The Orleans Star June 11, 2020

THANK YOU FRONT LINE WORKERS

June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3

SEE PAGES 5 to 11

Next edition June 25

East end sees slight uptick in COVID cases

Orléans country artist Chris Labelle recently wrote a tribute to Canada’s frontline workers called ‘Frontliners’ which has blown up on the Internet. See story on page 13. FRED SHERWIN PHOTO

By Fred Sherwin The Orléans Star The total number of COVID-19 cases among the general population in the three wards that make up the city’s far east end went up slightly between May 19 and June 2 according to data released by Ottawa Public Health (OPH).

During the two week period, one additional person tested positive in Orléans Ward, two more people tested positive in Innes Ward and three more residents tested positive in Cumberland Ward. That brings the total number of residents who have tested positive for the coronavirus in the three east end wards to 148 out of a total combined population of 142,843.

Of the 148 cases, a number of them have already recovered. Unfortunately, OPH does not have the exact number of recovered cases

in each ward, however, according to their website, 83 per cent of the total number of cases in Ottawa have been resolved. If you use the same percentage in the three east end wards, you end up with 30 actual cases in Orléans, Blackburn Hamlet and the former municipality of Cumberland as of June 2. And of those 30 cases, several are members of the same household.

The actual numbers released by Ottawa Public Health in their bi-weekly ward by ward reporting are based on cases per 100,000 people according to the 2016 Census. For example, the figure given for Orléans Ward is 94 per 100,000 people, however, the population of the ward in 2016 was 48,789.

To reach the actual number of cases you need to multiply 94 by a factor of 0.48789 which leaves you with 46 cases.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

We’re good to go

PLEASE PUT YOURS ON BEFORE YOU GET ON

KEEPING TRANSIT CLEAN, AROUND THE CLOCK

PLEASE PUMP SOME ON BEFORE YOU JUMP ON

PROTECTIVE SHIELDS SO YOU CAN BOARD AT THE FRONT

Cloth masks mandatory starting June 15

Enhanced cleaning and sanitizing

Hand sanitizers installed in stations

Starting June 15

OC Transpo is working with Ottawa Public Health to make transit as safe as possible as we return to full service on June 28.

These and other measures mean we’re good to go, so put your mask on and let’s go!

OCTRANSPO.COM

COMMUNITY BRIEFS Community resource centre launches school supplies program ORLÉANS – The Orléans Cumberland Community Resource Centre (OCCRC) is now accepting registrations for their annual school supplies program. Residents suffering from financial hardship can log onto the OCCRC website and register to receive supplies for their school-age children in August, assuming classes will resume in September. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the program is being run by appointment only. To be eligible, registrants must reside in either the K1A, K1E, K4B, K0A or K4C area codes. To register, you must call 613-830-4357 ext.

310. Because of the economic impact of the pandemic, interest in the program is expected to be higher this year than in the past. Since the program is limited as to the amount of school supplies the Resource Centre has at its disposal, it is recommended that interested residents register early.

Taylor Creek medical centre becomes latest victim of COVID-19 pandemic ORLÉANS – The Asclepios Medical Centre on Lacolle Way in the Taylor Creek Business Park has had to close it’s doors for good thanks to a drastic decrease in patients due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although it may sound counterintuitive that a medical centre is closing during a health care crisis, the fact of the matter is that fear over the pandemic and the possibility of catching the virus in a closed environment has caused many people to avoid medical centres across the city.

The drop in traffic has caused the Orléans Urgent Care Clinic on Place d’Orléans Drive to go from five doctors to just one and they too are on the verge of possibly closing their doors for good. The Asclepios Medical Centre and the Orléans Urgent Care Clinic are both fee-for-service clinics, meaning they receive funding and payment from the Ontario Government based on the amount of patient visits they have. The Asclepios Medical Centre, which had been serving over 9,000 patients, saw their traffic reduce to a trickle after the pandemic hit Ottawa. As a result, they weren’t getting enough income coming in to cover their expenses so they reluctantly ceased operations on May 30.

Gloucester soccer product signs Division 1 scholarship with West Virginia ORLÉANS – Cairine Wilson Secondary School grad and former Gloucester Hornets member Kayza Massey recently signed a Division 1 scholarship to play soccer at the University of West Virginia starting next fall. Originally from Ghana, Massey represented her native country at the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup where she played keeper and helped lead her team to the quarterfinals.

Two years later she represented her adopted country Canada at the U-17 World Cup in Uruguay. And earlier this year, she was a member of Team Canada at the CONCACAF Women’s Under-20 Championship in the Dominican Republic.

2 • June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3

Data indicates COVID-19 on the decline in Ottawa Continued from page 1 The number does not include how many people have recovered from the virus. Of the 2,009 cases that had been identified as of June 9, 256 had unfortunately passed away, 1,679 or 84 per cent had recovered, leaving 74 active cases across the city.

That’s down from the 208 active cases that were reported on May 19 and 537 active cases reported on May 2.

At the same time, the number of hospitalizations has also been steadily decreasing from 52 on May 13 to 31 on June 5.

