Ninth annual #RAKday Cliff shows random kindess to students. Page 5 MONDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2016
Forget the debt BY SCOTT BLINKHORN
Canadian students no longer have to pay back their Canada Student Loan from the federal government, until they are earning at least $25,000 a year. The announcement was made by Employment and Social Development Canada on Oct. 28 and took effect on Nov. 1. The change is one of several that the government has put forward to help post-secondary graduates manage their debt. According to the release, the change, which is part of the Repayment Assistance Plan, will act in conjunction with the increase in Canada Student Grants funding, which was enacted on Aug. 1. The changes are intended to allow graduates to focus on finding careers instead of being overwhelmed by the pressure of managing loans. MaryAnn Mihychuk, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour, said in the release that the new measure would allow graduates to better transition into the workforce after graduation. “The future prosperity of our country depends on young Canadians getting the education and training needed to succeed in the job market,” she said. The Repayment Assistance Plan allows students to ask for help managing their debt. Depending on the borrower’s family size and income level, he or she may be eligible for reduced monthly payments or no monthly payments. The new deferred payment plan will cost $131.4 million over the next five years, according to the 2016 budget. “I feel like there has to be a catch,” said Joey Leal, a second-year accounting student at Conestoga College. “Like where is all of this money coming from.” Leal also expressed concern that the deficit spending is being used to finance the changes. “I think the bigger problem is rising tuition costs,” said Lucas Carreira, also a secondyear accounting student at the college. He added he believes a more educated workforce would make more money, adding to tax revenue and eliminating the deficit.
SPOKE
A LEARNING NEWSROOM FOR JOURNALISM STUDENTS
CONESTOGA COLLEGE, KITCHENER, ONT.
WWW.SPOKEONLINE.COM
The cutest dog ever! Dozer the pig takes part in HOWLer fundraiser. Page 12 47TH YEAR — NO. 20
Clinton’s been Trumped BY DEEANNA ROLLINS
Never in modern history has an American election affected Canadians the way the 2016 election has. People are full of fear, heartache, loathing and mainly disbelief. Nineteen months ago Hillary Clinton announced her candidacy for President of the United States of America. Seventeen months ago Donald Trump did the same. And thus the giant pot we know of as the presidential election was stirred. Emails were deleted, walls were threatened to be built, debates were had and votes were cast. In the end Trump won 276 electoral votes to Clinton’s 218. Clinton had approximately 150,000 more total votes than Trump, but that means nothing in American politics. Conestoga students, although not American, had strong feelings about the election.
PHOTOS BY DEEANNA ROLLINS
Second-year broadcast television students, Connor Mallett, from left, Bo Urbina and Brandon Mojoodi, think that Americans made the wrong decision in electing Donald Trump. Second-year television broadcast students think that Americans chose the wrong candidate. “I think they got it wrong,” said Connor Mallett. “He’s just so corrupt. They say Hillary’s corrupt, but he’s worse.” Bo Urbina agreed with Mallett saying, “Overall, I’m just kind of disappointed in the U.S.
“Even though it may help our image, it’s worrisome. It’s going to affect our dollar and our immigration.” During the election on Nov. 8, the Canadian immigration website crashed and Google reported that the search words “Canadian immigration” spiked by 850 per cent in the U.S. Brandon Mojoodi was more than worried about his
family’s safety and living situations. “My family’s demographic is not the one that is in support of Donald Trump,” he said. “They’re worrying if they will be able to stay in the country, even though they are American citizens. They were born there and they are scared that they will be kicked out because of their race.”
FIGHT THE FLU WITH EARLY FLU SHOTS
PHOTO BY JAMES WELLS
Amirah Bacchus, a second-year practical nursing student, administers the influenza vaccine to a fellow Conestoga student at Doon campus’s open flu shot clinic on Nov. 3. For video story, go to www.spokeonline.com.
NEWS
Page 2 s SPOKE
Now deep thoughts ... with Conestoga College
Monday, November 14, 2016
FILBERT CARTOONS
Random questions answered by random students
If your pet could talk, what would you ask it?
“I call you Odin, what do you call me?” Lorena Suarez- Lopez, first-year business administration management
“I don’t have any pets now, but before I came here I had a lot of birds. I’d want to ask my colourful birds what their favourite colours would be.” Tabassuma Bari, Level 4 english as a second language
“Am I a good owner?”
Jacob St. Onge, first-year business general
“I’d want to ask them how they think we can end animal cruelty.” Sukhveer Kaur Dhaliwal, first-year mobile solutions development
Sculpting with glass, bronze and metal BY SHARON SAMUEL
Have you made sculptures out of glass, bronze and metal? Meet a duo who has. Ione Thorkelsson from Manitoba and Lou Lynn from Winlow, B.C. are contemporary artists who mould glass into sculptures that resemble Canada’s creatures and kitchen tools. Their works are on display at The Clay and Glass Gallery in Waterloo. Lynn named her exhibition Common/uncommon, while Thorkelsson’s exhibition is called A Natural History of Utopias, which does not have any connection with the actual history of utopia. “The title is playful, it’s designed to be poetic and playful,” said Sheila McMath, curator at the gallery. “It’s (a) notion that natural history is a very specific study of animal and plant species over time and utopia is a philosophical notion.” Their shows have been on display since midSeptember and both are established artists said McMath. Thorkelsson has received the Saidye
Bronfman Award, one of the eight Governor General awards given for excellence in craft in Canada and Lynn has been inducted into the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. “The idea of the show is, two solo shows by two established Canadian artists,” said McMath. “The thing that links them is that they are both interested in glass casting and sort of in combining glass with other materials to make the pieces.” Lynn’s works are inspired by farm tools and part of her exhibition is about the tools we use in our everyday lives. “She wants people to see the beauty in those functional objects,” said McMath. “And I think she has done a really good job of taking those tools as an inspiration and using her imagination and then melding them to something else quite beautiful.” Thorkelsson uses bones from birds and animals that are hit on the highway, to draw exact replicas of the animals. The bones are put in a silicon mould which is a labour intensive process as she has to take a negative and turn it
into a positive said McMath. “I think, something about the work is really, really beautiful, because of the material and it’s kind of moody, but it’s also kind of troubling at the same time,” she said. McMath has known about the two artists’ work for 15 years and was hoping to have them together at the Waterloo gallery. “I learned a lot from them,” she said. “As mature, established artists, there is such a wealth of knowledge in both of them.” Although there are no price tags on the artwork, they are for sale. “None of the work is explicitly for sale, it’s just about celebrating the show and if someone were to be interested in purchasing a work, we would just put that person in contact with the artist’s agent,” said McMath. The exhibitions at the gallery change four times a year — in September, January, April and July. For more information about the show or upcoming exhibits, visit www.theclayandglass.ca.
