6 - Sunday, December 31, 1989 - North Shore News INSIGHTS The North Shore's good newsmakers of the year THE DYING year is a happier spectacle for the community newspaper than for the mass media. We deal with a better MARY COLLINS bullets. JOHN seat. CAROL REYNOLDS ... tenacious watchdog. REYNOLDS dodging prickly Pressing priority ORE THINGS happened at a faster rate in more parts of the world in 1989 than in the entire decade. Afghanistan; Wall, East Tiananmen Czechoslovakia; Poland; Romania and Panama: the changes in these countries are so deep and earth shattering that, more than ever before, newspaper headlines in 1989 read like the history books of tomorrow. And the changes are not confined to the far corners of the globe: they affect us, here, today, and have changed our traditional view of what constitutes us and them — East and West. With the passage of the ’80s the pace of change is ever-quickening; here at home, the issues of the ’90s are already here: Meech Lake, Free Trade and, above Germany; all else, the environment. As a resource-based economy, become especially aware of the importance of preserv- ing their natural riches for the future. In fact, it was only in 1989 that the significance of the environment was finally driven home to our society. We realized that if the bounties of the earth are not saved, we wil! not be able to afford to squabble over other issues. The greenhouse effect, loss of the great rainforests, toxic and nuclear waste — all of these long-standing problems, and their prescribed solutions: conservation, preservation and recycling, became common buzz- words in 1989. The °90s will no doubt bring new concerns. But what may prove to be most central to our thoughis are the changes that began in 1989, the most memorable year of the decade. class of people! Of course, the local bad guys also get their share of our ink. But working so much closer to the community, one quickly realizes how greatiy the good guys out- number them. Our big regret is lack of space for everybody we’d like to name today. We can only use this tiny sample of 1989 Newsmakers to salute, by proxy, hundreds of others like them. het THE POLITICIANS escaped rela- tively but not entirely unscathed. MP Mary Collins started happily by winning a cabinet job but ended dodging a hail of bullets aimed at Michael Wilson ... Among MLAs, John Reynolds found thumbtacks sprouting through the seat of his new environment chair ... Angus Ree lost his Solicitor General job because his riding is the wrong side of the Inlet ... And Jack Davis stuck out his neck by suggesting that English is B.C.’s natural lan- guage ... Mayors Marilyn Baker and Jack Loucks continued to lead their charmed lives, while West Van Ald. Carol Reynolds repeatedly braved Mayor Don Lanskail’s boot as the sole wat- RICK WEINMAN ... lungs wat- cher. Bets China; Berlin Hungary; Square, Canadians have chdog still snapping at his ankles over the Twin Towers. kee COMMUNITY TOILERS kept up worthy work in many fields — in- cluding Judy Dennis, mother of the new Arts Commission ... John Millard, battling West Van council to get Kiwanis housing for seniors under way ... Stella Jo Dean, a.k.a. ‘‘Mrs. Folkfest’’ ... Gertie Todd, queening it over her 39th Miss North Shore Pageant ... Ccho Festival ringmaster Don Griffiths ... and West Van's Citi- zen of the Year David Bakewell. eet DULY HONORED, notable new retirees included West Van’s Dean Miller, ‘‘dean of PR,’’ who step- ped down as boss of the firm he founded 42 years ago ... Frank (Mr. Fitness) Kurucz, West Van's popular parks director ... And, after 22 years with North Van Chamber of Commerce, its well- loved manager Peg Pitt-Brooke. There were sad losses, too — among them Gertrude Lawson, 96, daughter of John Lawson, ‘‘Father JUDY DENNIS ... mothering the acts. Publisher Associate Editor suburban newspaper and qualitied under Schedute 111 Paragraph ft of the Excise Tax Act, 1s published each Wednesday, Friday and Sunday by North Shore Free Press Lid and disinbuted lo every door on the North {nore Second Ctass Mai! Regstranan Number 3685 Subscrptons North and West Vancouver, $25 per year Mathng tates available on request. Submissions are welcore bul we cannot accept responsibility for unsohcited matenal mcluding manuscapts and pictures s _..Peter Speck Managing Editor... . Barrett Fisher . .Noel Wright Advertising Director Linda Stewart North Shore News, tounded tn 1969 as an independent of West Van"’ ... Distinguished newspaperman Hal Straight ... And the inimitable ‘‘Mr. Showbiz,”’ Ivan Ackery, one day short of 90. tee ACHIEVERS ABOUNDED ... West Van's Barbara Brink opened her smash-hit Science World ... Former West Vanner Steve Halliday moved from managing the Pan Pacific to veepee of its Japanese hotel group in Hawaii ... Hugh Addison celebrated 25 years as Park Royal’s g.m. ... From North Van, Heather Erxleben became Canada’s first female combat soldier ... Rick Weinman headed the B.C. Lung Association ... Nancy Stibbard’s top tourist at- traction, the 100-year-old Capilano Suspension Bridge, drew over 400,000 visitors ... Irma Detant beat it be celebrating her 105th bir- thday. And in what was very much a Women’s Year Debbie Trinacty and Patricia Treadwell presided DAVID BAKEWELL ... Citizen of the Year. ® sunday brunch © over North and West Van Chambers of Commerce respec- tively -—— while Jean Coull was elected president of West Van Legion. tik WRIGHT OR WRONG: May the worst of your New Year be the best of your Old Year! FRANK KURUCZ ... Mr. Fitness retires. later. by i WLPBHDE y YMG GO YU. Ls A OUANi bet OnCbte Ma hy Uj ie MZ LEED —2> : 1139 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver, B.C. V7M 2H4 59,170 (average. Wednesday Friday & Sunday) which soould be accompatued by a stamped, addressed crmeoge SDA DIVISION Entire cantents © 1989 North Shore Free Press Lid. Alt rights reserved. apperrtes ees amare ma an Display Advertising 980-0511 R Ciassied Advertising 986-6222 Newsroom 985-2131 Distribution 986-1337 Retell §— Sunsciptions 906-1337 MEMBER —————_———— sx. & North Shore owned and managed