6 - Wednesday, May 20, 1987 - North Shure News News Viewpoint Abortion judges? ro Life and Pro Choice candidates in the June 24 Lions Gate Hospital Board election are squaring off in the battle for the four vacant seats. A sweep by Pro Life would give them a majority among the 12 elected directors. Pro Life denies that it is fielding ‘‘one-issue”’ didates. Nevertheless, there’s can- sno doubt a Pro Life ma- jority, as a lay body, would be responsible for the pro- fessional judyment of doctors being rejected in many abortion cases. The res“ !tant rift between doctors and the board, as seen recently at the Kamloops Royal Inland Hospital, can badly disrupt ALL areas of hospital administration — which is predominantly concerned with many other unrelated, health issues of vital importance to the community. Abortions form only a tiny percentage of the hospital’s services. Nobody challenges the basic morality of the Pro Life position that a life, even in fetus form, is still a life. But doctors out there in the real world — although as dedicated as Pro Lifers to saving life — face tougher questions. Is their patient too young to bear a child without significant danger to her own physical health? What are the unborn and unwanted child’s chances of even minimal care and sustenance? If denied a hospital abortion, will the mother risk her own life in a. back- alley operation? Are two deaths preferable to one? In Kamloops, Pro Life opposition to medical judg- ments has doctors pressing for the replacement of the board by a government-appointed administrator. LGH Society members should ponder this scenario carefully before voting. New members must join by May 24 in order to cast their ballots. 1783 ‘AND ALL THAT ... It was the year Canada’s numerous little problems with the U.S. started — the most notable being the mere existence of Canada. ° And who was among the bunch of refugees still loyal to King George II] who fled the American Revolution and made the long trek north to the River St. John in New Brunswick in the spring of 1783? The ancestor of North Van City Mayor Jack Loucks, that’s who. Which explains why Jack and Olive were head table guests of honor the other week at the annual luncheon of the Vancouver branch of the United Empire Loyalists Association. Nice to know the ci- ty’s top man has Canada in his blood — from Day One! eb TENNIS, ANYONE? Favorite charity of all firefighters is the miracle-working Burn Unit at VGH. To raise funds for it from pledges and direct donations, West Van firefighter Terry Mann is playing a 24-hour tennis marathon May 23-24 at the North Shore Winter Club. From noon Saturday to noon Sunday 23-year-old Terry, who's competed in provincial tournaments, will take on all com- ers in singles or doubles — during the graveyard hours the objective being to stay awake rather than win. How come he’s not staging the event in West Van itself? Because, he says, both West Van Tennis Club and Hollyburn Coun- try Club turned him down. NSWC leapt at the idea. #20 “WHAT, NO CAP?’ We're’ in- debted to Bas Collins, chronicler of the West Van Police Depart- ment, for this tidbit about a pro- blem of Tiddlycove’s finest in the early days of their 75-year history. Appointed police chief on July 1, 1916 was one Frank Squires, formerly an officer with the Royal Northwest Mounted Police (now RCMP), who headed the force for 24 years and apparently had to resign in 1940 because he’d mar- ried a German lady. At the beginn- ing, however, his problem was sar- torial rather than marital. In April 1917, nine months after his ap- pointment, West Van council found it necessary to pass the fol- lowing resolution: ‘(That Chief of Police Squires provide himself with Tt LOYALISTS LUNCH... head table guests (1 to r) Olive Loucks, Dr. Peter Moogk (VEL Assn. president), Mayor Jack Loucks, Susan Moogk. THE VOICE OF “ann ANU ST VANCOUVER north shore’ SUNDAY ‘ WEDNESOAY + FRIDAY 1139 Lonsdale Ave. North Vancouver, B.C. V7M 2H4 58,489 (average. Wednesday = Friday & Sunday) Display Advertising 980-0511 Classilied Advertising 986-6222 Newsroom 985-2131 Distribution 986-1337 Subseriptions 986-1337 flerth Shore News Yor stead in