Issue 50 2021 December 22 NG Times

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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from all of us at the North Grenville Times

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The North Grenville Times

North Grenville to re-launch accessible transit service In order to grow the ridership for this transit service, Council has opted to reduce the fare by nearly 50 percent, from $11 to $5 each way. A monthly pass is also available for $70.

“Because the Municipality now receives some provincial funding to help offset costs to operate the service, we are able to lower the fee in order to reduce barriers to use. We will evaluate the program at the end of the year to see if the service is meeting the needs of those individuals requiring accessible transportation assistance. We also plan to explore the viability of expanding the service to include youth and other vulnerable residents,” Peckford added.

Beginning January 2, 2022, accessible, on-demand service will be available seven days a week (except holidays) from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The service can be pre-booked up to 24 hours in advance. Call 613-761-2875 (ATSK) or email ATSAccessible@gmail.com.

Anyone who meets the definition of having a disability under the Accessibility for Ontarian with Disabilities Act (AODA) and/or is 65 years of age or older may use the service. Residents must register to use the service.

“We know that the residents of North Grenville have very limited options for public and private transit. We encourage anyone with mobility impairments, and those over the age of 65 whether you require accessible transportation or not, to consider using the service. Staying connected to services, businesses and community events is key to the quality of life of all residents”, added Councillor Doreen O’Sullivan.

Mayor Peckford (centre) and Deputy Mayor Jim McManaman (right) with the staff and fleet of Allegiance Transportation Services In 2019, North Grenville Accessible Transportation (NGAT) requested that the Municipality of North Grenville assume responsibility for its accessible transportation service. NGAT was a volunteer organization that had run a successful transportation service for over 20 years in North Grenville. Since Janu-

ary 2020, the Municipality has contracted Allegiance Transportation Services (ATS) to offer accessible transportation services in North Grenville.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all non-critical transports were suspended, and only essential transports were offered for a number of months in 2020 and 2021.

Now the Municipality is ready to re-launch the service for 2022.

“North Grenville is very pleased to provide accessible transit options for mobilityimpaired residents so that they can access businesses and services like most other residents in our community,” said Mayor Nancy Peckford.

Happy Holidays!

The Voice of North Grenville

Old Town Kemptville BIA Annual General Meeting

On the evening of Monday November 22, the BIA hosted the Old Town Kemptville BIA Annual General Meeting. The meeting was a virtual one with several guests and members joining via Microsoft Teams and was chaired by BIA Board Chair Meagan Cumming.

The meeting began with words of welcome from Mayor Nancy Peckford. Following the Mayor, three guests gave presentations to the attendees in areas of interest to the BIA. Kay Matthews, Executive Director of the Ontario Business Improvement Area Association (OBIAA), gave a comprehensive presentation on the value of BIAs (ROI) and their overall impact on the local, provincial and national economies.

Harry Bennett, Chair of the 2022 International Plowing Match and Rural Expo (IPM) Committee, gave a presentation on what to expect, and some general information on the IPM, which will be coming to Kemptville (along with potentially up to 75,000 people) in September of 2022.

Mark Guy, Director of Parks, Recreation and Culture for the Municipality of North Grenville, gave a presentation on the plans for the expansion of the facilities of Riverside Park in 2022. The addition of an outdoor skating rink, four-season change rooms and a community splash pad were among the highlights.

The meeting proceeded with BIA Board Chair, Meagan Cumming, giving the Annual Report on the activities of the BIA over the past year. BIA Board Treasurer, Sierra Jones, gave the financial report and presented the proposed draft BIA budget for 2022 for review by the attendees. BIA Executive Director, Deron Johnston, followed with an oral report on the work of the Programming and Marketing Committee, including a breakdown of the Committee's portion of the BIA budget.

The meeting finished with BIA Board Vice Chair, Will Pearl, thanking all of the volunteers, municipal staff and partners for their contributions to a successful year. He also thanked the meeting attendees, including the presenters, for their informative presentations.

For the reader: BIA (Business Improvement Association), ROI (Return on Investment)

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On behalf of North Grenville’s Council, we wish you a wonderful holiday and a safe and healthy New Year!

December 22, 2021

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The Voice of North Grenville

Knights of Columbus 10th Annual Poster Contest

JUDGES: Barb Brown, Helen Racine, Debbie Blais, Michelle McGahey, Rose-Lynne McDougall, Barb Tobin, Virginia Cunnigham, Bonnie Savoy and Maggie Boyer with Knights of Columbus Richard Savoy KEMPTVILLE PUBLIC SCHOOL

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by Richard Savoy – Youth Director, Kemptville Knights of Columbus – Council #5333 Over the past several years, many fraternal organizations, businesses, schools, churches, synagogues, and individuals have donated their time and money to the fight against the ever-present epidemic of substance abuse.

One way to rectify this world wide problem is through the spread of information. Increasing public awareness concerning the dangers of drugs and alcohol, through the cooperation of individu-

als and organizations, has garnered significant results.

Knights of Columbus Council #5333 held their 10th Annual Poster Contest in November. CONGRATULATIONS to the following winners of a certificate and $100: Fianna Wardman; Saint Michael’s High School, Drug Awareness Poster; Age Group 11-13 years Kennedy Calder; Saint Michael’s High School, Alcohol Awareness Poster; Age Group 11-13 years Brock Thompson; Kemptville Public School, Drug Awareness Poster; Age Group

South Mountain Oddfellows Charitable Donations

8-10 years Ashlyn Carnegie; Holy Cross School, Alcohol Awareness Poster; Age Group 8-10 years.

Thanks to the participating schools that were very supportive of the contest, and there were more than 250 posters for judging. The students’ imagination and artistic abilities made this a successful project.

Merry Christmas

THOMAS M. BYRNE Barrister and Solicitor

Noble Grand Ron Derraugh presents Melissa Hill with a cheque for the Beth Donovan Hospice. Other recent donations were made to Camp Trillium, Dundas Hospice, Dundas Snow Suit Fund, and the South Mountain Union Cemetery.

tom@tmblaw.ca 613.258.1277 222 Prescott St., Kemptville

December 22, 2021

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The North Grenville Times

Oxford Village Inc. supports the Kemptville Youth Centre

Survivorman Les Stroud appointed as Scouts Canada’s Chief Scout Scouts Canada announces the appointment of awardwinning Canadian outdoor adventurer and survival expert Les Stroud, best known as TV’s Survivorman, as the organization’s new Chief Scout. Les was officially welcomed during a special investiture ceremony at Scouts Canada’s Camp Samac in Oshawa, where he also joined a group of excited Scouts in participating in a sneak peek of Scouts Canada’s winter outdoor skills challenge which will launch at the end of January.

As Chief Scout, Les will serve as an ambassador for Scouts Canada nationally and internationally, attend major events including jamborees and award ceremonies, share his outdoor expertise through interactions with Scouting youth, Scouters (volunteers) and parents, and serve as a role model to motivate and inspire young members to pursue adventure, discover their interests, and put their best foot forward on the trail and in life.

“I am incredibly honoured and excited to become Scouts Canada’s Chief Scout,” said Les. “I am inspired by the incredible passion and leadership skills young Scouts have and believe that Scouting is an ideal pathway to success in life. With the pandemic, it’s been a tough couple of years and what better place for Canadian youth to turn to for fun, adventure, new experiences, and awesome learning than Scouting? I look forward to contributing to this life-changing journey for many young Canadians.”

“Scouting is an adventurebased program and Les is the ultimate outdoor adventurer.

His integrity, outdoor expertise, and genuine connection and respect for nature align with Scouting’s values and

Presenting the cheque to the Kemptville Youth Centre is Amanda Keyes (centre), Admin Assistant at LA Group, representing Oxford Village Inc. Accepting the cheque on behalf of KYC is Bruce Wehlau (to her right), President, KYC Board of Directors, and Micaela Comerford (to her left), KYC Programs Coordinator, surrounded by some of the youth taking part in after school activities!

Oxford Village Inc. is a proud supporter of youth in our Community. On December 14, OVI presented a cheque in the amount of $1,000 to the Kemptville Youth Centre in support of its activities.

“The Kemptville Youth Centre appreciates the generous donation by Oxford Village Inc.”, said Barb Tobin, Operations Manager at KYC. “This donation will help support the Centre’s mandate to provide a safe space for community youth to gather and spend time with their peers.”

“The need is there and is growing dramatically. Our Youth are our Future”, noted Oxford Village Inc. Vice President, Gilles Brisebois. “OVI would like to challenge local businesses to support the Kemptville Youth Centre at this time of the year.”

Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year to all From all of us at the B&H Holiday Hours:

New Canada’s Chief Scout, Les Stroud. principles.” said Andrew Price, Executive Commissioner and CEO, Scouts Canada. “As our Chief Scout, he will play a pivotal role in enabling even more youth to get outdoors and discover their capabilities through Scouts.”

Scouts Canada and Les Stroud jointly understand the relationship young people can have with nature. Getting outdoors is a fundamental need for children, and it has a positive impact on mental health and physical wellbeing. Youth also play a vital role as advocates for preserving and protecting the natural world for generations to come.

“Being out in nature has always uplifted me, filling me with such positivity and great energy,” said Les. “Getting outdoors can be a powerful tool to help build resiliency, positive self-esteem, and a sense of curiosity and wonder.

I look forward to encouraging more youth to experience nature’s benefits through fun adventures.”

Les is credited as the genre creator of “survival television”. Best known as the Canadian Screen Awardwinning producer, creator, director, and star of the hit TV series, Survivorman, he

is the only person in television history to produce an internationally broadcasted series entirely written, videotaped, and hosted alone.

He has also appeared in, and/or produced numerous television specials, including hosting the 20th Anniversary of Discovery Channel’s Shark Week, I Shouldn’t Be Alive, and The Science of Survival.

He is currently in production for his series Wild Harvest, the feature documentary La Loche, and the special Surviving Disasters on PBS and National Geographic.

Registration for Scouts Canada’s new year, January to December, 2022, is open now at Scouts.ca/Join. Scouting has safely continued with fun adventures throughout the pandemic through a mix of virtual, outdoor, and indoor programming. To ensure the health of the Scouting community, Scouts Canada implemented a successful five-stage Return to Scouting Plan that scales activity levels in accordance with the current direction of governments and health agencies, regionally and provincially. For more information, visit Scouts.ca/ Covid19.

Tests will not be available at NGPL

Christmas Eve : 8 am - 5 pm Closed Christmas & Boxing Day New Years Eve : 8 am - 5 pm Closed New Years Day

by Rachel B. Brown, CEO, North Grenville Public Library I am sharing this information to avoid misinformation on the availability of rapid antigen tests. The Provincial Government announced on Wednesday that Rapid Antigen Tests will be available at various community locations, including public libraries. As a result, we have received a number of inquiries.

The North Grenville Public Library (NGPL) has received a clarification from the Ministry of Health that only public libraries in areas with higher rates of COVID will be receiving rapid antigen test packages for distribution. In Eastern Ontario, that will be Ottawa and Peterborough (starting in the New Year). The NGPL will not be offering test packages, but will let the community know if that changes.

Here is the link for more information on the availability of the tests: www.ontario.ca/page/ pop-up-holiday-schedule-rapid-antigen-tests.

Thanks so much, and happy holidays.

301 Rideau Street, Kemptville

613.258.3014

December 22, 2021

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The North Grenville Times

The Voice of North Grenville

Keep warm hands with CSE on Prescott Street

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The staff of CSE Consulting wanted to create an environment of giving, so they decided to "grow" a mitten tree.

Working with vulnerable populations as they do, they wanted to do something for anyone who simply needed something to keep their hands warm.

If you ever find yourself in downtown Kemptville with cold hands, drop by 125 Prescott St across from the CIBC and help yourself.

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The Cascading Wealth Transfer Concept

By Daren Givoque F i n a n c i a l A d v i s o r, O’Farrell Financial Services As you age, and your children grow up and have families, you may be hoping to leave them an inheritance.

Trusts are one way of doing this, but they come with a significant tax burden that you may wish to avoid.

The Cascading, or Waterfall Wealth Transfer Concept, can be an efficient way of saving money for your offspring. The concept uses permanent Whole Life or Universal Life Insurance to grow tax-sheltered value that you can access (if needed) but is meant to be transferred to your children or grandchildren. This takes advantage of Section 148(8) of the Canada Income Tax Act which allows you to transfer ownership of a life insurance policy to any of your children or grandchildren on a tax-free basis, provided they are insured under the policy. This applies to a natural or adopted child, grandchild, stepchild, or son/ daughter-in-law.

This strategy can be ap-

December 22, 2021

plied for at any age. For example, a new grandparent may want to provide for a grandchild. It may seem strange to have life insurance for a baby, but there is real merit in purchasing a life policy at a very low cost and building tax-sheltered value that can be accessed if needed. It is an opportunity to tax-effectively set money aside, that you can control until you decide to transfer ownership.

The accumulated cash value in the policy could help children or grandchildren pay for significant milestones like post-secondary education or buying their first home. Having a whole life insurance policy in place at a young age guarantees a low premium that will help protect their children when they eventually start their own family.

You may also name a contingent owner on the policy, which is a good idea if you are concerned that your grandchild will not be old enough to own the policy before you pass away. Naming their parent as the contingent owner

on the policy will ensure that it remains protected until your grandchild can benefit from it down the road.

Another possibility is naming someone you trust as an irrevocable beneficiary, to act as a trustee that sees your wishes for the funds are fulfilled. An irrevocable beneficiary helps ensure the accumulated cash value in the policy is used for its original intention and must consent to any policy withdrawals before the insured can access the accumulated value.

Any policy changes must be

agreed upon by the beneficiary as well as the owner of the policy.

This concept is a great way to use life insurance to shelter money and provide tax-free support to your offspring and their children. I sometimes refer to it as an “Intergenerational Tax-Free Savings Account”.

I invite you to join our webinar on this same topic on November 30th, 2021. Visit our Facebook page @OFarrellFinancialServicesInc for information.

