www.bilko.ca bilko@rgcmail.com
Garden City Realty Inc. Brokerage Independently Owned & Operated
Larry “ BILKO” Bilkszto Your Local Sales Representative Since 1989
905.641.1110 • 1.866.575.9400 Home Office 905.562.3000 Fax 905.684.1321
MAXIMUM RESULTS • MAXIMUM SERVICE • MAXIMUM EXPOSURE
SOLD HIGH PROFILE CORNER PROPERTY
COUNTRY BUNGALOW ON 1 ACRE
Close to St. Catharines new hospital. Major exposure. All city services just down the road. Corner of First Street and St. Paul West. 1.96 acres, presently zoned agriculture. Great investment with much future potential. $499,800
Open concept dining, living room and kitchen. Patio doors to backyard privacy deck. 4-piece bathroom with soaker air tub, 2 bedrooms, full basement with office, laundry & storage room. CA, CV. Steel 40’ x 22’ detached shop with hydro, steel roof. $399,800
6+ ACRES IN LINCOLN!
VINELAND BUILDING LOT
Value in the agricultural land, no access to house on property. 2 existing poultry barns making great storage facilities, raising rabbits, birds, even medical marijuana. Build your dream home and run your agri business from here today! $699,800
Very quiet area off the beaten trail with no through traffic, yet only 5 minutes to QEW. All city services to the lot line. This lot is mostly ravine, it will allow for a 2,900 square feet, 2 storey to be built north of the hydro lines. $249,800
SOLD TWO STOREY SEMI-DETACHED
TOWNHOUSE IN “THE CLUSTERS”
To be built. 1,722 square feet plus a full basement. Open concept eat-in kitchen, great room, 2pc bathroom, covered front porch, attached single car garage. 2nd floor has 3 bedrooms, master with 4pc ensuite, second 4pc bath and laundry room. $449,900
Quiet complex, minutes from the QEW. Vaulted ceiling in living room, eat-in kitchen and dining room with patio doors to backyard deck and inground pool. 2 bedrooms upstairs have been converted into one, 2pc bathroom, 4pc bathroom with skylight. $299,800
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ISSUE 6 2018
NIAGARA REGION
CONTENTS
2187 Dunwin Drive Mississauga, ON L5L 1X2 phone: 905.278.1111 toll free: 855.355.8502 fax: 905.608.9042
communitycaptured.ca
PRESIDENT James Baker e: james@thnmedia.com
C R E AT I V E D I R E C TO R Jason Stacey e: jason@thnmedia.com
A D V E RT I S I N G S A L E S Sue London e: suelondon@thnmedia.com
David Joubarne e: david@thnmedia.com
C R E AT I V E P R O D U C T I O N Dereck Addie e: dereck@thnmedia.com
Tim Frankiw e: tim@thnmedia.com
Casey Elogio e: casey@thnmedia.com
WEB DESIGNER Vaughn Joseph e: vaughn@thnmedia.com
E V E N T CO O R D I N ATO R Susan Gibbins e: susan@thnmedia.com
A D M I N I S T R AT I O N Diana Lynas e: diana@thnmedia.com
P H OTO G R A P H E R S Susan Gibbins Sue London
05 CAPTURED 06 CAPTURING BETTER PHOTOS BY PEETER POLDRE
08 COMMUNITY EVENTS 09 HIKE FOR HOSPICE NIAGARA 10
COMMUNITY PROFILE:
WITH ALLIECE BASS-MELDRUM
12 HOW TO HELP NOURISH
PRINTING Best Choice Printing
13 LAKEMOUNT'S 3RD ANNUAL
Delivered by
THOSE IN NEED WALK-A-THON
14 LCHS PET ADOPTION 15 DOG GUIDE WALK 16 SCHOOL LIFE
S O M E O F T H E P L AC E S YO U C A N F I N D U S .
Community Captured Magazine is published and delivered 12 times per year to Homes and Businesses in the Niagara Region by Canada Post, agreement #41362062. DISCLAIMER: Every effort has been made to publish this magazine as accurately as possible; however errors and omissions can occur. THN Media, their employees, agents, representatives and vendors are not liable for any damages relating to errors or omissions in the editorials or advertising which may appear herein except where a specific charge has been made. In such cases THN Media shall have limited liability only to the charge for such advertising or editorials.
