MSS mock trial team comes first in 16-school field

by Lauren McCormick and Meagan O'Hare

SUDBURY-With hours of studying, heated discussions and attempts to get into character, Manitoulin Secondary School prepared their first ever mock trial tournament team and blew away the competition. Being the only rookies in the tournament, Manitoulin won the championship against Lasalle in court last Monday, January 15. The team proudly took home the Hennessy Cup, and team member Janelle Proulx brought home the award for "Best Crown Attorney."

The fictional case for which every team across Ontario had to prepare was "Her Majesty the Queen" against "Carson Beancounter" on charges for second degree murder. As written in script, Carson Beancounter unlawfully killed Donald Deadduck, and depending on the flip of a coin, the two competing teams were chosen to represent either the Crown or the defence.

Throughout the day, schools from the Sudbury district participated in eight trials, all trying Carson Beancounter. Finalists were chosen by the amount of points awarded collectively to them as a team by the judge. Manitoulin beat the odds as the underdogs and unexpectedly made it into the championship round.

The students that made up the Manitoulin Secondary School team consisted of "lawyers" Marcus Stephens, Tiffany Doucet, Janelle Proulx and Vincent Clarke. Each lawyer had to prepare to not only directly examine, but also cross-examine, the witnesses, depending on the role they were assigned. The "witnesses," Meagan O'Hare and Alasha Brown, had to be prepared to act as two completely different characters. The witnesses and their lawyers had to convince the judge of their perspectives and introduce evidence to support their case.

The first trial that Manitoulin took part in was at 12 pm when they won the role of the Crown and competed against team Lockerby #4. After all the witnesses for the case had been heard, the judge took a 15-minute recess to go over what he had just heard from both teams. After heavy thought and constructive criticism, the judge found the accused to be guilty of manslaughter, which was in favour of the Crown. The Manitoulin team was ecstatic that they had rightfully won their first case; however, it didn't cross their mind that minutes later, they were to be announced as one of the top two teams who would battling for the Hennessy Cup and "champion" title.

MSS teacher/advisor Bruce Laidley flipped a coin, winning the MSS team the role of the Crown. After a very well-thought-out and structured performance by both teams, Manitoulin thought they did well, but didn't expect Judge Hennessy to award them with the much-honoured Hennessy Cup. As it came with great surprise, the Manitoulin team took the Cup with pride.

Of course, none of this would have been possible without the help of Mr. Laidley, Defence Lawyer James Weppler, and Crown Attorney Stacey Hayner. They put in as many countless hours as the students and deserve equal credit for the outcome of the trials. The team will proceed to the next level of competition in early March, proudly representing Manitoulin Island and showing everyone that the underdogs shouldn't be underestimated!

Farmers oppose establishment of wild turkeys on Manitoulin

by Alicia McCutcheon

MANITOULIN-The idea of introducing wild turkeys to Manitoulin has some members of the Manitoulin Cattlemen's Association (MCA) and Manitoulin Soil and Crop Improvement Association (MSCIA) up in arms.

Jan Joyce, a farmer from Meldrum Bay and director on the MCA, put forth a resolution at last week's meeting of the two organizations stating that they were "adamantly opposed to the introduction of wild turkeys."

"'Adamantly opposed' is the way I worded it and it's what I'm sticking with," she said in a later conversation.

Ms. Joyce says she has been in contact with farmers in southern Ontario where wild turkeys have been introduced, and she doesn't like what she hears.

The turkeys have flourished, she says, and in the process done much damage to the crops, especially grain.

"They (turkey proponents) say they don't eat the crops but I don't believe it," says Ms. Joyce. "I've heard stories of the turkeys eating newly sown grain."

She adds that the turkeys tend to congregate in large groups and will trample the crops. She's even heard of the large birds getting caught in farm machinery.

What also riles Ms. Joyce is that the birds are not indigenous to the area and there are additional threats involved when introducing a foreign species such as disease control.

Max Burt of Ice Lake feels the same way.

Mr. Burt has a double concern as a member of the MCA and as Manitoulin's largest turkey producer. Avian influenza is first and foremost on his list of concerns.

"Turkeys are a social animal," he says. "If one decided to land in my fields, it would be no time before they were over to my turkeys."

"Everytime we introduce something new, new problems always arise," says Mr. Burt, who operates The Burt Farm at Ice Lake where he raises, butchers and retails organic beef, pork and fowl.

