6 - Sunday, November 10, 1985 - North Shore News Editorial Page News Viewpoint Absent voters n contrast to North Van City, left and rightwing partisan politics play no part in West Van's November 16 election. Tiddieycovians are not given to ideological polarization. Highrises, flooding creeks and the occasional clash of personalities are the things that turn them on. But neither (hese nor any other issues are shaping up into a groundswell at next Saturday’s polis. Instead, the big fear of incumbent candidates and local merchants is a low voter turnout that could distort the community’s wishes in two im- portant areas. Aldermen Finlay, Hutchinson and Rowntree — all with more than one term under their belts — are challenged by two bottom-of-the-poll contenders in previous elections, Bert Fleming | and Rev. Bill Perry, and by newcomer Frank Beallie, a sales representative. If any of the latter can unseat any of the in- cumbents on the basis of a 40% voter turnout or better, fair enough. But should the turnout (as has happened before) drop to the 15-20% level, it would be difficult to know whether the community will had really been served. Satisfied voters, alas, often tend to be the absentee voters on polling day. : A low turnout could be even move serious for the Sunday Shopping referendum. West Van merchants are now losing $25 million a . year from: Sunday competition in adjacent municipalities. But a narrow victory based on, say, only one in five of the electorate would leave council with a tough problem in deciding the overall desire of West Vancouverites i in this sensitive matter. as Tiddleycove’s 1985 election may be short on drama, but the last thing it needs is to be Short on ballot slips: fter a the rotten things we’ve said about ICBC, its president Tom Holmes suddenly leaves us speechless. While Alberta and Ontario hike car insurance by up to 20%, Mr. Holmes announces that most B.C. motorists will pay anywhere from $25 to $100 LESS next year. So never mind the threatened Christmas mail strike, Virginia — ‘the public service has produced a Santa Claus after all! rs voncm OF women rea? wasicowres Display Advertising north sh Newsroom Circulation: Subscriptions 1139 Lonedale Ave. “North Vancouver, 8.C. V7M 2H4 Publisher Peter. Speck General Manzger Roger McAlee Operations Manager Berni Hilliard Advertising Director Advertising Administrator Linda Stewart Mike Goodsell Circulation Director fditor-In-Chief Bill McGown - Noel Wright Photography Manager Production Director Terry Peters Chris Johnson Classified Manager Val Stephenson : North Shore News, founded.in 1969 as an independent suburban newspaper and qualified under Schedule Iii, Part ltl, Paragraph It! of the. we Excise Tax Act, is published each Wednesday, Friday and Sunday by North Shore Free Press Ltd. and distributed to every door on the North Shore. Second Class Mail Registration Number 3885. Entire contents © 1885 North Shore Free Press Ltd, All righis reserved. Subscriptions, North and West Vancouver, $25. per year. Mailing rates available on request. No responsibility accepted for unsolicited material including manuscripts and pictures which should be accompanied by a stamped, addressed envelope. Member of the B.C. Press Council 56,245 (average, Wednesday SDA DIVISION Friday & Sunday) THIS PAPER IS RECYCLABLE 980-0511 Classified Advertising 986-6222 985-2131 986-1337 986-1337 Noel Wright e sunday brunch e emt One and the 1899-1901 Boer SIXTY YEARS LATER oe @ 1 telegram from the Queen for James and Susan Burton of West Van. GREY POWER leads the North Shore parade of per- sonal newsmakers in the past two weeks, starting with yet another ‘60th’? (it must be something in the air). . This time it was the turn of West Van's Jim and Susan Burton to receive the telegram from the Queen, plus letters from Brian Mulroney, John Turner, Bill Bennett and the Lieutenant-Governor. Both born in England, Jim came to Canada in 1919 after World War One service in France. A baker by trade, he lived first in Bassano, Alta., before moving to Port Arthur to discover Susan (nee Burrows) who'd arrived there at the tender age of two. They were married in the lakehead city on October 27, 1925, lived in Ottawa for the next 32 years and finally reached Vancovuer in 1957, West Van residents since 1968, they head a. family of three children, nine grand- children and two ‘‘greats’* — and look good for quite a few more of the latter. All the best, Jim and Susan, on the road to 1995! kkk RUNNING to catch up with the Burtons are West Van's . former top (and well loved) cop and his lady. Tomorrow, Moir MacBrayne, West Van police chief. from 1955 to 1974, and Daisy, mark their DUKE OF EDINBURGH’s Dinner Chairman ... 