Pick up your free copy of COMMUNITY CAPTURED at the following locations: Beamsville Beamsville Animal Hospital Fleming Centre Arena & Lincoln Library Guided Gifts Lincoln Museum & Cultural Centre Sobeys No Frills
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Beamsville Pain Relief Chiropractic Stoney Creek Couture Hair Design 50 Point Market Grimsby Food Basics Found Home Interior Consignment
Grimsby Public Library Grimsby Museum Niagara Gateway Information Centre RE/MAX Garden City Realty Inc Station 1 Coffeehouse Niagara West YMCA Smile Town Dental Group
Real Canadian Superstore St. Catharines Remax Garden City Realty Vineland Grand Oak Culinary Market Foodland Lincoln Public Library
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01 Andrew holding butts from the front of Crabby Joes at the Butt Blitz 02 Shelley, Michael, Meg, Isaiah, Justin, Lianne, Max, Jill & Ryan at the Mother’s Day Regatta, Photo by Shelley Bourdeau 03 Doug & Janet at the Dog Guide Walk 04 Sue & Lucas at the Live Digital Vehicle Appraisal Sales Event 05 Seth, Howie & Andrew at the Butt Blitz 06 Grace, Isabel, Hailey & Coach Mrs. Fisher at the Mother’s Day Regatta, Photo by Shelley Bourdeau 07 Max, Ryan, Christian, Isaiah, Alex, Aaron, Liam, Justin & Michael at the Mother’s Day Regatta, Photo by Shelley Bourdeau COMMUNITYCAPTURED.CA
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B OOK REVIEW
FIFTEEN DOGS IS NOT JUST FOR DOG LOVERS Review by:
PETA-GAYE NASH ’m a cat person myself, but I find Fifteen Dogs by André Alexis endearingly witty, humorous, poetic and entertaining. Fifteen dogs overnighting at a vet are given the gift of intelligence, by Apollo and Hermes in a bet. Will human intelligence make them unhappier? In some cases, absolutely. “…Rosie, a German shepherd, stopped as she was licking her vagina and… wondered what had happened to the last litter she’d whelped. It suddenly seemed grossly unfair that one should go through the trouble of having pups only to lose track of them.” This Scotiabank Giller Prize Winner was one of the books selected for the 2017
Canada Reads and I had to read it myself when I heard about it on Metro Morning some months back. No small thing that a Caribbean word (albeit a “naughty” one) has made it in the book, testament to Canada’s acceptance of a non-mainstream culture. The book is an apologue of many lessons. Do our higher cognitive abilities make us more prone to domineering, aggressive and calculating behaviour? If dogs could speak our language, would there be a cultural divide, where true understanding would take as much effort as the divide between male and female, east and west, black and white? Is cooing to your dog actually demeaning?
CAPTURINGBETTERPH TOS
Human - Who’s a good boy? Dog - Oh, shut up already. One message really stands out: What’s good for the little people doesn’t apply to those in power. The leader of the pack prohibits the use of the dog language and insists the pack behave as they did before intelligence, like dogs, but he speaks the language privately with his soulmate. Even for a cat lover like myself, I learned a lot. Did you know dogs sometimes mount each other to show dominance? I had no idea. I thought it was only because…oh never mind what I thought.
By Peeter Poldre, Photographer Always learning and striving to CAPTURE the next great photo!
CAPTURING
REFLECTIONS apturing an interesting reflection requires a combination of luck and skill. As a first step, reflection photos require some sort of reflecting surface! As the sample photos illustrate, various surfaces can reflect, including water (1&2), glass (3), sunglasses (4), brass instruments (5) and grand piano tops (6). The composition of reflection photos often poses the interesting challenge of how to apply the “rule of thirds”: Should one show more subject? more reflection? or equal amounts of each? There is no correct answer - artistic choices abound!