He wonders what the ecosystem would look like in 10-15 years' time.

"We're already faced with the deer; there's no retribution for the farmers who sustain them," he adds, referring to the large amount of acreage owned by Manitoulin farmers, whose land provides habitat and feed for the wild creatures.

Mr. Burt says he would like to see a way money from the turkey licences would benefit everyone on Manitoulin, if a hunt ever occurred.

He estimates farmers could lose up to $130 per acre in seed costs, both grass and grain, from damage from turkeys. What Mr. Burt would really like to see is farmer restitution.

"I fed over 5,000 people their Christmas dinners this year, 250 turkeys," he says, thinking about the safety of his flock. "Are the benefits going to truly be there?"

Scott Willis believes they will be.

Mr. Willis is the president of the Manitoulin Longbeards, a group advocating the planting of wild turkeys on Manitoulin, as well as a member of the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF).

He says the MCA and MSCIA are operating on complete assumption. He understands that area farmers have been in conversation with southern Ontario farmers and their opinions have been projected to the agricultural society on Manitoulin.

"It's not a good census of what's out there," he says.

Mr. Willis hopes to find common ground with the MCA and MSCIA and

economic growth is one area where he hopes to find it.

Turkey hunts happen in the early spring- a time when, on Manitoulin, there aren' t other hunts or much fishing to be done, he notes.

Mr. Willis is quick to point out that landowners are also able to benefit from this venture, the same way they often benefit from the annual deer hunt with hunters sometimes paying over $300 to use a parcel of land.

The most the Longbeards could hope for initially is a 30-bird introduction. He says he cannot see how the birds would be a threat when Manitoulin has such a large selection of predators.

He worries there may not be enough communication between his organization and the MCA and MSCIA, and would like to see that change. He says and there is much more to the NWTF than turkeys for harvesting, noting the group is largely about community involvement and conservation too.

Mr. Willis stresses he is not closed-minded.

"We all benefit from the agricultural sector and I would not want to introduce anything to cripple it."

The wild turkey population in Ontario is close to 100,000 birds. Last spring, 10,300 turkeys were harvested.

In a recent interview concerning the introduction of wild turkeys to Manitoulin Island, MNR area supervisor Bud Hebner said they were looking into the idea but are careful to act as Manitoulin wasn't historically a habitat for wild turkeys and their presence could compromise plant and animal species.

Prov lighthouse replica will be re-sited near town's Harbour Centre

by Tom Sasvari

MINDEMOYA-Approval has been given by Central Manitoulin Township Council to rebuild the former Providence Bay lighthouse in a central location near the interpretive centre.

At a meeting last week, council considered a recommendation from its Development Implementation Committee (DIC), and a request from the Lighthouse Committee.

A letter dated December 28, 2006 from Glen McDougall, chair of the Lighthouse  Committee, states, "the committee for rebuilding the lighthouse has met, and on a motion made by Blair Sullivan and seconded by Bert Hill, we request that council grant us permission to rebuild the lighthouse on a site 70 feet west of the Harbour Centre building, on the north side of the boardwalk."

"Is the DIC committee looking for financing, or will they be fundraising for this project?" asked Councillor Harold McCutcheon.

Ruth Frawley, township clerk, said, "the understanding we have is that they are fundraising 100 percent for this project." She pointed out the proposed location for the Providence Bay lighthouse is west of the interpretive centre in Providence Bay.

As reported in the January 3 edition of the Expositor, Mr. McDougall estimates the cost of the project would be a minimum of $100,000, but is encouraged that support will be provided by both local residents and seasonal visitors who are interested in the area's marine heritage.

The committee had hoped the tower, which had burnt in 1973, could be rebuilt on its original site at Providence Point, but Mr. McDougall said this idea has been ruled out due to landowner concerns about camping and lighting of fires.

This led to the planned location in an area just west of the Harbour View Interpretive Centre and north of the boardwalk.

With council's okay of the proposed location, the committee still needs the permission of the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR). As well, the committee is consulting with the Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation, a non-profit conservation group that works closely with the MNR regarding sand dunes ecology, but the committee doesn't expect any objections to the proposed site from an environmental point of view.

