Back to HomeFeature Article - June 11, 2009 Sharbot Lake High School says good-bye to two Pillars of SupportBy Chava Field-Green

Pat Dowdall and Dianne Lake preparing to step out the door.

In my last eight years of involvement with Sharbot Lake Intermediate and High schools, I’ve had dozens of teachers, three principals, five vice principals, three guidance councilors, and countless friends who all, in some way or another defined my school career. However there were two constants every semester: Office Manager Pat Dowdall and Head of Cafeteria extraordinaire Dianne Lake.

Both ladies will be retiring at the end of this semester after 29 and 28 years respectively.

For me, Pat Dowdall represented positive energy and a friendly smile in the early morning announcement routine. She provided an endless supply of support in Student Council and peer tutoring activities. And who could forget the Charlie Chaplin costumes that both Pat and Chris Bertrim wore on twin day on more than one occasion?

Born in Perth and raised in Maberly, Pat attended Perth & District Collegiate Institute.

She worked for a year at the Township of Oso part-time so that she could be at home with her kids. However Marcel Giroux, who was head of student services at the time, called and asked if she would like to work in student services at SLHS. Two years later she moved to the main office and by 1987 Pat Dowdall was the main office manager.

“It’s a great career”, Pat said in an interview last week, “Getting to work with such a great staff and watching the kids grow year after year; visiting with graduating students when they come back for commencement and seeing where they’re up to, I’ll miss that.

“I’ll also miss the way we all get along on the staff, as if everyone is equal. We’ve had some very dynamic principals. Right now we are lucky to have Janet Sanderson, who goes above and beyond for our school, she’s very compassionate and energetic.

“I think this has been such a success for me because of such great co-workers. Sharon (MacDonald), Melody (Jones) and Chris Bertrim and I have definitely been the team.”

And next year Sharon will be returning to the school to take Pat’s place.

Dianne Lake moved from Richmond Hill to north of Harlowe when she was in high school. She attended SLHS for three years. Nine years, and two kids later she responded to an ad in none other than the Frontenac News for the head of the cafeteria.

As her daughter Sarah headed off to Kindergarten, Dianne joined the SLHS staff, and Principal Enn Pajur.

Throughout the years Dianne has enjoyed the special events at the school: the many proms, winter carnivals, trips to NYC with the band, and even a trip to Manitoulin Island with the Senior Boys Volleyball team in 2005.

She’s also enjoyed building pretty special relationships with the students who helped her in the cafeteria, four a day in the first 10 years. “I’m going to miss the young and not so young people.”

But what she won’t miss is waking up at 5am, and making 20 dozen chocolate chip cookies a week. Mmm, but weren’t they good!

As one of the hundreds of helpers I can attest to the sheer amount of work Dianne does week after week, providing healthy and delicious food for the masses - making sure food orders come in from near (all the bread and pizza dough comes from the Rising Bun) and far - all while still being able to chat with almost every student to step foot in the cafeteria door.

Her commitment to the community will remain strong even as she retires. She will continue on as leader of Weight Watchers, and remain active with the Sharbot Lake United Church. Dianne also hopes to continue to keep track of SLHS historical archives, and help to plan future anniversaries.

And what will the two ladies be up to next year? In two separate interviews, both women stated that next year they will spend more time with their grandchildren and their husbands, and Pat will spend more time with her mother, and Dianne with both of her parents.

Farewell Pat and Dianne, you will be greatly missed. 

Back to HomeLegalese - May 14, 2009 Oral Contracts

By Susan Irwin, Lawyer/Executive Director, Rural Legal Services

“An oral contract isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.”

This warning (or something close to it) is attributed to a famous Hollywood movie producer. Even though the language makes it a classic bit of nonsense, the sentiment being expressed has often been seen as a true statement of the law.

In fact, oral contracts are enforceable in the Courts and many famous lawsuits have been fought over agreements that were never written down.

A written contract is always better than an oral one since the existence of a document makes it easier to prove the terms of the agreement. After all, it is very difficult to deny the existence of an agreement when the person seeking to enforce it can show the Court a written contract signed by both parties.

Where the contract hasn’t been written down, the Court must hear oral evidence from the parties as to what they thought were the terms of the agreement. Since people usually have slightly different memories of a shared event, the Judge often has a difficult job determining the real terms of the agreement. Sometimes, when the testimony from the parties is very conflicting, the Judge may rule that there could never really have been any contract.

As with most legal matters, though, there are some exceptions to the rule that oral contracts are enforceable. One of the most important exceptions to this rule came about more than 200 years ago with the passing of the Statute of Frauds by the English House of Commons.

This statute, which is now part of the law in Ontario as well as most other provinces, was intended to force people to make certain types of important contracts only by way of a written document. Since the terms would be in writing and signed by the parties, it was thought that the terms would be clear and that this would reduce fraudulent transactions, particularly with respect to land.

