Page gu uly 1988 Cassiar Courier NE TE IE ME AE SIE EEE AOR ENA NNER EE MIMI By BC Me Cassiar Country RRR KK HH Porfirio Nitti was born in the Cassiar Hospital July 5, 1964. It was an event, as proud parents Marvel and Frank Nitti welcomed the bouncing baby boy into the lives they already shared with Porfirios’ older siblings, sister Corine and brothers Jack and Xaviar., Porti recalls growing up in Cassiar as a free spirit- ed time, without stress or strains. ‘‘My parents were not disfunctional,” says Porti, “Home was a happy and secure place and the family was tight.” As a child Porti enjoyed his friends and remembers a life full of childhood adventures with them. “‘ We'd play road hockey every night and every day. There was no televison then and we had to create our own amusement. Actually we relied on our own little devious minds to keep us entertained!” Life in Cassiar was safe for the kids growing . up here. Porti says thal their mothers had little worry and that he and his friends had the “run of the town”! “As long as we came home for supper by 5:00 p.m. there were no problems!” ; Porti remembers some of his childhood gang, Richard Knowles, Claire McKiernen, Harvey Callow,yv, Bernauld Borsato and Gord Kamlah. “We had a fort behind the Catholic Church. We called it the “Potato Cellar.” We’d go up there and have “bush Adventures”.” It was an enterprise of imagination these young people ex- perienced and one can understand the freedom of play found in the wild places around Cassiar Country. “Gord Kamlah and | hunted a lot of squirrels together,” added Porti, “We were good, real good!” Moving into his teen years, Porti says he was never bored. “There were lots of clubs, lots of activity and the school spirit was high! — The school was small then, elementary to grade ten. Everyone knew everyone else!” There was basketball and floor hockey, two sports well remembered by Porti. However the sport which impressed him the most was swimming. “Eric Glyn-Jones came to town and started a swim team. There were a half dozen of us or so who loved it and we travelled,babe!”’ “Where?” I asked. “Oh, to Watson Lake and to Whitehorse. One time kids came to Whitehorse to compete from Hope, B.C. I couldn’t believe it! Of course they won everything in the Yukon.” said Porti. Porti says that he is an Italian who has never been to Italy. However his. heritage is very important to hin and he adds that he was definitely :raised in a very European fashion. “My mom was born in Ontario,” Porti says, “But she’s more Italian than most Italians as far as I’m concerned.” As did a lot of Cassiar young people, Porti at- tended school in Vancouver in grade eleven. It was St. Georges, a prestigious private boys school. “I found the academics difficult,” said Porti, “but I enjoyed the boarding house! I became a prefect within the first year!” Porti continued to say that it was during this time that he fell in love with Vancouver. He spent. a lot of time “roaming the streets”. To this day it is his favorite place to visit. “I was lonely though,” remembers Porti. “Even though it was against my mother’s wishes, I returned to Cassiar and decided to stay.” He graduated from Cassiar Secondary in 1982. Porti Nitti is a worker. At age twelve he was mowing lawns in the summer and shovelling snow in RMR RMR RRR RRR KR HE RM RY Hy | by Lorraine Lanteigne the winter for the School Board. “I also painted houses,” says Porti. “I had some pretty tough bosses (Ed Micheals and Lorne Armstrong) who expected decent work.” By the time he was in grade ten Porti was working at the Cassiar Store as a student clerk. He worked after school and on Saturdays. Returning to Cassiar for grade twelve Porti was hired once again at the store. Porti .has remained there since. He progressed from a student worker to a general clerk. “J am very perceptive,” cites Porti. “I’ve picked up a lot of experience along the way. | also really like people and I like working in the store.” Porti says he would observe what was a good seller, what moved on the shelves, learning the business pretty much on his own until Albert Quinn came into the picture. “I think that Albert was the first true manager that the store had. He was concerned with the actual running of the store as a business. I learned a lot from him.” berlin 7 : Porti gets kiss from Joan, behind the