HOT DOGS FOR MINNOWS - Mark Stabb, a volunteer with the Uxbridge Youth Centre and North Durham Nature, helps Owen Shaw lower a minnow trap filled withweiners into the Uxbridge Brook during the Brook Never Sleeps event, which was held in Centennial Park on Friday, April 5. Photo by John Cavers

by Roger Varley

In a recorded vote Monday night, Uxbridgecouncil voted 6-0 in favour of approving a zon-ing bylaw amendment that will allow Grain-boys Holdings Inc. to construct a graincleaning facility on the outskirts of Goodwood.The vote was not well received by the approx-

imately 150 people in attendance at the specialcouncil meeting held in the community centreat the arena. After the vote was taken, a largeportion of the crowd left the building, whileanother group remained behind to shout at thecouncillors in disapproval. Throughout the 90-minute proceedings, council was frequently in-terrupted by shouted questions and objectionsfrom the audience.Mayor Dave Barton recognized that the meet-

ing had the potential to be volatile and openedthe meeting by telling the audience: "This isnot personal. We have to do what is best for the

town."For many in the crowd, however, it was per-

sonal. They wanted to know why no one wasallowed to address council on their behalf afterhearing three farmers speak in favour of theproposed grain mill. Barton's explanation ofthe procedure under which deputants areadded to council's agenda did not mollifythem.

In response to many angry, shouted com-ments and questions, Barton constantly askedthe crowd to be respectful, to which one resi-dent replied: "You're not being respectful ofus."

At the start of the meeting, Pam Beach, coun-cillor for Ward 1, which includes Goodwood,excused herself from the premises after declar-ing "a perceived pecuniary conflict of interest"because of what she termed "residents' bullyingand stress."

Former Uxbridge regional councillor Howie

Herrema, who owns a large farming operationnorth of Uxbridge, spoke in favour of the mill,saying it will enable local farmers to sell theirgrain competitively and will benefit farmersacross Durham Region. His son, Gerrit, notedthat farmers in the area are being affected bysuch things as Brexit, NAFTA, the carbon taxand moves by India and China to ban certainCanadian farm products.

Zac Cohoon of Scugog, representing theDurham Region Federation of Agriculture, saidhis group also supported the Grainboys appli-cation. He said everything grown in Durhamleaves the region by truck, while the mill willallow farmers to process their grain locally.In reading a summary of her report on the ap-

plication, copies of which were available to theaudience, township planning consultant Eliza-beth Howson said several provincial policies

...continued on page 2

Contentious Grainboys by-law approved during raucous meeting

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and acts came into play when assess-ing the application. She said a reviewof the concerns raised by residents,such as noise, dust, weeds etc., "indi-cates that the facility can be designedto address the concerns." Apart fromdesign considerations, Howson saidthe weed issue will be addressed bythe township appointing a weed in-spector to monitor the mill regularly.

On truck traffic, Howson said thenumber of trucks in the area will notincrease significantly and truck deliv-eries to the mill will be confined tothe hours between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.The fire department has not identi-

fied any concerns about fire safety,but will be involved in the designstage to ensure the fire and buildingcodes are in play, she said. She recom-mended the application be approved,noting that no decision would beworse than approving or disapprov-ing the application.

Howson noted that the applicantcould have taken his case to the LocalPlanning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT)150 days after first filing for the zon-ing bylaw amendment if no decisionhad been reached. She pointed outthat the time elapsed is more thandouble that. The application was firstreceived by the township on April 27,2018, and notices of the completeapplication and public meeting weremailed out May 11, 2018.Planning committee chair Regional

Councillor Gord Highet introducedthree amendmentsto her recommen-dation to addsome extra protec-tion to residents.One requires a firesafety plan for in-dustrial occupan-cies to mitigateany risk; anotherrequires a detailedweed control planfor the facility;and the third re-quires detaileddrawings of theproposed project"which illustratesto the satisfactionof the TownshipCouncil that thedevelopment is inkeeping with thenature of the sur-rounding agricul-tural area."

Anyone wishingto appeal council'sdecision has 20days to take thecase to LPAT.Meanwhile, saidHowson, it willtake more than ayear for council togo through theprocess of siteplanning andbuilding design.

Thursday, April 11, 20192The Uxbridge Cosmos

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Council receives more unexpected cash:Pickering Uxbridge MPP Peter Beth-lenfalvy delivered a cheque for$725,000 from the provincial gov-ernment to Uxbridge council lastFriday. e money is to "improveservice delivery and efficiency."

e money is in addition to twopayments earlier this year from thefederal gas tax, each amounting tomore than $600,000.

However, Councillor Bruce Gar-rod, head of the finance committee,explained that there are limitations -set by the federal and provincial gov-ernments - on what the money canbe used for: it cannot be used to re-duce the property tax increase an-nounced a couple of weeks ago.

Mayor Dave Barton said councilwill discuss how the extra money willbe spent.Culvert work set to start: PublicWorks director Ben Kester told

TOWN HALLby Roger VarleyNotes from the April 8Council Meeting

council on Monday morning thatwork on the Brock Street culvert willresume by the end of the month.Kester said demolition of two stores

on the south side of Brock Street willbegin after Easter, as will work on awater main, which will see a tempo-rary closure of Brock Street.Bigger, better Farmers’ Market: In adeputation, Diane Reilly, a volunteerwith the Uxbridge Farmers’ Market,said the market will be re-openingMay 19 and will operate every Sun-day until Oct. 27 from 9 a.m. to 2p.m.

Reilly said the market has addedmore vendors this year and will beholding a number of special events,including a pet festival on June 9, ahealth and healing festival on July 7and a garlic lovers festival on Aug.25. Also included will be a HarvestMoon festival held at night on Sat-urday, Sept. 14.

For three of those special events,Reilly asked that Victoria Street beclosed to allow additional vendors tobe brought in.New chief bylaw officer: Council hasquietly installed Kristina Bergeron asthe township's new manager ofbylaw services, replacing the de-parted Andre Gratton.

Two weeks ago, council passed acouple of bylaws naming Bergeronas a property standards officer and aprovincial offences officer. However,on Monday, council received a re-port from Bergeron under the titleManager of Bylaw Services.

