PAGE 2, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 1981, WIHITBY FREE PRESS Camp Hood will be a religious park By MICHAEL KNELL Free Press Staff What Whitby has known as Camp Hood will become a religious amusement park by the year 1985. At a press conference held last Friday, Len Cullen of Cullen Gar- dens and Miniature Village announced that his firm had bought the 87-acre piece of land that lies directly south of their current facility on Taunton Road East at Cochrane Street. Cullen said that the theme of the park will revolve around the six major denominations that had a direct effect on life in southern On- tario during the 19th century. For each denomina- tion - Anglican, Baptist, Mennonite, Methodist, Presbyterian and Roman Catholic - Cullen will build a church on the property but instead of being a place of wor- ship in the conventional sense, each church will tell a story of how its congregation lived in pioneer days. These stories will be told through films. According to Cullen, these churches will either be the original structure - moved from its current site - or torn down and reassembled. If neither of these are practical, then a replica of the church will be built. Cullen, a self- described religious man, said that he wan- ted to build a park that is unique. "I'm interested in history," he said. "I'm especially interested in the history of the church in southern Ontario." The churches that will be constructed will "tell a story of what these churches did for the social ... spiritual ... life of the community." However, Cullen in- sists that the park will not be used for a reli- gious crusade. "It is not to convert people to Christianity," he said, "it is to tell a story, to entertain and to inform." The aim of the park, he continued, is to make people "happier, wiser for the experience." One of the reasons for building the park, Cullen said is to provide people with an alterna- tive form of entertain- ment. "There is a large por- tion of people who are looking for something different," he. said. "There are a lot of stories to tell." Like Cullen Gardens and Miniature Village, the park will be "attrac- tively landscaped." Cullen said that pre- paration work and con- struction on the site will begin on the $5 million project as soon as the necessary zoning by- laws are passed and building permits are issued. His already million company has invested $2 in its current tist Convention of On- tario and Quebec for the construction of a post- Cullen said. Whitby Mayor Bob At- tersley had nothing but /' One of the churches to be featured facility and by the time the new park is open they expect to employ a total of 230 people in season and play host to 800,000 visitors. Cullen said that the 80 people employed at the gardens played host to 300,000 people this year. The new facility will be able to host 500,000 people in a season. Major construction, he said, will begin in the summer of 1983 with the opening tentatively scheduled for summer, 1985. In addition to the park, Cullen announced that he has donated 19.5 acres of land to the Bap- secondary institution to house some 80 students. The main purpose of the school will be to teach these people to assume the responsi- bilities of the "lay lead- ership" in the church, praise for Cullen's plan saying that it "will at- tract a lot of people to Whitby." "This will be a superb addition to the Town of Whitby," Attersley said. Ambulance calls During the week that ended at midnight last Thursday, the Whitby Ambulance Service responded to 85 calls for service. According to co-owner Derek Pearce, the ser- vice responded to 30 routine calls and to 24 standby calls for other ambulance services in Ajax and Oshawa. The service also responded to 31 emergency calls includ- ing three motor vehicle accidents. The number to call for ambulance service is 723-5232. Residents Save onphone N owyou can cut the cost ofphone calls to Toronto with Bell Canada's Optional Calling Plan. Here's how it works. If you pay $5.60 per month, you can get up to $9.35 worth of Whitby to Toronto calls for your $5.60. Business customers pay $13.75, and get up to $22.95 worth of calling. If you call Toronto frequently, this plan can save you money. o o o