Bridge in
Thorold. Niagara Regional Police
report that a 1993 Pontiac
Bonneville was driven by Barbara
Lamontagne, 32, of Welland. She
was pronounced dead at the scene.
Her four-year-old son, who was in
the passenger seat, is at the Hospital
for Sick Children in Toronto. He is
in stable condition. The other
vehicle, a 2002 Chevy Cavalier,
was driven by VanHierden. An
NRP spokesperson says that
charges are not pending. The
investigation is ongoing.
On the night of the accident,
which occurred at about 9:30 p.m.,
faculty recall VanHierden was at
the Welland campus until about
8:30 p.m. doing schoolwork. She
was on her way home.
VanHierden came to Ontario last
year to attend the Dental Hygiene
program because in Alberta there
wasn’t much available for her to
meet her goals. She is in her second year, Pippel says.
Over the past year and a half,
Pippel says, that she and
VanHierden have become “such
good friends.”
“Willena is fun, smart, beautiful,
and the nicest person I know, and
some day she will make a great
hygienist,” says Pippel.
Pippel adds that VanHierden is
the “strongest person” she knows.
She says VanHierden is the type to
never give up and she is always
trying to do better. “This is most
evident in her school work.”
VanHierden’s family is strong in
their religious beliefs. Pippel says,
“This is the only thing that is helping her family get through this, is
knowing that God is in control.”
VanHierden is the eldest of six
and comes from a Dutch background. She loves to snowboard
and, Pippel says, she was “really
looking forward” to snowboarding when she returns to Alberta
for the holidays.
“I think that family is the most
important thing to Willena, second,
of course, to God,” says Pippel.
VanHierden attended the Free
Reformed Church with her
boyfriend, Bob Newhouse, 23, of
Port Dalhousie, and her best
friend, Sarah Beeke, 21, of
Fonthill.
VanHierden had her last surgery
on her ankles on Dec. 1. She was
responsive to the surgery. Pippel
says she is recovering well.
Paramedic student encounters need for his skills, knowledge
By SHEENA WERNER
Staff Writer
Being the first on the scene doesn’t guarantee that you can help.
Joe Draper, 20, of Owen Sound, was one of the first people on the scene of a car accident
on Nov. 18, at 9:30 p.m.
“I was driving home from supper with my girlfriend and I just happened to come upon the
accident,” says Draper, who is in the second-year of the Paramedic program at Niagara College.
The accident, on Regional Road 20, west of the Allanburg Bridge in Thorold, left one
woman dead and two critically injured.
“I wasn’t really feeling any emotions, just a little scared because it was so quiet. Normally
you hear people crying and screaming, but it was completely silent,” says Draper.
Draper helped clear debris away from the car with two of his passengers and found
a four-year-old boy. The mother, 32-year-old Barbara Lamontagne, was unresponsive
but her son appeared to be responsive and knew his own name as well as his mother’s name.
Draper says the other driver, 18-year-old Willena VanHierden, a second-year Dental
Hygiene program student at Niagara College, was unconscious when paramedics and the
Thorold Fire Department arrived on scene.
“This experience solidified the fact that I want to do this (be a paramedic). I hadn’t done
any bad trauma like this before,” says Draper.
Student Appreciation Day successful
By CASANDRA
BELLEFEUILLE
and TAMARA SARGENT
Staff Writers
All three Niagara College
campuses
(Glendale
in
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Maid of
the Mist in Niagara Falls and
Welland),
held
Student
Appreciation Day yesterday.
For the first six years, Student
Appreciation Day was held
annually.
For the last two years, it has
been held twice a year. The next
one is scheduled for March 11,
with a “tropical theme.”
Yesterday’s theme was called
Snow Bash. Each department at the
college’s Welland campus had ballots for draws, and activities were
organized in the main lobby. Candy
was offered and the counsellor’s
office handed out snow cones.
Niagara College President Dan
Patterson describes the day as a
way of expressing thanks to the
college students.
“The college staff wanted to
find some vehicle or way to say to
the students that our reason for
being here is to support you, the
students of Niagara College.
“We needed to think of creative
and innovative ways in which to
demonstrate our appreciation for
studying here.”
The grand prize was two tickets to a Buffalo Sabres’ National
Hockey League game in
Buffalo, N.Y., offered by the
president’s office.
All the festivities were “the
college’s way of saying thanks
for choosing us,” says Brigitte
Chiki, director of Student
Services. “It’s a fun activity for
the students and staff.”
Chiki says she has heard students say that they have never
seen anything like this before at
other colleges.
“I loved it,” says Asma
Sarwer, a second-year Early
Childhood Education student
who went to last year’s Student
Appreciation Day. “It’s a time to
relax and enjoy.”
This year, inside and around the
college, 100 snowballs were hidden. Written on them were directions to prizes. Most of the snowballs were hidden inside but there
were some outside.
The prizes included school
supplies, household gadgets, bev-
erages and gift certificates to
local restaurants.
Educational
Assistant
—
Special Needs Support secondyear student Julie Winter says last
year the college “put on a good
time. Everyone was in a great
mood. We had a lot of fun.”
Among all the prizes won were
a DVD player, a portable CD
player, an eat-free-for-a-week
voucher (excluding products from
Tim Hortons) and gift baskets.
The President’s Office held a
draw for two National Hockey
League tickets.
“It takes several hundred dollars to pull something like this
off,” says Chiki. She adds that
some “staff contribute out of
their pockets.”
The college budgeted $2,500 for
Student Appreciation Day. The
value of all the prizes, mostly
donated by college staff and various departments, totalled $2,000.
At Student Appreciation Day
last year, “we had fun,” says Pat
Bartley, a second-year Educational
Assistant — Special Needs
Support program student. “If you
didn’t attend last year’s festivities,
you missed a good time.”
‘Fantastic’ speaker will be
keynote at winter orientation
By TAMARA SARGENT
Staff Reporter
Students will soon be taught
how to supercharge their brains.
Award-winning college professor and professional speaker
Brian Thwaites will be speaking
at winter orientation on Jan. 7 at
the Welland campus and Jan. 8 at
the Glendale campus in Niagaraon-the-Lake.
“The keynote speaker is
absolutely fantastic,” says
Student
Services
Director
Brigitte Chiki.
Thwaites, a self-proclaimed
immensely entertaining brain
trainer, teaches how to improve
brain use. He shows people how
to enhance learning, communication, creativity, problem-solving
and thinking skills.
Orientation Day is “all about
student success,” says Chiki. “It’s
to give the best start to the year.”
First-year student fees include
a $30 Orientation Day charge.
“Between Brian, free food,
entertainment and the prize
pool,” says Chiki, “the value is
at least $30.”
More than 500 students are
enrolled in the 27 full-time programs that start in January. The
Journalism-Print program is one
of them.
These students are to check
in between 8:30 a.m. and 9
a.m. at the Hamilton Room at
the Welland campus and at the
Glendale campus, the Yerich
Auditorium.
Ballots for a draw will be
given at that time. Chiki says,
“There’s a large prize pool.”
Thwaites will begin his presentation at 9 a.m. The students’
respective program information
sessions run from 10:30 a.m.
until 12:30 p.m. A free lunch will
be offered afterwards, followed
by live entertainment.
Classes begin Jan. 12.
Students are encouraged to
take advantage of the break
and get photo identifications,
purchase textbooks and parking passes and organize their
Ontario Student Assistance
Program funding.
Five major key performance indicators assure overall quality of college
By MELISSA GRAHAM
Staff Writer
“Students are generally honest.
If they are unhappy, we know it
and can act on it.”
Marti
Jurmain,
of
St.
Catharines, director of new product development at Niagara
College, says key performance
indicators (KPIs) are an overall
quality assurance mechanism.
“I agree with them. I think they
are very important.”
She says KPIs are formal meth-
ods of evaluation and are mandated by the government for all
Ontario colleges.
“There are five major KPIs. The
first ones are student satisfaction
surveys that are administered by
the college in February.”
She says the other KPIs are graduate employment rates, and graduate satisfaction. Surveys are done
three times a year in April, August
and December, six months after
graduation. The graduate satisfaction surveys are done by phone by
Forum Research Canada. She adds
that employer satisfaction is done
after these but only if the graduates
give employer information.
Jurmain says the last KPI is
graduation rate, which measures
how many students starting in a
program actually finished in the
specified timeframe of their start
date. These are reported by the
registrar’s office.
“Everything is analyzed very
carefully so that it is objective. We
look at strengths as well as weak-
nesses. They are fairly accurate.”
Dr. Alan Davis, the college’s
vice-president academic, says,
“There is a lot of effort to identify
the information collected that
would allow someone to determine whether the college is living
up to expectations.”
He says the KPIs are just indicators so don’t tell the whole story.
“It says, ‘Do we have a problem
here or not?’”
“One good thing about it is it
measures graduate/employment sat-
isfaction. It is appropriate because if
the graduates aren’t satisfied, it says
something about the college.”
He says it is useful to do a followup to the KPI results but it is
not an overall statement about the
college.
“When KPI results are put on a
website, I think that it is inappropriate because I think it is a crude
way to do that.”
To see last year’s KPI results visit
http://www.gov.on.ca/eng/general/postsec/colindicator.html#ry.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 7
College receives ‘substantial’ donation
Bookham, former subsidiary of Nortel, delivers brand new equipment
By RYAN FARKAS
Staff Writer
A recent donation from
Bookham Technology has pushed
Niagara College’s technology
division to the forefront of
Canadian educational institutions.
Two 53-foot trailers arrived on
Nov. 18, delivering equipment
worth a “substantial” amount,
according to Kevin Hewitt, academic manager-technology and
skills training.
“Some of these pieces of equipment to buy new is in the hundreds
of thousands of dollars,” said
Hewitt. “Most of these items,
Niagara College would not likely
have been able to purchase.”
The equipment, delivered on
Nov. 18, is top-of-the-line, some
of which was still in original
crates. Mark Csele, professor of
Computer
Engineering
Technology, said, “The equipment
they had is damn near brand new.”
The college’s current equipment
has been built and rebuilt time and
time again, with some pieces being
more than 35 years old.
After the dot-com market
crash, Bookham Technology purchased the Optical Components
Group of Nortel Networks in
November 2002. Much of the
equipment came from Nortel’s
lab in Ottawa.
Hewitt said, “If there’s a positive with what has happened in the
whole telecom business, it would
be that some of the equipment that
is so new and so good gets used in
institutions like Niagara.”
Bookham sold a lot of its equipment through an auction process to
astounding deal the college
received, the college offered
$9,000 for a $200,000 optical
grading bench. In the end, it cost
will be upgraded and changed to
match the new equipment. Csele
said, “Normally, you design your
curriculum and you design your
The delivered equipment sitting in V12. Most of it should be up and running by the winter term.
Photo by Ryan Farkas
colleges and universities across
the country. Niagara College purchased half a dozen pieces through
the auction. As an example of the
$17,500.
Hewitt said, “These kind of occurrences don’t happen every day.”
Csele said that the curriculum
labs to fit your curriculum, but
when you’re talking about pieces
of equipment worth half a million
plus, you tend to do it the other
way around.” College faculty is
hoping to have this equipment up
and running for the winter term.
“There needed to be a review at
the college side to make sure the
college could accommodate some
of the equipment,” Hewitt said.
“People needed to look into that
the right infrastructure was in
place.”
One of the more important
machines received is called
EZRA. It is a massive thin-film
coating machine, worth over
$200,000 in parts. Csele said,
“Engineers laughed and said how
much of a problem EZRA was ...
We’re gonna end up building
Better than EZRA.”
More lab equipment means
more accessibility for students.
Not only will waiting times for
labs be cut drastically, but also students will be using equipment that
is the industry standard.
Csele said, “We also got a lot of
clean room equipment. It’s just
horrifically expensive. Most universities don’t have a clean room
like ours, and (at) those that do,
undergrads can’t get into it.”
Some of the old equipment will
remain in labs while some may be
either sent to other schools or disposed.
Either way, this is an “embarrassment of riches,” said Csele.
“We’re looking out for ourselves
right now and this donation ...
God, is it going to improve the
place. It’ll be absolutely amazing.”
Wishing you
Happy Holidays
from the Staff of the
Communications &
Information Technology
Division
Leo Tiberi
Director
Kevin Hewitt
Academic Manager
Page 8, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Editorials
The Niagara News is a practical lab for the Journalism-Print program, covering the college community and other areas of interest.
Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the management of the Niagara News or the administration of
Niagara College, Room V10, 300 Woodlawn Rd., Welland, Ont. L3C 7L3
Phone (905) 735-2211 / 641-2252 / 374-7454 / FAX (905) 736-6003
Editor: Lindsay Allbright; Associate Editor: Sarah Wegelin; Assistant Editor: Greg Vallentin;
Publisher: Leo Tiberi, director, Communications and Information Technology;
Managing Editor: Phyllis Barnatt, co-ordinator, Journalism-Print program;
Associate Managing Editor: Gary Erb, professor, Journalism-Print program;
Editorial Consultant: Nancy Geddie, professor, Journalism-Print program;
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Photography Consultant: Andrew Klapatiuk, photography instructor;
Photography Editor: Don Armstrong;
Scanning Crew: Charlotte Brett; Jonathan Jones; Jolene Holmes
www.niagara-news.com
Christmas requires crucial planning
With all the stress of school on my shoulders, I didn’t think I had anything else
to worry about.
I spoke too soon.
I’m very proud of myself. I can go through most of the year being frugal, keeping good control of my bank account with a watchful eye.
Then comes Christmas, with the need to please everyone with nice gifts.
I’m a giving person; I love to see the looks on everyone’s faces as they open
their gifts from me, as if they’re thinking, “Wow, how did she know I’d really
like this?”
I have gone about it in a mature way: I got a job. Ten hours a week I labour making money for my Christmas shopping, which I plan to leave until the very last
minute so I can see as many paycheques as possible.
My roommate, Angela, is very helpful in helping me budget for my gifts. We
have decided I have only nine people to buy for, including a small gift for her and
a rather large one for Adam. We’ve decided to do just stocking stuffers this year.
I made a chart (yes, laugh all you want). The girl has made a chart with three
columns, one for the name of the person I am buying for, one for what I plan to
buy that person and one for how much I am estimating it will cost.
I totalled it all at the bottom: $240. Think I can do it?
I know I can.
Now, I don’t want to reveal what my balance is or what I plan to buy everyone
on my list (except Angela, she’s getting a bottle of blue Gatorade, exactly what she
asked for), but I can tell you that I will survive.
Then there are the people who ask me what I want for Christmas, the people I
wasn’t planning on buying gifts for.
Have you ever been in that situation?
You feel the need to buy something for someone because you know that person is buying something for you? Well, guess what? I’m not giving in.
The faces may not be as glowing as last year, but the gifts will mean something to those who receive them.
I won’t be giving gifts to my school friends this year, just cards. I’ve narrowed my mom’s list from 10 items to only two. There will be no Ferrari
model for Adam this year or expensive underwear from Jacob for Jenny. I’m
going to control myself.
I’ve come to learn that it’s not the quantity, but the quality, and I can deal
with that.
Expensive things can fit in a stocking, right?
LINDSAY ALLBRIGHT
Employee shocked by rude customers
I work in a busy restaurant as a waitress. The women I work with are some of the
most wonderful people I’ve met.
We work as a team. We share tables and tips. Sometimes it’s a rush to make sure
that all drinks and all food bills have been paid. It’s the worst feeling in the world,
dreadful, when we discover an unpaid bill and the people who were served are
gone.
I never knew there were people with enough nerve to walk out without paying
their bill or leaving a tip after sitting at a restaurant table, being served drinks and
food by someone who makes sure you get exactly what you order, makes sure
you’re enjoying your meal, then, when you’re done eating, scrapes your plate, picks
up your dirty napkins and wipes down your table.
Waitresses are paid a fixed $5.99 an hour. There are no raises. There are no benefits. Some people serve tables all of their lives.
I work with women who rely on their tips to feed their kids, to pay their bills.
Two weeks ago I served a table of customers chicken wings and a few pitchers of
beer. As I was removing the many red-stained napkins and the empty glasses from
all over the table, one of the men who had been sitting there, walked by me, tick-
led my waist and said, “Thanks a lot, sweetie.”
I looked down at my $1.75 tip, the mess on the table and felt exploited. My
heart started beating. I was disgusted with him. I said, “Don’t touch me like that
ever, please.”
He turned around and, almost shocked, uttered, “What?”
Waitresses don’t just serve food and clean tables. It is our job to be nice to people even when they’re rude to us.
When people walk out on their bills, we have to pay for it. When we make a
mistake on your order, we have to pay for it. Waitresses don’t take the time to
yell at you. We don’t lose our patience with you. We don’t demand anything
from our customers except the same courtesy you are shown when you walk in
to enjoy a meal.
I think that maybe we forget sometimes to be kind and understanding towards
one another. My wish for everyone this Christmas is to have a nice time with their
family and their friends. Be patient in the malls and drive carefully in the snow,
if we ever get some. Take your time and enjoy your time off.
SARAH WEGELIN
Letter to the editor
Reader enjoys online edition of Niagara News
Dear Editor:
As a graduate of the JournalismPrint program in 2002, I always
make it a point to read the online
edition of the Niagara News.
I wanted to convey to you all that
I’m very impressed with the high
quality of writing and professionalism that you have demonstrated in
your news coverage.
In particular, I would like to
commend Heather Crole for her
article on the unfortunate passing
of Greg Darling (Vol. 34, Issue 4,
Nov. 7). The article was very
thoughtful and, I think, a great tribute to a great member of the
Niagara College community.
I wish you all the best in your
studies and in your future careers. I
know that you will be able to leave
Niagara College with confidence in
your education and your abilities.
Sincerely,
Christopher Newman
Online Community Developer,
Northern Ontario Youth Action
Partnership,
Sudbury, Ont.
Editor’s Note: Mr. Newman is a
graduate also of the Public
Relations (Post-graduate) program of Niagara College.
Seafood Gala set for March 26
Incorrect
information
appeared in the Nov. 21 edition of Niagara News on page
16 in the story headlined
“President’s wife gives to college community.”
In reference to the Seafood
Gala, the report should have said
the event is to be held on March
26, 2004. This is the second
annual event. However, the
fundraiser has been held for a
total of 16 years.
Saundra Patterson, co-chair of
the gala, says, “We changed the
size, style and venue last year,
so, in a sense, it is the second
one to be held like this.”
It is the policy of Niagara
News to correct errors of fact.
ADVERTISING RULES: The advertiser agrees that the publisher shall not be liable for damages arising out of errors in advertisements beyond the amount paid for the space actually
occupied by the portion of the advertisement in which the error occurred. This applies whether such error is due to the negligence of its servants or otherwise.
There shall be no liability for non-insertions of any advertisement beyond the amount paid for such advertisement.
All advertisers are asked to check their advertisements after first insertion. We accept responsibility for only one incorrect insertion unless notified immediately after publication. Errors,
which do not lessen the value of the advertisement, are not eligible for corrections by a make-good advertisement. There shall be no liability for non-insertion of any advertisement beyond
the amount paid for such advertisement. We reserve the right to edit, revise, classify or reject any advertisement.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 9
Musings
Beware the pants-pulling retail beast
It was along these lines: “Do you use
that ring to pleasure girls?”
By GREG
I couldn’t help but chuckle as I tried
VALLENTIN
to
figure out how exactly one would go
Columnist
about doing that. I proceeded to say
“no,” trying my best to hold in the hysterical laughing fit that was about
People always say that you’ll never for- to erupt.
She was older, about 75, and it was
get your college days. Well, I always say
a cute question coming from an elderto them I’ll never forget my retail days.
I’ve been working in retail for almost ly lady, but a funny one nonetheless.
My second story involves two elderly
two years now, and I feel it’s my obligladies (what is with
ation to share some
the elderly and perof the humiliating,
I was frightened,
verted comments
downright horrific
stories that I haven’t confused, some would these days, anyway?) who were
told anyone about,
except my family, even say flabbergasted. looking at fleece
sweaters.
my friends, my class
I
asked
them
how
they
were doing and
and a few dozen random people.
Back in the day (and when I mean told them about how thick and soft the
back in the day, I mean six months ago), fleece was.
I had an eyebrow ring.
That was my big mistake, as the lady
Customers would always ask me closest to me looked up, grinned and
about it, and I would tell them how said, “Well, I like them thick and hard.”
painful it was. (It actually didn’t hurt
The look on my face was priceless. I
at all.)
was frightened, confused, some would
One particular customer asked me a even say flabbergasted.
question that I will never forget.
I assure you these stories are true, as
I’m positive anyone else in retail has “Staff Only” door, although I don’t know
if that would have stopped the beast,
had similar experiences, I hope.
The third, and final, of my retail sto- before I felt something grab my pants and
ries, is possibly the most embarrassing. pull them straight down to the floor.
The other staff members raised their
There was a man in the store looking
for a particular shoe. At the time, I did- heads, confused at what had just hapn’t realize that his son was hunting me pened, while I stood at the back of the
store with my pants down to my ankles.
from behind a clothing rack.
To add to the humiliation, I realized
I turned around and began to walk to
the back of the store to get the shoe for that I was wearing the tightey whitey
the man, when all of the sudden I heard extra small underwear my grandma
had bought me the year before.
a growl.
(Thanks, grandFrightened,
I
ma.)
turned around, but
I ran for my life,
I turned around
the store was empty,
to
see a small boy,
aside from the man
screaming like a
staring at me with
at the front waiting
five-year-old girl.
those
damned
for me.
innocent eyes.
Emitting a sigh of
“I didn’t do it,” was all the kid could
relief, I turned around and began walksay, before his father called him back to
ing to the back of the store again.
I heard another growl but this time it the front of the store.
It was a day that I don’t think I, and
was louder. I wasn’t going to sit around
and find out what four-foot five-inch any of the customers in the store at the
devil was hiding behind the rack beside time, will ever forget.
If you’re looking for a good job with
me, so I ran.
I ran for my life, screaming like a lots of laughs and lots of partial nudity,
then, please, by all means, apply to your
five-year-old girl.
I had almost reached the safety of the nearest retail outlet.
Student misses Green’s class of worldly wisdom
By SHEENA
WERNER
Columnist
As this semester draws to a close, I
find myself looking back and realizing
it has flown by without my once stopping to think about what I’m missing.
What I’m missing doesn’t relate to my
friends or work, but more to my education. (Not that I have a lack of classes or
homework.)
As we all know, Brian Green retired
during the summer, and we all commented about how we’ll miss him.
Green was a faculty member in the
Broadcasting – Radio, Television and
Film program at the college’s Welland
campus.
Personally, I miss the classes: the way
he knew the answer to every question
you asked without making you feel stupid for asking.
Our general agreement was that he
should be a contestant on Jeopardy with
all his smarts, and the sweater vests
made him look intelligent.
All of those students who have had
him as a teacher and all those teachers
who have worked with him know exact-
ly what I mean when I say the man
knew everything.
