Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60FOCUS - APRIL 2017 39 boy” was a Centennial baby. He was feted with so many gifts that Cecilia can’t remember them all. Someone visiting the other Centennial mom in Cecilia’s semi- private room even snuck some celebratory champagne into the maternity ward! (Shh! Don’t tell!) A Hungarian lady, she gave birth to the first Centennial baby girl from Oshawa at 12:07. These moms kept in touch for 15 years, but then due to moving, they lost track of each other. Two more baby boys came into the Thaeter family – Michael, 20 months later, and John, in 1971. But Paul’s brothers did not share their birthdays with any special occasions. WhenPaulwaslittle,theThaeters built a house on Scugog Island, where they lived for 22 years. Now Cecilia makes her home at View Lake. Paul, who lives above his store, “loves his hometown” of Port Perry. He has fond memories of growing up “out in the country” on Scugog Island, especially the sports: snowmobiling, dirt biking, boating, snow skiing and water skiing. He attended R. H. Cornish and Port Perry High School with a class of centennial babies, but he never came across one who said that they were the first born of the year in 1967, in their city or town. For Paul’s landmark 50th birth- day, he enjoyed a special dinner and a party with his closest rela- tives and friends. His mom took him out to the theatre in Port Perry to see the Neil Young tribute show, and they dined at Jester’s Court, prior to his real birthdate, because Cecilia was off on a holiday to South America. She’salwayshadayenfortravel. In 1961, Cecilia and two girlfriends emigrated from England. They made the front page of a Liverpool newspaper with a story with this headline: Three Brave Girls Come to Canada! Klaus Thaeter emigrated here from Germany in 1957. Long journeys and new adventures led to Cecilia and Klaus meeting and marrying, and then becoming the parents of a renowned Canadian Centennial baby. Paul treasures a Centennial silver dollar and a proclamation from the province of Ontario to commemorate his special date of entry into this world. By Lynn Campbell, Focus on Scugog Paul with his Mom, Cecilia Thaeter. 905-904-2050 Port Perry idhostso@gmail.com www.idealhomestorage.ca • New Kitchens • Refaced Kitchens • Rollout Drawers • Bathroom Vanities • Closets Ideal kitchens and cabinet refacing 1918 Scugog St., Port Perry (across from Vos’) 905-985-2451 @HomesteadFnA OMESTEAD HFURNITURE & APPLIANCES HARDWOOD & LAMINATE FLOORING • WINDOW COVERINGS OMESTEAD H New occasional lamps on display Photo by MARYANN FLEMING