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page 6, December 22, 1976°- North Shore News

The media are often accused of concentrating on
bad news — rape, drugs, mayhem, murder and
miscellaneous catastrophes of all shapes and
sizes. As my distinguished fellow-columnist Eric
Nicol is wont to say, there’s a lot of it going
around. But there’s a surprising amount of geod
news going around, too, if you care to do a little
digging back towards page 79 of your Bigtown

daily.

It’s a warming discovery this Christmas

week of peace and goodwill on earth.

I'm not talking about the
many worthwhile charities
that cater to the needy at
Yuletide -—— the Sally Ann,
the Christmas Bureaus, the
Empty Stocking Funds and
the like. Thev’re always good
news and [ salute them one
and all. .

No, I'm talking here about
unknown individuals and

groups who do good deeds q

and perform remarkable
achievements that you'd
never expect. About happy

endings to potential disast- q

ers. And about people who
show us that the human race

is still pretty good at heart. ~~

So here — by way of.
Christmas cheer — just half
a dozen examples of the
numerous good news items
I've come across in the past
couple of weeks:

PEOPLE MOVED FAST

The 200 or more residents
of Bella Bella who almost
certainly’ saved a_ plane
pilot's life. He was forced off
course by 60 mph head w inds
while on a flight from Alaska
to Port Hardy and radioed for
help.to make an emergency
landing at the tiny coastal
community.

Alerted by . the local
RCMP, the citizens of Bella
Bella rushed out in force in
their cars and illuminated the
school plaving field = with

‘their headlights to ‘provide

a makeshift landing strip. on
which the plane landed
safely. ‘‘We didn’t have
much time."* said an RCMP
officer. “‘but people moved
fast and we got things ready
in a hurry.""

Far away from Bella Bella.
in Providence. Rhode Island.

17-year-old John Williams |

passed his driving test with a
high score of 89 the other
week. He drives. incidental-
Iv. with his feet holding the
stecring wheel, which has a
special knob attached to it to
brake and control his speed.

John, vou see,
thalidomide baby. born with-
out’ arms. In addition to
driving. he has made his own
skateboard, won a soccer

me

~AUUITTUANATE

MAUDE, Emma Christina, on
December 16, 1976 in her 99th
year. A long time resident of

Lynn Valley, North Vancouvor .

and a tife momber of St.
Clemonts Anglican church
W.A. Survived by one cuore
ter and hor husband, Mr. &

Mrs. A.B. Gilmour and two
grandchildren, Keith of Ed-
monton and. Beverley of
Burnaby, also by her son
Kenneth and his wife, Mary
and three grandchildron, Ann
of Prince Ruport, Lynn of
Naramata and Kenneth of
Waat Vancouver as woll as by
12 Grent Grandchildran and
her many friends. Funoral
servico was held Tucsday,

Dacamber 21 at 11 a.m. inthe |

Boo! Chapol, 1505 Lillooot

‘receiving

was a)

trophy at school.

bow with both feet and
climbs mountains.

shoots a

PIECE OF CAKE

B.C. Hydro bus driver
Ernic Kennett (reports Lorne
Parton in The Province) is
one of the lucky ones having
a vacation in the south this
Christmas.He felt the urge to
do something nice in return
for his regular rush-hour
commuters on the 614 Scott
Road to Vancouver run.

cake. The other dav, as the
passengers boarded. Ernie
wished them Merry Christ-
mas. handed out a slice and
told- them’ he would miss

them over the festive scason.

Apparently Hydro was
complimentary
phone calls all day as a result
— which was a bit unfair to
Ernie, who dreamed up the
whole idea on his own simply
because he likes the people
who ride with him.

| THE $2, 000 STRIP

Then there’ s the stripper
story — a topical subject at
the moment in North Van-
couver. However, this par-
ticular story is about a
soft-hearted Montreal strip-
per. 22-vear-old) | Fonda

Peters.

