Did you know that geoFence helps make you invisible to hackers and guard your personal data?
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The Canadian Press
Woman’s claim of firing over breastfeeding remains dismissed
CONCORD, N.H. — The New Hampshire Supreme Court was split 2-2 Friday over a woman’s nearly nine-year battle to challenge her firing from the state Department of Health and Human Services over breastfeeding, meaning a lower court’s decision to dismiss her case stands. When the court heard the case in January 2020, it lacked a fifth member after its chief justice stepped down the previous summer. Former Attorney General Gordon MacDonald was sworn in as chief justice last week, well over a year after the case was argued. “I wasn’t expecting a tie,” said Kate Frederick, who has since worked on legislation in New Hampshire strengthening breastfeeding rights. She added, “It’s telling women and families, ‘New Hampshire, we don’t even acknowledge you, we don’t even care about your issues, we’re not going to decide this.'” Last year, a lawyer for Frederick argued before the state Supreme Court that she was wrongfully discharged from her job in 2012. Frederick had worked as a child support officer in the department’s office in Conway and was fired that September over, she said, whether, when and where she could breastfeed her newborn son, Devon, now 8. The department said Frederick was terminated after she failed to return to work after exhausting her leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act. Frederick, who now lives in Strafford, Vermont, filed a wrongful discharge lawsuit against the department in 2014 in federal court. Her case was dismissed in 2017 after a judge ruled that the department was immune from the lawsuit. Frederick refiled her lawsuit in the New Hampshire Superior Court in 2018, and the department challenged it again. A judge initially ruled that the case should go forward. The state moved for reconsideration. A judge ended up dismissing the lawsuit, saying it was barred by a three-year statute of limitations. The attorney general’s office also argued that as a state employee protected by a collective bargaining agreement, Frederick would not have the ability to bring such a claim. It said she was limited in her remedies to asking her union to file grievances and to bringing a charge of unfair labour practices before the state Public Employee Relations Board. “In this case, the court is evenly divided,” the state Supreme Court wrote in its ruling Friday. “Two members of the court agree that the plaintiff’s claim should be dismissed; two members of the court would reverse the trial court’s dismissal and remand for further proceedings.” In such a situation, the court follows the practice established by the U.S. Supreme Court that “the judgment of the court below therefore stands in full force,” the decision said. Frederick’s lawyer, Benjamin King, said in a statement, “No avenue exists for further appeal. Disappointingly, a jury will never determine whether the State Department of Health and Human Services acted illegally when it fired Kate for insisting on the right to breastfeed her infant during the workday, because her infant depended on breastfeeding for his nutrition.” Frederick is a student at the Vermont Law School, where she worked on a policy advancing breastfeeding rights on campus. In New Hampshire, she founded the New Hampshire Breastfeeding Rights Coalition, worked on several bills and testified at legislative hearings this year on the protection of breastfeeding from discriminatory employee practices. She has authored a guide for legislators on pregnancy and lactation rights in the workplace. Kathy McCormacK, The Associated Press
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Local Journalism Initiative
Exhibit prompts reflection on how COVID-19 has changed our relationship with food
The timing of a new exhibit at the Polygon Gallery couldn’t be more topical for director Reid Shier. Originally planned for last summer, but put on hold due to the pandemic, Feast for the Eyes is the North Vancouver gallery’s newest exhibit. Divided into three parts, the show has photographs depicting food in all possible forms from the late 19th century to the present. “The conditions under which people are viewing the show have certainly changed,” said Shier. “I think it kind of lands at a time when people have spent a lot of time inside, a lot of time thinking about what goes on their table and how that happens.” One of the three sections, Around the Table, explores community and food — the traditions around eating, displayed differently across the world. For Shier, it offers a chance to think about the way we’ve had to pull back on eating with others due to COVID-19. “There’s kind of a reimagination of what it means to sit around a table with other people, what it means to cook food for one another. Certainly, I know that the impact on the restaurant industry, and the whole hospitality industry, has been profound,” he said “Part of this show is to profile a lot of local wares and give attention to the local food industry and how people are putting food on their tables.” In conjunction with the pandemic perspective, Shier says the visitor’s own experience with social media and phone photography is something that’s on his mind. “What’s interesting is that we’ve become so attenuated to pictures of food on our phones and social media accounts lately. So, to be able to look at an exhibition like this, it kind of puts a historical lens on what it means to take pictures of food,” said Shier. “Then there are a number of nuances, in my mind, and interesting tangents that it raises. We see how that fascination with taking pictures of food has been really something that has existed since the invention of photography.” The exhibit was born from a book of the same name, a 2017 Aperture publication by Susan Bright. Denise Wolff edited the book, and curated the exhibit with Bright. The showcase, which has travelled to Amsterdam, London and Gothenburg, is interpreted in different ways depending on the location, said Wolff. “Each city makes the show its own in some way. They add or subtract and they create it. Each one has a different personality on the layout,” she said. “I felt like in Berlin, they somehow brought out a sense of humour more. And London had a very international feel. I think just each city highlights something a little different.” At the Polygon, Still Life is the first section the viewer sees. Starting with it felt natural, said Wolff, who explained that although the exhibit isn’t chronological, many of the earlier works live in this area — partly, because food doesn’t move, allowing an easier shot for early cameras. The section features well-known artists like Andy Warhol, as well as Charles Jones, whose early 1900s photographs were undiscovered until the 1980s when they were picked up at a garage sale. None of his negatives survived because he used them as protection for his plants from frost. “They were wanting to show photography as an art form, so they were co-opting the still life genre from painting as well in the beginning, but trying to bring a sense of what photography could do,” said Wolff. “It was this magic medium that could show ‘reality.’ This emphasis on texture and depth was something very new.” The third section, Playing With Food, pulls all the themes from the beginning of the show and turns them upside down, said Wolff. She says there are elements of humour, like a section of unappetizing Weight Watchers recipe cards from 1974, that say something larger about society’s relationship to food. “In some ways, there are these ideas and stereotypes (asking) what is a healthy body? What is a woman’s body?” she said. The bigger picture of the exhibit and the questions it raises is accompanied by another feeling for the gallery’s director, who says the excitement coming from patrons seeing a show in person has been palpable. “It’s been a challenge for everybody in the arts and cultural industry, so to be able to put something out there and to have people coming into the building again … we’re just so grateful,” he said. “I think it kind of points to some of the fatigue that we’ve all been experiencing living online. To be in a room, looking at things on the wall has been something that I’m sensing a lot of delight in.” The show, which is part of the Capture Photography Festival, will be on until May 30 at the Polygon Gallery in North Vancouver, where admission is by donation. You can see the venue’s COVID-19 safety plan here. Cloe Logan / Local Journalism Initiative / Canada’s National Observer Cloe Logan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, National Observer