Even with all that knowledge, he was
still personable, was easy to talk to and
seemed to truly care about his students.
I would like to thank him for giving,
or demanding, that I have an interest in
current events and the world around me.
Sometimes the best knowledge doesn’t
come from a textbook, but from the
experiences that you have with people.
Society of addiction has questionable morals, disputed values
By RYAN FARKAS
Columnist
Just by listening to the radio this
morning, I realized we live in a society
of addiction.
It really doesn’t matter which walk
of life you may come from, you’re
jonesin’ for something.
Some people can control their addictions, while most can’t. The collective
mind can be consumed by fashion,
alcohol, drugs, classic cars, makeup,
Dr. Phil, money, the Internet, porn,
sex, etc.
My point is that all of us have this
junkie quality ingrained into our psyche, yet some of these tribulations of
life are frowned upon by society.
The person addicted to kittens will
receive far more respect than the person addicted to video poker.
The severity of the addiction is
the catch.
If you have three kittens, you’re normal. If you have 30, you’ve suddenly
jumped into an entirely strange, kittyloving sub-culture.
Who governs what’s borderline
crazy and what’s full-out crazy?
Shouldn’t we be doing a little more
housecleaning and a little less
fawning?
Our morals, for the most part, are
non-existent. Families move farther
and farther apart, even though they
live under the same roof.
Young children are more aware of
what really happens in the world earlier in childhood, so they are discovering things about life more quickly.
Without a watchful eye, these young
children can fall into traps that
shouldn’t have been set yet.
Where can we draw the line? How
many more reality television shows
are there for us to critique the lives of
others? How many more city worker
orange Campus Crew long-sleeved Vneck sweaters can we fill our closets
with? How much more can I spend on
my Civic’s euro tail-lights?
If it’s any consolation, we Canadians
aren’t addicted to guns as badly as our
neighbourly Americans. For this, we
can be grateful.
Our only fear should be the predisposed Americans invading our country
with their guns, because we didn’t play
by their rules one too many times.
Journalists, including those in the Journalism-Print program at Niagara College, are taught that their reporting must be
balanced, fair and as objective as possible. That rule must also exist for columns written by reporters. In columns, the
feelings and opinions of reporters are welcome, but balance, fairness and objectivity must never be disregarded or treated
lightly. Our columns, which are clearly identified as such, do not reflect the opinions or feelings of the Niagara College
administration or the management of the Niagara News. Columns reflect the opinion of only one person: the writer.
Page 10, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Used cars need to be checked before purchase
By JONATHAN JONES
Staff Writer
Used cars can be headaches if
you buy one without having it
checked to make sure it is mechanically sound.
“There’s certain things in place
by our Ontario government and
federal government to protect people that are not experienced with
buying a used vehicle in particular,” said Danny Colosimo, 31, of
Fonthill, sales and leasing manger
for David Chevrolet Oldsmobile at
915 Niagara St. in Welland.
“The things you have to keep in
mind are, of course, price, making
sure it is competitive, and make an
offer according to what the market
is. If the dealer you find a car at is
overpriced, you can make that
offer accordingly.”
“Particularly, you’re more concerned about accident repairs, theft
recoveries, branded vehicles, and
that has everything to do with
vehicles that have been written off
by an insurance company, bought
by a body shop from the wrecking
yard and put back together.”
Colosimo said this happens
“more than you realize.”
“A lot of the used car lots are
buying them, putting them back
together, or whatever it might be,
running them through an auction
or selling to the public. It happens
a lot.”
“If, in fact, that vehicle has been
branded ‘rebuilt,’ that means
exactly what it says. It’s been
rebuilt back to ‘original condition’
where it had structural damage and
they put it back together.”
“The customer has to be made
aware of that. If they’re not, there
(are) legal issues attached to that.”
“So a first time buyer, not knowing all this, would see on their
ownership ‘rebuilt.’ It may not
mean anything to them, but it’s
very serious, because those vehicles are worth a third of their
value. So, if the car’s worth
$10,000, it’s really worth $3,000
or $4,000.”
There are ways for consumers to
protect themselves, Colosimo said.
“Having, maybe, a mechanic look
at it before they buy it, or someone
they trust who has mechanical
knowledge – a body shop – look at
it to see if there’s any history of
damage.”
“Even if they don’t know anybody, I’m sure you could pull up a
vehicle from another dealership
and show it to our body shop or
run it through for a safety yourself
and pay for it. It’ll be the smartest
$50 or $60 you ever spent, to
make sure that the vehicle is structurally or mechanically right.”
“Spending the little extra for
research is worth it.”
“There’s certain key things to
look at. Overspray on the hood?
Tape lines on the side of the windows? You can tell certain
things.”
“It may be something stupid
like hail damage, where it was
repainted because there was dents.
That’s no big deal, but if it’s been
involved in an accident, with
$3,000 damage or more, that’s
serious.”
“A thousand dollars is nothing. You could have a bump on a
bumper where you just touch
somebody and dollars.”
“There’s certain things to pro-
The David Chevrolet Oldsmobile dealership, on Niagara Street in Welland, sells new and used cars,
trucks and SUVs. It also has a service garage at the rear of the lot for minor maintenance and a body
shop for major repairs.
Photo by Jonathan Jones
tect buyers, (such as) running a
serial number through the licence
bureau for $20 and getting a history of all the previous owners. If all
of a sudden you see the previous
owner was Queensway Auto
Wreckers
or
Bill’s Auto
Wreckers, well, a red light should
come on.”
“How many owners on this
vehicle? If you see that it’s a 2003
and it’s had 10 owners already,
that’s a little too much.”
Colosimo said that the odds of
your spending money on a vehicle
for repairs, after you’ve purchased it from a used car lot, is
very likely, as opposed to buying
a used car from a manufacturer
dealership.
It is also important to get a
good warranty, but don’t mistake
a guarantee for a warranty. “A
used vehicle warranty, either it
would be three years, 60,000 kilometres (km) from the manufacturer, or five years, 100,000 km from
the manufacturer, or a warranty
from the used car dealership of
three months, 5,000 km, whichever comes first.”
“A guarantee is like somebody
saying to you, ‘Don’t worry, nothing will happen to that vehicle.’
There is no such thing as a guarantee, in my opinion.”
“A guarantee in the used car
business is something that is
based on trust, like, ‘I think this is
a very good car and I think you
should buy it. I guarantee you’ll
have no problems.’ Well, I don’t
believe in that. They’re made by
man, and man has their faults, so
therefore, it must eventually have
a problem.”
“One thing that I would keep in
mind is deal with a dealer locally
and someone that you trust.”
“Buying a used car off the
Internet from a dealer out in
Sudbury and you live in Welland
does not make sense, especially
for warranty concerns.”
“So every time something goes
wrong with that car, you’ve got to
drive all the way to Sudbury. You
don’t know the dealership, and
you don’t know their reputation.”
“You don’t know if they’ve had
any faults registered against them
from the Chamber of Commerce
or the Better Business Bureau.
Deal locally. Go on reputation.
80 per cent of students working for the holidays
By CHARLOTTE LEE
Staff Writer
In a non-scientific survey by
Niagara News at the Welland
campus, it was found that about
83 per cent of students will be
working over the holidays. For
some, the holidays might not be
so jolly.
With the average wage ranging from $6.85 to $10.34 an
hour, and an average of five gifts
to buy, many students will be
working over the winter holidays just to bring those special
people in their lives some joy
this Christmas.
The survey also found that 25
of the 30 surveyed students live
away from home, and 43 per
cent of students hold down a
part-time job. According to the
survey, the average number of
working hours of a full-time college student over the holidays
this year will be 20 hours a
week, so there won’t be much
time for ringing in the holidays
or socializing. Luckily for some,
76 per cent of students live at
home with their families, so they
will have their help in meeting
expenses.
Unfortunately, of most college
students who live away from
home and have a part-time job,
only 13 per cent of the students
surveyed have parents helping
them with college costs
including groceries, rent,
phone bills and other
needs.
“It’s bullshit,” said a thirdyear Broadcasting – Radio
Television and Film (BRTF) stu-
dent who works at CKTB 9.77
Hits FM and 105.7 Easy Rock.
Liz Jansen, a third-year student in the
BRTF pro-
gram, at the
Welland campus, and an
employee of CKTB 97.7 Hits
FM, said, “It’s good because you
get money over the holidays.
After all you’ve spent this year,
it’s good to stock up on some
more cash.”
This year students will have
less time off by two days.
According to Courtney Murphy,
a second-year BTRF student and
a supervisor at Bingeman Park,
she will have to work Christmas
Eve and Christmas Day.
“You get good tips, though.
Little old ladies look at you and
think, ‘Awe, you’re working
Christmas.’”
WCRAC offers help to residents of Welland
By SARAH WEGELIN
Staff Writer
The Welland Community
Resource and Action Centre
(WCRAC) at 179-181 East Main
St., is often considered to be “the
organization of last resort for
people,” says Mark A. Saltarelli,
housing co-ordinator.
WCRAC offers help to people
on social assistance and also to
many working poor individuals
and families needing food service, basic education, and clothing, to learn their rights as tenants and to learn communication
skills.
“There are fewer and fewer
services for people out there. We
feel our role is to help build a
healthy community for the city of
Welland,” says Saltarelli.
There are a soup kitchen and a
food bank at the WCRAC. Staff
provides a literacy and basic
skills program and
points people in
the right direction to get the
assistance
they need.
B e c k y
Saccone, literacy
and
basic
skills
instructor, says
people come in
and talk to her.
“I attempt to make sure they’re
in the right program, do what I’m
supposed to be doing and try to
get people to reach their goals.”
The Literacy and Basic Skills
department at the WCRAC teaches people how to get the jobs they
want and the social skills they
may need to get those jobs.
Saccone
says,
“Communication skills,
computer, construction,
we use authentic materials from businesses and
restaurants in order to
teach people some basic
skills.”
The WCRAC works
with other organizations in
the community as a “team.”
“We try to connect with all the
agencies to try to work together,”
says Melanie Dawn, outreach
worker. “We provide a lot more
than just housing, referrals and
support. We kind of do it all. We
work closely with the hospital,
mental health organizations and
other agencies.”
The WRCAC runs a soup
kitchen and provides weekday
lunches. Lynn Stout, volunteer
manager, says, “We get from
about 60 to 90 people on a regular lunch day. We get a much
larger crowd on Christmas Eve
day. We get about 120 people on
Christmas Eve day for lunch.”
At 10:30 a.m. on weekdays, the
soup kitchen begins with an adult
drop-in.
“We serve coffee,” says Stout.
“Sometimes we have guest
speakers for places like addiction
centres (or) employment centres.
Lunch starts at 12 (p.m.) sharp on
normal days and runs for about a
half an hour.”
During the holidays, the
WRCAC gives out Christmas
baskets to families in need.
“Our busiest time during the
holidays is from 9:30 a.m. to 1
p.m.,” says Stout.
Volunteers are needed to help
in the soup kitchen preparing and
serving food and to help with
general cleanup.
“We’ll be closed on Thursday
and Friday of Christmas week,
but are open on the 24th. We’ll be
serving lunch that day,” says
Stout. “We would love any extra
help people could give.”
To volunteer at the WCRAC,
call Stout at 905-788-0744 or
visit the centre.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 11
J.L. Kraft’s roots in Fort Erie marked by historical plague
By ROBERT COLE
Staff Writer
A plaque was unveiled in Fort
Erie on Nov. 18 to commemorate
a piece of history.
At the Leisureplex, Fort Erie
Mayor Wayne Redekop and
Wayne Kelly, of the Ontario
Heritage Foundation, unveiled a
plaque that tells people about
James Lewis Kraft, a pioneer in
processed food production, in
particular, cheese.
Also on hand were many of
J.L. Kraft's family, including his
daughter, Kathleen Kennedy, and
his nieces, Florence Bernatz and
Vera Hamilton. Hamilton says
she was pleased at the honour
bestowed on her uncle. "We're
proud, what else?"
"We always had our cheese,"
said Bernatz. "We were the first
to try the candies (made by
Kraft)."
"We had a sister with
osteomyelitis, and he (J.L.
Kraft) sent whey for her to
drink,"
said
Hamilton.
Osteomyelitis is a bone disease.
Whey is, as defined by the
American Heritage Dictionary
of the English Language, "the
watery part of milk that separates from the curds, as in the
process of making cheese."
Kennedy says she thinks it's
"wonderful" that her father is
honoured this way."
My dad was born in this area."
Germany to Canada. He worked
at Ferguson's General Store in
Fort Erie. The plaque will be
displayed on Forsythe Street in
Fort Erie where Ferguson's store
used to be.
In 1903, Kraft moved to
Chicago, where he sold cheese
wholesale.
In 1914, four of Kraft's brothers joined his company and built
a factory in Chicago in 1914.
They developed a process for
pasteurizing cheese so it could
resist spoiling and be shipped
long distances. The process was
patented in 1916.
The company expanded to
Canada in 1919, where it continued
‘ We are very
proud of J.L.
Kraft.’
— Wayne
Redekop
Redekop also mentioned that it was
"quite interesting" something so
popular "got its start in Fort Erie."
Kraft
was
born
in
Stevensville, Ont., in 1874, after
his parents moved from
developing innovative products,
making it one of North America's
leading food producers.
In 1976, Kraft's company (J.L.
Kraft & Bros. Company) underwent a name change to Kraft Inc.
Philip
Morris
Companies
acquired it in 1988.
In 1989, Kraft Inc. and General
Foods Corp. merged to form
Kraft General Foods.
In 1993, Kraft General Foods
acquired Nabisco cereal products and in 1995 Kraft General
Foods was reorganized into
Kraft Foods Inc.
In 2000, the company acquired
Nabisco. In 2001, shares were
offered for public sale.
Seafood gala hoping to raise money for scholorships
Committee.
In 2002, there were a total of six
scholarship inquiries, while this
year there were 100.
"It was always meant as a schol-
‘ We're hoping to
make well over
$100,000.’
— Dora Ryan
arship fundraiser, but they never
had that much demand for scholarships," says Ryan.
"I think Jamie (King) has done a
wonderful job too on the website,
of publicizing that these scholarships are available." Jamie King is
the college's manager of alumni
development and student awards.
Photo by Greg Vallentin
By GREG VALLENTIN
Staff Writer
With the help of many supporters and the Ontario government,
the 2004 Seafood Gala hopes to
fundraise more than $100,000.
On March 26, the gala will be
held at the Sheraton Fallsview
Hotel and Conference Centre in
Niagara Falls.
The Seafood Gala is a scholarship fundraising event, which previously raised $65,000, a significant increase over the $22,000
made the year before.
The 2004 gala organizers plan
to increase the amount of money
raised with help from the provincial Ministry of Training,
Universities and Colleges, in a
matching dollar-for-dollar pledge.
"We're hoping to make well
over $100,000," says Dora Ryan,
co-chair of the 2004 Seafood Gala
DORA RYAN
As well as the number of
inquiries, attendance for the gala
has steadily increased.
The 2002 gala had a mere 120
attendees, compared with the 410
at the most recent one.
"We're hoping to have at least
410. We're probably going to max
it out at 450," says Ryan.
The reception starts at 6 p.m.
and formal attire is optional,
although most people who attended last year were formally dressed.
The food will be a buffet, mainly consisting of seafood, but there
will be the option of beef and
chicken for those who don't, or
can't, eat seafood.
There will be a martini bar, and
Niagara College wine will be
served, as well as hot and cold
shrimp appetizers.
At 7 p.m., the doors to the dining room open with a band playing
and a video presentation produced
by Niagara College students.
College President Dan Patterson
and his wife Saundra will welcome guests while Ryan will say
her thanks on behalf of the college.
At 10 p.m., the live auction will
begin. Those interested will be
able to bid on various items and
trips, including a cruise to either
Alaska or the Caribbean.
Other items up for auction
include a dinner at the home of
Michael Olson, chef/ professor at
Niagara College, and a weekend
package to the new casino.
Students from both the Public
Relations (Post-graduate) program
and
the
Special
Events
Management (Post-graduate) program helped organize the previous
gala, while 15 to 20 students from
the Hospitality and Tourism programs helped serve guests.
Ryan says it's great because the
gala is "using a lot of students for
the event."
"I always felt that it should have
been an event where they highlighted or brought focus to how
great the students are."
Ryan, who had a $30,000 scholarship named after her, says, "It's
been a dream to help."
The 2004 gala marks the 15th
time the fundraiser has been held.
Students top results
By SHEENA WERNER
Staff Writer
With test results far above the
provincial standards, Niagara
College's Paramedic graduates
attest to the quality of the program.
In June of this year, 30 Paramedic
program graduates wrote the
Advanced Emergency Medical Care
Assistant exam, in group sessions
held in Toronto and London, Ont.
This six-hour exam consists of
240 multiple choice questions broken into 120-question sets per
three-hour session. Students write
three hours in the morning and
then three hours in the afternoon.
Graduates who want to work in
the field must write the $250
exam, although it is not mandatory
to have done so to start employment in the field.
"You can work for 200 days in
the field before you have to have
passed this exam. You don't have
to write it, but if you don't after
200 days you essentially won't
have a job," says Rick Chandler,
Paramedic program instructor.
The provincial pass rate is 82
per cent, and the college's was 97
per cent.
"We are usually at the provincial
average, but this year we had a
particularly bright bunch," says
Chandler.
Niagara News will be
pubishing five editions in a
row next term.
Jan. 23
Jan. 30
Feb. 6
Feb. 13
Feb. 20
Happy Holidays
from the
Niagara
College
Foundation
Best wishes for
2004
Sylvia, Julie,
Helena and Jamie
Page 12, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
New online voting system being made for SAC
of them,” says Hardwick.
“I’m hoping the college will
assist us by putting us on their
main website, so when students
log on they can see the link to
vote,” says Hardwick.
The next SAC student elections are on March 24 and March
25, 2004.
In an e-mail interview, Melanie
Kidon, 23, of Barrie, a graduate of
the Public Relations (Post-graduate) program, she says she hopes
that the new online voting technol-
By JASON RUMLEY
Staff Writer
Despite a few last-minute kinks
to be worked out, online voting
appears to be the new route.
“We’re trying to get more students to vote at the college’s campuses, so we decided to create an
online voting system,” says Mark
Hardwick, 29, of Fonthill, Student
Administrative Council (SAC)
president at the Welland campus.
Hardwick, a second-year student
in
the
Computer
Programming program, says it’s
designed to help students participate more in voting during student
elections as well as for selecting
the student representative who sits
on the college’s Board of
Governors.
‘Instead of having
ballots in the
hallway, we’re
thinking of setting
up a laptop, or
you can vote from
your home.’
— Mark Hardwick
‘It’s a great idea.
Anyone can vote
anywhere,
anytime.’
— John Kim
“The total number of votes at
the Welland campus last year was
295, and 303 students voted at the
Glendale campus in Niagara-onthe-Lake,” says Cindy Blanchard,
46, of Welland, the SAC business
operations administrator.
Blanchard says the idea came up
last year in a SAC strategic plan
meeting. The idea then became
reality on Sept. 15 after a meeting
with the three creators.
Blanchard says the online voting system is being designed by
three students in their third year of
the
Computer
Programmer
Analyst program as their term
project.
The three students are Amy
Weldon, 36, of Niagara Falls, John
Kim, 28, of South Korea, and
Andrew Seburn-Cloutier, 20, of
Fort Erie.
“They’re
working together with the college to get it
operational, as
they must sort
through lots of
student numbers
and stuff. It’s
turning out to be
a really nice
design,” says
Hardwick.
“It’s a good
idea. It will definitely improve
the amount of voting taking
place,” says Seburn-Cloutier.
“It’s a great idea. Anyone can
vote anywhere, anytime,” says
Kim, adding, “It was fun to make.
I
really
enjoyed it.”
“I think it’s
a great idea,
but
you’re
talking to a
bunch of computer geeks,
so if you put
anything
online, for us
it’s exciting,” says Weldon.
“This is not costing anything, as
it’s a student project. SAC, as their
From left, Andrew Seburn-Cloutier, John Kim and Amy Weldon, students in the Computer
Programmer Analyst program, present their work for the online voting system to the Student
Administrative Council on Nov. 27.
Photo by Jason Rumley
client, reviews the students’ work
and their presentations and marks
them on their work,” says
Blanchard.
“This is one of the most exciting programs to be in as it’s satisfying to see all the knowledge and
skills they’ve learned over the last
two years come together,” says
Marsha
Baddeley,
of
St.
Catharines, a professor of four
years
in
the
Computer
Programmer Analyst program at
the Welland campus.
“In this last semester students
are marked on their ability to
plan a project, follow through
with that plan and how well they
listen to their
clients. Practical
work is the basis
of their mark,”
says
Sandra
Watson, a professor of 24 years in
the
Computer
Programmer
Analyst program.
Watson, of St.
Catharines, says
in August the
faculty look at
projects that are
available
and
then they allocate the students
into groups and projects. They do
this by looking at the students’
strengths and skills to see if the
students will be able to work
with
one
another on the
completion of
a project.
“I
think
we’ll get a
higher voter
participation
than in the past
with this,” says
Blanchard,
adding it is SAC’s hope that faculty will allow five minutes of their
class time to allow students to log
on and cast their vote.
Hardwick says it will give SAC
actual tallies of votes by simply
printing out a report, unlike the
past when they would have to sort
through each vote manually.
“Instead of having ballots in the
hallway, we’re thinking of setting
up a laptop, or you can vote from
your home. That’s the great thing
about this,” says Hardwick.
He says that as soon as you
finalize your vote, the system will
close your student number from
being able to be used again to cast
a vote.
“There will also, hopefully, be
questions on it, any questions we
want to find out about, from participation in events to awareness
ogy will encourage more students
to vote.
“It’s important for students in
their final year at the college to
vote to ensure that they have a
stake in the school as alumni,”
says Kidon, a former SAC student
representative at the Welland
campus.
Most graduating students feel
it’s important to vote because
afterwards, as members of the
alumni, they are representatives of
the college and will still be represented by what goes on at Niagara
College even after they’re gone.
Have a safe and happy holiday
season with family and
friends...
‘I think we’ll get
a higher voter
participation
with this.’
— Cindy
Blanchard
See you in the new year!!
From the caring and friendly staff
in Student Services:
Athletics & Recreation, Center for Students
with Disabilities, Counselling Services,
Director's Office, First Nations Student
Services, Health Services, Peer Services,
Prior Learning Assessment
Office, Test Center.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 13
Welcome to the Niagara News
Holiday Section.
Our Holiday section is full
of seasonal articles from
the staff at Niagara News.
Make the season bright ... Page 14
Holiday Health ... Page 18
Around the World ... Page 22
Father Christmas ... Page 23
!
s
y
a
d
i
l
o
H
y
p
Hap
Wishing you a safe and happy season
from all of us at the Niagara News.
All the best
from the staff of
Have a safe and
happy holiday
from the staff of the
Learning Resource
Centres
Continuing
Education
Page 14, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Make The Season Bright
Holiday tradition passed down for centuries
By LINDSAY ALLBRIGHT
Staff Writer
The Christmas tree is a universal
symbol of holiday traditions.