Grad launches Sexual Violence Project BY DEEANNA ROLLINS
“My dog has seizures. I’d probably ask questions more related to her health and how she actually feels so it’d be easier to help her and give her the proper medication.” Julie Ireland Leydon, Level 2 human resources management
“What do you think about? Do you get deep thoughts like us?” Krysten Rischel, first-year public relations
Smile Conestoga, you could be our next respondent!
Approximately 460,000 sexual assaults happen in Canada every year. Only 3.3 per cent of these assaults are reported to police, and only 0.3 per cent of assailants are convicted. That is the reason Laurie Snell, a Conestoga graduate, started The Sexual Violence Project, an online resource and support system for victims of sexual assault. “It’s a network of people who have been through the same thing,” said Snell. “It doesn’t have to be taboo. I think if we all put our heads together, we can beat this.” The project is meant to give people who have been through sexual assaults a place to go and search for solutions or to talk to someone who knows what they have been through. “Sexual violence doesn’t
discriminate,” said Snell. “It doesn’t care about sex, gender, sexual orientation or ethnicity. It doesn’t care about anything.” Visitors to the Sexual Violence Project’s website, www.sexualviolenceproject. com, can submit their stories online either with a name or anonymously. Snell wants to show people that it is OK to talk about your assault and she wants people to know that they are not alone. One in every three women and one in every six men in Canada are assaulted at some point in their life. At a Halloween party in 2009 Snell was assaulted by someone she considered a friend. Like 80 per cent of sexual assaults cases, Snell knew and trusted the man who assaulted her. “He got me a drink and the next thing I knew the
room started getting fuzzy,” she said. “I was fading in and out of consciousness. I tried to push him off of me but I couldn’t. Being stuck in your own body, unable to stay conscious or strong enough to fight back, is a nightmare no one should ever experience.” Snell didn’t contact the police until after she found out that the man who assaulted her, did the same to another young woman. “We had a shared experience, a different connection than I’ve ever had with anyone,” said Snell about the other woman. “It changes you,” she said. “I was always really outgoing and social. This made me put up a shield. And I figured if I did, someone else probably did to.” The Sexual Violence Project is meant to help people who can’t find help anywhere else. “There is strength in numbers.”
NEWS
Monday, November 14, 2016
From the farm to your fork
BY ROLAND FLEMING
High school students across Canada have come up with an award-winning answer to the problem of food insecurity. Although Canada remains a developed and comparatively well-nourished nation, it may be surprising to know there are still many Canadians living in food insecure households. According to the 20112012 Canadian Community Health Survey, approximately eight per cent of Canadian households experienced food insecurity. This means that one or more members of a household do not have access to the variety or quantity of food they need to be healthy. Every year, hundreds of exceptional high school students from across the nation are selected to reside at designated university campuses and compete to come up with a solution to a problem. The mission of the SHAD program is to empower exceptional youth to make the world a better place. This year students tackled the problem of food insecurity and the team at Queens University came up with a solution called Farms2Forks. This online platform would connect farmers to consumers while providing help for low-income families. “To help the food insecure as well as small scale farmers, obviously to fulfill that goal would be the benchmark,” said Akash Jain, CEO on the project. There are many low-income households that are food insecure. Family members can’t afford to buy healthy fresh produce, or can’t afford transportation in order to access it. Farms2Forks works to solve
these problems by allowing those with low income to place orders at a 30 per cent discount, which includes a delivery service. To be eligible all they would need to do is upload pictures of government assistance cheques. On Oct. 27, the team was awarded for having the best idea to combat food insecurity of the 13 competing campuses across Canada. The Farms2Forks team consisted of 34 members lead by Jain. The group was further subdivided into seven teams with different purposes, each with a team lead that reported to Jain. At the time, Jain had just finished Grade 10. He currently is in high school at Guelph Collegiate Vocational Institute. “It was a really steep learning curve for me, I learnt a lot … it taught me the importance of effective leadership” he said. The team’s idea addresses problems for farmers, busy consumers and low-income families. After talking to farmers in the Elmira area, team member Anushka Birla said some expressed difficulties in selling their products. The closest farmers market is in St. Jacobs and it is only open twice a week. Most people do not drive to farms to purchase their product. Birla is from Kitchener and is in Grade 12 at Cameron Heights Collegiate. She took on the role of marketing and finding sponsors for the project. She was also in charge of social media. Birla, along with other team members, talked to both farmers and consumers to gauge interest in the idea. They contacted over 1,000 farmers and processors across Canada,
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Students receive an award for their proposal to combat food insecurity at the SHAD awards in Toronto. receiving many endorsements. “They said it would be really useful because they find it difficult to directly connect with customers, because they are far away from urban areas,” said Birla. The solution involves setting up local distribution warehouses where farmers could bring product to be sold. “The biggest point … they liked about our idea, is it allowed them to reach more customers,” said Birla. The plan includes a website that anyone can order food from. The plan is twofold with both a business and charitable side. On the business side, those who want the convenient service of having farm fresh food delivered to their door could use the website to make that happen. The main selling point to higher-income customers would be the convenience,
and also the charitable cause. Those with higher incomes may have the money to purchase healthy food, but not have the time to shop for it. The delivery service allows them to eat healthy without eating up their time. Meanwhile, they would be helping low-income families have access to quality food. A small portion of income generated from the business side would help subsidize the 30 per cent discount for low-income customers. Farmers, who are often in higher income brackets and possibly looking for tax breaks, could also help to subsidize the cost of food by taking less for their product and donating the rest to the Farms2Forks charitable organization. “I want people to have the opportunity to have fresh food at their doorstep,” said Birla.