As the site has been chosen, the actual construction of the tower should go smoothly, as the original plans give precise details on the layout of the building, said Mr. McDougall. He explained one of the biggest challenges will be in getting an engineer to look at the documents and okay it for construction, as the plans may not fit current building codes. And, he said the structure's top will present a big hurdle, as the original light cupola was made out of steel and not many tradespeople construct roofs of that type material now.

The original tower was 18 feet in diameter at the bottom, and 28 feet high, and the plans would be to duplicate it as exactly as possible, said Mr. McDougall. He also predicted it will take at least a couple of years before something concrete takes place.

Heather Moggy sought in Earlton area

Young Bidwell woman missing from her family since 2002

by Jim Moodie

EARLTON-The re-emergence of a controversial Island evangelist in Earlton has sparked concerns among several residents of this small Timiskaming District town regarding the preacher's past and his particular brand of fire and brimstone, while simultaneously rekindling interest in the case of missing Bidwell woman Heather Moggy.

Ms. Moggy disappeared in 2002, at the age of 17, and has not been seen since. At the time of her mysterious departure, she was believed to be in the company of John Tucsok, an older married man from Manitoulin who was wanted by police on several counts of sexual abuse involving female youth.

Both the teenager and her discredited older companion were affiliated with the Clover Valley Gospel Hall, a fundamentalist church in the brethren or assembly tradition which was formally launched in the mid-1990s by Alvin Cook, imploding some half-dozen years later in the wake of the abuse scandal.

Mr. Cook was believed to have subsequently relocated to Powassan, but according to information recently supplied to the Expositor, the pulpiteer has more recently settled in New Liskeard and has been instrumental in forming a new Gospel Hall in Earlton. Mr. Cook was never directly linked to the abuse that occurred among members of his Clover Valley congregation, but some Islanders remain uneasy and, in some cases, quite bitter, about his tolerance of questionable characters and his particular method of spreading the gospel.

And now some residents of Earlton are feeling anxious too. "I don't go to the church, but some of my relatives do," recently related one member of the community, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of a reprisal. "I thought it seemed a little funny, and cultish, the way he goes about preaching to people, so I thought I'd do a search on him (through the Internet)."

The concerned resident came across a story published in these pages in June about Ms. Moggy's disappearance and the culture of the now-defunct Gospel Hall in Clover Valley, described by many former members and onlookers as unhealthy and divisive.

The story also cited speculations that the missing pair might be in the Earlton area, where Mr. Tucsok was known to have friends. One sighting of the fugitive was alleged to have occurred in the vicinity of Charlton, a community near Earlton.

"If this man, John, lives in this area, then it needs to be found out," said the individual who contacted the Expositor. "I have a daughter myself, and I don't want a man like that living near me. The charges he's on are not like stealing apples from a grocery store."

The same commentator noted that, while there is no hard evidence that Mr. Tucsok or Ms. Moggy are nearby, "it's so easy to hide up here, and we have a lot of Mennonites in this area that they could be hiding among."

The resident was concerned enough about the possibility that she contacted the missing woman's parents, Linda and Melvin Moggy, to arrange for photographs of Heather and Mr. Tucsok to be sent by mail, so that people in the Earlton area can have a visual reference on hand to help ID either of the missing pair, should they be encountered. At least six other people in the community now share the same concern, noted the source, so a network is quickly forming to help monitor the countryside. 

The Moggys have still not heard from their daughter. "I thought that maybe I'd hear from her over Christmas, but there hasn't been a squeak," said her mother. "It's really upsetting, because I haven't heard from her since she's been gone."

Mrs. Moggy added that "the only thing that calms me down is that he (Mr. Tucsok) is also still missing-because if she was missing and he was here, I'd be really worried." In other words, if the two are still on the lam together, she can at least reassure herself that her daughter is likely alive.

The parent continues to suspect that other members of the church might have information about the couple's whereabouts, but she hasn't spoken directly with any of the former leaders of the Clover Valley hall. "Alvin Cook was around here in the summertime-I saw him in a store in Manitowaning-but I didn't speak to him," she said.

The last time she heard from her daughter was in 2003, when Heather called from a phone booth at an undisclosed location. "She said a lot of things, but didn't say anything about being with John, and I think she was just covering up for him," assessed her mother. "She said she was cold, and didn't have a winter coat on, and had to go. Wherever she was, it was really cold."