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CDSBEO report Trustees with the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) met on Wednesday, December 15, 2021, for their last regularly scheduled board meeting of 2021.

Staff to Prepare Updated Report on Oxford-on-Rideau PS: UCDSB staff will prepare a report on the enrollments, facility, and other conditions related to Oxford-on-Rideau Public School which is set to close in 2022. The report will be presented at a January 2022 board meeting and will look at any changes that have occurred since the decision to close the school in 2017.

This is an action out of a motion put forward by Trustee Lisa Swan that was approved after a vote by trustees.

UCDSB staff, joined by Dr. Paula Stewart of the Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit and Dr. Paul Roumeliotis of the Eastern Ontario Health Unit updated Trustees on the current health state of our communities, the expanded COVID-19 testing strategy in schools, and the return to active screening following the winter break.

To promote a safe return to school in January, rapid antigen test kits are being sent home with all in-person learners in publicly funded schools in Ontario prior to student dismissal for the winter break. These kits are intended for asymptomatic students to test for COVID-19 prior to their return to school on January 3, 2022.

Additionally, the PCR self-collection kits are now available in all elementary and secondary schools. Following direction from the health unit, students and staff deemed as high-risk contacts can access the kits at school and drop them off at an assessment location within their community.

Trustees Seek Ability to Allow for Stop Sign Cameras on Buses: Trustee Bill MacPherson brought forward a motion to allow stop sign cameras on school buses. Trustees approved the motion that a letter be written on behalf of the UCDSB to County councils to change legislation to allow the legal and lawful use of these cameras. Copies of this letter and the corresponding motion will also be sent to local MPPs, all publicly funded school boards, as well as to the Association of Municipalities of Ontario and the Rural Ontario Municipalities Association. www.ngtimes.ca

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Business profile

CAPP asks Province not to transfer land for prison

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Coalition Against the Proposed Prison calls on Ontario Minister Lisa Thompson to stop the transfer and destruction of landmark heritage farmland to build a prison in Kemptville December 13, 2021: In an open letter sent earlier today to the Honourable Lisa Thompson, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Kemptville Coalition Against the Proposed Prison (CAPP), is calling on her not to authorize the transfer of the former Kemptville College farm property from her ministry to the Ministry of the Solicitor General (SolGen) who plans to build a provincial prison on the site.

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In the wake of the economic devastation of COVID-19, Small Business Enterprise Centres (SBECs) across Ontario provided additional support, resources and training to help entrepreneurs pivot, recover and grow their small businesses.

Through funding from the Ontario Government under the Ontario Together Fund initiative, Small Business Centres (SBC) Ontario has served more than 4,139 businesses recovering from the effects of COVID-19. Over 6,323 jobs were impacted and sustained during this project.

Small Business Centres (SBC) Ontario officially launched in February 2021 due to project funding from the Ontario Together Fund. In November 2021, Small Business Centres (SBC) Ontario incorporated as a nonprofit membership organization for the 54 Small Business Enterprise Centres across Ontario that have been in operation for over 30 years. By com-

preserving the entire site as an agricultural resource.

“There is an opportunity here for Minister Thompson and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs to take a strong stand in support of Ontario’s farmland and agricultural heritage, as well as the rich history of this property, by preserving the site as an agricultural resource for generations to come. In a time of food insecurity, supply chain interruptions and climate catastrophe, the Province must save, not pave over farmland”, stated CAPP member and the letter’s author, Marie-Therese Voutsinos.

ing together as a formalized network, SBC Ontario can showcase services, events, locations and e-learning in one website to increase awareness and access to supports available for small businesses as they recover from the economic impact of COVID-19.

By providing business advisory services, subjectmatter expert webinars, and free e-learning sessions, our province-wide network of localized business advisory centres launched a comprehensive outreach campaign to support small business owners during COVID and beyond.

Our network developed a series of 30 English and French free on-demand learning modules for Ontario entrepreneurs at all stages of their business journey. These evergreen sessions offer essential skills training for businesses in the idea, startup or growth stage.

More than 309,037 people reached through our central-

ized website. The SBC Ontario Website was designed as a robust resource for providing valuable information about the support and services available for Ontario small business owners.

Entrepreneurs can access free online business skills training, attend webinars on current business topics, join online meetups for peer-topeer support, read business success stories from across Ontario, as well as access regional SBEC Network programs and services available in their local area.

Growth, innovation, vitality, and job creation are all fueled by the contributions of small businesses — making them an integral part of communities throughout Ontario and our economy. The Small Business Centres Ontario came together as a network in support of the vital role to increase awareness and access to the services of Small Business Enterprise Centres throughout the Province.

Wind storm keeps OPP officers busy

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Over the weekend, officers from all across East Region were very busy with calls for service due to a major wind storm.

That storm caused major disruption on our roadways and in neighbourhoods. On Saturday, East Region OPP officers dealt with 773 Calls for service.

That's a 47% increase from the normal call volume on a Saturday in December.

The busiest period was from 5:00 p.m. on Satur-

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Should the land transfer and the planned prison proceed, it will result in the destruction of heritage farmland with a century-long history of farming, education and agrotourism.

During a November 17, 2021 public engagement session held by SolGen, staff informed local residents of plans for the land transfer to be completed in 2022, although specific timelines were not provided. In addition to requesting that Minister Thompson cease all plans to transfer the land to SolGen, CAPP is asking that she begin the process for meaningful consultation with key stakeholders with the goal of

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day until 2:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, during which time officers responded to 506 calls, which is roughly double the normal call volume for this same time period on a Saturday in December.

Top calls for this period: 142 Traffic Hazards, 53 Dangerous Conditions, 47 Wires Down and 28 Collisions.

Also, on Saturday, 53 motor vehicle collisions occurred between 8:00

a.m.-11:00 a.m. due to the ice rain conditions.

The East Region OPP would like to thank all community partners for their dedication and hard work. The excellent service provided by local volunteer fire fighters, EMS, Hydro, and township employees did not go unnoticed.

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The North Grenville Times

Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre for WDMH

18+ now eligible for covid-19 booster appointments Free Rapid Testing will be provided at pop-up locations and at selected LCBOs. To protect Ontario’s progress in the fight against COVID-19 and safeguard the Province’s hospitals and intensive care units (ICUs) in the face of the rapidly-spreading Omicron variant, the Ontario Government is rapidly accelerating its booster dose rollout by expanding eligibility to all individuals aged 18 and over, as well as shortening the interval to three months following an individual’s second dose. To provide an additional layer of protection against COVID-19 and variants during the holiday season, Ontario is also launching a holiday testing blitz starting today to offer rapid antigen screening to individuals free of charge at pop-up sites across the province, as well as selected LCBO stores across Ontario.

“As we combat the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant, nothing matters more than getting these booster doses into people’s arms” said Premier Doug Ford. “I am issuing a call to arms. We need every member of Team Ontario to stand tall and do their part as we work to protect our hard-fought progress and keep Ontarians safe.”

Starting Monday, December 20, 2021, individuals aged 18 and over are eligible to schedule their booster dose appointment through the Ontario booking portal or by calling Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre Ontario, participating pharmacies and primary care settings. Appointments will be booked three months (84 days) after a second dose, as the Province urgently expands booster eligibility to millions more individuals. Additionally, pharmacies and other channels

The cast and crew: Seated Front row (l-r): Nik Skidders as Lady RoseLynn/ Mrs Lates; Stephane Bruneau as Lord Richard; Laurie McRae-Bingley - proprietor and writer, also as: Lady Viola / Lady Marla.

Standing in back row (l-r): Alex Merizzi as Inspector Klumzo (of the local constabulary); Brett DesrosiersDirector and as: Lady Ethel/ Mrs. GetMore; Marvin Massia as: Mr Berry Handsome/ Mr Will Barrell (butler); and Mathieu Tondreau: Sound and Lights Tech Do you love watching Downton Abbey? Do you love playing Clue? Then we’ve got a great evening planned for you!

Join us for the 1920s Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre on February 12, 2022 Laurie McRae-Bingley spends her days as a kindergarten teacher and her nights as an actor, writer, and director. And she sees a lot of parallels. “Both take a lot of energy!”, she laughs.

Now, Laurie and her Murder on the Funny Side Productions theatre troupe are bringing their talents – and lots of fun - to the WDMH Foundation’s 1920s Murder Mystery Night. It will be held on February 12, 2022, at Matilda Community Hall in Dixon’s Corners.

Laurie’s original play is entitled “Clues Lead to Murder at the Down Town Abbey” (© 2016) and it is sure to en-

tertain all of the guests, even those pulled into the show. “I want everyone to have a good time and be comfortable,” says Laurie. “We have a few surprises planned for those who choose to get involved.

For everyone else, the clues will guide you!”

The theatre troupe includes six local actors playing 10 characters. They are supported by a lighting crew and a runner who keep everything on track. “We are all excited to finally bring this show back to life again for the first time in two years,” sums up Laurie. “It's a fundraiser near and dear to our hearts because many of us and our family members have been cared for at the Winchester Hospital.” In fact, Laurie’s granddaughter was born at WDMH, with a second one due in May! The event has an upscale 1920s theme. Starting with a

The Voice of North Grenville

cocktail hour, the main meal will be a delicious plated dinner which includes stuffed chicken and ham roast, by Traiteur La Bonne Bouffe Catering.

There will be an online auction the week leading up to the event. During the event, there will be a live auction – with local auctioneer Brandon Scheepers, raffles and games, and a free photo booth. Fabulous music will be provided

by Ice – No Slice. Proceeds will support the WDMH Foundation’s Family Care Fund – supporting families just like yours.

Tickets are $100 each. Purchase online at www.eventbrite.ca/e/1920s-murder-mystery-tickets-199281876457, or contact Justine Plummer at 613-774-2422 ext. 6172 or jplummer@wdmh.on.ca.

may provide boosters for 18 and over at the three-month interval starting Friday, December 17, 2021 for walk-ins.

In addition, individuals aged 50 and over, as well as all those currently eligible who have already booked their appointment at an interval of 168 days, can call Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre Ontario to re-book for an earlier date at the three-month interval and can change their appointment through Ontario’s booking portal.

“As we continue to learn more about the Omicron variant, we need all hands on deck to help limit transmission and protect our hospital capacity,” said Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “A third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine offers additional protection against the Omicron variant, and I urge everyone to get their booster dose as soon as you can. If you haven’t received your first or second dose of the vaccine, now is the time.”

To further strengthen its response to Omicron, effective December 18, 2021 at 12:01 a.m. Ontario has introduced a 50% capacity limit to the following indoor areas of venues with a usual capacity of 1,000 or more: facilities used for sports and recreational fitness activities, entertainment facilities such as concert venues, theatres, and cinemas, racing venues, meeting and event spaces, studio audiences in commercial film and television production, museums, galleries, aquariums, zoos, science centres, landmarks, historic sites, botanical gardens and similar attractions, casinos, bingo halls and other gaming establishments, and fair, rural exhibitions and festivals. This measure is being taken to

reduce opportunities for close contact in high-risk indoor settings with large crowds and when face coverings/masks are not always worn.

As part of the Government’s enhanced testing strategy, up to two million rapid tests will be provided free of charge at pop-up testing sites in high-traffic settings such as malls, retail settings, holiday markets, public libraries and transit hubs. Pop-up teams will be deployed at nearly 50 locations across the Province, including some co-located with GO-VAXX mobile vaccine buses. Most sites will distribute free take-home rapid antigen test kits, subject to supply, and some will offer asymptomatic rapid antigen screening on-site. The government will also make takehome rapid tests available at select LCBO stores starting with the busiest stores, and with more stores being added in the coming days.

Residents can visit Ontario.ca/holidaytesting to find out if pop-up rapid antigen screening sites will be available in their area. Locations and operating hours will be updated weekly, and no appointment will be required.

The latest available data suggests that the Omicron variant is more transmissible than the Delta variant and will become the dominant variant by the end of the month. Early evidence suggests that a third dose or booster can further increase protection against severe illness and hospitalization. While cases were always expected to rise, the increased transmissibility of the Omicron variant could put additional strain on Ontario’s hospital capacity, making it critical that all Ontarians receive their booster dose as soon as possible.

Merry Christmas SOUTH GOWER INDUSTRIAL PARK #2 Industrial Rd., Hwy 43 - 3km east of Hwy 16 613.258.7464 kwandk@bellnet.ca December 22, 2021

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Editorial

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And so this is Christmas...

by David Shanahan Everyone has a favourite Christmas carol or two. Some are older, religious ones, like “Away in a Manger”, or “Joy to the World”. Others are secular and more recent, like “Silver Bells”, or “White Christmas”. For me, every year, when I think of songs for the season, John Lennon’s “Happy Christmas (War is Over)” is what comes to my mind. I think it’s the question he asks that really speaks to me: “And so this is Christmas, and what have you done?”

I don’t take this as a threat, or a guilt thing: it just makes me think about the year that has passed and wonder what I have done with it. The years are passing more and more quickly now, and there are not as many left to me as there were, so the question becomes ever more relevant. Each of us have to answer it for ourselves, but there is something about this issue of the Times that is so encouraging for me, and, I hope, for you too.

The Voice of North Grenville

Look at the drawings the children of our schools made for us. There is still joy and hope and a welcome innocence, even in these jaded days. Look at all the reports of people helping people. All of the support being given to the food banks, the service clubs, those working to make sure that as many people (and their pets) as possible have a happy Christmas.

In the world in which we live, good news is sometimes hard to find. Cynicism and pessimism often seem the predominant attitudes, and there are too many times when such negativity seems justified. These last couple of years have brought an entirely new phenomenon to all of us: the pandemic, with all its new words, restrictions, fears, and demands. The world was just opening up again, when the latest version arrived, promising even more disruption and closures. But the vaccine campaign is having a definite impact, and it’s important to note what reliable sources tell us. “Almost all the people dy-

ing are now dying preventable deaths,” said Dr Chris Beyrer, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “And that’s because they’re not immunized.” This is true all over the world, no matter what the naysayers claim. Facts are facts. Rumours are dangerous and irresponsible.