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CBC
Randy Riley granted bail while he awaits retrial on murder charge
Randy Riley is being released from jail while he awaits a second murder trial. Riley is accused of killing Chad Smith outside an apartment building in north-end Dartmouth, N.S., in October 2010. Smith was delivering a pizza when he was struck by a single shotgun blast in the chest. Riley was convicted of second-degree murder following a jury trial in 2018. Late last year, the Supreme Court of Canada overturned that conviction and ordered a new trial, which is now scheduled for October. On Friday, Justice Joshua Arnold agreed to release Riley on bail while he awaits that new trial. Riley will be on house arrest under the constant supervision of a relative. Riley must also wear an electronic monitoring bracelet that police can access to track his movements. Evidence and arguments from the bail hearing are banned from publication to protect Riley’s right to a fair trial. Another man, Nathan Johnson, was convicted of first-degree murder in Smith’s death and is serving a life sentence. MORE TOP STORIES
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Local Journalism Initiative
Some power restored after windstorm, Mattawa ski hill to open Saturday
Strong winds knocked out power to more than 2,000 Hydro One customers from Port Loring to Powassan and Mattawan Thursday night. The storm blew a transformer offline in Mattawan and knocked out Antoine Mountain’s plan to open Friday, as well as power to almost 1,200 other homes and businesses. Sarina Goad, the resort’s head of social media and marketing, said Hydro One expects to have the issue fixed by 4 p.m. and the hill will open Saturday morning. “We remain hopeful that all will be restored on Friday and we can open Saturday,” Goad said. UPDATE: Antoine Mountain reported at 2 p.m. that power was restored by Hydro One but the active outage website still showed 1,000-plus customers still without electricity. Dave Dale is a Local Journalism Reporter with BayToday.ca. LJI is funded by the Government of Canada. Dave Dale, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, BayToday.ca
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Reuters
U.S. government to respond to SolarWinds hackers in weeks: senior official
The Biden administration will respond “in weeks, not months” to the perpetrators of the SolarWinds hack, who used the U.S. tech company as a springboard to compromise a raft of U.S. government agencies, a senior administration official said on Friday. The operation, which was identified in December and which the U.S. government has said was likely orchestrated by Russia, breached software made by SolarWinds Corp, giving hackers access to thousands of companies and government offices that used its products. Microsoft President Brad Smith described the attack as “the largest and most sophisticated attack the world has ever seen.”
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CBC
Yukon voters will head to the polls on April 12
Yukon Liberal Leader Sandy Silver ended weeks of speculation Friday, announcing he’s asked Commissioner Angelique Bernard to dissolve the Legislative Assembly, setting an election for April 12. “We are at a crossroads. Now it will be up to voters to decide what path they want to go down,” read a statement from Silver announcing the date of the election. The election will be Canada’s fifth provincial or territorial election to be held during the pandemic, following New Brunswick, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador. “We have been monitoring the COVID-19 situation, waiting to see if the territory is safe enough to hold an election,” Silver said. “With the strong vaccine uptake, and measures being put in place to prevent the importation of the virus, I believe the time is now.” The territory currently has zero active cases of COVID-19, and more than 45 per cent of eligible adults have received a first dose of the vaccine. Test for new leaders At dissolution, the Liberals had a majority government with 10 seats in the territory’s 19-seat assembly. The Yukon Party had six seats and the New Democrats two. There was also one Independent MLA, Don Hutton, who announced Monday he was leaving the Liberal caucus because he says the government hasn’t done enough to combat addictions in his riding of Mayo-Tatchun. Hutton had previously announced he didn’t plan to run again, but this week he said he’ll support the NDP. The Liberals took power in November 2016, ending 14 years of Yukon Party rule. In the wake of that campaign, former Yukon Party Premier Darrell Pasloski stepped down as leader. Currie Dixon, a former cabinet minister in Pasloski’s government who didn’t run in 2016, won the Yukon Party leadership in May 2020, defeating longtime MLA Brad Cathers and businesswoman Linda Benoit. The NDP also has a new leader since the 2016 vote. The party selecte Takhini-Kopper King MLA Kate White as its new leader in May 2019, replacing Whitehorse Centre MLA Liz Hanson. The pair were the only two New Democrats to keep their seats in 2016. The Yukon Green Party ran five candidates in 2016, capturing under one per cent of the popular vote. The Greens have yet to announce any candidates for 2021. Members of the media gather for the announcement, where Silver said his Liberal government had inherited ‘deep, dark issues’ from the previous Yukon Party government.(Steve Silva/CBC) Liberals inherited ‘deep, dark issues,’ Silver says Speaking to reporters Friday afternoon, Silver began by listing a litany of complaints about the state of the territory in 2016, when his Liberals ousted the Yukon Party. “When this Liberal team took over governing in 2016, we were met with some deep, dark issues that we did not expect,” he said, “the kind governments would rather not tackle, the kind that takes money to fix.” By contrast, Silver said, his government had invested heavily in public services and infrastructure, engaged with Indigenous governments and developed a strategy to tackle climate change. “We have accomplished so much, and we’ve come so far, and we have so much more to do,” he said. “We believe that our record is strong, and with four more years we can continue to build on these accomplishments.” Election creates ‘uncertainty and confusion’: Yukon Party Responding to the election call in a statement Friday, Yukon Party Leader Currie Dixon said the Liberals “called a sudden election to focus their attention on their own political interests.” “By dissolving the Legislature today with an election call, the Liberals have created uncertainty and confusion for Yukoners, when what is needed now more than ever is strong leadership and clarity,” the statement reads. Yukon Party Leader Currie Dixon said the Liberals’ timing in calling the election comes at the expense of the health and safety of residents.