Funding funk

said the National Student Day of Strike and Action intended to

CAPILANO COLLEGE students walked out of classes
Wednesday to protest possible cutbacks to federal funding of
post-secondary education. Sarah Dixon, the resource coordi-
nator for the school’s student union, said ebout 120 students
attended the ratiy at Capilano College, then took buses to join
a much larger protest in downtown Vancouver. Student leaders

Friday, January 27, 1995 ~ North Shore News - 3

NEWS photo Terry Poters

draw attention to funding cutbacks proposed by the Liberal
government which students say will drive up tuition fees:and
increase student debt loads. Dixon said students are not look-
ing for a free ride, but want government to look at restructur-
ing taxation rather than attacking social spending.

Bag of money recovered in woods near body

A PURSUIT by police of a rob-
bery suspect ended abruptly
Wednesday when the suspect
shot himself in the head.

By Anna Marie D "Angelo
News Reporter

The man committed suicide ina
wooded area of Deep Cove, near the
-- Takaya Golf Centre in the 700-block

_ Of Apex Avenue.

“We are currently trying to iden-
tify hint We have some leads,” said
North Vancouver RCMP spokesman
Const. Marc Sylvestre on Thursday.

The robber was a Caucasian male
in his late teens or early 20s.

' Deep Cove resident. Michelle
Leone came face-to-face with the
fleeing robber as she was dropping
off her kids for Taekwondo lessons.

“I just got out of the car and I.

tumed and he was night there at the
back of my car, staring at me,” said
» Leone. ‘1 thought why is this guy
- wearing a ski mask?”
Leone said she automatically
thought he was a bank robber.
“I think he was just kind of
stunned to see me. And then | think
"he was thinking, what was he going
- to do,” said Leone.

“Our eyes caught.

“He looked away and then he >

looked back at me,” said Leone,
adding he seemed a frightened, flee-
ing person.

She said her three children
promptly stepped from the car and
likely disrupted the robber’s
thoughts.

“He took off up the flight of
stairs,” said Leone. .

The man, clad in a balaclava
mask and carrying a .38-calibre
revolver had earlier jumped over a
counter at the Dollarton branch of
the North Shore Credit Union at
3:15 p.m., according to police.

He emptied two cash drawers of
“a large quantity” of money, accord-
ing to police.

North Shore Credit Union mar-
keting vice-president Doug Smith
said the robbery was over in sec-
onds.

“He approached one of our tellers
waving a garbage bag and indicating
he had a gun,” said Smith.

Smith said one of the credit union
employees saw a gun.

Police say a credit union employ-
ee followed the suspect.

Meanwhile Leone said that after
the robber ran off, the credit union
manager came running by.

“He said, ‘Call the police, my
credit union has been robbed and
I'm following the suspect’.” sai
Leone.

Leone said the robber, who wore
gloves, had been holding a 3/4 full
garbage bag stuffed with money.

North Vancouver RCMP mem-
bers picked up the man’s trail near
Cates Park. He was followed to the
3800-block of Dollarton Avenue
near McKenzie Barge and Noble
Towing.

“He was spotted leaving’ there
and cutting across -Dollarton
Highway. That’s when our members
gave chase,” said Sylvestre.

Police lost track of the man when
he ran into a bush area.

He was spotted again and chased
across a field at the Takaya Golf
Centre.

Police officers chased the man
and were yelling at him to stop. He
instead jumped over a stump,

according to police.

Police were approximately 50
metres (55 yards) away when they
heard a gunshot.

The shot went off 1 1/2 hours
after the robbery. The man died
instantly. ;

The stolen money was found
beside the dead man.

Dog stol

School
meeting
planned

From page 4

Kitson said she felt trustees did
not listen to district parents and is
sull optimistic the alternative
school proposal can proceed, She

tid the alternative school commit-
tew’s next s to hold a public
inceting in carly February, alchough
no date has been set, Parents inter-

sted in more information can call
Kitson at 986-3204. Phe alternative
school, similar to Surrey's tradition-
al school, was proposed to the
board on Nov, 22, ‘The parents
hoped the school could begin oper- *
ation in September 199

For the 1994-95 school year, the
combined total revenues of District
44 and West Vancouver School
District 45 surpassed $135 million
— almost completely funded by
B.C. taxpayers. That equates” 10
more than $5,900 for every North
Shore student and the two school
districts receive less per pupil than
do most districts in the province.

Some private scliools receive
panial funding from the govern-
ment and tuition can be as high as
$6,000 for a 10-month school year.

According to Federation of
Independent Schools A
Executive Director Fred Herfst, pri-
vate schools do not have to meet

pilfteacher | ratio restrictions
applied in some public school s
tems and their administrations arc
gencrally smaller; therefore, more
money reaches the classroom in the
private school system.

en from

car in wv mail

A WEST Vancouver
family was devastated
Tuesday after their 12-
week-old puppy was
stolen from a. truck
parked at Park Royal
shopping centre.

By Anna Marie D'Angelo
News Reporter .

Thieves broke a Tear
window of the family’s
Toyota truck with a rock
and took the. beloved
puppy at about 11:30 a.m.

“My son wanted a dog
for four years and I finally
relented,”.. said Eileen
Wheeler several hours after
the incident.

. “We had her for only six
weeks, but we all loved
her,” she added.

A WEST Vancouver
beloved puppy, which was stolen
from their vehicle this week,
receives a hug.

family’s

The puppy is a yellow lab. It does not have purebred papers. Tie dog
was wearing acollar with identification attached when it was lifted.

Two “scruffy looking” men, described as Caucasians in. their 30s,
were seen near the truck before the animal was stolen. i

The thieves left the animal’s kennel behind. No other item was miss-
ing from the older model Toyota Landcruiser. The vehicle was parked
in the west section of the north mall near a video store. Said Wheeler,
“They may have thought she was valuable. Really her value is to us.”

Meanwhile the Wheelers are offering a $500 reward for the return of
their pet. Contact the West Vancouver Police at 922-4141 with informa-

tion. The file number i is 95-1157,