Currently the project remains theoretical, but both Birla and Jain hope they could see this system become a reality someday. While their business plan suggests it would be profitable within four years, there are enormous startup costs that would need serious investment for this to happen. The costs of setting up the proposed distribution centres alone would be quite substantial. However, Jain is still considering the possibility of making this a reality. “When you work together and collaborate with a great group of people, you can really achieve some pretty cool things,” he said. “It seems a fair bit of our team is interested in taking this to the next level. I’ll have to see how many people are on board with it.”
height; not the amount of body fat you have, not the amount of muscle you have, or how strong your bones are. Muscle and bone both weigh more than fat. That is a well-known fact. This would mean that people with strong bones and people who are very fit, like athletes for example, will have a high BMI. Does that make them overweight or obese? It is completely ludicrous. Why do we use a calculator that doesn’t account for any of the things that it should to measure our body mass? The BMI calculator blatantly states that there are distinct areas of weight that are considered underweight, average, overweight and obese. It’s nonsense. It suggests that all of society should conform and say that every woman or man should look a certain way. Unfortunately, there are many people in the world who think
that. The world is definitely getting better, but people need to stop being so judgmental. People look at you and judge you no matter what. As much as we are supposed to live in a world where people are accepting of most things around them, it doesn’t mean that people don’t get judged based on the way they look or dress. Speaking of the way people dress, shopping when you’re bigger is a pain. You can never find clothes your size, and if you do they are almost double, if not more, the price as “regular size” clothes. For what? Two or three extra inches of material? If you don’t find what you’re looking for, most of the time you settle. You settle for things you don’t necessarily like the look of just because they actually fit you properly. And, because something is labeled plus size it automatically becomes more expensive.
When I look at a pair of jeans from Addition Elle and they cost $92 it makes me very upset, especially knowing that the girl standing next to me could have almost the exact jeans from a store like Old Navy for only $40. When I look at a blouse at Penningtons, I see the price tag and can’t even fathom paying $109 for a simple black blouse, even though I know it will fit me properly. Sure, it’s amazing that there are plus size stores out there, and that more and more keep popping up, but is that not a sign that maybe you should integrate the plus size clothing in with the other sizes and make plus size women feel more comfortable in their skin and not so segregated? Obesity. How would you define obesity now?
Body mass index needs an overhaul
Obesity. The technical definition is “to be grossly overweight or fat.” The first thing you probably think of is TV shows like The Biggest Loser and My 600-lb. Life. You’ve probably looked up your Body Mass Index (BMI) a couple of times just to see if you’re in the “average weight” category. Your heart probably dropped to the floor when your BMI actually read higher, just like mine did. Now, I don’t consider myself obese in any way. I know that I am overweight, and I fully admit that, but when the word obese was used to describe my body weight, it made me question the defining characteristics of the word itself. According to Medical News Today, you are obese if “your BMI is equal to 30 or higher and your bodyweight is at least 20 per cent higher
DeeAnna Rollins
Opinion than it should be.” So you can imagine my surprise when my BMI read 30.1. Who makes the rules saying what weight anyone should be? Adolphe Quetelet, the Belgian man who created the BMI, specifically said it should not be used to measure the level of fat in any individual. The formula was originally produced to measure the degree of obesity in the general population. Scientifically, the formula just doesn’t make sense to measure an individual. It doesn’t take into account anything other than weight and
SPOKE s Page 3
COMMENTARY
Page 4 s SPOKE
Monday, November 14, 2016
Trumped BY JOY STRUTHERS
The terrifying reality is this – Donald Trump is the president elect of the United States of America. How could this have happened? So many things pointed to Hillary Clinton winning the race. Her experience and her lifelong goals for public service made her the clear choice. Of course she is flawed, but everyone is. Trump makes things worse every time he tries to defend himself. His motives are clearly to defend rich businessmen like himself at the expense of everyone else. This is not public service, but self-service. It may be that people chose to vote for the devil they knew, although Clinton was clearly the lesser of two evils in this election. Clinton may have been accused of things, but Trump actually did things. His words prove that he is indeed a bigot and a complete bully. The allegations made about him are not about emails or political decisions, they are about sexual assault and abuse of power. If people don’t think that matters, they are mistaken. How could someone vote for a man who forced a daughter, sister or mother to have sexual contact with him? How could people excuse that? This is a man who is abusing his power as a businessman and public figure. What will he do as president? What about the racial and political divide? Things are bound to get a lot worse. Do we actually have to worry about the Great Wall of Mexico? How will this affect Canadians? Fortunately the president doesn’t hold ultimate power, like Trump seems to believe. His ideas will probably not all come to fruition. In actuality, he hasn’t made that many plans. He has firm ideas and platforms, but when it comes to explaining how he will accomplish these things he falls short. Trump has no political experience. He has never served the public in any sort of government job. His arrogance will be a big problem when he tries to strongarm people instead of negotiating. He doesn’t care about what other people think. He won’t be willing to compromise. Trump’s financial history and high-risk behaviour is also really scary. He has gone bankrupt four times. He made strategic decisions and intentionally manipulated situations. America – this was a big mistake. Hillary Clinton would have helped you and Donald Trump will help himself. The views herein represent the position of the newspaper, not necessarily the author.
