The Voice, June 10 2020

First Ward 1 by-election candidate page 8 Louis captures the storm page 10 Blackout Tuesday solidarity page 18 EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS

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Vol.24 No.23

June 10, 2020

Column Six Sweet airs amidst the foul A lifetime of loving music comes in handy during lockdown BY COLIN BREZICKI

Special to the VOICE

Deluge of rain and hail cuts destructive swath through local farms and orchards

M

May, and the sour cherry crop this year will be minuscule according to a discouraged Allison. “A damaged crop like this will need all the care and expense of a normal crop and will become juice— not

usic was my refuge. I could crawl into the space between the notes and curl my back to loneliness.” So wrote Maya Angelou about tough times. Where we are now, and she’s right—thank God for the music. And over a lifetime, the people who introduced me to it. I confess to being tone deaf and musically illiterate. I don’t know an adagio from an andante, a downbeat from a diminuendo, or a major from a minor. “Chopsticks” was as far as I got on the piano (righthand part only) and further than I did on anything else. In my Grade 4 class band I was handed the triangle, and in a class choral competition annually sponsored by Eaton’s my teacher pulled me aside as we walked on stage to perform and instructed me to mouth

See HAIL Page 12

See COLUMN SIX Page 16

BY BRIAN GREEN

Special to the VOICE

The storm, when it hit Pelham, produced hail the size of golf balls that, though quite localized, devastated tender fruit and vegetable crops northeast of Fenwick. When the storm passed, green cherries littered the ground in Allison’s orchard and those that re-

mained on the trees bore black bruises and will fall off before they mature. “I am sure the damage is worse on the tops of the trees, I’ve only looked tractor level,” she said. Add the hail disaster to an already depleted crop due to the frost in mid-

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Oh, hail no! When Linda Allison saw the lightning across Lake Ontario and realized a major storm was brewing, she feared the worst for her cherry farm on Memorial Drive in Fenwick. “Once it hit Vineland and Jordan with thumbnail size hail I knew we were in for it!”

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Page 2

The Voice, June 10, 2020

TOWN COUNCIL NEWS

PUBLISHER’S CORNER

by Dave Burket

Let’s hope the flour holds out: Vilma Moretti and her son Todd Crick’s cookbook with Keith’s pies recipes has officially landed—see Vilma’s letter to the editor, p. 5—which means the fragile re-stocking of flour we’ve noticed over the last week may well be in jeopardy once more, as legions of readers raid the shops. I’ll be turning directly to the cherry pie recipes, thank you, although it’s looking a little grim for the local cherry crop this year after last week’s hailnado. Man, what a downpour!...Caught on camera: Speaking of which, Pelham’s photographer par excellence, Louis Albanese, braved the elements to get some truly amazing shots, one of which appears as this week’s centrespread...Lightning rods of their own: In part to quell their discomfort over displaying the rainbow gay pride flag during the annual June pride month, replacing the Canadian flag on a single flagpole, last year Town Council authorized the installation of two additional flagpoles in front of Town Hall. Work was finished on May 25. Cost: $6000. When special flags aren’t flying, the poles will host the provincial, national, and Town flags. (Yes, there is a Town flag)...Money in the bank: Our recent coverage of 2019’s municipal revenues inspired reader queries as to which East Fonthill lands have sold in the last 12 months or so, and for how much. Treasurer Teresa Quinlin responds that three parcels have closed—commercial property on Highway 20 (north side of the MCC), land for a retirement housing and long-term care facility (north side of the MCC), and land for residential housing (on the south side of MCC)— for a total of $8,289,619. The remaining MCC construction bridge loan balance at May 31, 2020, was $5,237,839...Local businesses on the go: Slowly but surely, the reopening continues. As of next week, Peter Piper’s will be back in operation seven days a week for takeout (p. 13). The night before Father’s Day, the Pelham Street Grille is doing a prime rib special (p. 7). And Salon Allegra is offering reopening gift certificates (p. 12). Meanwhile, strawberries are in at DeVries Fruit Farm (p. 13). And in the safety department, PharmaChoice Pharmacy now has a dedicated section for sanitizers and masks, and they are well stocked for the moment (p. 8), but don’t wait too long...Shopping farther afield: As much as we try to stay local, the cost savings found for bulk items at Costco can’t be denied. We hadn’t been up to the St. Kitts store since February, and so last week decided to take part of an afternoon to restock on fish and paper towels and whatnot. There was a 15-minute wait to get in, but once we did make through the doors, well, what a vastly better experience than in normal times. It was like we had the place to ourselves, relatively speaking. “A lot of customers are saying that,” said the worker directing shoppers to checkout lines. “No way it’s going to last,” said the cashier…Back home: The Pelham Farmers Market opens this Thursday. Cheers! ♦

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Kore returns, council again defers action

Ward 2 Councillor Ron Kore made his return to Town of Pelham duty for the June 1 council meeting. Notably, his return was marked with neither a welcome back from his fellow councillors, nor a statement from Kore explaining his extended absence. He last attended a council meeting on March 23, displaying symptoms of a respiratory illness, presumptively COVID-19 according to Niagara Public Health’s timeline of Kore’s later positive test result for the virus. All councillors participated on Monday by video conference, with Kore joining discussion over staff’s proposed bylaws for short-term rentals. On several occasions during the debate, Kore conflated short-term rental services, such as Airbnb, with traditional bed-and- breakfasts, something that a staff report had taken care to distinguish as separate categories. Under the Town’s proposal, traditional bed-and-breakfasts—of which Director of Planning and Development Barb Wiens said there were “five or six” in Pelham —would be grandfathered in as protected under bylaws which would ban any Airbnb-type establishment, unless it was granted a zoning amendment by council. Under this approach, any such existing short-term (whole house) rentals would be classified as illegal. “The grandfathering provision is there for what we call refer to as bedand-breakfast establishments, where you are owner-occupied, and you’re offering rooms for rent in your home and you live there,” Wiens said, adding that the handful of existing bed-andbreakfasts in Pelham have never had a complaint recorded against them. “I know at the beginning of this process … you mentioned 20,” Kore said. “I think that’s underestimating. I think there’s a lot more than 20 Airbnbs or bed-and-breakfasts. It just

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scares me that with that provision … that these people will have the ability to continue business as usual.” Wiens replied: “To be clear, when we had indicated that there were 20 … that’s based on our review of websites that these operators list on. Those that are the traditional bed-and- breakfasts that are owner-occupied, there’s only five or six of those.” Kore asked that those establishments be specifically named in the bylaw for legal reasons. Wiens said that was something that could be accommodated. Despite the clarification and stated difference in classification, Kore asked if Airbnbs would be grandfathered. “So, I’m running an Airbnb today, am I grandfathered, or do I have to go through the same system, and am I guaranteed to have that Airbnb under this new bylaw?” he asked. Wiens replied: “Councillor Kore when you’re saying ‘Airbnb’ what you mean?” Kore: “Well, short-term rentals, I apologize.” He then asked if an Airbnb-type op-

erator could cheat the system by providing breakfast to houseguests. “You have to live there,” responded Wiens, “and so you’re only renting out a bedroom, you’re not renting out the entire house,” again clarifying the difference between a bed-and-breakfast and short-term accommodation that rents out an entire house with the owner absent. “You actually have to live there and provide the service.” However, the bed-and-breakfast exception did not sit well with other councillors. John Wink feared that by highlighting the definition, it will open up the possibility of more homeowners operating bed-and-breakfasts. “We’re looking at expanding that,” he said. “I don’t see why we’re trying to expand that. We’re adding further potential rights to property owners to make an application for a zoning change where someone is going to be able to put a bed-and- breakfast in a townhouse in the urban living area See COUNCIL NEWS Page 12

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CELEBRATING OUR 20TH YEAR

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

DSBN wants portion of Town park

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Wednesday, November 30, 2016

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Column Six

The Comfort Maple myth

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Column Six

Growing up British

BY JULIE MANNELL

Special to the VOICE

W

BALLOONING INTEREST Grade 6 student Jinja Shepherd explains her experiment on static electricity at the Glynn A. Green Public School's annual science fair last Friday. See story, page 3. NATE SMELLE PHOTO

Public meeting tonight on school issues BY VOICE STAFF As questions continue to mount regarding an email that Pelham Mayor Dave Augustyn quietly sent to a District School Board of Niagara trustee last summer, Augustyn has agreed to address the issue at a public meeting scheduled for this evening, Wednesday, Feb. 8, in Fenwick. Nancy Beamer, speaking for “Names Matter,” a Pelham citizens group lobbying the DSBN to reverse its decision to rename a local public school, confirms that the meeting will be held at Fire Station #2, known locally as the Fenwick Fire Hall, starting at 7:00 PM. While the Mayor has agreed to ap-

Under pressure, Mayor to address email revelation, other E. W. Farr matters pear, says Beamer, DSBN officials associated with the school-naming process have either declined to attend or have not yet responded to the group’s invitation. DSBN Chair, Dale Robinson, to whom Augustyn’s email was addressed last June, has declined to appear, says Beamer, asserting that she would be