In the two-week period between May 21 and June 5, 14 people were admitted to hospital for treatment and only one patient had to be admitted to intensive care.

Province-wide, the numbers have gone in the opposite direction, largely due to an increase in cases in the Toronto area.

According to Ontario Public Health data, there were 5,486 active cases in the province on May 19. By June 5, the number of active cases had risen to 6,225 – an increase of 739 cases. During the same period of time, the number of active cases in the GTA went up more than 600 per cent from 251 on May 19 to 1,783 on June 5.

More than 43 per cent of the active cases in Ontario are located in the GTA. The discrepancy between the GTA and the rest of the province has raised a cry for the province to be reopened on a regional basis.

Now more than ever, take the time to take care of yourself How are you doing? This is a question the overwhelm was beginning to catch up I’d like you to ask yourself and to consider to me. It was a good reminder to stop, take for a moment. a moment and reconnect with myself. If It feels as though we have had our you’re feeling like I did, maybe this column regular lives ripped away will help. from us. The little things Remember that it’s we liked to do before the okay to not feel okay. pandemic like browsing Forgive yourself for not at our favourite shop, operating at 100%, it is grabbing a coffee and a normal. chat with a friend at our Remember to breathe Orléans Ward 1 local coffee joint, having and take a few minutes a a beer with the team on a Friday afternoon day to do something that makes you happy. or simply having friends over for a game Get outside and pull weeds, tend to the night, isn’t possible anymore. garden for 15 minutes and get some fresh That’s hard. And it’s okay to say that. air. Put on your favourite song or album, It’s important to acknowledge the difficulty. and just listen for a while. I like to practice It is equally important to put together a mindfulness meditation, but that might not plan to deal with the difficulty so that it be for everyone – as long as you plug your doesn’t overwhelm us. With the pandemic brain into your body every so often, the constantly playing in the background, the effects are the same. little things can feel bigger, and they can Anxiety can build in the body. If you pile up quickly. don’t let your brain process it, it will I found myself feeling this way last continue to build and that’s not good. week. Keeping up to date on the latest Remind yourself you are doing your best, developments, helping raise a baby who and that eventually, this will pass. is crawling, nursing a sick dog back to Your family deserves the best version of health and working incredibly hard on the you that you can muster from day to day, issues you write me about – I hit a wall. I and like anything, we fall apart without had been planning to take a week off (my proper maintenance. Please practice selffirst this year) at the beginning of May, but care during this difficult time. You are with the current situation, I put it off, and worth it.

Matt Luloff

Hair salons still not part of province’s reopening plans

By Fred Sherwin The Orléans Star Kayleigh Stroz is frustrated and angry at Premier Doug Ford and the Ontario government for not allowing the province’s hair salons and barbershops to reopen as they’ve done in other provinces including B.C., Nova Scotia and Québec, where salons were allowed to reopen on June 1.

The latter has the Wild & Free Hair Salon owner especially upset.

“We’re already hearing about a lot of people crossing the river to get their hair done,” says Stroz, who recently joined forces with other salon owners in Ottawa to form the Ontario Salon & Spa Owner and Stylist Collective.

The group is pushing the provincial government to allow them to reopen using similar protocols to those being used in other provinces including maintaining physical distancing in the salons; the use of personal protective equipment such as face masks; and enhanced cleaning of work stations.

At the very least, Stroz and other members of the collective feels that the provincial government should allow them to reopen regionally and that Ottawa, being a border city with Quebec, should be among the first places to do so before some salons start going out of business for good.

“What we really want right now is a choice and I think we deserve that choice as long as we take the proper precautions. and so do our clients,” says Stroz. “I feel ready.

I feel safe. We may have been closed for the last two months, but I have been working every day checking to see what the salons are doing in other provinces to keep their

customers safe and there’s no reason why we can’t do the same here in Ontario.”

While Stroz says her business will be able to weather the current closure order, she fears for other salons which may not be in the same position. The longer they remain closed, the more likely they may stay Kayleigh Stroz that way.

“We’re fortunate in that our stylists and our clients are very loyal, but some other salons may not be so lucky,” says Stroz. “Salons have been opening in other provinces and all over the world, but here in Ontario our industry has been left in the dark.”

Part of the problem is that hair salons and barbershops do not have a regulatory body that is able to ensure that they adopt a common protocol. But Stroz argues that they are in a much better position to ensure the safety of their staff and clients than retail stores like Home Depot, Canadian Tire and Costco where physical distancing is only enforced at the entrance and the checkout counter and measures such as the use of face masks and hand sanitizer is voluntary.

Joe’s Barbershop owner Joe Valenti says he’s ready to open his Place d’Orléans location as well with the proper protocols in place. He is willing to operate at 50 per cent capacity in order to ensure adequate

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While hair salons, barbershops and estheticians may not be able to reopen yet, dozens of regulated health practitioners have been able to do so as long as they follow the protocols established by

their regulatory bodies including dentists, dental hygenists, chiropractors, registered massage therapists, physiotherapists opticians and optometrists and naturopaths.

