Issue 43 2024 October 31 ND Times by The North Grenville & North Dundas Times

$199 $299

The Voice of North Grenville

CT Scanner campaign receives donation from Kemptville Quilters Guild

by Lynne Clifford-Ward

A “spooktacular”

$5,550 donation to the CT Scanner Crossroads Campaign was recently delivered to the Kemptville District Hospital (KDH) Foundation office by members of the Kemptville Quilters Guild (KQG). This donation resulted from the Guild’s “Hallowe’en Spooktacular Tea and Quilt Event” orchestrated by a corpus of local volunteers on October 5.

Joanne Mavis, Executive Director, KDH Foundation, was delighted with the gift to the Campaign.

“This is wonderful! Every day we get closer to our goal of $2.2 million to bring a CT Scanner to the hospital. We urgently need this diagnostic tool close to home. We sincerely appreciate this donation from

the Kemptville Quilters Guild and thank everyone in the community for their support of this event.”

Upon arrival at St. John’s United Church, guests selected handmade fascinators to wear in their hair. They were made by members of KQG and staff from RBC Kemptville who had secured $1,500 from the RBC Community Support Fund for the Fascinators Workshop in support of the CT Scanner Campaign.

The room was beautifully decorated with autumnal themed quilts and wall hangings made by local quilters. During the formal programme, knowledgeable commentary was provided by quilter Nancy Grundy. The North Grenville Community Theatre entertained the two sold out Teas with a pumpkin

skit.

KDH Auxiliary, along with the KQG sold raffle tickets for the king size jewel tone quilt with all proceeds going to the CT Scanner. Jodie Prosciak, a member of the Guild, made the quilt and personally sold 600 tickets.

One Spooktacular Tea guest remarked enthusiastically that she hopes the Guild hosts a tea next year. She plans to organize a table full of friends from work because this one was so much fun!

Teresa Harrison, President of the Kemptville Quilters Guild, said, “the event could not have happened without the support of so many, including husbands who helped with transporting materials and setting up, Linda Carnegie and her catering expertise, Elaine Lang who led the

Fascinators Workshop and Connie Parsons, who assisted Elaine and organized the quilt Raffle Tickets, Rosemary Bennett who made 200 crab apple jelly jars for guests to take one home, Cathy Raina who organized the Community Theatre group, and so many other volunteers who helped bake, make sandwiches, serve tea and clean up. My special thanks to Samantha Rivet Stevenson and Sherron Walls from RBC Kemptville for their ongoing community support. We are so pleased with the event’s results and our Guild’s donation to the CT Scanner Campaign.”

For more information and stories about the CT Scanner Crossroads Campaign and how you can donate, see Kemptville District Hospital Foundation (kdhfoundation.ca)

Seen here at RBC Kemptville are members of the Kemptville Quilters Guild receiving a $1,500 donation to the CT Scanner Campaign from the RBC Community Fund for the Guild’s Fascinators’ Workshop. (l-r) Wendy Campbell, Sherron Walls and Samantha Rivet-Stevenson from RBC, Teresa Harrison, Joanne Mavis, ED, KDH Foundation, Nancy Grundy and Elaine Lang.

Seen here at the KDH Foundation oﬃce, (l-r), Joanne Mavis, ED, KDH Foundation, with members of the Kemptville Quilters Guild, Elaine Lang, Teresa Harrison, Guild President, Nancy Grundy and Wendy Campbell who presented $5,550 to the CT Scanner from their Spooktacular Tea and Quilt event.

Poppy campaign kicks oﬀ

Mayor Nancy Peckford wishes to thank former Mayor Bruce Harrison and his partner Maureen, as well as Doug Brunson and Cathy Spietzig for launching the Poppy Campaign on behalf of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 212 in Kemptville on October 25.

“Every year, from the last Friday of October to November 11, tens of millions of Canadians wear a Poppy as a visual pledge to honour Canada's Veterans and remember those who sacriﬁced for the freedoms we enjoy today,” said the Mayor. “The Poppy Campaign is very much a local initiative, conducted by Legion Branches in cities, towns and communities across the country. Donations collected during the Poppy Campaign are held in Trust at the branch level to directly support Veterans and their families within their community and to help ensure Canadians never forget. The Poppy is distributed freely to all who wish to wear one, and the Legion gratefully accepts donations to the Poppy Fund.”

Kemptville Remembrance Day Ceremony

We invite you to join us at the 416 Veterans' Memorial Park ceremony. Saturday, November 9th, 2024.

We ask that those wishing to attend arrive for 1000hrs. March oﬀ is scheduled for 1030hrs.

Following the service, a light lunch will be held at Branch 212 Kemptville, hosted by District G., Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 212

Council update

by Brandon Mayer

munities it serves, including with its food banks, thrift stores, social programs, and advocacy.

was taken care of, including the awarding of the tender for the Heron’s Nest Park Construction / Installation to ASL Contractors for $323,940.50.

Following the land acknowledgment, the regularly scheduled October 15 Council meeting opened with Mayor Nancy Peckford sharing local news, as usual. This news included her regret that Council was unavailable to attend the 90th anniversary celebration of the Rotary Club of Kemptville, which was occurring on the same night as the Council meeting.

Delegations followed, including one from House of Lazarus executive director, Cathy Ashby. Although headquartered in North Dundas, House of Lazarus is connected to and serves North Grenville as well, being close to the border between the two municipalities, in Mountain. Cathy discussed how HOL has been open for close to 40 years, with many programs, 26 employees, and over 150 volunteers. She discussed the particulars of how the organization helps the com-

The purpose of Cathy’s visit to Council was to provide information on the connection between House of Lazarus and the North Grenville community, but also to request a multi-year funding consideration beginning with the 2025 NG municipal budget. Mayor Peckford oﬀered kind words at the presentation, but was also honest with her feedback to Cathy in the sense that there are “big demands” of the 2025 budget, and that Cathy’s request is “being considered but not necessarily conﬁrmed or secured”.

Council next heard updates on matters such as North Grenville’s recent “Communities in Bloom” participation and the recommendations that came out of such participation, as well as a funding request for the local Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Fund.

Other routine business

Council had closed session meetings on October 21 and 22. As of the time of writing, the date of the next meeting had not been posted to the municipal calendar. Open session meetings are livestreamed on YouTube at https://www.youtube. com/@NorthGrenville

Community consultation for the 2025 –2035 Housing and Homelessness Plan

The United Counties of Leeds and Grenville is asking the public to provide feedback for the 2025 – 2035 Housing and Homelessness Plan that is under development. The new ten-year Plan will continue the conversation about Leeds and Grenville’s housing and homelessness needs, and is gathering input through an online survey and at a public information session.

Leading up to the community consultation, a comprehensive housing need and demand review was undertaken by the Community and Social Services Division, including a review of homelessness data, housing market trends, rent-geared-to-income waitlist demands, housing assets and needs, aﬀordability, and accessibility of housing. This critical information was the foundation for building the draft plan to meet the identiﬁed needs and the proposed goals and outcomes. In addition to the public information session and surveys, targeted consultation

sessions are also being held for persons with lived-experience of homelessness and housing instability, as well as community partners working in the housing and homelessness sector.

As rents have continued to rise since the COVID-19 pandemic, households in Leeds and Grenville have struggled to afford the cost to pay rent, purchase their first home, and find an affordable place to call home. The need for more affordable housing options, supportive housing, and homelessness supports has never been greater in Leeds and Grenville. Leeds Grenville’s Housing and Homelessness Plan strives to embody a strategic, community-focused approach to end homelessness, and plan for and meet future housing needs for low-to-moderate income households in Leeds and Grenville. The community consultation will provide an opportunity to\ listen to the challenges, what is working, and comment on the proposed actions and outcomes to address and

prevent homelessness, and facilitate and promote an adequate supply of community and aﬀordable housing.

The online survey is available from October 22 through November 15, 2024, and is accessed by visiting https://www.leedsgrenville.com/en/services/10-year-housing---homelessness-plan.aspx. The public also will have an opportunity to attend an in-person information session to provide their input on Wednesday November 6, 2024 at 1:30pm at the Brockville Memorial Civic Center.

Register in advance for the public information session by visiting the Leeds and Grenville website, or by contacting the Community Housing Department of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, by emailing Tammy.Herbison@uclg. on.ca or by phone at (613) 342-3840 ext. 2122. Paper copies of the survey can also be provided upon request by contacting the Community Housing Department.

Who let the dogs out?

by David Shanahan

That old issue of a jail for Kemptville has been resurrected by an article in the Ottawa Citizen which claims to know why the jail “has been frozen for four years”. The so-called Eastern Ontario Correctional Complex [EOCC] has been studiously ignored by the Ford government for some time now, inspite of one rather bombastic statement by the Premier last march when he was asked at a press conference about the housing problem. For some reason, Ford launched into a rant about car-jacking criminals who should spend time behind bars for their dreadful behaviour.