(Philippe Morin/CBC) Speaking to reporters Friday, Dixon said he was “a little caught off-guard by the timing.” Dixon pointed to the ongoing vaccine rollout, and the lack of an approved 2021 budget, as reasons why he thinks it “would’ve been wiser to wait.” “It seems like an odd time to be calling an election,” he said. “That said, the Liberals have obviously judged that this is in the best interests of the Liberal Party, and not Yukoners in general.” “Nonetheless, we’re ready to campaign.” ‘The men in suits have had their turn’ Like Silver, NDP Leader Kate White began her campaign announcement by slamming the Yukon Party saying they had “let us down in the past.” But she quickly turned her fire on the Liberals. “The Liberals promised change, but they haven’t delivered,” she said. “And when I ask my friends and neighbours and people around the territory if their lives have changed since the last election, the answer is almost always no.” Yukon NDP Leader Kate White told reporters at her campaign launch event that she would take action on housing prices in Whitehorse, saying the city is ‘starting to feel like Vancouver.'(Philippe Morin/CBC) White positioned herself as a change candidate, advancing a platform to lower costs of living, improve mental health services and tackle the opioid crisis with safe consumption sites. She put special emphasis on rising housing costs in Whitehorse, saying the city is “starting to feel like Vancouver.” “Some people will … say that I don’t dress like a political leader, that I don’t look like a premier,” she said. “And I think what they’re really saying is that people who look like me shouldn’t be allowed to make decisions.” “But I know I’m not alone, because I look like you,” she said. “The men in suits have had their turn governing the Yukon.” Tight race shaping up A Leger poll of 600 voters in February, commissioned by an undisclosed political party and obtained by the Whitehorse Star, showed the Yukon Liberals, NDP and Yukon Party effectively tied. The 2016 election saw a number of close-fought races, with a dozen ridings coming down to 50 votes or fewer. This time, margins may be wider as the electorate has swelled by nearly 20 per cent, according to Max Harvey, Yukon’s chief electoral officer. Silver needed to call an election before Nov. 18, as under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, no legislature can sit for more than five years without an election. The timing makes this vote the first spring election in Yukon in 20 years. The next government will have a shorter term, though — under a fixed-date Elections Act passed last year, Yukon’s governments will sit for a maximum of four years. Miss the press conference? Watch it in full below:
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Local Journalism Initiative
Indigenous-focused podcast connects students, teachers, community leaders
A podcast started by a local school board is giving a chance for non-Indigenous people to learn and space for Indigenous students to feel represented. The Word Up podcast is hosted by Erin Buchmann, the Indigenous instructional coach at District School Board Ontario North East (DSB1). Every episode, she is joined by a co-host and a special guest to talk about their work as an Indigenous artist, athlete, musician, author or community leader. The idea for the podcast came as the board was looking at ways to encourage professional learning during the pandemic, Buchmann said. The podcast, originally focused on literature, is a way to align with the recently-introduced Grade 11 English course, Understanding Contemporary First Nations, Métis and Inuit Voices, and to allow teachers to learn more about Indigenous authors. Since its launch in December, the podcast has evolved. The focus has shifted to allow students to lead the conversations and feel reflected. The podcast also allowed schools across the board to collaborate amid the pandemic and enabled teachers to engage without having to leave their classrooms. “That was the need that we had and that was the starting point,” Buchmann said. “I think it’s really important when every year, you’re looking to elevate voice in this way that you take time to listen, to take time to ask questions from the people around you so that you have their support.” Buchmann said she wants to challenge the notion that stories can only be text-based. For her, a story comes in different formats whether it’s music, art or land. Timmins High and Vocational School Grade 11 student Abbygail Anderson was one of the first students who co-hosted a podcast. Together with her English teacher Brady Power and Buchmann, she interviewed Jesse Thistle, the author of From the Ashes. When Power asked her to do the podcast, she was very excited. “It shows that no matter what age group you’re in, you can still do stuff like this,” she said. “It’s OK to express yourself in different ways. A lot of kids are struggling with opening up to people but this gives kids the chance to express themselves in different ways.” Anderson said it was interesting to read the book and talk to the author about it. Co-hosting the podcast with her teacher also brought them closer together, she said. “My experience reading the book, you just feel very connected. You understand how he’s feeling. Even talking to him was amazing, he elaborated on so many things, which was really awesome,” she said. Buchmann said the podcast is also a part of the reconciliation process. “The podcast is an example of the commitment to relationships. It’s a commitment to allowing Indigenous voice to have space within education,” she said. “It’s a commitment to representation to our students, making sure students see themselves reflected in the curriculum, in leadership.” The podcast currently has five episodes. Buchmann said four more interviews have been lined up in the next two weeks. Ideally, the goal is to have an episode released every two weeks until the end of May, then reconsider how to do the podcast next year. Each episode, from start to finish, takes about five to six hours. Sometimes, Buchmann sends an email to a principal asking if there’s anyone interested in co-hosting. In the last few weeks, teachers have started to contact her with pitches. There is a wish list of some big celebrities that people want to see as guests, according to Buchmann. “As much as kids want to dream, we can go for it,” she said. “I thought why not, we can try.” The podcast started for high school students only, but elementary teachers have started reaching out, Buchmann said. She connects with a teacher first and it’s up to a teacher to choose a student for co-hosting. They do individual research and come up with questions through a shared Google document before getting together and trying to pare down similar questions. That in itself becomes a whole exercise, teaching students how to ask open-ended questions to encourage people to talk, Buchmann said. On the day of the interview, Buchmann meets with her team about 30 minutes beforehand. After the interview, they do a debrief to talk about how it went. It takes Buchmann from 30 minutes to up to two hours to edit the podcast. Doing podcasts over Zoom allows participants not to worry about travel, Buchmann said, but there have been some limitations to it Technology is one of the challenges. There were a few times when it can freeze in the middle of an interview. Before going with Zoom, the hosts also tested different apps but they didn’t allow participants to see each other. “We felt that was really important, for students especially. You don’t want to just hear, you want to be able to see (the guests),” Buchmann said. Anderson agreed, saying she likes seeing people’s expressions and prefers doing interviews over Zoom rather than over the phone. Time can be another issue. “Just making sure we all have the time. We know, especially right now, people are tired, so I don’t want to overwhelm anybody,” Buchmann said. “And because we have a shorter semester right now, it’s harder for some teachers to find the time and for students to be out of class for an hour.” To date, the podcast has had 266 unique listeners and 384 episode downloads, according to Chad Mowbray, the board’s principal of curriculum, innovation and technology. The top three episodes were A Reconcillition Journey featuring Indigenous Student Trustees and the Indigenous Student Lead, the You’re Going to Make Mistakes, and That’s OK podcast with Jesse Thistle, and From the Shores of James Bay