CORRECTIONLast week's Cosmos incorrectly stated thatZephyr Road will be closed between Conces-sions 5 and 6 for four months. The road willactually be closed for four weeks. The Cosmosapologizes for the error.

by Nancy Melcher

Do you feel like letting it all go andlaughing like crazy this weekend? e lat-est offering from OnStage Uxbridge(OSU) will be just the thing, then.

Playing at the Uxbridge Music Hall, AFunny ing Happened on the Way to theForum takes place on a street in ancientRome. It’s the story of a slave who at-tempts to earn his freedom by helping hisyoung master woo the girl next door. It’sgot funny musical numbers, mistakenidentity, desperate lovers, schemingneighbours, exotic dancers, and satiricalcomments on social class. Forum is a light, fast-paced comedy fea-

turing witty, irreverent dialogue andsongs destined to become earworms! Di-rector Cheryl Atwood describes it as “tra-ditional Roman comedy, combined witha dash of classic Vaudeville, giving youone-two punch humour in this slightlybawdy and totally frenetic Broadwaymasterpiece.”

is is conductor Cyndie Jacobs’ fifth

production with OSU. About the music,Jacobs says, “It’s Stephen Sondheim. He’sknown for upbeat rhythms and verycatchy tunes.”

A small group of actors, the Proteans,provide heaps of comic relief. Indeed,three tall men (each over six feet) and onemuch shorter woman create an interest-ing dynamic and provide much of the“muscle” for quick scene changes. e setis simple, with three quite differenthouses creating a defined space for the ac-tion. ere’s good use of different levelswith some cast appearing in upper win-dows or on a roof, and others using stair-cases that lead down onto the main floor.

e cast is strong and keep the pacemoving throughout the play. Costumesare simple but effective, and provide boldsplashes of colour! e choreography ofthe courtesans is interesting, with each“girl” showing off her unique talents.ere really IS “something for everyone.”For tickets, visit starticketing.com or be

at the Music Hall box office a half hourbefore the show.

Thursday, April 11, 20193The Uxbridge Cosmos

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A note from Dave’s deskcolumn by Mayor Dave Barton

Spring-ing into action

After a rough winter, it feels likespring is finally in the air! It’s a timewhen a lot more of us venture out-side and when we can look forwardto enjoying fresh local produce atour Farmers’ Market. April also brings in four months of

our new council and we certainlyhave been very busy. Here’s a briefupdate:1. Culvert - We inherited a complexbut crucial project which was stalledas land had not been secured. Ourtownship has now purchased theland at the site of Coffee Time/CircleK and we can now move forward indealing with our flood plain andend-of-life culvert, which is an im-portant step in insuring the safetyand prosperity of our downtown.Purchasing this property also enablesus to have control over a criticalpiece of our downtown.

2. Local and regional budgets - eregional tax increase came in at 1.89per cent and the local increase was4.89 per cent. e majority of ourlocal increase is to keep ahead of ourinfrastructure deficit and ensure thatour municipality remains financiallysecure. 3. Pump Park - Opportunities forrecreation are essential for any town.I am pleased to report that our On-tario Trillium Grant application forthe pump park has been approved.is will be an excellent addition tothe Fields of Uxbridge. is park willbe a reality because of our incredibleservice clubs working together withour township to ensure that it con-tinues to be a priority.

e township portion of this$350,000 project is $75,000 and itis being funded by parkland devel-opment charges, not property taxes.

A Funny Thing is funny!

Young violin player ready toshow his talent to Uxbridge

e other funding partners are theOntario Trillium Foundation, theUxbridge Rotary Club, the UxbridgeOptimist Club, the Durham Moun-tain Biking Association and theDurham Shredders. 4. Grainboys - I understand thatmany residents of Goodwood are nothappy with the Grainboys decision.Please remember that our job is tomake decisions that are defendable atthe tribunal with solid advice fromour planner and other experts. Weare sorry that you are disappointed.We voted for what we feel is best forthe municipality and our agriculturalcommunity.

We have plenty of work to do butwe are well-positioned to achievegreat things in the coming years.ese are some of the items on ourto do list: redevelop the downtown,replace the Uxpool, lobby for a newhospital, improve accessibility andtransit in the township, improvehigh speed Internet, improve ourlocal trail system and develop theFields of Uxbridge.

is is just a brief summary ofwhat’s happening at the township.As always, I am accessible throughsocial media, email and phone.To reach anyone on council go on-

line to uxbridge.ca/councilStay truly informed and engaged,

Uxbridge!

Cosmos readers aren’t likely to re-member that, in January 2014, wefeatured a ‘Cup of Hot Chocolate’with then 11-year old Uxbridge vio-linist Duncan McDougall. Five yearshave sped by, and Duncan is now anaccomplished young man ready topresent his talents in a recital thisweekend.

A student at the Taylor Perform-ance Academy (Royal Conservatoryof Music in Toronto) and studyingwith Kelly Parkins-Linstrom andJonathan Crow, Duncan has honedhis violin performance to focus onclassical music and playing in variousorchestras. He is currently workingon his Associate of the Royal Con-servatory (ARCT), and plays in theAcademy Chamber Orchestra at theTaylor Academy, as well as in theToronto Symphony Youth Orches-tra, of which he is the co-concert-master.

A grade 11 student at UxbridgeSecondary School, Duncan’s “typicalday” appears to be anything but typ-ical. “On weekdays, I practice aboutfive hours a day. On Friday after-noons I have my lessons, then Fridayevening I have chamber music re-hearsals and attend masterclasses.On Saturday mornings and after-noons I have rehearsal with theAcademy chamber orchestra as wellas academic classes, and after that Irehearse with the Toronto Sym-phony Youth Orchestra.”

One recent notable achievement -Duncan won the Toronto Sym-phony Youth Orchestra’s concertocompetition, and had the opportu-

nity to perform Mozart’s Violin Con-certo No. 4 in D major, K. 218, withthe Toronto Symphony last Novem-ber.

