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Pele: WINKLER PUBLISHER EDITORIAL Andrea BAILEY EDITOR ext. 215 editoriatewatertoochrouicie.ca leunifcr ORMSTON REPORTER ch 203 jormsum@waterloochrooicleca Bob VRBANAC SPORTS EDITOR cm, 229 spmtsewatertoochrmticeca IO. tttATTiRtoOtMttt3NH" 'Wedncsday. May "i,2007 ADVERTISING Gerry MAtmCE ext. 230 RETAIL SALES MANAGER salesowaterloochmnicle.ca SALES REPREsEMrATTVES Noam CYCA ext. 223 "cycaowatertoochrom'cie.ca Bill PlHURA ext. 228 bpihumowaterloochrmticeca Carly GIBBS ext. 222 cgibtmewatertoochrorticrexa Alicia DE BOER ext. 202 aieboertewagedoochronicle.ca C LASMFWD 519-895-5230 C IRGJLATION 51943832830 ext, 213 Canadian Publications Mail Sales Publication Agreement Number WWW Intematiomal Standard Serial Num ha ASSN 08313410 Audited Circolauon: H.191 The Waterloo (Munch: n puNrshed each Wednesday hy Metroland Media Group Lid ()NTARIOPRFSS COUNCIL The Waterloo Chum-cl: " a member of The Onuno Ptess (banal, whkh cowuders complarns agar“: mem her newxnapcn Any complmnl about news. OPIIIIOIH adxemsmg or umdm should first h: taken to thr newspapu Unresolved mmplamn can he hroughi In ()nmm Press Council. 2 Carlton Street. Sum- 1706, Tommn, ON . MSB In COPYRIGHT The (“Menu or thrs mwwr are winked by envyngm In! my be used orgy for petsmtal “(Mr ual purposes All outer "(his are reserved and (animal me u pm- hnhlltd To make any me of thes material you must I'm! chum the [Itrfmwm of the Miner of the copy nghl For further Inlmm-Imn con tart Andrea Barter Fotor. Wan-rim 6hmmcte. 279 Weber St N _ Sum 20. Waterloo, ontano NN tHit urn HRS POLICY lawn to the editor mun cmttam the man’s lull name, htgnMure, - and KW number mama and Elephant mmoers we used only In vertfecatrort purponr‘ and mil an he published Names mll not be with held We - the nghl on can mu dame or ran-cl any corttnbuttmt for may a: legal Prrpo'e, “can my he W hy In to FIVMQMH m by emart to edatorotewater land-muck“ n! by mm! m dell» cred to Waterloo Chum-ck. 279 Weber S! N . Suite lo, Waterloo, 0mm NN ma WATERLOO CHRONICLE 219 Water St, N, Suite 20 WW. 0mm N21 3H8 5t9i?.830 Fur, muons! wwwnmetiaxhrmick.ca FAX Mormon) EMA" esh..tagte-fermckxa There's a lotto he tirttitti ttt in this community t's time once again for Waterloo residents to get Ibehind their city in its bid to be named the world's most intelligent community. The Intelligent Communities Forum will decide this Friday in New York which community among the seven nominated is the best and brightest on the planet. lt's not uncharted territory for the Waterloo crew. The group of local delegates travelled to the US, at this time last year when Waterloo was up for the same honour. Unfortunately. Taipei. Taiwan was named the winner. _ But that didn't curb Waterloo's enthusiasm. Members of the intelligent communities committee regrouped and line-tuned their application. putting a stronger emphasis on the leadership Waterloo shows on a daily basis. The local team is hoping their presentation will stand out from the other entries. and that they'll be able to bring the gold medal home. Different aspects of the community have been high- lighted, including its strong economic development, its place in the country's hub of research and technology. its environmental initiatives and its outstanding volun» teerism, A win Would almost certainly increase local tourism, and give Watedoo a greater presence on the world stage in terms of recognition and respect. -'e taut, at the GU of the day _: with or without an award in hand -- residents should be proud of the city they live in, Waterloo has so much to otfer in terms of education, employment opportunitits Ind _quality of life {loin-fully G, city will take iis deierved place in the winner's circle this week. But if not. a top-seven place- ment is nothing to sneeze at. (til, oyul luv-n nun-"r VIEWPOINT "IBI'E'S nothing 'gottti' about gtmiltytt Wtf here I am, about to do the deed I've been anticipating -- and. at times. dreading -- for the past three weeks. OK. here it goes-A am leaving the Waterloo Chron- icle. This Thursday will be my last day. A new opportunity awaits -- one that I'm sure will be just as exciting and fulfilling as the last eight years have been here. Of course, I am a little nervous. I wouldn't be human if there wasn't some anxiousness around such a move. After all, there were times when I thought I'd be at this newspaper until the day I retire. But those days aren't meant to be. Instead of looking toward what lies ahead for me at the newspaper, I am now looking back at all of the experiences here that have helped shape me into the reporter, editor and per- son lam today Sum, my post-secondary education was a good train- ing ground for the dos and don'ts of journalism, but nothing taught me how to tell a story quite like work- ing here. I've seen the good, the bad and the ugly in Water- loo over the better part of the last decade, And I've done my best to enlighten readers on those issues from an unbiased perspere tive That was challenging at times -- only a robot E wouldn't develop opinions on certain matters. Thankfully I've had this opinion-column space to vent - much to the chagrin of some readers, namely a politician or two. But right now I only want to focus on the stories that have had the deepest, most positive effects on me Honestly, there's not enough room in the paper to name them all. But there are a few that stand out... experiences that I will never forget. Many young people have taught me the meaning of courage and generqsiw. In 2001. l met then-two. year-old Alyssa Clelland. a little blind girl who refused to let her disability stop her from living __ and loving - life I still say Alyssa taught me how to see. More recently, I met Amber Shewfell, who perv sortifies bravery The l3-year1old. who has cystic fibrosis, has made it her mission to raige money and awareness for the dis- ease - not so much for her- self. but for others who are affected by the condition. If only more people had that drive and determina- tion. The world would defi, nitely be a better place, Ott the flip side. spend- ing an evening in a homo less shelter a few years ago gave me a glimpse into that sad, cold reality of our soc" cry. Before that night. I thought I had an informed opinion on the issue, I was wrong. Unless you walk a mile in the shoes of the people who are living it, your opinion Is irrelevant. That's something other people - and politicians - need to learn. as did I. On that note, I'd like to thank everyone who has taken the time to call or write me about what they've enjoyed - and what they've disliked -- reading about in this newspaper (hmplcte strangers were therefor me through my personal heartaches, including the recent loss of my beloved bunny. Cane And others have taken me to task for stories I've run. In hindsight. rm sure a few of those complaints were warranted, In any case. almost every moment here has been a my for me, and I'm confident the product will continue to he what I've tried my best to make " each week __ your community newspaper, g,