meat counter at Cassiar Shopping Centre. mee - Cecil Terris and Joan Habjan are also listed by Porti as having a big impact on his education. “Cece is a doer,” says Porti. “If you have a problem Cece will get to the bottom of it. Whether it is phoning a distributor, hauler, or another store, she'll find out how to fix it.” “Joan,” continues Porti, “‘is the type of person who teaches you that putting in a hard days work (not just for the money) allows you to go home at night and feel good about yourself.” In 1985 Porti was put in the meat department to run the deli and wrap meat. It was at this time he realized the satisfaction he received from selling a pro- duct. “You play games with yourself,” said Porti. “I’d say, O.K. self, you’re barbequeing chicken so, the next person to come around that corner you are going to sell them one - and you do!” _ Porti says he owes some of his improvisational skill development to Pat Hickman. “I’m good with my hands, so I liked shop at school, but Pat Hickman taught more than just shop, In his class you learned about work and using your head! He taught you how to plan, organize, improvise and to work. Albert Quinn was the first person to realize that Porti had the ability to sell and that he was good at it. However the store was going through changes at the time and the meat department was shut down. Porti’s job became one of going across the street to the cafe- teria and bringing back meat. “The chefs had already cut it, we just sold it. Write offs were high.’’ says Porti. After the sale of the store to Bruno Koch, many things changed, especially the meat department. “It was Bruno who made the difference in my meat cutting ability,’ says Porti. “He spent time teaching me. I enjoyed working beside Bruno. It was like working with a brother or even a father.” Porti says he now knows how to satisfy the customer with a cut of meat appropriate to the occas- sion. “You need a roast to feed twenty? I’ll build youa big baron of beef and I’ll even cook it!” Porti feels that the meat industry has become very impersonal in the big stores: Also he knows that very good money is being spent on meat. “I think there is room for the “Old Butcher Shop” within the industry I don’t think that the meat need cost alot more. A ? fair price for a fair product A life change has occurred for Porti. He has learned from past experiences that life is not just one big party. “We are responsible for our actions and have to realize that we have to support ourselves and who- ever else we might be responsible for.” He regrets blowing a lot of money. but the big- gest regret he has is disappointing his parents. “I think Pm on the road now where I'll be able to make amends. My skeletons are hanging outside my closet. I’m not hiding anything, but I’m different.” Some of the “difference” has to do with a lady Porti says has had a major, positive, loving influence in his life. “In September of 1987, the new Home Ec teacher, Carol Kasper, went shopping at the Cassiar Shopping Centre. ‘ 1 proceeded to hose her as I would most ladies, realizing the business she’d be as the home ec teacher. Well, one Saturday she invited me for tea, and over the next two months I drank a lot of tea.” Porti says communication is the key to his relationship with his lady and they have been an item ever since. Leaving Cassiar after 24 years, Porti with Carol’s assistance will be setting up a deli and butcher shop in Prince Rupert, B.C. “It will be similar to what I do here, but there will be more custom cutting as Op- posed to the self service counter as we have.”” The name of the operation is Rainbow City Meats. Catering will be a sideline of the business. Porti says he is going to miss Cassiar and it’s Mountain People. After a lifetime of being here it will be a dramatic change. “I love problems and challenges,” says Porti. “Now I'll have my abilities tested. I believe Cassiar is going to be around for many years yet to come. I also believe there are many opportunities for business here. However my opportunity has come else- where. | feel good about it and so does Carol. I’m ready to go!” With that the interview was at an end. We'd sat for three hours talking of Cassiar Country, its people, and Porti’s memories. Throughout the evening I felt his positive energy and the excitement he emminated was contagious. I