“I’m going to be building more jails and I’m not worried about the criminals. I’ll build as many jails as we need to put these criminals behind bars for a long time”, said the combative Premier.

The previous month, February of this year, a judicial review into the proposed prison, initiated by the two local anti-jail groups, CAPP and JOG, was dismissed by the Ontario Court of Justice last February. The three-judge panel said applications to review Ontario government decisions must be ﬁled within 30 days, and the residents had waited too long. The court also reprimanded the two groups for wasting time and taxpayers’ money because the bureaucrats had invested time and money in preparing plans for the prison, and the review had stopped them from exploring alternative sites. The courts stated that CAPP and JOG could have avoided this had they preceded to a judicial review “in a timely fashion, rather than as a last resort”.

It should be noted that the review was funded by public crowd-funded campaign, which was part of the

reason the application for the review was delayed.

Although the jail project has not been oﬃcially scrapped, it is looking more and more likely that it will not go ahead at this point. And while the local opposition groups take some of the credit for this, it also seems that the Ford regime has had sober second thoughts about the need for the facility, given the emphasis they are now giving to a new jail in Brockville, where Ford says he will have to provide some incentive to the bureaucrats: “I got to kick some butt. I gotta remember to get Infrastructure and ﬁnd out what’s taken so long and get moving.”

There is another reason why the Kemptville project was delayed so long, and that is the position taken by the Municipality in their negotiations with the Solicitor General’s Oﬃce regarding the Province’s share of costs for improved and expanded infrastructure in North Grenville to help cope with the demands of any new facility. These talks, though conducted quietly and without public posturing, have given the government cause to reconsider the ﬁnancial viability of any new jail in North Grenville. They didn’t get the open invitation they expected from Council.

Given the significant increase in construction and labour costs since the pandemic, the Province’s share of any project would be far higher than originally planned. And, of course, the pandemic itself illustrated the fact that a new jail might not be the answer, or the right answer at least, to any capacity issues. During the prolonged lockdowns, the population of Ontario’s provincial jails dropped from about 8,300 to 5,800 inmates, without a signiﬁcant rise in criminality, as the inmates of these facilities are those

charged and awaiting trial, not necessarily guilty, and certainly not of any serious crime.

Given all of the above, it might, perhaps, be a good strategy for those wishing to see the Kemptville jail fade into oblivion to maintain a low proﬁle and not remind Ford about it, nor encourage him in his blustering defensive strong man posturing. It may well be that the project will come to life again, circumstances change, and political considerations dictate publicity, especially at election time. If there’s one thing a man like Ford will do should he be accused of backing down on something, it is to redouble his verbosity and determination to get his way, even if he no longer needs to.

Kemptville doesn’t need a prison. In fact, Ontario doesn’t really need one either. There are far better, and more economical and eﬀective ways of dealing with the current backlog of people on remand awaiting trial. The Solicitor General once most associated with the project has moved on to other areas of mischief in government, so the way is more open for his successor to diplomatically change tack without loss of face. Bureaucrats are used to simply switching direction when political policy changes warrant. They won’t be oﬀended if the prison is mothballed, but will simply transfer their energies to a new plan.

What no-one wants is for a newspaper article in a semi-national publication to remind Ford and Company of something they’d rather let fade from memory. Claiming credit for defeating Ford is the one thing that will make him push ahead with something that even he, perhaps, no longer thinks worthwhile. There are times when it is best to let sleeping dogs lie.

Indigenous installation mishandled by municipality

by David Shanahan

An art installation funded under the Arts & Culture Development Fund of the Municipality has been mishandled by municipal staﬀ, causing upset to the artist, local Anishinabek artist, Carolyn Solomon. The installation, "7 Feathers that represent the 7 Grand-

Letters to the Editor

Dear Mr. Shanahan,

First, I would like to apologize for the brash tone of my initial letter. It was unnecessary, and I appreciate the opportunity to respond again with a more measured approach. Thank you for your reply.

While I recognize your perspective that there are positive narratives associated with the Residential School system, I stand by my point: introducing such nuance may obscure the central issue, and it is not essential to the process of reconciliation.

Like you, I see signiﬁcant progress being made toward truth and reconciliation, but there is still considerable resistance. I’m witness to conversations that display an aversion to the reasons behind Truth and Reconciliation Day. There is disdain over the renaming of sports teams to address cultural misappropriation, and certain claims that I won’t dignify here, which lead me to believe it is too early in the reconciliation process to highlight positive anecdotes about the Residential School system.

You mentioned that this

issue is "not akin to Holocaust denial," and I agree. However, parallels can be drawn from other reconciliation eﬀorts that support my position that the starting point for Canadians is acceptance. For example, the Truth and Reconciliation process following the Rwandan Genocide did not focus on the fact that some Hutus did not want to kill Tutsis, or that some Hutus helped Tutsis during that time. These facts did not justify or diminish the severity of the genocide. The Rwandan process required broad acknowledgment that what had been done to the Tutsis was fundamentally wrong.

Similarly, while acknowledging both sides may contribute to a more nuanced understanding, it is risky to elevate isolated positive anecdotes to a position that appears equal to the widespread suﬀering endured by so many others. As you rightly pointed out, many Canadians do not have the depth of knowledge or context that you bring to the discussion. Focusing on the potential beneﬁts some claim to have experienced could lead to a dangerous

fathers Teachings", was to be located at the crosswalk on the corner of Clothier and Prescott Streets, and was designed, as the artists put it, “to bring the teachings and traditions of First Nations, and my Ojibway people to the heart of our community”.

Other installations at crosswalks across Canada are part of the Truth and Reconciliation process, and are a means of bringing indigenous cultural presence into the everyday lives of the wider community. Carolyn Solomon’s design was, in her words, “to feature 7 Feathers representing the seven guiding principles adopted by many Indigenous communities and organizations. These teachings – Love, Respect, Courage, Honesty, Humility, Truth, and Wisdom – are sacred to us, and my intent was to use this public art installation to help solidify North Grenville’s commitment to honoring the

minimization of the broader harm.

The fact that some children received an education does not negate the reality that many parents were coerced into sending their children to these institutions against their will. The primary objective of the Residential School system was to systematically erase Indigenous cultures. This is a harsh truth in Canada's history, and though it may be uncomfortable for Canadians to confront – especially given that these decisions were made by our forefathers – it is a small burden compared to the immense suffering experienced by those who lived through it.

Best regards, Liz Waterfall

P.S. Lynn Beyak’s name was spelt incorrectly in North Dundas Times version.

Response

from

David Shanahan Hi Liz

Thanks for your reply. We agree on a great deal: the entire reconciliation process has a long way to go, and I’m afraid there will always be those who continue to ei-

Indigenous community and supporting reconciliation across Turtle Island. I had the utmost support from the Indigenous communities I consulted”.

However, staff at the municipality went ahead and installed Carolyn’s design without consulting her, and without the smudging ceremony, led by an Indigenous Elder, which was to be an essential part of the project. To make matters worse, the design was not installed correctly, with only six feathers being laid down, instead of the seven. The manner in which the municipality acted, says Carolyn, “displays a disregard for the cultural and intellectual property rights of Indigenous peoples, protected under both Canadian law and international frameworks such as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)”.

For Carolyn, this amoun-

ther deny the facts of history completely, or minimise the eﬀects of colonialisation on Indigenous peoples in Canada. That is a sad fact with which we have to deal.

There are a few things I would like to emphasise, though. First of all, Residential schools were only a part of that colonisation experience; relatively few children actually attended them, most went to day schools on their reserves and never experienced the residential environment. Reconciliation has to include the entire history of Indigenous-Settler relations, particularly after the period when colonist law was applied to Indigenous communities. The Indian Act did not arrive fully formed, it was the result of a gradual development in that relationship. And the implications of its original form, arising through the so-called “civilisation policy” after 1830 and the increase in the spread of “treaties”, was not easily grasped by either side.

I think the sole focus on the residential schools takes away the context in which Indigenous-Settler relations can be understood. But, per-

ted to cultural expropriation, showing a lack of respect for Ojibway culture and tradition, and even oﬀends against the mandate and aims of the Arts & Culture Development Fund. “The harm is not just personal,” says Carolyn, “it erases the significance of cultural expressions and diminishes the respect owed to entire communities whose histories and identities are embedded in that work”.

She has asked that the Municipality fully restore the 7 Feathers, and that the installation be completed with the “proper cultural protocols and respect it deserves”. In her opinion, “Reconciliation is about action, not just words, and it is imperative that this situation is rectiﬁed to truly reflect North Grenville’s commitment to Indigenous communities”.