The type of “fraud” targeted occurred when the purchase price for the land had been paid by a purchaser who had moved onto the property. At that point, the dishonest seller would deny the contract and it was often impossible to prove the contract by oral testimony.

Under the Statute, an oral contract for the sale or purchase of land in unenforceable. In other words, no agreement to sell or purchase real estate is of any value unless it has been reduced to writing and signed by the parties. Because the contract is unenforceable, it is also difficult to recover money paid under such an oral agreement, a situation which has resulted in some writers claiming that the Statute is itself actually a tool for fraud.

At Rural Legal Services we do receive inquiries about the enforceability of various oral agreements as well as verbal “rent to own” arrangements for the purchase of real estate. The “rent to own” facts are usually that the person has verbally agreed to buy a home, for little or no money down, and with monthly payments thereafter. After a certain number of years of monthly payments, the purchaser will own the land.

These unfortunate purchasers are no better off than tenants, despite the fact that some appear to have paid far more each month than they ever would have paid to rent accommodation of a similar quality. They don’t have anything to prove that they have any interest in the real estate and as a result they cannot sell the property and if they, or the seller, die, then there is nothing for the purchaser to pass on to his or her heirs and no evidence of any agreement to bind the seller’s estate. Conversely the seller, as the registered owner, can still enter into a binding written agreement to sell the property to someone else. When that “someone else” wants to move in, the purchaser under the “rent to own arrangement” besides having their dream of being a home owner shattered, will have to find somewhere else to live.

There is no easy way to acquire a legitimate interest in real estate. Thanks to the Statute of Frauds and other provincial laws, agreements must be written, and deeds or other documents signed and registered with the government, before land can be conveyed.

If you are a party to an oral agreement to buy land, and have paid money, you should contact a lawyer to have your rights clarified. If you don’t have a lawyer, you can call the Lawyer Referral Service at 1-900-565-4577. For a $6.00 charge added to your telephone bill you will be given the name of a lawyer who will see you for an initial half-hour interview without any additional charge.

Rural Legal Services does not act on the purchase, sale or mortgage of real estate.

Susan Irwin

Lawyer/Executive Director

Legalese is a column of general information and opinion on legal topics by the lawyers of Rural Legal Services, Box 359, Sharbot Lake, ON, K0H2P0, 613-279-3252, or 1-888-777-8916. This column is not intended to provide legal advice. You should contact a lawyer to determine your legal rights and obligations.

Back to HomeFeature Article - April 9, 2009 Ribbon cutting officially opens new seniors’ centreby Julie Druker

Applause erupts after George Meldrum (2nd from the left) cuts the ribbon at the official opening of the seniors’ center in Sharbot Lake.

The former manse of the United Church in Sharbot Lake attracted a large crowd at lunchtime on Monday, April 6 for the ceremony that officially opened it as the new home of the seniors’ centre.

The new centre will be run as a partnership between the Centenary Pastoral Charge and Northern Frontenac Community Services.

Community members and volunteers instrumental in making the dream project a reality crowded into the newly renovated house that will serve seniors in the community through a number of existing programs.

Town Crier Paddy O’Connor opened the ceremony, which included addresses by Mayor Janet Gutowski, North Frontenac councillor Elaine Gunsinger; Reverend Patsy Henry, the former minister, and Eric Wagar, chair of the Centenary Pastoral Charge; along with Roger Dowker, David Townsend and Candace Bertrim, all of the Alzheimer Society of Kingston.

Catherine Tysick, who heads up the Community Support Services for North Frontenac Community Services and who was instrumental in initiating the project, held up a plaque that will be put on permanent display in the center. This recognizes the financial contributors: the Centenary Pastoral Charge United Church, the United Way, the Community Foundation of Greater Kingston, the Alzheimer Society and community members.

Reverend Patsy Henry, also instrumental in the project, spoke about the history of the building and its new birth as a seniors’ centre. She dedicated the building as a house of “Hessed”, the Hebrew word for “God’s unconditional love“.

Eric Wagar pointed out that this is the first time in the charge’s 42-year history that its three United churches (Parham, Maberly and Sharbot Lake) have come together to support a community project.

The transformation of the house into a comfortable, attractive space with kitchen, full bathroom, laundry facilities, a bedroom for guests, plus offices and a board room, was largely due to the work of volunteers.

Tysick pointed out, “It’s really been a community effort. So many volunteers gave of their time. If we had to pay for the labour for all of their work, we wouldn’t have been able to do this”.

The beauty of the centre lies in the fact that it can now house under one single roof various seniors programs including the Alzheimers Society, foot care, the Adult All Day Program, Meals on Wheels, and the Caregiver Support Group, all of which have been, until now, housed at different locations.

