NEW LIBRARY . . . New Castlegar and District Public Library nears completion. The $245,000 library is expected to be substantially completed by June 15, about two weeks behind schedule. Once scsi _— Recreation news The warm weather is here, and with it comes swimming. The Bob Brandson pool is now open for public swim ming seven days a week. Monday to Friday you can take a trip down to the pool and cool off between 3:30 and 5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings sees public swimming happening from 7-8:30 p.m. This sched- ule runs for the month of June only, there will be a new schedule for July and August. This Sunday (June 7) there will be no public swimming because its the Castlegar Aquanauts’ big Swim-A-Thon. Swimming Prices Prices for public swimming haven't changed this year. For a very nominal fee you can get wet and feel great for the whole summer. Daily ad- mission fees are: children 75 cents, students/seniors $1, Memorial service today Jean Elizabeth Storgaard, wife of Winston Storgaard of Slocan, passed away Friday, May 29 at the age of 45. A memorial service was held in the Silvery Slocan Social Centre today at 1 p.m. with Mr. Doug Swanson of. ficiating. Cremation has taken place. Mrs. Storgaard was born Dec. 6, 1941 in Nelson, and grew up in Slocan where she married Winston Storgaard on Feb. 1, 1957. She lived there all of her life. She loved the outdoors, hunting, fish ing, both flower and veget able gardening and her ani mals. She is survived by her husband; one son, Quinten of Slocan; three daughters, Nora and Cindy of Nelson and Debbie Strong of Slocan; seven grandchildren; and one brother, Bob Boudier of Van couver. Cremation arrangements through the Castlegar Fun eral Chapel. Should friends desire, contributions may be made to the Cancer Fund, Box 3292, Castlegar, B.C. VIN 3H6. Econo Spots You can save up to 80% on the cost of this ad! 365-5210 and adults $1.25. For conven... ience sake, why not purchase strip tickets and pay only $10 for a book of 20 children’s tickets, $15 for a book of 20 student/senior tickets and $20 for a book of 20 adult tickets? If you really want to save money you can come to the recreation office and pick up season passes for the pool. Family passes are only $70 (this includes mom, dad and all the kids), adult passes are $40, student/seniors passes $35 and children’s passes $25. The prices are right, pool is open, so come on down and have some swimming fun. Parent and Tots There is still room in parent and tot swimming that is happening June 15-26. Come down to the recreation office to register. This class will run from 2:30 - 3 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday and is only $8. Masters Swim Don't forget masters swim happens at Bob Brandson pool every Tuesday and Enter our free Thursday from 8-9 p.m. Just a $2 drop-in fee and the in- structors are the Aquanaut swim coaches. This program runs until June 25. Thank You Castlegar Participaction is over for another year and this year you were all fantastic. Castle. gar had 59.43 per cent of its population call in and regis- ter their physical activity, while the city we challenged — Rossland — only had 33 per cent of their population turn out. Reach around Castlegar and pat yourself on the back for a job well done. Roller Skating There is going to be a Sun- fest Roller Skating Party here at the complex Friday from 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. Admis sion $1, skate rentals $1.50 plus with each ticket pur- chased, a free soft drink. Come on down, have fun and be a part of the Sunfest cele- bration. If you would like to have a private roller skating party for your friends or family, give us a call at the recre- draw and win a f uniform of your choice ($50.00) ation office and we will arrange one for you. Prices same as public roller skating. June Fitness Just a reminder that June fitness is happening every Monday, Wednesday and Fri- day mornings from 9 - 10 a.m. and every Monday, Wednes- day and Thursday evenings from 7-8 p.m. There is a $2 drop-in fee or you can pur- chase a book of 10 tickets for $15. Get fit and keep fit for summer. Ladies’ Golf Ladies golf next Tuesday starts at 8 a.m. and the game will be “hidden treasure.” If you are a lady golfer go up to the course and take part. You will have a lot of good fun. Summer Brochure Watch for our summer recreation brochure which will be available the week of June 15 and will list all Red Cross swimming lessons for July and August, plus some summer recreation activities. Registration for these pro- grams will take place June 22 from 6-7 p.m. at the complex. finished, the downtown and Kinnaird library branches are to close for three weeks to move into