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SMARTPHONE/POINT AND SHOOT/DIGITAL SLR. NO MATTER WHAT DEVICE YOU USE TO TAKE PHOTOS, WHAT LOOKS FINE ON THE DEVICE MAY LEAVE YOU DISAPPOINTED WHEN YOU WANT TO MAKE THAT SPECIAL IMAGE INTO AN ENLARGEMENT, A POSTER OR A SCREEN-SAVER. EACH MONTH, THIS COLUMN WILL AIM TO PROVIDE UNDERSTANDABLE, PRACTICAL, LARGELY NON-TECHNICAL ADVICE TO HELP YOU MAKE BETTER PHOTOS.
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Awards!
Testimonials!
Healthy Living!
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Reserve your stay at www.airbnb.ca/rooms/16095854
BATTLE OF THE BOOKS AT GRIMSBY LIBRARY
LINCOLN LIBRARY’S SUPERHERO TEDDY BEARS PICNIC
BY GRIMSBY PUBLIC LIBRARY
BY LINCOLN PUBLIC LIBRARY
Every year in May, the Grimsby Public Library hosts the “Battle of the Books” inter-school juvenile fiction trivia competition. Local Grimsby elementary schools battle it out, to test each groups knowledge of a selection of fantastic books. The Library would like to thank the teams from Nelles, Central, Smith, Lakeview & Our Lady of Fatima schools for participating and doing such an amazing job!
It was a “super” fun time at Lincoln Public Library’s Superhero Teddy Bears Picnic, on May 29, presented in partnership with Healthy Kids Community Challenge Niagara. The fun included parachute games to make super bears fly, a bouncer where little superheroes safely practiced their flying and healthy snacks to refuel. Thank you to everyone who joined us! COMMUNITYCAPTURED.CA
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JULY
JU NE
EVENTS
JUNE 16-24 N iagara Hom egrown Wi n e Festival at N iagara- On -Th e- Lake niagarawinefestival.com
JUNE 22 Succulents Workshop with Bloom i n’ Lovely at Li ncoln Museum & Cultural Centre lincoln.ca
JUNE 23 D i n e an d Drive performanceacura.ca
JUNE 26 Jerry’ s Peach bud 1 0 K/5K/1 K at Peach Ki ng Centre niagararunningseries.com
JUNE 26 Th erapy Tai ls at Gri msby Public Li brary grimsby.ca/library
JULY 1 Canada Day at Gri msby Museum grimsby.ca
JULY 1 Canada Day Festival lincoln.ca
JULY 1 Canada Day at N elles Manor Museum nellesmanor.ca
JULY 3-AUGUST 21 Yoga at Sunset every tuesday at 7pm lincoln.ca
JULY 7-8 N iagara Laven der Festival niagaralavenderfestival.com
JULY 7-8 Muddy Paws Wi n e Festival muddypawswine.com
JULY 12 Yoga Truly: Yoga Session for ki ds grimsby.ca
JULY 12-14 Happen i ng at th e Forty grimsby.ca
JULY 14 Celebration of th e Forty at N elles Manor Museum nellesmanor.ca
AUGUST 5-12 136th Royal Canad ian H en ley Regatta henleyregatta.ca
AUGUST 11 Li ncoln Soap Box Derby
AUGUS T
lincolnsoapbox.ca
AUGUST 11 28th An nual Peach Festival on Queen Street visitniagaracanada.com
AUGUST 11 Subaru I ron Gi rl Canada Wom en’ s 5K irongirl.com
AUGUST 19 PWC MS Bi ke mssociety.ca
AUGUST 24, 25 & 26 Wi nona Peach Festival winonapeach.com
HIKE FOR HOSPICE NIAGARA BY PETER BARTUS
ver 400 people participated in the 16th Annual Hike for Hospice Niagara in St. Catharines, on May 6th. The event celebrated life and honored those who are no longer with us. The 1K or 5K walk traveled along the Canal Trail and started/finished at Grantham Lions Park. Over the past 25 years, Hospice Niagara has evolved into a region-wide palliative and hospice care resource, serving more than 17,000 people, whether in a clients’ home or at the hospice residence. To make a 25th Anniversary donation or view upcoming events, visit www.hospiceniagara.ca.
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COM M UNIT Y PRO FILE
Alliece with her husband, Josh
ALLIECE BASS-MELDRUM birthplace: Mississauga currently residence: Grimsby business: Interior Design Nickname: The Real Bass Pro & The Boss greatest achievements: Marrying my husband and the adventures of having children.