can fathom the success this man will enjoy. (ll miss his banter at the meat counter, but I know if anyone of the ladies from Cassiar Country walks into Rainbow City Meats we'll be greeted with the old familiar line from Porti, “Hey Babe, what can I do for you today?” ~NEW GOLD MINE SET FOR AREA A new gold mine outside of Smithers could be opening up soon and the managing director of the mining exploration company said he hopes to have “approval in principle” from the government as early as July. Stafford Kelley of Teeshin Resources Ltd. which is based in Toronto said the company is just finishing up its final feasibility study for a mine on Dome Moun- tain. He said the mine would employ about 100 people and provide about 30 to 40 peripheral jobs, such as suppliers. Kelley added that the mine would pour dore bars, containing both gold and silver, on site. These bars would then be shipped and sold to the Canadian mint. Doug Flynn, of the Ministry of Energy, agreed the company could get approval in principle by July “if none of the government agencies have any major concerns”. He added that the ministry of the environment would have a “good close look” at the proposal to see if there could be any potential damage to the environ- ment. Flynn said the standard gold recovery technique uses sodium cyanide and the ministry would want “‘to ensure adequate treatment of the effluence from the property”. Flynn maintained that even if the company gets approval, it must get several permits and there is “a lot of technical details” before™it could develop a mine. He added that the government is not finished reviewing the impact study yet. This would be Teeshin’s first mine in B.C., said its managing director. Kelley said the company was exploring ‘other areas of Canada for precious metals and that is how it found this site at Dome Mountain. Flynn said the site has “a fairly small tonnage” and a mine life of less than three years. He added Teeshin must feel that economically there is enough material there to pay for a plant and to make a profit. “At the moment it’s not a huge resource (but the company) is hoping to add to the resource as it goes along,” said Flynn. He added that the way to extend the mine’s life is to find other ore in the area. printed with permission from The Northern Sentinel, Kitimat, B.C. KMRRENR HH GRADE SEVEN ASSEMBLY The Grade Seven class is to be congratulated on their classroom assembly which was presented on May 27th. The audience thoroughly enjoyed the plays, particularly the creative costumes! Well done! FRENCH CLUB FIELD TRIP On Friday, June 10th, the French Club travelled to Lower Post to present a performance for the students of Denetia School. The trip was enjoyed by all (except for the bus, maybe!) and the Denetia students were most impressed by the accomplishments of our Snowridge French students. Special thanks are due to Miss Taylor for her work in organizing the trip and to Mrs. Pat Lanphear and Mrs. Karen Muir who provided transportation and assisted in supervising the expedition. We appreciate your help, Moms! Our annual Sports Day was held on June 27th and a good time was had by all! Special thanks are due to Mr. Waldera, Mrs. Smith, and Mrs. Hyde who helped organize the day. Congratula- tions to all the participants for their sportsman- ship and to those students who went home with First, Second and Third place ribbons. LOST AND FOUND The Lost and Found Box has been emptied and its contents donated to the local Rummage Sale. Thanks to all those parents who took the time to check it out for familiar items. FAREWELL It is with regret that we must say farewell to _ both Mrs. Kurian and Mrs. Tyne who will be leaving Snowridge in June. On behalf of the staff and students, | would like to thank them both for their contributions to our school and wish them every success in their future endeav- ours. Mrs. Kurian leaves to join husband, George, in Mission, B.C. We would also like to bid fond farewell to our Grade Seven Class and wish them the best of luck as they enter High School, both here in Cassiar and at other places in the province. Snow- ridge will be a different place without “‘the rabbit man”, ‘“‘the scarecrow’ and all their friends - good luck to all of you!!! SUMMER OFFICE HOURS Snowridge’s office will close at 3:00 p.m. on June 30th and re-open