Restaurants remain in the same boat as hair salons and barbershops. Although they can provide takeout and delivery service, they still can’t serve customers in their dining rooms or on their patios, unlike restaurants in Nova Scotia, B.C. and Alberta which can now do so.

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June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3 • 3

Sacrifice In this week’s paper, we honour all the essential workers and frontline professionals who put their health on the line every day to care for COVID-19 patients and to ensure that our garbage is picked up, our food is delivered, our most vulnerable are cared for and other essential services continue to be carried out during the pandemic.

But there are hundreds of other unsung heroes out there who are rarely recognized. They are the business owners who may very well end up sacrificing their businesses, their marriages and potentially even their own lives. I know of one restaurant owner in Ottawa who recently died of a heart attack brought on, in part, by the stress of not knowing when, if ever, he would be able to open back up.

These are the stats you will never see on the Ottawa Public Health website, or on the local news.

They don’t keep stats on how many divorces, the stress of potentially losing your business will cause, or how many will take their lives when the inevitability of losing everthing they’ve worked becomes too much to deal with.

Their sacrifices are immeasurable and pale in comparison to the sacrifice of not being able to dine out, or go to a movie, or take a vacation abroad, or even visit a loved one.

Entrepreneurs and business owners are a different breed. Not everyone is willing to take a risk by using their life savings, or putting up their house as collateral in order to acquire a loan to start their own business. Most struggle for years before their business becomes successful enough to have a steady income and yet hundreds of entrepreneurs take a giant leap of faith in their own abilities every year in order to pursue their dreams.

For the most part, the success or failure of those small businesses rest in the hands of the owner. But the pandemic and the ensuing shutdown is totally out of their control, making the situation that more difficult.

Many businesses that don’t go into bankruptcy during the shutdown may end up doing so in the months after they eventually open up when the government relief programs expire and their sales fail to rebound to post-pandemic levels.

Restaurants are especially vulnerable during these times. If and when they are allowed to open up, it will be at 50 per cent capacity.

Most restaurants operate at a five to eight per cent margin and that’s without any restrictions on seating capacity. Cut their capacity and potentially their revenue by 50 per cent when their costs remain at 100 per cent and you’re inviting disaster.

Our hearts go out to all those business owners who are struggling to survive in these difficult times. Their sacrifice should not go unrecognized or unappreciated.

– Fred Sherwin, editor

Fredrick C. Sherwin, Editor & Publisher fsherwin@orleansstar.ca The Orléans Star is a bi-weekly publication distributed to 44,000 residences in Blackburn Hamlet, Orléans and Navan. The newspaper is locally owned and operated by Sherwin Publishing Inc., 745 Farmbrook Cres., Orléans, ON. Inquiries and delivery issues should be sent to info@orleansstar.ca.

4 • June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3

Pandemic having devastating impact on municipalities The financial impact of COVID-19 on Ontario’s But how can cities pay their salaries if the municipalities is real and staggering. revenues are gone while the expense remains?

Ontario residents rely on municipalities to Municipalities in Ontario cannot run annual deficits, provide critical services every day – and COVID-19 and rightfully so. The only way to avoid layoffs, has crippled their finances. or massive increases to property Across the province, municipaltaxes and bus fares is support Queen’s from our Federal and Provincial ities big and small are facing real Park financial challenges. Unemployed governments. It should be clear residents are seeking tax deferrals. to everyone, there will be no Corner Revenues from facility rentals economic recovery without a are gone, while the expenses for solution to the municipal financial Stephen Blais maintaining the facilities remain. crisis.

Transit ridership has all but evaporated as we work Mayors from across Ontario, including Mayor from home.

Watson, have called for the Province to provide The City of Toronto is projecting a $1.5 billion assistance. Our caucus has called for the establishgap which could easily go higher, while here in ment of a $4 billion emergency fund to support Ottawa, the city is burning through $1 million a day! municipalities in meeting the needs of residents.

Cities have already laid off seasonal workers This week I asked the Premier and the Minister of and if the pressing financial needs are not addressed Transportation about supporting our cities and transit soon, we could see layoffs of full-time employees agencies. While there have been some encouraging in our biggest cities. Imagine tens of thousands words from the provincial government, they have yet of municipal public servants from Windsor to to back it up with a firm financial commitment.

Alexandria laid-off and the impact to some of the I was happy to see the Prime Minister’s initial most important services that would result. commitment to supporting municipalities across How can our province recover economically if so Canada and will continue to press the provincial many public servants are without work? government to do the same.

THANK YOU FRONT LINE WORKERS Saying ‘thank you’ to essential and front line workers Life during the current pandemic would be much more difficult without the efforts of the hundreds of essential workers who put their health at risk everyday to care for COVID-19 patients and ensure that services such as food delivery, public transit, banking and garbage pick-up continues unabated.

Frontline workers who come in direct contact with COVID-19 patients include doctors, nurses, hospital staff, paramedics, police officers, firefighters, personal care workers and nurses in senior homes and

medical technicians.