Mayor Peckford, on behalf of Council and Municipal staﬀ, has fully apo-

haps most important, in my opinion, is that ignoring the nuances, as we are calling them, means we are deﬁning the terms of reconciliation in an incomplete way. What I mean is that by portraying only the negatives, it would be easy for those who deny the reality to claim that the entire thing has been exaggerated, if not wilfully misrepresented.

When the details emerge that there were positives in the relationship, that not everyone on the settler side was an evil racist, that many were committed to Indigenous peoples, people taking your approach will be condemned for misrepresenting the facts. From that, it is a short step to deny that everything we condemn about the history was untrue or exaggerated. It is a real problem. Already, the failure to ﬁnd actual mass graves outside of oﬃcial cemeteries has led to a reaction among many, saying “I told you it was all a lie!”, and nothing said about the truth in future will be believed.

Reconciliation demands truth on all sides, and truth demands that the real facts are presented. Indigenous

logised to Carolyn for the way in which the 7 Feathers installation has been handled. In her apology, Mayor Peckford noted that “North Grenville is early in its reconciliation journey, and we recognize that we have much to learn. We appreciate your willingness to be in communication with us, particularly at such a distressing moment.”

It is expected that the complete installation will be restored and the planned ceremony will take place at the oﬃcial opening.

peoples don’t need to present an incomplete story: the truth, the reality, is suﬃcient. One last thing, and this may not be acceptable to some: it was not my ancestors who oppressed Indigenous peoples in Canada. I wasn’t here, and neither were my ancestors. We were busy being oppressed by the same Coloniser in Ireland. I don’t feel guilty for what happened in Canada before me; but I do feel deeply responsible to ensure that the truth of that history is known and respected, and that the grievances of the past are fully and legally redressed.

Dear Editor, Rumors are circulating that the Ferguson Forest Centre (FFC) is facing potential bankruptcy. While this has not been oﬃcially confirmed, the possibility alone raises serious concerns about the future of one of North Grenville and Ontario’s most cherished assets. This financial instability points directly to a broader failure of leadership by both the Executive Board of the Ferguson Forest Centre and the Ontario government.

letters cont'd on page 5

Kemptville Campus announces new Executive Director

Following an extensive search, the Kemptville Campus Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Ms. Annie Hillis has been appointed Executive Director of the Campus. She will take up her duties on November 12, 2024. Ms. Hillis succeeds Bruce Jackson, who served as the Interim Director following the departure of the previous Executive Director, Ms. Liz Sutherland, in July.

“The Board of the Kemptville Campus is thrilled to make this announcement,” said Board Chair Brian McKee. “Annie Hillis has the positive energy, inspiring vision and vast professional experience we need to lead the Kemptville Campus into the next exciting phase of our development.”

Annie Hillis has worked across Canada for over 25 years on a wide range of adaptive reuse, urban infrastructure and creative placemaking projects. She began her career at The Banﬀ Centre for the Arts, where she spent 5 years. Subsequently, she has worked with non-proﬁt and private developers on heritage redevelopments (Toronto’s Wychwood Barns), shared space initiatives (Toron-

What’s going on? See our events calendar: www.northgrenville.ca/events

Stay informed! Council Meetings: www.northgrenville.ca/meetings

Need to see us? Municipal office hours: Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 285 County Road 44, Kemptville

Need to reach us? Contact us: Call 613-258-9569 or email: general@northgrenville.on.ca

Need additional information? Visit us: www.northgrenville.ca

letters cont'd

For years, the FFC has been a cornerstone of our community, representing the best of our environmental, agricultural, and cultural heritage. Yet, despite its importance, we have seen a disturbing lack of transparency from the Executive Board, coupled with a shocking neglect by the Ontario government to provide the necessary funding and support to secure its future. Rather than launching proactive fundraising efforts or engaging the public in meaningful discussions, the leadership has opted to focus on selling off land – land that is integral to the identity and future of our community. This land disposition, which I have been actively fighting to prevent, threatens the very heart of what makes Ferguson Forest Centre special.

If the rumors of potential bankruptcy are true, this situation is nothing short of a

to’s Centre for Social Innovation), community hubs (Val-David’s Centre Culturel Lézarts Loco), mixed-use buildings (Ottawa’s Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre), and more.

“The Kemptville Campus is a key asset for our community,” said North Grenville Mayor Nancy Peckford. “However, I believe that it has the potential to become much more valuable in the years to come. I know that the Campus’s new Executive Director shares that vision and I look forward to working closely with Ms. Hillis to help bring it to life, so that the Kemptville Campus becomes a truly dynamic and thriving community hub.”

After moving to Ottawa in 2006, Ms. Hillis became

the founding Executive Director of the award-winning Wellington West Business Improvement Area. She has also managed national public art projects, including integrated artwork for the City of Ottawa’s Confederation Line LRT, and the Canadian Building Trades Monument, which received an Ottawa Urban Design Award in 2017. Annie joins the Kemptville Campus from the Canadian Paramedic Memorial Foundation, where she has been developing the Canadian Paramedic Monument.

Annie has served on many boards, including Somerset West Community Health Centre (Chair), Shaw Centre (Ottawa), and, after moving to Burritt’s Rapids in 2021, the Kemptville

Campus for two years.

“I ﬁrst visited the Kemptville Campus for the inaugural Rural Summit in 2018,” recalls the new Executive Director. “At that time, I was deeply impressed by the site’s history and potential, as well as by the integrity and passion of the farmers and local businesspeople I met. Now I can’t wait to explore every opportunity to make the Kemptville Campus as useful, as welcoming, and as delightful a place as possible for this community.”

Reporting to the Kemptville Campus Board of Directors, Ms. Hillis will lead the development of business, strategic, operational, educational, funding, and communication plans for the Campus. Her priorities will be to strengthen tenant

and community relations, to develop inspiring programming and impactful partnerships, to renew the building stock and enrich the environment on campus, and to ensure ﬁnancial growth and sustainability.

Kemptville Campus Education and Community Centre is an educational and multi-use facility serving the community of North Grenville and surrounding area. The Campus includes 630 acres and 17 main buildings, as well as woodlands, cropland, wetland, greenspace, green houses, an agroforestry centre and maple bush, trails, and other buildings – sports facilities, residence, and catering facilities. Visit https://www.kemptvillecampus.ca/ for more information.

Young suspect arrested for St. Mikes school threats

$5,000)

by Brandon Mayer

crisis – one that could have been avoided with responsible leadership, better public engagement, and a serious commitment to long-term sustainability. Instead, it seems that the board and government officials have left the future of the FFC in limbo, prioritizing shortterm financial fixes over long-term solutions.

The public deserves answers and accountability. This is a wake-up call. The possibility of bankruptcy would be a tragic outcome, but it is not too late to reverse course. Our community deserves to know the truth, and the Ferguson Forest Centre deserves better than to be dismantled piece by piece.

Heather Popazzi North Grenville resident

The OPP has made an arrest in the string of threats that impacted St. Michael Catholic School in Kemptville, beginning on September 12. The threats happened repeatedly, and in an unusual move, were being called in directly to the OPP in late hours of the night. The threats of violence forced the school to be closed to students and staﬀ over many school days, and in one case, caused the school to go into lockdown with students on site. The last of the anonymous threats was made against the school on October 17.

The OPP reports: “An extensive investigation by members of the Grenville OPP Crime Unit, assisted by the OPP Cyber Investigations Team, OPP Regional Support Team, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Bridgewater, Nova Scotia Police, led to the execution of a search warrant at a home and a school in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia on Friday, October 25, 2024. One person was arrested, and investigators seized electronic devices.”

A 14-year-old male from Bridgewater has been charged with:

- Uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm

- Indecent communications

- Mischief (interfere with lawful use, enjoyment or operation of property, over

- Public mischief

- Unauthorized use of computer (destroy data)

“The identity of the individual is protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act,” says the OPP release. “Anyone who shares the name publicly could be subject to criminal charges.”

The young accused individual remained in custody following his arrest, and was scheduled to appear in court by video link on October 29.

The OPP stressed in it’s media release that “public safety is paramount in any threat investigation and such incidents must be trea-

ted as serious and legitimate until proven otherwise”.

Some parents believed that, on the days when the school was closed, it should have instead remained open, but with locked doors and increased security.

“While charges have been laid, the investigation is continuing, in conjunction with police in multiple jurisdictions, as well as the Federal Bureau of Investigations in the United States,” says the OPP. “The OPP also continues to look into potential connections to any similar incidents, including a threat against a school in Iroquois.”

The singular incident

involving threats made to “Iroquois area schools” forced the closure of Seaway District High School and Iroquois Public School on October 3, the same day as one of the St. Michael closures. Many undoubtedly believed that these threats were made by the same person, but the recent news from the OPP casts uncertainty on the issue. If you have any information on any of the recent school threats, contact the Grenville Detachment of the OPP at 1-888-310-1122. If you want to remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at ontariocrimestoppers.ca.