Roger Dowker, president of the Alzheimer Society of Kingston, was thrilled to have a permanent place to offer their services. He explained, “People here preferred to have someone from the community serving them so this seems like a natural extension of our services.” Candace Bertrim, also of NFCS and a public education coordinator with the Alzheimer Society, will now be available to members of the community regularly two days a week.

Tysick explained, “The real idea is having a designated place where real services can be provided and tailored to seniors. With a house like this we can also now try to expand our services.“ She hopes to bring in additional services in the near future, specifically from the Hearing Society and the CNIB. Tysick added, “We wouldn’t charge them rent if they could get themselves here. It would be a way for them to connect with seniors in our community so they [the seniors] wouldn’t have to travel to Kingston”.

The formal ceremony was brought to a close as members and guests crowded into the centre’s living room to witness George Meldrum of Sharbot Lake do the honours and officially cut the ribbon. Lunch, cake and coffee followed and visitors had a chance to tour the newly renovated house.

It was an emotional, important and historic day, celebrating the birth and the future gathering place and service centre for elders in the area.

To enquire about services offered at the centre, volunteer opportunities or to pledge financial support, please call the seniors’ centre at 613-279-WELL (9355) or Community Support Services at 613-279-3151.

Back to HomeFeature Article - April 23, 2009 New retirement home opening in MaberlyBy Jeff Green

Fleur Hardy in front of the new River House Retirement Home.

When Fleur Hardy was 10 years old, and living in England, she had her first experience with the elderly.

It all started when she offered to carry some grocery bags for an elderly lady she met at a street corner.

“This was something we were encouraged to do, help the elderly, so I thought I should make the offer,” she recalls now. “It turned out to be quite a long way to the house, but I got an offer to Sunday Tea out of it, and I went. I still remember being served a whole goose egg and some digestive biscuits.”

Fleur kept in contact with the couple, who she realised were quite poor, and as an adolescent she used to pick apples from their orchard and sell them to raise money for the couple.

That experience has led, indirectly, into a lifelong career in long-term care for Fleur. She's worked in all sorts of situations, including in long-term care facilities, and all of this has led to her wanting to establish an alternative environment for seniors who are seeking what she calls a more “carefree lifestyle” than is offered in other locations.

The River House Retirement Home, located just north of the Fall River Bridge in Maberly, was purchased by Fleur, who lives in Ompah, about a year ago and has undergone upgrades and renovations to satisfy the “mountains of red tape” that come along with starting up a retirement home.

“It's cost more money than I want to think about,” says Fleur, “but the officials from Tay Valley Township have been very helpful and we are now ready to open”.

River House can accommodate up to 10 seniors, including up to 2 that are confined to a wheelchair. It includes single rooms and a couple of shared accommodation rooms on the ground floor “that would be suitable for couples, who would be able to keep their pets because it has a separate entrance,” said Fleur, who is a dog owner and breeder herself.

In hiring cooks, personal care staff, and others, Fleur said she was intent on hiring people with the right kind of disposition to work in a more informal, family-like setting while providing care for clientele that range from more or less independent seniors to those with mild to moderate dementia.

The home features 24-hour help and security, and is located within a short drive of the new seniors’ centre and medical centre in Sharbot Lake, and services in Perth, including the Perth hospital.

Where possible, Fleur will be working with her staff to bring services into the home itself. “We are filling a niche for those people who are ready to leave their home, but do not need or want the services of a long-term care facility, which is an atmosphere full of rules. If people want breakfast in their room, we'll bring it to them. We aren't about telling people what to do and when,” said Fleur.

The River House will be holding an open house on Friday May 2 between 10 am and 2 pm. Further information is available at riverhouseretirementhomeinc.com

Back to HomeFeature Article - March 19, 2009 Community Living: Closing InstitutionsOn March 31st, the last institutions in Ontario which housed people with mental disabilities will be closing, marking the end of a political and social struggle that has taken almost a century to complete. But the struggle for recognition and acceptance continues with efforts towards integration and inclusion. The two articles printed below were submitted by Community Living North Frontenac to mark the formal closing of the Rideau Regional Centre in Smiths Falls and the other two remaining institutions in the Ontario.

Mural depicting the first 30 years of Community Living in North Frontenac

Community Living in Ontario

In May of 1839, legislation was created by the Ontario Government to build Ontario Lunatic Asylums.

In 1876, the first institution opened on the outskirts of Orillia. Back then, no differentiation was made between mental health and intellectual disabilities. People with intellectual disabilities were called feeble, morons, imbeciles and viewed as patients, not citizens. People who were different were thought of as menaces who contributed to the ills of society.

Therefore, the thinking was to separate them and control their effect on society. Doctors believed that people with an intellectual disability needed to be removed from the stresses and demands of everyday life. Families were strongly encouraged to place their loved ones in institutions where they would be cared for and protected at no cost to the family.