According to the latest data released

by Ottawa Public Health on June 2, 542 health care workers and first responders have contracted the virus since the pandemic reached Ottawa in early March and two of those individuals have made the ultimate sacrifice. To their families, we offer our sincerest condolences.

To all the health care workers and first responders out there, we offer our most heartfelt gratitude. You are heroes to us all.

In these pages we profile just a few of

the essential workers in our community.

In doing so, we would also like to acknowledge all the essential workers out there including grocery store clerks, bank tellers, bylaw officers, community resource centre and food bank volunteers and staff, food delivery workers, truck drivers, couriers, bus drivers, correctional officers, funeral home staff, repairmen, those caring for our pets and lab technicians to name just a few.

We would also like to thank all of our advertisers who made this section possible

by expressing their own gratitude to front line workers, first responders, essential staff and volunteers.

Ten per cent of the advertising revenue generated by the special section will be donated to the Orléans-Cumberland Community Resource Centre which operates the Orléans-Cumberland food bank and provides crisis counseling for those in distress during these difficult times.

Once again we offer our heartfelt thanks. Stay safe and be well.

– Fred Sherwin

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Our biggest thank you to all of the front line workers keeping us safe! #weheartyou #stayhome #inthistogether

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June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3 • 5

We want to take this opportunity to say how proud we are of the strong and resilient community members and frontline workers that make up Orléans. Every day we are inspired by the dedication, strength, courage, and selflessness that our frontline workers across a variety of professions are showing in an effort to keep our community safe. To all of you who are working and volunteering on the front lines, we see you and we THANK YOU!

Nous voulons profiter de cette occasion pour dire

Marie-France LALONDE MP/Députée Orléans (613) 834-1800 marie-france.lalonde@parl.gc.ca

à quel point nous sommes fiers de la force et de la résilience des membres de la communauté et des travailleurs de première ligne d’Orléans. Chaque jour, nous sommes inspirés par le dévouement, le courage et l’altruisme dont font preuve nos travailleurs de première ligne provenant de professions diverses pour assurer la sécurité de notre communauté. À tous ceux et celles qui travaillent et font du bénévolat de première ligne, nous vous voyons et nous VOUS REMERCIONS! 6 • June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3

Stephen BLAIS

MPP/Député Orléans 613-834-8679 sblais.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org

Manning the front line at the Brewer Assessment Centre STAR STAFF – When the COVID-19 pandemic first reached Ottawa in midMarch, Robin Morash was enjoying retirement after a lengthy career as an advance practice nurse. And then she got the call. A friend and former nurse who was contacted by the hospital to return to work, asked if she was interested in joining her.

Within three hours of contacting the human resources department at the Ottawa Hospital, she was offered a job to comanage the Brewer Assessment Centre.

“I would have volunteered to come back and help out in any way, but they offered me this job,” says Robin whose chief responsibilities at the assessment centre are logistics and scheduling. “Once a nurse always a nurse. I couldn’t just sit back and not help out.”

The biggest challenge Robin faces in managing the assessment centre is managing the day-to-day work inherent in testing large numbers of patients given the shifting policies and processes.

The number of people who show up to be tested can vary wildly from one day to the next, although the numbers have gone

up substantially since the province allowed anyone to be tested whether they have any symptoms or not.

As for any fears for her personal safety, or that of the rest of the staff, Robin says the assessment centre is one of the safest places in Ottawa.

“From the point of view of safety, I think we’re in one of the safest places to work,” says Robin. “We are fully equipped with PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) and every area that patients come into contact with is thoroughly cleaned by housekeeping and only one to four percent of the people who come in actually test positive for the virus.”

In managing the assessment centre, Robin gets to work closely with city staff and people from a number of local agencies and institutions including the community health centres, the Ottawa Eye Institute, and the laboratories were the test samples are processed. There’s also a team from the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario working at the centre.

“It’s been extremely rewarding and satisfying to be able work and collaborate

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SUPER-HÉROS

Robin Morash is the co-lead manager of the Brewer Assessment Centre.

PHOTO SUPPLIED with all our team members from these different agencies and institutions,” says Robin who isn’t counting on resuming her retirement any time soon.

As for her husband, he’s resigned to

her pursuing her calling in the face of the ongoing pandemic. Besides the pandemic has temporarily grounded the couple, which had been spending their retirement traveling to different countries.

Front line and essential workers: Thank you for keeping us healthy & safe!

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To those we owe so much... thank you for your dedication and service.

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de première ligne!

Thank you to our front-line

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June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3 • 7

Volunteers essential to Orléans-Cumberland food bank STAR STAFF – Diane Lacombe is one of 25 volunteers who was been working at the Orléans-Cumberland Community Resource Centre food bank during the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the pandemic reached Ottawa, the OCCRC food bank – like others across the city – had to change the way it does business. Instead of letting people come into the food bank and pick items from the shelves themselves, they have to make an appointment while two teams of volunteers working on alternating days put the food supplies together based on the size of the family. The individual then has to come to the resource centre to pick up their food in what is a contactless process.