Whether you are a Christian or not, Christmas is one time of the year when the negativity can be put aside for a few days or weeks. If you can ignore the commercialism and greed, not always easy to do, there is so much positivity around. People smile more, take pleasure in finding the right gifts for loved ones, and look forward to relaxing away from the day-to-day stresses of life. And that can’t be a bad thing, can it?

People like to talk and write about “the true spirit of Christmas”, but I find that not many seem to know what that is. For Christians, it is easier to define, I suppose.

It means that God showed his love for us by being born

into human nature and sharing our humanity in order to tell us about himself. More than that, he provided a way for each of us to know him and to discover why we are here, and what the meaning of life really is. That is quite a gift.

It always amuses me to think that the birthday of Jesus is celebrated every year by other people receiving gifts.

But that is God for you: wise men still seek him. Regardless of where you put your faith, Jesus is still the reason for the season.

This is our last issue of the Times before the end of the year. No paper until January 12. To continue the John Lennon quote: “Another year over, and a new one just begun”. What will 2022 bring? Who could possibly guess, given what we’ve already been through? There will be a Provincial election in June and a municipal one in October. Maybe, by then, we’ll be allowed to meet the candidates face to face again, and judge them on more than campaign brochures.

“And what have we done?” A good question. We have been through tumultuous times. Fake news. Delta.

Omicron. Planned prisons.

Fires. Floods. Climate change awareness. Businesses opening and closing. Buildings built and demolished. All the normal life of a small community going about its daily life. We have fought over issues, grieved over losses, rejoiced over successes, and celebrated festivals and accomplishments. It has ever been thus, and will, no doubt, continue to be so in the year ahead.

I hope and pray that we can continue to do so as a community, caring and compassionate usually, but angry and divided on other things. Because that is what life is, the little, day-by-day triumphs and failures. We sometimes take ourselves too seriously, and take others not seriously enough. Or vice versa, even! But, as year after year, Christmas after Christmas, goes by, maybe we can get some perspective on all of

that. How many people knew anything about the Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918-19 before Covid hit us? To the people of that time, coming straight out of a catastrophic world war that killed millions of people, it must have seemed as if the world was ending, changing forever.

They didn’t know what was yet to come.

One day, we will have forgotten much of what we now find so important. One day, we, too, may be forgotten.

So let’s not get too worked up over things, and let’s try and relax, at least for a few days over Christmas. You may not believe it, but God loves you, and time passes.

So, on behalf of all of us at the Times, may I wish you all the best and leave you for 2021 with John and Yoko’s words: “And so this is Christmas, I hope you have fun. The near and the dear ones, the old and the young. A very Merry Christmas and a happy new year. Let's hope it's a good one, without any fear”.

else could we grow? Food for people, not animals? Foolish.

We are told that some farmers "feel unsafe" and at the mercy of so-called animal rights activists who wrongly dare to wonder why cows, pigs, and chickens do not have the same protections as cats and dogs. The answer is just as obvious: we are civilized people who do not eat pets. Very high fines are in order for anyone who spies on these proprietary businesses.

No one wants to know what goes on in these facilities.

The Honourable Steve Clarke is clearly doing his best to protect the imprisoned, farmers, and struggling startups like Amazon from the predations of dangerous local activists, whose narrow, parochial interests couldn't possibly be for the greater good.

Given the poor Ontario Government is getting such biased criticism back from its own ungrateful citizens, I present a modest proposal, a solution that bypasses the ungrateful citizenry.

I applaud their clever insertion into omnibus bills of clauses to overrule local

conservation authorities, local governments, and to support developers who currently have a greater understanding, and whose political positions are in no way compromised by the large profits they stand to make from the redeployment of such useless lands.

Your government's use of Ministerial Zoning Overrides has not been taken far enough. Please, Mr. Clarke, use YOUR authority to fill in a couple of OUR local wetlands -- one for a prison, and another for an Amazon warehouse. You are OUR M.P.P. Fill in OUR wetlands, not just those in other jurisdictions. We are loyal people who have voted conservative, both provincially and federally, since Confederation.

Reward us. Don't believe this nonsense that wetlands are ecologically necessary.

Far better to have prisons and low-wage gig-economy jobs.

Low-wage jobs are better than none.

We know that you know better than us. We trust you to solve all of our local problems centrally. Please save us from ourselves.

Steve Clarke's calendar: I just looked through my 'free' calendar of "terrific local events and activities" of 2021.

What a surprise: no mention of a prison at all, so, by his own admission, it is neither "terrific" or "local" in origin.

Darrell Nunn

than usual sitting still. She very much wanted to go down the hall, but the nurses were rightfully unrelenting in their orders for her to stay in bed.

I went down the hall and was able to explain the situation to the very nice musician, a local man named Ron Donnelly.

Ron was deeply kind, and when he had finished his session in the lounge, he walked towards us down the hall.

Eleanor's face lit up like that of a little girl when she saw a guitar and heard a deep voice greeting her by name: "I hear you're a country music fan", he said and she squealed, "You bet I am". Ron asked her about her favourite song and proceeded to play 'Blue Eyes Crying in The Rain', while Eleanor sang along to every line. Ron then played a private concert for more than twenty minutes, playing every song that Eleanor asked him to. Her face was full of joy even while she was singing some pretty devastating lyrics!

It was adorable and so, so kind of Mr. Donnelly to do that. When he had to go, he allowed us to take a photo

of him with Eleanor, but it was the photo of him with his guitar that she asked me to print for her, and when I returned with a small postersize version, she asked to have it posted on her wall where she could see it from her bed. I know musicians love an appreciative audience, and there could be none more admiring than Eleanor. Ron's visit made her day, her week, and was the highest point of her recuperation. I hope he knew the extent of how his kind volunteering of his time affected my friend and helped her heal. It wasn't only the music, it was also the fact that someone valued her enough to make an effort to include her when she couldn't otherwise participate. Mr. Donnelly was loved wherever he gave his gift of music. He has left us, but he will always be remembered for his kindness and his generous heart.

Susan Hunt

Letters to the Editor Dear Editor, A Modest Proposal (with apologies to satirist Jonathon Swift, an early proponent of the value of 'alternate facts') We all know that our hardworking provincial government is getting unfair, illinformed pushback from mere citizens who have the nerve to have opinions about the placement of a necessary jail near the centre of Kemptville.

What small town does not want more residents?

There are nervy others who dare to question the paving over of a designated wetland east of Toronto for the clearly very necessary purpose of building Canada's largest Amazon warehouse.

Where is their national pride?

Big counts.

Ridiculously, still other malcontents have the audacity to challenge the new "Ag Gag laws", clearly designed to help keep feedlot farmers doing the important work of feeding growth antibiotics and GMO corn and soy to future hamburgers. If we don't use most of our farmland for these two crops, what on earth

Dear Editor, A friend of mine, I'll call her Eleanor, had a fall and was placed in Kemptville Hospital to recuperate. She was initially confined to her bed, and this was particularly frustrating for her, as she was used to living on her own and puttering about her own place at will. Enforced stillness was already a struggle, when a local country and western musician came to play in the hospital lounge. I was visiting and we could hear the notes of country music emanating from down the hall. Eleanor loves country music. Her favourite singer is Willy Nelson, and she keeps a photo of him on the wall in her living room.

On hearing the music, Eleanor had more trouble

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The North Grenville Times is published weekly by North Grenville Times Inc.

Marketing/Sales Hayley Bedford hayley@ndtimes.ca 343 777 2702 December 22, 2021

ISSN 2291-0301 www.ngtimes.ca

TIMES Marketing Gord J. Logan gord@ngtimes.ca 613-258-6402

Editor David Shanahan editor@ngtimes.ca 613-215-0735

OFFICE 613-215-0735

Accounting Pat Jessop cfo@ngtimes.ca 613-258-4671

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Staff Reporter Brandon Mayer brandon@ndtimes.ca

Mailing Address P.O. Box 1854 Kemptville, ON K0G 1J0 Production production@ngtimes.ca 613-215-0735

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The North Grenville Times ••

Significant expenditure authorized at Council meeting presented by North Grenville Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Director of Public Works, Karen Dunlop, was to auKemptville’s water pol- thorize the total expenditure, lution control plant – which which will be offset by other is the proper name for the funding sources, and to allow wastewater treatment plant in Director Dunlop to apply for a Kemptville, which is owned $10,000,000 low interest loan and operated by the Munici- with a 15% grant in order to pality of North Grenville – has cover some of the expenses of had an expansion planned the expansion. for a number of years, and During the meeting, Maya significant funding request or Peckford asked Director was made for that purpose Dunlop to confirm that the at the December 14 Council plant expansion – which had meeting. an initial goal of doubling Plans for the expansion the plant’s capacity – is not of the plant have been ongo- related to the planned coring for about five years, and rectional facility, and was, include upgrades to the treat- in fact, started years ago. ment technology, equalization Director Dunlop confirmed tanks for wet weather events, this, and said that it is the septage receiving, and addi- growth of the serviced area of tional digester space. Much North Grenville that made the of this work is to account expansion necessary. Counfor population growth in the cillor Barclay questioned why Municipality, as well as the a report in 2015 estimated proposed Kemptville correc- the cost of the expansion tional facility, with some of to be about $20,000,000, the additions being paid for by while the total cost is now the Ministry of the Solicitor estimated to be double that.

General. The December 14 Director Dunlop clarified that request to Council, which was the $20,000,000 in the 2015

by Brandon Mayer

The Voice of North Grenville

report accounted only for upgrades to the plant, and that other identified needs, such as the equalization facility, brought the initial estimate up to $29,000,000 at the time.

The rest of the discrepancy is accounted for by the additional expansion demanded by the planned correctional facility, the costs of which will be covered by the Ministry of Solicitor General.

Council ultimately moved to authorize the estimated $39,390,000 expenditure for the plant’s upgrade, with Mayor Peckford making it clear that the cost will be offset by third party funding sources, including the $10,000,000 loan for which Director Dunlop was authorized to apply. The municipality is expecting to put out tenders for the remaining expansion work following funding approval in March or April of 2022, with an estimated project timeline of two years.

UPDATE

For updates related to COVID-19 and the North Grenville Municipal Centre visit: www.northgrenville.ca/coronavirus

MUNICIPAL OFFICE HOURS

Municipal Centre Office hours are between 8:30 am and 5:00 pm (Monday-Friday).

Note: Municipal offices will be CLOSED Monday, December 27th and will re-open Tuesday, January 4th, 2022.

Sign-up to Mayor Peckford’s e-newsletter at: www.northgrenville.ca/connect.

WASTE MANAGEMENT SCHEDULING

· Solid Waste, Organics, and Recycling Pick-Up There is no change to the waste collection schedule. Visit NGrecycles.ca for more information. · Oxford Mills Waste Transfer Station The Oxford Mills Waste Transfer Station will be CLOSED on Saturday, December 25th, 2021, and Saturday, January 1st, 2022.

BUILDING INSPECTIONS

If you require building inspections on Tuesday, January 4th, 2022, please notify the Building Division no later than 5:00 pm on Thursday, December 23rd, 2021.

UPCOMING MEETINGS COUNCIL MEETINGS

Council meetings will be conducted virtually via Zoom beginning in January 2022.

For any members of the public wanting to attend the meeting virtually, pre-registration is required by e-mailing clerk@northgrenville.on.ca. To make a deputation in relation to an item on the agenda, please pre-register with the Clerk's Office at the same e-mail address. Please provide your comments no later than two hours prior to the start of the meeting. If you require accommodation, please advise the Clerk’s Office when pre-registering so that they may best assist you.

Council meetings will be live streamed on YouTube at: youtube.com/user/NorthGrenville/featured and on the Municipality’s website at: northgrenville.ca/govern/governance/agendas-and-minutes.

Council agendas are available at: northgrenville.ca/govern/governance/agendas-and-minutes.

• Council Meeting (Open) – Virtual -Tuesday, January 11, 2021 at 6:30 pm

ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETINGS

Letters con'd Dear Editor Oh dear, Mr Editor, in your latest edition, many thanks for squeezing my bird poem in, Unfortunately, in doing so, my name was suddenly changed unexpectedly, much to my chagrin!

I’m not upset really, - I’ve still got a full head of hair, And to say that I am BALDIN’ you’ll have to agree, really isn’t quite fair!

By now you have probably got the point of this ditty, Which I hope you have found both concise and witty, I’ve tried to do it in not too many words, So, I’ll just say no more as this BALDWIN’s gone back to his Birds!

John Baldwin (This poem was written commenting on a “Typo” error made in the author’s name, when his now weekly article, Baldwin’s Birds, was published, for which he is very grateful, in The North Grenville Times last week!)

Committee meetings will be conducted virtually via Zoom. For any members of the public wanting to attend the meeting virtually, pre-registration is required by e-mailing the Clerk’s Office at clerk@ northgrenville.on.ca.

Traffic stop leads to charges On December 9, 2021, at approximately 5:00 p.m., members of the Leeds, Grenville & Lanark Community Street Crime Unit conducted a traffic stop on Highway 416 in the Municipality of North Grenville. The investigation led to the arrest of the sole occupant. A search of the vehicle and driver, resulted in the seizure of a quantity of suspected cocaine and illicit Cannabis. A male, aged 62, of Edwardsburgh Township, was charged with: Possession of Schedule I Substance (Cocaine) for the purpose of Trafficking - Controlled Drugs Substances Act sec. 5(2) ; Possession for the Purpose of Distributing - Cannabis Act sec. 9(2); Failure to comply with Undertaking - Criminal Code sec. 145(4)(a).