It was in the 1920's when the first talk's of returning intellectually disabled people to the community and providing them with educational opportunities took place. At that time people started noticing that there were more similarities than differences between the disabled and the non-disabled.

Eventually the terms mild mentally retarded, mentally defective or subnormal were used as labels to identify this section of the population. It was suggested that a gradual return back to the community occur by 1960. Ontario operated 16 institutions with more than 6000 people with an intellectual disability living in them at that time.

Community Living Ontario is an organization that was founded in 1953 by parents and family members who rejected the idea of institutionalizing their sons and daughters. These people fostered the idea of keeping the disabled person at home with their families.

By the mid 1960's Community Living called for an end to the institutionalization of people with an intellectual disability. The movement focused on the right of people of all abilities to live in their local communities and have the same opportunities as everyone else.

As the Community Living movement grew attitudes towards people with disabilities continued to evolve. Changes from a medical/institutional model of care to a community-based model of support was adopted and put into effect on April 1, 1974 with the introduction of the Developmental Services Act.

With that legislation the Ministry of Community and Social Services took over responsibilities for the care to approximately 8,000 people who were living in Ontario's institutions.

Between 1975 and 1986 community-based services for the intellectually disabled grew rapidly. Society's view of the disabled continued to evolve and softer labels such as developmentally handicapped or developmentally challenged were adopted.

Government investment on services in the community increased significantly, which enabled five of its residential institutions to close and supports in the community to grow to over 25,000 people.

In 1987, the Ontario government committed to closing the province's remaining facilities within 25 years.

This commitment has been supported by successive governments since then and by 2004 another six facilities closed and helped more than 6,000 people make successful transitions to community life.

In this province, Community Living Ontario and its affiliates have been a consistent and persistent voice working with the Government of Ontario to promote the closure of institutions.

On March 31, 2009 the last three remaining institutions will be closed and all people in Ontario with intellectual disabilities will enjoy life as full citizens in the community.

Community Living Associations and other agencies at the local level do much of the hard work of helping people with intellectual disabilities to live and participate in their communities’ life.

Community Living – North Frontenac

In the early 1970s families gathered in what is now Central Frontenac to discuss their common desire to have community based services for the children they chose not to put in institutions for the developmentally disabled.

Some of the founding members of Community Living - North Frontenac were Merv Rutherford, Donna Ladouceur, Wayne Robinson, and Helen Tryon. On August 30, 1976 the organization was incorporated under the name North Frontenac Association for the Developmentally Handicapped.

A few years later the organization bought the old grocery store in Mountain Grove and established ARC Industries as a sheltered day program/workshop and purchased a van to transport individuals to the Workshop daily.

Originally funded under the Rehabilitation Services Act operations at ARC Industries focused on establishing and running a woodshop, sewing & life skills areas where disabled individuals received a small pay for their work.

Under supervision the disabled produced a variety of marketable merchandise such as pillows, picnic tables, knitting baskets, foot stools, oven mitts, etc. As part of the rehabilitation effort each person attending ARC Industries had an Individual Program Plan established for them outlining focused goals related to their skill acquisition and development.

To enhance this process for several years the local adult literacy program was housed in ARC for workers to attend for periods of time throughout the day.

In 1981 North Frontenac Association for the Developmentally Handicapped opened the Sharbot Lake Residence, a group home for disabled adults. Residents came from institutions in Picton, Smiths Falls, Marmora as well as local families.

Those living at the Group Home attended ARC during the day and in the evenings and weekends they received 24 hour staff supervision and guidance. Residents learned life skills/did household chores such as cooking, laundry, and budgeting; had a gym night at the local High School; explored hobbies and participated in community activities such as Summerfest, dances, etc.

By 1986 basic association services were well established and funding was secured to establish a core administration for the Association to manage future service expansion.

The 1st Executive Director was hired Paul Melcher. He, with the program supervisors, became the organization's Management Team that oversaw the programs and front line employees. Vocationally, although the focus continued on the production of products and attending local and regional craft sales negotiations occurred with the Ministry to change the program funding to the developmental Services Act allowing more latitude in services provided. It was around the time that ARC Industries received an Innovative Award for it's newly formed Cottage Industries.

Towards the late 1980's there was an increasing realization that ARC programs were not meeting the changing needs of the individuals These needs were based on an aging population, competitive employment, basic life skills, medical needs.

Following some staff training immediate implementation of a new more individualized planning process, began in 1989. With less focus on a person's skill deficits and a greater focus on every aspect of a person's life a true recognition of each person's desire began to immerge.

Listening to the desires of each person receiving services provided feedback to the organization. Two individuals living at the group home identified that they wanted to move into their own apartments. They had become involved in local clubs, made friends and wanted to remain living here.