Publisher: Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Advertising Director RODS AN I INdepeENtent SUUUTEAN Rete s paper and uated unde Sebedule if Punegtagin | Pater Speck Noel Wright Barrelt Fisher Linda Stewart taf hae prublesbed each faenesday. Friday and Sunday De North Shate Free Press bd and distributed to ne ng eM, Cass Mait Regstration Humber 3485 Susttpbons torth and West Vancouvet, $24 pret erat M ling f Subinaons wre eHICOMe but we CANO! accept tespontibity for unspheited murteral mnctuciig Manul HRs z foul te sCCoMpanand thy dl alti SDA DINIIOTE adcressed errenlotee Entire contents 1987 North Shore Free Press Lid. All tights reserved. DISGUSTING! REVOLTING! MAKES ME SICK! Noel Wright a helmet, cap or some other suit- able means whereby he can be distinguished as an officer.” +e & WRAP-UP: Tickets ($10) for the 1960s Rock-’n-Roll dance this Saturday (May 23) in North Van’s Mickey McDougall Gym on East 23rd to raise funds for Rick Hansen’s Man in Motion fund are reportedly going fast. They won’t be sold at the door, so today’s the day to grab any that are left fast at the North Van Chamber of Com- merce, 131 East 2nd St. (987-4488) Re-elected by acclamation, without challengers, was the entire 1987-88 slate of the North Van Kiwanis Club. Continuing their good work for another year are president Mike Wintemute, past ILLEGAL AN, UNUSUALLY large vo editor are protesting North phase-out of ‘‘illegal suites.’ ® wednesday world ® president Gordon Poole, veepees Deug Sommerville and Paul Larsen, and treasurer Dave Bon- ner. Directors soldiering on are Ranjit Khosla, Don McKay, Rob Metcalfe, Norm Rutledge, John Treijs, Art Weseen -and Frank Williams ... Still on the good guys beat, Bill Harbourne, Jamie Innis, Bud Summers, Rob Dalton, Ken Ingram and Vern Rohrmoser complete the 1987-88 board of directors of the Mount Seymour Lions And happy birthday cards today (May 20) to North Van’s Milt Peters and Debbie Poole. ae WRIGHT OR WRONG: Nobody who can read is ever successful at cleaning out an attic. SUITES lume of current letters to the Vancouver District’s planned Many of them make valid, reasoned points which we believe should be considered by the public in the present controversy. Virtually all come from suite owners or te- nants who, for obvious reasons, routinely request that their names be withheld. The News will respect this request in all cases, provided the name and address/phone number of the writer is supplied in confidence. We will not print letters where the writer is not so identified. The News is equally happy to print as many letters as possible supporting the phasc-out. LETTER OF THE DAY Camp out in Ernie’s, Marilyn's backyards! Dear Editor: lam renting a house with an il- legal suite in the basement. | am not making any money: out of the deal, I’m merely making ends meet so that I can exist ona part-time pay cheque. I’ve had several wonderful tenants, single mothers who have managed through affor- dable housing to pull their lives together, young students who -are North Van's brains of tomorrow, and various others who were in a State of change when they moved in here and finally got into the black enough to move onto better things. I cannot.afford to pay for a permit. All of us will be put into a Position of spending half of our cheques to survive. I suggest to all of the honest people in North Van who are living illegally so that they can get an education or save enough for a small house, that when they get displaced by the council’s new rul- ing they do the obvious thing, and camp out on Ernie and Marilyn’s backyard. Someone will have to take responsibility for us. I suggest they do. Of course we could all move to Langley, but it would be a shame to move all those bright young minds away before they’ve had a chance to help North Van grow. Some people are lucky enough to make the transition from their parents’ home to proper housing without resorting to tem- porary “illegal” measures, but North Van is seriously lacking low income housing, and obviously the need is already being filled, but the council chooses to remove this im- portant option. I hope Uncle Ernie has a big backyard. See you all there! Name withheld North Vancouver