He is scheduled to appear at the Ontario Court of Justice

the north grenville

TIMES

• Agriculture and Rural Affairs Advisory Committee – January 5, 2021 at 4:15 pm • Heritage Advisory Committee – January 6, 2021 at 7:00 pm • Community and Economic Development Advisory Committee – January 10, 2021 at 3:00 pm • Health, Wellness and Fitness Advisory Committee – January 10, 2021 at 5:00 pm

HOLIDAY SKATING

Additional public skate times are being offered over the holiday season: December 20 11:00 am -12:20 pm December 22 12:00 pm -1:20 pm December 23 4:30 pm - 5:50 pm December 27 11:00 am -12:20 pm December 29 11:00 am - 12:20 pm AND 6:30 - 7:50 pm For the full schedule visit our calendar of events at www.northgrenville.ca

in Brockville on January 12, 2022.

If you have any information on the above investigations or any other, please contact Grenville OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-(TIPS) 8477 or submit your tip online at www.ontariocrimestoppers.ca. Crime Stoppers does not want your name, you don't go to court, and you could earn a cash reward.

The Municipality of North Grenville 285 County Rd. 44, PO Box 130, Kemptville, ON K0G 1J0 Tel: 613-258-9569 Fax: 613-258-9620 general@northgrenville.on.ca www.NorthGrenville.ca Building: 613-258-9569 x130 Fax: 613-258-1441 Fire Services Info: 613-258-9569 x201 Fax: 613-258-1031 By-Law Services: email: bylawinquiries@northgrenville.on.ca 613-258-9569 x211 Police Administration: 613-258-3441 Animal Control: 613-862-9002

Send in your letters to the editor to

Roundabouts are safer than intersections

editor@ngtimes.ca

The World Economic Forum did a study on the 256 roundabouts in Indiana. This study was conducted from 2016 to the present, and it showed that roundabouts have reduced traffic deaths by 90% and reduced injuries by traffic accidents by 76%.

Additionally, each roundabout saves $5,000 per year compared to intersections with lights.

Based on this, roundabouts should be used instead of intersections.

Gord Logan

Marketing Consultant Phone 613 258 6402 Email: gord@ngtimes.ca

December 22, 2021

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73’s battle hard to take a road win

by the sportsguy Sunday matinee excursion with the Raiders in Nepean was a back and forth contest until Kemptville handed the game over with soft penalties to turn into a chase for the 7-5 win. Kemptville struck first at 7:12, when Merrett caught Matthew O’ Doherty flying up the wing to rifle one by Connor Shibley. Coleman on the move with Krulicki to find Ryan Cartwright in the slot to punch it in, to close the first with 2 zip for the 73’s.

Raiders bounced back in the second with Zachary Lefebvre PPG from Rivard to spoil Tyler Laureault SO attempt at 1:52. Then to even it up at 11:32 as Bennett’s stretch pass to Jeff Taylor breaking behind the “D” of 73’s. Tie breaker for Kemptville with man advantage when Merrett controlled the line across to Beaudry, to Hunter Brazier cocked and loaded for PPG at 15:52. Nepean reacted at 16:57 with a helper from Bennett to sping Zachary Lefebvre for a tie. Kemptville closed out the period when Mathew York counted a PPG from Krulicki and Howie cycling low at 17:48 to put them within one.

Merrett up the wall to Lammi with Hunter Brazier in toe to put it in the back of the net at 4:41 for the tie. Lammi on the move with Patrick Larkin walking into the slot to rifle it between the pegs for the tie breaker at 8:12. Kemptville picked up some soft penalties to hand the game back to the Raiders, as they evened it when Bennett connected with Zachary Lefebvre PPG at 16:32. Kemptville had to sustain a four minute sin bin visit and Nepean pulled

#13

Lane Morency Nickname: “Wayne” Born: Kingston, ON. February 20, 2004 Position: Right Wing Previous Hockey Club: Westport Rideaus Hockey Hero: Nathan McKinnon Most Inspiring Person: Gordie Howe Favourite TV Show: The Office Favourite Musician: Luke Combs Favourite Food: Caesar Salad Favourite Hockey Moment: Major Bantam playoffs winning goal Favourite Sport other than Hockey: Rugby One word that describes me: Driven 613.258.6607

their stopper at 18:37. Jeff Taylor PPG took advantage with helpers from Lefebvre and Touliopoulos to break the tie for Nepean at 19:08. 73’s bounced back at 19:50 when Merrett’s tenacity caught Chase Lammi ENG free to bang it home for the win.

This contest turned into a shooting gallery with 86 SOG, with Kemptville offering their opponents 9 PP attempts.

Smiths Falls Bears meeting for Tuesday evening was cancelled due to scheduling issues.

Renfrew Wolves’ visit to the 73’s barn for Friday night was postponed because of COVID protocol.

Please stay tuned as we are not sure what the new CJHL schedule will be.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from your 73's...

Grant Eastwood, Ty Whyte, Patrick Haughian posed with their young fans

New initiative seeks to keep North Grenville active

by Brandon Mayer

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Personal trainer, Stacey Halliday, is spearheading a 21-day challenge to keep the North Grenville community active in the new year. The initiative is being run through Anytime Fitness Kemptville, where Stacey works. The program will run from January 10-30, and includes things such as meal planning, small group training sessions, and daily challenge videos, for

a one-time fee of $199 for gym members, and $225 for members of the community who don’t belong to the gym.

Stacey, who is also a member of North Grenville’s Health, Wellness, and Fitness Advisory Committee, had battled obesity most of her life before changing her lifestyle in her early 30s. When asked if those who are more shy or self-conscious can still participate in the program, Stacey confirmed that the program can be completed

from home, if that is what makes someone comfortable.

In July, North Grenville was named Canada’s Most Active Community by ParticipACTION, a national notfor-profit organization which promotes healthy living and physical fitness. The award came with a $100,000 prize, and the Municipality put out a survey to assess residents’ opinions on the best use of the money. The intention now is to use the money for four projects: a new play structure at Crozier Park in Oxford Mills, a new play structure at Oxford Station Park, a new rink shed at Bishop Mills Park, and a new swing set at Henry Street Beach in Burritt’s Rapids.

When asked how her new initiative fits in with North Grenville’s recent honour, Stacey responded, “I think that it will give the residents another program to use as motivation to keep moving.

We all killed it in June, getting and staying active all month,

to win this title. I want to help offer a way to keep the momentum going, or even to inspire getting moving. The winter is a hard season for a lot of people, whether it is the weather and higher risk of injury, or it could be isolation or mood.”

She also expressed optimism for the future. “I hope we will enter the challenge in 2022 and keep our title!”

Those looking to learn more about the importance of physical activity for promoting both physical and mental health can start by visiting the ParticipACTION website, particularly the pages on physical literacy www. participaction.com/en-ca/resources/physical-literacy, and sports and activities www. participaction.com/en-ca/ resources/activities-index.

WISHING YOU A SAFE HOLIDAY SEASON From our Kemptville Physiotherapy famliy to yours

PHONE

613-258-7661

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INFO@KEMPTVILLEPHYSIO

KEMPTVILLEPHYSIO.COM

December 22, 2021

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The “Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds” approach and physical activity

by Danielle Labonte, MPH, MAN, RD, Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit Parents and caregivers can help children have healthy bodies and healthy minds by role modelling healthy active living. This can begin with making physical activity a part of family time. Plan physical activity into your weekends, vacation time and general family time – remember to always keep the focus on having fun and feeling good.

Encourage children to try new and challenging activities that help them develop new skills and confidence. It’s important for children to learn to move in a variety of ways, for example: jumping, running, climbing, throwing and catching. We are now learning that limiting outdoor play and being too protective may affect children’s development.

We want children to be safe

and learn to avoid hazards, but we also want to encourage them to challenge their bodies’ abilities while they learn to identify and manage risks.

Children benefit from being given the freedom to explore.

This can build their confidence, resilience, problem solving skills and learning limits. It is important to give children time for unstructured adventurous play, which lets them guide their own activities. Playing outside in nature is a great way for unstructured play to happen naturally!

The final piece to the “Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds” approach is mental well-being. We can help children be mentally healthy by having a positive view on bodies and well-being, and accepting and respecting themselves and others around them. Healthy bodies come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Celebrate the positive qualities in yourself and oth-

ers, and help children do the same. Encourage children to compliment others on their talents and skills, rather than appearance. Teach them how to accept and appreciate comments. These are good practices for everyone!

We often see and hear unhealthy and unrealistic pictures and messages in the media. It’s important to teach children how to question what they see and hear. Think about whether or not it’s realistic or healthy. Ask yourself if the message is trying to sell you something, and who it’s from – is it from a researcher, health professional or celebrity? Challenge the media messages and pictures that make you feel bad about your body and help children learn how to do the same.

For more information, visit www.healthunit.org, connect with us on Facebook and Twitter, or call 1-800660-5853.

Thank you from Norma Fisher

My friends and neighbours gave me an unbelievable present for my 100th birthday when they gathered together at CaDecember 22, 2021

wonderful gift. I want to thank everyone who was there.

A special thank you to the friends who organised the event: Ellen Miller, Fran Thompson, and Maggie Boyer. The amount of time and energy that they must have put into it was really amazing. Thanks, also, to all those who said such kind words and made the evening so much fun.

Garth, as always, serenaded me with Happy Birthday.

Ray Adams and John Casgrain supplied the music.

A special thank you to Rick and Debbie at Grahame’s Bakery for the lovely cake. Jim and Judy Beveridge for the gift of 100 beautiful roses to decorate the venue, and my corsage.

Jim McManaman was a wonderful chauffeur on the night, and I was honoured by having not one, but two mayors speak: Nancy Peckford and Ralph Raina.

It was a wonderful and unforgettable night, and Catered Affairs provided a lovely venue and a great meal too. Thank you, one and all, for giving me such a tered Affairs for a surprise magnificent birthday. I will party. To have my nieces, never forget it. nephews, and brother from Alberta and Quebec was a wonderful surprise, and a 11

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The Law Office of

Connie Lamble

S E A S O N ' S

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas

G R E E T I N G S December 22, 2021

222 Prescott Street, Kemptville www.lamble.ca connie@lamble.ca

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Last chance to get the NGAG Big Sky Ranch Christmas Colouring Book

Jewellery Repairs ~ Custom Designing Appraisals ~ Engraving

Merry Christmas 107 Prescott St., Kemptville 613-258-1118

by NGAG The community response to The Big Sky Ranch Colouring Book has been phenomenal. The North Grenville Art Guild fund-raising effort for Big Sky Ranch Rescue is flying off the shelves. The colouring book is printed on art paper, with one side left blank for budding artists to create masterpieces of their very own. The quality of materials used makes it possible for them to use paints, markers, or pencils. It can even be framed, making it a value of two gifts for the price of one, providing many hours of fun and creativity.

You can purchase your copy of the limited run gift at the North Grenville Public Library, Pet Value, and of course B & H Your Community Grocery Store. It can be ordered online through the NGAG web site as well. The cost is $10.00 per book.

Due to the high volume of sales to date, if you have been thinking about gifting one this Christmas, better not wait.

They’re going fast!

!"#$%&#'" (")*+,- ./ 0."1*2 3 4'$$)/

Home Again, 1901 December 22, 2021

Crysler 613-987-5243

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Oxford Station 613-258-3445

Addison 613-924-2632

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The Voice of Merrickville-Wolford

A Christmas message from Mayor Doug Struthers

My goodness – how to put things in perspective? That is not a rhetorical question.

The Covid 19 pandemic is persistent – and so as a community we must continue to be persistent. This pandemic is a problem – however, a first world problem during a pandemic. For the past 20 some months we have not had any community spread nor outbreaks. We have been persistent, our businesses have been persistent, organized events have been persistent - in following the guidelines of distancing, wearing masks and getting our vaccines, especially booster vaccines.

And yet here we are facing another more persistent variant of Covid. We know what to do, we have a solid foundation of experience from which to fend off community spread and outbreaks.

Even in these unprecedented times, we conjure questions such as what will recovery be like in 2022?

It is a tough one as all the traditional means of projecting employment and growth have changed, due to factors such as people working from home, the move toward support and shop local, various government relief programs for small business, changing business models and pivoting due to Covid. All levels of government are trying to answer this question and provide support for “economic recovery”.

The Village has been communicating with businesses through e-blasts to share information about various government resources and supDecember 22, 2021

port programs related to Covid (and posted on our website and FB), have reached out to businesses that requested information in response to business survey conducted across the municipality in partnership with the UCLG Economic Development office, promoted programs to help businesses improve their online presence such as the Digital Main Street Program and Digital Service Squad members, refers local businesses to local business support organizations and continues to respond to individual business enquiries and to work with businesses across all industry sectors to reach their growth goals for the municipality.

And we have had so much community development and collaboration across our entire community: business welcome package, street beautification, in events and fundraisers happening around the community such as the Holiday Food Drive, Fair Board chilly dinner, MAG fundraising for young and emerging artists. In the development we see across the entire municipality including housing developments, business and farm expansions which are significant investments in our community. And of course we have all seen the great press around the Makers Market and Christmas in Merrickville recently, to name a few.

All good news stories of what it takes to maintain and build our economy – and to keep our collective community safe and prosperous.

I’ll take a moment to draw your attention to the extreme commitment and personal sacrifice of our Operations staff and Firefighters. This in light of the recent windstorm, but seemingly without limit on a daily basis. This does not happen without exemplary leadership from Chief Cole and ongoing support from other staff of our overall municipal team. These are extraordinary times during the pandemic and yet he, his teams and all staff persistently step up to maintain service levels, preserve the quality of

life and keep our community safe.

I was recently asked to tell my wishes for 2022 for Merrickville-Wolford. Here goes….

Continued successful economic recovery from the pandemic for all our businesses Continued diligence in our community keeping us all safe from COVID-19

We have set the table well Continue to wear masks, maintain distance, ramp up your precautions - and really think about social gatherings!

We are in a good place and we want to stay there!

Let’s keep our eyes on the prize.

Wishing everyone a merry – and safe – Christmas and New Year.

the north grenville

TIMES

Hayley Bedford

Marketing Consultant

Phone: 343-777-2702 Email: hayley@ndtimes.ca www.ndtimes.ca

It’s all here.