This challenged both the agency and the community to change the way individuals with disabilities were viewed. Within a year a third person's individualized planning was completed and the gentleman also moved to the apartment building. At that time there was a greater realization across the organization that the agency focus had to change.

The 1990's marked significant change for North Frontenac Association for the Developmentally Handicapped including a dramatic change of name. The organizations name was changed to Community Living - North Frontenac to reflect the greater involvement of services provision in the community. In 1991 a one year Trillium Grant was obtained to hire a Family Support Worker for a one-year pilot project to support families in their homes and children in schools.

MCSS funding changed from Homes for Retarded Persons Act to the Developmental Services Act.

In 1993 the organization had a change in Executive Directors and Don Nielsen was welcomed to the agency. In 1994 the organization rented the old gas station (comer of hwy 7 & 38) and brought all organization employees (former residential and day services) together under one roof. Soon after the ARC building closed and after the brief lapse in children services in 1994 a part time Family Support Worker was hired and Children's Services was established as a permanent part of Community Living's services.

Changes have continued to occur as services evolved with each passing year. As the result in Ministry cutbacks, there was a reduction in management positions and the creation of a position to focus solely on the facilitation of life planning with individuals being supported. The creation of this role enabled planning to begin earlier in life with a youths’ transition from school based activities into post school-community based life.

The formation of a Young Adult group helped guide this new service initiative. Services for aging parents also began with the focus on planning for their son or daughter's life when they are no longer able to support them. Plans are encouraged for what will happen when the aging parents are ill, no longer able to support them and even after their death.

In the year 2000 Community living - North Frontenac purchased and moved into a building in the Sharbot Lake village and Children's Services continued to expanded with the partially integrated summer camp at Circle Square Ranch.

Efforts to become more consumers responsive continued with staff training regarding an even more person focused planning called Personal Outcome Measures. In this model staff become agents of inquiry asking individuals supported questions on an ongoing basis regarding their needs and wants, hopes and dreams for future, degree of satisfaction, identify barriers, etc. This led to the Association to a new focus on a community integration and inclusion.

This has continued to the present day with more and more people taking on valued roles in their communities. People have jobs, volunteer their time in areas of interest, are involved in their local churches and many other mainstream community activities.

The Association will continue to evolve over the years and continue to provide much needed supported to individuals and their families in the Central and North Frontenac communities. 

Back to HomeEditorial - March 12, 2009 Bedford District: from poor cousin to cash cowEditorial by Jeff Green

Back in the mid-1990s, when amalgamation was forced on Ontario municipalities by the Ontario government, there was a real question in Frontenac County about where Bedford Township should go.

A good chunk of its population work, shop, and send their kids to school in Westport, but Westport is in Leeds Grenville County so that was off. Bedford borders both Hinchinbrooke and Oso, which joined Central Frontenac, and in some ways it resembled the townships that became Central Frontenac. It is dominated by lakes, including the massive “dammed lakes” (Bobs and Crow) and its population is mixed between farming and seasonal waterfront dwellers. But, If Bedford had joined Central Frontenac, it would have made for a huge township with five large under-populated districts, extending from the edge of Division Street north of Kingston almost all the way to Highway 41, 60 kilometres north of Napanee.

The third option, and the one that was ultimately chosen, was to join South Frontenac. This made sense because Bedford borders both Loughborough and Portland.

But the politicians that negotiated amalgamation in South Frontenac did not want to take on the liabilities of their soon-to-be amalgamation partners, and they were particularly wary of Bedford. While the three other townships that became South Frontenac, Storrington, Portland, and Loughborough, all bordered Kingston and contained suburban-style subdivisions and medium-sized villages with schools and businesses, along with their farming and seasonal populations, Bedford is mostly made up of seasonal residents with some farmers. It has few paved roads, and no garbage pickup. Politicians from the other districts did not want their residents to pay for bringing Bedford’s services up to their standards, which is what full amalgamation would have entailed.

This was one of the factors that led to the area rating system in South Frontenac. While policing, central administration and other costs were paid out of South Frontenac taxes, each district paid for their own roads, waste management, recreation, and fire services.

But, over time things have been changing in South Frontenac. Fire services were fully amalgamated several years ago. While budgeting for services has remained area-rated, the services are mostly run centrally.

At the same time, Bedford has become the source of a lot of revenue for the South Frontenac. The new property assessment regime taxes waterfront properties heavily, and there has been a building boom in Bedford over the last 10 years as seasonal properties have been converted to year-round homes. Bobs Lake in particular has become a highly prized location and nowadays, more money flows from Bedford to the township office in Sydenham than flows the other way.

The poor cousin has become a cash cow.

Bedford District’s riches are also tied in with plans to build a new library in Sydenham. The township would like to revamp its existing offices in Sydenham, and take over the space currently occupied by the library. This would allow all departments to be based in one building. The plan to do this is tied to a plan to build a brand-new, larger library on the same site.

