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Page 'Two GULF ISLANDS. DRIFTWOOD Wednesday, October 22, 1980 Ottawa report By Jim Manly, MP B.C. Tel's application for increased rates should not be approved. The Canadian Radio- Television and Telecommunications Commission, the body which has the power to approve or deny B.C. Tel's application, recently heard submissions in Victoria by those interested in stopping any rate increase. Among the briefs presented were two by Ray Skelly, M.P. for Comox-Powell River and myself. The following are excerpts from my submission: • B.C. Tel already enjoys a 12.84% return on investments and cannot claim lack of investor confidence as justification for an increase. • The proposed rate increase would saddle the people of B.C. with the $2 billion cost of B.C. Tel's expansion program. This program would primarily benefit other subsidiaries of the General Telephone and Electronics Corporation. The expansion program would eliminate some 850 jobs. The loss of these jobs, many in outlying areas, would result in deterioration of local services which often depend on local knowledge. • There has been no significant improvement in service since the 1977 rate increase which was granted with the understanding that service would be improved. SOURCE OF FRUSTRATION The poor service provided by B.C. Tel has become a constant source of frustration for many people in my riding, particularly Two calls Thanksgiving Day lived up to its name for the Salt Spring Island Fire Department. On Monday afternoon, Oct. 13, two alarms came in within minutes of each other. Report of Jay Small's boat sinking at Vesuvius Bay called out a truck and the report of a fireplace on fire sent the-tanker out to a Mount Erskine home. The boat incident was settled with the loan of a portable pump to keep the water level down, while the fire truck returned to the Ganges hall. The fireplace complaint was settled without incident. A GOOD AD IN A GOOD PUBLICATION GETS READ REGARDLESS OF ITS SIZE OR ITS LOCATION. WANT PROOF You're reading this message right now, aren't you those who live in some of the smaller, more isolated communities. In cases of emergency this frustration turns to panic and despair as people are not able to make the necessary call. Examples of problems faced by constituents were used in my brief to make the point. One constituent in the Youbou-Lake Cowichan region wrote and told me of continuing problems with wrong numbers, getting cut off, receiving inappropriate recorded messages, or simply getting no response at all. From her letter I quote: "Five attempts to place a long distance call had become the norm, in addition there was now difficulty in dialing local numbers." This person, who recently faced an emergency situation with her daughter, had to try many times to place her emergency call before she reached the needed number. Attempts to place the call through direct dial and through the operator were at first not successful. As in other cases that have come to my attention, precious time was wasted in an emergency situation because of the poor and unreliable service provided by B.C. Tel. WRONG INFORMATION In another case a B.C. Tel operator gave the wrong information to a man who had a canoeing accident on Lake Cowichan. When his friend went to phone for help the operator referred him to the R.C.M.P. rather than Search and Rescue. The R.C.M.P. repeated the mistake by referring the man first to the Courtenay detachment then to Port Alberni. From Port Alberni the man received the correct information, but because fog was closing in, the time wasted in these calls probably lengthened the rescue by about 14 hours. It's obvious that the R.C.M.P. were as amazingly ignorant of the correct information as was B.C. Tel. Nonetheless, the company has a responsibility to be able to meet emergency situations. In both these situations, inadequate service by B.C. Tel added greatly to the stress of people in emergency situations. These cases are not unusual and they underline my position that B.C. Tel should not receive any increase until it has improved the quality of its service. Anne Fairweather serves dinner to young student Primary students prepare dinner MODERNIZE with PROPANE 537-2233 landshapes site planning and development garden architecture donald webb box 37 fulford harbour tel 653-4594 Sitka Tree Service • Dangerous Trees Removed • Topping • Falling • Limbing • T.V. Antennas • Site Preparations 629-3522 Chris Miles FULLY INSURED "Servjng the Gulf Islands" Tri-K Drilling Ltd. On Salt^Spring Island For free estimates call collect 537-2589 _ MOST MODERN HYDRAULIC ROTARY EQUIPMENT AX/AJI A A Thanksgiving dinner was prepared recently by Fender School students in kindergarten and grades 1 to 3, to which they were each allowed to invite one of their parents. The event took place on October 10 at noon in the school gym. The children made the invitations, place mats and place cards themselves, and set the tables. Organizers for the dinner were Mrs. Jean Bradley and Mrs. Wendy Brown, the primary school teachers, who cooked the turkey. The Pender School bus driver carved the turkey and Anne Fairweather and Teddy Kent served the dinner. Other than the turkey the children did all the rest of the preparation: peeled the vegetables, made the salad and the wholewheat buns and the dessert. They started preparations three days in advance. A week later they made a turkey soup. Sixty-four children and parents sat down together for the meal. Mrs. Bradley and Mrs. Brown told Driftwood the children had gained some experience in cooking, in working together and in organizing, and were proud to be able to entertain a parent at a meal they had prepared. The teachers felt that it got the children involved in the meaning of the traditional Thanksgiving dinner. DUTCH BEAUTY SALON SERVING THE ISLANDS SINCE 1961 *We pierce ears *Tryour European Steam Permanent Lower Ganges Rd. - Across from telephone building Open Tues. - Sat. 9-5 COT OO11 Closed Mondays OO /-^Q I ROY LEE PETROLEUMS LTD. Heating Oils Bulk Services For convenience, bills may be paid at Salt Spring Lands office or mailed to: Roy Lee Petroleums Ltd., Box 489, Ganges, B.C. 653-4414 CERAMIC TILE: Sales: Visit our showroom to see hundreds of tile samples from all over the world. Representing every major Vancouver tile distributor. Newest mastics, colour grouts and epoxies for easy maintenance and lasting beauty. Professional Installation in over 300 Gulf Island homes and businesses. Help for the do-it-yourselfer with kits, equipment rentals and information for our customers. J53i9222 «sette] 426 Robinson Rd., Ganges