The two teams of volunteers were set up to prevent a potential outbreak from infecting the entire group. As it is, by taking the proper precautions, including the wearing of facemasks, social distancing and frequent hand-washing, none of the volunteers have caught the virus.

Diane has been a volunteer at the food bank since 2013. When the pandemic hit,

she was in Florida with her husband. They returned home immediately and after they spent 14 days in self-quarantine at home, Diane called food bank coordinator Nicole Perras to offer her services.

Any concerns she had about returning to the food bank were eased when she found out the measures that were put in place to protect the volunteers like herself and the clients. “(Nicole) explained to me how it worked and I was okay with that,” says Diane.

The first couple of weeks she was worried about bringing something home to her husband, so she changed out of her clothes as soon as she got home and took a shower before seeing him, but any anxiety she felt in those initial weeks was eventually put at ease when she realized the lengths they went through to keep everyone safe.

“I feel totally comfortable working here now, and I’m happy to be able to help” says Diane who is aware of the important job she and the other volunteers are doing in providing emergency food supplies for

Thank you

to our frontline workers.

Un grand merci à notre personnel de première ligne.

– Jim Watson Mayor/Maire

Diane Lacombe stands outside the Orléans-Cumberland Community Resource Centre where she is a volunteer at the food bank. STAFF PHOTO area residents in financial distress.

According to OCCRC executive director Luc Ouellette, without the volunteers like Diane the food bank couldn’t function.

“Our volunteers are indispensable to the operations of our food bank,” says Ouellette. “Without them, we would not be able to continue serving our community.”

To all Ottawa’s frontline workers,

THANK YOU. As a community, we will get through this together.

LAURA DUDAS, Deputy Mayor | Quartier Innes Ward 613-580-2472

laura.dudas@ottawa.ca

www.LauraDudas.ca

A big thank you to our volunteers and community for all of your ongoing support for the past few months.

Un grand merci à nos bénévoles et à la communauté pour tout votre soutien au cours des derniers mois.

8 • June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3

Nurses man the front line at Orléans retirement residence STAR STAFF – Seniors living in longterm care homes and retirement residences in Ottawa have been especially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Because seniors are among the most vulnerable people in our community, long-term care homes and retirement residences have had to take extraordinary measures to protect their residents.

Most have been under a strict lockdown since mid-March, which prohibits family members from visiting their loved ones. In some instances, the prohibition has lead to a heightened level of anxiety.

Fortunately, each senior care facility is manned by a dedicated team of personal care workers, nurses, housekeepers, kitchen staff and managers whose sole purpose is to look after the needs of their residents during the pandemic.

Symphony Senior Living Orléans is no exception. Located on Lumberman Way, the retirement community has so far managed to avoid the virus largely due to the proactive approach Symphony Senior Living owner and founder Lisa Brush took in the early days of the pandemic. They

were one of the first residences to impose a non-essential visitor ban and they instituted a strict screening process for all of their employees early on in the process.

They are also blessed with a small but dedicated group of nurses, two of whom are Nikita and Emily.

Nikita has been with Symphony Senior Living Orléans since 2018, while Emily only started working at the residence in early April. She was hired after she spent 14 days in self-quarantine following a trip to Australia. This is her first nursing job.

Besides looking after the residents’ health care needs during the pandemic, the subsequent lockdown and non-essential visitors ban has forced the two nurses to provide the residents with more emotional support than they might ordinarily need under normal circumstances.

“It’s been very difficult on some of our residents not being able to see their families, so we’ve been trying to keep them busy by doing as many activities as possible and making sure they’re not missing the family visits too much,” says Emily.

The pandemic has also forced them

Nikita and Emily stand outside Symphony Senior Living Orléans where they both work as nurses PHOTO SUPPLIED to spread their wings a little bit. Nikita has applied her talents as an amateur hair stylist – “I don’t cut their hair. I just wash it and style it a bit to help them look nice.” – and Emily plays the guitar for the

residents in between her rounds.

The residents at Symphony Senior Living Orléans are indeed fortunate to have such a dedicated team of nurses and staff members to help get them through the pandemic.

THANK YOU! To each and every one of the essential and front-line workers: we salute you! #TogetherAtHome #StayAtHome #StaySafe

Councillor Tim Tierney, Beacon Hill-Cyrville Tim.Tierney@ottawa.ca | 613.580.2481

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June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3 • 9

Sometimes thankless task an essential city service STAR STAFF – Being a bylaw officer is arguably one of the most thankless jobs in the City of Ottawa. The only time most of us ever interact with a bylaw officer is when we’re getting a parking ticket or a neighbour has lodged a complaint about how loud our music is.

But the job of being a bylaw officer is even more thankless when you’re trying to enforce state of emergency orders during the current pandemic.

Ahed Khalil has been with Bylaw Enforcement since 2014. His jurisdiction is in the east end from Bank Street all the way out to Vars.

Ever since the province declared a state of emergency on March 17, Khalil and his fellow bylaw officers have been enforcing physical distancing orders and the limits placed on physical gatherings.

