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‘b ‘1 " / Eilllflhablh :, ~ By Advocacy Coordinator, Judith Moses Enthusiasm is building across the organization for new advocacy efforts. The updated Advocacy Manual should be available shortly, its main changes taking into account how electronic communication and social media are transforming advocacy methods and making aovocacy more easily accessible to Members than ever before. Small Abattoirs in Ontario We have written to the Premier and OMAFRA on the closure of small abattoirs in light of the growing local food movement, and we are awaiting confirmation of a meeting wtth Carol Mitchell The Advocacy Coordinator and Malcolm WI (Grey- Bruce Area) are collaborating on a lTldJOl ddvucacycampaign. The local food market continues to grow and both federal and provinCial governments must ensure the viability of small abattorrs. The Malcolm Wl initiative s praying to he a useful advocacy model in how to butld local alliances (Christian Farmers, Farmers' Union and Federation of Agriculture, etc), engage the public iabout 300 people came to a public meeting): jointly fund the effort (Malcolm Wl and each otthe Grey-Bruce far'n groups out 5250 into a fundl; manage a media strategy; and adiust our thinking as issues evolve from the original resolution. For more inr'onna-nnn on the current demands of small auctions and other high profile I'WIO issues, a detailed Jammy Renoir can be found on the FWIO website at ivva i‘rwo onca. Judith Moses can be reached by email or juditnmosesgtrogersxom. 20/0 Much copied around the world, they became one of the most successful'adult education ventures ever developed. But they died With the advent of television by CAMPBELL CORK dlhldlflfl Farm Radio Forums htid a short run ofjust 24 years C 7 train I941 [01965 i but the inovcmt-nl had a giant impact on the fEILL' ul Canidzit In Onldl’lr) alone, Farm Forums \vcrc rcspttnsible i'nr founding the Farm Cicdit Corporation, many l'arin (temperatures and numerous credit unions. Never again would to many stimulating and controversial discus~ sinus ni ilirni topics 511 church base int'nts. tine-mum schools and tarm kitchens, Farm Fnrums began in the desperate years oi llk' second World War rind qullanCtl into the post-war boom years of optimism and hope. They started when radio was lung and strugr tiled into the era when television took twrr tllL‘ tliruiw Members UIVCJLVlI forum met Monday *ning and tuned into .1 CBC bitmdttisl. which led them through it discussion at .1 current mpic of interest in the farm community. l’x mi in the bitiddmst. each forum would receive printed copies of the program guide to help with the discus- SlulT. ThL guidc presented different acts ol'qtic-stinnt for both adults and youth. Following the discussion, the particr» punts wcrc encourang to report their results in their provincial Farm Forum Ollicc. lhcsc were tabulated and broad- cast the next Wch With a total of 35 all out time. Humn County was said to l'lUld the record for the county With the must individual forums. 72 Farm News First ® Betteanrniingrcnni Tailgate Farm Furum‘meeting, 1954, at the Wellington County lartnnf _ Alex Gillies, seen seated third lrum right. Tractor safety was on then minds. Nationally. the number of partiti- putts in the Farm Forums peaked in 1950 when '1,606 groups were registered with about 20,000 forum participants. About halfthe groups were from Ontario, The initiative was jointly sponsored by the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, the Canadian Association for Adult Education and the CBC. ln Seaforth. for instance, a Farm Forum discussion oi cooperative principles resulted in a pmduceryotyned farmer's (moperutive Farm Forums were responsible for the Huron County lYlL'dlC‘dl Services, which provided hoa- piral cnverage tn its members long before national health care was even .i twinkle in the federal eye. Another forum called on local school boards to insulate the ceilings of their one-room schools. to bring in electricity and to provide movable seats. The 55:25 Culross Farm Forum in Bruce County sponsored a barn meeting to determine how to produce more grade A liogs.And the Green Bush Farm Forum in Wellington hclpccl organize the Harrisron Farm Co-op. Similarly. the 'ieeswnter Co-operntive came from that areas DoyComc’Jn Farm Forum. Mar Wl‘s Annual Dinner The last Saturday of May means only one thing on the Bruce r Peninsula - it is Mar Women's lnstitute's Annual Fish Dinner. Homemade pies baked by Members and friends of Mar Wl (Grey-Bruce Area) are served with locally caught White Fish along with all the trimmings of course! Each year the community has a chance to visit, eat, and many volunteer to help, Nearly 300 guests mark their calendar and attend this event each year. Pictured is Mur Wl Secretary, Connie Adams - alto “Pie Lady." Despite all the serious business I conducted at Farm Forum meetings. no Farm Forum worth its salt V I adiourned without making time for n few rounds ofeuchre and serving lunch. I The man credited with the idea of . the weekly broadcasts was thc son of ii Grey County farmer, the late Alex Sim I Over numerous conversations in my kitchen. he rold me that the reasons were many for the demise of the Farm I Forum movement. They includcd chronic underefiinding and worries ofpoliticians about the growing power I of the movement. But. he said. the bottom line was thul the Canadian Farm Radio Forums were I totally dependent on the weekly radio broadcast. When the CBC pulled the plug on the broadcast, the Farm I Forums went down the drain. Farm Radio Forums were uniquely Canadian. they remain one the most I successful and largest adult education systems ever used in the world. and they have been copied around the I world. BF Ciiriiplmll Cork lives and Writes in Marin! Fi‘ircsi. Belterramiing March 5009 ll