Letters are welcome Spoke welcomes letters to the editor. Letters should be signed and include the name and telephone number of the writer. Writers will be contacted for verification. No unsigned letters will be published. Letters should be no longer
than 500 words. Spoke reserves the right to edit any letter for publication. Address correspondence to: The Editor, Spoke, 299 Doon Valley Dr., Room 1C30, Kitchener, Ont., N2G 4M4
The Donald trumps Lady Liberty.
All women need to be protected
I’m not going to assume you know who Amber Rayne is because she was a porn star. Rayne was raped and beaten during shoots, was diagnosed with uterine cancer and struggled for months through chemotherapy before dying eight months ago at 31 to an accidental cocaine overdose. The comments on websites that have stories regarding her death are split between how she’s going to hell for her lifestyle, and just commenting on her career. Nobody seemed to care that she had died. Let’s not waste space being bashful about the topic. Before her death Rayne was one of 10 women to claim they were sexually assaulted by fellow porn star James Deen, the highest ranked and viewed male porn star on the website PornHub. His status in the industry will protect him from these allegations. Also, not only are women and men in the industry dehumanized for their profession, but issues relating to health and safety are never taken seriously because nobody cares enough to enforce them. Porn is not natural. Scripts and positions are practised, sets are built, and footage is edited afterwards. The
Matthew Evangelista Opinion
environment is controlled, with many people there – from camera operators and sound people to directors. If a rape happens in this environment then it needs to be addressed. However, assaults and rapes are happening on set and nothing is being done. Rayne was punched close fisted in the face twice and sexually assaulted. Actresses who came out against Deen say that their safe word, discussed and agreed to in their contract before their films entered principal photography, is being ignored. More importantly is viewer responsibility. The viewer needs to draw a line between enjoying a hardcore scene and supporting a scene where the woman or man is clearly being abused by their partner and/or ignored by stage crew. This is not me telling you what to watch, but rather to make sure what you watch was designed to be
that way. Three months after the charges were laid against Deen, www.mic.com’s Jenny Kutner wrote: “He seems to understand, perhaps better than anyone, that he’s walking around in a gray area where the rules don’t necessarily apply, where he can be publicly accused of sexual abuse by 10 women and still win awards from his community.” The Adult Performer Advocacy Committee is an organization made up of people in the industry designed to protect adult actors from situations like this, but also addresses health and safety issues with an added focus on public awareness. PornHub even offers an entire category for behind-the-scenes documentary footage and industry interviews. Resources on the issue aren’t hard to find, but that isn’t the problem, to be honest, they’re just ignored. Porn stars are people, working men and women who want to feel safe in their workplace. These actors and actresses want and deserve respect and workplace equality. The industry and ultimately viewers must stop treating them like a product.
SPOKE
IS PUBLISHED AND PRODUCED WEEKLY BY THE JOURNALISM STUDENTS OF CONESTOGA COLLEGE Editor: Joy Struthers Assignment Editor: Scott Blinkhorn Advertising Manager: DeeAnna Rollins Spoke Online Editors: Matthew Evangelista, Andrew Benney
Production Managers: Riley Linseman, Sharon Samuel Photo Editors (print): Shafaq Parwez, Brandy Fulton, James Wells Photo Editors (online): Meghan Weatherall, Cassidy Foulds, Robert Janes
Social Media Editors: Roland Fleming, Wendy Huenul-Valdes, Melodie Lariviere Circulation Manager: Nicole Clark Faculty Supervisor and Adviser: Christina Jonas
Spoke’s address is 299 Doon Valley Dr., Room 1C30, Kitchener, Ontario, N2G 4M4. Phone: 519-748-5220, ext. 3691, 3692, 3693, 3694 Fax: 519-748-3534 Email: spoke@conestogac.on.ca Website: www.spokeonline.com
The views and opinions expressed in this newspaper do not necessarily reflect the views of Conestoga College. Spoke shall not be liable for any damages arising out of errors in advertising beyond the amount paid for the space. Letters to the editor are subject to acceptance or rejection and should be clearly written or typed; a MS Word file would be helpful. Letters must not contain any libellous statements.
NEWS
Monday, November 14, 2016
SPOKE s Page 5
Show kindness each and every day BY SHAFAQ PARWEZ
Kindness should not be restricted to a special occasion or a single day. This was the message given on Random Act of Kindness Day at Conestoga College on Nov. 4. The event was organized by the Student Life department which is always using different ways to encourage students to have mutual respect and encourage positive vibes. Several campaigners stood at one of the college entrances, reminding people about how important kindness is in our daily lives. At a display set up by Student Life, some students said that coming together such as this helps break down the stress of daily living and overwhelming academic assignments, particularly at this time of the year. They said it is easier to meet new students from different backgrounds and have meaningful conversations at such stalls. These brief meetings not only enrich students’ knowledge but also gives them a chance to engage in a oncein-a-lifetime exchange of cultural enlightenment. As part of the event, a number of activities were set up on Nov. 4. The Random Act of Kindness Hotspot 1 – RAK Race featured participants spinning a wheel with some acts of kindnesses listed on it. The challenge was to complete the act within 20 seconds of spinning the wheel. Successful students received candy. At Hotspot 2 – Kindness Crafts students added their messages to thank you and
thinking of you cards. Another activity involved Condor care packages of food items being left around the campus. Students who found these could keep them and also received a RAK suggestion. They could also sit on a Kindness Couch set up by CSI Leadership Ambassadors. The main purpose was to encourage students to sit down and chat with each other about how being compassionate adds value to their lives. On Nov. 8, a PokéStop Lure was set up. Two students mentioned that they had joined Student Life only this September and have been involved in different activities that allows them to mingle with different cultures. Activities such as Cultural Diversity Week and Random Act of Kindness has given them the opportunity to come across cultures they never knew existed or had limited awareness about. Chelsea Jeffery, a first-year student in the fitness and health promotion program, said, “I just like what they (Student Life) do. I saw them around the school last year which was my first year. I just wanted to be a part of something bigger.” In addition to helping students meet new people and learn about different cultures, Student Life is helping them to overcome their shyness indirectly and to give them a broader outlook on life. Random Act of Kindness Day is also the perfect opportunity to get to know more about different programs being offered
PHOTO BY SHAFAQ PARWEZ
Ha Vu, a voulnteer at Student Life and a first-year student in the information technology business analysis program, and Rodrigo Araya, a first-year student in the English language for academics program, participate in Random Act of Kindness Day on Nov. 4. at the college. Jeffery said, “I think meeting new people from different programs is awesome. I love getting new perspectives.” She said kindness is a virtue we should practise every day. “Random Act of Kindness is there to instil kindness in everyone and reminding everyone that opening a door for someone can really change their day. Some people are having a bad day and randomly complimenting them could really change that,” she said. Staff emphasized the fact that there is no single day for kindness. It should come naturally to us and we should make it a point to stop and smile regularly.