Despite the headlines you read about people getting a ticket for sitting on a park bench, Khalil and the other bylaw officers have been instructed to give a warning on the first infraction. It’s only when a problem persists or an individual or a group of individuals gather at the same location more than once that they will

hand out a ticket.

Needless to say, Khalil and his fellow bylaw officers have been very busy lately, especially after the weather started warming up.

“The calls are constant,” says Khalil.

“The other day I had to respond to 20 calls.”

Many of the calls are for groups of teenagers playing basketball or soccer, or just gathering in a park, although his also responded to calls for people using the playstructures when they’ve been closed as part of the state of emergency directive.

When he’s interacting with the subjects in question, his first course of action is to try and educate them on why it is important to limit the number of people who gather in one place.

“I always bring up safety. I try to explain to them that although they might not have the virus, they could pick it up from someone in their group and then pass it on to someone in their family who might be in a high-risk group without even knowing it,” says Khalil. “So we need to work as a community together to prevent the transmission of the virus.”

Ahmed Khalil is a bylaw officer with the City of Ottawa. PHOTO SUPPLIED Besides staying busy enforcing the state of emergency directives, Khalil must also enforce the city’s noise bylaws and parking regulations and sometimes the two are combined.

One of the most flagrant cases Khalil has had to deal during the pandemic was a noise complaint against an apartment unit. We he arrived, he found 13 people partying together in the small apartment.

In that case, he had to issue the host a ticket when the people at the party ignored his initial warning and order to disperse.

When he’s not enforcing the state of emergency directives, Khalil is at home where he helps take care of his children, which is where his work life can sometimes crossover into his family life as he’s often trying to tell them why they can’t go out and play with their friends.

THANK YOU FRONT-LINE WORKERS! MERCI AUX TRAVAILLEURS DE PREMIÈRE LIGNE! Conseiller, Maire Suppléant Councillor, Deputy Mayor Orléans (613) 580-2471 Matt.Luloff@ottawa.ca www.MatthewLuloff.ca MatthewLuloff

10 • June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3

Local musician releases song honouring frontline workers

By Fred Sherwin The Orléans Star It’s a song that has struck a nerve with frontline workers of every stripe – from ER doctors and nurses to grocery store clerks and truck drivers.

Frontliners has had over 64,000 views on YouTube and more than 275,000 views on Facebook. In a word, it has become an anthem for all those people who put their health on the line everyday so the rest of us can make it through the COVID-19 pandemic and in particular frontline health care workers.

Orléans country artist Chris Labelle got the idea for the song in the middle of the night.

“I couldn’t sleep. I was restless and I literally picked up the guitar and wrote the song in like an hour,” recalls Labelle, who is the former lead singer of the River Town Saints. “It’s was like God gave me a pen and paper and said, ‘Here you go. Take it.’ It just came to me. It was insane.”

The next day he put a video of himself performing the song on Facebook and it took off. “It start getting shares and it started blowing up as the day went on, so I took it down and thought I better record it.”

Two days later, Labelle recorded the song with Steve Foley from Audio Valley recordings and a day after that he shot a video at his in-law’s place in Navan which he then posted on his Facebook page and YouTube and it immediately blew.

The morning after he posted the video on Facebook it already had over 100,000 views. Air play on Country 101 followed along with interview requests from CTV, CBC and the Ottawa Citizen.

At the same time, he invited frontline workers to send in pictures of themselves which he then incorporated into the video, including a picture of his mother Heather and her coworkers at the Metro store in Elmvale Acres.

The one person whose picture isn’t in the video is his brother, Kyle, who works at the Ottawa Hospital.

“I asked him for a picture of himself in his PPE gear and he wasn’t having it. He was afraid I would share it on Facebook and then the video came out and he was like ‘Why didn’t you put in the video. I didn’t know you were doing a video.’ It was pretty funny,” says Labelle.

When he wrote the song, Labelle’s wife Julie was nine months pregnant.

When he drove her to the Montfort Hospital less than a week later for the delivery, a couple of the nurses recognized him from the video and asked him to do a command performance at the front desk in front of 20 of their colleagues who they had summoned to join them.

“It was such a cool feeling that they enjoyed the song so much and then they thanked me for writing it and I was like, ‘You don’t have to thank me. I’m thanking you.’,” says Labelle.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 15

Chris Labelle’s tribute to Canada’s frontline workers has garnered more than 275,000 views on Fcaebook. FRED SHERWIN PHOTO

Jeff, Dan and the whole SR team would like to send a HUGE shout out to all the healthcare and essential workers who are providing our families with the services and care that we need!

! u o y k Than

Local artist Chris Labelle says it well with his new single and video “Frontliners”, which honours those working to keep us safe in these uncertain times. Take a listen!!! #navan

ORLÉANS 402-4473 Innes Rd. | LITTLE ITALY 100-835 Carling Ave. | 613-834-4677 | smithreid.ca June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3 • 11

Virtual Symphony Soirée & Silent Auction June 26, 2020 @ 5 pm to 7 pm This year, we can’t celebrate our annual spaghetti dinner together, so we came up with a different way to enjoy this event and still practice social distancing.