“on holidays.” The Voice was unable to independently confirm Robinsion’s intentions. She did not respond to repeated requests for comment on E.W. Farr-related matters before presstime. Beamer, whose group maintains an email list of some 580 residents, says that all members of the public are invited and encouraged to attend the meeting. “We would especially welcome parents and children who are unhappy with the name change,” she says, referring to the contentious decision by the DSBN to consolidate two Pelham See MEETING back page

HEN I WAS young, my father and I would go for long drives along the rural routes of Pelham. We’d blast George Thurgood and roll down the windows because we loved the smell of the breeze, the sensation of crisp Niagara wind beating our cheeks and tangling our hair against our summer-kissed skin. My father was not a sentimental man. He worked in factories and had a Gordon Lightfoot mustache and never shed tears over injuries. Yet something about the Pelham landscape, the hilly backdrop to his childhood and the childhoods of our ancestors, drew him in. He’d stop by a farm or a gathering of woods and, surrendering his manly veneer, tell me a story about the town. This place is precious. This is the earth that granted us life. Here is the place where we happened upon love or here is a site of devastation. On one particular drive sometime in the late ‘90s we stopped at a tree with a plaque. “This tree looks dead,” I said to my father. “It sure is getting there, Julie.” The Comfort Maple is supposedly Canada’s oldest See COLUMN SIX Page 14

Part 2 of 2: Coronation to embarkation

Vol.20 No.32

BY VOICE STAFF

A construction error was discovered following the opening of a traffic calming chicane on Haist Street north of Hwy 20 last Monday that prevented large vehicles from passing through. One resident living in the neighbourhood said he contacted the Town after seeing a small schoolbus get stuck as it tried to get through the new traffic calming measure. Later that day while driving behind a cement truck, he said that he became concerned for the public’s safety when the truck had to turn around because it couldn’t get through. “If a small school bus and a cement truck can’t make it through what about a fire

BY HEATHER McLAREN ROHRER

Special to the VOICE

A

Repair measures underway last week to correct a construction error in the chicane. truck or an ambulance?” he said. While waiting for the contractor to return to fix

the mistake, the Town has taken measures to temporarily allow passage for vehicles through the neigh-

VOICE PHOTO

bourhood in the short-term. Manager of Public Works Ryan Cook said that after discovering the issue with

the chicane the morning it first opened, the Town See CHICANE Page 5

Petition-inspired changes coming to 2017 Summerfest BY NATE SMELLE

The VOICE

Representatives from the Pelham Summerfest committee Candy Ashbee and Bill Gibson presented council with a final report on the 2016 Summerfest at the Council meeting on Monday, Nov. 21. Prompted by a story in the Voice in August about a merchant petition to move Summerfest from Pelham Street, in September Town staff met with various stakeholders to hear their complaints, promising at the time that changes in the way Summerfest was mounted would be con-

sidered. The main concerns identified during the community engagement process were security, parking, ensuring customer can access all businesses in town, and liability for damages. How to get all Pelham Street businesses to participate and finding ways to make it beneficial for them to set up a booth were also determined to be of high priority for the committee as they plan for next year’s event. Gibson told Council that the committee is addressing these concerns in a variety of ways. To improve parking, they intend to create bet-

ter signage for out-of-town visitors to designated parking areas and shuttle services. To make participation in Summerfest more enticing to local businesses, they plan to implement a tiered-charge for booths. Under the new system, Pelham Street business owners will be charged the least, other local businesses will pay a slightly higher fee, and vendors from outside Pelham will pay the most. In response to more specific issues for individual businesses, they will also slightly alter the footprint of the event and make adjustments to security. Another way the committee plans

to improve the 2017 Summerfest is by sponsoring and working with the organizers of the Thursday Night Bandshell Concert series to select the artist performing on the first night of Summefest. They also intend to make more use of the smartphone app they launched in 2016. "We are really going to push it this year," Ashbee said. “It really helps to get people to see what events there are so they can plan out where they are going. We will be able to actually help the merchants and local businesses adSee CHANGES Page 5

FTER LUNCH ON Saturday, Mum and Dad had my afternoon cut out for me. Mum had more brass than anyone I knew, and it had to be cleaned. In addition there was the set of silver fish-knives and forks which were never used, but which had to be cleaned and put back in their velvetlined box. Next was a walk to the newsagents to pay for the daily delivery of the Daily Mirror. As I said, Dad was a printer, but when he was 37 he had been rejected for a job, as being too old, by the printers of the Beano. For that reason, my favourite comic was not allowed in the house, but while I was paying the papers, the newsagent let me have a 'shoofty' at the Beano. I'd explained my predicament and he understood completely. Sundays were different again. Dad would play golf on summer mornings and billiards in winter. Then he'd stop for a 'refresher' at the local and would pick up the prawns, cockles, winkles or whelks we'd be having for tea later. Meanwhile, Mum was roasting the 'joint' and potatoes. I got to make the Yorkshire pud, and mint

Wednesday October 12, 2016

FREE

Apple Day comes to Fonthill

See COLUMN SIX Page 14

BY VOICE STAFF

The goal is to have these youth develop into confident and well-rounded individuals

ceives them, enabling youth to have experiences that build character, challenge them, and allow them to try new things. The goal is to have these youth develop into confident and wellrounded individuals, better prepared for success. Apple Day helps to achieve that.”

“Any money raised during Apple Day goes towards improving the Scouting program by providing more outdoor adventures for youth, camping equipment, canoes and paddles, training and many other endeavours that the youth want to experience,” says Marie. Scouts Canada has some 100,000 members across Canada, and carries out programs for boys, girls

Joining their principal, Karen Simpson, at the Sept. 19 Council meeting as part of a delegation from EL Crossley Secondary School, students Abby Loewen and Neenah Williams presented Council with a list of reasons that they should immediately approve the construction of the new sidewalk proposed along Hwy. 20. The asphalt side-

walk/trail is slated to be built between the south side of the road from Timmsdale Crescent to the high school. Because of the large volume of motor vehicle traffic travelling at high speeds through this area, and because of the necessity for students to tread this path on a daily basis, many residents would like to see the sidewalk go in sooner than later. After delivering to Council a petition containing

Many residents would like to see the sidewalk go in sooner than later the names of 450 students calling for a safer walk to school, Simpson handed the

podium over to Loewen and Williams to plead their case. Loewen told Council that because there are a lot of students who have work placements and coop placements during the school year, this is the only route for many of them to travel. As one of the students facing this predicament, Williams said she has had no other option but to walk along the dangerous highway.

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H EATHER AND P ENNY L ANE S ALES R EPRESENTATIVES

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and youth ages 5-25. This year the 3rd Fonthill Group, which includes Beavers to Ventures (youth ages 5- 25) will be hitting the streets to drum-up support. Over the weekend, Scouts will be set up in Fonthill outside Sobeys, Tim Hortons, Target Gas station, Fonthill Shopping Plaza and the Pioneer Gas station at the corner of Hwys 20 and 24.

Town Council approves sidewalk to serve E. L. Crossley BY NATE SMELLE

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Second year Beaver with the 3rd Fonthill Group, Russell Letford offers a fresh apple to shoppers in Pelham during the 2015 Apple Day campaign. SUPPLIED PHOTO A longtime Canadian tradition, Apple Day began in 1932 in Saint John, New Brunswick, when Scouts handed out 21,000 apples as a way to say thank you to the community. In return for their generosity, many people offered them donations. From then on Scouts have reached out through Apple Day to raise funds for their programs.

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Column Six It doesn’t get better than Autumn

Longtime Scouting tradition dates to 1932

While shopping in Fonthill between Friday and Sunday, keep an eye out for Beavers, Cubs and Scouts in front of local stores with bushels of apples. As part of the annual Apple Day campaign, Scouting youth of all ages will be trading apples for donations. The yearly fundraising drive is an important way for young Scouts to connect with the communities they are serving, says Leah Marie of Scouts Canada. “The Apple Day campaign holds a great tradition of being able to have youth interacting within the communities they live in,” she says. “All of the Apple Day donations stay directly within the group that re-

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BY VOICE STAFF The District School Board of Niagara is requesting that the Town of Pelham cede a portion of Cherry Ridge Park for use as a soccer field to serve the students of the new Wellington Heights Public School, formerly the E. W. Farr Memorial Public School, in Fenwick. Currently under renovation and expansion, the new school will combine students and staff from the previous school and Pelham Centre, where classes are being held while construction continues. Two letters, containing virtually identical text but signed by different authorities, were sent last week to nearby residents of the park, as well as to parents of Pelham Centre students. “The DSBN is currently building onto Wellington Heights Public School on Alsop Drive,” states the letter. “The size of the school's addition means the existing small soccer field will be eliminated. The Town and the Board have been discussing the possibility of working together to create a field for both the school and the

