THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2017 VOL. 74, NO. 8
SERVING FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. AND SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES
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ALEISHA HENDRY PHOTO
There was fantastic food and live music at the Pan African Caribbean Association of Fort St. John’s annual Black History Month gala on Feb. 18. Entertainment was provided by Vancouver band La Rhumba. The band invited all the kids in attendance onto the stage at one point during the night. Turn to A13 for more photos.
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Able-bodied students learn empathy at NPSS ALEISHA HENDRY ahendry@ahnfsj.ca
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Going from being an ablebodied teenager to one with a physical disability is daunting, especially when it impacts how you get around your school. Fifteen-year-old Erica Thomas Schulenburg was born with cerebral palsy, and while it has caused her nerves to work a little differently than most people, she has been reasonably mobile up until the last year. “Over the last year I’ve developed severe scoliosis, meaning my spine is curved,� she said. “It’s made it painful, that’s why I’m going to be in the chair because it supports my back better.�
ALEISHA HENDRY PHOTO
Grade 10 students Justin Higginbottom and Erica Thomas Schulenburg have a little race down the hall in sport wheelchairs on Feb. 15.
The chair the Grade 10 North Peace Secondary student refers to is a wheelchair, which she had to start using
at school last week. Being that NPSS has two floors, lots of stairs and only one elevator, Thomas Schulenburg decided
she wanted to show her classmates what it’s like being a disabled student. With administration approval, the school brought out the chairs used for wheelchair basketball and allowed students to sign them out to try wheeling from class to class to see for themselves. Students, teachers, and administration staff all gave it a go. The sport wheelchairs are different than the chair Thomas Schulenburg uses— the wheels are angled to give a wider base of support for playing basketball, which means it’s difficult to get through doors and tighter spaces. See EMPATHY on A14
Officials break ground on Ma Murray school
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MATT PREPROST editor@ahnfsj.ca
MATT PREPROST PHOTO
Education Minister Mike Bernier scooped up the first pile of dirt during a groundbreaking ceremony at the new Margaret “Ma� Murray Community School site on Feb. 17.
Local and provincial education officials picked up their ceremonial gold shovels Feb. 17 and broke ground on the new Margaret “Ma� Murray Community School alongside students and city representatives. Standing in front of the early phases of steel frame construction along the West
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Bypass Road and 105 Avenue, Education Minister Mike Bernier said the 365-seat elementary school will help alleviate space constraints facing School District 60. “It’s really important we’re making investments in a new school like this,� Bernier said. “This was really needed in the area, and this isn’t the only school that’s needed,� he added. See SCHOOL on A10
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