Shortage aid

Area lacking nurses could
have solution as college’s
new nursing program
starts\NEWS AS

Sinking feeling

The River Kings’ new players
face off in Kitimat for the
‘second season exhibition
opener\SPORTS B4

Canvassing

Meet the young talent
behind curious, colourful
creations at Artful Cup
\COMMUNITY B1

$1.00 PLUS 7¢ GST
($1.10 plus 8¢ GST
outside of the Terrace area)

‘By DUSTIN QUEZADA "

TEACHERS HERE and across the prov- |

ince begin strike action this week in what:
promises to be a nasty dispute with the
provincial government over wages and
class sizes.

Although prevented by law fromacom-

plete strike, teachers are stopping some

activities in what the president of the local
teachers union calls a “paper strike.”
Terrace and District Teachers Union
president Veralynn Munson said that
translates into refusing to submit atten-
dance records, halting playground super-
vision and not writing memos.
_ Just-over 88 per cent of teachers prov-
ince-wide voted to strike last week. Ap-
proximately 80 per cent of B.C’s 42;000

‘public school teachers turned out to vote.

_ What services teachers will legally be

allowed to withdraw was still under re-
view by the B.C. Labour Relations Board
last week and_a final tuling i is expected
this week.

Under the legislation, the labour board:
_ is given the task of designating as essen-

tial all facilities and services necessary

“to prevent immediate and serious dis-

ruption of educational programs.”
But Munson, late last week, said the
B.C. Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) al-

ready has an escalating plan of strike ac- —

tion.in place. A second phase of service
withdrawal is. scheduled for. Oct. 11-20
that would see. rotating strikes in school
districts around B.C.

A third phase would be a full-scale with-

drawal of all services to start on Oct. 24. . .
teachers undertook a similar

B.C.
level of job action in November 2001,

‘ a pesston dard.

Veralynn Munson -Jinny Sims

three months after the provincial Liberal

government changed the law to designate

‘education an essential service.

In announcing the strike vote, the B.C.
Teachers’ Federation outlined plans: for

- further job action if.no progress is made

in negotiations with its.employer, the

_ B.C. Public’ Schoo! Employers Associa- «

a

_ fion(BCPSEA).. .,

Teachers didn’t even get to a second
phase of job action the last time around.
In January, 2002 the province passed
"Bills 27 and 28, which imposed the now
elapsed three-year contract.

, That provided for wage increases of 2
per cent in each of the first two years and

a 2.5 jump in the third. Class size lim- _
its for Grades 4 and up were also” elimi-

nated.

The lack of bargaining power.to nego- |

tiate a settlement that comes when a con-

tract is imposed is just one of the sticking

points for teachers, said Munson.

“The stripping of provisions, has lead
to an increased workload that is not being
acknowledged (by the employer),” said
Munson, adding the teacher to student ra-

tio continues to drop, especially for sup-

a

port staff.
‘The most contentious issue, however,
is the salary increase sought by teachers. .

“If you look at the numbers the BCTF. _

has said publicly and put on the table,
_feachers are looking at Alberta and On-
tario teacher salaries and the cost of liv-
ing,” said Hugh‘Finlayson, chief execu-

tive officer with the BCPSEA. ““You'do |

roy

the math and it’ sa10to 13 per cent (per

year) increase.”
The BCPSEA maintains .s teachers want

a 35 per cent wage increase through the ©

three-year pact they want.

But BCTF president Jenny Sims coun-
tered, saying the increase — a combina-
tion of cost of living’ and market adjust-.
ments — totalled 15 per cent ' through the
proposed deal.

Cont'd Page A2-

.

CANADA POST letter carrier Rosealee Dilley, left, is credited with saving the life of Vera McKenzie earlier this month. Dilley entered

McKenzie's apartment after feeling something was wrong and discovered an ill McKenzie. It was later determined she had a heart at-

tack. Canada Post has a regular program in which employees keep an eye out for seniors on their routes.

_ MARGARET SPEIRS PHOTO

Postie saves woman’s life

By MARGARET SPEIRS

“VERA MCKENZIE sits in her recliner sur-

rounded by photos of her family, chatting with

friend and life saver Rosealee Dilley.

“She’s my. guardian angel,” she says about
Dilley, the relief Canada Post letter carrier who
saved her life earlier this month.