Legend states that the Christmas
tree, in its triangular shape, is representative of the Christians’ Holy
Trinity of God The Father, The
Son and The Holy Spirit.
As a symbol of the Christmas
season, trees were hung upside
down from European ceilings in
the 12th century.
The first Christmas tree is
said to have been decorated in
1510, in Latvia, with tinsel as
decoration.
Invented in Germany in 1610,
tinsel was made from real silver,
cut into thin strips and drizzled
over the branches. As beautiful as
it was, the tinsel would tarnish
from the heat and light given off
by candles, also a popular tree decoration.
Today, fresh-cut trees are
Canadian family favourites.
Trees from all over the world are
brought into Canadian homes each
holiday season and admired for
their beauty.
Aileen Laver,
co-owner
of
Laver’s Tree Farm
in Orangeville,
Ont., says each of
the popular three
varieties of tree
comes from different corners of
the world, and
each is special in
its way.
“Scotch pine
come from European settlers,
Douglas fir come from British
Columbia and Fraser fir come
from North Carolina,” says Laver.
When it comes to the most popular tree, Laver says it’s the white
spruce.
“They have the traditional smell
we all know, and the short needles
hold the decorations well.”
The Scotch pine
has long needles,
also good for
holding decorations, but the needles tend to be
sharp. “They poke
you,” says Laver.
Laver says taking care of your
fresh-cut tree is
‘If you want to
go out to the
bush to cut your
tree, it won’t loo k
as nice.’
— Aileen Laver
very important.
“Once the tree is cut, the bottom
seals up very quickly, but they are
safe outdoors for up to one
month.”
“When you bring them in the
house, you must re-cut a piece off
the bottom and put the tree in
water immediately,” says Laver.
Laver says it’s always a good
idea to buy a large tree stand that
will hold a lot of water, to keep
your tree well hydrated.
Laver says taking your family
out to a tree lot to buy a tree is a
good idea.
“Trees from a lot are pruned,
which give them the bushy, full
look.”
“If you want to go out to the
bush to cut your tree, it won’t look
as nice.”
3,000 poinsettias available this year
This is one of the poinsettia
plants grown by the
Horticulture program students from Glendale campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
See how decorative they
are.
Photo by Sarah Allingham
By SARAH ALLINGHAM
Staff Writer
With Christmas just around the
corner, the Niagara College
Horticulture students are getting
ready for the rush. The poinsettia
rush, that is.
Although the preparing of
these plants begins in August,
before the academic year starts,
students have been working hard
to have them ready for the
Christmas season.
“This is the program’s biggest
crop,” says Jim Thomson. He is
the manager of campus development in the Environment,
Horticulture and Agribusiness
Division at the Glendale campus
in Niagara-on-the-Lake. He adds
that it is a “good learning experience” for the students. They do
all the work that is involved, not
only with the poinsettias, but
also with the other plants and
flowers that are for sale.
“It’s a labour of love,” says
Wishing you and your
families Peace, Joy &
Happiness during the
Holiday Season
From the Staff of
the Registrar’s
Office
Thomson.
Three thousand poinsettia
plants are for
sale and 20 different kinds to
choose from.
Sales started
during the week
of Nov. 10.
Prices are competitive with
surrounding businesses. A sixinch potted plant costs $4.79. A
10-inch potted plant costs
$15.95. The students have also
made a variety
of garden dish
arrangements.
“We just budded (the poinsettias) last week,”
says first-year
Horticulture
student
Joelle
Beischlag, 20, of Hagersville.
Matt Bakker, 19, of St.
Catharines, also a first-year
Horticulture student, added, “We
‘ We just budded
(the poinsettias)
last week.’
— Joelle Beischlag
Christmas trees. The universal
symbol of holiday traditions.
Photo by Don Armstrong
have a good turnout,” regarding
poinsettias.
As the students get ready for
Christmas, they are also working hard at keeping up the
landscape. Everything you see,
horticulturally, at the Glendale
and Welland campuses is created by the students. They
keep the campuses clean and
beautiful.
Peer Services wishes all
Niagara College students the best
for this holiday season!
Enjoy the well-deserved break
after exam week, but until then,
STUDY HARD!
Thanks for using Peer Services at
Niagara College and remember,
we’re here to help you be successful!
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 15
Pattersons host festivities
By CASANDRA
BELLEFEUILLE
Staff Writer
Niagara College President
Dan Patterson and his wife
Saundra will forget their duties
at the college to host an annual
Christmas party in their home in
St. Catharines during the
Christmas holidays.
The Pattersons normally
invite a number of staff and
students
to
their
home
for the Christmas festivities.
The date for this year’s gathering has not been announced.
The Pattersons say this year
there will be a smaller guest list.
“Niagara College wine is
always served at any events at
our house,” says Dan.
“Every two years, we usually
have a large Christmas party and
invite members from the community to attend. Chorus
Niagara
comes
to
sing
Christmas carols.”
Saundra says Christmas is
“without a doubt” one of the
busiest times of the year.”
“It’s an opportunity to celebrate the warmth and cheer of
Christmas with family and
friends.”
She says she tries to have the
house decorated by Dec. 1 every
year.
“We like to have visitors at
that time of year and included in
those are staff from Dan’s
office, as well as dear friends
and acquaintances we have met
over the years,” says Saundra.
She says they even try to have
groups of students over to
celebrate the holidays.
Dan describes his Christmas
‘It’s an
opportunity to
celerate the
warmth and
cheer of
Christmas with
family and
friends.’
— Saundra
Patterson
gatherings with students as an
evening occasion.
“When staff attends, it is a
cocktail party or buffet.”
Saundra says she begins
preparations for Christmas in
advance.
“We
attend
Mass
on
Christmas Eve and return for a
dinner of tortiere.”
The Pattersons say Christmas
is a time of sharing.
“We share with others
and enjoy all of the little
pleasures that the season brings
to us.
Niagara College President Dan Patterson, his wife, Saundra
(to his right), his daughter, Christine, and his grandson, Sean,
celebrate the Christmas holidays.
Submitted photo
Ancillary Services
Wishes you a
Very Merry Christmas
and a
Prosperous New Year!
From the Staff of
Parking Administration
Child Care Centre
Print Centre
Campus Store
Christmas break
Niagara College staff spends
Christmas in different ways
By CASANDRA
BELLEFEUILLE
Staff Writer
Niagara College’s staff will
celebrate the Christmas holidays
in different ways.
Niagara College President Dan
Patterson and his wife, Saundra,
are celebrating Christmas Day in
their home.
“Family from Ottawa and
Toronto will join us,” says Dan.
“We usually have 14 to 16 people, both family and friends, at
Christmas dinner,” says Saundra.
“I cook a very large turkey with
all the trimmings.”
Helene Moscato, administrative assistant to the president and
secretary to the Board of
Governors,
is
celebrating
Christmas out west this year.
“On Christmas Eve, we are
flying to Vancouver, B.C., to
meet my newest grandson,
Nelson,” says Moscato.
Moscato says she is “just
thrilled” about the upcoming
holidays. She says she may even
do some “early shopping for a
second residence.”
Gary Erb, Journalism-Print
program faculty, says he will volunteer his time over the holidays.
“I’m judging the Ontario
Community
Newspapers
Association’s best editorial
category.”
Erb, a former editorial writer,
volunteers every year.
Other than that, Erb says, he
will “relax, eat too much and
watch lots of television.”
Al Vaughan, registrar for the
college, will have an active
holiday.
He says he will spend
Christmas in St. Catharines with
his family and is looking forward
to his son returning from
university.
“After Boxing Day, I participate in a hockey tournament in
St. Catharines.”
Darrell Neufeld, manager of
corporate communications at the
college, says he thinks Christmas
is about family gatherings.
“It’ll be a typical Christmas.”
He says he will spend the day at
his mother’s house.
“With all due respect to the
chef/professor, my mother is the
best cook in the world.”
Alan Davis, vice-president
academic, says he is hoping for a
mild winter so he can enjoy a
long walk with his dogs.
“It’ll
be
a
traditional
Christmas, my first in Ontario.
North Alberta is very cold.”
Davis was previously vicepresident academic at Athabasca
University in Athabasca, Alta.
Davis says he plans on
attending some Christmas concerts.
The Christmas holiday begins
Dec. 20 for Niagara College’s
community and runs until Jan. 3.
Christmas Wishes
for a happy
and safe holiday season
from the Foundation
Studies Division
Page 16, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Registrar’s office reflects on Christmas
Vaughan looks forward to rest and reunions, Conlon’s Christmas
is about family and Racher will have her first real Christmas tree
By SHANNON ARNOLD
Staff Writer
The Registrar’s office has spoken,
and it’s official: Christmas is for big
kids, too.
On a chilly November afternoon, Registrar Al Vaughan,
Admissions and Administrative
Assistant Tina Racher and
Recruitment Co-ordinator Randy
Conlon took time out to reminisce,
reflect and remember.
As a child, when parcels from
Ireland were delivered to his
family’s doorstep, Vaughan
knew Christmas was right
around the corner. He still
remembers their unique smell
and the many foreign stamps
plastered on the paper.
Vaughan’s father would start an
ice-rink in the backyard every
Christmas Eve. He remembers one
particular Christmas when he and
his brother knew there was brandnew hockey equipment waiting for
them beneath the tree.
“We were lying in bed at 3 a.m.,
dying to get up, yet afraid. We
finally gave in and were out on the
rink by 4 a.m.,” he says. “I remember the excitement. It was still
dark, and magical.”
‘ We were out on
the rink by 4 a.m.
It was still dark,
and magical.’
— Al Vaughan
Vaughan carried on the tradition with his own children until a
few years ago. The first year in
their new house, he turned on the
hose to begin making the rink and
left to do some last-minute
Christmas shopping. Upon his
return, he found the entire backyard
and the neighbour’s basement
flooded. That was the last year for
the ice-rink.
Every Christmas Eve, Vaughan
reads The Polar Express by Chris
van Alsberg to his children. The
book tells the story of a young boy
who travels to the North Pole to
receive the first gift of Christmas,
a bell from Santa’s sleigh. On the
way home, he is devastated to find
that it has fallen through a hole in
his pocket. The boy finds the bell
under the tree on Christmas morning, returned with a personal note
from Santa Claus. Vaughan’s children are 16 and 19 years old, and
the book will be read again on
Christmas Eve.
This tradition also stemmed
from his childhood. Vaughan’s
parents would read The Night
Before Christmas on that very eve.
This year, Vaughan looks forward to rest and reuniting with
friends and family coming home
for the holidays. This Christmas
brings an even greater element of
anticipation, for their son is returning home after his first semester
away at university.
Nevertheless, Vaughan is not
quite ready for the commercialism of it all. He is a last-minute
shopper who does not like to
“get burnt out on Christmas.” He
thinks the first signs of
Christmas cropping up in stores
and on television in October are
far too early, so she makes a
futile effort each year to enforce
an office rule of no Christmas
music until Dec. 1.
Racher puts his feelings on the
subject into stronger words, saying, “Al hates Christmas music.”
She says that one year he gave her
a Christmas rock music CD to play
instead of the more traditional
office Christmas music.
For Racher, food is the pinnacle
of Christmas. Ever since she can
remember, her grandmother has
made Christmas pudding for their
feast. She wraps up a loonie – it
used to be a quarter – puts it
inside and whoever gets that
piece is supposed to keep the coin
until next year.
She and her husband, Jay, are
getting a real Christmas tree for
the first time this year. She has
been forewarned of the critters that
come as part of the package but is
excited about the pine smell and
the perfect spot by her fireplace.
For Conlon, Christmas is family.
Each year the family alternates
travelling to North Bay to spend
the day with Conlon’s brother and
celebrating at home.
His 16-month-old son Michael
is more enamoured with the gift
boxes and wrapping paper than
with what is inside. Ally, his fourand-a-half-year-old
daughter,
wants every advertised toy she
sees on television.
On Christmas Eve the children
‘ We used to have
a big Christmas
dinner with dad at
the head of the
table.’
— Randy Conlon
leave milk and cookies for
Santa, and Ally insists on sprinkling oats out on the front porch
for the reindeer.
Even before the time Conlon
was able to grasp the concept of
Santa, gifts tagged “To: Randy,
From: Santa” appeared under the
tree on Christmas morning.
Now, long past his believing
days, he has continued the tradi-
Al Vaughan is a last-minute shopper who tries not to burn out
on Christmas.
Photo by Shannon Arnold
tion with his own children and
still receives ‘Santa gifts’ of his
own. The rules from his childhood also still apply: everyone is
allowed to open one gift on
Christmas Eve, and the presents
from Santa cannot be opened
until Christmas morning.
As Conlon talks about the
approaching season, a deep sadness begins to coexist with the
excitement in his voice. Three
years ago, Christmas was stripped
of all joy for the Conlon family
when Randy’s father died. He was
such a meaningful part of
Christmas that, Conlon says, the
day can never be the same.
“We used to have a big
Christmas dinner with dad at the
head of the table,” Conlon says,
clearly emotional. The family
has not yet been able to celebrate
there without him. The first year
after his death they went to a
restaurant and last year opted for
an informal potluck at the
Conlon home.
The Christmas season evokes
warm memories, tender emotions
and a magical sense of expectation. While some may frown
upon the commercialism of
Christmas, Conlon sums up his
view, saying, “Anything to see a
child smile.”
Season’s Greetings
and Best Wishes
Interdisciplinary Studies
and Access Division
•
•
•
•
•
•
Literacy and Basic Skills
Career and College Opportunities
General Education
Humanities and Social Sciences
General Arts and Science
Pre-Health Science
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 17
Museum showcases cultural differences
By HEATHER CROLE
Staff Writer
Christmas is getting an early
start at the St. Catharines Museum.
The exhibit, which runs to Jan.
25, showcases 11 different winter
holiday celebrations, ranging from
the Hindu celebration of Diwali to
the Iroquois Mid-Winter Festival.
Virginia Hatch Stewart, the
chief museum complex officer,
said, “We felt it (the exhibit) was a
great success. It’s an opportunity
for the community to see a different side of the museum that they
wouldn’t normally see.”
The first display explains the
ninth month in the Islamic calendar, Ramadhan. During this time,
Muslims fast from dawn to sunset
every day.
Ramadhan was the month in
which the first verses of the holy
Qur’an were revealed to the
prophet Mohammed.
The sighting of the new moon at
the end of Ramadhan announces
the celebration of Eid ul-Fitr, the
festival of fast-breaking. The giving of a special charity for this
occasion is required.
Muslims dress in holiday attire,
attend a special community prayer
in the morning and visit friends
and relatives.
In the United States, Muslims
are trying to gain recognition of
Eid-ul-Fitr as an official holiday.
For more information on
Ramadhan,
visit
http://www.ummah.org.uk/rama
dhan/.
In the Hindu religion, people
celebrate with a five-day festival
called Diwali, also known as
Divali, Dewali or Deepavali. The
name means “rows of lighted
lamps” and the celebration is often
referred to as the Festival of
Lights.
Classic holiday
story has local roots
By STEPHEN DOHNBERG
Staff Writer
Although the movie may not
have been an instant hit when it
was released in 1983, A Christmas
Story has turned from cult classic
to necessary viewing during the
holiday season. This resulted in
the St. Catharines Museum welcoming about0....... 200 visitors on
its Nov. 18 Friends Day.
The movie, with scenes filmed
in St. Catharines, shares the story
of a boy who desperately eyes a
Red Ryder BB gun as his heart’s
desire. The gun becomes an elusive item because of the toy’s
potential to “take out an eye.”
The museum, displaying the
original prop gun, kicked off the
season by making the toy available, even if just for a moment.
While the BB gun may have
been the marquis item, the museum, in inviting the public through
its doors, also allowed people to
peek into the vaults of a substantial collection of an estimated
30,000 pieces of regional artifacts.
There were other attractions: a
silent auction, a multicultural religious holiday exhibit, a Mitten
Tree, and the idyllic view of ships
traversing Lock 3 to navigate the
Great Lakes.
Visitors were also treated to a
reading by author Steven Duff,
quoting from his historical novel
Hunter of Dreams, the story of
Belleville native Dr. Alexander
Milton Ross.
Ross, a sorely overlooked character in history, was a crucial figure in the Underground Railroad.
Ross, “seconded to the U.S. Army
by Abraham Lincoln,” under the
guise of a naturalist, spied on the
movements
of
clandestine
Confederate activities during the
Civil War. Working with figures
such as John Brown and Harriet
Tubman, Ross also used his freedom of movement to alert slaves
to safe routes into Canada, with St.
Catharines being one of the destinations.
In crafting the tale, Duff takes
pains to elaborate that “the
escapees were every bit as heroic” as any of the other recognized
mainstream figures of history.
Hunter of Dreams is available
through Trafford Publishing.
Those wishing to visit the
museum’s seasonal displays can
stop by any day between 11 a.m.
and 4 p.m. There is no admission
charge to view the museum’s displays.
You can visit the museum website at http://www.stcatharineslock3museum.ca.
The Niagara News wishes
everyone a safe holiday
and a happy New Year
Hindus open their homes and
light candles to welcome Laksmi,
the goddess of wealth.
For more information about
Diwali
visit
Christmas
display
from
Trinidad/Tobago at the St.
Catharines Museum.
Photo by Heather Crole
http://www3.kumc.edu/diversity/e
thnic_relig/diwali.html.
Dr. Maulana Karenga, a professor and chairman of Black Studies
at California State University, in
Long Beach, Calif., created
Kwanzaa in 1966.
Kwanzaa is a non-religious
African-American holiday that
celebrates family, community and
culture for seven days from Dec.
26 to Jan. 1.
After the Watts riots in Los
Angeles, Karenga researched
ways to bring African-Americans
together as a community. By combining features of various African
“first fruit” harvest celebrations,
Karenga formed the basis of
Kwanzaa.
The name Kwanzaa comes from
the saying “matunda ya kwanza,”
which means “first fruits” in
Swahili.
For more information about
Kwanzaa, visit http://www.historychannel.com/exhibits/holidays/k
wanzaa/hist.html.
Other Christmas displays at the
museum include St. Lucia Day
from Sweden, Sedna and the Inuit
winter solstice, the Jewish
Hanukkah, the Mexican Posada
party, the Chinese New Year, and
traditions from Poland.
For more information on the
museum,
go
to
http://www.stcatharineslock3mu
seum.ca/index.html.
The museum first opened in
1967. It is at 1932 Welland
Canals
Parkway,
formerly
Government Road.
Museum hours are 11 a.m. to 4
p.m. but it will be closed
Christmas Day, Boxing Day and
New Year’s Day.
Admission rates are adults,
$4.25, and students (over 14),
$3.25. Parking is free.
Your voice or opinion is welcome in our Letters to the Editor
section. Our policy regarding letter submissions is this: All letters must be received on the Friday one week prior to publication. Each letter must be signed and include a day and
evening telephone number for verification use only. All letters
can be brought or mailed to the Niagara News newsroom,
Room V10, Voyageur Wing, Welland Campus.
Page 18, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Holiday Health
Share in the giving, donate some blood
By DAVID HURD
Staff Writer
During this holiday season
give from your heart – literally!
“The more the merrier!” is the
theme of this year’s Canadian
Blood Services (CBS) holiday
blood promotion.
Until Jan.12 the CBS is inviting
you, your friends and your family
to donate blood together.
“Donating blood is an excellent
way to celebrate the spirit of the
holiday season with people who
are close to you,” Dr. Graham
Sher, chief executive officer of
CBS, says in a press release.
“By donating blood together
with a group, you’ll make your
donation
experience
more
rewarding and you’ll also be helping more patients to receive the
blood product they need to enjoy
the holiday season with their own
friends and family.”
To meet patient needs over the
promotional period, the CBS says
it will need to collect an estimated
124,000 units of blood nationally.
“Demand is growing due to an
aging population and more
sophisticated medical treatments
requiring transfusions,” says
Veronica Magee, communication
Holiday
open house
on Dec. 11
By STEPHEN
DOHNBERG
Staff Writer
On Dec. 11, AIDS Niagara
invites members of the public and the media to visit its
yearly holiday open house in
the Normandy Resource
Centre at 111 Church St. in
St. Catharines. The open
house is from noon to 5 p.m.
Fundraising and Special
Events Co-ordinator Ed
Eldred noted that while the
“event is a chance to wish
members of the community
a Merry Christmas,” it also
remains an excellent opportunity to “make people more
aware” of a disease whose
“rates continue to increase in
the Niagara region.”
Awareness is as much a
task as fighting the disease
itself. Eldred cited a recent
survey of Grade 8 and Grade
9 students that revealed
“about 60 per cent believed
that there was either a cure
or vaccination” available to
combat the infection.
Visitors to the open house
are asked to bring a non-perishable food item or a toy to
help assist “the approximately 100 clients with HIV
or AIDS and their families
that we (AIDS Niagara) supply baskets for.”
Snacks and refreshments
are available.
For more information call
905-984-8684.
specialist at the CBS’s Hamilton
office.
“The holidays are a difficult
time, and blood donations take
a dip.”
Only about 3.5 per cent of eligible Canadians donate regularly,
says Magee.
The goal of the CBS is to get
that number up to 5.0 per cent,
which is the current level in
Australia and the U.S.
The CBS is a national nonprofit charitable organization that
manages the blood supply across
Canada, with the exception of
Quebec, and operates 40 permanent collection sites and 14,000
annual donor clinics.
To find a donor clinic in your
area or for eligibility information,
call toll free 1-888-2-DONATE
(1-888-236-6283) or visit the
CBS
website
at
http://www.bloodservices.ca.
Throughout Ontario Canadian
Blood Services can be found at
three locations in Ottawa,
Toronto, and Hamilton.
Hamilton – 299 Main St. E.
Toronto – 67 College St.
Ottawa – 40 Concourse Gate
There are seven other locations in Canada.
Poinsettias can add vibrant colour to holiday season
By LENNON CALDWELL
Staff Writer
If you’re looking to add an
abundance of colour to those
drab and dreary days of winter,
your search may end with the
poinsettia.
The University of Guelph’s
Research Station in Vineland,
Ont., is holding a weeklong display of poinsettias during the first
week of December.
Vineland Station, at the north
end of Victoria Street near the
QEW overpass, is holding an open
house to commercial growers on
Dec. 5. Growers from throughout
the region will come to discuss the
new varieties of these plants and
lilies.
More than 100 different poinsettia varieties will be on display
with about 40 reds and 60 assorted colours, including pinks, marbles, yellows and whites.
Wayne Brown, 50, greenhouse
floriculture specialist for the
Ontario Ministry of Agriculture
and Food, says, “Everyone tries
to find the perfect red. Although
it probably doesn’t exist, they
keep trying.”
Poinsettias from Europe will be
on display with other new varieties
on a trial evaluation.
Brown says the poinsettias are
constantly maturing.
“They flower when the nights
are long and the days are short.”
