JENNIFER LANG

Web Christmas card
PUT ON YOUR Santa hat and warm up your
keyboard.

The Terrace Standard is powering up its on line
Christmas Greetings section.

It's your chance to send holiday greetings to
Terrace Standard readers near and far through our
web site.

Our first try at this was last Christmas and we
were amazed by the response.

Dozens of faraway readers, from places as far
flung as Halifax and China, sent in Christmas
greetings for people back home.

We were so thrilled to act as. the community’ 8

Christmas card of the web, we’re doing it again.
Send your holiday greetings by emailing them to
newsroom @ terracestandard.com.

We'll post. them at www. terracestandard. com,

throughout December.
If you're a reader from afar or perhaps an ex-

Terrace resident who has moved away, tell us where .

you are, what you’re doing, how you’ ll be spending
the holiday season and any special memories .you
have of Terrace. And don’t forget to mention friends
back in Terrace you'll be thinking of this season. .’*

If you're a Terrace reader, this is your. chance to
send out a Christrhas greeting to friends who have
moved away but. follow the Terrace news on line.

Feel free to include a digital photo: ‘of yourself
with your email greeting.

We will also publish as many of-your Christmas
greetings as possible in our Dec,.23: print edition...

CARDS carrying the names of loved ones
decorate a Christmas tree.

Celebrate a Life

THE HOLIDAY season is difficult for. anyone
involved in the grieving process. Christmas cheer
offers a sharp contrast to what’s been lost, and it can
be an intensely painful time.

That’s why each December, thé Terrace Hospice
Society hosts Celebrate a Life, a non-denominational
evening of celebration and remembrance,

It's a place’ for people to acknowledge and .

remember their loved ones, and join together with

. other members of the community who. understand ~

exactly what they’re going through. |

Celebrate a Life is. special time of remembering,
music and readings, There is also a candle lighting
ceremony honouring loved ones who have passed
away. ‘Refreshments and fellowship follows the
service.

Cards carrying the names of loved ones who have
passed away decorate a Christmas tree that is later.
moved to the Skeena Mall. Passersby are welcome
to add a name to the tree in remembrance. -

This year's Celebrate a Life ceremony is Dec.
LO at the Elks Hall at 2822 Tetrault St. The service
begins at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call 635-
4811.

Youth summit
IF YOU'RE a young person and you're interested i in
transportation issues, here’s a trip for you.
The Canadian Urban Transit Association is
looking for youth delegates aged 17-24 to attend the
.2004 International Youth Summit on Sustainable
Urban Transportation May 26-31 in Ottawa, CUTA
pays all travel and other summnit-related expenses to
attend,
The summit will look at sustainable transportation
— a topic that includes everything from transit to
walking, cycling or rollerblading - and how to.
~ enhance those modes of travel. A tolal of 80 young

Canadians will be selected. You can apply online at
www.goforgreen.ca. And there’s more information

on the summit at,www.cutaactu.ci.

T he Music Man set to shine

Caledonia Fine Arts presents its version of the classic 1957 Broadway musical -

By JENNIFER LANG

IT'S YOUR a chance to see one
of the best-loved musicals of all
time ~ The Music Man, the time-
less tale of professor Harold Hill,
a legendary con man who decides
to try his band instrument scam on
the denizens of River City, Iowa.

The show is presented Friday
and Saturday at the R.E.M, Lee
Theatre by Caledonia Senior Sec-

ondary's Fine Arts department -

(See City Scene on Bl for
details),

The production boasts nearly
40 cast members, and as many
more students are involved behind
the scenes.

‘The story centres around Har-
ald Hill, a travelling salesman
whose favourite scam is selling
band instruments. to~ gullible
townsfolk after promising to start
‘up a youth marching band.

Marian Paroo, the town’s Li-
brarian, is the only one who has
her doubts about: Mr. Hill's cre-
dentials. ;

It’s guaranteed you'll be famil-

iar with at least one of the tunes
from The Music Man, a comedy.
and a love story that made its
Broadway debut in 1957 (earning
more Tony awards that season
than West Side Story).

Among ‘the show's many
memorable numbers are “Ya Got
Trouble”, professor Hill’s hysteria-
inducing warning about what the
arrival of the moral decay the new.
billiard hall will bring, the rousing
march *Seventy-Six Trombones”,
“Gary, Indiana”, and the moving
“Til There Was You.”

The Music Man places a lot of
demands on a single role — that of
Hill, which means Grade 12 stu-
dent Gerry Johnson is in virtually
every scene.

~Jéhinson, who performs lead vo-
cals for a high school metal band,
says it’s his first stage role.

For lead actress Melia Ste-
phens, a soprano, The Music Man

a lead in Jast year's State Fair.

Marian, the librarian who quickly

MUSICAL MAGIC: Etic McColl, left, of Clarence Michiel Elementary and Alex Gellatly of Skeena

Junior in a scene from The Music Man.

JENNIFER LANG PHOTO

is her second starring role in a
Caledonia musical. She also had

‘The soprano sings four solos as

sizes up the professor and decides
he’s a phony — but finds herself
falling for his persuasive charms
nonetheless.