Deven Ram, a first-year student in the community and criminal justice program at the college, said, “Random Act of Kindness is not just one day. It could be any day and every day. Even though we are all so busy, this day, we could all do something good for somebody.” The event was not limited to Student Life, other departments around the campus were playing their part in paying it forward. These included ONE card, the Library Resource Centre, Learning Commons, Career Centre and athletics and the recreation centre. The kindness endeavours were also featured on social media. On the Conestoga College Facebook page, stu-
dents and staff could post their stories and images of their acts of kindness. Students could also nominate three people to carry out a random act of kindness through this page and start a chain of kindness in the community. Laura Black, Student Life programmer, said, “Random Act of Kindness is something we celebrate every day and our volunteers have been doing it for a while now.” “But this is a day to get out there and positively roam and remind yourselves during a busy time of mid-terms and winter weather and rain and all of those things that all it takes is 20 seconds to make someone’s day better.”
GETTING A MAKEOVER BEFORE WINTER
PHOTO BY SHAFAQ PARWEZ PHOTO BY ROBERT JANES
York Road construction in Guelph is three months behind schedule. Construction workers are replacing water and sewer pipes and redoing sidewalks before winter. For video story, go to spokeonline.com.
Gabriella Wroblewska, a first-year general arts and science options student, shows the Kindness Crafts card she made on Random Act of Kindness Day.
NEWS
Page 6 s SPOKE
Monday, November 14, 2016
The Once performs cabaret style BY NICOLE CLARK
The Once began the Ontario leg of their cross-Canada tour on Nov. 3 at the Centre in the Square in Kitchener. The tour will have 16 shows across Ontario, Alberta and Newfoundland. The band consists of Geraldine Hollett, Phil Churchill and Andrew Dale of Saint John’s Newfoundland. The concert was part of the Centre in the Square’s Onstage series, where the shows are cabaret style, with the audience joining the performers on the main stage; the band’s back is to the theatre of empty seats. The Once has been playing together for 10 years and have just released their fifth album this past September, an EP called You Win Some You Lose. Though some may assume it is their fourth, you cannot forget their Christmas album (which features lots of original songs); they won’t let you. “You’re not a band until you have to do Christmas music in July,” said Hollett. The ease they have with one another, an ease that can only come from a long-running relationship such as theirs, is clearly evident as the trio take the stage to the delight of the intimate crowd who have been eagerly awaiting
their arrival. How do they maintain their closeness? In addition to working together 365 days of the year for the last 10, they hug. “We do a little three-way hug,” said Churchill, adding, “If we didn’t it would be weird.” It’s a ritual they insist upon doing before each show, sort of when children fight and the parent insists upon a hug to mend the tension once the argument ends. Despite the recent release of their EP, the songs they played were not from that album alone. They made sure to include fan favourites such as Fool For You from their 2015 album, Departures, and Charlie’s from their 2011 album titled Row Upon Row Of The People They Know. These were met with cheers at the first few chords. The fans hung on to every lyric and note the band performed; some even swayed along with Geraldine as she sang, Charlie’s. All eyes were on them. No one looked bored or antsy. The stage lights filtered through the smoke almost as if it was their aura; dancing and cheery with a serious, ominous feel. Together, the three of them performed on the small stage, the faux fog streaming up from behind
PHOTO BY NICOLE CLARK
The Once, a folk band from Newfoundland, performs at the Centre in the Square on Nov. 3. The performance kicked off the Ontario leg of their cross-Canada tour. them, joining each other in moments of wonderful threepart harmony. The Once took the time to introduce the majority of the songs, not with a simple name but with personal anecdotes and banter between the crowd and one another, adding to the intimate feel of the event. “If you think we talk too much, you’re wrong, we’re from Newfoundland,” Phil said during one of his anecdotal introductions. One song in particular warranted the heartfelt introduction it received. A
friend of theirs, an eightyear-old named Claudia, was the inspiration for the song, Warm Like Me. They describe her as little and often tired due to the amount of seizures she endures daily. She is nonverbal except for her greeting of “hi” and “hello.” She welcomes them with either of these words each time they meet. They described how she, and children like her, are in need of a playground. The organization Easter Seals is in the middle of funding a playground for her area,
which will cost $60,000 to build. The Once told the audience of the song and Claudia and the initiative they are doing to help. If you buy the song, Warm Like Me, on iTunes for 99 cents, every cent goes to the Easter Seals and helping to create that playground for their friend. The whole night was a relaxing escape from reality and the audience, without hesitation, welcomed the band back to the stage for a final song with a standing ovation.
Wanted: young genealogists BY BRANDY FULTON
PHOTO BY BRANDY FULTON
Jen Baldwin, data acquisition manager for North America with Find My Past, talked at the fifth annual Genealogy Fair at the Kitchener Public Library about being a young genealogist.