with the award-winning musician Stan Louttit. The top five countries listeners are from Canada, the U.S., United Kingdom, Australia, with Brazil, Israel and Japan all tying for fifth place. “The podcast is such an innovative way for our students and teachers to engage and contribute to reconciliation and decolonization,” Mowbray said in a statement. “It is empowering for them to see that their voice matters and that others around the world value what they have to share.” December and February have seen the highest number of listeners, Mowbray said, but it looks like March might see more as it is already the third-highest month. The podcast averages 24 downloads a week. It is available on iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify and Google Podcasts. The majority of listeners listen via iTunes followed by Spotify. Buchmann said it was “slow to start” but the feedback has been positive from the participants and their families and now people contact her to get involved. She said she’s been surprised by how willing the guests have been to participate in the podcast. Buchmann said that other school boards are probably hosting similar podcasts but The Word Up podcast is a “real conscious effort” to make sure all levels across the board are engaging. In order to host an Indigenous-focused podcast, it’s important to consult with the communities, she said. “You might have a community who really wants you to focus on traditional teachings and that becomes your podcast. You’re interviewing elders instead of authors,” she said. From an educational point of view, Buchmann advised consulting with students and teachers as well as the school board to make sure the podcast aligns with the board’s vision and goals. Buchmann’s hope is to encourage Indigenous students and educators to feel empowered by this podcast. It is also to encourage non-Indigenous teachers and students to learn. As a non-Indigenous person herself who has worked in Indigenous education for 15 years, Buchmann said she takes away new lessons and insight every time she talks to guests and students. “The more we listen to each other, the more we do learn,” she said. “We need to become more aware of stories that aren’t our own.” Dariya Baiguzhiyeva, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TimminsToday.com
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Canadian Press Videos
Oregon governor orders return to school classrooms
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown is ordering all schools in the state to open for in-person instruction. Brown signed the order Friday, saying “we know how to safely create low-risk environments at schools.” (March 12)
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Local Journalism Initiative
Dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic has not stifled creativity for North Perth artists
NORTH PERTH – For many local artists, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought a burst of creativity, but it has also hampered their connection to an audience. Gary Moon, a founding member of the North Perth Arts and Culture Council said the pandemic eliminated the public connection with artists and their artwork. The council’s biggest project was art displays at the Listowel branch of the North Perth Public Library, but with the library shut down or restricted, so were most of the displays in 2020. “Starting in mid-fall we switched it to a video format and we have continued it,” he said. “You can’t see any work at the library for obvious reasons, but we’ve continued with it and we’ve had new people to town as artists since then.” The Arts Council has been using its website and Facebook page to provide the background information and present the artwork from the artist. Currently, the Artist of the Month is booked through April. “It’s been working really cool,” said Moon. “It’s getting numbers for us and numbers for the artists. We always knew there was a good number of people seeing the artwork in the library … we were getting great comments.” But Moon compared displaying art to music – live is best. A four-feet by five-feet painting loses some of its impact when viewed on a 10-inch screen. “It’s the environment that is suffering a little bit … if you have a six-foot tall, three-dimensional sculpture, it doesn’t always translate to a flat screen,” he said. “I don’t care how big the flat screen is.” Moon feels the biggest thing missing during the pandemic has been the connection between the artists and the viewing public or the potential buyer. “You don’t get the feedback where people say I like that or it makes me feel happy or it makes me feel sad,” he said. “We just haven’t been able to do that for the last year. It’s important to the creative process.” As far as Moon has seen, creativity for local artists hasn’t been affected in over the past year. “People who are presenting for our Artist of the Month are presenting new work, so I think if you have the opportunity as an artist, if an idea strikes you – you go to the artwork,” he said. “It’s just the nature of the beast but you might not have as many opportunities or you might have more … If something comes up then you have to prioritize and sometimes that isn’t very high on the list of other stuff is happening.” Moon still gets creative when he can, but because he doesn’t want to damage his equipment he doesn’t do a lot in the wintertime. “I don’t like to put my camera at risk for extreme cold or dampness,” he said. “It’s just a freaky, you’ve got to be ready for the moment to get it to work – like a hoarfrost in the morning, you’ve got a very small window before the sun melts it off.” The Arts Council executive is planning to start meetings again to look at plans for events this fall. “We are working on plans for stuff later on this year,” said Moon. “We’re not going away; we’re just trying to reinvent but you can only reinvent so far because you might get two-days’ notice that we’re clamped down again.” Jevon Coxon, a local musician and owner of Back Alley Sound Studio, was able to keep his business functioning as a recording studio but was not always able to offer music lessons over the past year. “Recording studios, rehearsal studios and production studios were allowed to operate with a COVID mandate,” he said. Just before things shut down last March and concerts were cancelled, Coxon had landed a spot in a Leonard Cohen tribute band. The obvious setbacks caused by the pandemic have kept that project from moving ahead with the theatre bookings that had been anticipated, but Back Alley Sound Studios has allowed the band to get together to work on promotional recordings and video that will have them set for promotional material when concerts resume. “It’s a project of a booking house out of Toronto,” he said. “It’s been four or five years since Leonard Cohen died. They truly believe there is a market for a Leonard Cohen project.” Bob Shea, the man who will be Leonard Cohen in the project, stayed at the Country Inn and over a weekend they recorded five songs while following public health recommendations to make the session COVID safe. It was all documented by videographer Mark Hughes. “It is intended to be a promotional tool for the booking house,” said Coxon. “Hopefully they are going to look at it and go ‘Wow, we want to go with it.’” For Coxon, the last year has led to some pretty great things on the horizon. He has been working on original music for the first time in years. “I was sending them to Gregg Dechert and it motivated him too,” he said. “We’ve been trying to do an album for years … I’m such a solitary person and he is too, that was totally within our ten-person bubble for the whole year.” Through his return to his music, he ended up connecting with Robi Banerji. Banerji, now living in Waterloo, is a producer who has spent time in Los Angeles recording a diverse range of world-famous bands such as The Rolling Stones, Herbie Hancock and Rancid. “He has been here and likes the environment,” said Coxon. “Right now he said he has about four