Merrickville-Wolford

WISHING YOU A

Merry Christmas

ALLAN’S TOOL SHED

VIOLETS ON MAIN

Mayor Struthers and members of Council wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and safe New Year.

FIONA MCINTYRE SILVERSMITH

THE JOY OF OLIVES

CHAIYA DECOR

MUNICIPAL FIREWORKS SURVEY FOR MERRICKVILLE-WOLFORD RESIDENTS & BUSINESS OWNERS Council is seeking your feedback.

Check out our website to complete the survey at www.merrickville0wolford.ca Follow the link on our home page Survey closes at noon on January 14, 2022 Thank you in advance for your input.

GRAY ART GLASS

MARY LOOS ARTIST

Visit merrickvillechamber.ca for details on our shop local $1000+ shopping spree draw!

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Merrickville’s pioneer newspaper part 2

by David Shanahan Thomas Alexander Parnell was very much a churchman of his time. In the nineteenth century, the Anglican Church in Canada saw itself as the church of the Establishment, the leader in social and political mores and attitudes.

Parnell, as the Minister for both Merrickville and Burritt’s Rapids, was a recognized figure of authority throughout the area served by his churches, and, through the agency of the Canadian Churchman newspaper, exerted an influence far beyond.

As it neared the end of its first year of publication, his newspaper had attracted subscribers throughout Canada West and agents for the paper were located as far away as Port Hope, Alderville and Morrisburg. The paper was even available in Quebec City. The pages of the Canadian Churchman were filled with news and information, both secular and churchrelated. Train schedules for both Brockville and Prescott lines appeared each week, alongside lengthy reports on diocesan matters, histories of the Archbishops of Canterbury, and general news items. There was coverage of the American Civil War, then in full flow, usually with a pronounced sympathy for the Confederate cause. This was the common stance of Canadians and the British Empire generally, leading to very strained relations with the United States Government.

Side by side with advertisements for Beeton’s Illuminated Family Bible, or the Englishwoman’s Domestic Magazine, were promotions for Spalding’s Throat Confections and various insurance companies. But there was

always a note of admonition about the articles Parnell chose to publish. Some were critical of women in the congregation who, instead of listening attentively to his sermons on Sundays, cast jealous or dismissive glances at each other’s hats. Other articles complained about the lack of financial support provided by congregants to their minister, although there were also reports of very generous donations.

As mentioned in the last article, Donation Visits were a feature of parish life. In 1863, for example, as Parnell was about to leave for a few weeks vacation “for the benefit of his health”, a large gathering visited him at the parsonage for an evening of music and fellowship. They also brought along the usual donation of food and wood, accompanied by a generous gift of more than $50. This was in addition to a gift of $45 from the Burritt’s Rapids congregation, a Christmas collection of around $65, and his usual stipend as a minister.

That this was a normal part of church life is shown by the appearance of an article in the same issue reporting a similar Donation Visit made to the minister in Kemptville.

But, as the year progressed, some readers began to complain about the content of the paper. Parnell was forced to cease publishing his series on the History of English Literature, as he was informed that people weren’t reading it. Others were unhappy that much of the newspaper in the summer of 1863 was taken up by a comprehensive reprinting of the entire proceedings of the diocesan synod. But such content was an indication of how closely Parnell was

The Canadian Churchman is now remembered in the Anglican Church as having been established in 1875, after Parnell had moved to Kingston and relinquished control of the paper. Today, it is known as the Anglican Journal; but we can now remember that Volume 1, Number 1 was published in the village of Merrickville in 1862, before moving out into the wider world.

involved in the wider affairs of the diocese.

This Merrickville newspaper was having an impact far beyond the boundaries of the village. And T. A. Parnell was gaining a reputation within the Anglican Church too. By the end of the second year of the newspaper, he had been promoted to Archdeacon and transferred to Kingston, seat of the Diocese, where he took on the role of Clerical Secretary to Synod. The Canadian Churchman moved with him, leaving Merrickville behind. The Canadian Churchman passed to the control of others, but Thomas Alexander Parnell had not seen the last of this region.

When the long-serving Rector in Kemptville, John Stannage, died in 1880, Parnell was sent to replace him, while Stannage’s curate, Albert Spencer, went to Kingston to take on Parnell’s role as Clerical Secretary and, apparently, control of the newspaper as well. In fact, the copies of the Canadian Churchman used for these articles were originally owned by Albert Spencer. But Parnell did stay long in Kemptville. In fact, at the very first Vestry meeting after his arrival, he announced that he intended to resign as soon as possible. T. A. Parnell had been transferred to a diocese in New York State by the mid-1880's, and there he worked until he retired. He died in 1915.

Have a Safe & Happy Holiday!

Robin Chinkiwsky Broker of Record 613.302.8852

Head office: 613.269.2222 email: admin@3point5.ca www.3point5.ca

Comfort Bringers, Merrickville, 1921

Avoiding the dentist since covid started?

Not to worry Welcome to our newly renovated dental office located on the Rideau Canal in the historic village of Merrickville

Almost every room has a view of the water that will surely make you feel relaxed and comfortable.

Our office provides many services, including • Preventive Dentistry • Family Dentistry ages 0-99 • Implant and Restorative Dentistry • Orthodontics including Invisalign

WOW!!!!!!

Hey, We’re Back!

• Cosmetic Dentistry • Crown and Bridge • Denture

Accepting new patient

Boxing Week

When you come into our office for a full comprehensive exam, cleaning, and x-rays, make sure you have this ad from the paper and we will provide free teeth whitening to eligible patients.

Sale

10% off

Full Service! Over 20 Years Experiance!

*4.5% on vacant land

Rowland Bags

20-50%off

Belts, Wallets, Gloves Derek Alexander, Osgoode Marley

Rowland Leather

Merrickville

613.269.3535

159 St. Lawrence St. 613-355-0736 Open 11-4 Closed Dec 25th, 26th, Jan 1st December 22, 2021

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We are currently following all covid proticoles

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Christmas in Merrickville 2021 The Official Kickoff to the Holiday Season

Lions celebrated with free hot apple cider.

by Robyn Eagle, President, M-W & District Chamber of Commerce Christmas in Merrickville is the traditional kickoff to the holiday season in Merrickville-Wolford, scheduled the first Saturday of December.

This year, due to COVID, the events and activities were once again scaled back to ensure that everyone maintained safe distancing.

Much thanks goes out to the many volunteers who worked tirelessly to decorate the Village Core in a Victorian style characterized by greenery and lights with gold and

red balls and bows. The Village Core was also enhanced by those businesses which participated in the decorating contest which Nellie’s Room won for Most Victorian, and Chaiya Decor for Most Festive.

The Silent Auction is another tradition that Heather Dallaire and her team organizes to raise funds for local charities. Many thanks to the businesses who donated items for the auction which brought in $2,600! The local charities that will benefit are: The Merrickville Food Bank, Interval House, Beth Dono-

pers more time to look for that special something in the many unique stores in town.

Many visitors came from far and wide to experience the small town feel of Merrickville, hear carols sung by the North Grenville Choir, and stop to chat with Santa and Mrs. Claus. The day ended in the traditional Tree Lighting Ceremony accompanied by the ringing of church bells and the annual holiday message from our Mayor.

On behalf of the Merrickville-Wolford & District Chamber of Commerce, and members of the Christmas In Merrickville Committee, I wish to thank all our Chamber Members and volunteers, who, through your efforts, made Christmas In Merrickville 2021 such an enjoyable and festive kickoff to the holiday season!

I don't think I am alone in saying how truly blessed we are to live and work in such an amazing and giving community.

van Hospice, and A Chance Animal Rescue.

The Caleigh Girls, a group of local women, coordinated a Photo Shoot to raise funds to help the Rideau Bridge to Canada (RBC) sponsor an Afghan refugee family start a new life in Merrickville.

Funds raised by the Photo Shoot and sale of cookies raised over $6,000. This will be the third family for which the RBC has raised funds to sponsor, which requires $50,000 to achieve. Anyone wishing to help the Rideau Bridge with a cash donation can contact them at www. merrickville-bridge.ca.

Our local Lions Club also added to the festivities by providing free hot apple cider.

Thanks to Rob Balsillie from Vinyl Destination for providing the hot chocolate. CTV News was also on hand to capture the sights, interview a few people, and chat about the Shop Local Initiative which includes a chance to win a $1,000 shopping spree.

For more information on the Shop Local Initiative, check out www.merrickvillechamber.ca.

Shops were open between 9 am and 7pm to allow shop-

Santa and Mrs. Claus at Chritmas in Merrickville

Invasive Brown Marmorated Stink Bug found in Merrickville

by William Langenberg We have a new pest.

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (Halyomorpha halys) is an excellent hitchhiker and extremely invasive. It made its way to Canada from China in shipping containers. It was first found in Hamilton, Ontario in 2010. This insect has made it across the North American Continent in wood, packing material, cargo and on trucks. It may have come into my house on firewood. It is a nuisance in homes as it aggregates in warm rooms. This Asian bug has been spreading around the world since 2015 and is now abundant in British Columbia, particularly in Chilliwack, Abbotsford and Kelowna BC. The BC Ministry of Agriculture is asking the public’s help to report if they find one.

The Australian border guards are on the alert in trying to prevent this nuisance bug entering their country.

They hired sniffing dogs able December 22, 2021

to sniff out the bugs in the containers when they arrive.

The Brown Marmorated Stink Bug is an insect that sucks the juices out of every garden fruit it can find in the garden. It loves to live inside the homes during the winter months as I just discovered this afternoon. It loves to crawl up walls and window panes. Try to kill it with a flyswatter it will release a terrible odour, that’s why it is called "stink bug".

How to identify the

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB): 1. Black and white striped antennae, white at the end of the fourth as well as at the beginning of the fifth element 2. Five bright points on the pronotum 3. Black and white legs 4. Elongated, black spots on the membrane wings 5. Abdomen is black and white laced

Have a Safe & Happy Holiday!

613-283-7444

www.ogilviesauto.com Open Monday to Friday 8 am to 5:30 pm 714 Kilmarnock Road, Jasper We are fully authorized to perform warranty-approved maintenance on new vehicle

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Open 9 to 4 Tuesday to Saturday

Wishing you a MERRY CHRISTMAS and all the best in the NEW YEAR 3 Industrial Road Kemptville

Phone 613-258-0327

Best wishes to you and your family for health and happiness in the coming year.

Bryonie Baxter*

Advisor Tel: 613-878 1367 bryonie.baxter@sunlife.com advisor.sunlife.ca/bryonie.baxter *Mutual fund business is done with your advisor through Sun Life Financial Investment Services (Canada) Inc. Advisors and their corporations conduct insurance business through Sun Life Financial Distributors (Canada) Inc. Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada is the insurer, and is a member of the Sun Life group of companies. © Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada, 2022.

Christmas Cards, 1911

December 22, 2021

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The North Grenville Times

The Voice of North Grenville

S�u�� Br�n�� E����nt��� S�ho��

It is a magical time of year!

Mer�� Christ�as and stay safe

From Our Family to Yours

Wishing you a Safe Merry Christmas

613.658.3123

HOME - AUTO - COMMERCIAL - FARM - TRAVEL

13 Centre St., Spencerville December 22, 2021

info@purcellinsurance.ca

www.creeksidedentalcentre.ca 18

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H��� Cros� E����nt��� S�ho��

Merry Christmas

Help Support Your Local Businesses SHOP LOCALLY December 22, 2021

From all of us at Seniors' Community Services Thank you for helping support seniors to live WELL in your community. www.seniorscs.ca 613-258-3203 19

Registered Charity BN 118979111RR0001

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Looking to buy or sell your home?

As your Royal LePage REALTOR®, I’m committed to guiding you every step of the way.

JenniferHindorff. com ®

www.

Independently Owned and Operated, Brokerage

OFFICE: 613.258.1990

MOBILE: 613.218.7128

Realtor

jenniferhindorff@Royallepage.ca

Ec��� R������ Ri�e��

Christmas fun from 1910 Little Mary’s father had denied her a Christmas gift which she had confidently expected. That night, when she said her prayers at her mother’s jknee, she concluded with this petition: “And please don’t give my papa any more children. He don’t know how to treat those he has now!”.

“Did you the watch you got for Christmas stop when it dropped on the floor?”, asked one man of his friend.

“Sure”, was the answer. “Did you think it would go through?

“You admit, then”, inquired the Magistrate severely, “that you stole the pig which this poor widow was saving for Christmas? | I have to, boss”, said the prisoner.

“Very well”, returned the Magistrate, with decision, “there has been a lot of pig-stealing going on around here lately, and I am going to mae an example of you, or none of us will be safe”.

“I saw your mother going to one of the neighbours just as I crossed the street”, said the Christmas caller. “Do you know when she will be back?”

“Yes’m”, answered the truthful Johnny; “she said she’d be back just as soon as you left”.

Streets and Christmas. 1921 December 22, 2021

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Peace & Joy throughout the Holidays and into the New Year!

The Voice of North Grenville

Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year

613.258.5745 613-706-1250

2895 Highway #43 Kemptville www.cranberryhill.ca staff@cranberryhill.ca

2678 Cty Rd 43

www.stevenscreekshutterco.ca

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

to all our current and future customers in North Grenville and beyond Thank you for your patronage, stay well, stay safe!

Grahame's Bakery

115 Clothier St. E., Kemptville www.grahamesbakery.com

613.258.2317

Crown Bakery, 1921

Wishing Everyone a Safe and Happy Holiday

Season's Greetings from George Tackaberry and Family and the Staff of G. Tackaberry & Sons Construction Co. Ltd.

613-258-3612 Kemptville

Tel: 613.258.3479

tackaberryconstruction.com

CANADIAN TIRE STORE 311 Ryan's Well Drive, Kemptville December 22, 2021

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H��� Cros� E����nt��� S�ho��

Misspelt ad, 1921 Odd to have a misspelling of Christmas, not to mention the furniture store that assures the shopper that they will find “something that will please”, and then notes their services as Funeral Directors!