We’ve changed up the menu, but it will be just as fun!

Tickets are only $10!

What’s included with your ticket purchase: • A homemade lasagna dinner to-go package available for curbside pickup (delivery options are available if you cannot drive and live in Orléans – simply call the number at the bottom to schedule a time) • Access to our live Zoom call where you can join in on the fun with our residents!

• Live music starting at 5 pm broadcast over Zoom • Silent auction via Facebook – winners will be announced over the Zoom call at the end of the evening; items will be available for curbside pickup the next day

All proceeds will go towards the Orléans Food Bank!

Visit our FB page @symphonyorleans for tickets or call us at 613-837-1100.

12 • June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3

Are we saving our seniors ... or slowly killing them?

Twelve weeks have passed since we went into lockdown, work-from-home or some form of COVID-19 hibernation.

With the Ontario government extending its state of emergency, our fourth month of living in suspended animation has commenced.

As inconvenient and infuriating as this for most of us, it has become a state of increasingly inhumane isolation for close to a million Canadian seniors (65 and over) living in long-term care (LTC) or independent living facilities.

Predictably, politicians have moved on from their “get angry for the cameras moment” outrage over conditions in some hard-hit facilities to other issues. More shockingly, I have observed an indifference to the plight of seniors based on repeated comments in newspapers and hundreds of dismissive (even if unintended) postings on social media.

COVID-19 has put the living environment and ecosystem of haphazard employment and safety standards across long-term care and seniors’ living facilities into sharp, and disturbing focus. To be fair, I have firsthand experience with a local private facility that has done amazing work in co-horting staff and residents, fully equipping staff

with PPE, enacting swift and strict infection control protocols, and doing their best to communicate consistently, and bluntly when needed, with family members.

Provincial inquiries will not be enough. A national Royal Commission (which cannot be stopped by an election and has the power to subpoena documents and compel witnesses to testify) into Canada’s total COVID response – with seniors living and support issues including wages, governance and care protocols, as a key line of inquiry – is necessary.

As for the federal government, a paltry, one-time $500 (maximum) top-up for OAS and GIS recipients in early July is at best disrespectful and will not compensate for extra costs incurred for utilities usage and other expenses incurred over the past three months.

A generation of Canadian seniors, mostly widows are 75 and over, continue to receive less than $2,000/month in combined OAS, GIS and CPP-survivor benefit payments. This poverty is shameful in the extreme and a festering wound on our socalled compassionate Canada. Successive

federal governments over three decades have wilfully ignored this destructive and discriminatory situation.

Turning to the issue of indifference, yes, it’s true that 94% of all COVID-19 fatalities have occurred in those 65 and older. But when I see folks arguing and posting for a faster re-opening/relaxing of lockdown restrictions (and I so feel and empathize with this frustration) with the caveat of “but protect our seniors” it gets my spideysenses tingling. In asking folks what this protection should entail their common answer has been, well “keep them isolated and safe.”

So we should allow anyone who has lived for less than seven decades to merrily go about their business with the appropriate precautions (masks, distancing, etc) based on their risk tolerance but deny this same mobility and human contact to at least 1 million seniors in various facilities and potentially up to 6 million Canadians nationwide? Yes this is an extreme conclusion, but, this is where we have regrettably arrived by honestly and lovingly trying to “protect” them.

For 12 weeks, Ontario seniors in LTC and other residential facilities have been on lockdown due to actual outbreaks or out of an abundance of caution. Meals served in rooms, no trips outside even for 15-minutes (even with PPE and distancing) of fresh air, no family or outside caregiver contact/ interaction for at least two months and more in some facilities.

If they need to go out to their doctor today or this week, even if fully masked and transported in a sterile environment, upon return to their residence, it’s go to your room or unit and self-isolate for 14 days!

Public health authorities and seniors (LTC, etc.) facility managers must do better. Our loved ones need footcare, interaction with designated and pre-screened loved ones for feeding, dressing, bathing, a haircut, and the list goes on.

In our zeal to save our most vulnerable seniors lives from COVID-19 we are depriving them of the dignity of life in other ways, irreparably damaging their mental health and slowly killing them with public-health sanctioned and government supported isolation and neglect. If we treated prisoners in this manner, it would be equated with torture. This is not my Canada, this cannot continue.

PRECISION AUTOMOTIVE

On behalf of everyone at Precision Automotive, I would like to thank all the front line health care workers, first responders and essential staff in our community for the work they are doing during these difficult times.

We are all extremely grateful. – Rob Brouwer

www.theautopros.ca 613-841-5550 385 Vantage Dr., Orléans (near Innes & Tenth Line)

June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3 • 13

Blackburn Shoppes Dental Centre reopens with mandatory industry safeguards in place STAR STAFF – Life has been anything but normal this spring for Dr. Chantal Plant and her team at Blackburn Shoppes Dental Centre.