At this Sunday’s recital, which isbeing presented as part of the TaylorAcademy program, Duncan says theaudience can expect fairly familiarclassical repertoire. e pieces areones Duncan will be competing withat the Canadian Music Competition.ese include a sonata by J.S. Bach,a concerto by Mozart, and otherpieces by Camille Saint-Saëns, Pa-ganini, Mendelssohn, and Kreisler.

“ere are some very intense mo-ments in the Saint-Saëns, and somevery beautiful moments in theMendelssohn. e Mozart is lively,and the Bach is serious. It’s all veryenjoyable repertoire. I have fun play-ing it, and I hope the audience willhave fun listening! Also, it’s the per-fect length, a bit more than an hourof music!”

Once the last note dies away, how-ever, Duncan doesn’t plan to take abreak. He was recently accepted intoMorningside Music Bridge, which isa summer music program held at theNew England Conservatory inBoston. When university applicationtime rolls around, he’ll be audition-ing at universities and conservatoriesin both Canada and the UnitedStates.

Duncan McDougall’s recital is thisSunday, April 14, at 2 p.m., TrinityUnited Church. Admission is free,and donations to either the FoodBank or the Uxbridge Music Schol-arship Trust would be appreciated.

Thursday, April 11, 20194The Uxbridge Cosmos

As the culvert project gets under way,again, we should be looking at a per-manent way to stop the heavy graveltrucks, once and for all, from enter-ing downtown Uxbridge. This hasbeen a thorn in our side for decades.

As the project proceeds, all trafficwill be re-routed around the con-struction site. Then is the time tomake that change permanent.Time is a-wasting for this and many

of other planning decisions to bemade.Let’s not lose this opportunity.

George PrattUxbridge

I was very interested in Wynn Wal-ters comments in the April 4 Cosmos[Letters to the Editor] about our ail-ing downtown.For 13 years I have heard people say,

“How can we attract people toUxbridge?” I say, why should theycome to Uxbridge?We have to ask ourselves first - what

is Uxbridge? Is it a Quaker village, afarm community, a place where waterruns north or just another clone ofthe Scarborough, Ontario, of some40 years ago?

Toronto Street has become ourKennedy Rd. Ugly buildings, poorparking planning and not very peo-ple friendly. A developer’s money pit.Why are we not attracting touristsand their money to Uxbridge? Wehave the assets of Centennial Parkand Uxbridge creek, etc. The waterruns north. Try explaining that to aTorontonian. They’ll come toUxbridge just to prove you wrong!We are about to spend $20 million

to dig up, fill in, pave over and getright back to what we have NOW, adowntown with no character. Some-times we only see what we want tosee. Why not use our assets instead ofburying them for all NOT to see!DAYLIGHTING. It’s forward think-ing that opens the river to the sky, so

it doesn’t become a liability in the fu-ture but an attraction for now andinto the future.

Click on the site noted below. Itshows what Dartmouth, Nova Sco-tia, is doing with federal assistance.Daylighting is used to create a peopleplace. Metal grating over the river isused instead of black tar so the riveris open to traffic and to the view ofthe residence and the curiosity of thevisiting public. Water is a beautifulthing.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUFE-MUjCbA

We have the assets to create the at-traction that will make outsidersWANT to come to Uxbridge withtheir money and for the residents tobe proud and enjoy their downtown.Like the lake is to Port Perry.

Centennial Park will be more opento the visitor. They don’t even knowit exists. Its hidden behind the build-ings on Toronto and Brock.

Bring the river to life. Let it breathfrom the south to the Tin Mill andbeyond.Wynn, you are right, we don’t need

more commercial downtown oppor-tunities for the self-employed to pos-sibly lose their capital or assume a lifestyle that is just above the povertylevel. Let’s get out of this “mainte-nance mode” and think about thetown we really want it to be.

Donald G. IrwinUxbridge

I’m writing in regards to the revital-ization of our downtown, post-cul-vert repair. I agree with what manyhave said in that a parkette/greenspace where folks can sit and enjoyan outdoor meal, perhaps with asmall stage that could be a venue forlive music or theatrical productions,is exactly what is needed in the centerof town.

In terms of building design andwhat they house, I liked the designs

that Mayor Barton had proposed lastyear and were featured in the Cosmos.It would be nice if the town had ahotel but I think the site of the oldfire hall would be perfect for that. Ahotel right in the middle of townwould be a bit of an eye-sore and theparking lot would take most of theallocated space. Trying to attract in-dependent businesses instead wouldgo a long way towards maintaining aviable downtown for residents and aunique destination for visitors.

Thank you for your outstandingservice to our community,

Eli LewisUxbridge

On March 16, the by-law enforcercame to ask me to chop the little ice(about a yard square) near my corner.I said that, at 90 years old, I was notgoing to, and offered to loan him myshovel. He declined! I wonder if theperson who complained could nothave walked on the road, then up mybare, dry drive onto my bare, drysidewalk!

I salted the area and went the nextday to see the results (all good), andupon return, slipped inside my frontdoor. A very kind couple heard meknocking on my storm door insideand came to my rescue, as I could notget up!

They called the ambulance, mykids, etc., and I had a broken hip.Many thanks to them both - I don’tremember their names - and to theconsiderate paramedics who took meto Oshawa hospital.Many thanks to all my kind friends

and neighbours for their cards, callsand good wishes for me. Bah hum-bug to the town for not clearing sen-iors’ sidewalks, when there seems tobe money for other things!

Donna KnoxUxbridge

Letters to the Editor

It's fair to say that most of the people who attended Monday night's specialcouncil meeting on the Grainboys zoning bylaw amendment application leftthe meeting feeling disgruntled, discouraged, angry and/or frustrated.