Have a Safe and Happy
Holiday Season!
From All The
Staff In
Ventures
The different varieties will be
ready at their own times of the
month.
The early varieties were ready
during the week of Nov. 15 to
Nov. 20.
Poinsettias look very appealing
during Christmas season, but you
may want to keep them out of
reach of young children. Although
they are not poisonous, if eaten,
they may cause varying degrees
of discomfort.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 19
Festival of Lights adds sparkle to Niagara
By ANDREA ST. PIERRE
Staff Writer
The 21st annual Winter Festival
of Lights is the most anticipated
fun for the whole family in
Niagara Falls, Canada.
The festival began on Nov. 22
and will continue until Jan. 20.
A few of the events featured
during the festival are spectacular
fireworks, weekly parades and the
magic of Disney.
There are fabulous dinner theatres, wine tasting excursions,
concert performances and a New
Year’s Eve Outdoor Concert
Extravaganza
at
Queen
Victoria Park.
“The Festival of Lights has provided first-class, free entertainment since 1982,” said Niagara
Falls Alderman Celina Volpatti.
“There has been tremendous
growth and a large impact on the
economy. It adds excitement and
sparkle to Niagara Falls.”
The falls will be illuminated
with lights every night from 5 p.m.
to midnight throughout the festival. On New Year’s Eve, the lights
will remain on until 1 a.m.
Fireworks extravaganzas will
take place over the falls
throughout the festival, including New Year’s Eve at 9:15 p.m.
and midnight.
“There will be nine parades and
three different parade routes,” said
Ethel Ashby, chair of the Festival
of Lights.
The parades are scheduled every
Friday at 8 p.m. until Jan. 16.
“There are two new lighting
displays,” said Ashby. “There is
a Winnie the Pooh ‘Friendship
Forever’ display and ‘The Hunt
of the Eagle’ display at
Dufferin Islands.”
“Each year during the festival,
we gratefully accept donations
from people that go through
Dufferin Islands,” said Ashby.
“This year, everyone who gives a
donation of $5 or more will
‘The Festival of
Lights has provided
first-class, free
entertainment since
1982.’
— Celina Volpatti
receive a button.”
Among the brightly lit offerings
are a variety of Disney motion
light displays that feature movies
such as The Lion King,
Pocahontas, Aladdin, Beauty and
the Beast and The Little Mermaid.
Popular shows include the Gift
of the Magi at the Niagara Grand
Dinner Theatre, the Oh Canada
Eh?! Dinner Show and the
Legendary Encounters Dinner
Show, where performers pay tribute to legends such as Elvis
Presley, Neil Diamond, Bruce
Springsteen, and more.
There will be three Winter
Gospel Concerts at the IMAX theatre with films and music.
There is an art and craft show
and Christmas at McFarland
House where you can sip warm
cider, eat baked goods and
enjoy seasonal activities and
decorations.
Candles in Cummington Square
is a traditional Christmas carol
concert, and residents and tourists
alike shouldn’t miss the Niagara
Icewine Passport, a 10-day celebration along Niagara’s famous
wine route.
Dan McLean, broadcaster for
CH News, announced the lineup
for this New Year’s Eve Bash at
Queen Victoria Park.
“Smash Mouth and David Usher
will be rocking the stage, and CH
News will be broadcasting the
show live,” said McLean.
Joel Noden, senior director
retail, attractions and marketing
of
the
Niagara
Parks
Commission, congratulated all
the staff and volunteers on creat-
ing another great program.
“The Festival of Lights makes
us one step closer to being a yearround destination,” said Noden.
Ethel Ashby, chair of the Niagara Falls Festival of Lights, proudly
displays information and photos for this year’s colourful festival.
Photo by Lindsay Allbright
The Staff at Aramark Canada wish
you and your families
A
Very Merry Christmas
and a
Happy Healthy New Year
COMING
WINTER 2004
MONTHLY EVENTS,
PRIZES,
GIVEAWAYS,
ENTERTAINMENT
Page 20, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
All Photos by Sarah Allingham
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This is a small display of different poinsettias which are for sale, some for as
low as $4.79, found in the greenhouse
store at the Glendale campus.
See story on page 14
The Horticulture students have grown over 3,000 poinsettia
plants this year.
Joelle Beischlag, 20, of Hagersville, (left) and Meg Wyatt, 24, of
Brantford, are first-year Horticulture students. They are working
hard to have things ready for Christmas.
Part of the work put into the landscaping,
poinsettias and more done by the
Horticulture students.
Pagination by Sheena Valley
This is one of the decorative poinsettia
plants grown and decorated by Niagara
College’s Horticulture program students
at the Glendale campus on Niagara-onthe-Lake.
Josh Van Den Nest, 19, of Aylmer, front, and Matt Bakker, 19,
of St. Catharines, are keeping the poinsettias nourished for
upcoming sales.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 21
All photos were taken at the awards presentation held at Niagara College’s Glendale campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake, in room W208 at 1:30 p.m.
on Dec. 2.
Terri Champion, co-ordinator of the Business — Sales and Marketing program, and Neil Chartrand, director of the School of Business at the Glendale
campus, presented the individual awards to team members.
Mike Cameron won first prize in the Sales Presentation
Competition. Cameron represented Niagara College’s Business
Administration — Marketing (Co-op) class.
From left are Mike Cameron, award winner, Beth Pett,
co-ordinator of the Business Adminstration — Marketing (Co-op)
program, Terri Champion, co-ordinator of the Business — Sales
and Marketing program, Malcolm Howe, a professor for the
program, Barb Smith, a professor for the
program and Ian Christie, award winner.
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Bobbie Petherick, in the Business
Administration — Marketing (Co-op) program, competed at the Ontario Colleges
Marketing Competition. To her right is
Niagara College President Dan
Patterson.
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Niagara College’s team
of students in the Business
Administration — Marketing (Co-op)
program and the Business — Sales
and Marketing program, represented
the college at the Ontario Colleges
Marketing Competition.
Photo by Casandra Bellefeuille
Nancy Trani, won second
prize in the Quiz Bowl at the Ontario
Bret Stewart, in the Business — Sales and Marketing
Colleges Marketing Competition.
program, won third prize in the Job Interview competition.
Trani is in the Business Administration —
To his right is Niagara College President Dan Patterson.
Marketing (Co-op) program. To her right is
Niagara College President Dan
Patterson.
Photos by Casandra Bellefeuille
Paginated by Casandra Bellefeuille
Page 22, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Around the world
Holiday traditions not far from home
International Education students excited about Christmas
By LINDSAY ALLBRIGHT
Staff Writer
Christmas and other seasonal
holiday traditions are celebrated in
many different ways throughout
the world.
Students in Niagara College’s
International Education department say they are excited about
Christmas, as many are about to
experience their first Canadian
holiday season.
Alfonso Parra, 22, of Colombia,
is in the Electronics Engineering
Technology program at the
Welland campus. He says the traditions from his country are similar to those in Canada.
Parra says in Colombia a
nativity scene is erected at the
beginning of the season, and
each of the wise men are moved
closer to the scene as the days
get closer to Christmas. On the
25th day, the baby Jesus is
placed in his manger.
Parra says he plans to enjoy a
traditional Canadian winter this
year.
He says he likes the snow, “but
not the cold weather.”
Yary Chong, 20, of Panama, is in
the Pre-Health Sciences program.
Chong says her country has
“very similar traditions” to those
in Canada.
She says her family prepares “a
great feast” with native dishes
such as tamales and arroz con
pollo, a rice and chicken dish.
“Most of the families roast a
turkey and a picnic ham,” says
Chong, “but we start eating at 12
midnight on Dec. 25. Most of the
Operation Christmas Child a success
people are Catholic, so they go to
Christmas Mass.”
Chong says families in Panama
celebrate in different ways.
“Some take out stereos and
dance until the next morning.
Others visit their friends for best
wishes, and others stay at home
and enjoy the great meal.”
Chong says she is looking forward to having a nice meal with
friends and seeing the snow covering everything.
She says her favourite aspect
about a Canadian winter is the
snow and the Christmas trees.
“It will be my first time decorating one.”
Meuyur Soneta, 22, of India, is
in the Computer Programmer
Analyst program.
Being Hindu, Soneta says he
does not “do Christmas.”
People from his country celebrate on Dec. 31 for the whole
night by drinking beers.
He says he plans to go to
Niagara Falls with his friends during the Christmas season.
He says he’s not sure what he
likes about Christmas because he
has never seen one.
Hiromi Fukushima, 20, of
Japan, in the English as a Second
Language program, says Japanese
celebrate in the same way as
Canadians.
“We see a lot of Christmas trees
everywhere, and the whole city is
decorated with a lot of Christmas
lights.”
Fukushima says her family eats
a lot of Christmas cake and drinks
champagne.
“Some people go to church.”
She says she plans to go back to
Japan for the holidays, but her
favourite part of a Canadian
Christmas is seeing presents under
the tree.
Priasto Probosutedjo, 20, of
Indonesia, from the English as a
Second Language program, says
the exchanging of gifts, the
preparation of traditional meals
and time spent with family are all
appreciated in Indonesia.
Probosutedjo says he is looking forward to “making this
Christmas even better than last
year with my family coming to
Canada.”
“I love to see the decorated
houses
in
Canada,”
says
Probosutedjo. “Canadians always
decorate their houses earlier.”
Popular feast begins Dec. 6
St. Nicholas was a fourth century bishop
By ANDREA ST. PIERRE
Staff Writer
On Dec. 6, Christian countries,
especially in Northern Europe,
celebrate St. Nicholas Day, a
popular feast that resembles the
tradition of Santa Claus in North
America.
In the Netherlands, legend
has it Sinterklaas (the Dutch
name for St. Nicholas) arrives
from Spain on a steamboat
‘ We used to
celebrate it when
we were little. It’s
an older tradition
that really brings
the family
together.’
— Greg van Oostrum
Andrew Sorgenfrei, a first-year student in the Correctional Worker
program, stands in front of the boxes collected for Operation
Christmas Child. Sorgenfrei collected the most individual boxes
with 24. The Police Foundations program at the Welland campus
collected 139 boxes of toys and other non-perishable items to
send to children overseas, from 230 students. The Correctional
Worker program collected 82 boxes, from 58 first-year students,
and the Law and Security Administration program collected 36
boxes, from 90 students. Amanda Lipscombe, a first-year Police
Foundations program student, organized the event and issued
the collection challenge to other programs.
Photo by Jonathan Jones
with his helper, Black Pete,
two weeks before his feast day
on Dec. 6.
The two then travel the countryside at night referring to
their list of all the good and
bad children.
In anticipation of St. Nicholas’
nightly visits, children leave their
shoes in front of the fireplace.
Good children receive candies,
cookies, apples and nuts in their
shoes, while bad children receive
lumps of coal.
Most families celebrate St.
Nicholas’s birthday the night
before his feast day. During the
evening a loud knock on the door
signifies
the
arrival
of
Sinterklaas.
At this time, candy may be
thrown from upstairs. When the
door is opened, there is a bag of
gifts on the doorstep.
“My grandparents are from
Holland, so my parents carried
on the tradition with us, and I do
it with my kids too,” said Laura
Gallagher, of St. Catharines.
“The kids leave their wooden
clogs under the tree and, if they
behave, they get treats from St.
Nicholas.”
For families with older children and adults, different twists
are added to the gift giving and
may include gag gifts or the
drawing of gift ideas, or
names.
Depending on the family, the
gifts are usually accompanied by
poems that gently poke fun at the
recipient. Wrapping the gifts in
odd packages and following
clues to find them are also part of
the fun.
“St. Nicholas Day was good
times,” said Greg van Oostrum,
23, of Nova Scotia..
“We used to celebrate it
when we were little. There was
plenty of excitement and lots
of chocolate involved.
“It’s an older tradition that really brings the family together.”
St. Nicholas was a fourth century bishop of the city of Myra,
See past holiday Niagara News issues at
www.technology.niagarac.on.ca/niagaranews
now known as Turkey. He was
renowned for his kindness and
generosity to those in distress.
‘My parents
carried on the
tradition with
us, and I do it
with my kids
too.’
— Laura
Gallagher
A few of the kind and miraculous acts attributed to him are
saving three young girls from
prostitution by providing them
with dowries, raising three
murdered boys from the dead,
and saving sailors caught in
stormy seas.
For these reasons, he is considered the patron saint of children, unmarried girls, sailors
and others.
Although the tradition of St.
Nicholas resembles Santa Claus
and the shoes by the fireplace
originated North American
Christmas stockings.
St. Nicholas Day is a separate
holiday from Christmas.
Sometimes St. Nicholas Day is
the main holiday for gift giving
instead of Christmas.
Only the lucky ones who celebrate both get twice the treats.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 23
Father Christmas
Story of Santa Claus told around the world
By ASHLEIGH TAYLOR
Staff Writer
The origins of Santa Claus, one of
the world’s most beloved figures,
dates back hundreds of years and to
various countries.
In the 104-page book Who is
Santa Claus?, published by
Canongate Publishing Limited,
Robin Crichton traces the origins of
how Claus came to be known today
as a jolly man in a red suit.
In Turkey in the second century
AD, Crichton says, a boy named
Nicholas was born. He studied to be
a priest, founded an orphanage and
was known as the patron saint of
children. After his death on Dec. 6,
342 AD, he became a saint.
In Russia, Claus was known as
Nicholai, says Crichton, and as
Christianity came to Russia Nicholai
became a saint and was known as
The Wonder Worker.
In Italy, Claus was called Nicola
and was a Catholic saint. Every May,
celebrations are held to honour
Nicola.
Holland calls Claus Sinter Klaas,
says Crichton, and, after tracking the
good and bad behaviour of children,
travels to the Netherlands to deliver
gifts. Klaas travels over rooftops on a
white horse and goes down the chimney to deliver gifts and poems to the
good children. The poem is written
of an embarrassing event that happened to the child and the child must
read it aloud once receiving it.
In England, Claus is called Father
Christmas, the pagan entertainer.
Father Christmas was the leader of
the Mummers, a travelling group of
performers from the Middle Ages.
Unravelling history, Chrichton
says, in December 1822, in New
York City, Santa Claus was turned
into the figure we know today.
Professor Clement Clark Moore,
of New York City, wrote ‘Twas the
Night Before Christmas, which told
the tale of a red-suited man with long
white whiskers who hailed from the
North Pole. He flew through the
night sky on a sleigh pulled by reindeers to deliver presents to good children every year on Dec. 25.
Chrichton says, in 1852 a town in
Indiana was called Santa Claus and,
in 1920, children started writing letters to Santa.
In 1931, Coca Cola began using
Santa’s image as we traditionally
know it in advertising campaigns,
and by 1949 the first Clauses began
appearing in department stores for
children to visit.
The story of Claus is passed on to
generations of children everywhere
to keep his spirit and vision alive.
When did you stop believing in Santa?
By CASANDRA BELLEFEUILLE
Staff Writer
Four random people were interviewed on Dec. 1 in the Student Gathering Centre at Niagara College’s Welland campus. Each individual was
asked at what age it was that they stopped believing in Santa Claus and why.
Justin Bolduc, 21, of
Annie Landry, 22, of
Adam Day, 19, of
Brian Green, a former
Welland, in the Photonics
Niagara Falls, in the Early
Guelph, Ont., in the
professor at Niagara
Engineering Technician proChildhood Education proChild/Youth Worker proCollege, says he was
gram, says he stopped believgram, says she was 15 when
gram, says he was “pretty
“about” six when he
ing in Santa Claus when he
she stopped believing in
young” when he stopped
stopped believing in Santa
was about seven.
Santa Claus.
believing in Santa Claus.
Claus.
“It was because of kids at
“My brother was younger
“I was about four or
“He brought me a readschool and because of the Santa Claus at the
so I had to believe in Santa Claus, my
five. My two older brothers spoiled it for ing lamp instead of what I really wantmall. I knew he couldn’t be at all places at
mom made me. I stopped getting presents
me. They told me there was no Santa ed. If he brings you a lamp instead of a
once. People always told me that he always
from him when I was around 18 years
Claus and I’ve been traumatized every toy gun, how could you believe in him
worked for Santa Claus.”
old.”
since.”
anymore?”
Page 24, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Students pay extra to stay here for break
By NICOLE JOHNSON
Staff Writer
Students living in residence at
the college who can’t go home
for the holidays will have to pay
extra to stay here.
Campus Living Centres, the
company that runs the college
residences at both the Glendale
and Welland campuses, has a
policy that students must pay
extra rent if they stay at school
over the break.
Students here for the two
weeks will have to pay $200,
says Cynthia Lavigne, assistant
general manager of the Welland
campus residence, which has
117 two-bed suites. The
Glendale campus residence in
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont., has
100 two-bed suites.
“The students have to leave on
Dec. 20 by noon and they can
come back on Jan. 4,” says
Lavigne.
If a student stays a day late or
comes back a day early, she
says, the cost to the student will
be $15 a day.
She says the company has to
bring in extra staff for the break
so the regular staff can spend the
holidays with family. The money
is used to pay the new staff for
working during Christmas.
Shanna Downey, assistant
general manager of the Glendale
campus residence, says the lease
students sign in the fall doesn’t
include the break, since technically it is between terms.
“We have a lease by term, and
the Christmas break isn’t in the
term,” says Downey.
The policy is also in place for
the safety of the students,
Lavigne says, because it is
important to know in advance
who is staying and who is going.
“It’s important for security
reasons that we know who’s in
the building,” she says.
‘ We have a lease
by term, and the
Christmas break
isn’t in the term.’
— Shanna Downey
Lavigne says this isn’t a new
policy, and students are aware of
it when they move in.
“As far as I know, the policy
has always been in place,” says
Lavigne. “It’s built into the student residence agreement they
have to sign before they
come here.”
‘ We pay a yearly
fee of $4,400, so
that should cover
the whole nine
months we’re
here.’
— Brenda
Hovestadt
Lavigne says she doesn’t hear
many complaints from students
about the policy because she
says not many people want to
stay. She says the complaints she
does hear are from students who
can’t go home, and, Downey
says, she only gets complaints
“from the few people who don’t
read the lease.”
There are some students who
say the policy is unfair. Brenda
Hovestadt, of Brantford, Ont.,
lives in residence at the Welland
campus and says she disagrees
with the policy.
“I don’t think it’s fair,” says
the 18-year-old Dental Assistant
student. “We pay a yearly fee of
$4,400, so that should cover the
whole nine months we’re here.”
Lindsay Allbright, 20, of
Orangeville, Ont., also lives in the
Welland residence. Allbright, a second-year Journalism-Print student,
says she will be going home for
Christmas, but she says, “It’s not
fair because some people don’t
have families to go home to.”
Lavigne says the policy
applies to all students, even
those who don’t celebrate the
holidays, although she says not
many students actually stay.
“We’ve found that even if they
don’t celebrate Christmas, they
still go home because it’s such a
long holiday,” she says.
“We usually have between
four to six students that can’t go
home for Christmas,” says
Downey.
Lavigne says usually just a
few international students and
some students with part-time
jobs who can’t get time off stay
for the holidays.
Either the residence staff, the
Student Administrative Council
or the college’s International
Department will make sure the
students who can’t go home
have something to do over the
break, especially on Christmas
Campus pub in holiday spirit
Children’s Christmas party, Santa Claus Comedy Pub
and more to be held at After Hours in Welland this month
By CHARLES PANE
Staff Writer
It’s going to be a busy
December as the Welland campus
pub offers fun, money and parties.
Beginning Dec. 1 and continuing throughout the month, the
After Hours pub at the Welland
campus has many activities
planned to bring the semester, as
well as the year, to a close.
On Dec. 1, the pub hosted the
money machine.
Shortly before the event, Dave
Rapelje, After Hours pub manager, said, “We’re bringing in a fandriven money machine, and we’re
going to put $1,000 worth of
assorted bills in, and people will
get a 50/50 draw when they come
in.” The 35-year-old Rapelje, of
Port Robinson, is one of the
“ideas” people.
“I’m gonna draw randomly and
people get to go in and grab as much
cash as they can in 30 seconds.”
Each Wednesday in December,
excluding exam week, the After
Hours pub will, as usual, be the
host of Yuk Yuk’s comedians.
On Dec. 10, Comedy Night turns
into Santa Claus Comedy Pub,
when the comedians perform jokes
about Christmas. SAC Awareness
Day is also held that day.
“SAC (Student Administrative
Council) will have a table in the
main foyer,” says Vicky Sullivan,
21, a Police Foundations program
student. There they will be giving
away free SAC items, playing
Christmas carols, having a
Christmas tree tic-tac-toe and a
jelly bean guessing game. Winners
of these events will win prizes
such as a discman and DVDs.
For more information on SAC
Awareness Day see Sullivan, student representative, at the SAC
office.
On Dec. 6, the pub will be
hosting the Annual Children’s
Christmas Party, inviting students
who are parents to bring their children for a visit with Santa Claus
and to receive a free gift.
Dec. 11 holds the Fish Bowl
pub, when students drink out of
fish bowls all night.
The Food for Friends food
drive, which began Nov. 10, will
come to an end on Dec. 12.
We wish you a safe
and Happy Holiday!
The Broadcasting
Faculty and Staff
Lindsay Allbright packs up the car outside the Welland campus
residence to go home for the weekend. Although she won’t be
staying here over the two-week break, Allbright says she thinks the
policy is unfair to students who can’t go home.
Photo by Nicole Johnson
Day, says Downey.
over the break, says Lavigne,
“Last year, we made sure but the front desks will be open
everyone had somewhere to go,” only eight hours a day.
she says. “If not, we put on a dinStudents will be given emerner or something.”
gency phone numbers to reach
There will be staff in the resi- staff if there is a problem,
dence buildings 24 hours a day she says.
We’ll be back in the new year ...
The next edition of the niagara news will
be out on jan. 23
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Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 25
Movie reviews that cover old and new releases
By ROBERT COLE
Staff Writer
When asked to do some reviews
of Christmas movies, I was ecstatic.
Some of the best movies come
out at Christmas. Hollywood seems
to have the market cornered on horror films and tiring retreads of horror films (not to mention adult films
disguised as horror films), but,
oddly, not a lot of holiday cheer.
After sifting through movies with
names like Silent Night, Deadly
Night (not a Christmas movie) and
movies everyone knows about, I
decided on five holiday films that
some may have heard of, but that
are under-appreciated (and sometimes just plain overlooked).
Elf — A cute movie starring Will
Ferrel as Buddy the elf. In theatres
now, it is a smashing family film.
Buddy was a baby left at an orphanage where the nuns took care of
him. On Christmas night, Buddy
escapes from his crib and into Santa
Claus’s (Ed Asner’s) bag of toys.
Finding that he has a new bundle
of joy, Santa lets Papa Elf (Bob
Newhart) raise the tyke until the age
of 33, when Buddy realizes something the other elves knew all along.
Something is different. It’s up to
Buddy to find his birth father.
I highly recommend this film
for anyone. I guarantee that even
the hardest heart will be soft-
ened by this tale.