Roots were spread and trees grew taller at the Kitchener Public Library on Nov. 5, thanks to the fifth annual genealogy fair. Expert researchers and inquisitive beginners came together to find their ancestors. Anyone who entered the doors with as simple a question as “Where do I start?” were greeted warmly and guided in the right direction. The event took place throughout the library, with speakers flowing in and out of the meeting rooms and vendors’ tables and local branches’ displays covering the main floor. The University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University had two tables that featured archives from each school as well as history on events and big names in the K-W area. Find My Past’s Jen Baldwin, data acquisition manager for North America, was the keynote speaker. In her talk at the beginning of the event she discussed the importance of the next generation. Being
a younger genealogist herself who felt discriminated against and unwanted, she wanted to find a place where every generation could connect and share. She continued in saying the smaller fairs are always a good place to start. “There are some genealogy conferences out there that are getting too big to be productive.” said Baldwin. At a conference some time ago she met up with a number of young genealogists. Through some discussion Baldwin helped create The NextGen. Starting out as a Facebook page, The NextGen had many people from branches all over Ontario connecting on what seemed like just another page. The group working with Baldwin were really trying for something more. They added get-togethers, Twitter chats and GooglePlus hangouts as a way of connecting and learning. A newsletter was formed to showcase some of the hidden talents and gifts in genealogists everywhere. “As much as we have exposed them, we have tended not to
appreciate them,” Baldwin said. She imagines that there are many young genealogists who are not getting the credit they deserve. Baldwin said the amount that this generation is OK with being different helps in many situations. People who want to excel in this area, people who want genealogy without borders, is what is needed. When the word gets out for fairs and conferences via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat, when posters are made and everyone is connected, that is what genealogy needs. However, she clarified that it is not just a one-way system. Older generations are able to help those who have just started searching. Documents, books, pictures and any sort of record get handed down. No matter the age of the member in the Ontario Genealogical Society, they all agreed that this ongoing cycle is greatly needed. For more information on your past, visit the Waterloo Genealogical Society’s website at www.waterlooogs.on.ca.
Monday, November 14, 2016
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
The silk wall of colour BY MEGHAN WEATHERALL
On Nov. 3, 22 art pieces with the colours of the rainbow dyed onto silk and sewnon beads were displayed in Kitchener City Hall. The Fabric of Life exhibit was held in the Rotunda Gallery. It featured Penny Grace’s art as well as live music. The wall holding the artwork was decked out in blues, shades of green and dashes of red. Most pieces were made of hand-dyed silk, although some were created with cotton and paint. Grace said after using dyed silk the first time, she was captivated. She has been using silk onand-off for the past 10 years. “One year I saw this sign for silk painting in Toronto. I went to Toronto and as soon as I applied the dye to the silk I was hooked,” she said. “The silk has a sheen and so it makes the dyes just glow. You can’t get that on a canvas. You can’t get that with paint.” Her passion for art started when she was young. “I’ve been drawing since I was a child. I always was drawing something, and then when I became an adult I started to become interested in other things. I tried out different mediums: painting and photography,” Grace said. Each piece shown during the exhibit took time and patience to get right. The silk pieces themselves had to be done with special care so that the dye applied to them would not run. “I start by ordering raw silk. It’s white, from a place in Toronto. Then you – it’s got sizing on it – you have to wash it to get the sizing off it or the dye won’t stick to it. And then you stretch it out on a frame, so that it is taunt and there are a number of ways you can work. You can
put resist on it to keep the dye from bleeding. What I like to do is just sit down and start applying the dyes, just letting them flow into each other and playing with it. Then you have to let it dry for about 24 hours,” said Grace. “There are also different things you can do with it. You can put salt on it, which spreads the dye. Where you put the salt you get little dark areas which sort of collects the dye.” When it comes to choosing colours Grace likes to let the dye do the talking. She does not plan out what colours need to go where in a piece; instead she enjoys letting the dye mix and form into what it desires. Her first-ever silk piece with wording was proudly displayed five frames in from the entrance. The words are lyrics from a Moody Blues song that she believed captured in words what the picture represented. ‘“Brave Helios wake up your steeds, bring the warmth of the sun the country side needs.’ I did the design and then I wanted to use that quote because I really liked it. It’s from the Moody Blues. They have some really neat lyrics. I sort of thought, well, it sort of looks like a sunrise, so I decided to put that in there,” said Grace. For some art-goers this is their first time seeing an art exhibit like hers. Attendee Dmytri Pasricha said, “I knew it was a fabric display so that was the extent of my previous knowledge. I didn’t have any expectations, but I think it has already exceeded whatever expectations I feel like I have now. I think it is really awesome.” Throughout the night lively music played, attendees mingled, and red dots started to appear, being placed under any pieces that had been sold.
SPOKE s Page 7
PHOTOS BY MEGHAN WEATHERALL
Photos left to right: Carrie Kozlowski, program assistant for arts and culture at Kitchener City Hall, views one of the exhibits at the Rotunda Gallery on Nov. 3; Penny Grace, a hand-dyed silk artist, shows off her I Am The River Grand piece during her exhibit at the Rotunda gallery. All of her artwork was for sale for $1,200 apiece; The grey wolf is the first in her endangered series, which promotes the environmental dangers that will occur if the animal population decline isn’t taken seriously; and lyrics by the Moody Blues were used in Grace’s first-ever piece with words.