That is understandable. No one likes to see major changes to their neigh-bourhood. We all want our little corner of the world to remain as it is, becausewe've become comfortable with the way it looks and feels. And the construc-tion of a large grain processing plant, complete with a number of tall silos,will change the look and feel of Goodwood to some extent.That said, however, after months and months of working on this particular

file, council could not find any reasonable excuse for denying the application.The Cosmos has a history of taking council to task for making what we thinkare bad decisions, for supporting badly thought-out bylaws or for approvingwhat we believe to be unnecessary expenditures; in this case we can't findany concrete reason to criticize council. Every piece of correspondence hasbeen read, all the concerns raised by residents have been addressed extensivelyand measures have been or will be put in place to make sure the Grainboysoperation does not negatively affect its neighbours. Indeed, planning com-mittee chair Regional Councillor Gord Highet introduced three amendmentsto the planning consultant's recommendations that will further protectGoodwood residents from unwanted consequences. Both council and theplanning consultant wrestled long and hard with questions about noise, dust,weeds, rodents, truck traffic, fire and such and decided they can be handledeffectively. It's what council was elected to do: make hard and sometimes un-popular decisions. By taking a recorded vote, the councillors showed theywere not afraid to make a difficult and unpopular decision.As for those who complained council didn't listen to them, what they really

meant was council didn't give them what they wanted.Unfortunately, the result of Monday's council meeting was not good enough

for those who left feeling disgruntled, discouraged, angry and/or frustrated.Nothing short of complete rejection of the application would have appeasedthem. But council cannot ignore the provincial laws that govern how suchapplications are handled. To do so would be breaking the law and wouldquickly lead to an appeal by the applicant to the Local Planning Appeal Tri-bunal (LPAT). Such an appeal would cost the township hundreds of thou-sands of dollars in legal fees. The same will hold true if the residents ofGoodwood decide to appeal council's decision to LPAT.It is also unfortunate that some of those in attendance conducted themselves

as they did. No matter how strongly they felt about the subject, there was nocall for some them to threaten, menace and berate councillors. We applaudMayor Dave Barton for maintaining his cool and attempting to calm peopledown. They also interrupted the planning consultant and the fire chief, who were

merely doing their jobs. They questioned the motives of three farmers whospoke in favour of the mill operation. They would accept no comments orstatements that went counter to what they wanted.

Council was bound by municipal and provincial law when addressing thisre-zoning application, and it appears that all the i’s were dotted and the t’scrossed. It’s now apparent that an entire community of I’s are more than alittle cross. Grainboys won’t end here, that’s for certain.

Our two centsYa just can’t please all the people all the time

9,500 copies of The Cosmos are published each Thursday in the Township ofUxbridge: 8,800 delivered by mail, 700 available in stores and boxes.

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38 Toronto Street North, Unit One, Uxbridge Ontario L9P 1E6e-mail: Lvann@thecosmos.ca web site: www.thecosmos.ca

Office Hours: Monday - Thursday 9:30 a.m. - 5 p.m., Friday to 4 p.m.

EDITORIAL POLICY: Opinions expressed by columnists, contributors and in letters to the editor are not necessarilythose of The Cosmos. Letters must be signed and the telephone number provided (number will not be pub-lished). Requests that a name be withheld will be honoured only if there is a compelling reason. Errors broughtto our attention will be corrected. The Cosmos reserves the right to edit and/or refuse to publish unsolicitedmaterial. ADVERTISING POLICY: Ad deadline is 12 noon Tuesday the week of publication. The Cosmos reservesthe right to refuse any advertisement. The Cosmos is not liable for slight changes or typographical errors inadvertisements or any other errors or omissions in advertisements. All material herein, including advertisingdesign, is copyrighted, and may not be reproduced in any form without permission.

Thursday, April 11, 20195The Uxbridge Cosmos

Do the schools at any level still teach civics?Did they ever?It would seem the answer to both questions

is "no," given the way a number of peopleacted at Monday night's special councilmeeting. Note the last two words: "councilmeeting." Admittedly, the somewhat Spar-tan surroundings of the community centrewere a far cry from the regular councilchamber, but the decorum one would ex-pect in the chamber should be on displaywherever council meets.

The meeting was moved to the Arena be-cause council knew a lot of people would beon hand for the Grainboys decision andthey wanted to accommodate them. Awareit is a volatile issue, Mayor Dave Barton ac-knowledged that fact in his first utterance.

"This is not personal," he said and askedthe crowd - quite often throughout theevening - to be respectful.But after hearing three deputants - all local

farmers - speaking in favour of the Grain-boys application, some of the crowd becamerestless, asking why these three were able tospeak, but there was no one speaking fortheir anti-Grainboys side. The mayor had toexplain how one goes about being a dep-utant and getting listed on the agenda.

Then the questions started flying andMayor Barton once again had to explaincouncil procedures. It's all basic stuff thatpeople really should know. Do these folksreally think they'd be allowed to yell ques-tions at the members in Queen's Park or onParliament Hill? I hope the answer is, ofcourse not. Where do they get the idea it'sokay at the municipal level? Besides that,printed right there on the agenda that wasavailable to the public, after the listed dep-utations, correspondence, reports, etc., wasthe phrase QUESTION PERIOD.

After council voted - unanimously, in arecorded vote - in favour of the Grainboysapplication, a large segment of the crowdleft the room en masse, but another segmentbegan yelling at the councillors, steppingforward what seemed to me a rather a men-acing manner, wagging their fingers because. . . because what? Because council, actingwithin the constraints of the Municipal Act,the Planning Act and other provincial legis-

lation, having considered the reports of thetown's planning consultant, Liz Howson,Fire Chief Phil Alexander and other staffmembers, as well as the mountain of corre-spondence they received, did the only thingthey could. I repeat: the only thing theycould.

For all concerned in this ongoing saga -(all, that is, but the residents of Goodwood)- the various concerns raised by those op-posed to the Grainboys mill have been ad-dressed and resolved and there is nodefendable way they could oppose it. Thefact that council approved the applicationunanimously would seem to prove thatcouncillors could not find any reason todeny the application.

I'm aware the residents of Goodwood feelstrongly about this proposed mill. I'magainst it myself, because I don't want to seea bank of silos cluttering up a pleasantstretch of road. But that's not a goodenough excuse to stop the project. Andyelling and screaming and stamping my feetis not going to change that.Now, it's quite possible that some in Good-

wood are thinking of appealing council's de-cision to the Local Planning AppealTribunal (LPAT), something they are quiteat liberty to do. But think on this. You'll notonly be paying the lawyer who representsyou, you'll also be helping to pay - throughyour taxes - the township's lawyer, who willoppose you.Gerrit Herrema put an interesting spin on

the whole subject by giving the crowd abrief lesson in geo-politics. Brexit, the un-ratified NAFTA agreement, moves againstCanadian farmers by China and India, therecently imposed carbon tax - all affect ourlocal farmers and farmers throughoutDurham Region. Having a local receiver fortheir grains is, as Gerrit said, "a good thing."More importantly, however, his comments

show that none of us can live in isolationfrom the rest of the world. It has a way ofintruding, whether we like it or not. Itseems to me that the residents of Goodwoodneed to learn that lesson, harsh as it mightbe.Tell me, am I wrong?