Wishing You a Safe & Merry Christmas

Corporate/Business Tax Planning & Preparation

Wishing all my Past, Present & Future Clients,Family & Friends a Merry Christmas and a

613-258-9492 www.solutionone.ca 3 Clothier St E, Kemptville, ON

Happy New Year Broker

Cell: 613 868 6068 info@TheConnectionsTeam.ca www.TheConnectionsTeam.ca

RE/MAX Affiliates Realty Ltd. December 22, 2021

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Paul A. Jansen, BA, LLB. Rachel S. Jansen, B.Comm., J.D. Christmas Recreation, 1901

JANSEN LAW

613.258.7462 215 Van Buren Street,

info@jansenlaw.com www.jansenlaw.com

Barristers, Solicitors & Notaries Public

Merry Christmas Christmas Merry

frfrom om the TheBeth BethDonovan Donovan HosHospice pice Thank you all for your support Thank you all for your support

Warm wishes from everyone at Body and Sole

Contact us for more information on all our free services: Contact us for more information • Equipment Lending on all free services: • our Grief & Bereavement Counselling • Day Hospice • In-Home Visiting Equipment Lending • Lending Library Grief & Bereavement Counselling • Day Caregiver HospiceSupport Contact Donovan Hospice at program In-HomeBeth Visiting Lending Library @bethdonovanhospice.ca or 613-258-9611 ext. 0.

Caregiver Support

Your local foot care and orthotics professionals

Happy Holidays from Valley Sanitation Ltd

Septic & holding tank pumping, repairs, installations and inspections

613-258-5508

613-215-0517

301 Rideau St. Kemptville Ontario bodyandsolefootcare@gmail.com solesvars.ca

December 22, 2021

2230 County RD #43, Kemptville www.ValleySanitation.ca 23

613 258 2333

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CROSSWORD

Classifieds FOR SALE

Cooper Snow Tires (4) 235/70R16/ Driven 26,000 kms. Phone 613 258 7072 Firewood for sale. Cut, split, seasoned, mixed hardwood. $105/face cord. Call Ken 613 323 5503 BMW Rims.

205/55R/16 Continental run flat snow tires with working pressure monitors $600. Talk/Text 613-325-0845 WINE BOTTLES, Empty, about 60 of them, suitable for brewing your own wine; $0.50 each. 613-258-5558 or gilliantrojan@gmail. com.

4 x 225/65/17 snow tires on rims V.g.c. $425 o,n,o,; 613 258 6631/613 297 3329 Triple Crown steel hay feeder, 46 W X 74 L X 70 H $350. Contact Reg Smith 613 853-1442.

For sale, 4 Toyo snow tires, 225/55R17, driven 1 winter, like new. Call 613-915-4228

Invacare Mobility Scooter just like new. Only used 1 summer, stored inside.

Asking $3000, will consider reasonable offer. Call Kim 613-852-7031 Used steel farm gates: 4 ft $80, 8 ft $150, 10 ft $175, 12 ft $200. 50 gallon water tub $30. Contact Reg Smith 613 853-1442 Firewood for sale - mixed hardwood, 3 cord minimum for delivery, $110 per cord, call Jon 613-227-3650 Save on firewood, you pick up. Mixed hardwood $45/ face-cord. Call Wayne, 613 808 8923 MISCELLANEOUS Looking to rent farmland for cash crops. Call or text Mitch @ 613-262-1204.

Musician looking for a local performing music group/combo/ band to join — I'm a ‘somewhat older’ singer/rhythm guitar player (keyboard occasionally).

Call/text 613-404-3182

SERVICES RETIRED CARPENTER Renovations, kitchens, bathrooms, additions, decks, home repair.

Call George at 613 462 7637

HANDYMAN SERVICES Call Bill 613 774 2922

The Food Corner

by Paul Cormier, Salamanders of Kemptville Some families have replaced the familiar turkey during the festive season with roast beef, for example a prime rib. While this is expensive fare, it is also delicious if you happen to be a meat lover. For Yorkshire puddings, our family uses a simple popover recipe. The advantage of popovers is their versatility; if you happen to be a vegetarian, it can form the basis for darn near anything you can think of, including a fruit-filled dessert. The popover is quite simple to prepare and looks quite spectacular at the dinner table, no matter how you use it.

Popovers Ingredients: 1 cup of milk and 2 eggs at room temperature A pinch of salt 1 cup of all-purpose flour December 22, 2021

Preparation: 1. Place one of your oven racks in the middle of your oven and pre-heat to 400F; 2. Whisk together the milk, eggs and salt; 3. Sprinkle with flour and thicken the mixture; don’t over-mix and leave a few small lumps; 4. Grease or spray 8 muffin cups and distribute your batter evenly among them; 5. Bake for ½ hour; quickly puncture the top of each popover with a sharp knife; 6. Put them back in the oven for another 10 or 15

The Voice of North Grenville

HELP WANTED Looking for someone to do a CAD drawing for a small project. Please call- 613215-0660 Someone with a clean truck and helper to move a 7ft couch from Kemptville to Mountain when no rain. Call 613-519-5281 C587-3770170\ FOR RENT HISTORIC HALL AVAILABLE FOR RENTALS in Beautiful Burritts Rapids! Start a book club in time for cooler weather in a hamlet near walking trails and parkettes. Our hall is well equipped for any gathering or celebration, and we offer very competitive rates. http:// burrittsrapids.com/ WANTED Local young farming family looking to buy a farm. Min. 10ac tillable with a liveable house. Open to creative solutions. davidrbailie@gmail. com.

Send in your letters to the editor to

ACROSS 1. Dye with wax 6. G G G G 10. Toot 14. Pee 15. Rant 16. Weightlifters pump this 17. Daughter of a sibling 18. Twin sister of Ares 19. Transfer possession 20. A lively whirling Italian dance 22. Make well 23. Found on most beaches 24. Hammer 26. Facts 30. Nigerian tribesman 31. Historic period 32. Two-toed sloth 33. Precious stones 35. Malicious 39. Military

41. A type of cheese 43. A bodily fluid 44. Tall woody plant 46. Shade trees 47. Japanese apricot 49. Terminate 50. Lease 51. Stunned 54. Epic 56. Conspiracy 57. Rookie 63. Indian dress 64. 53 in Roman numerals 65. Related to tides 66. Cocoyam 67. Moving within 68. Eclogue 69. Observed 70. C C C C 71. Mobile phones

DOWN 1. A lightly-hit baseball 2. Diva's solo 3. Layer 4. Ancient Peruvian 5. Loudly laments 6. A belt of parks 7. Position of an earl 8. Anagram of "Live" 9. Benni 10. Not a lowlander 11. Bay window 12. Exploded stars 13. Genuflected 21. Subarctic coniferous forests 25. Backside 26. Lacking intellectual acuity 27. Rectal 28. Tropical tuber 29. Mechanization 34. Settings 36. Doing nothing 37. Destroy 38. At one time (archaic) 40. Midmonth date 42. Row of shrubs 45. Break 48. Slanted font 51. Church recesses 52. Clearing 53. Mob 55. Caper 58. A coniferous tree 59. It ebbs and flows 60. Bucolic 61. Phone 62. L L L L

Solutions to last week’s Sudoku

editor@ngtimes.ca

minutes or until they are golden brown; 7. Remove your popovers from the oven and carefully run a knife around them to remove them from the muffin cups; they are ready to serve.

These popovers are great at containing the gravy from the roast beef, or any other thick liquid you want to use them for. For a large group, just double the recipe.

All the very best for the holiday season from the Salamanders Team. Talk to me anytime at pcormier@ ranaprocess.com.

Easy

Medium

Hard

Solution to last week’s Crossword

SEND IN YOUR CLASSIFIED to classifieds@ngtimes.ca

BUY AND SELL LOCALLY FIRST TEN WORDS FREE

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Civil Discourse and Social Media: Can they coexist?

Part 3: Algorithms – simply put

by Nadia Diakun-Thibault "An algorithm is a set of step-by-step instructions so explicit that even something as literal-minded as a computer can follow them."

AIQ, Nick Poulson and James Scott.

Imagine a task, any task.

Pick up the book. Read the book.

Simple on the surface, but if you had to describe each and every instance of motion, effort, and pre-learned actions, genetically encoded instructions such as the motor control of the hands and fingers grasping the book, and the muscles to lift the book - it would take a while. Reading the book is also complex. Our eyes see disparate letters in a string bounded by a space on either side indicating 'this is a word' and the cognitive brain deciphers the string into meaning. The reader understands it immediately.

Words are linked in a chain and the sentence and its components are logically related.

When they seem not to be, we are likely reading James Joyce and call it "stream of consciousness."

The fluidity becomes art.

Humans learn to actuate complex tasks through observation, mimicry, practice, repetition, rote, exploration, and experimentation. One can cram much into the hippocampi (there are two in the brain) over a lifetime.

The difference between an apprentice and a master is the execution of a complex task with seeming simplicity.

"Bake a loaf of bread" would be an extremely complex command if every term, every item, every process, every action, every word, every definition of every word, every ingredient, etc. had to be described.

Master bakers can bake

any loaf of bread from memory. As highly skilled as the baker is, each baguette will be made 'bespoke.' Commercial bakeries are a choreographed production of humans and machines working in concert - one understands the literal and figurative meanings, the other is programmed and calibrated to execute the commands in sequence virtually without error. At the heart of it, is the series of computerized commands that take all the constituent parts of a recipe for a loaf of bread and churn out thousands of replicates, consistency without artistic license.

Computers are literal and algorithms can complete tedious tasks - sorting, caching, scheduling, and other mathematical computations in a fraction of the time it would take a human. No wonder that Brian Christian (journalist) and Tom Griffiths (professor

of cognitive science) note in their book "Algorithms to Live By: The computer science of human decisions" that 'Sort is Prophylaxis for Search.' Pithy and true.

Algorithms are but one part of a complex that makes up what is glibly referred to as "artificial intelligence."

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a constellation of methods, methodologies, computation, and logical reasoning, and quite a bit of math and programming. AI is as 'intelligent' as the human who wrote the program. It will execute the instruction without question.

Using TensorFlow AI Software from Google, and coding deep-learning, a cucumber can be identified from a photograph. Machine Learning and Deep Learning algorithms can analyze imagery like CAT Scans with great accuracy and identify

Dealing with sexual harassment by customers

by Anne-Marie Langan, Staff Lawyer, The Legal Clinic A store manager recently reached out to me to ask for my advice about what to do about a customer who was sexually harassing several employees at her store by making inappropriate sexual comments towards them when they were serving him at the cash. Sadly, recent statistics suggest that this is a frequent occurrence, particularly in the service industry, and is particularly problematic for employees who depend on tips or commissions to make an adequate income.

1. Develop Trusting Relationship with Front Line Staff: As an employer, you have a legal obligation to ensure that the staff you are supervising can work safely. This obligation includes ensuring that staff are not harassed.

They need to know that you will have their back and will take swift and effective action against anyone behaving inappropriately in the workplace, including clients.

They also need to know the proper procedure for reporting harassment.

2. Identify the Customer Engaging in Harassment: One of the greatest challenges for a manager in a business that deals with many customers can be to identify the harassing customer. Most workplaces have CCTV footage of their public spaces and drive-thrus, so if your staff December 22, 2021

remembers approximately when the customer was there, you can watch the footage to determine the exact time of the transaction with the customer. You then may be able to track the transactions in your database to determine who the customer is. If this doesn’t work, you should issue a memo to all staff with a picture of the customer, asking them to keep an eye out for the customer, and to advise you immediately if they enter the premises.

3. Gather Evidence of the Harassment: Ask the offended employee for a written statement of what happened and exactly what was said. If other employees overheard the conversation, or witnessed the sexual harassment, you can ask them to provide a written witness statement.

The more contemporaneous it is, the better! You should also save any CCTV footage, audio or video recordings of the incident.

4. Issue a Warning or a No Trespass Notice to Customer in Writing: If you can identify the customer, issue that person a written warning, or a No Trespass Notice, depending on the nature and severity of the offending behaviour.

The notice should include a description of the offending behaviour, and explain that it made your staff feel unsafe.

If it is a No Trespass Notice,

thru at our local A&W and saw that they had posted a sign explaining that they are short-staffed due to the pandemic and that this can cause a delay in processing orders.

The notice asked customers to be understanding, patient, and respectful with staff. I loved this approach, and found it very effective at reducing my anxiety about waiting longer for my order.

8. Provide Regular Training to Managers and Staff: Every employer who provides a direct service to the public should provide their front-line and management staff with safety training at the onboarding stage, and every year. The training should include information about the code of conduct in your workplace, and prevent and address sexual and other forms of harassment.

9. Reach out for Help / Legal Advice: If you would like to know more about how to respond to disclosures of sexual harassment, or would like some free training on how to prevent and address sexual harassment for managers, staff and/or your board members, please contact The Legal Clinic at 613-264-7153, or langana@ lao.on.ca. Serving Lanark, Leeds and Grenville, Northern Frontenac and Northern Lennox and Addington.

provide a copy of it to the local police, who will respond if the customer fails to comply.

5. Tell Staff about What to Do if the Harasser Returns: I was pleased to learn from students I gave a workshop to that their employers (fast food restaurants) have a board for staff on which they post the pictures of customers who have harassed their staff, and they are to advise the manager immediately if these people come to the restaurant.

6. Provide Support to the Employee Who Experienced Harassment: The news is full of stories about employers who ignore, and even ostracize employees who complain about harassment. Don't be one of those!

This can lead to additional liability for your business and can cause irreversible damage to the employee's mental health and your workplace culture. Instead, congratulate any employee who discloses inappropriate behaviour, and check in with them regularly to ensure they are satisfied with how you handled the disclosure. Make sure they are feeling safe and have adequate support from management. You can also use it as a "teaching moment" for managers and staff by debriefing what happened with them.

