CITY DESK: John Harding 562-2441, Local 382 FAX: 562-7453 The Prince George Citizen - Wednesday, September 3,1997 - 3 Second Front Gay parade organizer refuses ‘Changed Pride ’ participation by GORDON HOEKSTRA Citizen Staff An organizer of the first-ever gay pride march in Prince George says a Christian-based group — calling itself “Changed Pride” — will not be allowed to take part in the event this Saturday. Bob Zayonc, a minister at the Full Gospel Christian Fellowship, asked parade organizers if people who he says have changed from being homosexual can take part in the march. “Our group, called Changed Pride, would like to publicly convey our love and support of those gays and lesbians who desire to change,” said Zayonc in a letter to parade organizers. In the same letter, which he released to the media Tuesday, Zayonc said he had been sexually abused by a gay man when he was a teenager and “successfully risen above the negative influences” imposed upon him. A gay pride parade is the perfect venue for a group like his to help people who want to change from being Bob Zayonc, a minister at the Full Gospel Christian Fellowship, asked parade organizers if people who he says have changed from being homosexual can take part in the march. gay, he said in an interview on Tliesday. “We really want to reach out to these people.” But Josh Pollard, one of the parade’s organizers, says Zayonc is missing the whole point. The idea of the gay pride march is to celebrate homosexuality. If people who have changed from being gay to heterosexual want to celebrate, they should go ahead, but not during this weekend’s event, said Pollard. “He’s pushing into our community with his beliefs,” said Pollard, who heads up the youth group, Love Knows No Gender. “I wouldn’t want to change, nor do I think I could change.” Pollard also noted that Zayonc had helped organize a controversial forum on homosexuality earlier this year that the homosexual community believes was anti-gay. It advised attendees to fight gay-positive teaching in the classroom, telling people that homosexuality was wrong and gay people can change. “Personally, I can’t believe the nerve of him to even confront us with this. I think it’s really rude of him. My point of view is that someone who believes in Christianity is to love everybody no matter how they are.” Last week Zayonc expressed his disappointment after a split city council gave its blessing to the parade, proclaiming Sept. 6 TransLesBiGay Pride Day — for transsexuals, lesbians, bisexuals and gays. The celebration includes a march, a picnic in Fort George Park and a dance later in the evening. Fonyo pleads guilty to impaired driving One-legged runner Stephen Charles Fonyo pleaded guilty Tliesday in Prince George provincial court to one count of impaired driving. He will be sentenced here Nov. 5. In the meantime, provincial corrections officials will prepare a report on whether it is suitable for Fonyo to serve a sentence under the Electronic Monitoring Program (EMP). The program allows a person to serve a sentence in his home; corrections officials can monitor his movements through signals from an electronic bracelet. The impaired driving charge was originally issued here in August 1996. Fonyo had been scheduled to appear on this charge in April, but did not appear. He turned himself into police in Vernon in June, saying he hadn’t gone to court as scheduled because of a mix-up with his lawyer. The plea Tuesday marked the fifth time Fonyo has been convicted of drinking and driving. Fonyo lost a leg to cancer at age 12. In 1986 he completed the run across Canada that Terry Fox started in 1981. In so doing, he raised $13 million for cancer research. In 1987 he was awarded the Order of Canada. Remanded in custody A 29-year-old Prince George man charged after a wild ride in a stolen truck last week returns to court next week. Appearing in provincial court Tliesday, Shaye Allan Keays was remanded in custody until Sept. 12, when a hearing is scheduled to set a date for trial. Keays faces charges of theft of property over $5,000, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and possession of a narcotic in violation of federal law. New trial ruled out A city man accused in the death of a Fort St. John 17-year-old two years ago will not be tried again, Crown counsel said Tuesday. Early last year, John Joseph Kleinsteuber was sentenced to two years less a day in jail, three years of probation and a seven-year driving prohibition after being convicted of impaired driving causing the death of Rory James Salter. The incident occurred in a local convenience store’s parking lot. Kleinsteuber remained in custody for 17 months after being arrested and charged, said acting regional Crown counsel Leslie Strike. The case was a highly controversial one, sparking demonstrations at the provincial court building here by members of Friends and Families Against Drunk Driving (FFADD). Kleinsteuber appealed the the conviction to the B.C. Court of Appeal, which on April 2,1997 decided to order a new trial. In making the order, Mr. Justice William Esson asked the Crown to consider whether the interests of justice required another trial, Strike said. Kleinsteuber’s original conviction on Feb. 7,1996 was based on an early guilty plea. He later asked to withdraw that plea, contending he had been misadvised. Evidence was presented that Kleinsteuber was under attack by four young men at the time of the incident, and that one carried a metal bar as he approached Kleinsteuber’s van as Kleinsteuber was trying to leave. The plea of guilty had been entered subject to a condition, Madam Justice Mary Southin wrote in the appeal court’s judgment in the case. This condition was that, if the provincial court here did not accept the five-month sentence proposed by the Crown and defence in a joint submission, the accused could withdraw the plea. A conditional guilty plea is not recognized in the Canadian judicial system, and that is the main reason why the court of appeal ordered a new trial, Strike told The Citizen Tliesday. “Being a conditional plea, it was no plea at all,” Madam Justice Southin wrote in the appeal court’s judgment. The Crown’s decision nor. to proceed with a new trial and stay the charge against Kleinsteuber was based on a number of considerations, including comments from the court of appeal, the time he spent in custody and difficulties in proving the charge, Strike said. But last week the victim’s family and police agreed with the Crown’s decision not to proceed with a new trial, Strike said Tliesday. Two deputy regional Crown counsels, two major crime