The countryside outside Courcelette, inFrance, is not particularly remarkable. The landrolls innocuously through farmyards, bluffs oftrees and tiny rural villages where, this time ofyear, people are tilling the soil for planting.Amid the oats, barley and rape seed that farm-ers are cultivating in this part of France, a fam-ily arrived from Canada, this past week. NearCourcelette, that family – equally unassum-ingly – came to a small cemetery last Sundayafternoon. One of its youngest members, RyanRobertson, stood in the cemetery and didsomething unusual. He spoke in front of hisfamily and some of his Uxbridge classmatesabout a cousin who died here in France 103years ago.

“Oliver Barton arrived in the country in thesummer of 1916,” said Ryan, reading fromnotes he’d prepared specially for the occasion.“Assigned to the 13th Battalion, on Oct. 8(1916), Private Barton left his trench. But hisbattalion was practically wiped out by Germanmachine-gun fire.”Ryan, who turns 16 this month, doesn’t speak

in public this way very often. But because oneof his teachers at Uxbridge Secondary School,Tish Macdonald, invited him to research thestories of Canadian veterans and war dead,Ryan prepared the story of his first cousinthree-times-removed – Pte. Oliver Robert Bar-ton. Then, last Sunday afternoon, as part of aRemembrance Tour he and his fellow USS stu-dents are taking through France, Belgium andHolland, Ryan recounted how Barton “did notanswer the call the next day … Some weekslater his body was found three farm fields to theeast of here.”

But Ryan’s audience wasn’t all students lastSunday. Beside him were his grandparents,Lewis and Gayle Gregor (Oliver Barton wasGayle’s great uncle), and his parents Leanneand Jason Gregor (Uxbridge-based pilot andvolunteer firefighter). But the Gregor familyhad other wartime history to share with the twobus coaches of students and other USS parentsthere that day at Adanac cemetery nearCourcelette. A few rows of tombstones away,Ryan’s dad, Jason, offered the teenagers andadult history buffs another story.

Next to a gravestone identifying the remainsof James Richardson, private and piper for the16th Infantry (Canadian Scottish) Battalion,Jason Gregor recounted Richardson’s momentof inspiration and valour. On the morning ofOct. 9, 1916, Richardson’s Canadian Scottishcomrades needed a final boost to lift them over

the top in a rush to capture Regina Trench, nearCourcelette. The men around him experienceddoubt about what they’d face in no man’s land.Undoubtedly many were afraid. Suddenly, asJason Gregor explained, piper Richardson ap-proached his commanding officer.“Sir, shall I give ’em some wind?” he asked.“Yes. Give ’em some wind,” his CO answered.

And piper Richardson, age 20, leapt to the topof the parapet and played his pipes to help hiscomrades out of their trenches. Then, the piperfollowed them into battle. As the fighting sub-sided, Richardson brought a wounded comradeto safety, and then he turned back to retrievehis bagpipes. But he was never seen alive againand his pipes disappeared too. Richardson re-ceived a posthumous Victoria Cross.

“In 1917, a British chaplain found a set ofbagpipes and they were taken to Scotlandwhere the chaplain taught school,” Jason Gre-gor said. “It wasn’t until 2003 when the pipeswere identified, returned to Canada and dis-played.”When Jason had finished his recounting of the

story, a piper in the tour, one of the USS chap-erones, Mike MacDonald, played a lament forpiper Richardson. Off to one side, Lewis Gre-gor, dressed in regimental kilt, coat and cap,saluted. “We don’t think any member of ourfamily’s ever been to Oliver’s grave,” Lew Gre-gor said.

It was an extraordinary day for the youngestmembers of the tour. Ryan Robertson and hisfellow students of Uxbridge Secondary Schoolrealized they’d done something remarkable …in an unremarkable place. They’d literallytouched history that’s a century old. And they’dlikely never forget it. They had – by their phys-ical presence – given Barton’s and Richardson’scentury-old stories a lift by remembering them.They’d “given ’em some wind.”And those farmers I mentioned earlier? Along

with the farm fields they’ve been cultivatingand planting, they’ve been conducting what’scalled “the iron harvest.” Tucked up against theoutside of the Adanac cemetery wall, our groupfound an artillery shell intact, that a farmer inthe area must have uncovered in one of hisfields – a leftover piece of ordnance from theGreat War, and just another reminder, thedarkness of war in Europe over a hundred yearsago will not quickly go away.

For more Barris Beat columns, go to www.tedbarris.com

The Barris Beatcolumn by Ted Barris

Give ‘em some wind

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Am I Wrong?column by Roger Varley

Civics 101

Thursday, April 11, 20196The Uxbridge Cosmos

THIS WEEKENDThurs., April 11: GoodwoodUnited Church Ham Dinner. Good-wood Community Centre, 5 - 7 p.m.Ham, maple syrup, scalloped potatoes &dessert, $20 per person. Tickets at thedoor. Fri., April 12: Oak Ridges Trail As-sociation Hike, 9:30 a.m. Walker

Woods West. 10+ km, Fast, 2+ hr. hilly“there and back” hike. Contact: RussBurton 905-830-2862Sat., April 13: Oak Ridges TrailAssociation Hike, 7 a.m. Al Shaw. 1hr., 4 km moderate pace hike. Contact:Russ Burton 905-830-2862Fri., April 12: Epsom-Utica UnitedChurch Ham & Scallop PotatoSupper. Utica Hall 4:30 - 7 p.m. Adults