All of this costs money. Bedford District has been accumulating money for years through the sale of road allowances. This is an offshoot of all the building that has been going on. By provincial regulation, this money can only be spend on “Parks and Recreation”, which Bedford has little of, and there is little demand from the Bedford population for new facilities. Putting the money towards building a new library would be an acceptable use, but as long as recreation is area-rated, Bedford money cannot go to a library in Loughborough District where Sydenham is located. However, under amalgamation the money could be used anywhere in South Frontenac.

Bedford District councilors are supportive of a five-year roads improvement plan that was brought forward by the public works manager. Among other things, it would see a major paving program in Bedford and an increase in taxation for Bedford residents, all with a view towards amalgamating the roads budgets in the township as a whole by 2010. With Bedford recreation money helping to pay for Sydenham library and a new township office, the other districts are less likely to object to some of their ratepayers’ money helping to pave roads in Bedford.

Last month, CAO Gord Burns presented Council with a draft proposal to amalgamate recreation and roads. The proposal was defeated, but at the end of the meeting one of the councilors who voted against it, Ron Vandewal from Loughborough said, “I would support amalgamation if it was proposed, but nothing else”.

Two weeks later, amalgamation was brought forward at a Committee of the Whole meeting, and Vandewal said he supported it. He is, in effect, the deciding voter, because Mayor Davison and Councilors Hahn and Stowe from Bedford, as well as the other Loughborough councilor, Alan McPhail, are all onside.

At this point, it looks like it might be done against the will of the councilors from Storrington and Portland districts, which presents a real problem since they represent 50% of the residents in the township

The objections from councilors in both Portland and Storrington are partly philosophical, but they are also focused on waste management, with Portland councilors in particular wanting to protect one of their major assets, the Portland dump.

There are a series of other complications as well, particularly in relation to reserve funds that the districts currently control, but if there is not yet a green light, there is at least a yellow, proceed with caution, light glowing for amalgamation in South Frontenac. It was the subject of a debate this week at a Committee of the Whole meeting on March 10. (see Wilma Kenny’s article)

With 18 months to go before the next municipal election and the current mayor having made a commitment to doing this during the previous election, and with CAO Burns slated to retire in a few months, there is a bit of a legacy question for both of them.

If the political decision to amalgamate services in South Frontenac is not made within the next four months, it will be put off for at least four years. 

Back to HomeLegalese - March 5, 2009 Rural Legal Services’ New Website

by Peter Graham, Lawyer, Rural Legal Services

We are pleased to announce that Rural Legal Services is now online at www.rurallegalservices.org. The goal of the website is to provide information about our community legal clinic and the services we provide.

To quote from our home page:

“We are a community legal clinic staffed by lawyers and support staff serving the communities of northern Frontenac and northern Lennox & Addington counties in Ontario. We help you understand your legal rights and provide advice or legal information on many legal topics to all residents of our community. We may represent you in court and before government tribunals on certain matters if you are financially eligible.”

The services page sets out in detail the many areas of law in which we provide service. If you are financially eligible and live in the northern parts of Frontenac or Lennox and Addington Counties, our lawyers can provide services to you, including representation before government tribunals, in the areas of law listed on the services page.

The website explains the other types of services available such as advice services. As noted on the services page the lawyers at the legal clinic will provide legal information and advice to all members of the community. If we cannot provide the information directly, we will direct you to someone who can. Also explained on the services page is Community Legal Education which is an important part of our work. Our community legal education services include presenting workshops on various legal topics of interest to the community.

The contact page provides office location, hours and telephone numbers. It also contains links to maps showing the locations of our main office in Sharbot Lake and our satellite office in Northbrook. By accessing the interactive maps a user is able to obtain detailed driving directions on how to navigate to our offices.

The legalese page contains links to Legalese columns which have recently been published in the Frontenac News. Our Legalese column has been published in The Frontenac News for nearly two decades as part of our commitment to community legal education.

Finally, the resources page provides contact information for many of our community partners offering social services to members of our community. There is a related links page which contains links to the websites of many other social services and not for profit organizations as well as related government sites. Initially, we have grouped these links under the general headings of Seniors, Social Assistance, Landlord-Tenant, Disability and Other Legal.

We invite you to drop by the Rural Legal Services’ website the next time you are surfing the net. We welcome your suggestions on how to improve and develop the site to make it more useful to you.

Legalese is a column of general information and opinion on legal topics by the lawyers of Rural Legal Services, Box 359, Sharbot Lake, ON, K0H2P0, 613-279-3252, or 1-888-777-8916. This column is not intended to provide legal advice. You should contact a lawyer to determine your legal rights and obligations.

Back to HomeFeature Article - March 5, 2009 Filling the gap with a new leaf linkBy Jeff Green People with developmental disabilities living in South Frontenac find that once they graduate from the School to Community class at Sydenham High School, they are left with no social supports and limited opportunities. This is hard on them, and their families.

