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NEMI budget
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by Cheryl Waugh
NORTHEASTERN MANITOULIN and the ISLANDS (NEMI) --- The 2002 Budget is
expected to be brought back to council tonight (Wednesday), with a
possible percentage decrease for Wards 3 and 4.
Mayor Ken Ferguson said after ratepayer Doug Wuksinic met with Clerk
Ned Martin on Monday, July 29, some changes were suggested that would
mean the proposed eight percent municipal increase for Wards 3 and 4
would be reduced to around seven percent.
Council will make the final decision on budget changes at its meeting
at the old Sheguiandah municipal building tonight at 7 pm.
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Police arrest five in drug bust
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by Neil Zacharjewicz
LITTLE CURRENT - The Manitoulin OPP arrested five men after seizing
drugs and at least one firearm at Low Island on Saturday.
Police report that on Saturday, August 3, at approximately 8 pm,
Constables Rob Manley and Rob Mellan were taking part in a bike
patrol in Little Current, when they checked a vehicle located near
the showerhouse area at Low Island. In the vehicle they located a
quantity of drugs and a firearm, and the items were seized.
Five subjects have been taken into custody. Two of the five are being
held on bail, and will appear in bail court in Gore Bay on Tuesday,
August 6 at 1pm. The remaining three subjects were released into
their own recognizance, to appear before the court at a future date.
"The bicycles are an excellent tool as the officers were able to
observe offenses being committed while on the bikes," stated
Constable Al Boyd, Community Services Officer for the OPP.
As of press time, the Ontario Provincial Police had not released the
names of the subjects or the charges they are faced with.
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Letter writer Peter Sticklee dead at age 64.
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by Michael Erskine
THORNTON---They came by fax and they came frequently but, sadly, they
will come no more.
Outspoken and prolific letter-to-the-editor writer Peter Eric
Sticklee died suddenly of complications from an abdominal infection
at his home of 18 years in Thornton on Friday, July 26.
Mr. Sticklee was born on January 5, 1939 in Dartford, England. He
became a Canadian citizen on July 17, 1958.
He leaves behind his wife, Joanne and four children, Ronald, Laura,
Jason and Tory.
Known for his staunch conservative views, Mr. Sticklee wrote hundreds
of letters to over 30 newspapers across the nation, for over 20 years.
"Peter Sticklee has been writing letters here for about 25 years,"
said Expositor Publisher Rick McCutcheon. "In some miraculous way he
kept his finger on Manitoulin life from far off Thorton. The
Expositor sometimes received a letter from him on a topic covered in
Wednesday's newspaper, a newspaper he could not possibly have
received by Thursday, when the Expositor received his faxed
commentary. I suspect he had his sources," Mr. McCutcheon chuckled.
"He felt very strongly about freedom of expression and the importance
of balanced reporting," said his 23 year-old son Jason Sticklee.
"When he read something which had what he felt was a biased slant, he
went out of his way to reply to it."
Mr. Sticklee was sometimes accused of being a 'mouthpiece for the
Progressive Conservative Party,' but it is a charge which his son
said he vehemently denied.
"He was a man of conservative views, of course, he named his youngest
son Tory after all," said Mr. Sticklee. "But, he was not writing to
support any particular party, rather he was expressing his small-c
conservative views."
"He wrote from a decidedly conservative viewpoint, he was consistent
about that. By using letter space in the way he did, in the large
number of newspapers in which his letters appeared, it is clear Mr.
Sticklee is a democrat," said Mr. McCutcheon. "He was a champion of
debate, and debate must be fundamental to the democratic process. He
also realized that letters to the editor, topically written, is an
exceptionally useful way of reaching thousands of citizens."
Mr. Sticklee was well-known across the North as a sales rep for Big
John Lures, and he was fondly remembered by friend Blaine Williamson
of Hilltop Sports in Mindemoya.
"It is quite a shock," he said. "He was a good man."
Peter Sticklee, the man, was also an avid outdoorsman and for many
years the outdoor sports columnist for the Toronto Sun.
After his retirement as a writer and salesman, he turned down
numerous jobs as a columnist for a number of newspapers.
His love of fishing defined a great deal of his character, according
to those who knew him best, and he was the co-founder of the popular
Annual Great Salmon Hunt.
He was active in local politics, the Barrie Masonic Lodge and the
Shriners, showing a character which cared deeply about society and
the well-being of the world around him.
In the 1970's, Mr. Sticklee became a bona fide hero, with a citation
from the Niagara Regional Police for pulling a group of boaters out
of the water.
While Mr. Sticklee's views often ran counter to the editorial views
of the Manitoulin Expositor, his staunch and articulate expression of
his point of view provided a valuable counterpoint and second opinion
on the issues of the day.
There was no hypocrisy or hint of 'political correctness' to be found
in his writing, Peter Sticklee was definitely not concerned with
political correctness, and he was known to have a stern suggestion
for the Tory government, his last letter to the Expositor (Writer
calls on government to keep medical graduates in North, July 24)
called on the government to impliment a method of ensuring graduates
of medical schools stay in Northern communities for at least three to
five years.
"If we are going to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to build
medical schools in the North," he wrote, "there must be a way to
guarantee the grads stay for a given period."
People who stand up and speak their mind on issues they believe in,
no matter how contentious those views may be, are one of the key
bastions of our rights and freedoms.
He will be missed.
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