When the couple vanished, Mr. Tucsok left behind a wife, Kelly, and four children who were residing in a log home the family had built in the countryside near Manitowaning. Kelly promptly relocated to southern Ontario to spare the children the stigma of the experience.

Reached at her current home by the Expositor two weeks ago, the recently remarried woman indicated that she has not heard anything from her ex-husband and wishes, at this point, to simply move on with her life. Other questions regarding the Clover Valley church and her personal struggle to recover from the events that occurred on Manitoulin were patiently, if somewhat guardedly, answered, but she requested that these comments remain off the record.

Regardless of whether Ms. Moggy or Mr. Tucsok, or both, might be in the vicinity of Earlton, the concerned resident of this community said that the presence of Mr. Cook is, in itself, unsettling. "He tries to make you believe that he and the church are your family, and this takes you away from your biological family."

And while the Earlton Gospel Hall is still in its infancy, this observer said that some members have already been shamed-such as those living out of wedlock as common-law spouses-or outright shunned, such as an 18-year-old girl who was presumed to have had premarital sex. "A lot of people are told they can't be baptized or saved because they're living in sin, and this girl was kicked right out and asked not to return when they heard about her and her boyfriend."

The Earlton church began "with big bible meetings in people's homes," the resident explained, and then a building was acquired "about a year ago" to serve as a proper gospel hall. Mr. Cook's style of acquiring converts "is quite pushy and in your face," according to the source, and tends to concentrate on lonely or vulnerable women in the community. "I started to think, this isn't right. You don't poke your nose into people's business and pursue people as much as this. It seemed fishy to me."

And so it should, says Bob Pearson of Tehkummah, who attended the Clover Valley church for a time and witnessed the "destruction of families" that occurred within this congregation. "Within a few years, half of those families were in ruins," he said. "Alvin Cook was the key figure in the church, and if he's doing this somewhere else, people should watch out, because he's a wolf in sheep's clothing. He'll drive wedges between families and divide assemblies."

Mr. Pearson noted that he personally "grew up in a brethren assembly," and remains sympathetic to the faith, which he believes can be quite nurturing and inclusive in most of its manifestations, but he took exception to the version of the brethren message as preached by Mr. Cook, and was "more or less blacklisted" as a result.

"Alvin Cook runs on a battery, so to speak, of rules, everything from the length of a woman's hair to whom you can associate with," said Mr. Pearson. "If he's set up somewhere else, you're going to see division and families pulled apart."

Attempts were made to reach Mr. Cook, reportedly living in a trailer with wife Jackie in New Liskeard, but there was no phone number listed by Canada 411 and none of the individuals consulted for this story could provide a contact.

The Clover Valley Gospel Hall, which once counted dozens of followers, still stands, but most members of the flock have long since dissipated and many of the families that worshipped there now are fractured. According to Mr. Pearson, the building is currently providing shelter for a lone occupant: Veronica Cawte, a former member of the fold who, along with now-estranged husband Christopher, initially provided a corner of their farm property for the creation of the church.

Heather Moggy, meanwhile, remains missing, and her mother is as eager as ever to hear any news about her situation, particularly as their shared birth date approaches. "She was born in 1985 on my own birthday, February 16, so this day was always special to us," she said. "I would just like to know how she's doing, and I always have hopes that one day she will call."

Equation of Islam faith with terrorism is unfortunate

This past weekend, the pastor of a Baptist church in Windsor saw fit to begin a series of lectures and discussions on the general theme of "why Islam (the faith) is a threat to Western civilization."

When some Muslim protesters appeared on Saturday, the format was changed to that of a debate, and so it will continue through the planned series.

While this change from a lecture series, promulgating a particular viewpoint, to a debate, is a modest improvement on the original plan, nevertheless the thrust of the debate will be effectively, "Resolved: that Islam is a bad thing." In so doing, the Windsor Baptists will be promoting, even fomenting, dischord and disharmony in this country that will ultimately cater to the Islam extremists that apparently convinced the 18 alleged would-be Toronto terrorists arrested last summer that attack on Toronto institutions was in the best interests of their faith. In fact, the trial of these people began on Monday of this week.

The Baptist preacher who conceived of this lecture series (presumably with the support of his church's governing board) has fallen prey to the notion (in the wake of the New York World Trade Centre bombing, the Madrid bombing, the London subway bombing, and the planned Toronto bombings) that aggression towards the West and its way of life is a very tenet of the Muslim faith.