prosecutors and Strike had reviewed the case in consultation with the family and police in making the decision not to proceed with a new trial, the B.C. Ministry of Attorney General said in a release. Citizen photo by Brent Braaten COLLEGE BARBECUE — Roy Murphy, enrolled in the professional cook training program at the College of New Caledonia, gets burgers sizzling at orientation barbecue at CNC on Tuesday. Most classes start today. ‘Prize’ costs $20,000 TRAIL, B.C. (CP) — A local woman in her 70s spent $20,000 in the vain hope of collecting a $200,000 prize offered by a Montreal-based telemarketer, RCMP said Tliesday. The unidentified woman sent the money in several installments to National Distributors of Montreal after they advised her she had won a prize, police said. She was told that to collect the prize, she had to send money to arrange for delivery. “Each time after sending a money order to National Distributors, she is again contacted and given another reason why another payment must be made before the prize can be delivered,” said RCMP Sgt. Jim Herman. “The latest call was on Aug. 27, when she was told the courier attended the victim’s residence the day before but she wasn’t home. Therefore, she was required to send another $5,400 before the courier could be redispatched.” Herman said RCMP are investigating. “We will be liaising with Project Phone Busters in Ontario in this regard,” he said. Project Phone Busters is an organization established to investigate and deal specifically with telephone and telemarketing scams. FOLLOW UP Kremlin kitty Bishkek, the Seal Point Siamese cat from Russia, is still missing, and his owner’s hopes of finding him are fading. “Every time a call comes in, my hopes are raised, but, to be realistic, it looks like either someone has him or something has befallen him,” Anita MacDonald said Tuesday from her Seymour Subdivision home. Three-year-old Bishkek jumped out of MacDonald’s arms July 27 and disappeared one day after arriving by plane from Bishkek, Russia. Her phone number is 563-3452. Founding librarian A painting of the University of Northern B.C.’s founding librarian will be mounted in the main library, according to the campus newsletter For the Record. Pat Appavoo, who announced her resignation last March, left Friday after six years of service with the university. The portrait is by local artist Dan Gilbert. Missing family Police continue to investigate the disappearance of a Prince George family eight years ago. Ronald Jack, his wife Doreen and their young sons Russell and Ryan have been missing since Aug. 2, 1989. On that date, the family was packing to follow a white man who had offered them employment at a ranch or logging camp. “We’re still following up on it,” Const. Gordon Molendyk said Tuesday. “There’s nothing new on it.” City Hall lights The aging strings of lights in the trees in front of City Hall won’t be replaced any time soon. Greg Anderson, manager of the city’s buildings division, said city crews can’t replace the strings as long as leaves are still in the trees. “There’s a window between when the leaves drop and the snow falls that we can do that work,” Anderson said. “If we get a big dump of snow, we can’t get the vehicles in around the trees, because we have to use a man-lift for it.” City council decided to spend $15,000 to replace the strings of lights, rather than individual bulbs, after finding the strings were corroding more quickly. Thrift shop You wouldn’t think a thrift shop would be a big success, but the Prince George Gospel Mission would prove you wrong. Casey Prediger, the mission’s program director, said the second location — located in the same building as the mission’s men’s hostel — is doing good business since its opening earlier this summer. Prediger said the second location, at 1141 Fourth Avenue, handles mosdy appliances and furniture, as well as other items that don’t fit into the format of the other store at 1214 Second Avenue. Muggings rare A few years ago, muggings and robberies on downtown streets were common. Now we have only about a handful a year, according to the RCMP. The trials of four men charged with mugging and robbing a man of $100 in a vacant lot on the 100 block of George Street have been consolidated. The quartet, accused of the robbery about 3 p.m. Aug. 16, will appear in court Friday. Davin Lee Koch, 21, was released on $1,000 bail last week. Trevor Alvin Charles, 26, Shane David Hanna, 26, and David Abel Joseph, 27, remain in jail until their trial. Happy ending A 69-year-old Fraser Lake woman whose surgery was cancelled on the operating table this spring after a seven-month wait because the hospital ran out of sutures is doing very well. Originally, it looked like Agnes Reed would end up at the bottom of the waiting list and face another long wait. But after a little public scrutiny, the hospital freed up some extra time at the end of April for Reed’s hand surgery. The surgery went fine and four months later, her painful, crippled arthritic hand feels a lot better, Reed said from her home in Fraser Lake, 150 kilometres west of Prince George. Volunteers About 35 people answered a call for volunteers to a Prince George health-care advisory committee that will provide input to the Northern Interior Regional Health Board. Deadlines for applications closed Aug. 31 and an organizational meeting will be scheduled for some time in the next few weeks. The volunteers who responded to the call will hear from the regional board soon, said board representative Lesley McVey. Tools recovered in Quesnel bush Quesnel RCMP are looking for the owner of tools they recovered Monday. Constables found two garbage containers in the bush off West Fraser Road. They were partly filled with various heavy-duty tools and wrenches, police said. So far, RCMP have been unable to identify an owner. Anyone with tools missing is asked to contact Quesnel RCMP to identify the tools. If you have a news tip, call 562-2441, Local 382 What to Wear Flyer “The GST/PST offer on page 2 of our B8-2 flyer effective Sept. 2-14 should read Wed. Sept. 03, not Sept. 08. Sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused. 311785 In Prince George, don’t take a bath before Sept. 6th & antil then, you won’t find a b»th & kitchen centre like ours, with bigger selection, unbeatable low prices and the kind of informed help you need to put it all together. If you buy anything for your bath or kitchen before our Grand Opening - you could really get soaked. THCINDERBIRD Bath&Kitchen Baths • Kitchens • Ceramic Tile • Plumbing • Electrical • Lighting 1915 Victoria Street • 562-6663