Family/Pets: I have a 2-year-old son, a 6-week-old daughter and 2 baby fig plants.
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Fun Facts:
My first job was at Tim Hortons when I was 14, which I believe is a prerequisite to being Canadian. I’ve won several customer service and sales awards during my many years in retail. I’ve been on the Blue Jays jumbo screen 3 times, but never aware of it. I used to dance ballet and jazz, play softball and paddle on a war canoe team. Now with my son, I visit Maplecrest Village Retirement Residence weekly to connect and spend time with our older generation.
Q: If the whole Community were listening, what would you say to them? Just take a minute to connect with the people around you, that is what makes a community. We all love Grimsby for the small-town feel, so let’s just remember to wave to one another!
Q: What makes you laugh? I make myself laugh more than I should probably publicly admit.
JUST TAKE A MINUTE,
TO CONNECT WITH THE PEOPLE AROUND YOU, THAT IS WHAT MAKES A COMMUNITY
Q: Who or what inspires you? At the risk of sounding cheesy, my husband. I have known him for 10+ years now and I’ve never met anyone quite like him. Through him, I’ve come to know and hold a whole new spectrum of kindness and confidence.
Alliece & her son participating in baby therapy at Maplecrest Village Retirement Residence
Q: What does the word Community mean to you? To me, the word community means to band together, to care about and respect the people and environment around you. Perhaps we need to first assume the best in people, rather than the opposite.
Q: What is one thing that very few people would know about you? A lot of people don’t know that I’m surprisingly reserved.
Q: What is the best advice you’ve been given? I was once told, “strive to be like those who hold the qualities you admire most.” It’s always good to have an example to follow.
Q: If you could possess one super-human power, what would it be? Easy peasy, flying.
Q: What is your favourite movie of all time? Oh dear, I’m terribly indecisive. It’s a toss-up between The Lion King and Gladiator. Who am I kidding, it’s The Sound of Music.
Q: What’s your favourite vacation spot? Tahiti. I’ll verify that when I’ve actually gone. But I’m pretty sure Tahiti.
Q: what brings you the greatest joy or satisfaction? Besides my kids and husband, I enjoy music, cooking and any sort of artistic creation.
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NOURISH THOSE IN NEED BY SUE LONDON
here is a new program in our community called FoodRescue.ca. This is an innovative tool for businesses to donate surplus food directly to social service organizations that support people experiencing hunger.
Perhaps you aren’t a business, charity or not-for-profit organization. You can still help. FoodRescue.ca has a “What to do at home” page that will provide tips and resources to help the general public improve your relationship with food and make sure it gets eaten.
Now more food will be available to those in need and this program will have a positive impact on our environment. FoodRescue.ca recovers good, edible food, before it’s thrown away. Both businesses and rescuing organizations can take advantage of this simple method of food exchange, which also educates and confirms safe food handling measures are in place. FoodRescue.ca brings everyone peace-of-mind for the food rescue process. Created by Second Harvest, Canada’s largest food rescue organization, the system leverages the knowledge of over 30 years of experience in bringing fresh food to those in need. FoodRescue.ca is a local approach to building stronger community relationships when food is redirected right in the neighbourhood.
FOODRESCUE.CA RECOVERS GOOD, EDIBLE FOOD, BEFORE IT’S THROWN AWAY. Businesses register on the website to donate perishable dairy, protein, prepared meals, fresh produce and other surplus food. Charitable and not-for-profit organizations also register online to access food, which may not have been readily available in the community.
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FoodRescue.ca matches donations to appropriate organizations based on transport distance and cold storage capacity. Email or text notices are sent when a donation is offered and claimed. Rescuing organizations agree to pick up food at the time and location the food donor designates. To get involved in this life changing community program, please contact lynda.odonnell@foodrescue.ca for more information or go directly to FoodRescue.ca and sign up to nourish our community.
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LAKEMOUNT’S 3RD ANNUAL WALK-A-THON n May 27, Lakemount Worship Centre hosted their 3rd Annual Walk-a-thon for the Sarah Tapley Foundation. Families and individuals gathered to walk 2 or 5 kilometers in honor of Sarah Tapley, who is the youngest daughter of the church’s Lead Pastor. Sarah passed away just over 5 years ago, after a battle with cancer and she left an incredible legacy in her 11 years. Lakemount Worship Centre hosts the Walk-a-thon annually to celebrate and remember Sarah’s life and raise funds for the Sarah Tapley Foundation. The foundation is being established in honor of Sarah’s legacy and exists to provide financial support and bring hope to families experiencing similar journeys to that of the Tapleys.