This is the logic of: "the World Trade Centre (and London and Madrid) bombing was perpetrated by terrorists. These terrorists were Muslims. Therefore we fear all Muslims."

Canada depends on immigration to maintain the workforce required to run this country and as it happens, a large number of immigrants come from countries where the Muslim faith dominates: Pakistan, North Africa, Indonesia and the Middle East.

Some Toronto suburbs now post a fairly large percentage of immigrant families of Muslim faith and descent. In Mississauga, for example, the percentage of Muslim-faith citizens reaches 7 percent. In Ajax-Pickering, it's 3 percent. In Ontario, 3 percent of the population adheres to the Muslim faith.

Most of these citizens are immigrants and their children will have been born in Canada.

It is a fact that immigrants from any nation, especially if English is not their mother tongue, will retain strong ties and kinship to "the old country." This diminishes through generations and, just as White Anglo-Saxon Protestants or French Canadians know their ancestors came from France or England or Ireland or Scotland, and this may well remain a matter of some personal pride, the fact is that they do not know or even care a great deal, if at all, about those "old countries" after a generation or two.

And so it will inevitably be with the children and grandchildren of the current, immigrant wave from Pakistan, Indonesia, North Africa and the Middle East.

The new CBC series "Little Mosque on the Prairie" that debuted last week is also trying to make this point in a sitcom format. It's to be hoped the series is successful and well-received because it will likely help to allay the fear of many Canadians who, prior to 2001, didn't know much if anything at all about their Muslim neighbours and now, thanks to the terrorist activities of the lunatic fringe, are inclined to equate Muslims with terrorists.

The Windsor Baptist Church's focus on just this equation was unfortunate but the publicity the event generated nationally may well serve to jolt rational people into clear thinking about Canada's Muslim citizens.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Jerusalem Hill scribe clarifies position regarding M'Chigeeng

Rejecting the Bible like throwing the baby out with the bath water

To the Expositor:

Re: "Reckman's location clarified-he is no prophet of ours!", letters, January 10.

I live on the Jerusalem Hill about two kilometres west of the M'Chigeeng Reserve boundary. I was not claiming to speak for M'Chigeeng, only conveying my mailing address which has been M'Chigeeng (West Bay and Excelsior before the name changes). Since I bought my property on the Jerusalem Hill in 1989, I have bought lumber at Castle and Taylor Sawmill, bought gasoline at Paul's Corner Store quite often, have most of my car repairs done at OK Tire, etc. I have met Chief Joseph Hare quite often, even bumped into him at the post office, so the chief knows I pick up my mail there. I believe that with the statement, "He is no prophet of ours," he just wants to convey that he disagrees with the biblical principles that I advocate.

I am a prophet of Yahweh, the God of the bible. Like all other people on this planet, we are both descendants from Noah who survived the flood about 4,400 years ago, Gen. 10:32. The message of repentance I preach must be preached among all nations, Luke 24:47. The good news of God's redeeming love must be taught to all nations, Mat. 28:19. That includes people on reserves. So even though I do not live on a reserve, the message I preach is also for people on reserves and, in every nation, he who fears God and works (action) righteousness, is accepted with God, Acts 10: 34 & 35. I understand that the First Nation's people have had many bad experiences with "Christianity" (residential schools), but rejecting the bible and its teachings would be throwing out the baby with the bath water.

God's offer of health, happiness and blessings is for everyone who will put these biblical principles, that I advocate, into practise, so why not seriously investigate them?

Hank Reckman

The prophet from the Jerusalem Hill

Ms. McGregor makes home in Toronto, not Birch Island

What has she done for her community?

To the Expositor:

Re: "Birch Island woman receives prestigious Order of Ontario" (January 3).

I agree that Ms. Lillian McGregor should be honoured with these awards from the government and the University of Toronto, but please clarify what community she is involved with. She has not lived in Whitefish River First Nation (Birch Island) for over 30 years; she has lived in the city of Toronto. In your article about her receiving this award/degree, it was stated that she has done much for her community. Well her community is in Toronto. She has not really done anything for Birch Island, or has she? And if she has, please write down what those efforts on behalf of Whitefish River First Nation are.

Anastasia Cywink

Whitefish River First Nation