73’s road excursions unsuccessful encounters

by G.J. the sportsguy

Kemptville 73’s on the road faced an extreme challenge in a Sunday matinee confrontation with 11-0-0 Nationals of Rockland in the Yzerman Division to be hammered 4 to 1.

Initial frame was dominated by Rockland with Kemptville holding them oﬀ scoreless. Rockland with man advantage drew first blood when Trystan-Felix Tremblay PPG with helpers from Hall and O’Connor put it behind Trenten Bennett at 8:57 in the second.

Combination with Canevari and Sydney Loreto buried the rubber past Benoit Forget to level it up for the 73’s at 9:47. Trystan-Felix Tremblay second goal, assisted from McDougall with Charron for Rockland tie breaker game winner at 10:46.

Final twenty with the

Nationals in total control as Tellier with O’Connor setup Loic Gosselin for insurance at 8:27. Turnbull with Labre assisting Alex Kelloway to cap it oﬀ at 9:05 with a 4 to 1 victory.

Rockland peppered Kemptville 32 SHG to 19 with 1⁄4 PP and 0/4 for their opponents. Coach commented that Rockland showed why they are currently the top team in Canada, displaying consistency, grit and tenacity. A fantastic learning experience to make us aware we still have a lot of work ahead of us to gain top seed in our league.

Friday evening Kemptville swooped into Hawkesbury to challenge the Hawks incognizant of the consequences they were to encounter. Hawkesbury accumulated four unanswered markers to open the initial twenty when Kemptville

with extra man and Remi Gelianas SHG stole the rubber to put it behind Trenten Bennett at 9:13. Gelinas with Maxime Charbonneau at 15:14 and then the insurance from Brayton Besner with helpers from Racine and Gagne at 15:37. Hawks struck again at 17:01 from combination of Bandu with Trudeau to Noah Bath for four point lead.

McDonald on his horse to find Nicholas Bennett in the slot to spoil Brett Ruddy SO within the ﬁrst minute of the second at :10 for the 73’s. Hawkesbury with man advantage when Perron with Bandu assisted Jacob Skoczylas PPG chased Kemptville Trenten Bennett at 16:37 to make it a four pointer lead again.

Kemptville with extra attacker in the third capitalized with Subbings and S. Canevari to Emile Trottier

#4

PPG in the rocking chair to claw out of the hole at 3:52. The magic of F. Canevari with Loreto to Carter Graves to continue the comeback for Kemptville at 17:29. 73’s pulled Ryan Donovan for the extra attacker at 19:08 and 19:52 without results to award Hawkesbury a 5 to 3 win.

Extremely chippy sixty with Kemptville outgunning Hawkesbury 46 to 41 and 1/9 PP to 1⁄6 PP. Sunday matinee showdown with the Carleton Place Canadians in their home sanctum was Kemptville’s ﬁnal bus ride without positive results as they fell short by 3 to 2 after digging a hole in the ﬁrst.

Carleton Place counted ﬁrst to open the initial period within two minutes when William Bouwer with helpers from Henderson with Hapke caught Trenten Bennett oﬀ guard to punch

Eric Sweetapple

Jennie Childs Owner, CEO 613.314.6866 brightshinyspaces@gmail.com Specializing in Residential House Beautification

Weekly, Bi-Weekly, or One-time Cleans Servicing North Grenville and surrounding areas. @BrightShinySpaces

it in at 1:37. Froysland and Allaby assisted Ben Neil at 2:02 to make it 2 to zip for the Canadians. Duo effort from Kay to Finn Barton at 14:11 to force Trenten Bennett to ride the slab and introduce Rylan Donovan to the battle. Combination of O’Doherty with McDougall to Carter Graves at 18:51 to spoil Ian Vandenberg SO and end ﬁrst.

Kemptville with extra attacker in the second with the combination from Dumont to Gavin McDougall

PPG to riﬂe it home at 11:38 within one. Third frame with Kemptville pedal to the metal for the win after the comeback attempt in the previous stanza and pulling their stopper 18:58 on ﬁnal push without results as Canadians held on to 3 to 2 victory.

Carleton Place outgunned Kemptville 26 to 21 with 0/1 PP and 1⁄3 PP. See you around the wall on Wednesday evening when Brockville visits the 73’s barn for a 7 pm start.

At the October Lions Club meeting, the Kirk family was introduced to the club as winners of the ﬁrst Lions Club Trip of the Month Club draw.

So much for the shut-out... Ian Vandenberg gets SO stiﬂed from Carter Graves with helpers from O'Doherty and McDougall during Sunday matinee in Carleton Place.

The Art of Fabric Sculpting

by Marguerite Boyer

In April 2024, local resident, Lorraine Delangis, (LD’sCreations) became a member of the National Capital Network of Sculptors. Many of us are familiar with her works, they have been on display at Salamanders in Kemptville for the past few years. Lorraine is also part of the North Grenville Arts Guild and the Merrickville Arts Guild. By becoming a member of NCNS, Lorraine ho-

pes to further develop her skills as a sculptor and to engage with a community of talented artists, sharing techniques and gaining a deeper understanding of the art form. Being a part of this diverse group is truly inspiring and oﬀers a wealth of creative opportunities. The weekend of October 19, Lorraine had her work on display in Ottawa, at the Sculpture Expo, held in the Glebe. It was a wonderful opportunity to share with a group of diverse

sculptors from all parts of the area. There were Wood, Glass, Soapstone, Ceramic and Fabric sculptors, each bringing their own unique style and talent to the show. Lorraine is one of the most inspiring artists I have met, with a willingness to share her creativity with others, and also providing classes in this technique. One does not have to be an artist in order to create a sculpture under her guidance and skill, you will amaze yourself. I have been following

her for the past few years, and have yet to see anyone disappointed when leaving her workshop. Her work will again be on display this coming November 9 and 10 with Mag Show in Merrickville, and again in NG with North Grenville Arts Guild, Wonderfall, Nov. 16 and 17. A great way to meet a very talented local artist.

Tiny dancers and local voices: An Elton John open mic night lights up Catered Aﬀairs

by Talia Hreljac

you entered Catered Aﬀairs, and I don’t know what was better – the excited vibes, the amazing local talent, or the smell coming from the Chili Bar put on by Catered Aﬀairs. Something that always impresses me about North Grenville is the ability

of the community to come together to support local initiatives. For this event, all of the proceeds as well as additional nonperishable donations went towards the Food Bank – an extremely important cause as we head into the holiday season.

New website activated for the North Grenville Men’s Shed

by Stuart Leyenaar

The North Grenville Men’s Shed has continued to hold a variety of meetings for the membership during the summer months. Several members have opened their home workshops to host “Satellite Shed” to share wood-working project meetings. Another activity is focused more on the social aspect of staying connected with fellow members by meeting at local coﬀee shops just for visiting and sharing information.

We have exciting news to share regarding the work of a committee dedicated to designing a website for the North Grenville Men’s Shed. Last week we successfully launched our own website: ngmensshed.com. We invite you to visit the website and see the information posted under several headings. Our website will be an open invitation for anyone looking for more information about our formation as a club, our activities and our plans.

If you are a man with some ﬂexible time and would enjoy meeting with other men to build things for the beneﬁt of our community, enlarge your circle of friends and share your skills and knowledge, we invite you to join us in the North Grenville Men’s Shed. For more information about our group, contact any of the following: Peter Ivay (President), Dan Callaghan (Vice President), Stuart Leyenaar (Treasurer), or Roger Stark who monitors our email address: northgrenvillemensshed@gmail.com.

As we approach the winter months, we are exploring the use of a heated workshop to continue our “working with wood” initiatives. One avenue we’ve already adopted is to oﬀer a furniture repair service. This service would let you retain ownership of furniture that may have sentimental value or become an antique to be passed on the next generation. We would also welcome the opportunity to assemble furniture purchased and boxed with only rudimentary instructions enclosed. As a not for proﬁt organization, we’re ready to volunteer our labour, but we would be soliciting donations in exchange for materials required. We’re looking for ways to supplement the Men’s Shed account! While we are a community service organization, we need adequate funds to cover the cost of our insurance policies, and pay rent for a heated workshop to be our meeting place for the winter.

In closing, visit our website: ngmensshed.com, contact us for details about our upcoming meetings, and join our membership for the beneﬁts available to you.

This event came together due to the love of music and extraordinary eﬀorts by Mairéad Frizell from The Tempo Drive Music Studio, and by Herb Cloutier, owner of J.A.M Productions and local volunteer extraordinaire. I think the only part I was a little oﬀended about was the fact that no one asked me to perform a song, but considering my husband says I sound like Scuttle from The Little Mermaid when I sing, it was perhaps for the best. All I know is that as the night ended and the applause faded, everyone knew the spirit of Crocodile Rock was alive and well.