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“I start work at 2:30 PM and school lets out at 2:15 PM so I can’t take any other route,” Williams explained. “I have had friends, family, teachers and other community members reach out to me in the past about how this is unsafe and how there should be another alternative for us.” Looking ahead to winter, when she will need to walk this path three or four times See SIDEWALK Page 2

HERE IS NO BETTER time to cycle than Fall. It matters not whether you’re new to the sport, a seasoned recreational cyclist, racer, touring rider or mountain biker; we all have reason to look forward to autumn. Summer’s heat has faded, and the streams of sweat that ran from soggy helmets into our eyes are now just slight perspiration. Fitness is peaking from lots of saddle time, making those tough climbs of Spring a breeze in Autumn. It’s hard to beat the feeling of beginning a crisp, cool Fall ride with a slight shiver, knowing your efforts will soon warm you perfectly. The hues of Autumn are outstanding. A Pelham route as simple as following our southern boundary is one that would make most Toronto cyclists jealous, especially when our forests and fields are ablaze with colour. Begin from Harold Black Park, and zig-zag south along Effingham Rd toward the Welland River. If you’re new to cycling, it’s important to know south is the direction away from any hills. If you avoid the morning and evening weekday rush hours caused by those travelling through Pelham between Wainfleet See AUTUMN Page 3

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The Voice, June 10, 2020

Page 3

COVID-19: Pelham’s historic general public rate highest in Niagara On per-capita basis, town has seen disproportionately more confirmed positives than big city neighbours—but currently has only two active cases BY VOICE STAFF Despite a large jump in COVID-19-positive cases in St. Catharines over the last two weeks, as some 60 infections were tied to a single greenhouse operation in that city, Pelham remains at the top of Niagara municipalities for historic cases of the virus per-capita among the general public. According to Niagara Public Health statistics released Thursday, June 4, Pelham has 16.1 cases per 10,000 population among the general public, a rate that is 58% higher than St. Catharines, and 61% higher that Niagara-on-the-Lake, a town whose demographics closely match Pelham’s. Since the Voice last reported on COVID-19 case rates in Niagara on May 26, Niagara Public Health has reported one more case in Pelham, bring the historical total to 34. Only two cases remain active. (The Region does not report coronavirus deaths by municipality.) NOTL, Port Colborne, Wainfleet, and West Lincoln are all currently reporting zero active cases. Public Health divides cases into two broad categories: those among the general public, and those in healthcare facilities. Pelham’s cases are overwhelm-

ingly among the general public, 85 percent, versus just 15 percent in healthcare facilities. If both categories are combined, Pelham’s historical case rate per -capita remains second in Niagara, behind Welland. In Welland, the overwhelming number of cases are in healthcare facilities, 74 percent, while just over a quarter of cases, 26%, are among the general public. In Pelham, Public Health attributes a bit less than one-third of all cases to travel, and zero percent to contact with persons who travelled. Slightly over 70 percent are attributed to community or close contact exposure. Cases are reported based on the patient’s town of residence, which is not necessarily where the infected individual was exposed to the virus. Speaking to the Niagara-on-the-Lake Local newspaper in late May, Dr. Mustafa Hirji, Acting Medical Officer of Health for the Niagara Region, emphasized this point. “They could been having coffee in St. Catharines, gone to work in Thorold and then done some grocery shopping in Niagara Falls on the way home,” Hirji said, and have no idea where they contract-

ed it. “There are limitations of what we can interpret from the data. This represents the cases we know about, and not where they were exposed to it.” Three Pelham residents and one non-resident who later tested positive for the virus shared the same enclosed space, during Pelham Town Council’s meeting of March 23. Councillor Ron Kore, Councillor Mike Ciolfi, and two senior administrators all later tested positive for COVID-19. The two staffers and Kore experienced varying symptoms and recovered. Councillor Ciolfi died ten days later. An official cause of death has not been made public.

On April 22, news broke that Kore, who is also the Fonthill Sobeys franchisee, had continued working in his store and attending council while exhibiting symptoms of a respiratory illness—including during the March 23 council meeting, as seen in the Town’s video recording of the meeting. The main takeaway from the statistics, Hirji said, “is that people in every municipality have been infected, and it’s still out there.... As businesses are opening up, and we have the potential for interacting, we have the potential for the virus to spread.” Although the numbers represent positive tests, not the overall infection rate among those who

may be positive but asymptomatic, Hirji said he was confident they are a realistic indication of “the big picture.” If patients started showing up at the hospitals and requiring intensive care, there might be concern that the numbers are not accurate, “but we’re not seeing that.” Hirji stressed that the best advice now is for people who are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms to reach out to assessment centres or their physicians for advice about whether to be tested. “We really do want to find any cases that are out there.” See INFECTIONS back page

#PelhamUnites Join in spreading the community sprit!

Town of Pelham Garden Bed Competition open to residents, businesses, groups

Amid the impact of COVID-19, Pelham’s community spirit remains strong. To celebrate and encourage this sense of community, look for #PelhamUNITES in the community and online. Join in with responsible, physically distanced ways to celebrate the Town and its citizens, as we work together to flatten the curve. Share your photos on social media, use #PelhamUNITES, and tag the Town on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

The Town of Pelham, with support from the Pelham Beautification Committee, offers friends, families, and businesses the opportunity to compete for prizes while enhancing the beauty of the Town and creating a positive, socially-safe competition. Ten garden beds are available for sponsorship; each bed is to be designed, planted, watered, mulched, weeded, and maintained throughout the summer by its respective team. Signage will be placed in each bed signifying the sponsor’s name. Visit the website for more information.

Check out the website for: • Senior Centre Without Walls • #PelhamUNITES Colouring Pages • #PelhamUNITES Word Search • #PelhamUNITES Rocks • Recreation & Parks Month (June) • St. Johns Ambulance Virtual 5K - Join the #PelhamUNITES team!

www.pelham.ca/pelham-unites

Garden Bed Locations:

1. North Pelham Gateway Sign 2. Centennial Park – Flag Pole 3. Old Pelham Town Hall – (3-beds) 4. Cherry Ridge Park - Park Sign 5. Harold Black Park – Flag Pole

6. Peace Park – Cenotaph 7. Peace Park – Park Sign 8. Town Hall – Rear Bed (North Entrance door) 9. Town Hall Rear Bed (South Entrance door) 10. Town Hall Front Beds

www.pelham.ca/garden-beds

Page 4

The Voice, June 10, 2020

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

OPINION

The opinions expressed in submitted commentary and letters to the editor are those of the contributors and not necessarily those of the Voice of Pelham.

The Voice of Pelham is a 1211858 Ontario Limited publication David Burket, Publisher 2-1428 Pelham St., P.O. Box 1489, Fonthill, ON L0S1E0

COMMENTARY / OP-ED Larry Coté Zooming about again

L

ikely many readers on the upper side of six decades can remember with ease zooming around the neighbourhood on their bicycles. Having given up the tricycle and graduating to the twowheeler expanded the play area from the close neighbourhood to miles from home base. The many memories from those wonderful times will often clear one’s mind if and when disparaging concerns occupy one’s mindset. But zooming around today is a whole new world. There are some among us who have not yet adopted this new zoom-about that expands one’s horizons much like that two wheeler did way back then. In order to zoom about and virtually visit friends and family who live near and far the vehicle required is a computer of one sort or another. Zoom just happens to be the brand name of one of many video conferencing platforms one can choose from. These programs are so user-friendly that even a child can work them with ease. Likely, many grandparents can enlist the services of their tech-savvy grandkids to help set up their systems and guide

them through the first few explorations into the virtual world beyond their kitchen table. Soon thereafter, these formerly stuck-in-the-house seniors will be hitting the airwaves with reckless abandon and grand gaiety.

Likely, many grandparents can enlist the services of their tech-savvy grandkids

As the seniors in our family enclave we were coaxed to join in this new technology by our progeny. And guess what? It has been a barrel of fun. We have visited with our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren who live from coast-to- coast in this grand-sized country of ours. All the while, each and every one of us has been confined to quarters as dictated by this terrible virus. For example, imagine the thrill of being present when our precocious (says me) nine-month-old

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great-granddaughter took her first steps in Sydney, NS. If that isn’t worth the price of admission to this new technology than I don’t know what might be. We have now expanded our applications of this eye-opening technology to other areas in our lives and continue to do so with ease. My wife’s book club continues to meet monthly in spite of the current inability to gather at a specific meeting place. Maybe it is a bit less fun for the members, but it’s far better than not meeting. For many years I have been a member of a couple of weekly coffee gatherings and a retirees group that met on a regular basis. Unfortunately, the pandemic curtailed those meetings and required each of the members of these groups to stay isolated in their residences. However, and happily so, many from these groups gather for regular video conferencing sessions. It is great to see their faces and listen to whatever proclivities for which they are well known. So take hold of your keyboard and get on board with this wonderful life-expanding experience. You will be happy you resumed zooming. ♦