new facilities. transfers land The Ministry of Forests and Landg has transferred 352.3 hectares of prime wild- life habitat in the Kootenays to the Ministry of Envir. onment and Parks. The land, valued at $200,000, is at Bummers Flat, 8.2 kilometres northwest of Fort Steele. It will be man- aged intensively to benefit waterfowl and ungulate spe- cies including elk and white- tail deer. In recent years, the parcel ef marsh and benchland has been carefully supervised by the Ministry of Environment and Parks and Ducks Unlim- ited. Nearly $1 million has been invested in waterfowl and ungulate enhancement programs at the site. Forests and Lands Min. ister Dave Parker said the land transfer would ensure the continued efficient and professional administration of the area. ROADRUNNERS is coming to Castlegar's Fireside Motor Inn Room 330 — For Three Days © | Fri. June 5, 1-9 Sat. June 6, 9-9 Sun June 7, 9-9 Visa & Mastercard Accepted see our FANTASTIC SELECTION or DESIGNER UNIFORMS ror rour PROFESSIONAL IMAGE. NK, UNIFORMS FOR BUSY PROFESSIONALS Separates . ¢ Dresses . Pantsuits Maternity Half sizes “Scrubs” Men's Wear Lab Coats Panty hose Shoes * Stethoscopes ¢ Restaurant apparel | Sizes 3 to 26%!) KELOW adiunnenrs ry (604) 550 WEST AVENUE B.C 424 763-8989 NA ed @ @ @ CHILLIWACK ,B.C.@ @@ (10 minutes to Harrison Hot Springs) @ SPORTSMAN FLAG INNS® Holiday suites in quiet country setting. (next to course) 48000 Yale Road East (604)792 7340 @ FRIENDSHIP INNS® tre Convenience City Cen 8583 Young Rd. South (604)792-7668 dune 3, 19867 cl NOTICE Due to the support shown by Castlegar and area ‘CHAMPAGNE residents, to A.M. Ford in Trail, Ford of Canada - +. education degree has awarded this area to A.M. FORD for FORD SALES, PARTS and SERVICE. ELIZABETH RESENDES. We are now able to serve you better and extend an invitation for you to visit our showroom and meet the A.M. FORD TEAM. Second degree for grad Elizabeth Resendes-Cham- pagne recently completed a Bachelor of Education degree at St. Mary's University in Halifax. She received her first bachelor's degree in geogra. phy from the University of Vietoria in 1985. Her future career plan is to teach senior high school geo- graphy in Hants Country, Nova Scotia. Elizabeth Resendes-Cham- pagne is the eldest daughter of Floriano and Maria de BUSINESS MANAGER Kim Campbell 364-2721 PARTS MANAGER Greg Marken =. 399-4117 GENERAL MANAGER Dan Ashman SALES STAFF SERVICE MANAGER Peter Sanduliscu 368-9674 Jonice Turner Fred Preasaco Dell lannone . Stan Island .... 2796 Highway Drive “Your Ford Country: Headquarters’ Toll Free 1-800-663-4966 Phone 364-0202 Lourdes R announcement Ford of Canada wishes to announce that A.M. Ford Sales Ltd. for the second consecutive year, has won the distinguished achievement award. This is the highest award Ford of Canada bestows on its dealers. Udo Kaul Vice President of General Sales Ford of Canada Jack Clissold = Dan Ashman Vice President President and Sales and Marketing General Manager Ford of Canada. M. Ford Sales Ltd. Jim King Pacific Regional Manager Ford of Canada In recognitition of progressive management . . . modern sales and service facilities .. . sound dising practi - - - high quality standards - +. and continuing interest in rendering superior service to owners of the Ford family of fine products. AM Ford would like to take this opportunity to thank our customers in Castlegar and its surrounding area for their support in making this award possible. GLASNOST: Mikhail Gorbachev rings change to the Soviet Union Editor's note: Changes in the Soviet Union promised by Mikhail Gorbachev are beginning to show, says Canadian Press reporter Christine Morris. This is the first in her series of reports on aspects of life today in Gorbachev's Russia. By CHRISTINE MORRIS Canadian Press MOSCOW — The bureaucrat pushed his way officiously to the head of the long queue at a popular Moscow restaurant, only to be rudely confronted by the reality of Mikhail Gorbachev's new Russia. He was clearly used to the privilege of line-jumping, one of the perks of the Soviet elite. But this is the first co-operative restaurant in the capital and the manager is determined to give pushy bureaucrats a lesson in the new order. “But, but I'm from the Foreign Ministry,” sputtered the line-jumper, a man in his 50s with bushy, Brezhnev-like eyebrows that flitted wildly up and down during the confrontation. “Wait — I have identification.” But even as he fumbled in his coat for proof of his elevated status in this supposedly classless society, the manager pushed him out the door. “We're not a state-run restaurant,” he snarled. “We have our own rules, so please line up like other people.” MAKE MONEY The restaurant on Kropotkinskaya