The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

"With the aging populaâ€" tion, I would say that‘s conâ€" cerning because we know they are going to be more people in those situations," said Schmidt. "What will that mean, and how can we try to alleviate the presâ€" sure?" The province has made modest adjustments to disâ€" ability, but even that hasn‘t been enough to meet increasing housing and energy costs. With the baby boomers fast approaching their twiâ€" light years, those numbers are expected to continue to grow. The number of people receiving an Old Age Penâ€" sion and getting emergency food help has almost douâ€" bled since 2002, and repreâ€" sents three per cent of peoâ€" ple receiving a food hamper last vear. Continued from page 1 "That‘s what this would point to when more of these people have to access help." Minimum wage increase has O-rn, done little for working poor _ \reet nurt? e 2200 Range from $1374 and up Those living costs got Last year, about 700 eligible children received dental treatment and about 300 adults received emergency care from dentists, dental hygenists and dental assisâ€" tants. dental care, call Jan Herbison, dental program supervisor, at 883â€"2001, ext. 5206. In keeping with April as Dental Health Month, the Region of Waterloo would like to remind lowâ€"income residents that it helps provide dental care for residents at its two dental clinics in Waterloo and Cambridge. Dental care available for poor For more information on how the the region helps lowâ€"income residents access Spring Savings: Spring Savings: Queen Set innerspring $1195, Regular Price: _ $1495 and up Queen Set Foom $1295 {exduding Hot Queen Set Pocket Coil $1395 and Serenc The working poor, at 28 per cent, also make up a significant portion of those receiving emergency food help from the local Food Assistance Network. And while the province has bumped up the miniâ€" mum wage in the last year, Ontario‘s lowest paid workâ€" ers are also constantly falling behind. "It was excellent to see More than 32 per cent of food hampers in the past year have also gone to peoâ€" ple on Ontario Works who also got a modest increase to their benefits, but are still falling behind the cost of inflation. "We do know the amount isn‘t as much as what the inflation rate has been for the last few years" said Schmidt. "All of those things are still contributing factors as to why there is still a need in the community," said Schmidt. even higher last Thursday when the provincial governâ€" ment increased hydro rates to between three and 15 per cent around the province. ring Savings: Range from $249 and up "2000 "The next week is pretty important in terms of us being able to help those who need the help." "There is an ongoing need in our community," said Schmidt, who was still encouraging donations after the Easter season. "The food that gets raised now helps us get through right until our Fall Food Drive. But there weren‘t as many individual food drives reported as expected leavâ€" ing a projected shortfall, although Schmidt believes that donations would keep rolling in over the next few weeks. The Food Bank was hopâ€" ing to raise more than $55,000 _ and _ 150,000 pounds of food to keep its shelves stocked through the summer months. That all speaks to the importance of the Food Bank‘s Spring Food Drive which wrapped up today. the minimum wage go up but we still know that it hasâ€" n‘t kept pace with the cost of living," said Schmidt. * inâ€"stock Laminate FINE AUTOMOBILE BODY AND PAINT Unsurpassed Collision Repair FINE AUTO INC 15 Centennial Dr. Kitchener PORSCHE JAGUAR Mercedes Benz Dealer Authorized C e NAMAJ L0 o AAAA 4 _ |. reeves usurous mm y‘ _ xX (roode rom apre Mkhikh MbICh Meticulous Restoration Original Paint Finishes Specializing In 578â€"2052 WE CAN HELP ‘ A CUSTOM ORTHOTICS Complete Foot Clinic 751 Victoria St. S. Suite 105 _ s Area Rugs _ "~__ saiur rucrc St. John the Evangelist â€" Anglican (corner of Duke and Water Streets, Kitchener) www.stiohn316.com 743â€"9987 (Free Sunday parking at City Hall) 1 Rector Rev. Canon Christoper B.J. Pratt Sunday â€" 8 am Early Eucharist; 10 am Sung Eucharist (Church School and Nursery) Daily Prayer (Mon. â€" Fri) 9 am Wednesday 7:30 am Eurcharist followed by breakfast Western Ontario‘s premier show Elora Community Centre David Street APRIL 22 & 23 Elora, Ontario Sat. 10 a m. â€" 5 p.m. Sun. 11 a.m. â€" S p.m Admission $6.00 Free parking _ EI?ra antique show TOLL FREE : 1 800â€"667â€"0619 WWW.ANTIQUESHOWSCANADA.COM 55 dealers! Our strongest line up of dealers yet! You‘ll find a full range of antiques and collectibles, furniture, jewellery, linens, textiles, vintage clothing, folk art, fine art, glass, china, clocks, country and much more. Enjoy a day in historic Elora â€" antiques, unique shops, fine dining, museum, and scenic natural attractions. www.searsfloor.ca SALE PRICE ‘Seare reg. §7.99 . |