As a mom to four kids, balancing schoolwork and the logistics of a temporary closure of her business (albeit the office was open with a limited staff for emergencies), Dr. Plant says, “It was very challenging to balance the schoolwork of two teenagers and two elementary school kids, but so rewarding as a mother.”

The Ontario Government has recently allowed dental offices to fully re-open – and Dr. Plant is eager to get back to a regular schedule.

“I care deeply about my team – closing down was absolutely the hardest and the best thing to do.”

While it certainly wasn’t a vacation, Dr. Plant says a few things occurred to her during her time away from working a regular schedule.” I really miss my patients – and I know my dental hygienists and team feel the same way. We treat lots of kids and it’s great to teach them the importance of dental health. Being away from my profession made me appreciate my career choice even more once I was able to treat my patients.”

“Oral health is so important to your overall health,” says Team Leader Kelly Medeiros. “There’s a bit of a backlog, but we’re going to make sure that everyone gets seen as soon as possible.”

Like many dentists, Dr. Plant practiced “teledentristry” during the office closure.

“This new experience was so refreshing

and rewarding.”

While many things may have changed, one thing remains the same: the staff’s commitment to the health and safety of their patients and team.

They have always followed very strict infection prevention and control procedures, and have added some additional measures to provide their patients with the safest care possible.

Blackburn Shoppes Dental Centre has been closely monitoring all guidelines provided by the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario (RCDSO) and Ontario Health and have implemented all protocols to maximize comfort and safety.

As part of this process, they have implemented a screening protocol, physical distancing procedures and have

installed medical grade air filtration.

So if you’re overdue for a cleaning, fillings, crown or other dental procedure, give Blackburn Shoppes Dental Centre a call today at (613) 834-5959 or book an appointment online at www. ottawafamilydentist.com.

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1980 Trim Road, Orléans ON 14 • June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3

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Anthem to frontline workers written on eve of son’s birth Continued from page 13 Julie eventually gave birth to their son Grayson on April 27, which is about the same time she first heard the song.

“Julie is literally one of my biggest critics. Sometimes I like to post my stuff on Facebook first to get different opinions, so I never played it for her,” says Labelle.

“So she didn’t hear it until I played it for her one of my radio interviews and she thought ‘Oh, that’s pretty catchy’.”

He’s mother told him it’s one of the best songs he’s ever written.

Labelle considers Frontliners a gift to all the frontline workers who, like his mother and his brother, put their health at risk every day.

“I see all these big celebrities giving millions of dollars or tens of thousands of dollars to the cause and obviously I don’t have that, so I just basically picked up my guitar and wrote Frontliners,” says Labelle. “If I never write another song again, I feel pretty proud about this one.”

Proceeds from the sale of the song

which is available on iTunes, Spotify and Amazon Music, will go to the Orléans Cumberland food bank. Over $2,500 has been raised so far.

Ironically, the same pandemic that has led Labelle to write a once-in-a-lifetime song, it is also the cause of his having to cancel a number of shows this summer.

Like many other musicians, Labelle has no idea when his next paid gig will be.

“I had so many shows lined up this year. I was going to play in P.E.I and Lethbridge this summer. I was even lined

to play the Navan Fair again this year and then (Navan Fair president) Luc Bergeron called me and tolde it was cancelled. It’s really bad,” says Labelle.

On the positive side, he will be able to spend more time with his newborn son and his wife and he’ll be able to spend more time working on his music.

He’s already tried to write a song about Grayson’s arrival with limited success.

“I was trying to write a song but it was just so cheesy,” laughs Labelle admitting it’s still a work in progress.

BUSINESS DIRECTORY Notice of Commencement Ruisseau Park Ravine (Blue Willow Park) Rehabilitation Phase 1: Municipal Class Environmental Assessment and Functional Design The City of Ottawa has initiated a Municipal Class Environmental Assessment (Class EA) for the Ruisseau Park Ravine (Blue Willow) Rehabilitation project.

Uncontrolled stormwater runoff is causing erosion within the ravine. The purpose of this study is to determine the best solution that will protect private and public property from slope instability, while minimizing negative impacts to the natural features in the existing ravine and minimizing long-term maintenance requirements.

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The study is following Schedule B of the Municipal Class EA and involves the evaluation of a combination of stormwater management works, in-stream erosion control works and slope stability works. The Class EA process also includes public consultation, an assessment of the environmental effects of the proposed improvements, and identification of measures to mitigate any potential negative impacts.

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Two public open houses (format to be confirmed) will be held during the course of the study to review and discuss the project with the study team and solicit feedback. Information about the study will also be available on the City’s website at ottawa.ca/bluewillowpark.

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Upon completion of this study, an Environmental Study Report will be available for public review and comment. A Notice of Study Completion will be published at that time.

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For more information, or if you wish to be placed on the study’s mailing list, please contact: Laurent Jolliet, P. Eng. Project Specialist, Stormwater City of Ottawa Laurent.jolliet@Ottawa.ca 613.580.2424 ext. 17149

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June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3 • 15

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S H O P, T O U R A N D B U Y O N L I N E 16 • June 11, 2020 • Volume 35, No. 3