on Thursday, September Ist. Mrs. Clark will be available to handle in- quiries and new registrations from 9:00 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. on September 1st and 2nd. Parents wishing to register new students are asked to do so before the first day of classes on Tuesday, September 6th. KINDERGARTEN GRADUATION The Kindergarten graduation ceremonies were held at 11:00 a.m. on June 17th. The students are to be congratulated for an excellent year of hard work (and lots of fun, too!) and also on an enjoyable and very professional perfor- mance. Miss Taylor is to be commended for her usual fine job of organizing and presenting this special event. Best of luck in Grade One! YEAR END AWARDS ASSEMBLY Our annual Awards Assembly will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 29th. The pur- pose of this assembly is to recognize those stu- dents who have worked exceptionally well and made special contributions to the quality of life in our school. The names of the recipients, at the time of this writing, is a closely-guarded secret but they will be published in the next Snowridge newsletter! Congratulations to all the recipients of Certificates and trophies - and to all the nominees who made the decision- making process a difficult one! SCHOOL SUPPLY LISTS The following is a list of school supplies required for each grade level next year. While the quanti- ties given below are our best estimate of student needs, we recommend that parents buy extras of the consumable supplies as they may have to be replaced from time to time. KINDERGARTEN 1 pair of non-marking running shoes 5 pencils 5 medium Pink Pear! or white erasers 1 pair small scissors 5 large glue sticks 1 pillow (labelled with child’s name) 1 painting smock 1 box (shoe, cookie tin, pencil box) to hold supplies GRADE ONE 1 pair non-marking running shoes Gym strip (shorts and T shirt) 4 pencils 2 erasers 2 glue sticks 1 ruler (cm units) 1 set wax crayons © 1 set felts (optional) 1 pair small scissors. 2 standard primary exercise books 2 unlined primary exercise books 3 2 ruled primary exercise books 1 (school box, shoe box) to hold supplies GRADE TWO 1 pair non-marking running shoes Gym strip (shorts and T shirt) Please send $6.00 to schoo! with your child in September. .Mrs. Hyde will provide all neces- sary supplies for the year. GRADE THREE 1 pair non-marking running shoes Gym strip (shorts and T shirt) 4 pencils 2 erasers 1 glue stick (or white glue) 1 ruler 1¥2 cm units 1 set wax crayons 1 set pencil crayons MENTAR Cassiar Courier July 1988 Page 7 sae Sate 1 felt pen set (optional) 1 pair scissors 6 standard primary exercise books 2 interlined primary exercise books 1 unlined primary exercise book GRADE FOUR AND GRADE FIVE 1 pair non-marking running shoes Gym strip (shorts and T shirt) 1 Pink Pear! or Staedler eraser 1 blue pen 1 red pen 1 pencil crayon set 1 interlined notebook 1 geometry set 8 keytabs 5 duotangs 500 sheets of paper 1 pair scissors 1 glue stick : 1 metric ruler (with millimeter units) Please, no binders or novelty erasers, pencils or pens. : GRADE SIX 1 pair non-marking running shoes Gym strip (shorts and T shirt) 8 duotangs 500 sheets looseleaf paper 2 blue pens 1 red pen 4 pencils 1 set pencil crayons 1 geometry set 1 ruler (mm Units) 1 glue stick (or white glue) 1 pair scissors GRADE SEVEN 1 pair non-marking running shoes Gym strip (shorts and T shirt) 4 pencils 2 erasers 1 pair scissors 2 blue pens 1 red pen 1 pencil crayon set 1 felt pen set 1 ruler (mm units) 1 geometry set 10 duotang covers 500 sheets of lined looseleaf paper SCHOOL RE—OPENING School will re-open for all students, including Kindergarten, at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, Septem- ber 6th. Students will be dismissed. on that day only at 2:00 p.m. On Wednesday, September 7th, our school will resume its normal hours of operation, which are as follows: Kindergarten entry 8:40 a.m. Primary grades bell 8:50 a.m. Intermediate grades bell 8:55 a.m. Start of classes 9:00 a.m. Start of recess 10:45 a.m. End of recess 11:00 a.m. Kindergarten dismissal 11:30 a.m. Lunch dismissal bells 12:00 p.m. End of supervised lunch period 12:15 p.m. Primary grades bell 12:50 p.m. Intermediate grades bell 12:55 p.m. Start of classes 1:00 p.m. Grade One dismissal _ 2:30 p.m. Grades Two to Seven dismissal 3:00 p.m.