This year’s musical production
features a blend of eager new-
comers and seasoned veterans,
says director Robin MacLeod,
who opened auditions to students
from outside Cal to fill all the
roles. ,

Mary Warner (Amaryllis Tils-
bury) and Alex Gellatly (Barney
Hix) of Skeena Junior both have

Continued on page B3

YA GOT TROUBLE: Gerry Johnson plays con man Harold Hill.

Riverboat Days to expand

Terrace’s annual summer festival grows to include more music, art and culture

"RIVERBOAT DAYS will
grow into a larger 10-day
arts and cultural extrava-
ganza next year.

It will start as usual on
the Thursday night leading
into the holiday weekend,
says Riverboat Days Soci-
ely president. Brian
Downie.

But the festivities will
continue after’ B.C. Day,
with more events on the
Tuesday, Wednesday and
Thursday.

That will connect Riv-
erboat Days up with the
Riverside Music Festival
the next weekend, he said,
creating 10 solid days of
activity here.

THOUSANDS tumed out to see Trooper during
Concerts in the Park. Acts like Trooper and 2003
headliners Prism have helped contributed to the
growing popularity of Riverboat Days.

“We thought we would
look at the idea of bridging
between the two
weekends," Downie said.

He said the plan builds
on the success of Concerts
in the Park — which has at- -

tracted classic rock bands
Trooper and Prism in ‘the
past two years — as well as
the growth in popularity of
the Riverside festival.
Work is still in the

‘early stages, but it means
ihe Riverboat Days Soci-
ety is on the lookout. for
more events that can be

days of Aug. 3-5.

organized to fill the week-

“What we're do- '
ing is meeling with
different people and
different organiza-
tions to see whether
they’d be interested
in participating “in

an extended
program,” Downie
said.

The focus so far
is on adding more
events and activi-
ties wilh an arts and cul-
ture flavour,

“We're looking for mu-
sic, theatre and art,” he
said. “And there’s a. num-
ber of really good ideas
about how we could put

_ these into some sort of an

event.”

“We also think there's
opportunities for First Na-
tions carving and food and
dance for the week.”

_ Downie thinks it’s worth,

making more effort to

Downie

erbot Days from
a tourist’s per-
spective.

And by extend-

_ of festivities, he

tential
tourists .
for a much longer
stay here. -
Downie said - or-
have - already

lo get

ganizers

- committed to jointly ad-

vertise the extended Riv-

erboat Days and Riverside ©

Festival in tourism guide
books for 2004. -

He said they’re confi- ;
. dent that, although: the. de- -

tails aren’t yet. decided,

the expanded Riverboat —

Days concept will work.

“You have to start with °
~ the idea. and, ihe vision and °
a) where ~ it goes,” he —

said.

One-time war prisoner served on

A LOCAL man who spent five years as a pris-

_ oner of war during the Second World War, and
who escaped three times, has passed away.

Basil Stacy Baxter was 86 when he died

Nov. 4 in Mills Memorial Hospital.

Born in Weymouth, Dorset, England, Bax-
ter was'a member of the English Territorial
' Army until he volunteered for the regular army

at the age of 21.

Sent to France with the Royal West Kents
in the spring of 1940, Baxter was barely in the
country for six weeks until being captured on.
May 2] along with the rest of his regiment.

“Bach of us had a rifle and 50 rounds, With
that you were supposed to stop tanks," Baxter
said in a 1995 story in The Terrace Standard -
which marked the 50th anniversary of the end

of the Second World War.

“Inthe morning we saw. the German tanks
coming over the hill, The infantry were follow-

ing up with the protection of
tanks. It made the whole thing
very unfair, actually. We had
nothing,” he said.

Baxter’s imprisonment in
camps in Germany and Poland
lasted until May 7, 1945, the
end of the Second World War.
All told he was in 18 camps.

“Nothing spectacular, mostly
-short, periods. Once I spent two
weeks on the run,” Baxter said
of his escapes.

Returning to England, Baxter
had the good fortune to meet;
woo and, on Sept. 11, 1947, to
marry Catherine Dalton.

They came to Canada the fol-

Basil Baxter

Kitimat’s first municipal council —

in 1952 where Baxter worked as
a cost accountant with Alcan
and was a member of the com-
munity’s first municipal council:
— Baxter Street is named for
him.

' The family returned to “England
in 1960 but, with Baxter retired
and ihe three sons having- re-
turned to the northwest, Basil
and Cathy came back in 1986,
setlling in Terrace.

Baxter served as a member of
the cily’s transit commission un-
til his death.

Baxter is survived by wife
Cathy, sons Malcolm, “Michael

and David (Margaret-Anne) and

lowing month. After spells in’ Winnipeg and. grandchildren Nicola, Zoe,. Carin, Giles Ash-

: North ‘Vancouver, the family moved to Kitimat ley, Emily, Henry and Sarah

ihink about Riv-«-

ing the duration —
said there’s po- -

lo stop -