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08 01 Ashley, Melinda, Karen, Michelle, Mary-Ann, Heather, Liz & Taylor 02 Ashley 03 Taylor, Arwyn & Tim 04 Evelyn at the Lemonade Stand 05 Aria, Christina & Sofia 06 Taylor 07 Ella & Claire 08 Abby & Lucy
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PET ADOPTION
meet
LOOKING FOR MY FUREVER FRIEND.
SE X : Female BREED : Boxer mix AGE : 5 Years Old ID# : 38425442
ROSIE is a gorgeous girl who is super sweet and loves all
To schedule a meeting with Rosie, please
people! Her biggest issue is with other animals. She tries to
contact the shelter at 905.682.0767 or email
pick fights with dogs, she’s very strong and a total alpha female.
myconnect@lchs.ca. To meet any of the other
For this reason, she will not be able to attend dog parks or any
adoptable pets, please visit our shelter.
other social outings that have other dogs. Her perfect family have a strong, solid 6’ wooden fence, no other animals and understands not to put Rosie in any situa-
Mon to Fri - 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Saturday - 10:00 am to 4:00 pm Sunday - 11:00 am to 3:00 pm
tions where she could get to another animal. They also have no children under 12 years old (due to her strength). She is a human’s best friend and is a very chill and loveable dog. All adoptable dogs have been given a behavioural test and our staff will be happy to explain the testing and discuss the results with potential adopters during the initial meeting with the dog you are interested in. 14
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160 Fourth Avenue, St. Catharines | L2S 0B6 P: 905 682 0767
LCHS.CA
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rimsby’s Canadian Tire parking lot was the place to be on Sunday, May 27th. Lots of people brought out their pets and working dogs to attend the Pet Valu Walk for Dog Guides. The walk raised funds for Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides, whose mission is to assist Canadians with a medical or physical disability, by providing them a Dog Guide at no cost. Dog Guides are provided to eligible Canadians, despite the $25,000 expense it takes to raise, train and place each one.
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01 Cheryl & Lennon 02 Pat, Sue with Korban, Evelyn, Kemp & Vivian 03 Maggie with Ziggy & Molly with Pippa 04 Kemp & Vivian 05 Dog Guides Walk-a-thon organizer Pat Jaskula 06 Sue with foster dog guide puppy 07 Barb & Louise 08 Evelyn with 6 week old foster dog guide Korban COMMUNITYCAPTURED.CA
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SCHOOL LIFE EDEN
HIGH SCHOOL T EC H N O LO G I C A L E D U C AT I O N S K I L L S In April, DSBN held their Annual Technological Education Skills Celebration. Eden students to be congratulated are: Alex Riley: Silver Medal - Carpentry Individual Dan Ridings, Robbie Falk: Bronze Medal - Carpentry Team Harry Hopman: Bronze Medal - Coding Ben Busca: Gold Medal - Computer-Aided Manufacturing Stephen Allen: Silver Medal - Computer-Aided Manufacturing Owen Zow: Bronze Medal - Computer-Aided Manufacturing Matthew Guether, Kiran Hazra: Silver Medal - Geographic Info Systems Ben Busca: Bronze Medal - Mechanical CAD Congratulations also goes out to Alex Riley for placing 5th and Stephen Allen for placing 7th in their events at Skills Ontario Competitions in May. Ben Busca, Graeme Lett, Gabe Maskaluk, Chris Reimer and Ben Miralles are also congratulated for making it to the qualifying round at the Ontario competition for Robotics. W R I T E R S C R A F T C L AS S The Grade 12 Writers Craft Class spent the last month creating their very own children’s books and May 22 was Publication Day. The class walked to William Hamilton Merritt Public School and read their illustrated children’s stories to Grade 1 and 2 students. They received honest feedback from their target audience who loved being read to by “the big