7. Post a Notice in all Public Spaces Indicating that Abuse of Staff is Not Tolerated: I was waiting in the drive25

lesions. They can forecast weather and project the path of a hurricane. Humans can be identified through facial recognition, gait analysis, or voice recognition. These tasks can be performed with amazing results because of the continual refining of algorithms, modeling software, and the reams of digital data that has been generated, collected, stored, shared, and often made publicly available. As a result, research techniques improve, new discoveries are inevitable, and this benefits humanity.

Did you hear the story about the robot (droid) that took a shower and is now stuck indefinitely because of a three-word instruction on the shampoo bottle: "Lather.

Rinse. Repeat"?

Computers are literal.

Literal obedience to instructions assures precision.

Literal obedience to instruc-

tions poorly programmed by a human can result in errors (at best) and bias (at worst).

The precision of the instructions can weigh heavily on an individual's preferences (a specific car brand) by feeding the viewer with ads or by amplifying political predilections and biases. The civil conversation is fractured and replaced with verbal fulmination and vitriol.

Social media tech giants use analytics to feed the bias that is tied to profits. They manipulate public opinion, and spread disinformation and misinformation faster than the wind spreads dandelion seeds.

The result: social distrust and threats to democracy.

When someone else interprets reality, the result is an unrecognizable ‘reality of lies.'

Intermediate students explore career in skilled trades On Friday, Dec. 3, approximately 900 Grade 7 and Grade 8 students from schools in the eastern region of the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) took part in a skilled trades exploration activity.

The afternoon event, hosted by the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP), began with a presentation by Sociologist and Skilled Trades Speaker, Jon Callegher, called “The Skilled Trades and YOU.” The presentation focused on the high rates of job satisfaction that tradespeople express, including being engaged and invigorated by their work, and confidence in skills security.

The session also featured an interactive segment that helped students see how their interests can align with a possible career in the trades.

Following the presentation, Grade 7 students were then challenged to work in small groups to create a wind turbine that would generate the highest voltage while learning about the powerline technician trade. Students began with the planning stages of this project after the event and will continue to work on it over the coming weeks at school.

Grade 8 classes had a choice of a hands-on kit related to a skilled trade, including crane operator, automotive service technician, and carpenter. The kits included a rubber band racecar, foam board picnic table, hydraulic crane, and wooden cabin.

While these students are far from needing to make lasting decisions about their careers, introducing students to skilled trades options, especially young women, is important because it brings to light the vast options available within the skilled trades and the benefits that these careers can have.

“These workshops get students thinking about how to maximize their high school time when planning for their future pathways. Skilled trades offer well-paying, fulfilling jobs with the potential for advancement,” says organizer Ashley Grant, Student Success Learning Partner with the UCDSB. “We want our students to be aware of these opportunities when considering post-secondary options and we can do that through experiential learning activities.”

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The Voice of North Grenville

Deck the halls with gifts sourced locally What could go so wrong at a Holiday Luncheon The immortal Shakespeare wrote in the play Macbeth, “Each new morn new widows howl, new orphans cry, new sorrows strike heaven on the face.” He was not wrong. Readers may wonder how I am faring as I near the start of my 99th year. I am glad to report that while getting older is rarely much fun, my medical training remains useful!

At a holiday luncheon with long-in-the-tooth friends, one started to cough. It was nothing to attract attention. But the situation suddenly changed.

His coughing became intense and breathing more difficult.

Food had become stuck in his throat, probably lethally so.

I knew what I had to do.

As a surgeon, I’ve faced many crises: heart attacks, strokes, and other life-ordeath situations. But during my long life, I have never had to help someone choking on food. It’s frightening when it happens. I have practiced what’s known as the Heimlich Maneuver on dummy equipment. Now, it was the real thing. I rushed to start this life-saving procedure on my friend, who was now coughing intensely, struggling to breathe and unable to speak.

If readers encounter this

situation, keep calm, and ask someone to call for medical help. From behind the choking person, wrap both your arms around the patient’s abdomen, halfway between the navel and the lower ribs.

Make a fist with one hand and place your other hand firmly around your fist. Then thrust both hands in quick jerks inwards and upwards into the abdomen five times.

Hopefully, this will dislodge the food. But if it does not, repeat the maneuver.

Every year, about 5,000 people die in North America from choking on food. More than two-thirds of victims are over the age of 74. Many people choking on food rush to the bathroom where someone later finds they’ve died.

If you are alone and choking, you can perform the Heimlich on yourself. Place a fist above the navel, grab your fist with the other hand, and use the weight of your body over a chair or table to help thrust your fist inward and upward.

Thanks should go to the late Dr. Henry J Heimlich.

He was a Cincinnati chest surgeon who practiced first on beagle dogs to develop the procedure.

Fortunately, my efforts

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were successful, and my friend survived.

You might think it remarkable that, at my age, I can perform the move. But I am in good company, as Dr. Heimlich himself also performed the maneuver at the age of 96 on an 87-year-old woman, saving her life.

The universal sign for choking is hands clutched to the throat. If you are not sure if someone is choking, and they don’t give the signal, look for the inability to speak, noisy or squeaking sounds in breathing, weak or strong cough, and skin, lips, or nails turning blue.

The best form of prevention is to chew food slowly and well. Avoid common choking hazards for seniors, such as dry food like crackers, rice cakes, popcorn, and bread, especially with peanut butter or other sticky spreads.

Older people often use hard candies to generate saliva, but this is very risky.

Prevention of choking among infants and young children requires extreme vigilance. Keep small items out of their reach. On children, too, the Heimlich is possible, but the first step should be to call for emergency assistance and stay calm in providing details, so that experts can give optimal instructions until help arrives.

It's the doctor’s sombre work to remind readers to be cautious over the holidays. To all, best wishes for the season.

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For comments, contactus@docgiff.com. Follow us Instagram @docgiff and @ diana_gifford_jones

by Tracey Arts, Director, OFA It’s been another challenging year as we continued to navigate the pandemic while simultaneously juggling our daily roles of entrepreneur, farmer, partner, parent, sibling, and friend. In true farmer fashion, our agricultural community has continued to showcase kindness, generosity, and empathy as our industry battled extreme weather, disrupted revenue streams, and volatile markets. Yet, we’ve persevered and we’re now ready to turn the page for a fresh new start in 2022.

As we enter the festive holiday season, it’s the opportune time to reflect on our individual contributions as farmers, the values we share together as an industry and with our consumers, and the collective accomplishments of our sector. Ontario’s agrifood sector has a lot to be proud of. The food value chain has remained strong and reliable as producers, processors, and distributors have remained committed to serving Ontarians the highest quality of food, fibre and fuel products in the Province.

The Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) encourages all Ontarians to continue supporting local farming and food communities by sourcing local products throughout the holidays. Supporting local can make a world of a difference to your neighbour’s small business and goes full circle by keeping the money

www.karberryfarm.ca contact@karberryfarm.ca

in your community. Sourcing local from small businesses gives them the gift of extra support to purchase gifts for their loved ones and have a memorable holiday gathering.

Celebrate the achievements of Ontario’s agri-food sector by filling your holiday plates with fresh, local and affordable produce and meats.

If possible, purchase directly from your local grower and producer, or look for the Foodland Ontario logo when shopping at the grocery store.

Source baked goods from the local bakery, spirits or beverages from distillers, breweries and wineries, and fresh tasting meats from the local butcher. All of these contributors to the food supply chain will be grateful for the community support.

If decorating for the holidays, make the conscious decision to purchase your evergreen arrangements, poinsettias and flowers from a local greenhouse or florist.

Source your hostess gifts from local businesses such as the town cheese, honey or preserve shop. Visit your local tree farmer when looking for a live Christmas tree to decorate with ornaments and lights.

When checking items off your Christmas gift list, look to locally-owned stores for unique and personal gifts for your loved ones. Local woodworkers and artisans are eager to make custom handmade pieces. Or give the gift of local food with a gift certificate to your favourite restaurant or farm gate store.

The Ontario Made website can be a great resource for gift giving as well and allows you to browse over 750,000 products proudly made in our province. The diverse list of items includes clothing, food, beverages, home, garden,

technology and more.

I believe in supporting local all the time. Supporting local throughout the holidays and beyond raises the profile of local food, keeps money in the local economy and garners support for every link of Ontario’s agri-food supply chain.

Oftentimes, it’s easy to forget the connection between the food on the table and the many hands that worked to raise, tend, and harvest it.

OFA is committed to further fostering the support local movement through two consumer outreach initiatives – Home Grown, and Source Local. Both initiatives highlight the fact that agriculture is prevalent in everyone’s life, whether you reside in an urban area or rural community. The key message is that we need to protect our natural resources to ensure that we can produce food for future generations and that we want to better connect with Ontarians over shared values related to local food.

As we approach the start of a new calendar year, I challenge everyone reading this to make sourcing local a part of their New Year's resolution.

And while you’re enjoying all the great products local has to offer, we encourage you to post a message or video on social media telling us why and how you source local for a chance to win one of four Ontario local food prize packs. Use the hashtag #SourceLocal and #MyReason and tag @FarmFoodCareON and @OntarioFarms in your post.

On behalf of OFA, we would like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season full of quality time with loved ones, and life-long memories over a shared all-Ontario holiday feast.

Merry Christmas from all of us at the Kemptville Legion The Legion is closed this Christmas

Kemptville Legion Branch 212 December 22, 2021

26

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The North Grenville Times

Three new Community Members for WDMH Committee

by Jane Adams Debra McLean didn’t know much about Winchester District Memorial Hospital (WDMH) when she started her cancer treatments here in 2019. But she quickly connected with the WDMH team and knew that she wanted to give back. And she has!

“For the duration of my treatment, I am very happy to say, I received excellent care from nurses, physicians, technicians, and everyone at WDMH. They all helped to make my journey as easy as possible,” says Debra.

In fact, she was inspired to organize a successful fundraising event for the WDMH Foundation. Her efforts raised $11,849.10 for the Cancer Care Fund. Most recently, Debra has been named the co-chair of the Patient and Family Engagement Committee (PFEC). “During my cancer treatment, one of my nurses suggested I might want to get involved with the PFEC and I applied. It was another way I could give back.”

Debra, who has been on the PFEC for two years, says the committee members bring a lot of ideas to the table that are well-received: “People feel they have a voice, which is very important. WDMH is a welcoming organization.”

Three other community members have also joined the PFEC in the past few months: Julie Betts joined the Quality Committee last year, and decided to get more involved by joining the PFEC. “I believe that WDMH is the best hospital, and I wanted to have a role in ensuring that it remains the same. I have been a patient at WDMH, and I would like to provide my point of view.” Julie lives south of Winchester.

Debbie Courneyea lives in Morewood, and says she wants to help makes things better. “I want to use my experience at WDMH to provide feedback for improvements.”

Christina McNairn is from Morrisburg, and has spent time at WDMH with her brother and elderly father. “I hope to have a voice from a nursing and caregiver perspective. I am a retired Nurse with 40 plus years of experience to offer.”

“The patient voice is the most important voice. To ensure our patients are at the centre of everything we do, we need to hear from them and their families,” explains Nathalie Boudreau, Vice President, Clinical Services and Chief Nursing Executive. “We are grateful to all of our PFEC members for their input and insights” To learn more about the PFEC, and other opportunities to sit on hospital committees, please visit www.wdmh.on.ca/PFEC.

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The Voice of North Grenville

Billowy stands of an invisible invasive

Reed Canary Grass (Phalaris arundinacea) on the berm of Elsas Pond, 0.4 km SSE Bishops Mills, with one central stem of the Meadowsweet Spirea the grass has displaced since 2009 (16 December 2021).

by Fred Schueler, Fragile Inheritance Natural History In June, 2009, the vegetation around a small pond we had dug in 1983, formerly dominated by Meadowsweet Spirea, began to be replaced

by Phalaris arundinacea, Reed Canary Grass (RCG), and the photograph shows how this invasive plant has taken over the site.

Those who don't recognize grasses as species won't notice that one kind of grass

is invading, and the invasive RCG embodies a lot of the complexity of many invasive situations. There are cultivated varieties with different palatability to livestock, and even with decorative striped leaves. Some of the varieties are high in alkaloid chemicals which make the plants poisonous or unpalatable for grazing. The invasive forms spread into dense stands which crowd out native species, and can even impede

stands, it's also difficult to tell invasive RCG from native Bluejoint Reed Grass (Calamagrostis canadensis), whose leaves are bluish-green in colour, have darker purplish joints, and are rough textured with small hairs.

The Ontario Invasive Plant Council's Best Management Plan for RCG is a desperate document: "The dense stands produced by invasive Reed Canary Grass are highly aggressive... begin growing early in the spring, and grow quickly and in dense stands... quickly out-compete native species for space and nutrients... the dense stands in rivers may impede salmon spawning, and it grows too thickly for mammals and waterfowl to use for cover/ nesting... also a threat to the native Reed Canary Grass, because it can hybridize with the native species." Least Bittern, Black Tern, King Rail, Henslow’s Sparrow, Short Eared Owl, Yellow Rail, Blanding’s Turtle, Snapping Turtle, and Chorus Frogs are at-risk animals listed as

drainage through ditches, but there is a native form, with which the invasives hybridize, that grows sparsely in the shallows of northern lakes.

There's also a Mediterranean Harding Grass (Phalaris aquatica), which has been introduced as a forage species, and can hybridize with RCG. Seeing the billowing yellow stands of RCG in Hydro and pipeline right-of-ways, and along roadsides and railways, along the northern Transcanada in 2014, we concluded that it was becoming a mascot of the resource transportation industry, and in eastern Ontario it crowds the shores of many streams, including the North Branch of the South Nation River at Inkerman, where the whole exposed bed of the stream and banks has been a solid mass of RCG, at least since 2009.