Julie Hunt, the mother of a young man with an acquired brain injury said that “our son has been at home with no program since leaving Sydenham High School last year.

Services are available for Kingston residents through Community Living – Kingston, and in Sharbot Lake through Community Living – North Frontenac, but neither agency has the funds to extend their services to South Frontenac on a consistent basis, leaving a yawning gap for families in the rural communities north of Kingston.

Last month, that gap started to be filled.

New Leaf Link, a not for profit charitable organization was founded in Hartington. Its mission is to offer educational, employment, and social supports to young adults with autism, Down Syndrome, intellectual disability, or acquired brain injury.

“For the first time, those individuals will be able to capitalize upon school learning and maintain relationships and volunteer opportunities in their home communities” said Doctor Karin Steiner, Executive Director of New Leaf Link.

Dr. Steiner is an educational researcher, teacher educator, who has an adult son with autism who has developed a web based course on autism for teachers. New Leaf Link is something she has been thinking about ever since her son entered High School.

She told the news that New Leaf Link “has chosen South Frontenac as a starting point. We are building a model, with a limited number of participants, perhaps 10, and we will analyse and document how it is working.

“The idea is to bring out the best in people. We certainly believe that all people have abilities; everyone has a contribution to make. Our task is to bring out the best in these participants.”

Steiner references the Larche movement, under Jean Vanier, as one of the alternative models for the adult intellectually disabled community. She pointed out, however that “LARCHE is religious based, which we are not, but we share the philosophical base of the belief in human potential.”

As early as this coming April, New Leaf Link is planning to start some preliminary programming, with participants engaging in therapeutic riding at Honey Suckle Ridge in Glenburnie.

New Leaf Link has three initial goals, as outlined in their initial press release: “We aim to steward the occupational, cultural, and social contributions of disabled participants by a) creating a model educational centre; b) linking the strengths and interests of participants with employment and volunteer opportunities in local communities; and c) sharing our model with other communities.”

At this point New Leaf Link has not received funding, and a fundraising campaign will be one of the things its nine member Board of Directors will be looking at.

The founding board includes faculty members from Queen's University, parents, Doctor Laurel Dempsey, and members of the local business community, including John Trousdale and realtor Julia Vandenbelt.

New Leaf Link will be filling a service gap, but it has been meeting with Community Living agencies in both Kingston and Sharbot Lake and does not see its programs as an alternative to Community Living Services.

“There is a lot of good will. We've had transition meetings with Don Neilsen [Executive Director of Community Living - North Frontenac] and if ever Community Living would like to establish a group home in the region we would welcome that,” said Karin Steiner. “We are more about putting skills to use, and they are a bit more about providing care.”

Public outreach is also a New Leaf Link priority. Look for its first spring fling in early May.

Back to HomeFeature Article - March 5, 2009 Two new names for Rural VisionsBy Jeff Green

Central Frontenac Community Services, which serves the population of South Frontenac out of the Rural Visions Centre in Sydenham, will officially have a new name after their Annual General Meeting in June: Southern Frontenac Community Services.

This long awaited change will shed a name that is a hangover from pre-municipal amalgamation days.

Another change, one that took place a couple of weeks ago, should help the agency fit into a new era in delivering social services.

Deborah Andrews, an Ottawa based public administrator and consultant has taken on the role of Executive Director, a position that was left vacant when the founding Executive Director of the agency, Beth Freeland, resigned early last summer.

In an interview with the News this week, Deborah Andrews said she is extremely pleased that Kate Lett, who has served as interim director, will be able to return to her role as Manager, Business Operations and Human Resources with the agency.

Lett’s “corporate memory” will be particularly useful for Deborah Andrews, who will be working from home two days a week for at least the next few months.

Home, for Deborah Andrews, at least until the end of this school year, continues to be Nepean, in suburban Ottawa.

The move to a rural location is not accidental for her; it is the culmination of a decision-making process her family entered into when she saw the posting for the job on the Charity Village website late last summer.

“We were just back in Ottawa after a camping trip, and I said to my family, ‘What if we move to the country?’ They encouraged me to apply,” Andrews said. Her husband is an artist and musician so he can work almost anywhere, and they have three daughters, one of whom is still in school, so Deborah will be commuting from Nepean to Sydenham until the end of June.

Southern Frontenac Community Services provides some specific challenges, which Deborah Andrews is in a good position to address. She has over 20 years experience working in the not-for profit sector, and is familiar with not - for profit boards, both as a board member and as an Executive Director.

She has worked with youth and seniors, and earlier in her career she even worked in Children’s Aid, both in policy development and as a front line worker.

She also has a strong working knowledge of Local Health Integration Networks (LHIN), the two year old provincially mandated bodies that now oversee health care in the province. For the past two years, Deborah has been the project manager for a seniors’ initiative at the Champlain LHIN.

