Canada’s Number One
Suburban Newsp

May 22, 1985

News 985-2131

Classified 986-6222

WEST VANCOUVER School District will be
$60,000 short in their share of annual funding for

health in the schools.

The school district was
given $77 per student from
the provincial government to

high

go towards health. But the
board is only contributing
about $33 per student to the
North Shore Union Board of
Health, and putting the rest
into their cut school budget.

Circulation 986-1337

Church hit by vandals: 10

THE VOICE OF NORTH AND WEST VANCOUVER

52 pages 25¢

West Vancouver Mayor
Derrick Humphreys said of
West Van School District's
decreased funding, ‘‘] think
it’s a damn shame. The
Union Board of Health is a
splendid operation. It’s an
ideal way to provide health
services to the community.
When one partner says

North
Shore _
Sports

PAGE 23

they’re not going to par-
ticipate, it throws the whole
thing out. They’re not play-
ing the game. It’s most un-
fortunate."'

West Van School Board
chairman Margot Furk said
when the government
brought in its fiscal
framework, it indicated

NEWS pnato Terry Peters

r Gardens touches up picket signs Tuesday. “The pickets. have. been’ up

Emotion

for

meeting

health funding in West Van-
couver would be reduced to
$30 per student by 1986.

“What we did when we
received this was to draft a
three-year plan,’’ Furk said.
“We had to make some
tough decisions on what to
do with a $2.5 million reduc-
tion.””

Furk said the school board
drafted a letter to the Board
of Health saving their offer-
ing would be reduced for
1985.

But the government came
through at the Jast moment,
she said, and decided to

maintain the funding of $77 °

per student.

“We were one of the only
school boards to file a com-
pliance budget maintaining
the level of services without
extra funding,’’ Furk said of
the recent school board
budgets. ‘*So when the
health budget came through,
it was necessary for us to use
all additional funds to main-
tain employment and levels
of service. Our board feels
that education services to the
children are most impor-
tant.”

But Furk said her school
board was willing to take a
cut in services for their
decreased funding.

“We were not expecting
other members of the Board
of Health to absorb our lack
of contribution,’’ she said.

Furk said West Van
School District has had one
community health nurse per
2.4 schools, and the provin-
cial average is one nurse per
4.7 schools. Even if two of
the four nurses allotted to
West Van were cut, Furk

Women
; Reunited ;

said, the average would still
be above the province’s with
one community nurse per 3.9
schools.

Another cut to West Van
schools has been a 50 per
cent reduction in the
employment of a full-time
psychologist.

The North Shore Union
Board of Health funding,
which used to be shared 62
per cent by school boards
and 38 per cent by

MARGOT FURK
a. WY chairman

municipalities, was tentative-
ly changed to a 50/50 split,
since enrolment in the
schools has dropped.

But since West Van
Schoo! Board hasn’t been
able to uphold its $260,000
share, North Vancouver
District has only agreed to
sign a temporary contract
that stipulates the school
board’s decreased contribu-
tion.

“If one of the parties
alters its share, they're no
See Health
page 3

ANNUAL PRO LIFE-PRO CHOICE BATTLE

EMOTIONS are running high as pro-choice and
pro-life supporters prepare for their annual fight

over control of Lions Gate Hospitat’s board of

directors.
By BARRETT FISHER
The board of directors

voted in at LGH’s annual
general meeting decide the

hospital’s abortion policy.
Hilary Clark, chairman of
the presently pro-choice
board, says she is concerned
about the upcoming hospital
board election June 26,

because she says there is a
silent majority out there that
needs to come forward.

“We want to raise the
public’s awareness,’" Clark
said. “If people believe in
choice, then they have to
join the board by May 25
and vote for choice. My
concern is that: membership
in the board society isn’t go-

ing to be a {rue repre-
sentation in the community
of the right 10 choose in
medical procedures. [1 am
concerned about the small
vocal (pro-life) minority who
are organized and funded.’

Speaking for Pro-Life.

See Battle