Wednesday, October 22, 1980 GULF ISLANDS DRIFTWOOD Page Three I got no Nova. And it must be a good thing to have because every time I look at the 'news on television they tell me that Alberta is a nova-based corporation and they see shareholders on every street. And 1 don't know what a Nova is. Does that make me a second-rate citizen Or should I buy a Chevy * * * If you can't do it, teach it: if you can't write it, read it! So I read more than I write. Just be thankful! And a lot of what I read is photo journals. I started photography about 25 years ago and the first fellow whose picture I took still wants to sue me. Nothing's changed. So when I saw an advertisement for a Japanese lens in Popular Photography I wrote to the address they listed, "Kingsway Film Equipment, Ontario, Canada." I thought that was no way to write an address. But the Soligor people paid their good yens to have it that way. So I wrote. And so it came back, marked insufficient address. Now, I know how not to write to them. But there is a mystery to the whole thing. Is it possible that the Japanese manufacturers sell their equipment cheaper in the States, because they don't even know their own address in Canada Bet you my pictures don't get any better! * * * When a student on Salt Spring left her books inside her car last week they were stolen. The books were her work books from university and they were contained in a woven bag or purse. She reported her loss and advertised for them. Eventually the missing books were found. But the unpleasant aspect to the whole story is that someone living in the island would steal a purse and destroy a student's work in order to keep the stolen container. We're getting pretty low! It's like stealing candy from a blind storekeeper. * * * I sat in the Fire Chief's office on Monday morning and watched the drivers getting used to the idea of stopping at the Centennial Park turn in Ganges. A lot of drivers just hadn't got used to it. » * * Car upkeep getting you down Just be glad you're not a car buff driving an elderly Jaguar. 1 saw an advertisement for gas tanks for XK. models. You can get one for 175 pounds and tax; say, $500! Speech therapist named JOYMARAMPON The Gulf Islands have become the home of Joy Marampon. who has been appointed to the staff of island teachers as speech therapist for the school district. Former editor of The Humanist in Canada, she has taught in many districts in the province and was most recently on the faculty of the University of Victoria, where she taught language arts and curriculum development. Being an islander, says Marampon, has been one of her dreams over the past five years since she first visited Salt Spring. She is now living at the south end of the island on Isabella Point Road which, she says "...has a view from the top of the world." There's much more... READ ON!! Bangcrt & Van Mccl BUILDERS & DESIGNERS OF DISTINCTIVE HOMES 537-5692 or 537-9657 Angela and Peter Veriour at Pender market Thanksgiving weekend Special opening of Pender market BY ELEANOR HARRISON Pender Islands Farmers' Market tried something new this year, when it was opened on the Saturday of the Thanksgiving weekend. The market normally closed down on Labour Day. The response was tremendous. There were 12 tables of late fall vegetables and fruits and homecrafted articles. The response from the customers was encouraging Socreds meet Friday Island Socreds are invited to a meeting at Ganges on Friday. A general membership meeting of the Saanich and The Islands Social Credit Constituency Association will be held at St. George's Hall from 7 to 9 pm. Association president Bob Parkinson will chair the meeting. He and the directors plan to outline current programs and discuss them with local party members. HEAT WOOD STOVES: Jotul Watetford Island Comfort Lakewood Findlay Inserts "Pre-sale consultation in your home. call 539-2067 R.R. # 2, Galiano. too, and it seemed as if many Penderites and their weekend guests were there to enjoy the show and the pleasant October day. One table was of special interest, that of Peter and Angela Veriour. Last January they moved to the island after purchasing Chris Wade's farm at Port Washington. This farm was the home of Washington Grimmer and the house the Veriours now live in was built by him. One project the Veriours have been working on this summer is to identify the names of the different apples and pears and other fruits in the very extensive old orchard. So far, 11 different apples and nine different pears have been found, but the project is not yet finished. Salt Spring Optical Eye examination appointments made on the island. PRESCRIPTIONS FILLED • EYEGLASS FRAMES 537-9828 Trelawney Contracting CONSTRUCTION & PLUMBING SERVICES FOR THE GULF ISLANDS Ed Armstrong 537-5229 Mike Armstrong 537-9541 SAUNDERS sales & service COLWOOD, B.C. Dealer No 5932 See the 1980 4 Wheel Drive Hatchback on display at Ganges Auto-Marine. Call for an appointment 537-5509
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