projects he would like to bring to use (Back Alley Sound) as a tracking studio.” It’s been a frustrating year financially, and Coxon said he was thankful for Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) in 2020. “I’ve talked to several other musicians that said the same thing – CERB was necessary,” said Coxon. “I have the luxury of a very supportive family … but CERB has been the main thing for sure.” He feels lucky as a musician that he has students and a little bit of a legitimate recording reputation. “Not a lot of other musicians that I know have that to help out either,” said Coxon. He said he knows musicians that he believes are at a higher level than himself but are delivering parts or driving a truck to pay the bills when they would normally be playing six days a week. “I look at the last year as being a growing year for me as a person and as a business,” he said. “I certainly hope that live performing comes back because I love to play music in front of people, but for me it’s always been about creating … I love sitting back listening to a piece of music that I just spent a month on, or I got inspired and I stayed up all night and wrote a new song and here it is. It’s that kind of thing I’m doing now anyway.” It has been easy to adapt the studio for recording during COVID since it is an environment where vocalists work behind glass in isolation booths. “It’s nice my facility lends itself to keeping people separate,” said Coxon. “Then it was the sort of thing that you are supposed to be under a ten-person limit. The way I generally do things is the only people in the room are the ones that are needed … We never had two vocalists in the same room at the same time. I guess in a way a lot of it doesn’t change. The people that are here wear masks and social distance respectively… There are only two people left anyways. It’s kind of a funny thing.” Another local artist who has found some success adapting her art to the pandemic is Megan Myke, who has been able to connect with an audience using Facebook Live for Painting with Megan videos. “I know that when I make art that I feel good and it’s therapeutic in a sense to me,” she said. “It kind of gives your mind a break so I continue to do the videos because I know the benefits and I know from feedback from other people that it’s beneficial for them.” It has not been tough for Myke to find inspiration during the pandemic. “Art is my passion … I always have ideas in my mind that I want to do,” she said. “But, if I’m working a lot then it’s harder to get the motivation to do it because being busy takes energy. When I can, then I paint. I paint at least two times a week.” She had in-person art classes booked before the pandemic but those got cancelled and it pushed her to go online. “I was always kind of nervous to do that but … I knew that it was going to help people so I wanted to put it out there because more people were off and looking for things to do,” said Myke. “It’s something to look forward to, something to do. I have had a lot of good feedback.” She has also offered some private lessons via Zoom, and when things were starting to open more in the fall, she held an art fundraiser event at the Legion. “I wanted to help raise money for the Listowel Salvation Army,” said Myke. “I had myself there and other vendors. It was really fun because I had sold a couple of pieces of my art and I donated half of my income to the Salvation Army and the other vendors also chose the amount they wanted to donate. All together we raised over $400 that day.” People have shown interest in another art show, but she is waiting to see what restrictions will be on events in the spring before making any plans. “You don’t want to let people down so I’m just staying online for now, which is going well,” she said. Pete Galway is a semi-retired stained-glass artist who spent 38 years working for a studio, so the pandemic has not been too hard on his work. “I did some work over the past year but not a whole heck of a lot,” he said. “It was difficult to meet with clients and, of course, potential future work is kind of shut down a little bit because everybody is staying inside.” According to Galway, decorative glass which will become part of a home is usually made by couples and with limits on shopping this year there has been fewer people coming to him to make those types of purchases. “I guess I’ve been using this year – I’ve not been sitting on my duff put it this way – I’ve been using my craft and my art to try to pass the time,” he said. “I’ve made things here and there – probably two or three assorted things every week. So, once we do have a chance to have a show, I will have things. I won’t have to scramble and make stuff so I guess that’s a blessing.” Galway said the pandemic has not been bad for creativity but the real problem has been getting the work to the people. “We need people interacting,” he said. “That’s what you kind of feed off of, too. It’s not the same talking to somebody online or with Zoom. Maybe we can harness the creativity that’s been formed and in that sense maybe it will end up being a half-decent thing in the long run.” Over the last year, he has received requests from people interested in private lessons but until the pandemic over he has no plans to teach classes. When the lockdown first hit last March, local musician Erik Begg suddenly found himself with a whole bunch of time and felt inspired. “There was a bunch of stuff that I had in the queue that I hadn’t had time to work on,” he said. “So I had a productive April and I did a 13-song solo album where I just recorded all the instruments and had a bit of fun with it.” But as the pandemic went on, his creative spark fizzled out. “I tend to be goal-driven so if there are no goals and there are no shows within the foreseeable future it’s tough to keep motivated,” he said. “However, in the last few months I have sort of kicked my ass back into gear and I’ve done a few streaming shows. Not necessarily because I was expecting to do a whole lot with the music or turn up new fans … I feel I have to play periodically or I’m just going to get weird and twitchy.” Not being able to play live shows has been frustrating for Begg because playing music has been a big part of his life for almost 35 years. Over the last year, most of the venues he has played have closed. “I can think of three in Ontario that I’ve played that are still alive,” he said. “It’s so much weirder doing a show through my phone … I just turned 49. I started when I was 15. I don’t know what else to do with myself. So now and then I have to get on stage and act like an ass just to reset everything.” Begg thinks that when things open up and people are allowed to get back to concerts there will be a lot of pent up demand. “Like at the end of the previous major pandemic, we had the roaring 20s where everything goes and it was just a wild time for a few years,” he said. “I’m expecting there is going to be a lot of pent up demand for live music and live events and there may be a short-term explosion where a lot of stuff happens and there is a lot of excitement and then it may peter out again.” North Perth Mayor Todd Kasenberg would be interested in seeing arts and music-based festivals showcasing local talent when the time comes for people to gather again. By the fall, Kasenberg believes the community will have enough experience with the vaccine and be used to masking, and that it may be a prime time for a celebration of local arts. “I think what we have to concern ourselves with is that there are great people in our midst who are artists and who make a living, or at least part of their living, from art,” said Kasenberg. “The pandemic has very likely curtailed some of that. We must not, in our desire to celebrate, in our desire to bring the richness of the arts back amongst us be cheap and not pay those artists. That will be the temptation. The starving artist is a very real trope in society and that’s a shame.” He encourages people to value arts and the artists that create them. “In some ways, the income security programs that have been wrapped around the pandemic have been really helpful to artists in allowing them to at least not worry about the roof over their head and the food they put in their mouths,” said Kasenberg. “It gives them some security so that they can create, and wouldn’t it be nice if this were an enduring thing. In some cases, CERB has stabilized the household income and in some cases raised it. I think we have to allow for the fact that I think there is going to be some pain when these income supports are removed from the system.” Colin Burrowes, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Listowel Banner