With some laugh-out loud
moments (Santa’s warnings to
Buddy about New York) and
some tender scenes, it is a truly
enjoyable film. My only complaint comes with the end, which
is way too kiddy (and too quickly wrapped up) for its own good.
This aspect is not anything that
would hinder your overall enjoyment, but don’t expect any revelations on the meaning of life.
Adam Sandler’s Eight Crazy
Nights — This film is animated fare
from the producers of The Animal,
The Hot Chick and Mr. Deeds, but
it’s not a family movie.
This movie is a story of a young
man named Davey Stone (Adam
Sandler) who likes to drink. In fact,
he likes to spend the holidays drunk.
One night (the first night of
Hanukkah), Davey gets drunk and
goes on a rampage that lands him in
court. During the trial, an older man
named Whitey Duvall (who looks
like Mickey Rooney) offers to take
Davey under his wing and give him
a good lesson on how to behave.
As the story unfolds, we get a
good look at the reason Davey
behaves the way he does.
Unfortunately, that’s the film’s
undoing. Where the ending could be
funny, it chooses to be random and
preachy. A look at the DVD’s delet-
ed scenes show me that the whole
movie was meant to be that way
(the “exploding monkey” joke convinces me of that). If you want a
movie about Hanukkah, this is
probably the only one out there, and
it’s a good choice. It’s a shame it’s
not for the family.
Friday After Next — Sex, drugs,
and holiday cheer – that’s what this
film is about. Obviously, it’s not for
the family, but it is quite good for a
night with the guys, especially at a
Christmas party where there are
mostly adults. This film gets an R
rating for a reason.
This film is about Craig (Ice
Cube) and Day-Day (Mike Epps),
two cousins who live together
above their landlady’s first-floor
abode. When a fake Santa Claus
breaks into their house on
Christmas Eve, Craig and Day-Day
must chase him down to get their
stuff back. Meanwhile, they also
have new jobs as security guards at
a local strip mall, where they meet
Money Mike (Katt Williams), a
clothing store operator with an
interesting taste in clothes, and
Moly, the owner of the strip mall,
and a donut shop inside the mall
(called Holy Moly Donuts).
To be frank, this movie is not for
everyone on your holiday shopping
list. It has the Christmas spirit, but it
does nothing with it. If it were more
about being happy and less about
getting high or making fun of other
people, it might have been the perfect Christmas movie. Maybe I
shouldn’t be too hard on it. It is only
a comedy, and it’s a very funny one,
at that.
The
Nightmare
Before
Christmas — Tim Burton has
made this fantasy musical about
towns based on various holidays,
but, as you can tell from the title,
this film is about two particular holidays, Halloween and Christmas.
It begins after another successful
Halloween.
Jack
Skellington, the Pumpkin King,
is being congratulated on a job
well done.
Jack doesn’t feel he has done
anything new, so he goes about
figuring out how to invigorate
his holiday. On his walk through
the forest, he stumbles upon
Christmas Town. Jack gets the
idea that he should make
Christmas
into
another
Halloween, but it doesn’t go as
planned when Santa Claus is
kidnapped by the evil Oogy
Boogy (on Jack’s orders to Oogy
Boogy’s henchmen). It’s up to
Jack to save Santa Claus and
return Christmas to the holiday
it once was.
This film is twisted and may be
scary for younger people, but the
humour might strike a chord with
older viewers (the severed head in
a present box comes to mind). I
think the writers have melded both
holidays seamlessly, and the animation is a treat for the eyes. I
highly recommend this one, but
don’t expect it to be a lively jaunt
that reveals the true meaning of
Christmas.
Miracle on 34th Street — This
is a classic, black and white
Christmas movie about Kris
Kringle (Edmund Gwenn), a man
who thinks he is Santa Claus, and
the people he influences throughout
New York.
He meets a single mother named
Doris Walker (Maureen O’Hara),
her daughter Susan (Natalie Wood)
and a lawyer named Fred Gailey
(John Payne), who has become
smitten with Doris.
When Kris gets a job as a department store Santa, he starts doing
gestures of goodwill, not knowing
that he could be starting a war with
a rival business.
Kringle’s run-in with the store
psychiatrist (Porter Hall) leads to a
court case to determine if Santa
Claus is real.
I can honestly say I have never
seen any version of this film, but
the original version was the best
apparently. Pick it up if you want
a good family Christmas film.
Cheer for the holidays on the way for YMCA members
By ANDREA ST. PIERRE
Staff Writer
There will be lots of holiday cheer
for YMCA members between Dec.
22 and Jan. 2 aboard the Holiday
Express at the YMCA in Welland
and at the Winter Holiday Day Camp
at the YMCA in St. Catharines.
The Holiday Express at the
YMCA, 285 East Main St. in
Welland, is a series of programs
designed to keep children active and
enable them to have fun during the
holiday break.
All participants will enjoy activities, games and crafts related to a
different theme each day.
Pamphlets that outline the activities are available at the YMCA.
The Holiday Express takes off
on a fun-filled Dec. 22 with Games
Galore.
On Dec. 23, Christmas Creations
gives children a great opportunity
to be creative while making festive
crafts to display during the holiday
season.
‘Twas the Night Before
Christmas on Dec. 24 promises
hildren will have lots of fun celebrating on this day with seasonal games, songs, stories and a
special guest.
On Dec. 29 the Fun Factory will
be filled with fun and games, singing
and dancing.
Holiday Hobbies will take place
on Dec. 30.
Children can ring in the New
Year early on Dec. 31 at the New
Year’s Celebration.
On Jan. 2, children can enjoy
laughs and entertainment during
the Holiday Flick.
The Holiday Express runs
from 10 a.m. to noon for children
aged six to 12 years and 1 p.m.
until 3 p.m. for children aged two
to five years.
Members aged six to 12 years can
register for three programs per week
and members aged two to five years
can register at the membership desk
for two programs per week.
“They have a similar programs in
St. Catharines,” said Julie
Costello, YMCA Welland staff
member. “Most YMCA branches
run children’s programs over the
holidays.”
The Walker Family YMCA, at
25 YMCA Dr. in St. Catharines,
will be hosting a Winter Holiday
Day Camp from Dec. 22 to Jan. 2.
The camp will feature arts, crafts,
games, songs, swimming, gym
games and other special events
geared towards children aged three
to 12 years.
Each day the focus will be on a
different theme.
Dec. 22 will be the YMCA
Olympics. Dec. 23 will be the
Fabulous Food Frenzy. Dec. 24 will
feature Celebrations Around the
World. On Dec. 29 children will
think they’re in the Wild, Wild West.
On Dec. 30 children will explore The
Great Outdoors. On Dec. 31 they
will celebrate a Happy New Year,
and on Jan. 2 enjoy Fun in the Sun.
The Winter Holiday Day Camp
runs from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Extended Care hours are from 7 a.m.
to 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Regularly scheduled children,
youth and swimming programs will
not be offered at the Welland YMCA
during this time.
Regular scheduled programs will
resume on Jan. 5.
For more information contact
the Welland YMCA at 905-7359622 or the St. Catharines
YMCA at 905-934-9622.
Results for students’ Christmas wish list
Student Christmas Wish Lists
By SARAH ALLINGHAM
and NICOLE JOHNSON
Staff Writers
What do most college
students want for Christmas?
Of 80 surveyed, most said they
want money. Here are the rest of
the results:
7
Other
18
Vacation
4
Music/Movies
23
Money
8
Family
1
Computer
11
Clothes
8
Car
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
22
24
26
28
30
Page 26, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Give a gift they want for Christmas, not what you want
By STEPHEN DOHNBERG
Staff Writer
It’s minus 20 in your concrete
shelter. The ratty blankets and
mouldy pillows provided are barely enough to keep you warm,
while the water and food upset
your system and freeze if not consumed quickly. Occasionally, a
visitor will pop an arm in to feel
around, and if you are lucky, there
is an intermittent washroom break.
Usually, these breaks come much
later than required, so you either
run the risk of internal damage or
remain in your own waste.
Merry Christmas. You’re the
new family pet.
While it’s a dramatic example, it
can be a realistic one.
Sources, such as the Christian
Science Monitor, show that “up to
half of the pets sold or adopted
during the Christmas holidays are
returned or taken to a shelter.”
Giving animals as gifts during
the holidays is nothing new, and in
recent years the trend toward cautious pet purchasing could be a
positive one. Jennifer King, assistant manager of Petland’s Ontario
Street location, in St. Catharines,
says that they are “very, very
picky” about whom they sell pets
to. Companies, like Petsmart, have
a customer service and media line
addressing their “cautious policies” regarding animal purchases
as gifts. According to King, such
policies include making the purchaser aware of issues such as
whether the recipient “even wants
a pet.”
Follow-up calls, as well as providing full care sheets and a warranty, are standard operating procedure in many of today’s pet
stores.
Still, the bottom line of these
outlets is essentially to show a
profit while catering to customers’
fad-tastes.
King points out that “fish are
this year’s most popular” pets,
reflective of the popular animated
children’s film Finding Nemo.
CNN reports a surge in the
demand for the starring Clown
Fish, a tropical creature that
requires more specific care than
traditionally
low-maintenance
aquarium dwellers like goldfish.
Texas A&M veterinarians cited
similar
statistics
regarding
Dalmatians in the wake of
Disney’s 101 Dalmations, among
other media-inspired popularity of
animal friends.
Essentially, one’s local shelter or
humane society still might be the
best bet in making sure that the
idea of any animal species as a gift
is properly thought out.
Lincoln
County
Humane
Society’s
manager
Kevin
Strooband’s simple yet wise recommendation during this “cautionary” time is this: “Don’t do it
on an impulse. Think about it.” In
fact, the LCHS slows the rate of
pet adoptions during the holidays
to prevent impulse behaviour often
seen during the hectic holidays.
Strooband has further cautionary tales not often addressed by
pet stores, introducing “tinselitis,”
a potentially deadly affliction
experienced by playful cats and
dogs around the Christmas decorations. The tinsel can literally tie
itself around the animal’s internal
organs.
Although a family may be ready
to have an animal in their home,
having one results in an adjustment process that also requires
time and consideration. It’s called
“pet-proofing.”
Texas A&M vet Bonnie Beaver
points out that electrical cords,
outlets, wires, even plants, like
poinsettias, and foods, like chocolate, can also be unintentional
killers during this specific time of
year. This is what Strooband refers
to as the “garbage diet.”
Although a family may have
pet-proofed their house, the urge
to give “treats” to the family pet
can result in anything from an
upset stomach to serious digestive afflictions.
This is barely scratching the surface of the many issues, but in the
long run the advice of animal advocacy groups and protective services rings the most true when considering an animal as a gift: “When
in doubt, give gift certificates.”
Time is running out.
The Niagara News wants to know what you think.
Where’s the best bar? Who serves the best chicken wings? Where can you get the best pizza?
Who has the best music store?
These are only four of the 21 questions we want answered.
Readers are being asked to cast your votes and choose the best in Niagara.
See ballot on Page 17.
Why not take a few minutes and win dinner for two at the winning restaurant?
The Glendale SAC
would like to
Wish All Students a
Happy & Safe Holiday
& All the Best in
The New Year
Please drink responsibly
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 27
Christmas guide to video game systems
By SHAYNA MALONEY
Staff Writer
Christmas is almost here and the video
game season is in full swing with manufacturers offering new products and retailers
offering lower prices.
Thinking of buying a new video game
system? Unsure as to what all the technospeak means?
Here’s a brief overview of the three major
contenders for video game mastery:
Nintendo’s GameCube, Microsoft’s Xbox
and Sony’s Playstation 2.
At the bottom of the pile is the
GameCube. Although the games are cute
and funky, the GameCube is much slower
and less advanced than its counterparts.
There are far fewer peripherals and game
titles available.
In the price department, Nintendo can’t
be beaten. The base system, which includes
four titles from the popular Legend of Zelda
series, costs about $139.99. Controllers
range from about $35.99 to $49.99 for the
wireless model. The only real peripherals
are steering wheels, which cost an average
of $49.99. Memory cards sell for about
$25.99, while online adapter kits go for
$49.99, and five-inch mini-monitors run
$199.99, which is the same price as the
screens for the other two game systems. For
the system itself, a wireless controller, a
memory card and a broadband adapter,
expect to pay about $259.99.
Games for GameCube tend toward the E
(for “Everyone”) rating from the
Entertainment Software Rating Board, or
ESRB, and are generally geared toward a
younger age bracket.
Currently, there are only 24 M (for
“Mature”) rated games in the Nintendo roster, compared with 291 games rated E or T
(for “Teen”). The most popular game for
Christmas this year is Mario Kart - Double
Dash, which retails for about $59.99.
The Xbox and the Playstation 2 are
locked in Mortal Kombat for the top spot.
Each has its legions of die-hard fans, and
each has its benefits and detriments.
Microsoft’s Xbox tends to be pricier
than its competition. The base system
includes one of two game packages, Star
Wars: The Clone Wars and Tetris World’s
Online Edition for $229.99, or Star Wars:
Knights of the Old Republic and Mech
Assault for $259.99.
If online gaming is what you’re after,
Microsoft is the best there is, but not without a hefty price. The initial signup fee for
Xbox Live is $79.99, and you must pay a
subscription fee every year after that. Also,
Xbox Live only supports broadband access
(sorry, dial-up users).
Xbox peripherals are much more plentiful
than with the GameCube. Control pads for
the four controller ports on the front of the
machine range in price from about $39.99 to
$89.99 for the wireless version. There are
dance pads, joysticks, steering wheels,
voice-activated headsets, and the confusinglooking “arcade stick” available.
Although the Xbox’s 733 megahertz
processor is the fastest of any of the game
systems, it has several major drawbacks,
most of which have to do with money. Aside
from the expensive online fees, the Xbox
will not play DVDs unless you buy the separate DVD kit for about $44.99.
The most popular game on the market for
Xbox is the Grand Theft Auto Double Pack,
which sells for about $69.99.
For versatility, Sony’s Playstation 2 can’t
be beaten. It plays PS2 and original
Playstation games, as well as CDs and
DVDs. It has the largest selection of games,
and although its graphics aren’t quite as
good as the Xbox’s, it’s still pretty impressive, especially when you consider that 15
years ago, everyone was amazed by Super
Mario Brothers 3.
The most popular game is NHL 2004,
which sells for about $64.99.
The most popular package model of the
PS2 includes ATV Offroad Fury 2 and the
online adapter, and costs about $259.99.
With the game Turok: The Dinosaur Hunter,
it retails for about $249.99.
Peripherals for the PS2 are numerous and
relatively inexpensive. Controllers range
from $19.99 to $49.99, and the online kit
costs about $59.99 if bought separately.
Other accessories include steering wheels,
light guns and Eye Toy, which, at $74.99,
allows you the dubious pleasure of watching
yourself bash through a series of familiarlooking arcade-style games. For the system,
a wireless controller, a memory card, a
headset and a DVD remote, PS2 will run
you about $415.95.
Whatever game system you choose, enjoy
the thought that in five years, they’ll all be
obsolete anyway.
New Judgment System changes way people play game
By DON ARMSTRONG
Staff Writer
In the mid-1990s Square-Enix
released a new kind of Final
Fantasy game for the Sony
Playstation that changed the way
people looked at standard tactical role-playing games. SquareEnix plans to do it again with
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
(FFTA), for the Nintendo
Game Boy Advance.
Final
Fantasy
Ta c t i c s
Advance
starts in
the town
of St. Ivalice, where players are
introduced to the heroes of the
story, Marche, Ritz and Mewt.
Players are also introduced to
the battle system of the game via
tutorial battles.
This teaches players combat
basics, as well as how to move
your characters around the gridlike terrain and how to attack the
opposition in a turn-based environment.
Once in the game, players find
an array of customizable options
for their team of characters,
known as clans in the kingdom
of Ivalice.
Players
can choose
among five
different
races of
characters for
their
clan:
Human, Bangaa,
Moogle, Nu Mou and Viera, with
individual job classes.
The classes determine what
kind of equipment, techniques
and other options a character can
wield in battle.
Each item a character has
equipped may contain an ability
that one of its specific job classes may use. A character may permanently learn this ability by
accumulating Ability Points
(AP); after a set number of AP
has been accumulated, that character may use that ability in
other jobs. In all, there are 34
jobs in FFTA.
Even with all of the options
players can wield in battle, they
must be wary of the new
Judgment System.
This is the law of battle in
FFTA. During engagements, a
judge will oversee the battle and
enforce the law that can limit the
options a player and the computer can use by forbidding certain
weapons, items or abilities.
If a character uses a forbidden
weapon or ability the judge will
issue one of two coloured cards,
yellow
and
red.
If a character is given a
yellow card, it
is considered
a warning to
that character
and will result
in loss of any
treasures and
money
the
player would
receive after
the battle.
If a character is given a
red card, that
character is
automatically taken from battle
and sent to jail. Once there the
player decides whether to bail
that character out or to try to get
a pardon. A pardon is cheaper
than bail but will result in your
main character,
Marche,
being
sent to jail in the
character’s place.
Not only this, but
just like a yellow
card, you will also
lose any treasure
or money you
would
have
received if you
win the battle.
Be wary, and
respect the law.
Final Fantasy
Tactics Advance is
a solid title with
few flaws. Players
new to this kind of
role-playing game may find
keeping track of all of the characters complicated at first, but
thankfully the game does not
force you to become really good,
really fast
For More Reviews You Can Use, Please See
Pages 32 and 34
Page 28, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Kids at the Niagara Child Care
Centre are shown hard at work
writing their letters to Santa
Claus.
Top: Enya, Courtney, Serena,
Matthew, Kylie, Derek and
Cassie.
Bottom:
Cassie,
Enya,
Courtney, Serena, Matthew,
Kylie, Derek and Brendan.
Photos by Lindsay Allbright
Pagination by Mike O’Drowsky
Letters to Santa
Cassie’s letter to Santa Claus.
Derek’s letter to Santa Claus.
Brendan’s letter to Santa Claus.
Matthew’s letter to Santa
Claus.
Enya’s letter to Santa Claus.
Courtney’s, Kylie’s and Serena’s letters to Santa Claus.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 29
By KEIRA CUTHBERT
Staff Writer
Large ships pass by this spot as
the bridge lifts, and patrons can
enjoy a home-cooked meal while
they sit in the cozy dining room.
The Melting Pot is full of
flavours wafting through the dining area to customers as they walk
through the door.
Sean Pearce owns the place in
St. Catharines, along with his
wife, Tracy.
With five years of operating in
this building, they’ve decided to
move to a new locale where they
hope to gather a larger following
for their wares.
The decision wasn’t easy.
After all, they have regulars
from the local business area, but
unfortunately, they’ve seen business decline over the past few
years, forcing them to cut operating hours and the variety on
their menu.
Sitting on wooden stools with a
cool green countertop for leaning,
he says people are afraid to try
new things and are used to a certain way to cook food.
He sits in his apron, pausing to
make up an order before we continue talking.
Sean leans his left arm on the
counter with his right hand on
his leg.
He immediately tells me about
the building and how people judge
the place by its looks.
Sean wants to leave because
people assume the building is only
a quick breakfast diner, which, in
turn, people judge before they try.
Tracy agrees. She mentions
how she hasn’t seen me for a
while either.
The star quality ranking system
has nothing to do with quality,
just the look of the building and
the price.
Their new restaurant will be in
Fonthill, Ont., with a larger
room, a better look and more
competition.
He hopes to gain his reputation
back. He had to change locations
Wishing all
Faculty, Staff
and Students
The Best This
Holiday and a
Happy New Year
Phyllis Barnatt
Journalism-Print
to upgrade to a five-star designation, just to get people to come in.
Not at the restaurant today, fiveyear-old Bailey gets the new place
named after her - Bailey’s Pasta
and Rib House.
Usually the energetic girl is circulating among the regulars, talking and playing when she can.
Other times she sleeps in the
back, an activity which, her parents say, she hates.
She spends a lot of time at
“work” and it’s hard for her to play
with friends.
Her father does say she will
have good oral skills for school.
The new restaurant will have a
banquet hall, an office and ample
room for an abundance of diners.
Sean has not worked solely at
the Melting Pot, but started, at 15,
washing dishes at the Golden
Griddle. He demands a hard work
Photo by Keira Cuthbert
Local diner worth second glance
SEAN PEARCE
ethic from himself and expects no
less from his own staff.
He’s managed Perkins for five
years, before he wanted to get
away from the stress. He landed at
Peninsula Lakes Golf Club in
Fonthill, cooking the kind of food
he wanted.
Not without some debating,
he decided to open his own
place to have control and cook
what he wanted.
The place clears out as we finish talking.
He calls out to Tracy that it’s
her turn. She’s busy making the
schedule while the one staff
member they have is peeling
potatoes.
She seems surprised and a little fidgety, because she’s usually
on the move, keeping everything
together.
Sean’s standing at the
counter,
mixing,
looking
around the room as he explains
about his lease and the owner
of the building.
For two years he’s been trying to get the owner to let him
make renovations, so he
wouldn’t have to move.
The response he gets is,
“We’ll talk. We’ll talk.” Sean
explains when he told the
owner he’s leaving, the guy
was surprised, as if the topic
came out of nowhere.
As I finish up my questions,
Tracy asks me if I’d like a coffee to go, but I say no. I’d
rather come back and enjoy a
full meal at one of the best
restaurants the Niagara area
should miss.
Exam T ips
Prepare well
Relax
Arrive on time
GOOD LUCK !
ADVERTISEMENT
December 1, 2003
To:
Students at Ontario’s Community Colleges
From: The Bargaining Team for Colleges’ Support Staff
Re: Support Staff strike vote on Dec. 10
Dear student,
Support staff at Ontario’s 24 colleges, including
this one, are taking a strike vote on Dec. 10.
We’re taking the vote because we want to be
treated fairly.
Our 6,500 members work in virtually every
department of the college. We process your
student loan. We register you in programs. We
help you find research materials at the library. We
find job placements for co-op students. We go to
high schools to promote the college.
We maintain the computer labs. We set up and
repair equipment, provide demonstrations and
assist faculty in the labs and shops. We supervise
ECE students at the day care centres. We keep the
buildings warm in winter and cool in summer.
All we’re asking for is fairness.
The colleges are offering a three per cent wage
increase in each of three years. In reality, we’ll take
home little more than 1 per cent this year due to an
increase in our pension plan contributions. As well,
the colleges’ offer is NOT retroactive to when our
contract expired Aug. 31.
We’re also fighting for a better deal for students
who work in the summer at the colleges. The
colleges want cheap labour. This isn’t good for us
or for you. They want to pay summer workers $7
an hour, which could be less than the minimum
wage when it’s raised.
Our 6,500 members don’t want to go on strike.
We’ve got mortgages and bills to pay. Some of us
are sole-support parents with kids in college.
As you can see, we’re an important part of your
college experience.
We know a strike would have a big impact on
you. It could disrupt your school year. We don’t
want to do that.