kids.” There were a variety of stories with important messages about imagination, bullying, acceptance and helping others. These talented students also used a variety of artistic styles for their illustrations including digital, cartoon, photography, water colour, touch and feel and hand drawn. Though they were nervous, the Grade 12s were thankful to have this memorable, authentic experience. LINK CREW Link Crew has arrived at Eden! “More and more studies show that if students have a positive experience their first year in high school, their chance for success increases dramatically. Link Crew provides the structure for grade 9s to receive support and guidance from seniors who have been through the challenges that high school poses, and 16
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to understand that the transition to a larger school can sometimes be overwhelming.” (The Boomerang Project) We are in full swing of planning great activities and peer mentors for our incoming Flyers. Bring on the fun and get excited for Grade 9! See you in September! F U T U R E F LY E R DAY May 17, Future Flyer Day, was a special day at Eden High School when many of our future grade nines came to enjoy a day of fun and bonding at Eden. The students, coming from various schools across the Niagara Region, had a chance to meet their future classmates and get a taste of High School life. Students enjoyed the Spring Concert dress rehearsal, played student-led icebreaker games and enjoyed lunch before attending two classes in the afternoon. Eden is excited to welcome this vibrant group of students in September. BA D M I N TO N We had incredible interest from students participating on the Eden Badminton team. At the first tryout, over 70 students came to the gym ready to show their skills. A full team of 48 students represented Eden, showing excellent sportsmanship and dedication. Through commitment to practice and the skilled coaching of Mr. John Pilling, the team members improved their badminton skills. Noteworthy results for the team were Senior Liam Smith and Lauren Foster, 2nd place Zone Mixed Doubles. Junior Peter Pilling, Zone Champion and SOSSA Champion Boys Singles. Emma Andres and Mya Capes, 2nd place Zone and 2nd place SOSSA Girls Doubles. Therese Ristow and Renee Smith, Zone Champion Girls Doubles. Sydney Thompson, 2nd place Zone Girls Singles Midget. Parth Patel and Toby Jeffries, Zone Champions and 2nd place SOSSA Boys Doubles. Madalyn Weinert and Mitchell Kalakaylo, Zone Champions and 2nd place SOSSA Mixed Doubles. Alexandra Kennedy and Isabel Neufeld, 2nd place Zone Girls Doubles. Congratulations to all of the team members on a successful season. CAPPIES Eden Takes Big Awards At CAPPIES! Critics, cast and crew of this year’s CAPPIES should be very proud of their achievements at the 2018 CAPPIES awards night at Welland Centennial High School, on May 23. Elizabeth Chernyak won best supporting actress and the entire cast and crew took home the Best Play award for the second year in a row. Our critics won best team and to top it off, Diana
Karapetyn earned the top critic award by seeing all 14 district school plays and being published five times in the newspaper. Congratulations to everyone involved in The Miracle Worker. Our little “miracle play” proved you don’t have to have a big stage to tell a great story! FO R E ST O F R E A D I N G F E ST I VA L The DSBN Forest of Reading Festival at Bethany Church was a fun ending to our book club. Over 38 students represented Eden High School and many fun activities were offered: survival skills, Muffin Madness, Yoga, Zen Colouring, Dinosaur bones, Succulent garden planter making, dot art, boot camp etc. The author, Danielle Younge-Ullman (Everything Beautiful is not ruined) is the White Pine winner for Ontario spoke, with the students. Students met authors and came back with bag full of goodies. Can’t wait till next year!