This experience could be very useful in managing the Southern Frontenac Community Services relationship with the South East Ontario LHIN, which is the largest funding source for the agency she now heads.

Community Support Services, which most people know as services for seniors; including diners’ clubs, adult day services, etc. “form a healthy majority of our funding,” Andrews said, “and we have just signed our agreement with the South East LHIN. We would have preferred more autonomy in terms of securing outside funding than is in the new agreement, but the LHIN people did prove to be flexible in terms of process. We can work with them.”

Deborah Andrews has several short and long term goals for the agency.

“The first order of business is to evaluate what exists now,” she said, “seeking efficiencies and ways for us to deliver services better. Additionally, I would like to see formalized case management.

“We would like to move forward in areas where there are identifiable gaps. For example, working with cognitively impaired adults. We have been approached by a local community agency that aims to serve this population, and we are exploring ways we can work together. Transportation is another area we need to focus on. I will be expending energy in that direction.

“As well, we would like to expand our licensed day care service, which is at capacity, by securing additional licensed homes in the community. I have a personal commitment to establishing youth services in Southern Frontenac.”

While Deborah Andrews has ambitious goals for Southern Frontenac Community Services she also realises that in spite of her years’ of experience and her knowledge of funding possibilities, she is the new kid on the block.

“In all this visioning you move like the proverbial tortoise, making sure that you engage the community, and that doesn’t happen overnight. You don’t come in and shake things up. I came here to observe, take note, and evaluate.”

She also is committed to fostering teamwork, both among her staff and the community as a whole.

In a statement of philosophy that she includes with her CV, she talks about her abiding commitment to community development, and says “I aim to deliver services through effective teamwork, with a focus on leadership, accountability, mutual respect and compassion.” 

Back to HomeFeature Article - February 12, 2009 New manager takes the reins of Plevna’s one-stop-shopBy Julie Druker

In the kitchen at Plevna's North of 7 cooks Ruth Barr (left) and Kathy Rosenblath

Back in October last year, long-time Plevna resident Donna Lemke put forth an offer to Don Raycroft, owner of the Plevna Freshmart, gas bar and North of 7 Restaurant, to act as manager of his 6-year-old operation.

Don, whose wife recently passed away and who spends his winters in Florida, had been looking to slow down and enter retirement but was also hoping to grow his business. Donna felt with her years of experience as a franchise owner and operator in Perth, she would be a viable candidate for the job.

Donna admitted that there is "a lot to learn" as the job includes working with the close to 20 staff who offer a number of other related services in the multi-faceted business operation. These include a post office franchise, a bottle return, movie rental, ice cream bar, mini-putt golf course, and internet services.

The job might make other less experienced persons a little nervous but Lemke is looking forward to the challenge and has begun to make some changes, starting with the menu in the restaurant. She explained, “ The senior staff and I are still tweaking the new menu and we’re aiming for a fresh look and will be offering more choices.”

Some of the menu changes will include a platter option for most of the sandwich and burger meals, smaller and less expensive senior-sized main entrees, and activity placemats/children’s menus to offer to the kids and keep them occupied. The restaurant will also be offering a new smorgasbord-style brunch on Sundays from 10am -2pm. The first brunch will happen Sunday February 15.

Also new is a meeting/events room that was renovated last fall, which can be booked for various functions. It is adjacent to but separate from the main restaurant, and food is also available there.

Donna understands the first rule of growing a business. “I know that the presence of someone in charge can make all of the difference.” So she has been on site regularly interacting both with staff and patrons. She added, “Coming into an already existing business is always a challenge but the staff here have all been very receptive and helpful.”

Donna’s husband Ron Lemke, though not officially involved in the operations, adds an unofficial helping hand and was installing a bulletin board on the day of my interview. Ron was enthusiastic about the facility and grateful to have it here. “We’re very lucky Don decided to retire here and we’re very fortunate as a community to have all of these services here on account of him.”

Ron is not the only appreciative one. On my way out I met Ted and Janet Kewley from Mountain Chute near Calabogie, who had just dismounted their snow machine after completing the 62 km one way trip from Calabogie for their third time this year. They were heading into the restaurant for a bite to eat and both spoke effusively about the services available here. Located on major sledding routes, the business is a popular destination for sled drivers since it offers parking, gas and a place to eat. Seasoned sled driver Ted explained, “It’s not unusual on a sunny weekend day to see 50 or 60 machines parked outside here, with almost all of their riders gassing up and having a meal inside.” The summer can be easily as busy with summer vacationers and cottagers frequenting the amenities offered here. Donna Lemke definitely has her work cut out for her as the new manager of Plevna’s one-stop-shop in North Frontenac, but it is a challenge that she has happily chosen to undertake with confidence and know how.