By Era staff

A 20-year-old Perth man died after being struck by a train in Tay Valley Township just west of Perth on Monday evening.
The Lanark County OPP says the man was walking on the tracks at about 6 p.m. when the train came through Perth on its way from Smiths Falls to Toronto. The tracks were closed until about 11:30 p.m. as police investigated the circumstances surrounding the man's death.
Early Tuesday afternoon, police identified the victim as 20-year-old Delsyn Stott. Stott worked at Centennial Truss Fabricators Ltd. in Lanark village, leaving many in shock at the suddenness of his death.
Read more in next week's Lanark Era.

By Gena Gibson
Era staff

Throughout the summer, the Lanark Baptist Church hosts “BBQs in the Park,” a free barbecue and fun evening on the first Friday of the month.
The barbecues are free, with impromptu soccer and baseball games and music throughout the evening. Organizer Lyndon Jost wrote to Lanark Highlands Township chief administrative officer Ross Trimble in late April, after hearing a concern about the church using Clyde Memorial Ballpark free of charge.
“It has been noted that baseball teams in the local league have to pay for the field, so perhaps the church should also,” Jost wrote. “However, it seems to me that the reason baseball teams pay for the field is so that it can be reserved for them and them alone. At the point that they pay for it, the field becomes private, rather than public, space for the time they rent it for.”
Jost said the church has no desire to book the field or the park.
“Anybody is welcome to join us, as this is an event for the whole Lanark community.”
In the end, Lanark Highlands council agreed to Jost’s interpretation, allowing the church to use the field for its community barbecues as long as no one else has rented the field for those Friday evenings.
Trimble said Terry Donaldson, the township’s recreation manager, had voiced concerns about potential damage to the field and the park. He suggested some type of deposit, which would be returned if no damages were incurred.
Coun. Bob Mingie suggested that the township could come to an agreement with the church to let them use the field if it isn’t otherwise booked, adding a caveat that if there is damage found the next morning, township staff will discuss the issues with church staff.
“I agree with Bob – if it’s not being used by somebody else, by all means use it,” said Coun. Tom Lalonde. “I would really just as soon see it used.”
Over the winter months, the Lanark Baptist Church hosts movie nights on the first Friday of the month. They switch to outdoor activities in the spring and summer, Jost said, with 50-80 people usually in attendance.
The first BBQ in the Park took place on May 4, with the free barbecue followed by a game of soccer and some baseball practice.
“I understand that the cost ($50) is not a huge cost; but when we as a church are already making an effort to provide this event for our community free of charge – providing the food, planning, advertising, etc. – we are hoping that the township will not discourage our attempts to contribute to the needs of this community, but will instead help in enabling us to contribute,” Jost wrote in his letter.

Steve Myers cartoon