Local members of the community joined together Friday night (many of them wearing fabulous costumes might I add) to celebrate the man, the myth, the legend –Sir Elton John. It was truly a spectacle to behold once

A hate crime in Kemptville

by Brandon Mayer

As if graffiti isn’t bad enough, a spray-painted slur on the wall of an abandoned Kemptville building last week shook up a local family, providing an unwelcome realization that racist attitudes still exist, even in 2024, and even in the quaint town of Kemptville.

A parent contacted the Times to share her daughter’s story, but wanted to remain anonymous. She explained that on the walls of an abandoned building behind the Independent Grocer, the words “Fuck [her daughter’s name], fuck nigger” were spray painted. Her daughter is a person of colour, which presents its own struggles being a part of a white family in a “very white town”.

“This is very sad,” said the parent. “It’s sad it happened ever, but it’s especially sad that it’s happening in this day and age. We all know better.”

The parent explained that her daughter has a friend who lives in Merrickville, who in turn has another friend in Merrickville. Her daughter has been accused of saying bad things about this “friend of a friend” in Merrickville, although the parent stresses that the accusation is false, and that her daughter has nothing to do with this other girl.

Last week, the “friend of a friend” showed a photo of the racist graﬃti to the parent’s daughter’s friend, asking her to pass it along as evidence that no one likes her. The parent is sure that the “friend of a friend” either

committed the hate crime, or knows who did it.

“I thought we were past this,” said the parent, referring to hate crimes and racial slurs.

A police officer was scheduled to go to the school where the suspected culprit attends on October 24. The parent was told that in the absence of evidence, charges for the suspected culprit would not happen without a confession, but that the act of “being read the riot act” from a police oﬃcer is often enough to put a stop to such behaviour in the future. Let us all hope that for the sake of human decency and the community inclusion that we all hope for, these types of hate crimes come to an end in North Grenville, and everywhere else.

The Harp and the Maple Leaf

Edward Blake who expressed Canada’s right to be heard by the Empire. He later moved to Ireland to be an M.P. at Westminister. The only Leader of the Liberal Party in Canada not to become Prime Minister, at the time.

by David Shanahan

Being in Ireland as I write this, I have been thinking of the relations which have existed between this country and Canada over the centuries. The Irish formed one of the biggest ethnic groups in Canada throughout the Ninteteenth Century, bringing labour, investment, and a cultural heritage that

has enriched the nation on many levels.

The impact of the Irish on Canada goes well beyond the immigrants who arrived here in droves throughout the Nineteenth Century. Most of those immigrants had arrived before the Great Hunger of the 1840's, but they continued to settle in Canada in the decades afterwards also.

In North Grenville, many of the business and political leaders were immigrants from Ireland, or children of immigrants. Men like Robert Bell, who was a founder of the Bytown and Prescott Railway Company and owner of the Ottawa Citizen newspaper. Elected politicians at both federal and provincial levels, such as Dr. Charles Ferguson and his son, G. Howard, or Francis Jones. But the impact of the Irish, and Ireland, on Canadian constitutional development was enormously important.

By the 1880's, no Canadian Government could do without an Irish Catholic re-

Silent prayer is a crime?

by David Shanahan

Prayer. What one believes is meant to be protected under the Charter in this country, and under various pieces of legislation in many others. But in the U.K. recently a man has been convicted for praying in silence for his dead son. The man, a veteran and father, was passing an abortion clinic in Bournemouth in England, when he stopped and prayed silently for his child who he paid to have aborted years earlier. He said nothing to anyone, approached no-one, and merely bowed his head for three minutes, remembering his son.

He was approached by a local Council oﬃcial who asked him what he was doing. He told them he was praying. They then asked him (a really Big Brother Orwellian question): "what is the nature of your prayer?" When he told them, they arrested him because he was inside a ‘buﬀer zone' around the clinic, designed to prevent the intimidation of anyone using the clinic. He was later sentenced to a two-year conditional

discharge and ordered to pay more than £9,000 in costs, according to the BBC. He was convicted for silence, for what he was thinking.

As the man in Bournemouth said: “They informed me that they considered my praying for my deceased son was a breach of the PSPO [Public Spaces Protection Order], that it was an act of disapproval of abortion, although I wasn’t manifesting that prayer in any way and, if I hadn’t told them, they would have no way of knowing what I was praying about.”

Any healthy society needs to preserve a balance between the rights of one and the rights of another.

That is basic, it is what our shared rights require and demand. It doesn't matter one bit what your personal attitude to abortion may be, that is not the issue here. The issue is the right to think freely without impinging on another's freedom of belief, thought, or action. Is that not a fundamental plank of our society? Is that kind of arrest and conviction not a genuine attack on those fundamentals, regardless of ideology or beliefs?

The thought police are no longer a ﬁctional threat to freedom, in the U.K. at least. If silent prayer can be a crime, what other silent, unspoken thoughts can be criminalised?

THOMAS M. BYRNE

presentative in Cabinet, such was the power of the Irish Catholic vote, especially in the older Provinces east of Manitoba. Irish Protestant influence was equally powerful, particularly through the Orange Order, which could list most leading politicians, including, it is said, Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald, among its members. And it was the inﬂuence of the Irish Members of Parliament that led to Resolutions being passed in the House of Commons in favour of Home Rule for Ireland in 1882.

Home Rule meant that Ireland would have the equivalent of a Provincial Government, located in Dublin, rather like Ontario’s in Toronto. The old Irish Parliament had been dissolved in 1881 and Ireland had been ruled directly from London ever since. The original Resolutions, introduced by John Costigan, had been fairly strong, but Macdonald managed to water them down before being voted

on, partly because he feared the response of the Imperial Government in London, and partly because he was no supporter of Home Rule. In fact, he once declared that “[T]he Celtic races have never taken to self or Representative Government”, a strange attitude for a Prime Minister born in Scotland.

The Resolutions passed in the House were transmitted to London, and Macdonald’s fears were realised when Prime Minister William Gladstone responded with a polite version of “Mind your own business!”. The colonies, it was made clear, had no right to offer advice to the Empire and should mind their place in the hierarchy of things. Macdonald was humiliated and furious, and was determined never to make that mistake again.

Imagine his confusion, then, when, just a few years later, in 1886, Gladstone “converted” to Home Rule, introduced legislation in Westminister to bring Home Rule into being. The leader of the Liberal Party in Canada, Edward Blake,

General Practice

Barrister and Solicitor

Corporate / Commercial Family Law Estates Real Estate Wills & Powers of Attorney tom@tmblaw.ca

613.258.1277 222 Prescott St., Kemptville

introduced new Resolutions in Ottawa supporting the British legislation. Once more, Macdonald attempted to refuse to have a vote on the resolutions, and when they passed in spite of more watered-down words, he even tried to prevent them being sent to Gladstone.

But something far more significant had happened. By welcoming Canadian resolutions in support of Imperial legislation, and accepting the right, if not the duty, of colonial governments to comment on Imperial legislation, Gladstone had transformed Canada’s constitutional position. It was a tentative first step towards what would become the Commonwealth, the Empire as a Family of Nations, rather than a collection of colonies. And it was in the context of Irish Home Rule, and through the activism of the Irish in Canada, generally, and in Parliament in particular, that this change came about. The definition of a Dominion would continue to develop from there.

In an interesting postscript, when Ireland achieved the freedom of most of

its people in 1921, after years of war and agitation, the Treaty which resulted from the negotiations, and which defined the new Irish Free State in its relations with the British Empire, specifically gave it the same status as Canada. Ireland would have Dominion status within the Empire, a status which the events surrounding the Irish Home Rule Resolutions in 1882 and 1886 had done much to define. Following Independence, Irish officials worked closely with Canadian representatives in drawing up the Statute of Westminister in 1931, ending Britain’s right to legislate for the Dominions, and effectively establishing the Commonwealth. The Irish Free State changed its name to just Ireland in 1937 and left the Commonwealth, as it was believed a Republic could not be a member. The events in the House of Commons in Ottawa in 1886, explicitly, and for the first time, saw Canadians state their right to speak and act as members of the Empire, rather than subjects of Westminister.

Graﬃti on the abandoned building

FOR SALE

BRAND NEW Vehicle

Parts – ALL still in the original delivery boxes. Pick up in Kemptville. Call Bill: 613868-4477. Must be paid in cash on pick-up Steel Cowel Induction Hood to fit 2003 to 2007 Chevrolet pickup. Original cost $768 plus tax. Now $500 Tonneau Cover to fit 6.5 foot pickup box. Original cost $500 plus tax, now $275 In-tank Fuel Pump for GM products, complete with locking steel washer. Original $175 plus tax. Now $75

Coil Binding Machine with electric coil inserter (Coil Mac EC1), $500 (OBO). Assorted coils included. email classifieds@ngtimes. ca

Winter tires 215/55 R 18, set of 4, 2 winter used, $200.00. Erick 613 860 2539

King size bed, excellent condition, including mattress protector, base and bedding. Offers. 613-258-7778

Solid wood 2x4 park bench bolted together, 48x33 inches. $65. nadfudt@gmail.com

OASIS PAINTING

10% O Interior Projects 613-408-4432 - Will

Gozone home fitness mini stepper, hardly used. $45. nadfudt@gmail.com

Womens hooded spring & fall coat front pocket beaded emblems med tall $40. Mens white cardigan sweater button front med.$10. contact Dan at nadfudt@gmail.com

Arborite countertop grey specs round front 22X38X 1.5 inches. $15.00. contact Dan at nadfudt@gmail.com

MISCELANEOUS

Looking to rent farmland in North Grenville & surrounding areas. Call or text Mitch @ 613-2621204.