Last week she organized a
special extravaganza at the
strip club where she works —

featuring 25 fellow strippers,

deaths

Road, North Vancouver. Inter--

ment North Vancouver Como-
tory. Flowers gratefully do-
clined. Arrangoments through
Momorial Socioty of B.C. and
First Memorial Services Ltd.

THOMSON, Mary Hunde of
Hopkins Landing, 8.C. on
December 12, 1976, aged 83
years, bolovod wife of Eric R.
Thomson and is also survived
by her daughters Mrs. Inga.
Fenwick of Port Mellon, sons
James R. of West Vancouvor,
Willlam G.S. of North Vancou-
ver, sister Miss Madoline
Valtch of North Vancouvor, 6
grandchildren and 1 great-
grandchild. A private family
momorial sorvico was hold in
the Boal Chapel, North Van-
couvor. Cremation, Arrango-

7.14 months old. A bouncing

. of Society,

So his wife baked a big” too big in proportion to the

. baby is.

a contortionist ang a comed-

ian. The “evening's take for .

the show alone was $2,069. It
included a $300 contribution
from the club. staff. $400
donated by the audience over
and above their $2 entrance
fees, and $56 from the sale of
a G-string, a bra. a set of
garters and a= pair of
stockings.

The whole $12.069 was
sent to the Christmas Fund
of the Montreal Children’s
Hospital.

Also last week, back in
Vancouver, Kasim Moham-
med Ali provided the happy-
ending story of the year. He
slipped and fell from a
fourth-storey apartment
window in the West End.
bounced off a leafy bush and
landed on the ground unhurt
except for a couple of
scratches.

Kasim (*‘Mo-Mo™ to his
parents and friends) is all of

baby boy. they call him —
with good reason.

ESSENTIAL GOODNESS

Finally there’s Dr. Willard
Gaylin, a U.S. psychoanalyst
and president of the Institute
Ethics and the
Life Sciencés. He's just
written a new book called
Caring’. which builds an
impressive. closelv.reasoned
case for the essential good-
ness of human beings.

Briefly. he argues that the
human infant is born too
soon, At the nine-month
delivery point its head is far

rest of its body and so, unlike
all other animals.. the human
for all” practical

purposes. helpless during its
first year. ;

If we didn't nurture it in a
lot of loving wavs. over and
above merely feeding it. it
might well die. or would
almost certainly become
something less than a human

-being. That's what gives us
‘our inherent virtue, says Dr.

Gavlin,

Stories like these suggest
that .the -human race. after
all. isn’t quite as bad as the
news media would some-
times have you believe —
and that there are happy
endings (ves. Virginia!) in.
real life as well as in fairy
tales. Which is a nice kind of .
thought for this particular
week,

~~

A very happy Christmas to
cach one of vou ... and a New
Year filled with more of the
same!

FRELETEAELE

ments through the Memorial
Society of 8.C. and Firat
Memorial Servicos Ltd. :

EDWARDS, Richard of North
Vancouver on Poecember 17,
1976. Ago 21 years, Richards Is

dearly loved and will be sadly —

missed by his loving parents
and  sistor.
Grandparents and many close

frionds. Momorial sorvice will. .

bo held Monday, Decembor 20
at 2 p.m, in the Boal Chapal,
°1505 Lillaocot Aoad, North
Vancouver, Cromation. ‘Flow-
ors gratofyily, declinpd. Dona-
tions to the Canadian Cancor
Sociaty, would be appreciated:
Arrangements through = the
Memorial Socloty of, B.C. &
First Memorial Sarvicos Ltd,

Also by his.

Handling

A LARGE ASSORTMENT OF LEATHER APPAREL:

LADIES HANDBAGS, LUGGAGE, TRAVEL BAGS,. EVENING
BAGS, BRIEF CASES, ATTACHE CASES, WALLETS,
BELTS, ETC.

ML. lLeatherama Shop

ALSO REPAIR SHOP AT YOUR SERVICE
YOUR HANDBAGS WILL BE EXPERTLY REPAIRED.

1199LynnValley GRE