$15, Youth $8Sat., April 13: 'Chiaroscuro', Mon-day Morning Singers. St. Paul's An-glican Church, 7:30 p.m. Directed byAnne Mizen, accompanied by DorothyRice. Concert features local composerChristos Hatzis' composition “AgnusDei.” Tickets $20 at Presents Presents orat the door. mondaymorningsingers.comSun., April 14: Holy Week at St.Paul’s Anglican Church begins withPalm Sunday service. Candlelight Com-munion on Mon., Tues., Wed. & MaundyThursday at 7:30 p.m. Solemn Good Fri-day services at 9:15, 11:15 a.m. EasterCommunion on Sun., April 21. Info: 905-852-7016 and stpauls-uxbridge.caSun., April 14: Violin Recital byDuncan McDougall, Trinity UnitedChurch, 2 p.m. Free admission. Pleasebring a donation for the Loaves andFishes Food Bank or the Uxbridge MusicScholarship Trust. For more info emailmcdougallduncan06@gmail.com

NEXT WEEK

Mon., April 15: Claremont Gar-den Club - Scary Bugs and theWonders of Insects in your Gar-den. Claremont United Church, 7 p.m.Guest speaker Malcolm Geast. Refresh-ments (bring your mug). Free for mem-bers, $5 for guests. No need to be aClaremont resident. Follow on Facebookor visit claremontgardenclub.ca Tues., April 16: Seniors’ Lunch-eon. Annual Italian luncheon, cateredby Mary Evans. Uxbridge Seniors’ Cen-tre, 12 noon. Tickets $10 for members,available at Community Care office.Only 80 tickets available. No ticket salesat door.Fri., April 19: Trinity UnitedChurch Good Friday Service. 10a.m.Fri., April 19: Good Friday Walk.St. Paul’s Anglican Church, 1:30 p.m. Aprayerful walk through the neighbour-hood with reflections on contemporarystations of the cross & remembering themost vulnerable. Info: 905-852-7016and stpauls-uxbridge.caFri., April 19: Good Friday Con-

cert: Buxtehude: Membra Jesu Nostri',performed by Cantorei Sine Nomine,conducted by Stuart Beaudoin, St Paul'sAnglican Church Ministry for the Arts, 4p.m. Tickets: $ 10 at the door, childrenfree. Info: stpauls-uxbridge.caSat., April 20: Third Annual Bar-ton Farms Easter Egg Hunt. Her-rema Fields, 10 a.m. Open to all kids,free of charge.Sun., April 21: Trinity UnitedChurch SONRISE Service. UxbridgeMuseum Grounds, 6:30 a.m. Breakfastto follow at Trinity United Church. All arewelcome.Sun., April 21: Trinity UnitedChurch Special Easter Service. 10a.m. All are welcome. Refreshments tofollow service.COMING UP is a free community bul-letin board. If you have a communityevent for a charity or non-profit organiza-tion that you’d like us to mention (ASSPACE PERMITS), email Lvann@thecos-mos.ca or call 905-852-1900. The dead-line for our next issue is 12 noonTuesday.

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CHAPMAN, Allan RossJanuary 25, 1926 ~ March 29, 2019

Peacefully, with family at his side, Allan Ross Chapman passed awayat Peterborough Regional Health Centre on Friday, March 29, just twomonths into his 94th year. Born and raised in Toronto, Allan moved to Siloam as a young manand met Shirley Chapman (née Wallace), the love of his life, andtogether raised their family. Allan was, at various points in his career,a mechanic, plumber, private pilot and plant superintendent, but mostimportantly, a loving husband and father. A personal highlight was his

20 years as the MC of the Boots and Saddles Western Horse Club, where he was affectionately knownas “Uncle Al, the kiddies pal.” At 49, Allan retired and moved to Peterborough, and not being one tostand still for any length of time, continued to use his skills to help others. He was an active volunteerin the Bridgenorth seniors community. He loved Tai Chi, old movies and musicals, jigsaw puzzles,company and butter tarts.Allan is survived by Shirley, his wife of 68 years, sisters Evelyn (Tom) and Norma (Bert), children Anne(Rick), Brenda, Terry (Betty), grandchildren Sara, Josh, Dawn, Jamie, Jennifer and Janine, and great-grandchildren Hayden, Axle, Mya, Sofia and Noelle. Allan was predeceased byparents Harry and Flossie Chapman and brothers Harry and Hartley.A special thank you to the nurses at PRHC for their tender cardand understanding during his recent stays. In lieu of gifts,please visit or take a veteran out for a coffee and a chat.Allan was proud to be a veteran, and on several occasionswas part of the Honour Party at the Remembrance Dayparade in Bridgenorth.A service will be held at Gilmour Memorial BaptistChurch, 2083 Chemong Road, Selwyn, Ontario, K9J6X2, on Saturday, April 13, 2019, at 1 p.m., followedby a reception in the church hall.

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7The Uxbridge Cosmos Thursday, April 11, 2019

SERVICESPROFESSIONAL RENOVATOR. Framelessshower doors. Shower conversion. Cabinet refacing.Painting. Full project start to finish in-house, no sub-contractors. Call Mark at 647-385-7334. 5/30DO YOUR OLD PHOTOS NEEDRESTORATION? Boxes of slides taking up room?Preston Gallery/BiA Photography at 77 Brock St.W.(Uxbridge) specializing in restorations and scanning.Stop in or call Sabrina 905-550-8825 3/28DECKS & FENCING: Does your deck or fence needrepair? We specialize in decks & fencing. No deck istoo small or big. Very competitive prices, 20 years’experience, 2-year written warranty, free estimates.For all your outside upgrades & projects, contact RBCDecks. Ron, 416-705-9993. 4/25DOG-HAPPY Dog Training - Playing ‘GAMESthat TRAIN’ teach real life skills like focus, calmness,loose leash walking, impulse control and recall whilebuilding an incredible relationship with your dog!Best of all, games provide a fun and powerfullearning platform! Contact Julie 416-735-2117 |julie@dog-happy.ca | dog-happy.ca 4/18JASON’S PROPERTY MAINTENANCE.Eavestrough cleaning, grass cutting, spring cleanupsand all your outdoor maintenance needs. Call