COMMUNITY EVENTS

RECURRING EVENTS

Monthly Suppers prepared by Knights of Columbus at Holy Cross Church Hall at 503 Clothier St W. Suppers will be held on the last Thursday of the month. Cost $10 per adult, $5 for children under 12 and $25 for families.

PROBUS: Fellowship, Fun and inFormed presenters are part of the PROBUS gathering on the third Wednesday of each month at St Paul's Presbyterian Church Hall at 9:30AM. For more information contact at n.g.probus97@gmail.com

Kemptville Legion: Fridays 3-9. Free Pool and Darts. Everyone Welcome BINGO, Kemptville Legion, Bingos run from the beginning of September until the end of June on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays.

NG Duplicate Bridge Club, Masonic Lodge 311 Van Buren Kemptville, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday afternoons at 12:15. All Levels of bridge players are welcome. Info call 613795-7155

Friendship Lunches are oﬀered to everyone every Friday. Please join us in our lower hall by 11:30 for a free meal, companionship and fellowship at St. John's United Church hall at 400 Prescott St. and begin at 11:30. There is no charge. A free will oﬀering is appreciated. Everyone is welcome.

Friendship Café is open to the community Tuesday's from 10 to noon. All are welcome to stop by, enjoy a hot beverage, a sweet treat and some friendly conversation all at no cost. At St. John's United Church hall at 400 Prescott St. Spencerville Agricultural Society planning general meetings. If you are interested in joining our committee, please email info@spencervillefair.ca to receive all of the meeting details. Nov 11. The Drummond Building, 22 Ryan Street, Spencerville Ontario BID EUCHRE at Pierce's Corners (aka the Marlborough Community Centre) at 3048 Pierce Road on Tuesday, November 5, 19, December 3 and 17. Registration starts at 6:00 p.m., play starts at 6:30 p.m. Contact Debi at debiar@ymail.com EUCHRE at Pierce's Corners (aka the Marlborough Community Centre) at 3048 Pierce Road on Tuesday, November 12, 26, and December 10. Registration starts at 6:00 p.m., play starts at 6:30 p.m. Contact Debi at debiar@ymail.com

St. John’s Drawing Circle is every Friday at 4 pm. This is a 3 hour drawing studio with life drawing models (clothed) for artists of all ages and abilities. Cost is $120 for 12 weeks or $15.00 for drop ins. RSVP please Jennifer @ gowjb@msn.com. At St. John's United Church hall at 400 Prescott St.

Tuesday Community Hub hosted by the House of Lazarus All are welcome to drop in. Advocacy, “make a meal, take a meal” cooking opportunities, community services assistance are just a few of the weekly programs. Stop by and visit or contact House of Lazarus directly at 613-989-3830 for more details. “Building Community, Sharing Hope”. Upstairs at St. John's United Church at 400 Prescott St. Winchester Open Mic Cafe, Sundays 2pm to 5pm at the Old Town Hall, 478 Main Street, Winchester. Free, accessible, everyone welcome. Modern Square Dancing in Kemptville with the Grenville Gremlins Square Dance Club. Monday Evenings 7:30 - 9:30pm. North Grenville Municipal Center County Road 44 For more info call Debbie at 613-795-3032 or Google "Kemptville Square Dancing"

Saturday Art Social every Saturday morning at the NG Public Library! 10 am - 11:30 am at the NG Public Library. Free with basic materials provided NG Pride will be hosting an 2SLGBTQI+ and allies Seniors Meeting up on the ﬁrst and third Sunday of each month between 2 - 4pm. Join us for games, cards, snacks and conversation at the NG Public Library.

ACROSS

1. Dry riverbed

5. Cultural doings

9. Give the cold shoulder

13. Biblical garden

14. Circular

16. Relative of a rabbit 17. Whip

18. Hue

19. Mine entrance

20. Desiccated 22. Hearth 24. Food

26. Necklace item

27. Deer meat

30. Not bumpy

33. Slaughterhouse

35. Pilfer

37. Excluding

38. Tattles

41. Chapter in history

42. Select by voting

45. Throbbed

48. Stick

51. Hypothesize

52. Sporting venue

54. Absorbed 55. Almost an island

59. Garbage

62. Ends a prayer

63. Clan 65. Margarine

66. Your majesty

67. Days in a week

68. V V V

69. Stepped

70. Expunge

71. Sea eagle

DOWN

1. Fuse

2. Jewish month 3. Earmarked

4. Get by a will 5. Circle fragment

Solutions to last week’s Sudoku

6. Top of a building

7. Liliaceous plant

8. Breathes noisily while sleeping

9. Like an onion

10. Nil

11. Acid related to gout

12. A detested person

15. Fantasize

21. Detritus

23. Not amateurs

25. Doofus

27. Windmill blade

28. Deadly virus

29. Zero

31. Abstainer from alcohol

32. Rabbits

34. Blame

36. Stow, as cargo

39. Public transit vehicle

40. Aspersion

43. Fettered

44. Anagram of "Rent"

46. Expectorated

47. Give permission

49. Pauses

50. Accustomed

53. Not dead

55. Times gone by

56. Arab ruler

57. Adopted son of Claudius

58. Cain's brother

60. Observed

61. Tube

64. East northeast

Farm business not immune to cyber security threats

by Teresa Van Raay, Director, OFA

With the world becoming increasingly connected and digitized, cyber security is a growing concern. Criminals are targeting retailers, municipalities, healthcare providers and critical infrastructure – and as the agriculture sector increases its reliance on sensors, data collection and online connectivity, it is also becoming a target.

In fact, the agri-food industry can be particularly vulnerable, especially at the farm level where the sector consists of many small, independent businesses with limited IT resources – and cyber security often tends to be one of those things that most people don’t worry about until it happens to them or someone close to them.

That was certainly the case for us. My family and I farm near the small town of Dashwood close to Lake Huron where we raise pigs and grow garlic and ﬁeld crops. An invoice email request that looked like it came from one of our suppliers turned out to be from a bad actor, and after several agricultural organizations were hit with ransomware attacks, it prompted us to take a serious look at both the risks to our farm business and how we could protect ourselves.

Ransomware is where hackers lock down a system by encrypting its data and essentially holding it hostage until a ransom has been paid. Data breaches, where criminals steal customer, business or ﬁnancial information, are also a common form of cyber attack.

In the agri-food sector, cyber security threats come from

three main areas.

Opportunistic cyber criminals look for the so-called low-hanging fruit and choose targets that will get them the maximum return for the lowest time investment. State-sponsored hacking teams from other countries actively work to compromise sensors and devices across the entire food supply chain, from farms to food processing and ports. Activists resorted to cyber security tactics in Ontario for the ﬁrst time in 2023 to target a farm.

On our farm, we ended up bringing in some IT expertise to conduct an audit of all our systems, which we’d been piecing together for close to 40 years. It was an eye opening experience for us.

Even though we are a small business, to us, the impact of an attack would be devastating given how much we rely on the internet and digital connectivity on everything from accepting payments in our on-farm store to running and monitoring systems in our barn.

So we’ve taken action on several fronts, including backing up our data in multiple places and adding a guest Wi-Fi that is available to anyone coming to the farm but doesn’t connect them to our main network.

Other things we learned were to pay closer attention to emails or phone calls requesting ﬁnancial details or passwords that appear legitimate but turn out not to be, and to never send credit card details by email, for example.

October is cyber security month, making it a great time to start thinking about how your business could be vulnerable

and how you might be able to protect yourself. There is no such thing as zero risk, but there are some relatively simple steps that can be taken right away to reduce that risk:

Make sure your hardware and software are kept up to date and that you’re using strong passwords that aren’t shared between employees. Remove access from employees who no longer work for you.

Back up your most important information regularly and store it in a safe place that is not connected to your main systems.

Never use public Wi-Fi to check your on-farm systems when you’re away. Instead, buy and use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) or connect to your monitoring apps using the cellular data on your device.

Don’t click on un-veriﬁed links in emails or text messages, even if they look legitimate, and never reveal sensitive business or personal information to unsolicited callers. It pays to be suspicious – always check back with a caller who says they are from a financial services provider.

