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04 | 20 | 2013 VOLUME 18 | ISSUE 16
VOLUNTEERS GET THE TRAILS READY FOR NEW SEASON LIVING HERE PAGE 34
COMMENT PAGE 10
Cleaning up after the inconsiderate ones
Townships still cleaning up after ice storm
trillium grant funds next phase
Woolwich and Wellesley declare states of emergency, see crews working overtime to deal with aftermath
ICE STORM | 5
Trillium grant to help fund next phase of Kate’s Place playground will sloan
will sloan We’re all familiar with the old cliché that “April is the cruelest month,” but nothing could have prepared Woolwich for the cruelty that Mother Nature unleashed on April 11 and 12, when an ice storm led to property damage and power outages across the townships. “Damage crews are still doing clean-up, and will be doing so until this Friday [April 19], picking up tree branches and debris and things that have fallen,” said Devin Petteplace, communications coordinator for Woolwich Township, on Tuesday. The same storm struck much of Southwestern Ontario, with widespread blackouts in Waterloo and states of emergency declared in Woolwich and Wellesley townships. And while cleanup is nearing completion, township officials are still uncertain of the extent of the harm done. “It’s going to be probably a few weeks before they get an assessment of all the damages,” said Petteplace. He added that estimates of the monetary value of the damages may begin to trickle in once this week’s cleanup is complete.
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Kelly Meissner and her daughter Kate take a swing at Kate’s Place for Everyone in Gibson Park. The accessible playground is receiving a grant for $149,000 for further development. [will sloan / the observer]
“Play is an important part of a kid’s life, and when you have a child with a disability, you want them to be included.” Such was Kelly Meissner’s rationale for starting up Kate’s Place for Everyone, the accessible playground that opened last year in Elmira’s Gibson Park. Now, KitchenerConestoga MPP Michael Harris will present her with a grant from the Ontario Trillium grant to fund an expansion. “It’s about kids being able to be kids, and not having the barriers that they have to go through each and every day,” said Harris, who will present the $149,000 Trillium cheque to Meissner on April 27, 12:30 p.m. at the playground. Kelly Meissner, K-W Oktoberfest’s 2011 Woman of the Year and a 2012 Queen’s Golden Jubilee medal-winner, conceived of “Kate’s Kause” in 2010, not long after her daughter
Kate (now almost 4 years old) was diagnosed with Angleman syndrome. The rare neurological disorder (which strikes approximately one in 15,000) is marked by low verbal skills and slow development of motor skills. “The earlier you can get kids included, the better,” said Meissner. “Kate goes to a preschool in Elmira that’s a co-op, so she has good exposure to other kids, but the best thing for kids is to play. That’s one of the best ways to integrate her.” After joining forces with the Elmira Kiwanis Club in 2011, Kate’s Kause was able to quickly raise $300,000 from the community to build the playground, which opened in July 2012. The Trillium grant will help cover two new features: a sensory wall – with artificial tree branches, animals, rocks, bugs, fossils, etc. – for children with vision problems, as well as a “green gym” with addiPLAYGROUND | 4
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