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The Canadian Press
Norway’s aging king to remain on sick leave after surgery
COPENHAGEN — Norway’s 84-year-old King Harald V will remain on sick leave from his ceremonial duties until April 11 after successful leg surgery earlier this year, the palace said Friday. In January, the ageing monarch underwent a surgery for torn tendons above the knee and was “in good recovery and continues treatment and training,” the palace said. The sick leave is one of several for the popular king in the past two years. Last year, the monarch underwent a successful operation to replace a heart valve. Doctors had ruled out COVID-19. Months earlier, he was on sick leave because of dizziness. The royal household in Oslo said the heir to the throne, Crown Prince Haakon, has stepped in and temporarily taken over his father’s duties. Harald is Norway’s head of state, but his duties are ceremonial, and he holds no political power. He ascended to the throne following the death of his father, King Olav, on Jan. 17, 1991. The country’s first native-born king since the 14th century, he married a commoner as a prince and won hearts in his egalitarian country by leading the mourning in 2011 for the victims of mass killer Anders Behring Breivik. The Associated Press
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The Canadian Press
Schools ordered to move learning online in Sudbury in response to COVID risk
SUDBURY, Ont. — Schools in the Sudbury, Ont., area are being ordered to move classes online starting Monday as the region enters a lockdown to counter concerning COVID-19 trends. The health unit’s top doctor ordered the school closure Thursday that affects all public and private schools except for those in Chapleau, Ont. Dr. Penny Sutcliffe says the health unit has reached a “tipping point” where the risks of COVID-19 transmission outweigh the benefits of in-person learning. She says it’s an additional layer of protection on top of the province-ordered lockdown, which took effect Friday, saying public health is at capacity to manage cases. Ontario used its “emergency brake” measure to move Sudbury into the strictest “grey lockdown” zone of its pandemic framework, citing a case rate increase of 54 per cent between March 3 and March 9. The health unit says the end date for the school closures and the lockdown will depend on the number of cases, the spread of more contagious variants, active outbreaks and capacity of the health-care system. This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 12, 2021. The Canadian Press
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The Canadian Press
Democratic Arizona Rep. Kirkpatrick won’t seek reelection
TUCSON, Ariz. — U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, a five-term Arizona Democrat, announced Friday she won’t run for reelection in 2022. Her decision means her district is sure to draw heavy national attention in the election, with an open seat and potential control of the U.S. House of Representatives on the line. Democrats now hold a narrow House majority and Republicans have promised to target her 2nd District as a possible flip opportunity, while Democrats will fight to hold it. The wild card will be redistricting, with the state expected to be assigned a 10th congressional district. How that district is fit into the state map by the independent state commission charged with redrawing lines will help determine if Kirkpatrick’s district is competitive. Kirkpatrick, 70, has represented two different districts during her congressional career — first a district in mostly rural northern and eastern Arizona and more recently the 2nd District that includes much of the Tucson area in southeastern Arizona. “Serving Arizonans has been my absolute honour and joy, but after much consideration, I have decided not to seek re-election in 2022,” she said in a statement. “I will continue the good fight through this Congress, and when the term is up, I will hand over the baton.” In between her House stints, she ran unsuccessfully in 2016 for U.S. Senate, losing to incumbent Republican John McCain, who died in 2018. In early 2020, Kirkpatrick was absent from Congress for six weeks for treatment of alcoholism, a move she said was prompted by a fall that she saw as “a little bit of a wake-up call.” Kirkpatrick, who won reelection in November to her second term from her current district, told Arizona media outlets that her health and recovery weren’t factors in her decision to leave Congress and that she wanted to spend more time with family, including three grandsons. The district has been competitive in recent elections but Kirkpatrick defeated Republican challenger Brandon Marlin by a nearly 40,000-vote margin in November. An attorney, Kirkpatrick was born and raised in eastern Arizona, where her mother was a teacher on the White Mountain Apache Reservation and her father ran a small general store. She earned bachelor’s and law degrees at the University of Arizona in Tucson, was a prosecutor and in private practice, and served two terms in the state Legislature before first running for Congress in 2008. She initially represented the sprawling 1st District, which covers northern and eastern Arizona and includes the Navajo Nation and other tribal reservations. She cited her 2010 vote for the Affordable Care Act as one of her key accomplishments. But that vote also contributed to her loss in 2010 to Republican Paul Gosar, a year when the GOP had key wins and “tea party” activists targeted her support of former Pesident Barack Obama’s signature achievement. After redistricting made that district more Democratic, Gosar switched districts and Kirkpatrick won the 1st District seat again in 2012 and was reelected in 2014. The Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission has just started meeting about the next round of changes, but the U.S. Census Bureau announced last month that it would not deliver key data to states until late September rather than this month. That will compress the schedule for the commission to draw Arizona’s new congressional and legislative district maps and likely limit campaigns as candidates wait to see which district they will run in. The Associated Press
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CBC
Expect traffic delays as multimillion-dollar Barlow Trail renovation begins Monday
Parts of Barlow Trail N.E. will be under construction and traffic will be disrupted beginning Monday as the City of Calgary starts a multimillion-dollar refurbishment. The city has set aside $17 million for the overhaul. It will include pavement restoration and reconstruction of the roadway between Fourth Avenue and Sunridge Boulevard, including the ramps on 16th Avenue. Work on the 16th Avenue bridge deck and structure supports is included in this project. The bridge was built in 1978 and the city says it needs “intervention.” A multi-use path along Meridian Road, from Centre Avenue to 28th Street N.E., will also be built. “Business access will not be impacted, however there will be some delays for drivers in the area as we undertake these important life-cycle projects,” said transportation project manager Peter Rudolf in a news release. The city intends to shift traffic to either side of Barlow Trail while work is being completed. The project is set to wrap up in fall of 2021.