On _Sept..7, while delivering the mail in
McKenzie’s apartment building, Dilley became

‘alarmed when she knocked on McKenzie’s

door. twice and received no answer,

She entered, and after looking around, found -
the 86-year-old woman lying on her couch, her |

face “very grey and clammy.”
McKenzie was awake, coherent and said she

“wasn’t feeling very well and had been feeling

that way for.a couple of hours.

She thought something she’d eaten for
breakfast had disagreed with her, Dilley says.

Dilley, who is also a family friend, called
someone she knew could notify McKenzie’ s
daughter immediately.

Within no time, McKenzie’s daughter ar-
rived and the ambulance whisked McKenzie to
Mills Memorial Hospital.

McKenzie had suffered a heart attack and af-
ter one week in hospital here, was sent to Van-
couver where she underwent an angioplasty, an
operation to repair a damaged blood vessel or
unblock a coronary artery. She spent about an-
other week in hospital.

“T felt terrible. I thought ‘this is it,’” McKen-
zie says of her time on the couch before Dilley
arrived.

Dilley says she entered McKenzie’s apart-

ment acting on,a gut feeling that something was
wrong.
. “You should never second guess yourself, ”

she says.

“Tt takes such a little time to follow through
and look what it did.”

Dilley didn’t know McKenzie had suffered
a heart attack, she just knew McKenzie wasn’t

feeling well and wanted to get someone there to

comfort her.

She also credits letter carriers in smaller
cities with doing more for the seniors on their
routes. ;

“As a letter carrier, we go the extra mile for
the senior citizens,” she says, proudly, adding

carriers do other tasks such as taking garbage
cans in or putting them out for the elderly.

Canada Post has an ongoing senior citizens’
alert program where seniors can provide their
emergency contact information so if letter car-
riers notice any problems, the seniors’ families
can be notified quickly.

Other northwest cities offer the same ser- .

vice, which has been available for many years.

Seniors can sign up for the program at the
local post office.

McKenzie’s apartment was one of Dilley’ S
first calls on the route, which isn’t where she
would usually be.

As a relief letter carrier, Dilley works all
over the city and Thornhill, covering routes for
carriers who are on vacation.

“Some things are meant to be. 1 was just
meant to be here to look after you,” Dilley says
to McKenzie as the pair visit in McKenzie’s
living room last week.

McKenzie returned home Sept. 20, glad to
be back.

“T feel a lot better than I did,” McKenzie
savs. ,

Thornhill future
studied again —

By DUSTIN QUEZADA |

THE KITIMAT-Stikine regional district has defeated a motion to.

begin the process of incorporating Thornhill, instead choosing to.
study the best avenue for the rural community’s future.

The motion was introduced in May by Les Watmough, the

board director for Thornhill, but was only voted on this month.
Jack Talstra, the board’s chair and longtime Terrace mayor, says

the district is back to where it was following a 1996 referendum on

whether to amalgamate Thornhill with Terrace was rejected.
“After. the referendum, a committee was established “that

~’ looked at maintaining the status quo, amalgamation or incorpora-

tion,” says Talstra. Of course, the status quo was maintained and
Thornhill has remained under the regional district’s administration
since 1996. .

District administrator Bob Marcellin says the new motion,
passed at the Sept. 16-17 meeting, was put forward because the
board wants to proceed with analysis of more than one option.
“The board was uncomfortable limiting itself to one option and
showing up with half answers {to residents’ questions),” Marcellin
says.

Talstra says the next step’ isa Union of B.C. Municipalities
meeting this week, where he and other local politicians will speak

to representatives from the Ministry of Community Services i inan .

effort to get money for the study. : —
Cont'd Page A2

Two more run for council

TWO MORE people are running for city council in the upcoming
municipal elections.
One is Kim Croot, who owned and operated Northcoast Health

_for six years prior to selling the business in 2000.and who was _

former: MLA: Roger Harris’ constituency _ assistant from 2001
until his defeat this May. The other is retired Bank of Montreal
commercial loans manager Gordon Oates. He now works part-time
at the Skeena Valley Golf and Country Club’s pro shop.

They join former forest district. manager Brian Downie as -

challengers to the five existing councillors who are all running. .

again. Mayor Jack Talstra is also up for election.
Nominations open on Oct. 4 and close Oct. 14 for ot municipal,
regional district and school district seats.

Happy birthday

CITY FREEMAN and long time community booster Ves-
ta Douglas celebrated her 95th birthday Sept. 20 with
friends at Terraceview Lodge. SARAH A. ZIMMERMAN PHOTO