1428 Pelham Street, P.O. Box 1489, Fonthill, ON L0S 1E0 Office open: Monday - Thursday 8 AM - 2 PM

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www.thevoiceofpelham.ca EDITOR & PUBLISHER Dave Burket publisher@thevoiceofpelham.ca ADMINISTRATION Lori Gretsinger office@thevoiceofpelham.ca CONTRIBUTORS Carolyn Botari, Colin Brezicki, Rosemary Chambers, John Chick, Larry Coté, Brian Green, Jenica Hrysko, Maeve Keating, Megan Metler, Bill Potrecz, Bernie Puchalski, Don Rickers, John Swart, Helen Tran, Mike Tucker, Rob Weatherby. Proof Sleuth: Julian Fitch NEWS INQUIRIES & TIPS editor@thevoiceofpelham.ca LETTERS TO THE EDITOR letters@thevoiceofpelham.ca ADVERTISING INQUIRIES advertising@thevoiceofpelham.ca

New council following direction established by old council Let me begin by congratulating Town council and staff on moving forward on the stabilization of Town finances. It is awesome news for all concerned citizens. I too would love to throw a party to celebrate. At the risk of being roundly criticized again for wanting to somehow hold on to power and position, I would like to point out several things which seemed to have been missed in the euphoric discussion. First and foremost, let me state that the former council did aggressively pursue the development of the Town’s holdings in East Fonthill and part of the process involved

spending a large portion of the Town reserves. This was never denied. The former council realized that to optimize value to its holdings and to spur the development of the East Fonthill lands, it needed to not only put in place the appropriate planning documents but also it needed to invest in infrastructure As a result of these actions, the 32 acres went from a purchase price of $3 million dollars to a conservative value of $650,000 per acre or $20,800,000. Even removing See PATH Page 6

CONTACT YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS Member of Federal Parliament

Electoral District: Niagara West

Mayor of Pelham Marvin Junkin mjunkin@pelham.ca 905-658-2986

Dean Allison, MP 4994 King Street Beamsville, ON L0R 1B0 Dean.Allison@parl.gc.ca 877-563-7900

Members of Pelham Town Council

Member of Provincial Parliament

Ward 1

Electoral District: Niagara West

The Voice

Letters

Sam Oosterhoff, MPP 4961 King St. East, Unit M1 Beamsville, ON L0R 1B0 sam.oosterhoffco@pc.ola.org 905-563-1755 Members of Niagara Regional Council Councillor Marvin Junkin mjunkin@pelham.ca 905-658-2987 Councillor Diana Huson diana.huson@niagararegion.ca 905-324-3094 Town of Pelham 20 Pelham Town Square P.O. Box 400 Fonthill, ON L0S 1E0 905-892-2607

Councillor Marianne Stewart mstewart@pelham.ca 289-821-0840 Ward 2 Councillor Ron Kore rkore@pelham.ca 905-933-3805

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Councillor John Wink jwink@pelham.ca 905-892-4475 Ward 3 Councillor Lisa Haun lhaun@pelham.ca 905-892-5877 Councillor Bob Hildebrandt bhildebrandt@pelham.ca 905-892-5647

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The Voice, June 10, 2020

Page 5

OPINION Marr-velous: Correcting the mistakes of the last council In recent years, we have seen the transformation of Pelham from a largely rural municipality to a gradually urbanizing municipality. Council and Town staff have seen a different set of issues arise, particularly with regards to roads and traffic. This present council has taken a number of positive steps to rectify past debacles. Paramount on this list is the removal of the Haist Street chicane, with the infamous "double yield" condition that is not to be found anywhere else in Ontario. This council also decided to dump the egregious and unnecessary $400,000 legacy roundabout at the intersection of Summersides Boulevard and Station Street. Hmm...perhaps a two-way stop condition will suffice. On the other end of the expense scale, we saw the short-lived 2018 "redneck roundabouts," with hay bales and $12 of spray paint on Lookout Street. Quite literally a bad joke on a public road for all to see. When

Pelham traffic-calming makes the St. Catharines Standard, it's probably not for good reasons. This Council also found a less costly solution than a $1 million culvert on Poth Street to open up that street to its residents. Regrettably, a now former CAO told the residents on that street that they chose to live in a rural area, and that their property taxes were not enough to justify the cost of the repair. This thinking violates the concept of pooled taxes serving all residents, regardless of where they live. I believe a lot of the credit for this change in direction should go to Jason Marr, Director of Public Works. His past experience at Niagara Region brings credibility to his position. As Pelham continues to urbanize and grow, I believe this council and Town staff is generally ready for future challenges. Peter Leyser Fonthill

Big thanks for the bottles I have been collecting empty beer, liquor and wine bottles for Boston Terrier Rescue Canada (BTRC) through the Empties for Paws program since we moved to Fonthill two years ago. During this time, I have had some faithful donors who surprise me with their drop-offs every few weeks. I rarely get a chance to thank folks in person and would like to take an opportunity to do so via this letter to the editor. Thank you very much for your kindness and generosity. Over the last few weeks, we have been blessed with an extraordinary uptake in donations, including one that raised over $113 alone. The funds raised from these empties

go directly to veterinary and food bills for these rescue dogs and the funds are greatly appreciated. BTRC is a fully volunteer-run organization and also a registered charity. For more information see: https://www. bostonterrierrescuecanada.com/ I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank the staff at the Fonthill Beer Store. They are working tirelessly to process all of the empties that have been piling up over the last few months. You are all rock stars! Thank you for your hard work. Cathy Baillie Fonthill

If not the chicane, then what? For the last three years I have had the pleasure of being a resident of Fonthill. I purchased a home on Haist Street and quickly learned how the street may have received its name. People driving on Haist are always in an incredible hurry. With the Chicane now removed I have noticed an extreme increase in the speeds that cars are passing my home. The new three-way stop was a great idea on paper, but after three days of it being installed it seems traffic on Haist is treating the stop as optional. I invite any police officer on the Niagara Region force, or any member of Town council or both, to

use my driveway for four hours any given day or evening. If there is such a thing as a quota for tickets your monthly goal will be hit in half of one shift! Cars pulling campers down to Metler ignore speed limits as well as the stop sign. The next step for Haist Street between Highway 20 and Metler Road needs to be done quickly before someone gets killed. I strongly urge allowing parking of cars staggered on either side of the street as a very quick remedy for someone testing the top speed of their lime green BMW or their white Mazda that seems to be breaking the sound barrier now as it screams past my house.

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And oh. those minivans... where on earth are they all going in such an incredible hurry? Commercial trucks are also terrible offenders of the new stop signs. Haist needs to be hastily improved! Ed Quinn Fonthill

PELHAM AND COVID-19

Mayor Marvin Junkin

A slow re-opening, but first, some delicious fish

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ast Friday evening, the Fabulous Fenwick Lions resumed their popular Friday fish suppers. It was welcomed back by the Fenwick residents with open arms. The club sold over 400 lbs. of fish and the line, at times, extended from the kitchen area, almost out to Church Street. No one begrudged the wait in line, as it afforded neighbours to catch up on the news with each other. This opening is a welcome sign of things to come. At both the Regional mayors’ meeting and the Town’s E.O.C. meeting, one of the major topics is the anticipated opening of restaurants throughout the Region, and their probable desire to increase the size of their outdoor patios to compensate for the new rules which will come from Public Health in regards to social distancing within the restaurants themselves. By expanding their outdoor patios, they will be able to regain some of the tables lost to the new rules. The Restaurant Association and all municipalities are petitioning the provincial government to suspend the $850 fee that is usually charged for an enlargement application. Here in Pelham,

all applications will have to be reviewed by Planning and the Fire Department for Marvin Junkin the review of safety concerns, but overall the Town is more than willing to work with our businesses to help them achieve success going forward. Another opening which I am sure the residents are impatiently waiting for is the beginning of the Town-run day camps, which are held over the summer months. These camps will, of course, be opened in accordance with any rules passed down by the health department. Because of the need to enforce social distancing at these camps, it is anticipated by Town officials that we will have to increase the number of supervisors for each group of kids. The community centre, of course, will be the home base for these camps, and no doubt its spacious area will be well used. One small problem that presented itself was that if we had day camps at the MCC then it would not be prudent to name the MCC as an area cooling centre, when the summer heat waves arrive

(fingers crossed). Town staff, to circumvent this problem, have named Fire Station # 1 as our designated cooling spot. This will prevent seniors who wish to be in a cool area from mixing with the children at the day camps. Regional Health officials have contacted Town staff over our plans to have the pool open this summer. The health unit was very supportive of this and will discuss operational rules closer to opening day. There will very likely be no change rooms available, but luckily the Town has outside showers to be used. Openings are happening because of the region’s continuing low number of new infections of C-19. Until a local greenhouse operation became a hot spot, the Region was experiencing one new infection a day, with some days seeing no cases at all. It is so good to see area golfers out on the links, enjoying the outdoors and getting much-needed exercise. Personally, I have never been a fan of the game, as my summer schedule with the farm left no time to chase a little white ball around what could be a darn good hay field. Ah well, each to their own! Enjoy! ♦

The books are in—time to get baking! Keith's Pie Recipe books are in. Anyone who ordered one can pick them up at the Royal Canadian Legion in Fonthill on Tuesday, June 9 and Thursday, June 11, from 1- 4 PM. Or pick up your copy at Dave Chamber's In-

surance (formerly Keith's Restaurant), on the veranda, 1520 Pelham Street, Fonthill, Wednesday, June 10, and Friday, June 12, from 10 AM – 2 PM. Please, remember to maintain physical distanc-

ing! If it isn't possible for you to come on those days, please call (289) 820-7004 and we can make arrangements for you to come to my house. Vilma Moretti Fonthill

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NEWSFLASH Tell us your story! Column Six presents tales of personal triumph, adventure, strange-but-true stories, life-changing events, and looks-back at our past. Did you conquer Everest or kick a bad habit? Everyone has a story. Tell us yours! NOW ALSO ACCEPTING FICTION— SHORT STORIES UP TO 2000 WORDS! Write it down, send it in: publisher@thevoiceofpelham.ca (You won’t get rich, but you will get paid.)