50th anniversary — though the big celebration attended by -over 100 friends and family members was held yesterday. Over a decade after turning in his badge, Moir is making as big a success of retirement as he did of his 42-year police career which started in North Van. He's served five years with the National Parole Board, is involved with the United Way and the North Shore Safety Council and he and Daisy — both in the best of health — bowl twice a week, Via their two sons and daughter, they’ve also six grandchildren to keep them busy. Many more happy year to you, ‘‘Mac"’ and ‘‘Daye’’, on your Golden Beat. kkk GREY AND STAY: Finaliy there’s North Van's Jean Thompson who became a great-grandmother last Tues- day. That happens quite often, but what doesn’t is Jean’s mom, 95-year-old Lilian Shirley of Maple Ridge, now elevated to GREAT- great-grandmother. These days, Grey Power is becoming Stay Power! kkk SAD NEWS on returning fast week from my overseas wanderings was the death, Oc- tober 21, of North Van's Grand Old Man Walter Draycott at the age of 102. A veteran of both World War War in South Africa, he was the original pioneer of Lynn Valley, carving his home out of the dense forest there 73 years ago and giving his name to the street they later built outside his front door. We'll miss Walter's lively three- figure birthday parties of the two past years and his spicey wisdom. Many more February 24ths will come and go before he’s forgotten by b North Van. * HITHER AND YON: North Van number-crunchers really add up to something. Honored at the recent conven- tion of the Certified General Accountants Association of B.C. were Glenn Tamast, win- ner of the J.M. .MacBeth Award of Merit for outstan- ding service at the Chapter level, together with Bill Per- rault, Bill Smyth and Christopher Trunkfield — each presented with a life E DRAYCOTT...the birthday party's over, tion ... Chairman of the recent fundraising gala dinner in the Hotel Vancouver for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards was West Van's Chuck Con- nughan, Canadian actor Lorne Greene, guest speaker, addressed the more than 300 other guests who included Lieutenant-Governor Bob Rogers and Lawrie Wallace, D. of E. Awards president for B.C. and Yukon ... North Van School District's RoseMary Slaney tips her bon- net to the fine. work already being done by this year’s 60 volunteers helping kids with learning difficulties under the North Van Tutoring Program “LOOKS GOOD TO ME!” ... Premier Bill Bennett. with North Shore News Circulation director Bil! McGowan (left) at the recent convention of the B.C, & Yukon Community Newspapers Association, membership . Congratula- tions to North Van nine-year- olds Lisa Clark and Keara Mundie of the Seymour Heights School of Dance. The two young prima ballerinas- to-be have been chosen for the cast of the Pacific Northwest Ballet’s upcoming ‘‘Midsum- mer Night’s Dance’’ produc- Chuck Connaghan of West Yan with (Ito 1) Lorne Greene, Lieutenant-Governor Bob Rogers and Lawrie Wallace. but still ‘desperately needs about 25 more. It involves on- ly a couple of hours or so a week and you can contact RoseMary at 987-8141 . Botany buffs will enjoy this’ month’s featured ‘artist at -West Van Memorial Library where Lyn Noble is exhibiting her botanical watercolors — she’s also author of an award- winning book on the subject, “Plantae Occidentalis: 200 years of Botanical Art in B.C."’ ,.. readings for Grades 4 to 7 from another award- winning book, ‘“‘The Root Cellar’, by author Janet Lunn are ‘scheduled for 9:15 a.m. Wednesday at North Van City Library as part of the annual Children’s Book Festival . And over at the Capilano branch of North Van District Library, Thursday at 7:30 p.m., skating instructor Nan- cy Hunter talks to parents about technique and equip- ment for launcing their tots on the slippery career path towards becoming Toller Cranstons or Wayne Gretzkys. wk kok WRIGHT OR WRONG: Lots of people don’t have much to say — and that’s fine. The trouble with some of them is you have to listen so Iong tc find out.