Grasses are hard to identify, and besides the native form of RCG which is smaller, often with small purple tinged seed heads and with practically all stems flowering, tending to form sparse

Merry Christmas

threatened by the spread of RCG. The desperation continues through the suggested control methods: Pulling (“must be done at least 2-3 times a year for up to 5 years”), Mowing (“repeated mowing will prevent seed head production”), Digging (“care must be taken to ensure that the entire root mass & rhizomes are removed”), Grazing (“high in alkaloids which make plants poisonous or unpalatable”), Tarping (“cover with a dark material to block sunlight... may need to be left in place for more than one growing season”), Shading (“plant conifers or other native trees & shrubs which will provide full shade”), Burning (“should not be conducted too early in the growing season, as it may stimulate growth”), Create uneven ground surface (“furrows and humps to diversify the substrate”), Sawdust (“mulch around desirable wetland plants can remove excess nitrogen from the soil, favouring native plants that can survive on lower

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soil nitrogen levels”), Chemical Control (“the Ontario Pesticides Act and Ontario Regulation 63/09 provide natural resources, forestry & agricultural exceptions which may enable chemical control of invasive plants on your property”).

So this is another case of an invasive form of a plant which also has native populations, and one where there's little hope of control. A difference in how leaf sheathes are shed has allowed the recent introduction of a moth that may cripple the invasive Phragmites while sparing the natives, but like the Cattails where most of our stands are aliens or hybrids, we're probably going to have to live with these dense RCG stands along our roadsides and streambanks.

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The North Grenville Times

Innovative Technology for Diabetes Care

The Ontario government is now providing coverage for the FreeStyle Libre 2 system, the latest flash glucose monitoring system to become available under the Province’s publicly-funded drug program. Providing access to this innovative technology for diabetes care will help patients living with diabetes more conveniently and easily monitor their blood glucose levels.

“This year marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of insulin right here in Ontario,” said Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “Providing coverage for the FreeStyle Libre 2 system through the Ontario Drug Benefit program will support individuals living with diabetes to better monitor their day-to-day health and improve their quality of life.”

Diabetes is a disease in which the body either cannot produce insulin, or properly use the insulin it produces.

Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas to regulate the amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood. Nearly 1.5 million people in Ontario have diabetes. Most can lead healthy

lives by managing their blood glucose levels, including taking insulin if needed.

Since November 30, those eligible for the Ontario Drug Benefit program with a valid prescription are eligible to receive FreeStyle Libre 2 as a benefit. The system belongs to a group of glucose monitoring systems called flash glucose monitors, and is the second flash glucose monitor to be funded under the Ontario Drug Benefit program for Ontario residents who manage their Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes with insulin.

Traditional blood glucose meters require individuals to take blood samples using frequent finger pricks, which can be inconvenient and time consuming. With a flash glucose monitor such as the FreeStyle Libre 2, individuals with diabetes can quickly review their real-time glucose reading by using a reader or smartphone app to scan a sensor worn on the back of the upper arm.

These monitors do not require obtaining a blood sample through finger pricks, making it easier and more convenient for people to monitor their glucose levels and stay

healthy. It also enables people to check their blood glucose more often, which can lead to better health outcomes in the long-term and help prevent health emergencies Ontario has been providing coverage for the FreeStyle Libre 1 system since September 2019.

Laura Syron, President and CEO of Diabetes Canada, welcomed the news: "This is an important step towards improving access to devices that can enhance diabetes management and quality of life. Diabetes management decisions should be based on personal needs and in consultation with a health care team. We look forward to working with the government to continue improving access to supports for people living with diabetes."

The Ontario Drug Benefit program provides coverage for over 230 diabetes support products including insulin products, oral diabetes medications and blood glucose test strips to Ontario Drug Benefit eligible patients.

The Voice of North Grenville

Hanging Up Stockings, 1910

Season’s Greetings!

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December 24: 8am-12pm • CLOSED: December 25 -28 • December 29-30: 8am-5 pm • December 31: 8am-12pm

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Kemptville in 1951: 70 years of change

by David Shanahan Things have changed a lot in North Grenville over the past few decades, and it’s fascinating to take a close look at some of those changes in detail. Back in 1951, the Eastern Ontario Development Association published a brochure on communities in the region of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Their statistics on the Village of Kemptville as it was then make interesting reading.

“Population: 1,555. 1951 census data: Males, 46.2%; Females, 53.8%; Roman Catholic, 10.7%; Protestant 84.7%. Total families, 397.

Average persons per family, 3.1. Families with children, 215 (54.2%). Total households 481. Families maintaining own households, 367 (76.3%).” By 1965, the population had grown to 2,088.

The housing situation also compares with today’s situation: “Construction pres-

ently meets demand. Sites are available with sewer and water. There are sufficient rental units. There is a town plan in effect... Zoning by-laws are awaiting approval”. In 1965, it was reported that: “New areas are being opened up, houses erected, with modern conveniences and roads are laid as quickly as possible.... back of the Anglican Church area, new roads are being completed, and cosy homes built.”

The working population made up just 29.4% of the residents, of which 74.8% were male. The wages paid may seem a little low, to put it mildly, compared to current minimum wages. “Median wage, $1,650 with 21.7% between $1,500 and $1,999 and 43.2% under $1,500.

Median family head wage, $1,980 with 39.1% between $1,000 and $1,999 and 51.4% under $2,000. Good available labour supply.” However, costs were far lower then than

and Home Economics. Nearest hospital, Winchester 15 miles.”

It points out that the nearest crossing point to the United States was a ferry operating out of Prescott, 29 miles away. Transportation infrastructure included the C.P.R. railway line between Prescott and Ottawa, and Highway 16, linking the same two destinations.

they are today.

Industrial development sites were available, with sewer and water services, from $1.00 to $2.00 per acre.

The main employers in the Village were The Borden Co., producing milk, with 40 employees, and Moore Business Forms, employing 25 people.

(The Manager of Kemptville Creameries, Ltd., Lorne Reddick, later complained that his company, which employed 15 people, had not been included in the brochure.) There were 35 stores in Kemptville, and just one bank, the Bank of Nova Scotia.

The general description of the Village gives a social and cultural context to the report: “On Rideau River close to Rideau Lakes resort area.

Good fishing and hunting.

Lawn and indoor bowling, hockey, skating, golf course, tennis, movie house. Schools: Public 1, High, 1. Kemptville Agricultural School and diploma courses in Agriculture

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Merry Christmas

By John Baldwin Having got a mixed bag of weather this past week, I was left wondering how I was going to get anything to say about our faithful remaining garden birds. But, waking up to an early morning sunny day, the problem was solved.

There, out in the back garden, our little flock of Mourning Doves was not about to disappoint me. One of these beautifully shy and colourful birds gave themselves away by moving ever-so slightly among the rocks and Autumn leaves on our now frozen back garden water feature.

December 22, 2021

I had to use the magnification lens of my camera to check that I had seen something there at all. I was not wrong, in that I was seeing not just one bird, but a number of them. Yes, there they were, hunkered down, either on a rock or very near to one, out of my natural eye-sight!

I am tempted to tell you all how many there were, but I thought that, just like them, I would tease you by not telling you, and letting you count them or guess for yourselves! I think that you might be surprised at what you finally discover about

Wishing you and your family, friends and loved ones, the very best of the Holiday Season!

how well birds can camouflage themselves, right in front of your eyes. These Mourning Doves proved to be the "Masters of Camouflage", but I hope that from now on, you will look a lot more carefully at what you might think is your empty garden! Enjoy, and, above all else, stay safe and well.

Cheers, John Baldwin PS I shall try to remember to tell you the answer when my next article is published.

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The Voice of North Grenville

CO2 Down to Earth 5

Enhancing the eco-values of our patchwork landscape

The damaged outcrop on Townline Road [Photo by Rachel Everett-Fry]

by Philip Fry We should, I think, be content with the patchwork landscape we have inherited and how it is being currently governed at both the regional and municipal levels. Compared with other localities, we are spoiled with three substantial public forests in which numerous trails wind through varying natural and planted woodlands, hiking trails that connect various parts of the township, plentiful access to waterways for recreation and contemplation, numerous wetlands that conserve water and support wildlife, and vistas that combine productive agricultural fields with blocks of remnant or new growth forests.

Our municipality also has an Official Plan that not only recognizes the diversity of human and natural values inherent in our landscape, but also sets out clear and deliberate measures to protect and manage them for the future. Given the environmental crisis, I am mostly concerned with those elements of the planning framework set out in the May 2018 Plan (available on the Municipality’s web site) which touches upon natural heritage features. It is my hope that the new Plan will improve upon the positive aspects set out in 2018.

Under the heading of “Environmental Planning” (Section 2.6), the current Plan makes a strong and encouraging commitment to “protect and enhance the natural heritage features for the benefit of present and future generations in North Grenville.'' The goals set out are excellent, as far as they go, but are, unfortunately, consistently bound up with human endeavours: there is no recognition of the intrinsic value of the natural components of the environment. This is worrisome, as much in principle as in its December 22, 2021

practical effects.

Those who think my apprehension is unfounded can point to the admirable text introducing Section 2.6.4.2, “Natural Heritage,” where we read that “The Municipality will promote an ecosystem approach to environmental planning”, and which provides an accompanying definition of ecosystems.

The definition is followed by a list of eight points, including the encouragement of a “net gain” in environmental quality, the rehabilitation of degraded ecosystems, collaboration with various agencies, and, notably, “public education and awareness initiatives for the protection, rehabilitation, and enhancement of the Natural Heritage features”. The rub comes in Section 6, “Land Use Policies - Natural Heritage.” Despite the claim that “All other goals of this Plan shall attempt to satisfy the environmental goal,” we find numerous “notwithstanding” clauses and “restrictions” which betray an anthropocentric bias. Human enterprise is still framed as external to ecosystem dynamics, rather than one of its constitutive components. The meaning and interpretation of value-laden terms such as “important” and “significant features” are open to wildly differing interpretations. And that has an impact on the Plan's every day, practical application in the management of the Township.

A good example of this over-riding ambiguity is the recent infrastructure “improvement” of an outcrop of rock on Townline Road. Of apparently (I'm not a geologist) Precambrian origin, the low, massive hill of grey, flintlike stone rises up from our normally Ordovician limestone bedrock, and is only one of two such outcrops I have found in the Municipality.

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Over the years, I have walked both outcrops, examining the variety of mosses and ground cover nestled in crevasses, sometimes wondering at the persistence of trees in periods of drought. This was certainly a place of “significant” geological, biological, and aesthetic interest, a rare and fascinating natural site. But the road skirted the outcrop tightly, creating a blind-spot that drivers had to negotiate with care and, after decades of use, it seems that the curve was thought to be an obstacle to the proper flow of traffic. Instead of widening the curve around the outcrop, the “improvement” consisted of blasting the roadway through it. The site was irremediably damaged. I wonder if the people involved in the final decision knew the names of even ten of the plants blown away by this “infrastructure improvement.”

The present municipal Council can remove ambiguities in the 2018 Plan by placing key elements of the environmental crisis at the centre of its concerns, namely carbon sequestration and biodiversity. We will also need a peer review system for all infrastructure and development projects. Please contact me at wildflowerguy@gmail. com with your comments.

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Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from the Jonsson Family to yours Please stay safe and well.

KEMPTVILLE MALL

Highway 43, West, Kemptville

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year Dr. C. L. Eamon Optometrist 31

212 Van Buren St.

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The North Grenville Times

UCDSB Trustees’ meeting report

Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP) and SLC Mobile Training Labs Initiative The Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario, through the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP) and Experiential Learning, has made significant changes to the delivery mode of some of its programs as a result of COVID-19 restrictions. The change to online or virtual has created many exciting new opportunities for these programs.

The goal of the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program has been to promote skilled trades as a viable and attractive alternative to traditional post-secondary programs. OYAP participa-

tion numbers in our schools have risen. More students are choosing this pathway and will receive the benefits associated with early registration such as apprentices and education placements.

One of the Program’s main objectives for 2020-2021 was to create and foster a social media presence.

At a recent Board meeting, Superintendent of School Effectiveness, Natalie Cameron, introduced Liz McCormick, Experiential Learning Consultant, and Dan Lortie, OYAP Coordinator.

“This team joins us tonight to highlight the work that they do, and how these programs and the emerging educational and professional partnerships are helping students to reach their full

out to us asking if we could be their partner for their pilot on this project,” explained Liz McCormick.

The tech trailer activities included a combination of virtual reality simulations and hands-on activities and were led by two facilitators from St. Lawrence College, as well as an SLC Welding instructor and an SLC Carpentry instructor. Students used a welding simulator to try their hand at stick and MIG welding, and they were also given the opportunity to complete a live weld. In the construction component, participants completed a chair building project and were able to take the finished projects home.

During the tech trailer visits, students were also given the opportunity to take part in a

learning potential,” began Superintendent Cameron.

In September and October of this year, five CDSBEO secondary schools took part in an exciting pilot project created by partners at St. Lawrence College. SLC created two mobile labs (tech trailers) that were booked for a week at a time at CDSBEO secondary schools. Over 170 students had the opportunity to earn micro-credentials related to welding and carpentry.

“Last spring, we were approached by St. Lawrence College. They hosted a meeting with representatives from the Eastern Ontario Training Board, employment centres and school boards to let us know about the mobile labs initiative. We were very pleased when they reached

The Voice of North Grenville

timed tire-change challenge, as well as to experience exploring the skilled trades in virtual reality.

“Students love it, they loved the hands-on experience, and were very proud of the work that they had completed. The VR simulations offered a lot of problem solving and troubleshooting opportunities.”

“A new initiative for this year, the Municipality of North Grenville was successful in receiving delivery status for the commercial vehicle technician program, being housed out of the former Kemptville College,” noted Dan Lortie. “We have four students in that program now, with a total of 20 including partner boards, and proposals from the Municipality

have been submitted to the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development, and they are hoping to offer level two and level three in the farm equipment, heaving equipment and the trucking coach programs, which bodes well for the future.”

“We are happy to announce that the SKLZ competition is also back on for this year. We have chosen May 17th as the date, to take place at St. Lawrence College. We’ve limited the number of events, just to keep the crowds down, and we’ve rented a 40 by 100foot tent where some events will be happening outside,” he continued.

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Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from our family to yours Thank you for patronage during 2021 Looking forward to serving you in 2022 December 22, 2021

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