Page 8 s SPOKE
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
Monday, November 14, 2016
Journalist gives it a ‘Shot’
BY BRANDY FULTON
On Nov. 4, a Conestoga College alumnus returned to his hometown to give singing another shot. Jeff Wilkinson took part in The Shot, a singing competition that was started in 2014 by C.J. Allen. Its goal was to unify schools in Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge but, after three seasons of success, organizers decided to open it to everyone over the age of 16. Wilkinson was born and raised in Kitchener and attended Conestoga College’s journalism print program in 1974. At the time that Wilkinson was in the program, if you graduated you were not a good student or journalist. During the second year of the three-year program students had to complete a work placement. To students, this internship was everything. Students would try their hardest to get hired onto their placement after their hours were completed. If successful they would continue working instead of returning to school, thus never graduating. Wilkinson did a summer placement at the Windsor Star, where he was later hired on as a full-time sports reporter. In his Conestoga days, Wilkinson travelled to practically every game with the sports teams. He recalled one week he was sent to Windsor, Montreal and then turned around to go to Chicago for four days. Being a sports journalist was something Wilkinson had strived for since high school. He was at the Windsor Star
NOT JUST ONE
BUT TWO OF A KIND Shoppers look over goods at the Two of a Kind Show, an annual fundraiser for the Grand River chapter of the MS Society, held at the Belgian Nursery in Breslau on Nov. 6. PHOTO BY SCOTT BLINKHORN
from 1976 to 1982 when the recession hit and Wilkinson and other writers at the paper were laid off. He continued doing smaller jobs afterwards. It was 1994 when things really took a bad turn for Wilkinson. He was diagnosed with hydrocephalus, or water on the brain. “Everything came to a screeching halt,” he said. Wilkinson had to have brain surgery that year to try and reduce the amount of water on his brain. This caused a lot of companies to see Wilkinson in a different light, as a liability more than a valued member of their journalism team. While in recovery Wilkinson decided to pursue his passion for singing while also occasionally working as a strike breaker for a number of companies. Starting in 1996 he performed in cabarets in Kirkland Lake, where he now lives. As the
The 12 semifinalists and four mentors for The Shot get together for a group photo. Back row, from left, are: Trevor Dubois, Matthew Boutros, Samuel Soga, Sarah Jordan, Bridgette Smalls, Yvonne Way, Craig McNair, Jonathan Farrington, Matthew MacLeod, Jada McKenzie-Moore, Chrisite Palazzolo and Sarah Boutcher. In front are mentors/judges C.J. Allen, Juneyt Ytkiner, Danya Dixon and Nadia Mazzarolo. PHOTO BY DEEANNA ROLLINS
years went on he had 13 shows under his belt and even more desire to follow his passion. Searching the Internet, Wilkinson was able to find a number of singing competitions, including The Shot. “They asked me if I want to sing as a career,” he said. “I said no, because I do this for fun, there is no singing career for a 66-year-old.” Wilkinson went into the competition keeping the name of it in mind. He said there is so much talent in this group of people that he planned to just walk into the audition room and give it “a shot,” as simple as that. “To make it would be something, but I am not going to go home and say I did horrible.” The final show for The Shot is on Nov. 26 at the Theatre Auditorium at Wilfrid Laurier University. Tickets can be purchased at www.singfortheshot.com.
PHOTO BY BRANDY FULTON
Jeff Wilkinson is a Conestoga College alumnus. He tried out for The Shot, a singing competition in Kitchener, on Nov. 4.
Monday, November 14, 2016
SPOKE s Page 9
FUN & GAMES
Page 10 s SPOKE
Monday, November 14, 2016
Useless Facts
Oh Cliff!
Horoscope Week of November 14, 2016
Aries
March 21 April 19 People will change their opinions of you based off a new severe life change. Avoid change this week to dodge conflicts with those close to you.
Taurus April 20 May 20
Leaving your work to the last minute has got your allies talking war. Time management will help you and those around you advance this coming week.
Gemini May 21 June 21
Your confidence is running a little low this week, surround yourself with positivity during this sensitive time.
Cancer June 22 July 22
In your busy life taking care of others, make sure you set some time aside to get in touch with your inner peace.
Leo
July 23 August 22 Your excitement in life has taken a downfall. Look for new and interesting events happening in your area and step out of your comfort zone.
Virgo
August 23 September 22 Life doesn’t seem to be going your way right now. Keep your head up. For every negative there will be an equal positive.
There are 293 ways to make change for a dollar.
Libra
Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.
September 23 October 22
In 10 minutes, a hurricane releases more energy than all the world’s nuclear weapons combined.
Even if you aren’t single you are ready to mingle. You’ll have a conversation this week that will change your perspective on an important issue.
“Go.” is the shortest complete sentence in the English language.
Scorpio
The original story from Tales of 1001 Arabian Nights begins, “Aladdin was a little Chinese boy.”
October 23 November 21 Don’t let your intelligence get the better of you. Though you may be smart, think before you speak.
Sudoku Puzzle
Sagittarius November 22 December 21
Fill in the grid with digits in such a manner that every row, every column and every 3x3 box accommodates the digits 1-9, without repeating any.
Things in your love life are getting heated. Keep your heart open to a significant other with a unique voice.
Capricorn December 22 January 19
A blessing in disguise will be camouflaged. Something you’ve been missing will soon come to light.
Aquarius January 20 February 18
Something you overhear will boil your blood but you’ll have to keep your opinion to yourself to better your professional career.
Pisces
February 19 March 20 A dramatic change will occur within your family. Be ready to support those around you and pick up some extra slack.
Ephram Strange dabbles in forces beyond mortal comprehension on a regular basis. He also enjoys young adult novels and taxidermy.