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The Canadian Press
Manitobans can now eat at restaurants with others, as long as it’s outdoors
WINNIPEG — Manitobans will soon be allowed to gather with friends on restaurant and pub patios under loosened COVID-19 rules. Starting Saturday, the government will allow up to six people from different households dine together at a restaurant or pub, as long they sit on an outdoor patio. Indoor restaurant dining will continue to be limited to members of the same household. The province’s chief public health officer, Dr. Brent Roussin, says the rule change is in line with the recent move to expand public outdoor gatherings to a maximum of 10 people. The province is also going to allow household members who sit together in religious services to remove their masks, as long as they are distanced from others and are not singing. Health officials are reporting one additional death and 104 new cases. However, six cases from unspecified dates have been removed due to data correction, for a net increase of 98. This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 12, 2021 The Canadian Press
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The Canadian Press
The Weeknd boycotts, fellow Canadians stand out: What to watch for at the Grammys
TORONTO — Whether it’s the Weeknd or Justin Bieber, some of Canada’s best-known musicians are having a fraught relationship with the Grammy Awards ahead of Sunday’s broadcast. The Toronto R&B singer, born Abel Tesfaye, resurrected his beef with the Recording Academy this week, telling the New York Times that after being snubbed he’s vowed to “no longer allow” his label to submit his work for consideration. Both his album “After Hours” and the single “Blinding Lights” were considered major contenders before he was left high and dry when the nominations were announced last November. Bieber hasn’t quite spurned the Grammys, but he’s expressed his own displeasure with the process around his latest songs, which earned recognition in pop categories when he felt it was R&B music. Despite being the most-nominated Canadian this year, with four nods, Bieber isn’t booked to perform on the show and questions linger over whether he’ll even attend the smaller ceremony. Controversies aside, no less than 23 of the 83 categories have at least one Canadian contender this year, and that doesn’t even count a spoken word nomination for “Jeopardy!” contestant Ken Jennings reading the late Alex Trebek’s memoir. The 63rd Grammy Awards air Sunday on CBS and Citytv. Here are some highlights to watch for: THE POWER COUPLE: Toronto-raised singer-songwriter JP Saxe will roll into the Grammys ceremony with co-writer and girlfriend Julia Michaels to see if their Top 40 duet “If the World Was Ending” could pull a surprise win for song of the year. They’re up against some tough competition that includes Beyonce’s “Black Parade,” Taylor Swift’s “Cardigan,” and Dua Lipa’’s “Don’t Start Now.” THE BREAKOUT: For the better part of a decade, Kaytranada built a reputation as Montreal’s secret weapon, but this year he finally landed on the Grammys’ radar. The Polaris Music Prize winner, born Louis Celestin, will vie for best new artist, while his dancefloor-ready 2019 album “Bubba” earned a nod for dance or electronic album, and the song “10%” competes for best dance recording. THE TRIPLE PLAY: Music engineer Shawn Everett competes against himself three times in the same category, a rare claim in Grammys history. Three albums overseen by the Bragg Creek, Alta. native scored him nominations for best non-classical engineered album. They include “Jaime,” a solo project by Alabama Shakes’ singer Brittany Howard, “Hyperspace” from Beck and “Black Hole Rainbow” by Devon Gilfillian. THE SCIENTIST: Jayda G started her career as an environmental toxicologist before flipping and reversing her dreams to become a house music producer. It’s a gamble that continues to pay off after she landed a Grammy dance recording nomination for her chill party vibe “Both of Us,” putting her alongside nominees Diplo, Disclosure and Kaytranada. THE SHOWMAN: Rufus Wainwright rarely shies away from making a statement, and this year he says he would really like to win a Grammy for “Unfollow the Rules.” It’s nominated for traditional pop vocal album, up against works by Burt Bacharach, Harry Connick Jr., James Taylor and a Judy Garland soundtrack sung by Renee Zellweger. Surprisingly, it’s only Wainwright’s second Grammy nod after he picked one up in 2009 for his own Garland tribute album. —Follow @dfriend on Twitter. This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 12, 2021. David Friend, The Canadian Press
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CBC
AstraZeneca-Oxford drive-thru clinic open for 64-year-olds, phase 1 health-care workers Monday in Regina
An AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine drive-thru clinic will open to 64-year-old members of the general public on Monday in Regina. The province has received 15,500 doses of the vaccine, to be administered to Saskatchewan residents ages 60 to 64 and Phase 1 health-care workers. The AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine is currently approved in Canada only for those 18 to 64 years of age. According to the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA), the pilot Regina immunization drive-thru clinic will be located on the grounds of the Regina Exhibition Association. Only Saskatchewan residents with a birth date between March 14, 1957, and March 13, 1958, will be eligible to receive the AstraZenenca-Oxford vaccine at the clinic on Monday. Residents cannot pre-book an appointment for drive-thru clinics, as they will be first-come first-served only. The clinic site will be open from 8: 30 a.m. to 7: 30 p.m. CST on Monday. The site will begin to accept other ages, in reverse order from oldest to youngest, in the coming days, according to the SHA. Public service announcement will be issued as the new age groups become eligible. The SHA asks that Saskatchewan residents do not go to the drive-thru clinic unless their age group is eligible to “ensure a positive experience for those eligible and minimize waits.” Health-care workers can get immunized Sunday The SHA says the drive thru will be open Sunday for health-care workers only “to allow convenient access to health-care workers and to test the new process for the public.” Sunday’s drive-thru immunization clinic will not be open to the public. Drive-thru directions Once you are eligible to receive a vaccine at the drive-thru, the SHA asks that you enter the grounds through the Lewvan and 11th Ave. entrance and follow the green signs. If you are going to the non-drive-thru mass immunization clinic, the SHA says to follow the blue signs. If you are wanting to go to the COVID-19 testing drive-thru, follow the yellow signs. Saskatchewan residents are being asked to continue following all public health orders and guidelines until most of the province is immunized. (CBC News Graphics) CBC Saskatchewan wants to hear how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted you. Share your story with our online questionnaire.
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CBC
Montrealers 65 and over can now book a vaccine, as pharmacies prepare to help
Quebec is now allowing Montreal residents who are 65 and older to book an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine, as pharmacies prepare to help out as well in the coming weeks. The city has become the first region in the province to extend inoculations to that age bracket. Quebec’s Health Ministry announced Friday that thousands of appointments are available for the coming days and, starting next week, roughly 350 pharmacies will also begin taking appointments. In an emailed statement, a spokesperson for Health Minister Christian Dubé sounded an optimistic tone about the state of the vaccination campaign. Marjaurie Côté-Boileau said 75 per cent of Montrealers aged 70 and over have either been given a dose of vaccine or have an appointment. Quebec set a new record Thursday with 29,000 doses given, she said. Pharmacies prepared For now, pharmacies will use the Moderna vaccine, while Pfizer-BioNTech will continue to be administered at mass vaccination sites. The AstraZeneca-Oxford will be used for home visits. Each of the 356 pharmacies in Montreal taking part will receive 100 doses to start and begin taking appointments Monday for the following week. That number will increase over the next few weeks, with a goal of administering 140,000 doses per week for the entire network, said Pierre-Marc Gervais, a senior director for Quebec’s pharmacy association. Pharmacies in Montreal will begin taking calls March 15 for appointments the following week. (Ben Nelms/CBC) Daron Basmadjian, a manager at a pharmacy near the Montreal General Hospital, said pharmacists already have experience in administering vaccines and are anxious to help. “When’s the last time you saved 100 lives in a single day? That’s the goal. That’s what we are trying to do here so we are very, very excited,” he said. “Many pharmacies vaccinated for the flu season this past winter and obviously many pharmacies have been vaccinating for years.” Dr. Richard Massé, a senior public health official assisting with the vaccine rollout, said Quebec now expects seven million doses of vaccine by the end of June. Massé was part of a news conference Friday detailing plans to allow more sports later this month. He said the growing number of older people being vaccinated has allowed the province to loosen restrictions, even though Montreal has recorded a growing number of more dangerous variants of the coronavirus. Premier François Legault has said that once those over 65 are vaccinated, more health restrictions could be relaxed, including the ban on indoor private gatherings. Quebec has administered more than 619,000 vaccine doses so far, which works out to just over seven per cent of the population. On Wednesday, the province opened vaccination appointments for those 70 and older for the entire province.