Rosemarie at 905-862-2644. 4/11TUTOR: I provide private tutoring in my home forelementary, high school, college and universitystudents. I also tutor adults who wish to improvetheir Mathematics and Literacy skills. 905-852-1145. 4/30OLE’ HANDYMAN. Waterproofing + mould.Electrical & plumbing. Licensed, insured &guaranteed. Big or small. Kitchen, bath,stonework, cement, basements, flooring, pot lights.Bobcat. 46 years’ experience. Financing. Seniordiscount. 905-473-5197 or 647-225-3311 (cell).4/25ALEXANDER COMPUTER SERVICES: Qualityrepair and sales from a local, experiencedprofessional. Call 416-629-6626 (ask for Kevin) orvisit www.alexandercs.com 4/25EXPERIENCE THE COMFORT OF A GREATBRA. The Girls Bra Boutique, 6316 Main St.,Stouffville. 905-642-3339. An uplifting experience!4/25 HOME-WATCH HOUSE/PET SITTINGSERVICES: Voted #1 for Protecting Your Home andCaring for Your Pets. Home Owners have trustedHeather Stewart for 16 years for her reliability anddetailed professionalism. Property Services/DogWalking/Cat Sitting/Doggie Sleep-Overs! Visit

home-watch.ca for more info on Heather’s services.Call or text 905-852-8525, follow us on Instagram- HomeWatchUxbridge 4/25

HELP WANTEDRELIABLE, PART-TIME HELP WANTED forgardening and light yard maintenance. Call Tom at905-852-6077. 4/11WANTED: Person for part time work at an orchardand vegetable garden in Leaskdale. 2 + days perweek. Darryl, 416-346-6349. 4/11UXBRIDGE FALL FAIR. Volunteers neededbefore, during and after the fair, September 6 to 8.Contact Bev at 905-862-0966 orchalnger@sympatico.ca 4/25UNITED SOILS MANAGEMENT LTD. Stouffville,Ont. To start immediately, Benefits package after 3months. General Labour (full time/year round).$18 with advancement to grow. Monday - Friday, 7-5 (additional hours as required, includingweekends). Valid G Driver’s License & reliablevehicle required. Must supply own safety boots. DZDriver (full time/year round). $23 withadvancement to grow. Monday - Friday, 7-5(additional hours as required, including weekends).Valid DZ License & Driver’s Abstract. Onsite & localdriving only. Must supply own safety boots. Emailresumé to bobmckenzie@rogers.com 4/11MATURE, EXPERIENCED BARN HELP requiredfor small private horse boarding facility close toUxbridge. Alternate weekends, and 1 day/week.Call or Text to (905) 852-3207 or (416) 278-8168Milestone Farm. 4/25

EVENTSFREE BREAKFAST Sunday, April 21, at TrinityUnited Church after Easter SONRISE Service at 6:30a.m. at Uxbridge Museum. After breakfast, plan toattend our Special Easter Service at Trinity at 10 a.m.Everyone welcome. Call Bob Kirvan, 905-852-9176for information. 4/18

CONCESSION 6 STUDIO SEASON OPENING!Art, Handcrafts, Woodworking. Saturday, April 13 &Sunday, April 14, 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. 11120 Conc. 6.www.concession6studio.com 4/11

CLASSIFIED

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Classifieds are $10/week up to 25 words; $0.10 per additional word (plus HST). Payable in advance by cash, cheque, debit or credit card. Contact Lvann@thecosmos.ca or 905-852-1900 Deadline: Tuesday, 12 noon. Ask about online link possibilities, too.

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8The Uxbridge Cosmos Thursday, April 11, 2019

On Tuesday morning, mere hours afterthe special council meeting at theUxbridge Arena regarding the Grain-boys Holdings Inc. application for re-zoning in Goodwood, the inbox at theCosmos was filled with letters fromthose present at the meeting. We are notable to publish all the letters in thisprint edition of the paper; however, therest of the letters can be found onlineat thecosmos.ca

Please note that, as always, some let-ters have been edited for length, andthe opinions/observations expressedbelow are those of the letter writer(s)and do not necessarily reflect those ofthe Uxbridge Cosmos. The lettersprinted here were randomly chosen tofit the space.

I have been a resident of Goodwoodfor 16+ years now; I have nothing“good” to say about the Township ofUxbridge. Over the years we’ve hadour fair share of conflict with thistownship, but yesterday eveningtakes the cake!It’s really sad to see how the mighty

dollar wins over the safety and well-being of the taxpaying residents ofGoodwood. It was evident that thecouncillors had made their decisionand avoided making eye contactwith the audience, because theyknew they had sold their souls to thedevil! It was nothing but a orches-trated charade! So much for democ-racy! It was literally dictated to us!

Highlights of the meeting: thederogatory comments made by Pam

Beach accusing the public of havingbeing bullied and being causedundue stress in front of 200 people!

e Fire Chief, Phil Alexander,laughing when questions arose fromthe public which he couldn’t answer!I don’t find any of this amusing anddefinitely not respectful to the pub-lic, who pays his salary!

Liz Howson - why is this womanstill working?! I heard someoneshout “Who paid you, Liz?” She cer-tainly did not seem to be working forus, the residents and taxpayers.

Gary Ruona, who represents Ward2 but lives in Ward 1, one word -traitor!

Gord Highet and Bruce Garrod -they were sympathetic and under-standing, then voted ‘yes’ anyway.

Final and closing thoughts - mayGod protect this beautiful hamletknown as Goodwood from the evilsnares and wickedness of the Town-ship of Uxbridge Council.

Laura DemmaGoodwood

Dave Barton put on quite a show lastnight at the council meeting, tryingto pass off the Grainboys facility as awholesome agriculture facility thatwould greatly help all the "hun-dreds" of farmers in the area.

It is NOT an agriculture facility, itis a large industrial facility and willbring with that all the problems thatputting an industrial plant in a resi-dential area would obviously present.ere are going to be [multiple] silos

which are six stories tall and will bein operation from six a.m. to mid-night.

If this facility belonged on theMoraine, there would not be a needto re-zone. ere are other close-bylocations where this plant couldbuild that are not in a residential areaand so close to existing businessesthat could be gravely affected by thisindustrial plant.