Word Search
NEWS
Monday, November 14, 2016
SPOKE s Page 11
New escape room ‘breaks out’ BY ROLAND FLEMING
People all over the tri-cities are being trapped inside locked rooms, and paying for the experience. The business of breaking out is booming, and the latest to join the trend is Breakout Escapes in Cambridge. The husband and wife team of Shane and Andrea Cartwright opened the business just under a month ago. An escape room is a game where customers pay to have themselves locked in a room and typically have 60 minutes to escape. To escape participants must use objects and clues in the room to solve a series of puzzles. Most escape rooms have a series of rooms. By solving the puzzles you find the key or method of entry into the following rooms until you escape or time runs out. “You’re trapped in the matrix, you have to escape the agent ... contact your team to get out,” said Shane. The room called Glitch in the System is a play on The Matrix. Both Shane and Andrea put their time, money and labour into creating the room. Both also work outside of the business, Shane as a full-time financial planner and Andrea in marketing, although she has been taking time off to devote to the business. Andrea had previously worked at an escape room as an employee and they have also played about a dozen different rooms. Together they decided to pursue their passion for
escape rooms and build their own. Breakout Escapes is the first such company to open in Cambridge. The current rate for successfully escaping their room has been about 20 to 25 per cent. Initially it had been much higher. “Our success rate was a lot higher, probably about 40 per cent, (but) we had to make some changes,” said Shane. “She’s the mastermind behind the actual game,” he said of his wife. Andrea took on most of the work of designing the puzzles while Shane took the bulk of the renovation work. Escape rooms are actually fairly inexpensive to run. The main cost is the initial renovation and build, after that the cost is mostly rent and utilities. “The people we talked to before we decided to open one, they all said about $20,000 to $30,000 to build one properly,” said Shane. In order to get the space ready, he installed walls, doors and put in new flooring. Andrea went on the hunt for many of the props that are used in the room. Making this happen has really been a team effort for the couple. That effort is paying off. “They’ve only been open two weeks and the responses seem to be overwhelming … you don’t see that too often in a new business,” said employee Laura Schiebel. The room has already seen approximately 30 teams go through. In fact, Shane said
FALL FOOD DRIVE COMES TO AN END
PHOTO BY ROLAND FLEMING
Owner Shane Cartwright and employee Laura Schiebel hold keys at Breakout Escapes in Cambridge on Nov. 4. the first two weeks of business have already covered all their costs for the next month. “We haven’t advertised very much … we actually haven’t had to.” If business continues to increase the Cartwrights have plans to expand. There is more space in the building and they hope to build a second room in the near future. The cost to play a game is $22 per individual or $20 a person for groups of five or more. The room holds a capacity of seven people and can be booked at breakoutescapes.ca.
Basketball resurrected BY MELODIE LARIVIERE
PHOTO BY ANDREW BENNEY
The Food Bank of Waterloo Region’s fall food drive ends today. Rachel Steffler holds some of the canned goods she plans on donating outside of the food bank’s headquarters on Alpine Court in Kitchener. For video story, go to www.spokeonline.com.
PHOTO BY ROLAND FLEMING
Cartwright and Schiebel poke their heads into the hallway at Breakout Escapes.
The new and improved rec centre is up and running, and so is the college’s extramural basketball team. The team will officially be part of the Ontario College Athlete Association (OCAA) next year, after a 25-year absence. “We’re trying to grow the team to a place where we’re competitive in the OCAA. This is our first year operating as an exhibition team because the team hasn’t existed for 25 year so the first year back we have to operate as an exhibition year. So next year we’ll operate under the OCAA,” said Andrew Bates, assistant manager for athletics and recreation, and co-ordinator of the basketball teams. Marlene Ford, the college’s
varsity co-ordinator, said, “I was an athlete myself 25 years ago playing volleyball. There was a need to make some cuts and they did surveys looking at the number of athletes per team, how many people in attendance for home games, how much gym time per week, etc. It was decided to cut both basketball and volleyball.” Today, students are excited about the new teams, with 45 men and 15 women attending tryouts. As well, students are enjoying playing pick-up basketball during open gym times. It’s the rec centre’s most active drop-in sport. The teams have been participating in a lot of exhibition games. The men played the University of Waterloo a few weeks ago and have been playing very competitive prep schools. The women have played some
exhibition games in addition to the scheduled ones against other college teams. Both teams are also in leagues. The men play in Hamilton on Tuesdays and the women in Kitchener-Waterloo on Thursdays. The renovations at the rec centre included three shiny new courts. “Since this new gym has been built it’s just drawn attention to the fact there’s basketball available, varsity or rec. I think with basketball being such a mainstream sport this gym has helped that interest just grow,” said Bates. The Condors next home game is a double-header on Jan. 6 with both the women’s and men’s teams taking on Sheridan. The first game gets underway at 6 p.m., with the second game following at 8 p.m.
Page 12 s SPOKE
NEWS
Monday, November 14, 2016
WALK A HOWLING SUCCESS FOR POUND DOG RESCUE
PHOTO BY RILEY LINSEMAN
The many volunteers and staff of Pound Dog Rescue helped make this year’s HOWLer a success. More than 340 dogs, and one pig, attended the event.
PHOTO BY RILEY LINSEMAN
The second annual HOWLer, a dog walk and family fun day to support Pound Dog Rescue, took place on Nov. 6 at Snyder’s Family Farm in Bright, Ont. The event for the whole family -- including fourlegged, bushy-tailed members -- featured a 2.5-km fundraiser dog walk, barbecue, vendor tent, raffle prizes, haunted house and various dog demonstrations. Pound Dog Rescue is a non-profit, volunteerrun organization dedicated to rescuing and rehoming abandoned dogs from shelters and pounds in southern Ontario. Above, Diamonds in the Ruff Sports Club for Dogs held an agility demonstration, which included Dozer, a pig who thinks he’s a dog. Dozer played musical ‘chairs’ against some canines. For video story, go to www.spokeonline.com.
HISTORY LESSONS FROM THE SECOND WORLD WAR
PHOTO BY JOY STRUTHERS
Ron Bauman tells a story about a sniper setting up his gun in the Second World War as part of his presentation for the Guelph Historical Society’s lecture series at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Guelph Nov. 1. Bauman stands in front of his displays of photos and clippings that he has collected after travelling to the Netherlands, Italy and other places his father was stationed as a soldier in the war.