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Local Journalism Initiative
COVID-19 cases connected to two Prince Albert schools
The Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) has identified a positive COVID-19 case in an individual at St. Catherine Catholic School and at St. John Community School in Prince Albert. This was the second case connected to St. John Community School In a news release by the Prince Albert Catholic School Division sent Thursday evening the division explained that communication has been shared with the specific classrooms/cohorts, as well as the school communities. “The Saskatchewan Health Authority is proceeding with their assessment of the situation, and all individuals deemed to be close contacts will be provided instructions” As is the case in all cases in the division no further information will be made available citing privacy concerns. “We want to reassure families of St. Catherine Catholic School and St. John Community School that the school will continue to operate for in-person classes while maintaining the safety protocols that are in place,” the release added. The cohort impacted by this cases being notified and provided instruction. The students and families will be receiving updates using the Edsby platform. “Our thoughts and prayers are with this member of our school community, and we hope they are doing well.” They emphasized that everyone has a shared responsibility to decrease the risk of COVID-19 entering schools. “Thank you to everyone for continuing to be diligent in performing daily health screening, staying home if ill, calling HealthLine 811 if exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms, practicing proper hand hygiene, maintaining physical distancing as much as possible, wearing a mask when appropriate and doing everything we can to keep each other safe,” the release stated. The division also strongly urge everyone to continue to follow all Public Health Orders and protocols. Michael Oleksyn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Prince Albert Daily Herald
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CBC
‘Relief, joy’ as Windsor-Essex pharmacies begin vaccine rollout
The AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine has started making its way into the arms of 60 to 64 year olds who managed to get appointments at Windsor-Essex pharmacies on Friday. Ontario’s COVID-19 vaccine pilot project kicked off this week in three public health unit regions: Toronto, Windsor-Essex and Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington. But health officials have said people don’t need to be living in those areas to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. On Friday, CBC News went to the Shoppers Drug Mart at 500 Tecumseh Rd. E. — one of the 57 pharmacies in the region participating in the pilot — to check in on the rollout. Wayne Langlois, 60, was one of the first in his age group to get the shot in Windsor-Essex. He said he registered Friday morning and didn’t actually expect to get the shot the same day. “It doesn’t hurt, you barely even feel the injection,” he said. “I’m glad I got it.” Meanwhile, James Richard, 64, said he came in to get it as he thinks it’ll be necessary if he wants to eventually cross the border and see family once again. “I just need to get it done,” he said, adding that he felt a little “flushed” afterwards. “It’s like getting a tattoo, ‘ok I want another one.'” James Richard says he got the vaccine as he thinks it will be a requirement to cross the border again.(Dan Taekema/CBC) Sebastian Di Pietro, pharmacist owner of the Shopper’s Drug Mart on Tecumseh Road East, said “things are going great.” Friday was the first day his location started giving out doses. “It’s been busy but busy in a good way though, it’s a positive energy,” he said, adding that so far the people he’s given out shots to have expressed “relief,” “happiness,” and “joy.” “People are just so happy to start ending this pandemic,” he said. Recently retired registered nurse from a local hospital Loretta Gallo, 60, was also in line to get the shot Friday. “I wanted to get this done, I think it’s a good idea, I think we should be vaccinated and hopefully protect everybody else and try and get back to normal as much as we can,” she said. Post-shot she said she felt “happy.” “I hope all of us can get it very soon, I know it’s going to take some time but at least it’s a start,” she said. Loretta Gallo is a recently retired registered nurse from a local Windsor-Essex hospital. She says she was ‘happy’ to get the shot and looks forward to when it’s available for everyone.(Dan Taekema/CBC) “Bring it on,” said Dave O’Gorman, 64. He told CBC News he wasn’t nervous at all to get the shot and hopes doing so will allow him to travel again. He said the process of getting the vaccine at the pharmacy was working out fine.
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Local Journalism Initiative
Mount Pearl-Paradise Skating Club celebrates another win
Perry Dalton is a staple of the Mount Pearl-Paradise Skating Club, but that hasn’t always been the case. In fact, he jokes heartily about his start at the club. “I started out many, many years ago by bringing my daughter to the rink to learn how to skate, and I started to move some tables and chairs when need be, and someone said, ‘Sure, he’d be good on the executive if he can do that,’” said Dalton. “I must have moved that table to the right spot.” That was 18 years ago. Today, Dalton is club treasurer and director of registration (but will still move tables and chairs if he has too) and is a recent recipient of the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers, an award which recognises exceptional volunteers across Canada. “I’m very honoured to have been nominated by my peers at the club,” said Dalton, who has been the receipt of numerous awards over the years, including, recently, the Skate Canada Volunteer of Excellence – Newfoundland and Labrador Award. “I’m only as good as our club. I accepted this award, and I’ve accepted many awards, always on behalf of our club, on behalf of our cultures, our other executive members, our parents and our skaters. Dalton, who hails from Cape Broyle originally, says all volunteers are an integral part of the community. “We need a rink, we need coaches, and then we need a volunteer group,” he said, using the skating club as an example. “If people like us, the parents, don’t volunteer, then there won’t be anything there for our kids to go too. I’ve always felt that everyone has to do something. If everyone did a little bit to pitch in, it makes it easier for everyone.” Dalton’s tips for anybody looking to start volunteering is just that; start volunteering. “I started moving tables and chairs, that was pretty simple,” he said. “And then someone said, ‘Well, maybe he can help with this, or maybe he can sell some tickets, or maybe he can be in the door to guide people when they come in.’ At the end of the day, it’s about being friendly, being polite and being always there to help.” Mark Squibb, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Shoreline News
As we move on to the next post, may I add that geoFence is the solution for blocking NFCC countries and that’s no joke.