Page 6

The Voice, June 10, 2020

Letters

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

continued

Use some windfall cash to repay homeowners The Town just announced that it has a $1,000,000 surplus from 2019. This is good news, lest the fact about $50,000 of that surplus came through ill-begotten means and on the backs of a few Pelham taxpayers. When introducing the 2019 gypsy moth program, the Town said it would pay to spray municipal property and that residents would pay to spray private property. Unbeknownst to 294 residents, the Town sent a $260 bill for the 2019 gypsy moth spray but overestimated the size of their lots by 70% and included this overcharge in their invoice. Why the overcharge? Discrepancies in what was calculated to be municipal property and private

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continued from Page 4 interest and development costs, I would say that ain’t a bad return. As the present council firms up deals which the former council began, some of the reserves will be replenished and the debt will be paid down and the community will end up with a fantastic new community centre. All in all, a win-win investment, I’d say. I want to point out that this was always part of the former council’s business plan. As a result of the former council’s investment in East Fonthill, approximately $1 million dollars in added tax revenue has been generated by the new businesses and residences being established in this area. This amount will continue to grow as the area builds out. This growth will not only be for one year but will be there in perpetuity. These additional funds will be used to replenish reserves and to support and replace infrastructure as needed as we have witnessed already. Additionally, the new development stimulated by the Town’s investments will also generate new Development Charges (DC) money which will also help fund the various items which the DCs help pay for, such

property seems to be the glaring answer. This is something I have worked tirelessly to show through analysis of Town documents over the past year. My analysis, which was validated by the 2019 spray contractor at the public meeting last October, identified deemed private property to be in fact municipal property. I cannot find an area in the Municipal Act that gives the Town authority to enact a bylaw to charge a few residents to spray municipal property. This is the responsibility of all taxpayers and is often included in annual property taxes. The Town, knowing it overcharged 294 residents approximately $50,000 on a $77,000 bill, is reprehensible. With our new-found $1,000,000

things as roads, water lines, sewers, community centres, etc. New development, while viewed as threatening by some is in fact a necessity to provide funding and vitality to a community. It is necessary to bring in new people to the community and to bring fresh ideas and expertise. All these things are benefits which are difficult to measure but vitally necessary to maintain a vibrant community. The Town’s policy for doing business was always to internally finance its capital projects by borrowing from reserves and then once the project was completed the portion not funded by DCs or the tax levy would be debentured and the reserves would be replenished. This was considered normal business practice and was considered to be prudent cash management. The recent debenture of $4 million dollars is an example of this type of financing. Part of that borrowing did, from time to time, involve borrowing from obligatory reserves such as the DC reserves. The Voice raised this question but I am not sure it was adequately answered by our Treasurer. If one looks at the Act, it is noted that in fact a municipality can borrow from the DC reserves as long as the funds are paid back together with interest.

GOT PESTS?

surplus from 2019, the Town should use $50,000 of this money to cover the cost of spraying municipal property in 2019. It was wrong to offload this expense onto a small group of residents. And the rationale was no money could be found to cover these expenses—why a $1,000,000 surplus now then? And why is there an unwillingness to correct the billing error? Some numbers to consider: one acre of spraying would cover an average of 4.3 residential urban lots. By charging $260 per resident, the Town recovered over $1,100 per acre when the reported cost was $625/acre. How is that possible without erroneously factoring municipal property into the private

This was and still is policy contained in the DC Act of Ontario. So again, nothing untoward occurred. It was perfectly legal and it was a way of doing business which had been practiced for years within the Town of Pelham. Another benefit of the new development is the increased revenues seen by the building department. Their revenues are independent of the Town’s and they retain their funds separately while paying the Town for services provided. Funds left at the year’s end are placed into a reserve fund, which will be drawn down on during times of slowed growth. This lends a great deal of stability to the department and prevents the loss of expertise through layoffs during slow growth periods. The Treasurer commented on the Town’s net debt going down. Much was made of the increasing net debt during our last year in office but I believe most folks do not truly understand the meaning of this number. In simplest terms it is the short and long term debt of the Town minus the cash and cash equivalents (i.e., easily and quickly liquidated assets). It is a measure of how a business (community) could respond if all the debt came due immediately.

It was wrong to offload this expense to a small group of residents

property calculations? This overcharge, and the political dance by the Town that followed, betrays any sense of fairness, and likely contravenes the Ontario Municipal Act. I can find nothing in the Act which specifically gives the Town authority to charge a select group of residents to maintain mu-

Businesses or communities which are experiencing rapid growth or are responding to business opportunities often take on more short and long term debt and reduce available cash and cash equivalents to fund such investment. If fixed assets and additions are increasing in value, it indicates that the money is being used to grow and invest in the community. If you see a decrease, then this may indicates a serious issue as the business or community is liquidating assets and taking on debt to fund day-to-day operations. This was never the case in the Town of Pelham. Debt and use of liquidity was used to grow and invest in the community with the net result being an increased cash flow, the reduction of debt and the growth of cash on hand. Long term debt at historically low interest rates ensures affordability and stability. I am pleased that the net debt is reducing, in line with the projections in the business plan of the present and former council. I applaud the new council’s moving ahead with a number of financial policies which have been lacking within the Town and which may modernize the way the community will do business. Again I will point out that the former coun-

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nicipal property. I have not paid my $260 invoice under the context the Town has not answered my questions pertaining to the justification of the $260 charge. Residents who received a bill deserve a complete explanation from the Town as to the legitimate cost breakdown of the $260 invoice and justification of numeric discrepancies. Two months ago, in a spirit of goodwill, I extended an olive branch to the Mayor and council and offered to pay the cost of spraying my property in accordance with the Town’s own document. The Town will pay to spray

cil had been talking about undertaking these changes but unfortunately did not get them completed. These new policies will clarify for council and staff what they can and cannot do. They will help to create sustainability going forward and will help to reassure the public that the money management is sound and conservative. With respect to the community centre, the former council always had within its business plan the intent to continuously review the operations of the centre, especially within the first year to ensure that it was operating as efficiently as possible. The plan to establish the various committees pertaining to operations had already been discussed and the planning for implementation had begun. Bravo to the new council for moving forward on these initiatives and for drawing on the expertise within the community. The net result will be a first-rate facility which meets the needs of the community today and in the future while operating as efficiently as possible for years to come. The Audit Committee is a great idea. First and foremost it sends a message of transparency and openness to the community. While the former council tried its best to be open and transparent, we were not effective at getting our messages out and I will, for one, certainly bear some of the blame for that. Numerous allegations were made by many, including some Regional councillors (interesting where they ended up and what has come out since) which in fact bore no semblance to reality. We Great ideas will be served. were among other things accused of hiding debt Friday($16,000,000) May 1st at 12:00pm and exceeding our debt limits when in

See REPAY next page

fact no proof was ever put forward. To date, despite at least two additional independent third party audits and the oversight of the Audit Committee, nothing has ever been demonstrated that lends credence to the claims. I am pleased that we have an Audit Committee as they will help council of today and in the future be regarded as open and transparent, and they will as a third level of oversight lend assurances to the public that things are above board. The expertise of those on the committee will assist council in its understanding the complexity of the financial statements produce by staff (in house) and the independent Town auditors (mandated by the Municipal Act). They will also be able to assist council in developing new financial policies and will assist in the assessment of the impacts of those policies on the financial wellbeing of the community. Thanks to those that lend their expertise to this committee. I am pleased to see the direction that the Town is heading with respect to its finances. I personally believe that the business plan began by the former council and now being completed by and added to by the present council will lend stability and resilience to the Town’s finances going forward. The Town is blessed to have the staff of the Finance Department. Its leadership–Teresa Quinlin (Treasurer) and Charlotte Tunikaitis (Deputy Treasurer)— bring a tremendous amount of expertise and passion to their jobs, and I am confident that our finances are well looked after. Great job to all! Gary Accursi Fonthil

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www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

