"Bradford Rotarian Jim Simone was honored by his club last week when they announced that he had been made a Paul Harris Fellow by donating $1,000 on his behalf to the Rotary International Foundation. Mr. Simone, a past-president of the Bradford Club, was speechless with the announcement. There are only three other Paul Harris Fellows in the Bradford club: Gary Vasey, Frank Maurino and Gord Compton. The club's Rotary Foundation committee chairman Reg Harris told The Witness that a Paul Harris Fellowship is one of the highest honors a club can bestow on a member. He explained that a Rotarian can only become a member of the select group if the club makes a $1,000 donation to the fund in his name. Simone is a charter member of the Bradford Rotary Club and was the club's sixth president, serving in 1957 and '58. He has been a director since his presidency and for the past four years has served as the club's treasurer."
"Tom Gardner, longtime hardware store owner and active member of many community groups, has been named the Bradford and district citizen of the year by the Chamber of Commerce. ..."
"More than 250 well-wishers and dignitaries filled the auditorium of the Bradford and District Community Centre Sunday to honor Tom Gardner, Bradford's Citizen of the Year for 1976. Mr. Gardner, who operated a hardware store in Bradford for 56 years and represented residents on the local school board for 28 years, received gifts from the Chamber of Commerce, Mac Lewis on behalf of the Bradford Lions Club, the province of Ontario, and the congratulations of his friends and neighbors. Mayor Joe Magani paid tribute to Mr. Gardner and his wife Rita for their contribution and presented Mrs. Gardner with a bouquet of flowers in recognition of her patience and support. Councillor Bob Sturgeon congratulated Gardner on behalf of West Gwillimbury Township Council, and MPP Art Evans presented the guest of honor with a plaque from the province. On accepting a silver tray engraved with his name and honor from Gerry Barker, representing the Chamber of Commerce, Gardner acknowledged that his wife deserved the honor as much as him. The citizen of the year also appealed to those present to support the Newmarket and District Association for the Mentally Retarded which he has worked for devotedly. This year, he said, the association finds itself in need of funds. Brock Evans and Rev. Bob Chapman both reminisced about their acquaintances with Gardner."
"MPP Art Evans presented Sid Gapp with a portrait of the queen to be hung in the Gay Sixties senior citizens' rooms at the old St. Mary's school. Municipal officials from West Gwillimbury and Bradford, and representatives of provincial and county senior citizens organizations, were on hand Sunday when the Gay Sixties held their official ribbon cutting ceremony."
"Behind every club organization there has to be one person who has to make the final decision on behalf of that club. The past five or six years, Bob Fallis has had the not so honored privilege of handling the Bradford Queens senior ball club. Bob is no stranger to the Bradford sports fan as he has helped bring numerous Ontario championships to this town both as a coach and player."
"Bradford's senior citizens displayed their new quarters Sunday and more than 300 people attended the open house in the former St. Mary's Separate School building. The seniors have done a first rate job in refurbishing their area in the school and their energy and resourcefulness is to be highly commended. The Gay Sixties Senior Citizen Club has been working on this project for quite some time and the facilities should provide many happy hours for our senior citizens. A spokesman for the group said it was a team effort and it's refreshing to see people working together to build something that is worthwhile and will benefit many people in the future."
"Bradford Mayor Joe Magani makes a valiant effort to mount his donkey during one of the most hilarious events staged during the five-day Salad Festival. The donkey baseball game drew large crowds as the Lions battled the Bradford Rotary. The event was so successful, next year is bound to hold a return match."
"Chris Van Alebeek has 25 grandchildren, had worked outdoors all his life, and was bored after four years' retirement. So he began a new career this year - as a crossing guard, shepherding school children across the busy stretch of Holland St. East, on their way to and from Marie of the Incarnation School. Mr. Van Alebeek was born in Dendungen, in the Dutch province of Brabant in 1900. He lived in Holland, working as a farmer until 1952, when he, his late wife Wilhelmina, and their five sons and two daughters made the move to Canada. The family emigrated, he told The Witness, because he had seen too much hardship and danger during the two world wars and wanted a better life for his children. The Van Alebeeks came straight to Bradford and stayed here. Their youngest children, twin girls, were born in Canada."
"Bradford Salad Festival organizer Leo Kleiss said yesterday that pre-sale of tickets for the festival are going well and he expects that very few will be left by the time the festival gets underway. Advertising and community bulletins should bring people from all over Southern Ontario and the estimate is that up to 15,000 people will attend. Area motels and hotels have been booked for the past two months. Last week the Bradford Rotary Club issued a challenge to the Bradford Lions Club to participate in what should be one of the funniest moments of the festival - donkey baseball. The Lions have accepted the challenge and the event will be staged Sunday, July 18. In addition, the Big A Amusements will be opening their variety of carnival rides and games on Tuesday, July 13 to run through until the following Sunday at 6 p.m. Tickets for all the events including the teen dance, salad feast and the baseball games can be purchased at the Festival office in the old Bank of Commerce building at the corner of Barrie and Holland St."
"The town of Bradford bulged at the seams last week as an estimated 20,000 people jammed into the community to make an unprecedented success of the annual Bradford Salad Festival. From last Wednesday night, through Sunday, every event scheduled by the Salad Festival Committee surpassed organizers' highest hopes. Visitors and residents alike consumed hundreds of pounds of fresh salad, sliced their way through a ton of beef, sipped on soft drinks and other refreshments, danced til the wee hours of the morning, and generally paid tribute to the greatest growing area in Ontario."