BLESSED TRINITY
CATHOLIC SECONDARY SCHOOL C AT H O L I C E D U C AT I O N W E E K This year, the theme for Catholic Education Week was Renewing the Promise. Catholic Education Week ran from May 6-11, 2018. The Blessed Trinity community gathered together to celebrate Mass and participated in a variety of events that reflected the theme. On May 7, the Catch the Spirit Awards took place at St. Julia’s Roman Catholic Church in St. Catharines. The award is given to the student who exemplifies Catholic values at school, home and in the community. Riley Fyfe, a grade 11 student at Blessed Trinity was this year’s award recipient. During the week, a collection for eyeglasses took place. The glasses were donated to the Canadian Lions Eyeglass Recycling Centre. From there, glasses are distributed to those who need them throughout the world. Student Council attended the Student Leadership Symposium at Club Roma where Madison McKinney was elected as Student Trustee for the 20182019 school year. On Thursday evening, Frames of Mind was held. This is a mental health community initiative that showcased art, music, and poetry of our very talented students. M E N TA L H E A LT H I N I T I AT I V E A S U CC E S S Members of the Blessed Trinity community gathered on the evening of May 10th, for the annual Frames of Mind event, hosted by the BTMentality group. The team’s pilot year had come to a close with this event, as the climax of their initiative to increase positivity and good mental health in the school. The event featured 18 artistic performances varying from spoken word to drum solos. Multiple works of art from classes and student artists lined the entrance to the intimate theatre setting, where performers shared why they chose to take part in their art form. Executive Director of the Grimsby Benevolent Fund, Stacy Elia, gave opening remarks and provided refreshments to the guests. A live feed was broadcast on the @BTMentality Instagram account and is currently archived for community members to view. This was a fantastic night for Blessed Trinity, as the promotion of mental health and wellbeing was a top focus. Thank you to everyone who came out and supported our students! BY LAUREN KELLY
ST U D E N T CO U N C I L E V E N T S On March 23rd, Blessed Trinity opened its doors to the residents of Lincoln Park Retirement Residence. They spent the day with Student Council, helping them to get to know the school community and its environment. The residents decorated Easter eggs with Student Council, had a lunch prepared by our culinary department, toured the school and the many specialized classrooms, and watched fantastic performances from our talented students in the music and dance departments. It was a truly memorable experience for both the residents and Student Council. This was our second time meeting with the Lincoln Park Community this year and we look forward to many more opportunities to do this again in the future. During the month of April, Student Council organized a school spirit week. For four days, each grade competed against each other in activities to show their school spirit. The winning grade was awarded an extra out-of-uniform day. The week culminated with our annual Spring Dance. This year’s theme was “Colour Wars” and it was one of our most successful spring dances that we have had in years. Now as the school year draws to a close, Student Council will be making the most of the days to come. In June, we will have our student appreciation day along with our annual BT Fest. This event will include inflatables and food trucks for the school community to celebrate the end of our outstanding school year. BY DANIELA LOZANO B L E S S E D T R I N I T Y ECO -T E A M It has been a ‘tree-mendous’ year for our Eco-Team here at Blessed Trinity Catholic Secondary School. Our Eco-Team, consisting of a core team of 10 members and 10 auxiliary members, hit the earth running in September by planning an extensive number of initiatives. This is an important year for our team, as we are striving to be awarded a platinum standing for the third time with the Eco Schools of Ontario program. Throughout Earth Hour and Earth Week, numerous initiatives were introduced. With the tremendous support of our cafeteria and custodial staff, we were able to implement “No Power Hour,” cutlery and straw-free, litter-less lunches, meat-free Fridays and our proudest achievement this year, the implementation of a green bin program throughout the school. So far, we have diverted over 500 pounds of organic waste from landfills by having green bins in all staff workrooms, the culinary room and some washrooms. It is our goal to have green bins in the cafeteria on a regular basis and the remaining washrooms by the end of the year. This year, our Eco-team was also treated to a wonderful banquet by the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority in recognition of our Yellow Fish Road participation and numerous beach clean-up efforts through the year. We were proud to be given this distinguished award for our efforts. Blessed Trinity staff and students have united this year to make a difference to our earth, both locally and globally.
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BEAMSVILLE DISTRICT
GRIMSBY
As we near the end of the school year, it is important to note some of our recent success stories and to provide a few reminders about upcoming events and news at BDSS. Thanks to all community members for reading this feature, we are all so proud of our students’ accomplishments and value the line of communication with all of you.
VO LU N T E E R O P P O RT U N I T I E S A B O U N D The Grimsby community supports GSS students in many ways, particularly by providing opportunities for our students to do volunteer work, sometimes to use toward their community service hour requirement for graduation and often just because giving to the community is something embedded in the culture of GSS. Our students love to help others.