Letters

The Voice, June 10, 2020

Page 7

continued

REPAY

Open letter to Wainfleet Mayor Kevin Gibson

municipal property and the residents will pay to spray their own private property. It came to $350 x .226 acres = $79.10 + HST, a far cry from $260 the Town was charging. Even at twice that rate, a substantial overcharge occurred. The Mayor rejected my offer in short order with no justification other than to respond, “We don’t make special deals with individuals.” I wasn’t looking for a “special deal.” I was looking for the Town to honour their written word and not inflate the bill. I call on the Town once again to right this wrong. It's time for the Town's Audit Committee to step in and vet this debacle, so that the 294 singled-out taxpayers can finally get a fair, just and equitable resolution. Possibly Bill Crumm and Michael Cottenden, who are Chartered Accountants and the two citizen representatives on the Committee, would find this file very interesting. The Town has the ability to reflect on its core values of honesty, transparency, trustworthiness, and respect, and correct this error. Frank Feeley Fonthill

You were kind enough to meet with me last year to discuss the private sector appropriation of public access to Lake Erie, including right of ways and deeded rights. You shared a story about how you handled a resident who didn't do what you wanted him to, so he was targeted and repeatedly fined for other issues. I disagreed with your actions—worried that it was an abuse of power targeting a resident you didn't like. I just read your comments on individuals breaking rules and enjoying non-sanctioned activities at the local quarry [Wainfleet set to crack down, June 3, p. 2]. Your response was to dominate with the tools at your disposal, including fines, towing and holding cars in impound. I find your comments upsetting. It is degrading and dehumanizing to be punished or treated like a criminal for doing something that is not a crime— unless you make it one. I have been swimming at the quarry, I have taken my kids and neighbours there. I have worried that my car would be ticketed or towed for that crime. I know there is a pandemic, but the idea that I will be punished for enjoying outdoor resources, but am encouraged to go shopping at Walmart, confounds me. Some of my best memories were visiting local beaches and

continued from previous page

parks with my father. Local homeowners did not act like we had less right to be there. Lake Erie and the quarry are some of the most attractive local assets that we are blessed with and should be enjoyed. I notice daily that most of the private beaches are empty in Morgan's Point — as there is no longer access for anyone but homeowners. This was not the original intent of the developer (as you are aware) and there should be (technically are) several access points for local residents. Unfortunately the crime of stealing land and blocking legal lake access is not a crime like swimming in the quarry with a large family. A neighbour continues to block legal, deeded beach access, dumping yard waste there and making it a very hazardous, impossible access—especially for small grandkids. They continue to do this with the full support of our local council, well on the way to having the access dissolved and merged with their own property, succeeding in stealing the land. The other property that I brought to your attention—that is zoned as a road —has also successfully blocked all access and voila, no more road, access gone. There is just entitlement and no shame, embarrassment—or, of course, repercussions. I would like to urge you to show compassion and toler-

ance for people enjoying the outdoors. Visiting the quarry has been part of the summer around here since before we moved here in 1987. I am always shocked that lawmakers—seeing the overcrowding at parks —want to blame the people at the parks instead of being horrified at just how little free green space there is for the people. So much is being stolen by the wealthy, and local governments are complicit in the theft, as you have seen. I am certain a majority of Wainfleet residents would love to be welcomed and enjoy free access and trouble-free parking, but local homeowners somehow manage to ensure that no parking zones make it impossible to enjoy without consequences. I would hope that you do not try to dominate residents into doing things your way—it is a very short-sighted solution —and instead lead with compassion, understanding and humanity. If I had to quarantine with kids in an apartment with no yard, I think the very least I deserved was a swim without hassles. Anyway, just my thoughts as I become more aware of crimes that are acceptable and what non-criminal behavior is being criminalized or at least punished. It is strange times for sure. Lisa Mills Port Colborne

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continued from Page 16 lines. Kevin Fuller, the president of SNRC, noted that the club will strictly adhere to sanitization of oar and sculling blade handles, and other hygiene measures. Pelham Town Council has approved the opening of the Pelham pool at Marlene Stewart Streit Park this summer, although an opening date has yet to be determined. The Centre for Disease Control (CDC) has stated that it is unlikely that COVID-19 can be spread through water in pools, although proper operation and maintenance of these facilities (including disinfection with chlorine and bromine) is necessary. In a Town of Pelham statement, Mayor Marvin Junkin said, “This isn’t happening tomorrow, but we want to be ready when we’re given the green light. Opening the pool, when it happens, will reintroduce some normalcy in these otherwise uncertain times.” According to the Town, the pool has some 4,500 annual users for swimming lessons, aquafit classes, swim teams, and public swims. When the pool reopens, users will need to come dressed in their swimsuits, since change rooms will not be open. Staff training in COVID-19 aquatic procedures will be implemented. The dark cloud looming on the horizon is the so-called “second wave” of COVID infection. Dr. Sandy Buchman, president of the Canadian Medical Association, told Global News that physical-distancing complacency in the battle against the virus will take its toll. “A second wave is inevitable,” he said. “There’s never been a pandemic in recorded history that has not had a second wave, and usually it’s worse than the first one.” Bushman expects a second wave to strike in the fall.

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The Voice, June 10, 2020

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

WARD 1 BY-ELECTION 2020

Community advocate first to throw his hat into the ring Perennial candidate Steven Soos looking for his debut electoral win BY DON RICKERS

Special to the VOICE

Last month, Pelham Town council voted to hold a by-election to fill the Ward 1 seat left vacant by the death of councillor Mike Ciolfi, in April. Only residents within the ward will be eligible to vote in the by-election, now tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, September 15. Candidates, however, are not required to live in the ward, as is true in any Pelham municipal election. The first candidate to declare his intention to run is Steven Soos, a new resident of Pelham, but one who says he has a “family connection” to the town. Although he resides just outside the Ward 1 boundary, he doesn’t see this as an issue, “given that council deals with town-wide initiatives.” Soos has been a development support worker and child and youth worker for five years. He has also worked as a residential counsellor in the not-forprofit sector, advocating for individuals with intellectual

and developmental disabilities. Although still in his 20s, this is far from Soos’ first political campaign. When he was just 19, he ran for Ward 6 councillor in Welland, attracting 386 votes. While a student at Trent University in 2015 (he holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Development and Philosophy) he considered running as the NDP candidate in Peterborough that year. However, due to disagreements with the party, he changed his mind. Instead, he moved to Niagara Falls and was a candidate under the Green Party banner in the 2015 federal election. In 2017, he represented the Trillium Party of Ontario in the Niagara Centre riding. In May of 2018, Soos split from the Trillium Party, opting to run as an independent for provincial parliament, earning 217 votes. In July of the same year, Soos was registered to run for a councillor position in the fall election

in Welland, but at the last minute decided to up the ante and compete with incumbent Frank Campion for the mayor’s chair. Campion won in a landslide, taking almost 80% of the vote, while Soos finished second, garnering just over 11%. At present, Soos has no political affiliation, and prefers it that way. He previously told the Peterborough Examiner that he likes municipal elections because of their non-partisan nature, noting that, “I get to be Steven Soos, rather than a candidate from a particular political party.” Though he has never held elected office, Soos says he has years of experience authoring motions for all levels of government, on such issues as missing persons and education for preventable opiate abuse. Soos has no fear of controversy. He took Welland City Council to task in December of 2019, when a closed-door meeting, two

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Ward 1 council candidate Steven Soos. years previously, in which council appointments were discussed, came to his attention. He felt that the council had violated its procedural bylaws, and filed a Freedom of Information request. However, Soos was told that the records of the meeting no longer existed. He took the case to provincial Ombudsman Paul Dube, who reviewed the details and judged that the in-camera meeting was unlawful. “When it comes to protecting procedure, when it comes to standing up for what's right, I'm your guy,” said Soos. In August 2019, he called on Niagara Regional Council to declare a state of emergency based on addiction, homelessness, and mental health concerns. In a conversation with the Voice, Soos said, “In Niagara, it’s nothing short of an epidemic.” He referenced the Province of Ontario’s Emergency Response Plan, in which municipalities are free to declare states of emergency in response to any situation or impending situation caused by the forces of nature, an accident, an intentional act, or otherwise that constitutes a danger of

major proportions to life or property. “In that situation, the province must respond with funding,” Soos said. In an effort to engage the electorate of Niagara, Soos produces and directs a political dialogue web-based program, called True Politics. Viewable on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, the show has featured several Niagara mayors, councillors, and notable public figures. He recently had retired politician and former Conservative Party leadership-hopeful Tony Clement on the program, and on June 27 has former Prime Minister Kim Campbell scheduled. Soos has compiled a list of ten election pledges he will make to the residents of Pelham, ranging from working with the province to assume greater local control of the cannabis industry, to a fairer share of Regional police and paramedic resources, to reducing the Town’s financial deficit as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Soos said council would benefit from some “young blood,” and a “fresh face.” Every option needs to be explored, said Soos, before