It is with such arrogance and nocommon sense Dave Barton and thecouncil refuse to address properly theconcerns of the residents and busi-nesses in the area.

Janice & Dave HarveyGoodwood

e whole special council meetinglast night was totally predeterminedand the exchange was one-sided.

e experts were not credible andnot in control of the facts, the mayorasked for respect,yet none shown tothe audience to participate/ask ques-tions, as the result the residents ofGoodwood had no opportunity toraise the questions.

I'm curious what kind of businesshazard it would take for Council toever say "NO"?

I’m really disappointed with themayor and council. e only right Ihave now is to move away fromGoodwood; my new house huntingstarts from today. It’s unfortunate, asI love Goodwood and have livedhere over 15 years.

Becky Quanxin ComerGoodwood

New Grainboys by-law elicits angry letters from Goodwood residents

by Lisha Van Nieuwenhove

Christos Hatzis is not an easy personto reach. He’s a busy composer, pro-fessor, and Juno-award winning mu-sician. One of his pieces, Agnus Dei,also happens to be the “headliner” atthis weekend’s Monday MorningSingers concert entitled“Chiaroscuro.”

e Cosmos did manage an emailinterview with Hatzis, and he an-swered questions so eloquently thatthe interview has simply been repro-duced here. It has been edited forlength; the entire interview can befound online at thecosmos.ca

Can you tell me a bit about theAgnus Dei? Is it a piece you composedspecifically for this concert? Has it beenperformed before? If yes, can you tell methe history of it? What inspired you tocompose it?e idea and all the essential mate-

rial of Agnus Dei emerged in their en-tirety in a dream over 20 years ago asa kind of slow developing ritual onthe well-known texts of the RomanCatholic Mass. is material foundits first incarnation as the closing

movement of a composition pre-miered by the internationallyrenowned group NExUS in 2004.After a few years there was a new re-thinking of this composition, thistime for the inauguration of the neworgan of the Rosedale UnitedChurch in Toronto. e third (and I

believe final) re-thinking of thiscomposition, isthe one we willhear for the firsttime on Saturdayevening, April13, in Uxbridgeperformed bybass clarinetistJeff Reilly, per-cussionist Bever-ley Johnston (mywife,) the Mon-day Morning Singers, the UxbridgeChamber Choir and all the audiencemembers under the direction ofAnne Mizen. is, I believe, is theversion that best matches that unset-tling dream of so many years ago. How does “Agnus Dei” encourage au-

dience participation?Despite its sonic complexity, the

musical idea at the heart of Agnus Deiis very simple and, even though thecomposition is 16 minutes long, allthe music for all the voices fits into asingle page. e audience is given asingle page of music along with the

concert program.Each of the fourparts, two forwomen and twofor men, repeatc o n s t a n t l ythroughout thecourse of themusic and theyare very easy tolearn. For thosewho do not trusttheir singingvoices, there is apart to be whis-

pered voicelessly, so there is some-thing that enables everyone toparticipate in this music-making ex-perience.

Have you worked with the Singersand/or the Chamber Choir before?Have they sung/performed your musicbefore?

Regrettably, the answer is “no” toboth questions. It is all my fault. Forthe longest time I thought ofUxbridge as the place where I livedwhile my musical home was the

world. In late 2017, I attended anamazing and moving concert by theMonday Morning Singers in thesame space as our upcoming per-formance and throughout the con-cert I was progressively overwhelmedby a sense of guilt about preachingcommunity and living in splendidisolation. After the concert, I ap-proached Anne and told her “I thinkI have an idea for a piece that willwork well with this choir and the au-dience. It will involve the music of adream that has been haunting me forages.” She graciously accommodatedmy request. Will you be at the concert?

I would not miss this for the world.It will be a difficult day for me, inwhich “Agnus Dei” will not be justwords. Two weeks ago, RebekahCummings, one of my most talentedcomposition students who graduatedwith a master’s degree last November,passed away. She was like a daughterto me. I will be in Ancaster for hermemorial that afternoon and then Iwill rush to Uxbridge for the per-formance. Henceforth, Agnus Deiwill be dedicated to her memory.In our days, Agnus Dei (the lamb of

God) is anyone who has the courageto play the balancing act of self-sac-rifice that attempts to stabilize an in-creasingly unbalanced world.

The Friendsof the

Uxbridge Library

MembershipDrive 2019

If you have a few hours to spare everymonth, the Friends of the Library

volunteers would love to have you join us.

Projects include • the visiting library service• shelf-reading and tidying• helping with the Reading Buddies

program• organizing friends-sponsored talks

and events

If you are interested, please emailyour contact information to

braunda222@gmail.com

Book DonationsThe Friends are looking for goodquality used books to sell on our

shelves at the lower library entrance.Book donations can be dropped off at

the library, or you can call the library oremail braunda222@gmail.com to

arrange a pickup. We do not acceptmanuals, magazines, encyclopedias or

damaged books.

An ‘unsettling dream’ becomes reality this weekend

Photo courtesy of Christos Hatzis

e Uxbridge Cosmos, the township’sonly hyper-local newspaper, won twoBetter Newspaper Competition(BNC) awards at the Ontario Com-munity Newspaper Association’s an-nual gala last Friday evening.e Cosmos took home first place in

the Community Service category forits “13 Ways” series. is nine-month long series, based on DougGriffiths’ book “13 Ways to Kill YourCommunity,” compared the town-ship of Uxbridge to the ‘ways’ out-lined in Griffiths’ book, andculminated with Griffiths deliveringa key-note presentation in Uxbridge. According to the judge, the Cosmos

“made this a topic that applied toevery single person living in yourcommunity, showing the good andthe not-so-good.”

Cosmos publisher/editor Lisha VanNieuwenhove placed third out ofmore than 20 entries from across theprovince for Humour Columnist ofthe Year. Her writing was describedby a judge as having “great mo-ments...that are very personal buttake a lighthearted look at oneselfand life. Brilliant.” e OCNA BNCs are awarded an-

nually to member community news-papers from across Ontario.Newspapers of similar circulationsize compete against each other andare judged by a panel of industry ex-perts.

Cosmos wins two provincialnewspaper awards