Know which devices, sensors, computers, servers, mobile devices, automated equipment, environmental control systems, financial systems, and other hardware in your on-farm networks are connected and know who to call if something goes wrong.

Every farm business is different, and you will need a plan speciﬁc to your needs and your situation, but taking any kind of preventative action will reduce your risk in both the short and long-term.

by Paul Cormier, Salamanders of Kemptville

With minus temperatures this morning and frost on the pumpkins, our thoughts start to turn towards the upcoming festive season. Gone are the days when stores would start putting out their Christmas inventory after 11 November. Now, everyone gets on the bandwagon even before Hallowe’en has taken place. Since today’s recipe is one that “keeps” and is a family favourite, let’s go with Applesauce Gumdrop Cake.

Applesauce Gumdrop Cake

Ingredients

1 cup of shortening

1 cup of white granulated sugar

2 cups of ﬂour

2 eggs

1 cup of applesauce

1 cup of raisins

An 18 ounce bag of fresh gumdrops

1 teaspoon each of cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder and vanilla extract

Preparation

Pre-heat your oven to 350F

Cream the shortening, sugar and cinnamon, then add the eggs, applesauce and vanilla

Add the ﬂour to the mixture along with the nutmeg, baking soda and powder

Dust the gumdrops and raisins with a bit of ﬂour in a separate bowl

Then, fold the gumdrops and raisins into your mixture

Pour into a loaf pan that you have lined with parchment paper or sprayed with oil

Bake for about an hour or until your probe comes out clean

This cake benefits from aging a bit. So, once cool, you can wrap it in plastic film, then in aluminum foil and store in a cool dry place. If you live in the country as we do and the mice are starting to come in for the winter, you might store your cake in a biscuit tin. Dollarama also has some spiffy containers of various sizes for your home pantry. You can freeze this cake for use later in the winter or closer to Christmas. This cake looks nice on your festive season display plate of goodies and also has quite a distinctive flavour.

All the best from Paul at pcormier@ranaprocess.com.

UPCOMING EVENTS

November 2

Christmas Market. 10:00 am - 4:00 pm. Merrickville's Makers Market hosts its next warm and welcoming event! Admission to the event is free and there is ample parking. Merrickville's Community Centre, 106 Read Street, Merrickville

Twilux Lantern Parade. Muster for the parade at 6pm in Crozier Park and arrive at Maplewood Park at around 6:20 pm, with music set to start shortly after and other performances taking place between 7:00 pm and 7:30 pm. Plan on dancing for an hour or more!

Crozier Park, the streets of Oxford Mills, and Maplewood Park.

Chinese Dinner. 6:00 pm - 11:59 pm. This event typically sells out, so do not wait! Authentic Chinese Dinner, Auction, and Dance with music provided by Eddy and the Stingrays! $45 per ticket Get your tickets online ONLY - https://www.spencervillefair.ca/chinesedinner

The Drummond Building 22 Ryan Street, Spencerville

November 3

Christmas Market. 10:00 am - 4:00 pm. Merrickville's Makers Market hosts its next warm and welcoming event! Admission to the event is free and there is ample parking.

Merrickville's Community Centre, 106 Read Street, Merrickville

November 10

Wizard Game Tournament. Registration starts at 12:30 and play starts at 1:00 p.m. $5 per player. For information contact debiar@ymail.com.

Pierce's Corners, also known as the Marlborough Community Centre, 3048 Pierce Road. November 16

Annual Christmas Sale. 10:00 am - 2:00 pm. Addison United Church Women - Baking, Knitting & crafts, Christmas table, Books and puzzles , New to You, & Canteen

Fully accessible 9007 County Rd 29

A Christmas on Campus. 11:00 am - 4:00 pm. Join My Local Markets and the North Grenville Arts Guild as we celebrate the festive season at the Kemptville Campus. November 16 & 17 Free Parking | Free Admission Donations to Beth Donovan Hospice are welcomed. Kemptville Campus, 75 Campus Drive, Kemptville, ON Repair Café. 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm. Come out with your broken items, and we will endeavor to ﬁx them for free. We can also give advice about how to repair some items. Contact: Tricia 613 258 3683 pmjh@snowie.ca

North Grenville Public Library, 1 Water St in Kemptville

CHILI on Parade Night. 4:00 pm. Oxford Mills Girl Guides fundraiser for their Switzerland Trip

Outdoor kiosk at St John's United Church, 400 Prescott Street

Santa Claus Parade. 4:30 pm. Kemptville Rotary Santa Claus Parade Santa Claus is coming to town! Saturday. The parade theme is "The Magic of Christmas", which is based on the 2024-25 Rotary International theme, "The Magic of Rotary".

Parade Route: Beginning at Van Buren & Bridge Street (405 Van Buren, Rusch Truck Centre Service Location), then west on Van Buren Street, turning north/right on Prescott Street, then turning east/right on Clothier Street then turning north/left on Sanders Street. Parade ﬁnishes beside B&H Grocer.

November 17

November 19

Wreath and Planter Fundraiser. 2:00 pm - 6:00 pm. Seniors' Community Services - In support of the SCS subsidy fund. Orders taken until NOVEMBER 13TH call 613-258-3203 or email jill.woodley@seniorscs.ca

215 Sanders, Kemptville

November 20

Kemptville Horticultural Society. 7:00 pm. Kemptville Horticultural Society November Meeting Annual General Meeting plus a talk on Wintery Greenery. Kemptville Pentecostal Chruch, 1964 County Rd. #43., Kemptville

November 23

Winter Village Market. 10:00 am - 3:00 pm. This market features local vendors and artisans from within eQuinelle and the community, including Artisan Designers, Small Businesses, and Direct Sales Consultants.

eQuinelle Clubhouse, 140 Equinelle Dr, Kemptville

The $30 Market. 10:00 am - 3:00 pm. Everything's a buy at $30! A variety of craft and home-made items--embroidered towels, aprons, wall art, bird houses, Christmas wreaths, preserves, bath baskets, tree ornaments, even $50 gift certiﬁcates! You're sure to ﬁnd something for yourself or a gift. Sponsored by St Ann RC Church.

Royal Canadian Legion, 223 Main Street, Merrickville.

Theft of copper wire and trailer; suspect arrested

The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) East Region Community Street Crime Unit has made an arrest and recovered property less than 24 hours after a theft.

The investigation began on Wednesday, October 23, 2024, after a theft at a North Grenville business. Copper wire and a utility trailer were taken. The total value of the items was around $15,000.

As a result of the investigation, as search warrant was executed at a North Grenville residence later

that day and the stolen property was recovered. One person was arrested at the scene.

A 41-year-old from North Grenville has been

charged with:

- Break and enter to commit an indictable oﬀence - Possession of property obtained by crime - over $5000

- Possession of property obtained by crime - under $5000

The accused was held in custody with a bail hearing scheduled before the Ontario Court of Justice in Brockville on October 24, 2024.

The investigation is continuing.

613.258.9720

1 Jayland Drive, Kemptville

from old Bingo Hall)

Canadian dairy farmers dump enough milk each year to feed 4.2 million people

Southwestern Ontario dairy farmer Jerry Huigen posted a video demonstrating how he dumped milk.

by Nelson Zandbergen courtesy of Farmers Forum

Canadian dairy farmers sent more than 6.8 billion litres of surplus milk down the drain between 2012 and 2021, a rate of milk-dumping higher than the U.S. and other major dairying countries. That’s the estimation of researchers who compared the total milk production of Canada’s national dairy herd with the actual amount of milk that goes out the farm gate.

The recently published study – by Dalhousie University food professor Sylvain Charlebois and academic colleagues in Michigan and Denmark – concluded that plenty of milk “vanished” from Canadian dairy farms as producers dumped it to avoid exceeding their

supply-management quotas. The quantity of wasted milk, 6.8 billion litres, would be worth $14.9 billion, ﬁll over 2,700 Olympic-sized swimming pools and feed 4.2 million people annually.

The lost milk is equivalent to 7 % of Canada’s milk production. That exceeds the on-farm milk-dumping rate in the U.S. (up to 0.5 %), Sweden (0.3 %), Finland (0.5 %), Scotland (1.8 %) and France (3.5 %), according to the research. Canada is the only country left in the world with a supply-managed dairy sector.

Milk dumping last made a media splash in February 2023 when Southwestern Ontario dairy farmer Jerry Huigen went viral with a video of himself gushing wasted milk onto the barn

floor. Dairy farmers are told “just throw it down the drain. Nobody sees it, it’s OK,” Huigen complained in the social media post. “Well, it’s not OK.”

Charlebois told Farmers Forum that the video inspired his co-authors to contact him about studying the phenomenon in Canada. Because data on discarded milk is not collected in this country, the professor and his colleagues took a year to estimate the milk losses. They estimated the annual milk output of the national herd, based on cow numbers, and then subtracted milk sales volume ﬁgures published by Statistics Canada.