DON RICKERS

he will support a financial carry-over baked into next year's budget, which would result in a tax increase for Pelhamites. He would request that financial aid be made available to the Town through the provincial COVID-19 Protection and Support Act, and if that proved to be unsuccessful, would move to escalate the matter to the federal level. “I will work with Town staff when it comes to local expense reduction, and the investigation of using reserves draw down through money available in the general account,” he said. The recent attempt by three councillors to muzzle Mayor Marvin Junkin has Soos fuming. “Mayor Junkin did nothing to deserve this treatment. It was an illegal motion of council. The Municipal Act is clear on this matter. As Mayor, Mr. Junkin is the Head of council, and has final say on matters. The media should go to Mr. Junkin, the chief executive officer of the Town.” In a lightly-veiled shot at Pelham councillor Ron Kore See SOOS Page 14

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Page 10

The Voice, June 10, 2020

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

Through Louis' Lens

T H E PHO T O GR A PH Y OF

LOUIS ALBANESE

THE VIEW FROM HERE The scene along Pelham Street, north of Highway 20, of the epic thunderstorm that moved through last Tues-

day night. The lightning was non-stop, says Louis Albanese, who dashed outside to capture the moment. “ Tripping long exposures with my left hand while

shooting video with moments before the gan. Albanese says t single exposure. “I h

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

my right-this was e rain and hail be that the image is a have my own tech-

nique I developed through trial and error. I have the DSLR set to BULB mode on a tripod, and a remote shutter release in my hand. This partic-

The Voice, June 10, 2020

Page 11

ular shot is a long exposure —about frared shutter release which detects three seconds. The lightning strike the strike and immediately trips the happened during that time frame. For shutter.� daytime lightning photos I use an in-

Page 12

The Voice, June 10, 2020

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

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did not escape. The torrential rain that accompanied the hail washed the Johnsons’ newly planted potatoes downhill and flooded their fields, mixing the varieties so that they will all have to be hand-sorted before they can be sold. His corn seedlings were killed by the repeated frost in May. “The plants can survive one night of frost if there is any life left, but two nights of frost and they’re gone.” Pelham experienced almost a week of nights with frost from May 8 to 13. Johnson was able to replant, but his crop is two weeks behind where it should be. At the DeVries Fruit Farm, on Canboro Road, Dan DeVries figured that he lost 20 to 30 percent of his peaches and strawberries to the frost, and the hail took another 20 percent. He noted that for him it was fortunate that the hail came in large stones because smaller, more intense hailstones would have damaged more fruit. The big stones severely damaged anything they hit, but they didn’t hit as much as smaller hail. Still, he said, “I’ve never seen hail like that.” However, with

selective thinning of the peaches, he declared, “We’ll have a viable crop.” And on the bright side, he noted that “sales have been really good in the Fenwick store. People have come out to support local.” A steady stream of customers and a lineup outside the entrance to his market on Saturday proved the truth of his words. The frost and hail were only two of the problems facing local farmers this year. Add the shortfall in offshore workers, and producers will be hard-pressed to harvest whatever crops they manage to bring to maturity. Lee Johnson now has six of the usual 17 Mexican workers he needs. He said the shortage of labour means some crops didn’t get in the ground, and, “I’ve been on the tractor ten hours a day for the last two weeks, and Nate has been putting in 13and 14-hour days.” DeVries now has 19 of his normal complement of 24 offshore workers, but again their late arrival due to the required 14-day quarantine has set his schedule back. Zack Haist, until the weekend, had only one of his offshore helpers, but two more

are about to come out of quarantine so he’ll have half of his normal six workers for the rest of the season. And if hail and frost and worker shortages weren’t enough, many of the markets that farmers rely upon to sell their produce are closed due to the lockdown. While some markets like Niagara Falls and Milton are now beginning to open, Welland, Waterdown, and Port Colborne have not announced plans to reopen and the restrictions in place have low-

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Further west on Memorial, Lee Johnson’s operation is even more diversified, but the storm did not spare his crops. His son, Nate, said that the nectarines and peaches in their orchards suffered a major hit and those that weren’t smashed to the ground will be bruised. Fortunately, peaches need to be thinned before they get mature, so selective thinning can cull out the most damaged fruit and save much of the crop, but that’s a labour-intensive process. Still, the Johnsons will have to sell many of their peaches as “seconds” due to the blemishes and scars left by the hail. Even their potato crop

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cherries in a pail for your cherry pie pleasure.” Her neighbour, Zack Haist, was hit just as hard. His sweet cherries were about half a normal crop due to the killer frost in May, and the hail finished the job begun by the cold. He estimates his income this year will be around a quarter of what it was last year, even though he has a more diversified fruit crop than Allison. What is left of the cherries will go into juice at $.35 a pound instead of the almost $2.00 a pound he would get for whole cherries. And then there is his crop of plums. “I was really excited we made it through the frost,” said Haist, “and then the hail came.” His early golden plums are gone, 100 percent destroyed. He hopes his apples will provide better news and so far he has seen only moderate damage, but it will be several weeks before he’ll be able to really assess the health of the crop.

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ered numbers of shoppers at the markets that are operating. Pelham’s Farmers Market opens tomorrow, June 11, with limited vendors. As Zack Haist says with casual understatement, “It has been an interesting year.” De Vries and Johnson echo this “it is what it is” attitude and express confidence about next year. “There are lots of people with bigger problems,” Dan DeVries summed it up. You wouldn’t be a farmer if you weren’t an optimist.

The Voice, June 10, 2020

Page 13

DON RICKERS

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

Fenwick matriarch reflects on life at 99 BY DON RICKERS

Special to the VOICE

Anne Kardas had a few folks over recently. Friends and family descended on her Canboro Road home in Fenwick on Monday, May 25 to mark her 99th birthday. Born in Poland in 1921, Kardas came to Canada in 1930 with her mother and siblings, like many other immigrants searching for refuge in a foreign country as unrest festered in Europe. Her father had arrived in Canada earlier, and had settled in a small Saskatchewan town named Togo, located east of Saskatoon and Regina, west of Winnipeg. In the boonies life was hard. “It was a horrible place,” recalled Kardas. The one fond memory she could recall from her early childhood in Poland was of her father hitching the horse and buggy on Sunday mornings, and taking her to church. On the way back, they would stop at the general store for candy. “That was my treat,” she said. Things got harder when her father died in Canada, leaving Kardas’ mother and seven kids in a log cabin, in the wilderness. Anne was 14 and the eldest child. Neighbors helped them move east to Ontario, where they settled in Fenwick.

Kardas eventually married a fellow named Walter, and had seven children of her own. She trained as a nurse at age 40, and worked at the Welland Hospital on a surgical floor. When asked how many years she worked as a nurse, she responded, ”Enough to get a pension.” She enjoys small-town living in Fenwick, and has had few health problems over her lifetime, although these days her mobility is an issue. Kardas has experienced tragedy, as her husband died years ago, and her sons Raymond and John have predeceased her. Her brother Stan passed this year. Living alone in her home, she strives for independence, but has the help of a personal care worker for an hour each morning and evening. She watches television a lot for entertainment. When she gets bored, she’ll call relatives and tell them, “If you want to see me, better come soon!” Kardas has attended St. Ann’s Catholic Church in Fenwick for most of her life, and a priest still comes most Sundays to give her communion at her home. The church is located next door to her house. The land on which the church was built was made available by Walter 70 years ago. Her secret to longevity? “Work,” she said.

SIGNED, SEALED, AND DELIVERED On Monday, June 1, some 50 Notre Dame College School staff fanned out and delivered over 240 specialty lawn signs and graduation gowns to the school’s Class of 2020 gradating students. “It was a wonderful way to recognize our grads at a time when we cannot come together as a Notre Dame family to commemorate and celebrate their accomplishments over their four years of high school,” said school principal Ken Griepsma. The school has also rented a billboard on Niagara Street to recognize the Class of 2020. Griepsma says that plans are underway to hold formal graduation exercises and a prom this autumn, “and we hope that we will be able to carry them out at that time.” Above, happy graduate Tess Capra. SUPPLIED

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Posted Event Submissions Standards April 8United Church Fenwick

If your organization is hosting an event that would be of interest to the community, www.fenwickunited.com www.gladtidingschurchofgod.com you may submit an events profile by sending your community events information to Central editor@thevoiceofpelham.ca Some restrictions apply. Event submissions that meet Region Ads included asked the guide if the arFAITH SOOS theLIFT acceptability standards of The Voice of Pelham will then be posted until the date had followed the continued fromevent. Page continued fromPlease Page 8 provide This17The ad isCommunity to bechitect printed by all participating Ontario papers of your Events Calendar is updated weekly. same philosophy in deas much notice and information possible including date, time and description signingasthe foundation of the for his absence from several council His first book was A Shatbuilding. your event. TheFace Voice the of Pelham reserves the right tomeetings edit for space. this spring, Soos declared, teredofVisage: The Real of Atheism. Other wellknown titles were Can Man Live Without God?, Jesus Among Other Gods, and The Grand Weaver. His last book, Seeing Jesus From the East, was published this year. Millions of his books have been sold worldwide and translated into over a dozen languages. Zacharias was awarded ten honorary doctorates over the years and spoke several times at the United Nations. At one of his forums, a man disagreed with him, saying he believed all truth was relative and not absolute. Zacharias asked him if he was absolutely sure. Before responding, the man hesitated as he realized he was caught in a self-contradiction. On another occasion, Zacharias visited a post-modern museum with erratic design and staircases leading nowhere. He

