Saturday, December 14, 1991 @ Abuse victims find help with new B.C. program Social Services Minister Joan announced in- terim initiatives that will be introduced early in the new year to support families and accom- pany the review of child protection legislation. “Families who are involved with the min- istry in a child abuse investigation will be able to call a nonprofit agency for information,” Smallwood said. ‘An information and referral service will be established in January to give parents and oth- er family members involved in child abuse or neglect investigations information about the child welfare system, the Family and Child Service Act and the role of the social worker. It will be established for a one year period after which it will be evaluated A research project will also begin in FEbru- ary in one district office to test the use of the mediation process in protecting children and supporting families. The results of this research project will be incorporated into the legislative review. The project will include staff training, ministry counsel and the involvement of a nonprofit agency. “I am also appointing a Staff Advisory Com- mittee on Multiculturalism. The ministry is fortunate to have staff members from various cultural groups. An advisory committee of staff will be formed to advise me on ways to enhance the effectiveness of our delivery system for fam- ilies and children by making our system more sensitive and responsive to cultural differ- ences,” Smallwood said. The committee will be asked to focus their attention on policies, procedures, priorities and values that have implications, services to peo- ple of different cultures. The committee will re- port to the minister by the end of May 1992. Some amendments to the Family and Child Service Act will also be considered for the next legislative session. These will be not jeopardize the full legislative review but in the interim will benefit children and families. War Amps of Canada are ‘making the system work’ This fall the War Amputa- tions of Canada is mailing personalized address labels as a thank you to its support- ers who have made it possible for The War Amps to use the theme “making the system work.” Making the system work means providing assistance with the cost of artificial limbs, as well as support, valuable information, and across Canada. like eight-year-old Christy McLeod of Burnaby, a mem- ber of the War Amps Child Amputee (CHAMP) Born missing her right hand, Christy now wears a myo-electric arm. Through CHAMP, she receives assis- tance with the cost of her ar- tificial limbs, as well as trav- el expenses to an from her re- habilitation centre for fit- tings. She also attends re- gional seminars that provide information on the latest de- velopments in artificial limbs and a forum to share common concerns with other CHAMP families. Christy is also able to take part in her favorite activities — fishing, canoeing, skiing, and playing the violin — with the help of special recreation- al limbs and devices that are covered fully by the War Amps. With these devices, Christy is able to lead a full and active life despite her am- putation. The War Amps also makes Here's My Card... 10.6. (OAN) VERGE "Area Co-Ordinator the system work through its many other programs that assist amputees, including Playsafe, Safetywalk, Match- ing Mothers, sheltered work- shops, adult prosthetics, and its newest program, Jump- P Santa Claus Win a Complimentary Castlegar News between December 1 & 21. Number of entries will equal number of times your ad runs. It's easy — and you could win an Lion's Head Dining Room No A Let Us € Play Dinner for Two (valued at $75) lace a classified ad in the evening out at... r DRAW DATE DEC. 23, 1991 | start, which pi Pp er training to multiple am- putee children so that they can keep up with school work now, and later compete in the workforce. The association's tradition of ‘making the system work” began in 1918, when the War Amps (then called The Am- putations Association of The Great War) was founded as a fraternal organization to pro- vide direction and meet the needs of amputee ex-service- men. TOYOTA STEVE WHITTLETON soles Representorve 2649 Fourth Aven: ue Castlegar, 8.C. ViN 281 365-3563 = The New Method of payment: Q Cash Q Cheque Q Master Charge Q Visa (Chargex) Action Ad \nvoice SUBTOTAL TAX TOTAL 14, 1991 LocdSPORTS| FastLANE REBELS It should be one of the best genes of the astlegar Rebels KWHL season as they meet the Grand Forks Border Bruins at the Community Complex tonight .m. The Rebels six-game winning streak in Grand Forks last weekend and are the one team Castlegar has yet to beat this Season. BROOM- BALL Born to Race Wl Every bad news story has its heroes and heroines, and a lot of bad news isn’t as horrid as it’s made out to be. The story of the greyhounds who race at Greyhound Park in Coeur D’Alene has its seemy side, but it also introduces people, from the owners to the ordinary citizen, who care “The more I see of the representatives of the people, the more I admire my dogs.” Count D’Orsay in a letter to John Forester — circa 1850 Ed Mills SPORTS EDITOR Dog may be man’s best friend, but in the final analysis, money makes the world go round. And when it’s a choice between the two, in most cases it'll be dogs dumped for dollars. Take the case of the greyhounds in Coeur D’Alene for instance. There are a thousand-and-one man mistreats dog stories — just cases between the ages of four and six years old. But like most sad stories, this one has its heroes and heroines. One such person is Sue Hand, a waitress at a local pub, who had her heart stolen away by an ani- mal many people consider un- gainly and ugly. Since she first heard about the mistreatment of the dogs, Hand has made it her personal crusade to save as many of them as possi- ble. The cause has her wearing many hats — from spokesperson for the animals, to recruiter of lo- cal people who can give a dog a home, to organizer of the transac- tion involving the track and the new owner. What she wants is to make as many people aware of what hap- pens to dogs and the little effort it The Castlegar Warlocks meet Cranbrook at the Complex Sunday in a best two-out- of-three series to determine which club will represent the Kootenays in broomball at the B.C. Winter Games. Action begins at 1:30 p.m FREE AGENT Brain Bosworth, Pat Lafontaine, what they want for Christmas in letters to Santa published in sports editor Ed ills’ column, Admittedly, the dogs who race for a living at Greyhound Park in Coeur D'Alene don't lead lives similar to many family pets, but-you need check no further than the local SPCA to see that a dog's life could be worse. ask the local SPCA — this is just the latest. Fast, sleek, bred for speed and profit to race on tracks for specta- tor amusement in the U.S. and Canada, greyhounds are our lat- est beasts of burden. Until recently, the dogs were htered in the th ds an- nually when their usefulness to sport came to an end — in most A kennel tells her Ed Mills SPORTS EDITOR “You’ll find a bad apple anywhere. There’s been that in the business and there still is unfortunately, but this is rare. “Out of the hundreds and hundreds of good, caring people in the greyhound business throughout this country and Canada, that bad apple gets a lot of publicity.” Gina Everett and her husband Allen have seen their share of bad apples among the bushel of kennel owners and breeders they’ve come into contact with in over 20 years in the greyhound dog racing business. Put simply, bad apples mean bad news for greyhounds at Coeur D’Alene’s Greyhound Park. Bad apples are those unscrupulous and conscience- less people who mistreat the dogs in their racing days, then Talk to us today. takes to save them from the bul- let of an unfeeling owner or an in- . jection. “I saw how they lived,” said Hand, who has been to Coeur D’ Alene a half-dozen times to pick up animals. “They live in a cage about the size of a Safeway hopping cart for their entire lives. Please see GREYHOUNDS, page 23 owner story kill them when their track days are over. But like a lot of bad news stories that reach the public, the bad isn’t as horrid as its often portrayed, according to Gina Everett. Everett doesn’t make her case by appealing to the heartstrings. She makes it, as a business women, from a business standpoint. “Actually, the greyhounds are really treated better than we treat ourselves, because they are what make you your money. They come first,” Everett said in a phone interview from her home in Coeur D'Alene. Admittedly, the 65 greyhounds leased by the Everett’s don’t live lives similar to a lot of family pets. They live in crates about the size of a shopping cart, rubber balls and play toys are not the norm and individual affection is Please see OWNER, page 22 t Kootenay Where You Belong