Street is peratively owned and by a group of people who want to make money. The profits,“and the headaches, belong to them — not the state. ‘The country is still babushka, not haute couture’ People are drawn to this phenomenon partly because they're eager to see the new order in action and partly because the food is better than the undistinguished fare at most state-run cafes. The restaurant is a sign of the times, a signal that changes promised by Soviet leader Gorbachev two years ago are coming into effect. And that’s good, because this is a country that needs change. STUCK IN '708 There are growing fears here that when the 21st century arrives, the Soviet Union will still be stuck in the 1970s. At home and in the workplace, Soviet life lags far behind the comforts and technological advances of western society. Plans to revitalize the stagnant economy are being talked about everywhere. The catch phrases are glasnost (openness), perestroika (reconstruction) and uskoreniye (acceleration). But westerners should not construe this as a rejection of communism. In a very real sense, it’s an attempt to strengthen communism and make it more attractive by proving it can give people as much as capitalism. This isn't the first time Soviets have seen their leaders wrestle with change, and the memory of the last one to seriously tackle the idea — Nikita Khrushchev — is still shrouded in ignominy. HOPES CAUTIOUS “I think a wait-and-see attitude about this and right now, I think it’s too early to tell,” says Gregory Sandalevsky, a 30-year-old assembly line worker at a Leningrad tractor plant. “We knew 10 years ago that we needed action in the service sector and in medical care, but it never came. I'm hopeful things will be different this time, but I don’t think we should get over-enthusiastic.” dalevsky's caution is ill-advised. Gorbachev ‘himself, mindful of Khrushchev's uncer- emonious dismissal from the leadership in 1964, has promised his changes won't go too far too fast. To date, his reforms outlined at a Communist party congress 14 months ago have produced only scattered changes. The country is still babushka, not haute couture. MOVEMENT STARTS But there has been a start, and the co-operative movement is one of the most obvious examples. While Gorbachev isn't about to dismantle collectivi zation — the marshalling of factories and farms under state control —he has endorsed co-operatives, moon lighting, joint ventures with firms in the West and other experiments sprinkled across different economic sectors. When visitors arrive in Moscow, they may be whisked to their hotels in taxis owned and driven by moonlighting factory workers earning a few extra rubles on the side. An increasing number of roadside stands sell flowers or fruits hustled into the city by fledgling entrepreneurs. New co-operative grocery stores sell higher-priced but better-quality meats and vegetables than those available elsewhere. The food comes from co-op farms, which have existed for many years but previously sold their goods only to state-owned stores. STAND IN LINE The problem is the system can’t satisfy the demand, and people still have to line up to buy poor-quality, over-priced goods. The average Russian family in a large city like Moscow or Leningrad spends an estimated 30 hours a week standing in queues. “This is what economic reconstruction is about,” sayd Valentin Kashin, deputy director of the Institute of Economics at the USSR Academy of Sciences. “The aim of the changes is to satisfy growing consumer interest, to meet the demand as much as possible.” In the factories, incentives are being introduced to try to improve the quantity and quality of goods produced. At the Belarus tractor plant where Sandalevsky works, a new pay system has just come into effect that rewards good work with extra money. “It's simple: the more a worker produces and the better the quality, the more he gets,” Sandalevsky says through an interpreter. “It's kind of a material stimulation for labor.” Workers who fall below production quotas suffer a cut in pay. CHANGE VOTING There are also moves to democratize Soviet society. Secret-ballot elections will be introduced in the Communist party and workers are being encouraged to vote for the managers of their enterprises. People are being freed from Soviet camps, psychiatric hospitals and even from the Soviet Union itself. It began with the release of some of the best-known dissidents, including Anatoly Shcharansky and Yuri Orlov and Andrei Sakharov's return to Moscow from his exile in Gorki. The process continues with the reported re-examination of the cases of as many as 10,000 refuseniks — people whose requests to leave have been turned down. However, old; Russian