Their calculations included the average production per head but also took breed diﬀerences into account as well as on-farm uses of milk to feed calves.

Production of the wasted milk also came with an environmental cost, according to the researchers: 8.4 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions and significant land and water resource waste.

The study recommends mandatory reporting of surplus milk production and

43 Expansion Project Public Engagement Session

Wednesday, November 6, 2024

waste to increase industry transparency, adjusting quotas to prevent overproduction, and imposing penalties for overproduction.

Charlebois said that the peer-reviewed paper was intended “to actually improve supply management.” He added, “I’ve never been against the system, but let’s make it better. Being in denial won’t make it better.”

In a supplied statement, Dairy Farmers of Canada CEO Jaques Lefebvre said that the study authors “acknowledge that much of their conclusions are drawn from ‘estimates’ rather than a robust data set. These data assumptions and calculations would need to be validated independently.”

Milk disposal “is not a unique issue to Canada,” Lefebvre added. “Although supply management is aligned to the needs of the domestic market, when there is a surplus of milk, often it is linked to supply chain issues. Milk is disposed only as a last resort after exploring all other alternatives. This is done in accordance with regulations and the costs are borne by the dairy farmers.”

It’s mindboggling that scurvy is back

Scurvy is a terrible disease that has been eradicated, right?

The disease is caused by a deficiency of vitamin C (ascorbic acid), found in oranges and other fruits and vegetables. But that simple fact was unknown between 1500 and 1747 when it’s estimated two million European sailors died while exploring the oceans. On long voyages, it was accepted that half of the crew would never return. It was a slow, painful death. But James Lind of the British Royal Navy is credited with conducting the first controlled clinical trial recorded in medical science. He compared how sailors fared when given a variety of different remedies, including oranges and lemons.

Shockingly, in 2024, scurvy is back in the news. How could this be?

A report in the Canadian Medical Association Journal details the case of a 65-year-old woman diagnosed with scurvy at the Toronto General Hospital in 2023. Her diet consisted of canned soup, canned tuna, white bread and processed cheese, and no fresh product.

Dr. Sally Engelhart, an author of the report and specialist in internal medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, says it’s not the ﬁrst case she has seen, particularly among the poor and elderly.

Although scurvy is understood as a disease of the past, we now need to return it to consideration when patients and doctors are thinking about symptoms.

What are the symptoms?

After 8 to 12 weeks of vitamin C deﬁciency, you will notice fatigue, see bruising occurring more easily, and gums will bleed on brushing the teeth. Bones will ache and hair follicles will become bright red.

If you miss all these symptoms and fail to see your doctor, you are in trouble. Continued deficiency results in spontaneous internal bleeding, destruction of red blood cells, and ﬁnally death.

Here’s the ridiculous part

and misleading facts. The U.S. Food and Nutrition Board has set the Recommended Daily Allowance of vitamin C at 45 milligrams (mg) a day. Health Canada recommends 15-90 mg depending on age and gender –as if such miniscule variations are consequential! In fact, for good health, people should be getting much more. Only 45 mg will prevent scurvy, but for cardiovascular health, immune system strength, and many other benefits, much higher intake is essential. Aging makes it harder for the body to function, a reality that can be mitigated with high doses of vitamin C, a nutrient that fuels cells throughout the body. Get rid of the thought that scurvy is a disease that only killed sailors long ago. Scurvy is still rare, but the data in North America show rates are on the rise. Why? Because people are falling victim to utterly abysmal nutrition. You don’t need an economics degree to know that people with low incomes often skip meals or eat poor quality food. But people who can and should make better choices are placing food on the table that is so unhealthy it lacks even the small amount of vitamin C needed to prevent deﬁciency.

For the information of recent readers, I had a heart attack 27 years ago at the age of 74 and refused cholesterol-lowering drugs due to their many complications. Rather, I followed the advice of Dr. Linus Pauling and have taken at least 6,000 mg of C together with lysine every day since then. I believe it’s saved my life. Smaller amounts –2,000 or 4,000 mg (but not 45 mg) – of vitamin C daily will always be beneficial for heart health, all organs of the body, and increased immunity. You won’t be worried about scurvy, but about living past 100! Sign-up at www.docgiff. com to receive our weekly e-newsletter. For comments, contact-us@docgiff.com. Follow us on Instagram @docgiff and @diana_gifford_jones.

Two Wonderful Birthday Celebrations

Happy Birthday

Joan Lee Reddick

October 23, 2024 (born October 23,1934).

Last Friday Joan and friends, along with Mayor Nancy Peckford, celebrated her 90th birthday at the Five Star Restaurant.

Joan received four awards in her honour from the NG Council, MP Michael Barrett , MPP Steve Clark. and the Honorable Edith Dumont, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario.

Joan is a local ﬁxture in Downtonw Kemptville. If you happen to see her out walking her dog, please don;t hesitate to wish her Happy Birthday.

Bill Kilfoyle is a curious man, not only in the obvious sense, but meaning, also, that he is curious about things - Life, the Universe, and Everything. His library of books, always growing no matter how many he manages to dispose of, is eclectic and never less than stimulating. He lives in a house that used to be a school, where learned schoolmasters were appropriate predecessors of Bill. This reminded me of a poem by Oliver Goldsmith, Irish novelist, poetand playwright. It is an excerpt from The Deserted Village and describes Bill’s breadth of knowledge and inquisitiveness.

Happy 85 Birthday

Bill Kilfoyle

The Village Schoolmaster by Oliver Goldsmith, (1728-1774)

Beside yon straggling fence that skirts the way With blossom'd furze unproﬁtably gay, There, in his noisy mansion, skill'd to rule, The village master taught his little school; ...The village all declar'd how much he knew; 'Twas certain he could write, and cipher too: Lands he could measure, terms and tides presage, And e'en the story ran that he could gauge. In arguing too, the parson own'd his skill, For e'en though vanquish'd he could argue still; While words of learned length and thund'ring sound Amazed the gazing rustics rang'd around; And still they gaz'd and still the wonder grew, That one small head could carry all he knew.

Yesterday, being so excited about the continuation of our summer until such a late date in October, I felt that I just had to get out and enjoy it somehow. Well, having taken a trip out the day before with sports car friends to see the Autumnal colours, I was about to put my thinking cap on, when a familiar sound filled the air, that of honking Canada Geese. That’s it, I thought, I’ll go and get some pictures of them as they land and take-off from the creek at the end of the road. So off I trot, well not really, I got in my car and drove it to the end of the road to use as a “hide”, should I want to sit out of the cold even though it was quite sunny. My

present, so I was in luck, or so I thought! No birds came and landed, and those already resting on the water weren’t looking like they were going anywhere in the near future, but one never knows! Well, I parked my car oﬀ the road and found a good sitting down water viewing point, on one of the road barriers – 8”x 8” or 10”x10” support posts – and hunkered down for what I hoped would be for just a short while. That was the hope anyway, but the birds had other ideas. No newcomers arrived and none of them departed the whole three hours that I waited in anticipation of that event happening. They would all, teasingly, form into a large group, and my hopes

initial enthusiasm was dampened, when I tried to get a couple of pictures of a pair of geese, as they came into land. The foliage surrounding the creek at that location was going to be a problem so, once again, on with the “thinking cap” as to where to next! First thoughts were to the Rideau River, but where the boat launch is that I usually try, I knew that the geese wouldn’t be there. I was right of course, but the scenic views were superb and a couple of ﬁshermen in a boat made up a little for the lack of birds! However, I was determined not to give up so once again headed back towards the Kemptville Creek.

The day before, in my sports car, I had ventured back through Oxford Mills and then cut across towards home, by using the road that crosses the railway line and also the Creek, where it forms quite a large pond area where the geese might gather. Well, for a change, I was correct and there were quite a few of them

would rise that this was it, but no, they would slowly disperse in their little groups and the start of another wait began!

Fortunately, I am an enthusiastic Train Buﬀ, so I did get an opportunity to see a couple of trains pass over the “Level Crossing” to break my bird sojourn! It made a change from hearing the vehicles rattle past behind me for the rest of the

A Blue Jay dropped in late in the day

time. Sadly, there were no other sightings of any other types of birds in that vicinity for the whole time I was there, except for a lone Bluejay!

Well after over three hours of perseverance and no sign of Canada Geese action, I reluctantly decided to “call it quits”, besides, my rear end wasn’t feeling so comfortable with such a long relationship with the wooden posts! So, a little bit crestfallen, I departed from my watching position and resolved to try again another day, but maybe not this year unless this lovely weather continues. I hope that you are getting better luck than me in your bird watching activities, but please don’t give up, all these little setbacks are just that, and you will very soon get something special happening in your bird watching life. Stay safe and well.

Cheers,

John Baldwin

About to take oﬀ - No chance!