SECONDARY SCHOOL
It is important to remember that, with the culminating activities and exams that June brings, it is extremely important for students to be putting forth their best efforts and seeking support if it would help. Please contact the school (905 563-8267) and speak to your student’s teacher(s) for an update, to share concerns, or to plan for the end of the semester. R U G BY Congratulations to the BDSS Girls Rugby team who worked hard through a rebuilding year to drop a close match in the zone final. Despite many new players, the team came together and showed a lot of Buccaneer spirit. Well done girls and thanks to coach Brown for supporting and developing this young team. T R AC K BDSS athletes were exceptionally successful in Track and Field this season. The following students were SOSSA CHAMPIONS: Autumn Bigger in High Jump, Shannon Swinson in Shot put, Ryan Kulakowski in Shot put, Owen Konkle in 100m and 800m and NAte Huisman in shot put. Abi McDonald came second in hurdles and Brian Knetchnel second in Shot put, 100m and 800m. Both Senior Boys relay teams move on placing SECOND in the 4X100 and fifth in the 4X 400m! Runners in these events are: Nate Huisman, Eric Bell, Adam McMaster, Owen Konkle, Josh Reid, Scott Hunter, Issa Hatu. Overall our team of 14 athletes CAME 8th out of 42 teams at SOSSA! S LOW P I TC H The BDSS boys’ slowpitch team survived a very difficult tournament to win the NRHSSA championship. Mrs. Robertson’s team dominated their way to an undefeated record and second consecutive championship. BA N D TO U R Our well-traveled and critically acclaimed band, led by Mrs. Kathaleen McNeil, took their talents to Orlando, Florida in May of 2018. The students played to enthusiastic crowds at both Disney World and Universal Studios. Amazing accomplishments for young musicians and memories that will last a lifetime. BA R R E L S B LO O M BDSS students have entered into an exciting collaboration with the Beamsville Business Improvement Association, the Town of Lincoln and a large group of local wineries. Barrels Bloom is a project in which BDSS art students design and decorate custom wine barrels, which serve as planters for mini gardens planted by our Horticulture Specialist High Skills Major students. These decorative barrels will be placed throughout the downtown Beamsville area, beautifying the area, promoting local businesses and showcasing the talent of our students. This initiative has been selected at the Garden Days Provincial Flagship Event for Ontario, a high honour for all involved. Thanks to Mr. Belding and Ms. Tauro for their support of our students in this amazing experience. 18
COMMUNITYCAPTURED.CA
SECONDARY SCHOOL
When can a student start earning community service hours? They can begin during the summer following grade 8. What activities qualify toward community service hours? An activity or event which is a benefit to the community is eligible. The activity must be performed outside the regular school day (lunch hours, weekends, after school, or school holidays). It may take place in a variety of settings: not-for-profit organizations, public sector institutions, and informal settings. It may be a structured program to promote tutoring, mentoring, visiting, and coaching whose purpose is to assist others. It could be an activity that supports work of a global nature or promotes environmental awareness or an activity with a club, religious organization, arts or cultural association, or political organization that seeks to make a positive contribution in the community. In fact, an activity that promotes and contributes to the health and well-being of any group, including some school-based activities which extend their service to a wider community are eligible for students to use toward their community service hours. What activities are ineligible? The Ministry of Education and Training has developed a list of activities that may not be chosen as community involvement activities and that are therefore ineligible activities. An ineligible activity is an activity that is a requirement of a class or course in which the student is enrolled (e.g., Cooperative Education portion of a course, job shadowing, work experience) or one that takes place during the time allotted for the instructional program on a school day. However, an activity that takes place during the student’s lunch break is permissible. Other ineligible activities are those that take place in a construction, manufacturing, logging or mining environment, if the student is under sixteen years of age or in a factory if the student is under fifteen years of age. The Career Opportunity Information Network tells us about the value of volunteering. Employment counselors know how challenging it can be to get a job. However, they also know the value of volunteering and getting involved in order to gain valuable experience. In just a few hours a week, you can make a positive contribution. Helping out with a charity, cleaning up in the neighbourhood park or volunteering at GBF are just a few ways to work with others in your community. GSS students know how great it feels to know that they did something positive for their neighbourhood! We take this opportunity to thank the Grimsby community for supporting our students in so many ways. We look forward to another great year of learning. Registration continues August 28th to 30th. School begins September 6th at 9:00 am.
COMMUNITYCAPTURED.CA
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