habits die hard, especially when it comes to létting people leave the Soviet Union to take up residence elsewhere. RED TAPE THICK An official was recently asked what he thought about. complaints from people whose requests to leave the country have been rejected by such internal bodies as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) He answered in a mind-boggling, Soviet bureauératese that makes one wonder whether glasnost will ever truly penetrate the red tape. “The validity of such decisions by internal affairs bodies is reviewed by the presidium of the U.S.S.R. Supreme Soviet in line with the established procedure where higher bodies check up omthe work of subordinate bodies.” < One Soviet journalist, referring to would-be emigrants, said it isn’t fair to let people leave after the ‘In the factories, incentives are being introduced to try and improve quantity and quality’ state has paid for their education, their medical care, subsidized their housing, fuel and food and found them jobs. As if the people concerned had made no contribution to their own welfare. The cultural life of the Soviet Union is where the new revolution really shines. BANS LIFTED Because of the thaw initiated by Gorbachev, people can see, hear and read things banned before. At the Sovremenik Theatre in Moscow, long lines of people eagerly wait to see Arthur Miller's sombre play about human inolerance, Incident at Vichy. The theatre tried to stage the play in 1967, but it was shut down by authorities before its premiere. Writers such as Boris Pasternak and Vladimir Nabokov are being rehabilitated and Pasternak’s banned novel Doctor Zhivago will be published here next year. Soviet rock music is up from the underground and now can be heard almost anywhere: concert halls, train stations, department stores and — most of all —on television. The Soviet news media are trying to become more critical and daring. FACTS ON DEATH One example of this was Pravda’s recent publication of the facts surrounding the death of Soviet hero Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space. Gagarin was killed 19 years ago when his MiG-15 trainer unaccountably crashed during a routine flight. The results of the accident investigation were kept secret and that inevitably led to rumors, including the irreverent suggestion that Gagarin may have been flying under the influence. The investigation said there was no possibility of drunkenness. The jet’s engines apparently stalled wher Gagarin put it into too steep a turn. Although the concept of openness in this country sounds radical and revolutionary, one only has to visit the U.S.S.R. and sense the enormous scope of its territory and the sweep of its history to believe it's possible. “Give us time,” says Kashin, the economist. “It will take five years before the changes really take hold, but there's no doubt in my mind we can succeed.” Increased Levels of Radiation Reported CHERNOBYL DISASTER . .- Graphic shows wideranging effect of Chernoby! nuc explosion. The lives of Soviet residents near the blast centre are finally beginning to return to normal. TURKEY AFTER CHERNOBYL Life is almost normal again Editor's note: Canadian Press reporter Christine Morris visited one of the new towns built for the more than 100,000 people evacuated following last year's devastating explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. By CHRISTINE MORRIS Canadian Press NEBRAT, U.S.S.R. — Alexander Chubuk has a brand new house, a new farm to run and more money than he’s ever had before. But more than anything, he wants to go home to the village he loves and the old house he built himself. Chernobyl changed everything in Chubuk’s life, and at this point no one knows when, or if, he'll ever be able to gohome again. “It's so beautiful there,” the burly Ukrainian farmer says through an interpreter. “The streams, the meadows, the woodlands are still clearly in my mind. . . I want to go back.” . The unanswered question is whether those babbling brooks and fertile fields have been hopelessly contamin ated by radioactive fallout from the world’s worst nuclear accident. Chubuk's native village of Zalessie is only 18 kilometres from the now entombed No. 4 reactor at Chernobyl. POLLUTED AREA At least one explosion — there may have been two — and a raging fire ripped the nuclear reactor apart a little more than a year ago, spewing radioactive material throughout the surrounding area and high into the atmosphere. Thirty-one people are said to have died so far, many of them firefighters who absorbed lethal doses of radiation while trying to control the blaze. Two days after the accident, Chubuk left his beloved home, one of the last to be evacuated. Altogether