Your tuition has increased by more than
128 per cent in the past 10 years. The colleges’
commitment to the services we provide you has
not grown with the hike in fees. You’re
experiencing longer line-ups for services you need
and fewer full-time, experienced staff to help you.
We also know that sometimes you have to stand
up for what you believe in. We’ve given our
working lives to the colleges. We’ve seen our
working conditions and your learning conditions
deteriorate.
The colleges continue to treat support staff as if
we’re second-class citizens. For years, other
employee groups in the college have received:
Better wage improvements;
Better job security protection; and
Better health care benefits.
Tell your college president you don’t want your
school year disrupted by a strike. Tell the president
to get serious about bargaining with support staff.
Yours truly,
The Bargaining Team for Colleges’ Support Staff,
The Ontario Public Service Employees Union
The Ontario Public Service Employees Union, 100 Lesmill Rd., Toronto, ON M3B 3P8
For more information on Support Staff bargaining: www.opseu.org/caat/caat_sup/caatsbargainingindex.htm
E-mail: [email protected]
College Support Staff reached a tentative settlement about 4pm Tuesday, December 02
Page 30, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Hockey player became college registrar
By SHANNON ARNOLD
Staff Writer
Niagara College Registrar Alan
Vaughan once wanted to be a
hockey player when he grew up.
He worked construction at a
Muskoka resort throughout university and considered being a
sports writer or teacher at one
point during his four years at the
University of Western Ontario in
London, Ont.
While long-term deadlines do
not faze him, writing constantly to
short-term time limitations had no
appeal, and the job market for
teaching was not good at the time.
He says he realized early on that
his hockey player dream may have
been slightly unrealistic, so he
became a registrar.
‘ I think it’s
h uman nature that
you would rather
be able to always
get along with
people and give
them what they’re
asking for.’
— Al Vaughan
Now in his ninth year working
at Niagara College, the 47-yearold has found his niche in a career
that bestows satisfaction, taps into
his natural leadership ability and
includes an excellent staff offering
mutual support.
Walking into Vaughan’s office
would probably be comparable to
being ushered into his living room.
His quiet demeanor and sense of
hospitality make you feel instantly
at home and never an intrusion.
His desk is tidy and the round
table in the centre of his office is
free of papers or books, giving the
impression that its orderly state is
reflective of his life as well.
He still plays hockey twice a
week on a pickup and tournament
team. He is a sports and health
fanatic, insistent on getting his
work-out time in to the point
where he has been known to
schedule meetings around it. If
you pass by his office at
lunchtime, you may catch him
heading out the door with his
gym bag. His co-workers attest to
the fact that he works out religiously, balanced by chocoholic
tendencies.
Vaughan also has a musical side.
He sang in choirs throughout high
school and is learning to play guitar with his daughter, Alanna. He
says he likes to keep up with the
new music, instead of becoming
stuck in the oldies like many of his
generation. Today, his radio dial is
set to 99.9 FM — quietly, as not to
upset the 105.7 FM office protocol
— and it may occasionally wander
over to 102.1 FM to catch a song
by his favourite band, the Red Hot
Chili Peppers.
The staff members who know
him best cite family as his top priority. Janet, his wife of 21 years, is
a substitute teacher, and they have
two children. Dave is in his first
year at Sir Wilfrid Laurier
University in Waterloo, Ont., and
Alanna is in Grade 11 at Ridley
College in St. Catharines.
Vaughan says he enjoys travel,
and a year before he married Janet,
the two backpacked across Europe
for three months. They started in
Northern Ireland, where his family
originates, and then went to
Britain, Germany, Holland, Italy,
Greece and Spain. The Greek
Islands were a favourite, partly
because of the beautiful scenery,
partly because hotel rooms started
at $2.50.
Vaughan graduated with an honours degree in political science
from the University of Western
Ontario but that taught him he did
not want anything to do with politics.
He continued on to earn his
master’s of education in educational administration and has
worked at the college since 1984
in several different areas, including continuing education and corporate training. He became the
registrar at Niagara in 1994.
In regard to his position,
Vaughan says, “I was attracted to
education generally and the college in particular because I think
it’s one of the main tools we have
in society to help people better
their situation. As registrar you’re
involved in almost every aspect of
the college’s business, right from
recruitment through admissions,
registration and on to graduation.
So you see them starting out and
you see them graduate, and that’s
really satisfying.”
Although he is not directly using
his political science degree, it was
still key in preparing him for the
registrar position.
“I often say to journalism students, even if you don’t end up
writing for a daily paper, the writing skills are so critical to virtually, from my experience, almost
every administrative job.”
While at Western, he also developed reasoning skills and the ability to form a logical argument. The
statistical work required in obtaining a master’s degree contributed
to his current work in enrolment
statistics.
His staff members describe him
as a supportive leader, thoughtful
and appreciative of those who put
in the extra hours. They are quite
protective, careful not to say anything to embarrass him and speak
of him as a friend, one whom they
deeply respect.
Tina Racher, who worked five
years for Vaughan, is in her first
year as his assistant. He initially
intimidated her because of his title
but also his more introverted
nature. “He was quiet, always
thinking before he spoke. What he
said meant something,” she says,
“but once you get to know him,
he’s very human, very approach-
able, and he has a sense of
humour.”
Last March, he got a fax from a
prospective student with the salutation, Dear Sir Alan Vaughan.
Racher found a photocopy of the
fax on her desk later on that day,
with the following handwritten
note: “Tina, I think this title is fitting to my role and appropriately
reflects the respect I am due.
Please use this in all future communication and direct staff to do
likewise. Al.”
Still chuckling about it six
months later, Racher says, “Yeah, I
kept it. It makes me laugh! I have
it on my desk and every once in a
while I go, ‘Hee-hee, he’s human
says DiMattio.
Racher adds, “I’ve never seen
him break under pressure. When
that time comes, he doesn’t say,
‘OK, see ya, good luck with that.’
He will usually be working those
long hours with us. That’s when
the humour comes out, after 4:30
p.m. and everyone’s gone. We can
turn the radio to something other
than 105.7 and let loose a little
bit.”
Staff in the Records and
Admissions office are treated to
the lighter side of Vaughan when
they go out after meetings or during the more stressful, busier times
of the year. Racher alludes to
Vaughan’s sensitivity to the needs
about working those extra hours
and that’s what he’ll do. And not
many people know that. You know
he’s happy about those people who
put in the extra hours.”
Vaughan’s leadership extends
over the offices of recruitment,
admissions, financial aid, registration, records, orientation and
enrolment management, servicing
campuses in Welland and in
Niagara-on-the-Lake.
He sits on the convocation, orientation and management committees, and chairs the student appeal
hearings. He also chairs the fee
protocol committee, on which the
student government leaders also
sit. That committee sets the
Niagara College Registrar Al Vaughan is described by his staff as approachable and likeable, with a
hidden sense of humour.
Photo by Shannon Arnold
... and funny.’”
The rest of his staff was not
quick to forget it, either.
Throughout the summer, they
added Sir above his nameplate on
the door and Happy Birthday, Sir
Alan Vaughan adorned his birthday cake.
Lou DiMattio, former assistant
to the director of Student Services,
has known Vaughan for all of his
nine years at Niagara and learned
early on that Vaughan’s sweet
tooth includes Nibs. With a twinkle in her eye, she says, “If I had a
bag on my desk, he would certainly help himself, so I started buying
bigger bags and allocating some to
him.”
DiMattio describes him as
“approachable, likeable and easily
teased,” also attesting to the fact
that his sense of humour falls
under the things-most-people-donot-know category.
“In the enrolment and registration process, there are certain
times of the year where it’s
extremely chaotic, and because of
the kind of personality he has, he
doesn’t get flustered very easily,”
of his staff, saying, “It’s almost
like he knows when it’s due. It’s
usually those times when we’ve
worked and worked and worked
and we’re almost at our threshold
where we’re just fed up, and he’ll
take us out.”
He sets a casual office atmosphere, establishing a blame-free
environment. Asked what it is like
to work for him, Racher says,
“Amazing. He always supports us
in our decisions. There are times
when we may not have made the
most correct decision, but he’s
always stood behind us and
defended us.”
DiMattio does not hesitate,
saying, “You never felt like you
were working for him. You were
working with him.”
Vaughan is appreciative, sending Christmas cards to his staff
and remembering birthdays. He
is also careful to give back to
those who put in the extra hours,
finding out what each staff member likes, is motivated by or considers a good thank you.
Racher says, “He finds out what
is going to make you feel good
ancillary fees of the college.
The perks of his job are meeting
with and helping students. He says
he is grateful for a staff that
shares his values of wanting to
help people through education.
However, as in any job, there
are challenges. Vaughan faces the
formidable task of providing the
best possible customer service to
students on a fairly limited budget.
His natural tendency is to be
more of a people pleaser, and he
has been stretched by the amount
of problem solving required in
his field.
“I don’t particularly like confrontation
with
people,”
Vaughan says plainly.
“I think it’s human nature that
you would rather be able to always
get along with people and give
them what they’re asking for.”
Just as the best things in life are
not easily acquired, the most
rewarding people to know do not
create an easy path to the core of
who they are. Racher sums her
feelings about Vaughan by saying,
“He’s great. You’ve just gotta give
him some time.”
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 31
Student’s
Awards
We want to know what you think. We’re asking readers to cast their votes and choose the best in Niagara. Fill out the form
below and drop it into the box at your SAC office or any office mail bin. You could win one of our prizes.
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❑ Boston Pizza
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❑ Behind the Cue Ball
❑ Boomtown
❑ Brock Billiards
❑ Kam’s Billiards
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❑ Columbo’s Subs
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❑ Mr. Submarine
❑ Quizno’s
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❑ A&P
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❑ Suntastic
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❑ Kimono’s
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Transit
Wal-Mart
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❑ Campus Book Store
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❑ Staples
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❑ Downtown Fine Music
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❑ HMV
❑ Star Records
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❑ Weirdorama
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Page 32, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Reviews you can use
The Lion King makes for money well spent
By JOLENE HOLMES
Staff Writer
This Broadway musical, Disney’s The Lion King, comes
to life through energetic and witty characters, colourful costumes and combination authentic African and modern dance
at the Prince of Wales Theatre in Toronto.
As a young child you see a movie with the colourful,
witty characters and wonderful, bouncing music, with a storyline pulling your heart.
Now, although you’re an adult the musical makes you feel
a child’s innocence and curiosity as you await the next
move. The silence throughout the theatre during the opening
scene was uncanny. The brilliant golden sunset cascades
over the many jungle animals gathered to welcome the
future king. It’s awe-inspiring.
It’s a tale of a young lion cub, Simba, learning lessons of
the Circle of Life and elements of ruling an extensive kingdom when he becomes king of Pride Rock.
The performers interact with the crowd; Rafiki asks the
audience questions, birds fly from the balconies and lifesized elephants wander through aisles.
The costume design complements the raw emotion and
energetic personality of all the characters, with the use of
the vibrant colours and wide range of African and modern
dancing styles.
Rafiki’s character of the wise, all-knowing baboon captures your eye and brings comic relief during her soliloquy
in scene two. Her costume has dazzling African beads, and
effervescent natural cloth illustrates the traditional involvement in the Circle of Life.
The jungle duo, Timon and Pumba, are the loyal friends
of the lost Simba, adding the comedy and witty charm element to otherwise sad scenes in the musical. Timon is a
small, tan and white, out-spoken meercat. Pumba is a lifesized, purple, dimwitted, potbelly pig.
Scar, the angry uncle, who was “ripped” of his right to the
throne of the kingdom (at least in his own mind), tries to
change the future by any means possible. Scar is a cynical,
pessimistic misfit. The dark colours of his costume mirror
the anger and rage he has at the world.
Simba’s character grows before the audience’s eyes, from
a newborn cub to the king of Pride Rock. As a young adult,
he makes his mark on the hearts and minds of old and young
viewers.
Simba’s playful innocence, curiosity and brightness provide the elements of a young child looking for acceptance
and knowledge on the journey of growing up.
The grown Simba has a mature exterior that makes him
look like a king, but he is haunted by the innocence and guilt
of his childhood.
All the characters leave you with a smile on your face.
This is a show to brighten your spirits and fill you with love
and understanding.
The Lion King is playing at the Prince of Wales Theatre
in Toronto until Jan. 4, 2004. If you would like to experience this three-hour captivating performance before, you
must call Ticketmaster.
Remember Jeff Buckley when writing your wish list
By RYAN FARKAS
Staff Writer
CD Review: Jeff Buckley - Live at Sin-é
Legacy Edition
Beneath a cloud of coffee-shop blues and
pure, angelic songwriting, Jeff Buckley left
this planet much earlier than he should have.
The swirling circumstances of his drowning
in 1997 left a record industry in awe of an
artist who may have been the next great
American singer/songwriter.
Live at Sin-é – Legacy Edition is touted as
the definitive Buckley experience. Playing by
himself for free and clinging solely to a guitar,
Buckley has provided an entry into the annals of
pure musicianship. All John Mayer wannabes
should have their notebooks out by now ...
Opening with Be Your Husband, which
could easily be covered by the White
Stripes, the CD sets a peaceful tone that
forces you to take notice.
Strange Fruit has Buckley
seemingly improvising like Page
and Plant in the Zeppelin heyday,
hitting notes far out of the range
of the common man. The funny
thing is it’s an old Billie Holiday
song.
With Night Flight, an actual
Zeppelin song that follows,
Buckley manages to keep up
with the rockabilly/grassroots
blues fluctuations of the original.
Covers and original songs interweave
throughout the first CD as if they were destined. Eternal Life opens as though Jimi
Hendrix was beside him, whispering him
the next note. Fraught with romantic angst,
Buckley bleeds the words as if
he’d just written them.
The second disc is more
diverse, if anything. Ranging
from the entirely French Je
N’en Connais Pas La Fin to the
Pakistani Yeh Jo Halka Halka
Saroor Hai (complete with
audience clapping), Buckley
proves the ability to contemporise the world music scene.
Subsequently, he takes the contemporary Smells Like Teen
Spirit riff and plays with it, singing the
‘hello, hello’ in a full Pakistani chant.
Afterwards, Buckley sheepishly says to the
crowd, “I’m a ridiculous person, and you’re
lucky you’ve paid no money to see me.”
Between songs, Buckley talks about classic
rock and the blandness of it, Doors reverb, the
fact he looks like actor Matt Dillon and a foolish song about musical chairs.
Far from foolish is Leonard Cohen’s
Hallelujah. Lasting just over eight minutes
and followed by explosive applause, it’s a
bittersweet way to end a show that was
wrapped in blankets of emotion.
This album isn’t available for mass MTV
airplay nor is there any promotional juggernaut behind it.
It’s just a simple album with a guy
singing songs for free on his favourite New
York stage. The great thing was the stage
was simply a corner in a café where he
washed the dishes and helped lock up at
night. It’s a true masterpiece.
‘The next Rolling Stones’ making their way to radio waves
By NICOLE JOHNSON
Staff Writer
Four guys from Australia have started a band that is literally taking off with
a refreshingly new yet old sound inspired by the music of the 60s and 70s.
The band, Jet — recently released its first single, Are You Gonna Be My
Girl?, and it’s already found a spot on TV as the theme for new Apple iPod
commercials.
The boys of Jet, brothers Nic and Chris Cester, Cameron Muncey and
Mark Wilson — grew up listening to the Rolling Stones, The Who, AC/DC,
The Kinks and The Beatles, to name a few.
They sum up their work perfectly in Radio Song, when they sing, “Take a
look at what I took a leaf out of everybody’s book.” If you listen to the CD,
Get Born, it’s obvious that Jet was strongly inspired by old-time rock and roll,
with riffs that resemble those from the greats of classic rock.
Jet is more than just your average rock band: they actually have musical talent.
Besides basic guitars and drums, the guys also make use of the piano, slide
guitar, harp and tambourine without making the album sound cheesy.
The CD is a mixture of upbeat and mellow rock, and the songs don’t all
sound the same.
Jet is quickly soaring to the top, appearing in magazines such as Revolver,
Blender, Newsweek and even Hustler.
Their music has been criticized for being too much like old bands’ music,
but old music is making a comeback. Several reviewers have called the guys
“the next Rolling Stones.”
Isn’t that a good thing?
Reinvention and perfection of the live performance
By DANE MCBURNIE
Staff Writer
There is a lot to be said about
live performances.
Some artists choose to play it
safe and play all their hit songs.
Some artists use an array of fancy
lights and other effects to win over
the crowd. Some artists will not
risk any mistakes and lip synch
over a pre-recorded tape. Some
artists disappoint their audience.
The Mars Volta do none of these
things. The Mars Volta re-invent
the live performance.
It was a cold night on Oct. 24 at
the Water Street Music Hall in
Rochester, N.Y. The venue was
sold out and bustling with hundreds of people. The crowd was so
highly anticipating the band that
any flicker of lights or any roadie
walking onto the stage would send
it into a frenzy in the hopes that
something was about to happen.
Luckily, the band did not keep
the fans waiting long.
The sounds of a pre-recorded
Spanish trumpet ballad blare from
massive speakers as the house
lights dim to leave the stage
washed in an eerie dark blue light.
One by one, the band’s members
walk on stage and take their
places. The crowd roars.
The Mars Volta’s debut CD,
De-Loused
In
The
Comatorium, has not been in the
media spotlight. Though the
group’s single, Inertiatic ESP,
has received radio airplay, a lot of
people are unaware of the group’s
existence. This may factor into
the band’s unique hard-to-define
sound (though it has been
described as new-age progressive
rock).
Still, the members have earned
a large reputation based on their
work in previous bands, mainly
frontmen Omar Rodriguez-Lopez
and Cedric Bixler Zavala, from
popular post-grunge punk revival
band At The Drive In.
In any case, they have a
respectable fan base for such lit-
tle exposure.
Media exposure aside, many
people have seen The Mars Volta
on tour. They have opened for big
name rock acts like the Red Hot
Chili Peppers and Queens Of The
Stone Age, but tonight, The Mars
Volta headline.
The band surges to life, lead by
drummer Jon Theodore, whose
playing style is so unbelievably
impressive and energetic, it seems
impossible that he could play a
whole set without dying from
exhaustion. Following the brief
drumming introduction, the band
surges to life with the song
Roulette Dares (The Haunt Of),
one of the most explosive tracks
on the album.
Singer Zavala’s high-pitched
voice echoes over the crowd and
he glides across the stage. It’s not
long before he appears to lose control over his body, as if the music
takes him over.
Guitarist
Rodriguez-Lopez
plays his notes fast and clear,
although his body is shaking violently. Along with Lopez, bassist
Juan Alderete keeps to one side of
the stage, leaving plenty of room
for Zavala to dance wildly and flip
the microphone stand end over end
in the air. By the second chorus,
keyboardist Isaiah Owens shows
his true colours, playing with such
passion one would think he had
just won the lottery.
Each band member plays such
intricately woven music, it’s a
wonder how it was composed.
The Mars Volta differs from
most live bands in the way it presents its songs. Every song is a
modified version of what appears
on its album. Some songs included
an interlude, which lasted longer
than the song itself, while others
were completely rearranged.
It is safe to say The Mars Volta
is not afraid of experimentation
as the band entwines its recognized songs with these fluid
soundscapes of noise and harmony that last so long one could for-
get what was being played originally.
The songs were so stretched
and therefore so long, the band
only had enough time to play six
of them, one of which clocked in
at about 20 minutes.
The band ended its set with the
closing track of the album, Take
The Veil Cerpin Taxt, accompanied by a five-minute bass solo
in the middle.
Though the band had been
playing for over an hour, the
level of intensity never diminished.
The members of the The Mars
Volta are all accomplished musicians and seem almost too creative
for their own good.
No one knows what direction
their experimental progressive
style will take them next, but one
thing is certain: their love for
experimentation and art-like music
will never guide them into the
watered-down mainstream of predictable radio rock.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 33
Under the Covers
This kidnap book requires box of tissues
By MELISSA SCHNEIDER
Staff Writer
Welcome to the life of
Frederick Clegg, a low-level
civil servant, or, better yet, welcome to the inner workings of
the mind of an anti-social psychopath.
Set in the beautiful countryside in England, this book has
the power to chill you to the
core.
In
John
Fowles’
The
Collector, Clegg is the kind of
man you pass without giving
him a second glance. Painfully
shy around people, he surrounds
himself with his collection of
butterflies.
Clegg has some secrets,
though. For quite awhile he’s
been stalking a girl named
Miranda.
To him Miranda represents all
that is innocent and beautiful.
Like the butterflies he collects,
he feels he must collect her.
With the help of chloroform,
he manages to get Miranda into
his van and into the basement
room he’s created for her.
Stocked with books on her cho-
sen university subject, art, and
filled with everything a woman
her age should enjoy, this room
has been carefully planned.
As for ever letting her go, he
can’t bring himself to do it.
Much as he promises her no
harm and to let her leave, eventually he is too fascinated by the
rare breed he’s caught: a beautiful, virginal woman.
After several escape attempts
on Miranda’s part, she realizes
she is never going to leave
unless she does something drastic. She tries to seduce Clegg,
thinking this is what he wants.
This forced sexual attempt
makes him realize she’s just like
the other women, dirty, not worthy of his time.
Just a few chapters later,
Miranda is dead. She falls ill,
but Clegg refuses to get her
medical attention, believing
she’s just faking again. He ends
up burying the one woman with
whom he was in “love.”
The book leaves Clegg stalking a new victim, someone who
looks like Miranda, but who
might (on the off chance) not be
as difficult to handle, maybe
even be appreciative of him.
Like the butterflies pinned
down and preserved but never to
be seen again by anyone but him
are also the many women at his
disposal, if he chooses them to be.
This brilliant novel is written
in two parts.
Part one is Frederick Clegg
telling his story, and part two is
Miranda’s diary entries and the
slow progression to her
inevitable death.
My suggestion to you is to
have a box of tissues handy.
New publishing method helps authors gain recognition
By STEPHEN DOHNBERG
Staff Writer
In a recent interview with historical author Steven Duff, I was
introduced to Dr. Alexander
Milton Ross, a Canadian figure
who warrants more than just a
footnote in history books.
In our discussion of the production of Duff’s book Hunter Of
Dreams, I was made aware of a
revolutionary publishing method
that can redirect the landscape of
the publishing industry.
You can call it by the book,
demand and supply, or innovative
in its obvious simplicity. Victoria,
B.C.-based Trafford Publishing
has made releasing a book an
option in a business that’s made it
increasingly competitive for new
writers to sign on with publishers
and break into new markets.
Trafford’s form of your book,
your way niche-publishing, allows
an author to release a book – a professionally bound piece of work of
industry quality, and saleable, particularly if the author is willing to work
the book on the promotional circuit.
An otherwise overlooked author
might find this service indispensable
in getting a foot in the door of larger
publishing houses and garnering the
attention of wider audiences.
Additional revolutionary incentives for the by-the-book route are
that authors earn “a significantly
larger royalty percentage” in comparison to standard industry practices, and they retain “copyright and
all other marketing rights.”
