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elcome Wagon Ltd Wls celebrating its 75th year of welâ€" coming Canadians. In the summer of 1930, the greeting company made its first Canadian home visit, in Vancouver, B.C. Now, millions of resiâ€" dents, in more than 500 communities across the country, have been greeted by a Welcome Wagon hostâ€" ess, bringing a decorated basket laden with gifts and information. Knock, knock Local organizations conâ€" tribute civic information. while local merchants supâ€" ply the newcomers with gifts and, at the same time, proâ€" mote their businesses. "Half of the time, people can‘t believe our services are free of charge. They always think, ‘OK, what‘s the catch?‘ But when they learn there isn‘t one, they‘re really thrilled," said Diana Dietâ€" rich, an area manager for the company. Although Welcome Wagon has traditionally been associated with the moving and relocation process, it also provides speâ€" cial services for people, such ile I‘m not much W(h)f a movie afiâ€" cionado myself, 1 do enjoy watching the occaâ€" sional flick in the theatre (the kids really liked "The Polar Express"} or relaxing at home on the couch watchâ€" ing an older release. I1LD@_DLGLVLVLL) LRILAILQGFLARLe 0 0 Welcome Wagon celebrates 75 years of greeting newcomers While the "big screen" theatre experience can‘tt be compared to a TV, 1 don‘t mind being behind the times and catching someâ€" thing on my "small screen" after the DVD has been released. Mavybe that‘s because I remember the day when I had to wait for weeks, and sometimes months, before a new movie would come to Investigating blockbuster movies Mortgage Consultant Let Canada‘s leading lenders compete for your mortgage! By Jennirer Oruston For The Chronicle â€" MORTG AGE A L L LEA NCE www.ForYourMortgage.com as bridesâ€"toâ€"be. expectant mothers and grandparents, who are adjusting to lifestyle changes. The problem is people who are entering new life stages may not have all the information they need, said Dietrich. "So we come into their homes, where they are comâ€" fortable, and help them. Plus, who wouldn‘t like free gifts?" she said. To mark its milestone anniversary, _ Welcome Wagon will hold celebraâ€" tions across the country in April and May. Welcome Wagon also offers businessâ€"toâ€"business presentations for executives and professionals who change or begin new posiâ€" tions. Outstanding hostesses among the 1,200 employed. communities, local services and merchants will be honâ€" oured for their contribuâ€" tions at one of four regional conferences. Dietrich attributes the organization‘s success to the fact that, after threeâ€"quarâ€" ters of a century, everyone knows of its existence. "The name speaks for itself," she said. She also believes the my local theatre, which was a 25â€"minute drive from home to boot. In today‘s world of fast Internet connections and people trying to get more for less, it is possible to have a movie playing on your TV hours after its premier in the theatre. People are attending first showings of movies, making recordings, transferring the movies to their personal computers and then sharing them on the Internet. Unce downloaded. you can "burn" a file onto a DVD and enjoy the fresh, new movie in the privacy of your own home, though 1 would likely feel too guilty to enjoy BUSINESS Welcome Wagon area manager Diana Dietrich says people are thrilled when hostesses arrive at their door bearing gifts and information. future will continue to be bright for the Welcome Wagon, which became a Canadianâ€"ownedâ€"andâ€"manâ€" aged company 26 years ago. _ "I think the organization is going to keep on growing a movie 1 didn‘t pay for. And how good could the quality be anyway? Besides, theatre opera tors are getting more dil ( EC § & INQ s '§ TIEAFZV . iCH(J ( â€"mman . sapgowr saowt saugowt saucont saucont saugowY saugont saicont sapgowt sappourr sapgourr sapcontt saugont sapcont saypowt smconr saagont sapcony PPLUINNELIRS!‘ =CHOIKE . _ MICHAEL HIEMSTRA Grid Hurricane 6 _ Marsathon ooo tOlen \} stronger since more and more people are going to know about us as the generâ€" ations change," said Dietâ€" rich. Hostesses visit people when they get married, have gent about watching for people with recording devices and might someday employ technology themâ€" selves to help catch people in the act of "stealing" a movie. For instance, a company named Trakstar LLC has developed a produci they call PirateEye that detecis cameorders in the theatre; it may be coming to a theatre near you. For those of us who can wait for their movie fix or don‘t mind shelling out for a flick in the theatre. there are lots of ways the Internet can help you out. Besides looking up the theatre times or movie sumâ€" Sunday. P d / 247 King St. N. (519) 884â€"5361 Corner of King & University pypoobs children and become grandâ€" parents. Then the cycle repeats itself with the next generation. __ The Welcome Wagon was founded in the U.S. in 1928; however, home visits by maries, many Web sites offer movie reviews. You can head over to www.canada.com to find out why Vin Diesel is "not funny in so many ways" with his lead role in "The Pacifier®. or check out rogerebert.suntimes.com and see why this movie "lacks comedic muscle". ... it‘s possible to have a movie playing on your TV hours after its premier in the theatre. Tilley Head 2 Toe Downstaitt River Worke, 91. Jacabe 664â€"2662 1ENMWEER orMsTON PHOTG bit by bit Tittay £ Rayal Robbine Clathing, Qutties £ Leawinde, Auctralian Outhark allortin hostesses southâ€"ofâ€"theâ€"bor der ended in 1999. Dietrich said she doesn‘t foresee that happening in Canada. "It is quite a thrill to know Welcome Wagon is going strong here and that there is no way it is going to stop, and neither will the personal visits. We would never do a mail out or that sort of thing," she said. However, Ellen Wesson, a Welcome Wagon hostess for seven years, said as times change, so does the busiâ€" ness. "If they see a moving truck, some of the girls will just knock on the door and say, "I see that you‘re movâ€" ing in and I‘m here to welâ€" come you."" For instance, the enactâ€" ment of privacy laws has made her job more difficult. "It is becoming harder and harder to find people who are moving," she said. For more information about Welcome Wagon or to request a basket, visit the company Web site at www.welcomewagon.ca or call 747â€"2398. Hostesses are resourceful though, even in the face of privacy legislation, accordâ€" ing to Dietrich. If you‘re having trouble finding a review for a show that you are interested in, Google is beta testing a new movie review search engine. Just go to www.google.ca and use "movie:" (without the quotes) as your first search term. Using our example movie above you could enter "movie: pacifier diesel" to find around 23 different reviews and a rating of 1.8 out of five. If you want a preview of a movie before heading out to the theatre,most new releases have their own Web site these days. Continued on page 17 Tin Non Ral Itemc We‘ll Pay The Taxes