about 116,000 people from villages and towns within a 30-kilometre radius of the stricken reactor were moved out and resettled. Chubuk and 1,600 fellow residents of Zalessie now live here in the new village of Nebrat, 105 kilometres south of the power plant in the Ukraine. RUNS STATE FARM Chubuk, a friendly, animated man in his late 40s, has resumed his job as boss of the local state farm, a scaled down and less productive version of the award-winning farm he ran in Zalessie. He is determined to make the best of a terrible situation, but he still grumbles about the upheaval. “It's just not as good here. The soil isn't as good and the countryside isn’t as pretty. Everything has been done by the state and while the houses are nice, back home we had built our own homes.” Still, there are those who prefer surroundings. Olga Matzak, sitting with her six-year-old daughter Tanya in the living room of their new Nebrat house, is happy with the situation and content to stay. The walls are covered with richly colored hangings from her old house, but much of the furniture is new. “We like it here, things are very comfortable,” she says shyly. their new BUILT QUICKLY Nebrat's 560 houses, two shops, a hospital and a kindergarten were built in an astonishing 76 days. The village, which sits on what used to be a potato field, is laid out like any modern suburban development; the houses are aligned in neat rows on streets, there are small yards in front and back and there's a large, central playground. The houses are attractice, two-storey buildings with wood-and-stucco siding. In typical Ukrainian style, the stucco is colorfully painted and the trim around the windows and eaves is carved in a pretty gingerbread style. There are quite a few new cars parked in driveways, thanks largely to cash settlements the state handed out to compensate for lost property. The average family received 20,000 rubles (about $40,000 Cdn, or close to nine years’ typical wages). LIFE RESUMES Life has pretty much returned to normal in the countryside near Chernobyl. The only obvious signs of the explosion are troop carriers on the roads ferrying cleanup crews back and forth to the plant, and checkpoints where all vehicles leaving the area are stopped and examined with geiger counters. Farmers are toiling in the fields, cleaning up winter debris and planting crops — mostly potatoes in this area. although some flax is grown as well. There are lots of birds flying in the skies and the tall, straight pines that line the country roads are green and full. The other three reactors at Chernoby] are said to be operating, but plans to build two new reactors at the site have been scrapped. The area was recently declared off limits once again to western reporters so it's hard to say for sure what is happening. YOUNG ADJUST Vasily Timostchenko, the mayor of Nebrat, says young people adjusted to the evacuation with more ease than older people who have strong ties to their native villages. “Some of them simply can’t understand what the problem is,” said the soft-spoken mayor. “It's an invisible enemy.” Authorities plan to begin decontamination of the villages around Chernobyl this summer. As well, extensive monitoring of wildlife, water and vegetation is being carried out to determine the extent of radiation pollution. “There are many unknowns when dealing with this kind of pollution,” says Victor Bakounov of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences. “For instance, we don't know the effects of melting snow. This summer we will determine the most polluted areas in the 30-kilometre zone and begin decontaminating villages. “We know people want to return, but we can't say when it might be possible.” NO ONE SICK Children in Nebrat are examined once a month for signs of radiation sickness and adults are checked every three months. Timostchenko says no one in the village is sick. Chubuk knows he and his neighbors are lucky to be alive, thanks largely to favorable winds and weather on the day the reactor blew Curiously, while Chubuk, Timostchenko and Matzak all say the accident underlines the danger of nuclear weapons, they're not worried about nuclear power. “Tell your neighbors to the south to carefully consider what happened here,” says Chubuk, referring to the United States. “It was just a small accident and look at all the problems it caused. Imagine the results on a larger scale, in a nuclear war. No one would survive and the people here understand that fact well.” When asked whether the accident has prompted people to carefully consider nuclear power, the answers are vague. “Farmers don't know much about atomic energy,” says Timostchenko. “But they understand operators must be more careful.”