Other print-on-demand publishers
exist such as Instabook and
Lightning Print. However, Trafford
Chief Executive Officer Bruce
Batchelor recently outlined the
pace of his company’s growth
‘25 per cent of
all books
published in
Canada and
registered through
the National
Library of
Canada were
Trafford books.’
—
Bruce Batchelor
while talking with Victoria’s TimesColonist, noting that during the
month of January, “25 per cent of all
the books published in Canada and
registered through the National
Library of Canada were Trafford
books.” Trafford has handled releases in all genres, from memoirs to
children’s books to software manuals for corporations.
With an in-house layout team,
Trafford takes care of ISBN designation for the release and submits two
copies of the work to the National
Library. Trafford also provides a bar
code to aid in tracking sales for
industry statistics.
Trafford offers six optional packages for the motivated author. The
package options “range from $700 to
$1,500 Cdn,” and Trafford’s staff can
refer writers to various services such
as graphic artists, editors, distributors
and other utilities that a new
breed of do-it-yourself authormarketers might deem necessary
Top 10 books
that make you think
Underground railway partial theme in new book
By HEATHER CROLE
Staff Writer
Hunter of Dreams, the newest
novel by Parry Sound native
Steven Duff, describes the heroic
adventures of doctor and naturalist
Alexander Milton Ross, of
Belleville, Ont., as he helps slaves
escape by way of the Underground
Railroad.
Duff’s novel is full of local historical descriptions, and he
includes a fictional companion,
James Ramsay, from Belleville, in
his story, “for comic relief.”
He added that the character of
Ramsay reminds him a little of
himself.
Duff twists dialogue into various southern accents to emphasize
the different parts of the United
States that Ross and Ramsay
travel through.
This helps the reader connect
with the characters and imagine a
clear picture of their journey, even
though some of the accents seem
too exaggerated at times.
Ross and Ramsay help slaves
from the United States escape to
various parts of Ontario. They go
through London, Windsor and St.
Catharines, where they meet
Harriet Tubman, a famous heroine for her part in the
Underground Railroad in the
Niagara region.
Duff said it is difficult to put this
novel in a category because it is “half
fiction and half non-fiction.”
Duff said Ross was “like a
spy” and that he enjoyed doing
research for the novel. He also
enjoyed creating the fictional
characters like Ramsay, passengers on the trains and the slaves.
Characters such as Ross,
Tubman and George Brown, of
West Virginia, who take part in
helping slaves, are real people
Duff created dialogue for.
Duff trades in-depth physical
descriptions for dialogue to
carry the story.
At times the southern accents
seem confusing and almost too
extreme, as if the author is trying too hard to show where the
characters are from.
The plot runs smoothly, with
only small sections of irrelevant
actions and thoughts by Ramsay
that stop the plot in its tracks.
Nevertheless, the story picks
up again, and the reader is off,
scheming along with Ross and
Ramsay. The reader feels like a
co-conspirator in their secretive
plot for the life-threatening battle
for enslaved humanity.
If the characters were actors in
a film, they would have great
on-screen chemistry.
The 313-page novel, published in 2002, is a delightful
and quick read, with only a few
minor flaws that can be easily
overlooked.
It is full of local colour, history of the Niagara region and
Canada at the time of the first
railroad construction, and details
of Canadian and American historical figures that history buffs
will enjoy.
Duff is the author of three
other books: In the Land of the
People Apart, The Wanderer’s
Storm-Song, and Raiders of the
Lost Barque.
He is a graduate of Hobart
College in New York and is a
retired high school music
teacher.
Hunter of Dreams is published
by Trafford Publishing, in
British Columbia, and is available by special order only
through the publisher.
for their work.
An especially notable boost is that
Trafford offers clients web distribution and sales by cataloguing works
with important high profile outlets
including Amazon, Chapters,
Barnes and Noble, and Borders.
Access to these outlets would be
elusive to lesser-known writers.
Skeptical?
In recent years Trafford has
published 3,000 authors and
4,000 works in more than 15 languages spanning 50 countries.
With new offices in three countries – New Bern, NC, in the
U.S., Drogheda, Ireland, and
Crewe, England – books-ondemand indicates that this trend
is a response and challenge to
the old order, as well as the
changing business landscape.
Visit Trafford Publishing on the
web at http://www.trafford.com.
By Staff Writers
Shayna Maloney
and Melissa Schneider
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide
to the Galaxy
Douglas Adams
The Ground Beneath her Feet
Salman Rushdie
The Handmaid’s Tale
Margaret Atwood
Anil’s Ghost
Michael Ondaatje
In the Skin of a Lion
Michael Ondaatje
Winterlong
Elizabeth Hand
Neuromancer
William Gibson
Not Wanted on the Voyage
Timothy Findley
Fried Green Tomatoes
Fannie Flagg
Lord of the Rings
J.R.R. Tolken
Page 34, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
White Stripes invade Hershey Centre
By MIKE O’DROWSKY
Staff Writer
“It’s good to be back. This is
Meg and I am Jack.”
Jack White, singer and guitarist for
the power-rock duo The White
Stripes, greeted a packed house at the
Hershey Centre in Mississauga, Ont.
Armed only with a guitar, a drum
kit and a keyboard, Detroit’s
favourite son and daughter were in
top form as White and drummer Meg
White treated the crowd to an 80minute spectacle of light and sound.
The Nov. 13 show was kicked
off with an energetic rendition of
Black Math, from their latest effort,
Elephant. That was quickly followed by the hits Dead Leaves and
The Dirty Ground, Hotel Yorba and
I Think I Smell A Rat.
The Stripes paid homage to some
of their influences by performing a
soulful version of Dolly Parton’s
Jolene and a thumping rendition of
Bob Dylan’s Love Sick.
Meg bashfully meandered out
from behind the drums to show off
her vocal and keyboard skills,
singing the lead on the eerie tune In
The Cold, Cold Night. Likewise,
Jack showed off his slide-guitar
abilities, improvising with the
recent single The Hardest Button
To Button.
‘It’s good to be
back. This is Meg
and I am Jack.’
— Jack White
After that song, Jack, decked out
completely in black attire, asked
the crowd to stop crowd surfing,
saying he didn’t “want to see any
more Canadian girls get hurt.” Jack
followed his request with the threat
“or else I’m gonna have to come
down there,” which garnered some
cheers from the crowd.
For the encore, The Stripes took
their first hit, the high-tempo Fell
In Love With A Girl and brought it
down to about half speed. Halfway
through the song, Jack cranked the
distortion full-bore and ripped
through the last half of the song at
an accelerated pace. The show was
brought to an end with the Stripes
playing the marching anthem,
Seven Nation Army, to an army of
standing, screaming, singing devotees.
Opening for The White Stripes
was fellow Michigan band
Whirlwind Heat. Whirlwind Heat
is the first band to sign with Jack
White’s record label Third Man
Records.
The White Stripes were founded
in Detroit in 1997. The band claims
to be brother and sister, although
rumours persist that the two were
once married and are now
divorced.
Small
Sands of Time puts other games to shame
space
doesn’t
stop Hot
Hot Heat
By DANE MCBURNIE
Staff Writer
“There’s not a lot of room up
here, so you might have to do the
dancing for us,” keyboardist and
singer Steve Bays shouts out to
the crowd referring to the limited space his band, Hot Hot Heat,
has on stage.
Bays, with bandmates Dante
DeCaro, on guitar, Dustin
Hawthorne, on bass, and Paul
Hawley, on drums, are all known
for their exuberant performance
on stage. Considering the
restrictions at the St. Catharines
club Level 3 (more commonly
referred to as L3), they made
very good use out of very little.
It’s Nov. 30, and with the cold
kiss of December not far away,
the cold winds of the night chase
fans inside the warm, moderately sized venue.
L3 is washed over in a violet
light as the members of the band
begin their set with their latest
single Talk To Me, Dance With
Me.
The night was one of smoke
and lights as the crowd bounced
and swayed to the mop-haired
Bays’ heartfelt wailings of losing out on love. Hot Hot Heat
couldn’t write a song that wasn’t
catchy if they tried.
The Victoria, B.C.-based band
Hot Hot Heat has been on a constant upswing since their first
full-length album, Scenes One
Through Thirteen. Covering
everything from synth-pop to
indie-rock and invoking swinging melodies, quirky guitar
hooks and enthusiastic, emotional lyrics, the band continues to
build its popularity, especially
with its latest release, Make Up
The Breakdown.
The band ended the set with
one of its more popular singles,
Bandages, only to return after
the crowed called for one more
song.
The encore, This Town, contains the lyrics “wouldn’t mind
one more night in town.”
Judging by the crowd’s reaction,
it’s safe to say they shared the
same sentiment.
By DON ARMSTRONG
Staff Writer
Time is in your control
with Ubisoft’s new Action
Adventure game, Prince of
Persia: The Sands of Time.
Developed and published by Ubisoft and available across all platforms
(Console and Personal
Computer), Sands of Time
is the latest instalment in
the series and puts the other
games to complete shame.
The original Prince of
Persia game was released
15 years ago as a twodimensional side-scrollingtype game, in the style of
the Super Mario Brothers’
series. It offered gamers a
new twist on the action
adventure formula. Sands
of Time is the first to take
the series into 3D and does
so in a big way.
The first aspect that sets
Sands of Time apart from
other
action/adventure
games is the players’ ability to control the flow of
time.
Equipped with a magic
dagger, you are able to
back up, slow down, speed
up or stop time provided
they have enough Sand.
To gather Sand you must
defeat enemies and absorb
them into your dagger. Doing so will
fill your Sand
Gauge by one point,
or you must find a
Sand Well located
throughout
the
game. These Sand
Wells will refill
your entire Sand
Gauge.
As long as you
have Sand in the
dagger, the game is
not over. That’s
right, if you die or
fall off a ledge (and
it will happen), you
can back up time
and try again.
Sands of Time
also stands out from
other games of its
genre by the number
of aerobatic moves
at your disposable.
Players can run up walls,
along walls or jump from
wall to wall. In battle, you
can jump from enemy to
enemy, leap over and attack
them from behind, weave,
roll, or back flip away from
danger. Add in that you can
speed up and slow down
time, and you have a feast
for the senses.
The prince has more
moves than Solid Snake
(Metal Gear Solid) and
Sam Fisher (Splinter Cell)
combined.
The most troubling points
of the game are the difficulty of some battles you fight
and some of the
puzzles.
Fights
are
sometimes few
and far between.
When you engage
the
humanoid
enemies, they can
be brutally difficult, as some of
them take you
down during your
advance
and
spectacular
escape moves,
like leaping over
their heads and
attacking them
from behind.
Some enemies
will also block
this attack altogether, forcing
you to find new
ways of attacking.
Not only that, but it
sometimes looks as though
for each enemy you take
down, two more will
replace them.
Puzzles can also be a
sore spot as you may be
flowing through one easily,
but you’ll hit a snag and no
visible solution presents
itself.
This
problem
is
addressed at each save
point. Each time you reach
a new save point, you are
granted a vision of what
puzzles and enemies come
next and how best to solve
them. While this does
reduce the difficulty of
some of the puzzles, you
are sometimes left to your
own devices figuring them
out.
While these two problems may seem glaring at
first, they do not degrade
the game play experience.
Prince of Persia: The
Sands of Time is a very
solid title and a good
choice for any gamer on
your Christmas list this
year. The game can be finished in about 10 to 12
hours but Ubisoft was kind
enough to include the original Prince of Persia,
adding to the nostalgia and
game play hours.
Avril Lavigne a role model despite criticism
By BRIAN COLLINS
Staff Writer
Column
There’s been many a Canadian
singer over the years. Some I love
(like Stompin’ Tom, one of my
heroes), and some I love to hate
(like Celine Dion). There’s never
been one quite like Avril Lavigne,
though.
Thumbing through a Maclean’s
magazine this summer (I was in a
doctor’s waiting room) I became
privy to a backlash of criticism.
There were a number of complaints, not so much against
Maclean’s, but the aforementioned
Ms. Lavigne. To be fair, there were
some positive comments, but I’d
like to defend Avril against a few
of these complaints.
“She dresses improperly.” OK.
She wears a necktie. So what?
Take a look at other female singers
these days. Fathers and older
brothers, would you rather see
your relative dress in a tie and Tshirt or chaps and a halter-top like
Cristina Aguilera or Britney
Spears? Avril even bailed on the
ties now, says the lovable Pop-Up
Video.
It’s one reason
I’m proud she’s
my compatriot,
and it’s great to
see Canadian kids
have a Canadian
role model.
“Her grammar is poor.” Since
when is good grammar a prerequisite for songwriting? For reasons
like timing and musical beat,
music is exempt from common
grammar rules.
“Her music lacks talent.” It’s
pretty common these days for critics to say something sucks when
they don’t enjoy it. That’s not necessarily the case all the time. You
may not like it, but that doesn’t
make the artist untalented.
Lavigne plays her own instruments. I’m by no means a fan of
hers. In fact, I pretty well get up
and leave when that damn
“SK8ER Boi” song plays, but my
girls-with-guitar fetish notwithstanding, it’s refreshing to see an
artist nowadays play his/her own
instrument.
“She’s a bad role model.” This
one really got me. How? Because
she’s a girl-power, free spirit, domy-own-thing-without-being-disrespectful chick? OK, so she calls
herself punk, and is a bit of a
poseur by doing so. I’d rather
watch a generation of 13-year-olds
grow up and call themselves punk
when they aren’t, as opposed to a
bunch of 13-year-olds who grow
up listening to rap, dying their hair
blonde and putting on wife-beater
shirts, listening to Eminem’s wonderfully happy songs about killing
his mother. For one thing, the girls
who call themselves punk would
be much less irritating.
To stay with the bad role model
thing, my two favourite aspects are
that she’s Canadian and is antiwar. Her version of Knockin’ on
Heaven’s Door is beautiful, and
I’m glad she’s making a stand
against war.
It’s one reason I’m proud she’s
my compatriot, and it’s great to see
Canadian kids have a Canadian
role model.
I don’t think I can state strongly
enough how I don’t like her tunes,
and that I’m just coming to her
defence against these false blames.
Let’s cut her a little slack. But not
with more airtime, please.
Buy, grow old and die
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 35
IN ACTION
Cougars send Port Colborne sailing
By BRENT WATSON
Staff Writer
John Patrito had two goals and
an assist as the Welland Cougars
defeated the Port Colborne Sailors
in a 7-1 blowout on Sunday night
at home in Junior B hockey action.
Centre David Bentley opened
the scoring at 4:01 into the first on
a breakaway with assists from captain Dave Urquhart and leftwinger Louie Fagnani.
Patrito then turned it on scoring
his 13th and 14th goals at 9:18 and
12:11 in the first period. Patrito
continued to make his presence
felt throughout the game, battling
in front of the net with his defender throughout the game.
Port Colborne didn’t leave the
first period empty handed, as forward Jesse Faubert scored in the
final four minutes of the first, with
help from forward Steve White.
After a scoreless second period
with 17 shots from the Cougars
and five from Port Colborne in the
period, Welland turned it on in the
third scoring four consecutive to
put the Sailors under.
Scoring for the Cougars were
Derek Brochu from the right wing,
assisted
by
centre
Chase
Langeraap and Fagnani at 4:30,
then right-winger Trevor Willis,
from Patrito and Steve Chappell
on the left wing.
SAC
presents
Sabres vs
Rangers
By BRIAN COLLINS
Staff Writer
Here’s a deal for you that
shoots and scores.
The Student Administrative
Council (SAC) is putting
together a bus trip to the HSBC
Arena in Buffalo, N.Y., to see
the hometown Sabres play their
rivals, the New York Rangers.
The trip will be Dec. 12.
A bus leaves Glendale campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake at
4:45 p.m. and the Welland campus at 5 p.m. No bus will be
leaving from the Maid of the
Mist campus in Niagara Falls.
The $20 fee charged by SAC
includes bus to and from the
game and 100-Level seats.
Grant Grice, SAC’s vice-president of public relations, stresses students must bring proper
photo identification to get
across the border.
He says to get tickets early
since there is “usually” only
one or two tickets remaining,
“if not sold out.” Tickets will
be sold until a bus is filled.
Buses return from Buffalo
between midnight and 1 a.m.,
although they will stay if the
game goes into overtime
because of a tie.
Call Grice at 905-735-2211
ext. 7658 for more information.
In the bottom half of the third,
Bristo earned his second point of
the game, scoring from Bentley
(who also had two points on the
night) and left winger Blair
Egerter. Then before the game had
ended defenceman, Kyle Hamilton
scored on a slapshot, assisted by
his fellow defenceman Zack
Shepley.
Patrito says it wasn’t as important for him to get a hat trick as it
was for the team as a whole to
put out a strong effort throughout
the game.
“We wanted to keep that one up
there from them, so I was pressing
a little bit, but you don’t want to
sacrifice the win,” says the 19year-old from Toronto.
“All our goals came off of hard
work,” says Patrito. “We like goals
like that.”
The Welland Cougars struggled
before that weekend, giving up a
2-1 lead in the third period to lose
to the Niagara Falls Canucks in the
third 3-2.
The Cougars opened the scoring
early when defenceman Nick
Elligsen slapped the puck in from
the hash marks for his second of
the season. He was assisted by
left-winger Blake Dolce.
Assisted by Drew Williams,
Niagara Falls’ forward Ryan
Thompson scored his sixth on
Welland
goaltender
Rob
Barnhardt, shooting it in from
right in front of him.
Welland came back less than
two minutes later when the recently acquired Steve Chappell scored
his second as a Cougar and fourth
of the season to bring them up 2-1.
He got assists from right-winger
Jason Hill and centre John Patrito.
The Canucks tied the game early
in the third on a fast break two-onone as winger Matt Thomey
scored his 15th of the season, getting a pass from John Rorison only
20 seconds into the period.
After keeping the Cougars in the
game by making several key stops
on the Canucks, Barnhardt let in a
weak goal as Stephen Ludzick
feathered a shot in, assisted by
Jordan Owens with exactly five
minutes left in the game.
With less than a minute left, the
Cougars pulled Barnhardt for the
extra attacker, but it resulted in
nothing as they couldn’t get the
puck effectively into the Niagara
Falls zone.
There was no remorse shown for
either team as the game had a total
of 38 penalty minutes shared
between the two teams.
The Cougars’ next home game
will be held on Sunday, Dec. 7, at
7:15 p.m. against the St.
Catharines Falcons.
John Patrito (61) scores his second of the night on goaltender
James Seals, as Martin Kloucek (4) tries to swipe the puck away.
Watching the play for the Cougars are Steve Chappell (26) and
Jason Hill (27); for the Sailors, Craig Montgomery (87), Johnny
Hinds (19) and Greg Hunneault (77).
Photo by Brent Watson
Knights head down to ‘Big Easy’
College sends flag football team to national championship in New Orleans
By BEAU CALLAGHAN
Staff Writer
The Knights are ready for the “Big Easy.”
On Dec. 26, the Niagara College Knights hope to ship off to the 25th silver anniversary of the National Flag Football Championship hosted by the
University of New Orleans from Dec. 27 to Dec. 31 in New Orleans, La.
The Knights will be the only Canadian team in a tournament that will
feature teams from colleges throughout the United States.
Randy Conlon, Niagara’s head coach, described the tournament as a
“once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
“It’s something (the team) will remember for the rest of their lives,”
said Conlon at a Nov. 24 team meeting.
The format of the tournament shows colleges or universities being
placed into a three-team pool, where the top two teams will advance into
a single-elimination bracket.
The tournament will feature four downs in order to gain a 25-yard first
down, a far cry from the three downs in order to gain a 10-yard first
down Niagara played in its championship win over Hamilton’s Mohawk
College in October.
For more information, contact the Department of Recreation and
Intramural Sports at the University of New Orleans through its e-mail
address at: [email protected].
Happy Holiday Season
The Athletic Department
Thank all the students for
participating in our varsity and
intramural programs,
and wish everyone a
Safe and Happy Holiday!
Niagara College Athletics &
Recreation Department
Hope you enjoyed
Student Appreciation Day
Thank you for choosing
Niagara College
as your place to
study, live, work
and PLAY
Outdoor Ball Hockey FUN
Page 36, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
College ball hockey division likely by January
By BEAU CALLAGHAN
Staff Writer
It promotes “outdoor ball hockey fun.”
Ball Hockey International
(BHI), at the Welland campus, has
hopes of starting a ball hockey
division for Niagara College students by mid-January.
With the fall ball hockey season
coming to an end, Anthony Pasto,
38, of Welland, a BHI organizer,
says the non-body checking college league will be “geared around
their (the college student’s) schedule.”
The cost for participating has
yet to be set, but Pasto does not see
it as being a problem.
“If we do a Niagara College
division, obviously it’s going to be
cheaper. That’s the plan,” says
Pasto, who started BHI 14 years
ago.
Not only does BHI offer college
students a chance to play organized ball hockey, it’s also providing students with an opportunity
for a paying job by offering positions in marketing and advertising
through the Welland campus Job
Centre.
BHI will be hosting a ball hockey tournament at the Welland campus for the Tim Hortons Sports
The Ball Hogs gather for a team photo after a triumphant 3-0 victory over The Fur Traders, in the
Niagara College Intramural Ball Hockey League championship held on the Ball Hockey International
rinks at the Welland campus on Nov. 26.
Photo by Mike O’Drowsky
Feast from Feb. 19 to Feb. 22.
Brothers and Big Sisters of
Pasto has invited college stu“We host an event (annually) Niagara,” says Pasto. “We pro- dents to join in the “big event” that
and we raise money for the Big mote outdoor ball hockey fun.”
is expected to draw a crowd even
with the February temperatures
and snowfall, which, Pasto says, is
always cleaned off the rinks.
“Hosting a tournament in
February, you wouldn’t think
you’d get the attendance,” says
Pasto, adding that by participating
students would be donating to the
“massive charity event.”
The
BHI
website
at
http://www.ballhockeyinternational.com, which has recorded about
85,000 hits to date, has much to
offer with full season schedules,
team statistics, in-depth player statistics, individual player profiles
and upcoming events.
The site allows registration
online via e-mail.
“As we get information (about
the league), we e-mail it to you,”
says Pasto. “It’s very up to date
and very fresh.”
Niagara College students can
join regular league play for $85
and receive a 15 per cent discount. BHI also offers college
students with school identification the chance to play free pick
up ball hockey during daytime
hours at the Welland campus
rinks.
BHI has three rinks of nine
operating in Ontario with two in
Welland and one in St. Catharines.
Fort Erie golf pro recommends Canadian Professional Golfers’ Association
By BRIAN COLLINS
Staff Writer
Mark Twain once said, “Golf is
a good walk spoiled,” but don’t
tell Larry Gibson that.
Gibson,
originally
from
Peterborough, Ont., came to Fort
Erie in 1980 for a job as the golf
pro at International Country Club
in Stevensville. He assumed the
same role in 1989 at the Whirlpool
course in Niagara Falls.
In 1993, he began a job as a pro
at Niagara Falls Golf Club. He was
there until 1999, when he bought
Fort Erie Golf Club (FEGC), at the
time known as Sunset Golf Course
on Highway 3 in the border town.
He now gives golf lessons and
runs the pro shop. Since being
taken over, FEGC has seen additions such as a new clubhouse,
practice green, and ponds on the
fourth and ninth holes. FEGC also
Horseshoe Bowl under Dome
By BRIAN COLLINS
Staff Writer
Residents of Hamilton and
Toronto got their wish for a winning
football team at home, but it wasn’t
from the Canadian Football
League’s (CFL) Tiger Cats or
Argonauts.
Lakeshore Catholic High School’s
(LCHS) team, of Port Colborne,
won last week’s Ontario Federation
of School Athletic Association’s
Golden Horseshoe Bowl.
The team, made up of senior students (Grades 11, 12 and 13) defeated Notre Dame, of Brampton, in the
semi-finals.
The game was played at Ivor
Wynne Stadium in Hamilton, home
of the CFL’s Hamilton Tiger Cats,
who finished this season with just
one victory. Lakeshore coach Brad
Johnstone said seven fan buses
attended. For $12, fans got a ticket to
the game and a bus ride to and from
LCHS.
In the finals, Lakeshore triumphed
over Waterdown High School by a
final score of 24-22. That game was
contested at SkyDome in Toronto.
Nine fan buses from Lakeshore
attended the finals.
Johnstone “couldn’t be more
proud” of his team, who worked
“very hard.”
“It’s hard to pick one MVP
(most valuable player). The whole
team stepped up.”
Have a safe and
happy New Year
www.technology.niagarac.on.ca/niagaranews/pdf/index
has memberships, a driving range
and a miniature golf course, and it
hosts tournaments and leagues.
The course is open all year, weather permitting.
Gibson became a member of the
Canadian Professional Golfers’
Association (CPGA) through a
seven-year apprentice program. To
become a member, Gibson had to
pass a playing ability test of shooting two golf rounds lower than 76.
He did so with scores of 71 and 74.
He also had to pass an exam on
subjects such as golf’s rules, business interpretation and teaching of
the game.
Gibson says he would recommend the CPGA to any aspiring
golf professional.
“It’s been very good to me,”
he says. He also recommends
getting a job at a course in the
bag room or cleaning clubs to
“get your feet wet in the business.”
Gibson encourages golfers
who have had a bad round to not
be discouraged. “There was a
time when I couldn’t break 80.”
Gibson’s first love was hockey. He went to Colgate
University on a hockey scholarship and says he is still a fan of
the National Hockey League’s
Toronto Maple Leafs.
Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 37
Uxbridge hockey club tradition continues
In a small town of 14,000 people, every child plays hockey
By TREVOR COX
Special to Niagara News
Travelling across Ontario, every
10 minutes, or so it may seem, you
come across a small town. The
population of small towns can run
anywhere from 500 people to
15,000 maximum. These small
towns are rich in heritage and tradition. Whatever they may be, it
isn’t hard to find.
About 45 minutes northeast of
Toronto, there is a small town,
with a population of 14,000. Like
every other small town, it’s tradition lies in a tradition around
which it has evolved.
Driving through Uxbridge,
heading west on Brock Street, you
may think you are heading out of
the heart of the town, but just
before you completely exit the
town, right on the edge of subdivisions and schoolyards, lies the true
heart, the arena. Inside that arena
lies one of the town’s longest traditions and most sought after
prize: The Uxbridge Bruins Junior
Hockey Club.
Growing up in Uxbridge, every
child plays hockey. It’s that simple.
If you don’t play hockey you’re out
of the circle; it’s a known fact to
everyone in the town. Uxbridge’s
hockey system has always been
successful with team after team
winning championships at a consistent pace. This minor hockey system is filled with young children
who not only hold the dream of
playing in the National Hockey
League and hoisting the Stanley
Cup over their heads, but also
dream of playing for the Uxbridge
Bruins. One minor hockey graduate
has been involved with the Bruins
tradition for well over a decade, and
if anyone knows it, he does.
Current coach of the Bruins,
Trevor Clark, says it’s more than
a tradition.
“It’s almost as if it’s a brotherhood. Once a Bruin, always a
Bruin, and they all work together
to keep the tradition strong and
proud. Quite often you’ll see a guy
that played for the Bruins 20 some
years ago talking to a kid that is in
There’s a new
Niagara News website
in portable document
format (PDF). The new
site address is
http://technology.
niagarac.on.ca/
niagaranews
The next edition of the
Niagara News will be on
Jan. 23, 2004.
his first season with the team like
they are best friends,” Clark
explains from his leather armchair
inside the Bruins hockey office.
The Bruins were established in
1976 by a group of local hockey
fans looking to establish a higher
calibre of hockey for the town, to
‘I’m not a huge
fan of fighting in
hockey. However,
I do feel it has a
place in the
game, and don’t
mind
seeing a good
scrap now and
then.’
— Trevor Clark
keep local players in the Uxbridge
rink, and give them someplace to
develop, with the hope of moving
onto bigger and better things. The
result: five players drafted into
major junior hockey, four have
moved onto hockey scholarships
in the U.S., while several others
have moved on to semi-pro
leagues around the U.S. All of
them are Bruin alumni.
Clark, himself a Bruin alumnus,
has never really left the team.
“There was a brief period
where I wasn’t involved at all
with the team, but I still made it
out to every home game. When
my playing career was over in
1990, I moved into an assistant
coach’s role, then on to assistant
general manager, landed the head
coach’s job, took some time off,
and now I’m back in the driver’s
seat,” laughs Clark. “It’s something I can’t completely leave
behind me.”
Clark, 34, with his glasses and
short dark hair, is known around
town for his involvement with the
team. During his playing days he
was a recognized scorer and loved
the hometown atmosphere, while
his coaching days brought both
him and the team success.
“When I was assistant coach, we
won the league championship and
eventually lost out in the provincial
semi-finals. That was in ‘90-’91.
We won the league again in ‘95-’96,
and I took my leave of absence after
that,” says Clark. During those
years the Uxbridge arena was
jammed with fans, as local kids and
some out of town players were scoring goals at will and impressing
fans with thunderous body checks,
and main event-like fights.
“I’m not a huge fan of fighting in
hockey. However, I do feel it has a
place in the game and don’t mind
seeing a good scrap now and then.”
Clark says he feels that the
Bruins’ tradition is greatly kept
alive by the youth of the town. “I
remember being in high school, and
Friday night Bruins games were
THE place to be, and quite frankly
they still are,” Clark states as he
leans back in his chair and smiles.
“You would walk into the school
on a Monday morning, and all
your friends would want to know
was how the road game went that
weekend because they were all at
the home game,” Clark describes.
Today, much remains the same
and even reaches the children who
are beginning to play hockey. It’s
not uncommon to see the Bruins
corridor leading to the ice surface
lined with kids asking for autographs, sticks, pucks, whatever the
players are willing to give away.
Seeing these kids look up to the
players like that not only puts a
smile on Clark’s face, but in some
cases makes the players play better
and puts smiles on their faces as
well. “It’s evident that they all
want to be a Bruin. I was the same
way,” Clark says, with another
huge smile.
As for the players, they love it,
says Clark, pointing to team photos around his office. “They all get
pretty pumped up for home games
because they’re playing in front of
all their buddies and girlfriends,
Wishing you and your
families Peace, Joy &
Happiness during the
Holiday Season
From the Staff of
the Registrar’s
Office
not to mention family.” As for
what goes on after the games, or
on nights off, Clark says that’s all
kept pretty confidential. With a
smirk on his face, Clark explains
why things are kept confidential.
“It’s almost like the movie
Varsity Blues: they are the big
shots of the town, everyone
knows them, and everyone likes
them. Well, I’m sure there are a
few people that may have choice
words about them, but they
never stop supporting the team.”
Clark hesitates and puts his feet
on the desk.
Two years ago, the Bruins
‘ You would walk
into the school on
Monday
morning, and all
your friends
would want to
know was how
the road game
went that
weekend because
they were all at
the home game.’
— Trevor Clark
made it to the All-Ontario finals;
it was quite a ride even as a fan.
The final series came down to a
Game 7 showdown in Uxbridge,
and the arena was packed with
1,400 people.
“The rink only has seating for
1,100,” says Clark. “The Bruins
ended up losing the game 2-1. It
was one hell of a series, and even
though they lost, the team still
received a standing ovation. After
the game was over and the dust
was settled, the team had the local
bar down the street rented out, and
I don’t think there was a single
person who was at the game that
night that didn’t try to get into that
bar. Of course, some people were
turned away due to fire codes and
such, but they showed nothing but
the utmost respect and support for
those boys,” says Clark.
Clark says that without the support of the town and local merchants, the team would never survive. He says that it takes about
$80,000 a year to operate this
hockey team, a sum of money that
can be hard to come up with.
“The thing is,” says Clark,
“other people in this town recognize the importance of the Bruins
to the town and the rich tradition,
so the sponsorship is unreal.”
Bruin officials say it is crucial to
keep local talent on the team, but
also realize that a winning team
is just as important. “We do have
out-of-town kids, several of
them, but we give every local kid
just as many chances, if not
more, to crack this line-up,”
Clark proudly states.
This season is perhaps the
largest local talent roster in the last
10 years. Not only do they have
local players, but all the coaches
are local and Bruins alumni.
“Having four coaches that are
all alumni is great. We have been
here. We have been through it. We
know what it’s like to play and be
a part of this great organization.
We feel it is our duty to give
back,” Clark says, through his
half smile.
“It’s our small-town tradition, and
hopefully it never dies. I know it will
never die. I know there are people in
this community who won’t let it die,
and that’s a great feeling,” Clark
states, as he leans forward, placing
his hands on the desk.
“That’s just the coach’s perspective, Trevor,” Clark says quietly. “Now tell me what it is like
as a player.”
Editor’s Note: Trevor Cox is a
second-year student in the
Broadcasting – Radio, Television
and Film program. He is also a
student in the Special Fields
Writing class of the JournalismPrint program as part of the converged curriculum core options
offered in the programs.
E
R
T
N
E
C
B
O
J
E
H
T t NIAGARA COLLEGE
a
s–
“Careers and Jofobr Students”
Opportunities
Visit the Job Centre
next term.
Summer jobs
are coming!
Job Centre locations
Glendale Campus, W115
Welland Campus, SE101
905-641-2252, ext. 4165
905-735-2211, ext. 7777
or email [email protected]
Page 38, Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003
Community report shows college surplus
By BEAU CALLAGHAN
Staff Writer
Author Anthony J. D’Angelo
once said, “Without a sense of
caring, there can be no sense of
community.”
Niagara College’s Board of
Governors approved the annual
community report for 2003 in the
Welland campus boardroom during its Oct. 20 meeting.
“The report is produced each
year to inform key college stake-
holders of the highlights from the
previous year,” said Darrell
Neufeld, Niagara College’s manager of corporate communications,
in an e-mail interview.
The report brings to light four key
objectives sought by the college.
Those objectives include
putting learning first by providing students and staff with a
proper learning and teaching
environment, and maintaining
financial strength for the future
growth of the college.
A main highlight in the report
shows total revenues for the
years 2002 to 2003 slated at
about $66 million, whereas
expenditures stood at $64 million, leaving the college with a
surplus of about $2 million.
About 46 per cent of the college’s
revenues were produced without
government involvement. Those
sources included were tuition fees,
contract training, ancillary opera-
tions and international projects.
The college will also see revenue provided by the provincial
government through the $60-million Quality Assurance Fund, a
fund with an expected growth of
$100 million to help colleges deal
with an onslaught of new students
and with the need for new technology for teachers and students
throughout the province.
The community report was prepared by Neufeld and features a
number of college alumni.
“We wanted to focus on graduates of the college, so we photographed people in their workplace doing their jobs,” said
Neufeld during a brief presentation to board members.
The stakeholders Neufeld outlined
included business, industry, and
community leaders; government representatives; educational partners;
college advisory committee members; and the media.
New CIO says he ‘loves being at the college’
‘A CIO requires a
good level of
knowledge in the
world of
technology.’
— Andy Neale
“Niagara has a great reputation
in the community. I am thrilled to
be associated with this institution,”
says Andy Neale, 51, of Fonthill.
At the time of the interview, he
says he has worked for the college
for “two weeks and three days,”
exhibiting a flash of humour.
Neale started on Oct. 6.
Before coming here, he says he
worked at Niagara Credit Union as
vice-president business administration and technology.
Neale says he ran the whole
information services department
from clearing cheques to establishing mutual funds.
In his opinion, to be a CIO,
Neale says, “requires a good level
of knowledge and experience in
the world of technology.”
For the college, Neale says he
“is responsible for the information
services department and managing
computer technology across the
administrative systems and the
new version of PeopleSoft.”
His office is in L14 A in the Lundy
building at the Welland campus.
Neale was a member of the
Board of Governors for four
years but, he says, he had to
File photo
By MELISSA GRAHAM
Staff Writer
Niagara College’s new chief
information officer (CIO) says he
“loves being here at the college.”
ANDY NEALE
college including open access labs,
teaching labs, faculty computers,
‘I like to
volunteer and give
time back to the
community.’
— Andy Neale
resign once he became CIO.
“I was on the board because I
like to volunteer and give time
back to the community. I am a
strong believer in education.”
In his free time, Neale says he
likes to keep in shape by jogging or
working out. He also says he just
started playing guitar and jokingly
adds, “I’m an Eric Clapton
wannabe.”
Neale earned his undergraduate
degree in engineering from
Gonville and Caius College, part
of Cambridge University in
Cambridge, England.
He earned his masters of business administration degree from
McMaster University in Hamilton.
He says he went there part time at
night and can appreciate continuing
education.
Neale is divorced with two
children.
Loud parties, public nudity
disgust First Avenue residents
Get your CGA & more…
By TAMARA SARGENT
Staff Writer
Welland residents along First Avenue North have
concerns with neighbouring students’ behaviour.
Besides broken beer bottles along the street, cars
parking on lawns and vandalism, residents object to
loud parties, fighting and public nudity. They have
made their concerns known to Niagara College
administration and the Niagara Regional Police
Service (NRP).
First Avenue North resident Carm Armstrong spoke
of her former neighbour whom “students drove out of
the neighbourhood.” She said her neighbour called
the police and complained about loud students next
door. The next morning they found their vehicle’s
tires had been cut.
A few weeks later, the neighbours reported a loud
party again and again their tires were cut.
Humber offers a new and fast way to help
‘Students just don’t know
the bylaws.’
— Brigitte Chiki
“They finally gave up and moved,” Armstrong
says. “I plan to move next year because of the
noise.”
One lady asked to remain anonymous for fear
See our next
Niagara News
on Friday,
Jan. 23, 2004
she would offend neighbours who would seek
revenge.
Police will soon be “clamping down,” says
Niagara College’s Student Services Director
Brigitte Chiki. “Students will have to worry about
fines or possibly court.”
A police record “in certain programs would be the
death of a career,” she says.
NRP Acting Sergeant Todd Millin says there have
been several complaints this year. The noise violations are “an ongoing problem,” he says, “and no one
seems to get the message.”
“Fines (for a noise violation) are normally left up to
the judge,” Millin says, “but, for a first offence, the
fine is usually $50 to $70.”
“April to September, it’s so quiet and nice,” First
Avenue North resident Paula Potter says. “As soon as
the students come, forget it.” She added, “I can often
smell pot and have to close the windows.”
Her husband, Ron, says on weekends he can look
outside and see “20 to 25 students walking, going
house to house at one or two in the morning.”
The Potters have lived beside the college for 10
years. “In the last five years, it’s gotten worse,” says
Paula. She attributes the increase in noise in the last
few years to overcrowding in the First Avenue houses because the college’s residence is full.
“People have the right to complain,” Chiki says,
“but students just don’t know the bylaws.” For example, cars can’t be parked on lawns, and grass can’t be
higher than 30 centimetres.
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Niagara News, Dec. 5, 2003, Page 39
Students receive scholarships during ceremony
By GREG VALLENTIN
Staff Writer
The Hospitality and Tourism
programs celebrated their success
with a scholarship award ceremony for students, at the Maid of the
Mist Centre in Niagara Falls, Ont.,
on Nov. 24.
Close to 40 out of the 60 students, who cumulatively received
$75,000 in scholarship support,
arrived at the centre for the welcoming reception at 4:30 p.m.
The awards presentation began
at 5:15 p.m., when Michael Olson,
chef professor at the college, acted
as the master of ceremonies before
introducing the presentation
speakers.
These included Niagara College
President Dan Patterson and
Richard Dusome, the general manager of Queen’s Landing and chair
of the Hospitality and Tourism
Advisory Committee.
“I’m just really really excited
about celebrating scholarships and
academic achievements,” says
Patterson.
“The financial pressures are
unprecedented for students now.
It’s very costly to go to school, and
balancing school, cost of tuition,
books, and part-time jobs and
studies is really making it tough on
our students. Anything we can do
to help facilitate moving them
along through their course of studies through scholarships and bursaries is a high priority for us at
Niagara College.”
Certificates were presented to
winners of the 2003 Niagara
Close to 40 out of the 60 students who cumulatively received $75,000 in scholarship support attended the 2003 Hospitality and Tourism awards ceremony Nov. 24 at the Maid of the Mist Centre in
Niagara Falls, Ont. Certificates were presented to winners of the 2003 Niagara College Entrance
Awards, the Niagara College Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism Awards, and the Niagara College
Foundation or College Awards. About a dozen donors were present for the ceremony, to represent
the industry and provide individual support.
Photo by Greg Vallentin
College Entrance Awards, the and
the
Niagara
College sent for the ceremony, to represent
Niagara College Faculty of Foundation or College Awards.
the industry and provide individHospitality and Tourism Awards,
About a dozen donors were pre- ual support.
Volunteers needed to fight multiple sclerosis
By SARAH WEGELIN
Staff Writer
The Multiple Sclerosis Society
of Canada (MSSC) is looking for
volunteers.
Statistics say Canadians have
one of the highest rates of multiple
sclerosis in the world. It is the
most common neurological disease affecting young adults in
Canada. It is the society’s mission
to be a leader in finding a cure for
multiple sclerosis (MS) and
enabling people affected by MS to
enhance their quality of life.
Joel Cote, volunteer co-ordinator at the MSSC, says, “MS affects
everyone in different ways.”
MS is a disease that attacks the
myelin covering of the central nervous system, causing inflammation and destroying the myelin in
patches. When this happens, the
natural flow of nerve impulses is
interrupted, causing extreme
fatigue, numbness, tremors, loss of
balance and vision problems.
“On average,” says Cote, “six
years after diagnosis, people are
forced into retirement. People live
quite a long time in remission.”
Lynn Bird, faculty member at
Niagara College and a member of
the board of directors for the MSSC,
says, “Volunteers are needed to visit
people with MS. People are accommodated in nursing homes for
seniors as young as 40 years old.”
Volunteers are needed for services
such as the friendly visitor. This service matches a volunteer who has
similar interests to visit with someone who has MS who may be in a
nursing home.
Cote says, “The volunteer would
go in and visit for one to two hours,
play cards. We match people up and
make sure you (the volunteer) feel
comfortable.”
“Other times we need volunteers
to call members to remind them of
events coming up.”
The society also requires fundraising event volunteers. An example of
events include the Super Cities Walk
in April, a fashion show in
November and, during the holidays,
delivering poinsettias to local businesses.
The society says the benefits of
volunteering include meeting new
people; developing new skills,
knowledge and experience; increasing contacts and establishing person-
al networks; and participating in
great events in your community.
“We need people on a here-andthere basis,” says Cote. “Our volunteer committee is about 385 volunteers. Close to 300 volunteers are
one-time event volunteers.”
“The rule of thumb is to volunteer
for five hours a month. You can get
more involved if you wanted to.”
Three years ago the MSSC and the
Chapter of Hope, at 12 Grote St. in
St. Catharines, joined with the
Grimsby, Niagara Falls and St.
Catharines chapters.
“We streamlined all the services
so there’s less overhead. We now
serve the region on the same existing
budget,” says Cote.
“One of our struggles is getting
out to Port Colborne and Fort Erie.
That’s why we need volunteers.
They can touch base with their
employers and reach out to the community. Volunteers and members are
the best way. Someone is going to
relate to ‘John’ next door. Whether
they’re just helping their neighbour,
that’s enough for us.”
To volunteer contact Cote at
905-937-7772 or e-mail him at
[email protected].
Happy Holidays from
the Niagara News
www.technology.niagarac.on.ca/niagaranews
Barry Johnston, whose daughter
Amanda Johnston won the Ontario
Hostelry
College
Entrance
Scholarship, says the family is
“very proud” of her achievements.
“She’s done very well with her
studies.”
Jamie King, manager of alumni
development and student awards,
says, “It’s a really nice amount of
funding being provided to these students. We want to just have a chance
to recognize them and shine a bit of
a spotlight on their achievements and
also have a chance to invite some of
the donors that provided that support
back to the school, so that we could
give them a chance to get to know
the students and also celebrate their
success alongside it.”
The award ceremony, which is in
its second year, came to a close at 6
p.m., when award recipients gathered for photographs.
Julie Densham, program assistant
for alumni development and student
awards, says, “What a wonderful
opportunity to celebrate the successes of our students and to show our
gratitude to our donors. Events like
these are important reminders of
how programs such as the Student
Awards program here at the college
can promote the student achievements, the donor relationships, and
the tremendous support of the staff
and faculty of Niagara College.”
The event was co-ordinated
through the students of the
Special Events Management
(Post-graduate) program, with
the help of Program Co-ordinator David Veres.
Anti-smoking program
informing students
By TAMARA SARGENT
Staff Reporter
A college anti-smoking program is about to begin. Leave
the Pack Behind is a research
project run by the Ontario
Ministry of Health and Long
Term Care and Health Canada
and involves 10 universities and
two colleges.
“We’re targeting cigarette
companies this spring,” says
Bobbi Lynn Petherick, secondyear student at the Glendale
campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake
and director of Leave the Pack
Behind at Niagara College.
“We’re trying to de-normalize
cigarettes, (to) tell students it’s
not an everyday product and it’s
very harmful.”
Leave the Pack Behind will
have interactive display tables
around the college. Organizers
will test students’ carbon diox-
ide levels and provide information to students wishing to quit.
Leave the Pack Behind staff
will put up information boards
that will be remade each week.
A student from the college will
be hired to do this and to man
the display tables.
“We’re looking to hire a student for the Welland campus,”
says Petherick. The job offers
“really flexible hours. We work
around classes and exams
because we realize you’re a student first.” The position pays $8
an hour for a total of four hours
a week.
Petherick says this year she
wants to get the message to
students that “there’s no difference between light and
mild cigarettes,” adding,
“Cigarette companies try to
suggest there is a difference.
There’s not.”
Staff and students of the JournalismPrint program wish to extend their
welcoming wishes to all January Start
students.
Good luck in the new year