Zacharias widened his reach by training younger evangelist-apologists. Today there are nearly 100 gifted speakers in RZIM serving in 17 countries. Some 400 others (from 50 countries) have been trained in person. Online training has equipped many more (from 140 countries) in many languages. His ministry also took him to American penitentiaries. His coffin was made by an inmate. In his last book he wrote, “These prisoners know that this world is not their home and that no coffin could ever be their final destination. Jesus assured us of that.” For Ravi Zacharias, this truth is now reality. ♦ Rob Weatherby is a retired pastor who heard Zacharias speak at the Urbana missions conference in 1981 and recommends his website – www.rzim.org

“If a councillor has missed three successive meetings without a good reason, the seat can be declared vacant. It’s all laid out in the Municipal Act. I will enforce that.” (For the first time since March 23, when he attended council chambers displaying symptoms of a respiratory illness that was later presumptively diagnosed as COVID-19 by Niagara Public Health, Kore attended a council meeting, participating along with the rest of council last Monday evening by video conference.) Recent break-ins in Fenwick concern Soos. “It’s like the criminals know that there's limited police presence over there. If we don’t want it to become a hotspot for crime, we need to nip it in the bud.” The closure of the RBC branch in Fenwick has Soos’ attention, and he vows to enter discussions with the bank in an effort to have the branch reactivated as a fully-staffed site. “Fenwick citizens, especially seniors, rely on that branch,” said Soos. (In that the bank building was sold

The prior administration left us in a horrible spot. It’s unfortunate the price Pelham paid on that botched deal. to a developer with plans to build a hotel, it’s not clear where RBC would reactivate its branch.) Soos is supportive of farming in the region, and says he has discussed with Mayor Junkin about working with the province to cut red tape for farmers to prioritize grant money, so that it helps more of the growers. He also encourages cash cropping, which helps young farmers break into the industry. “We have a healthy nursery and greenhouse industry in Pelham, and agriculture is the number one contributor to Niagara’s GDP,” said Soos. “I will continue to support that.” When the Voice mentioned a plan which some councillors support, namely to increase the hours of the Fenwick library through customer self-serve access during non-staffed

hours, Soos responded, “It does make sense. I love the idea because a good municipal councillor supports families. With school being out as long as it has, we want to encourage services for kids to learn. But I would also move books online such as Niagara on the Lake has done,” he said. As for the Haist Street Arena development opportunity, Soos is all for it, provided “It is done properly, and doesn’t become another Meridian Centre debacle.” He is blunt in his assessment of the previous Town leadership. “The prior administration left us in a horrible spot. It's unfortunate the price Pelham paid on that botched deal, without even a bylaw designating the reserve money for such a project, which of course is proper procedure.” Asked to provide a report card for the current Pelham council, Soos responded that he thinks Junkin has done a “phenomenal job,” and he looks forward to being on his team. “I think this council is learning… they're trying to represent the people well,” said Soos. “But where they can improve is by following the Municipal Act. The province sets out legislation and it's our duty to adhere to it. So when it's not being followed, you can expect a ruckus from me,” he said.

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The Voice, June 10, 2020

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COUNCIL NEWS

continued from Page 2 and the neighbours around there are not going to be happy. In all honesty I was shocked to see my next door neighbour can open up a bed-and-breakfast.” Wiens said that any such endeavour would likely violate existing parking requirements. “The chances of it happening are not particularly high,” she said, citing the questionable appeal, for example, of a bed-and- breakfast operating in a townhouse. “You can’t just buy a house and get a licence,” Wiens said, describing the rules in the proposed bylaw. “Whether you’re in a single-detached dwelling, an apartment or a condo, you cannot operate one of these legally unless you have zoning approval in the residential area.” Councillor Marianne Stewart also voiced concern about enforcement and penalties for property owners that violate the proposed bylaw. “Set the boundary where, if there’s so many, you get police action or you take them to court,” Stewart said. “It needs to be very strongly worded and enforced because it’s too easy to make money that way.” CAO David Cribbs said that this was attainable. “We would make sure the serious violations … would find their way to the court system,” Cribbs said. “Not dissimilar to how we’re

proposing to treat cannabis.” Still, concerns over the bill prompted councillors to defer the matter until July 13, another in a series of cans kicked down the road, a habit now customary some 18 months into the current administration. Cribbs urged councillors to highlight areas of concern in order not to jeopardize staff’s work on the overall bylaw. “It is often, but not tonight, the preference of your staff, when we present major reports of this size and magnitude, that took months and months and months of labour, to get them passed through and carry on with the next file,” Cribbs said. “We are however in a world where people aren’t staying in hotels or short-term rentals or B&B’s. That’s not happening right now, hence why there was no problem deferring this from April to tonight. The thing is, there’s a lot of thought that goes into how the different sections work together and changes or deletions can have absolute unintended consequences.” Stewart then asked if another public consultation could be had, to which a visibly frustrated Cribbs replied that this was not normal municipal practice. “That is not the process here. That’s not the process for the Town of Pelham or the City of St. Catharines, or the City of Sarnia, or the City of Toronto, that’s not what we’re doing,” the CAO said. “We did a very deep public consultation process. We really listened

to a lot of people. There was a lot of opportunity for input, it’s reflected in the work product. This item was on the agenda in late April, [with an] opportunity for the public to see it, interact with it, interact with you. At this point the decision is in your hands, not anyone else’s.” Wink urged quick movement ahead of July 13, however, saying that there are in fact Airbnbs currently operating in Pelham during the pandemic. “Yes, they are,” he said. “Here’s the example: if I’m a worker in the area, I’m being sent from Toronto to work in Niagara Falls, I rent an Airbnb for a couple of weeks, do my work, and go back home.”

Special strategic meeting in fall

Cribbs proposed that a special meeting of council be held in the fall — after the proposed by-election to fill late Councillor Mike Ciolfi’s seat — for a strategic planning session. “I can tell you that it would be fair to summarize the thoughts of the Town’s [staff] as being preoccupied with the issue of layoffs, with timelines for reopening, and with safety guidelines on how to reopen appropriately,” Cribbs said. “By October you are going to have a new colleague … and he or she ought to have some input on the direction going forward. This pandemic is fundamentally changing the nature of this town’s finances and presents some new and unique problems that really

no one’s managed through before.”

Money for parking study approved

Despite that harsh economic reality, Councillor Lisa Haun brought forward a motion to hire an independent consultant for a Town parking strategy this year — rescinding a decision to push it to 2021 due to the effects of the pandemic. The cost is estimated at between $45,000 and $60,000. “This needs to be addressed sooner than later,” Haun said. “The decisions we make now will shape our community.” Wink and Mayor Marvin Junkin strenuously disagreed, and were the only two to vote against it. “[This expense will] put us further in the hole. It should be going into the budget for 2021. Regardless of savings, we’re losing over $400,000 —$400,000 to $800,000 — that has to be paid back next year through taxes,” Wink said, citing the Town’s own predicted revenue shortfalls for 2020. Junkin echoed the concern over taxes. “The last two years we have had budgets come in at [a seven per cent tax increase],” he said, “and we cannot bring another budget to this town, three in a row at seven per cent. They can’t afford it, we can’t afford it as a town. We’ve got $200,000 unfunded to the Cannabis Control Committee. I totally agree with Councillor Wink. I can’t see any reason why we can’t put this off.”

Those words fell on deaf ears, with Haun, Hildebrandt, Kore and Stewart voting to spend the money. Cribbs indicated there could be cash to help pay for it through the potential horse-trading of other items. Stewart also reminded council that all municipalities are still awaiting financial relief measures from the provincial and federal governments.

Pool to open this summer

Council unanimously agreed to allow the public pool in Marlene Stewart Streit Park to open at some point this summer, once provincial pandemic regulations allow. “If we do get the provincial restrictions lifted, we would gradually phase in opening,” Director of Recreation, Culture and Wellness Vickie vanRavenswaay said. “Starting with public swims, and eventually swim lessons under the guidance of the lifesaving society.” She said that the upgrades the pool has undergone actually help in this regard, as showers are now located outside. Under COVID-19 precautions, change and washrooms would remain closed. The Town’s report on the matter cited information from the Centres for Disease Control that swimming pools — as long as they are properly cleaned and maintained using chlorine or bromine —pose no risk of COVID-19 transmission. The pool sees 4,500 annual users according to the Town. With reporting by Dave Burket and John Chick

Page 16

The Voice, June 10, 2020

COLUMNS SIX

continued from Page 1 the words. “Please don’t sing,” she said. My mum was in the audience. She watched me move my lips for three minutes of “’Twas a Pretty Little Bird” and said afterwards how proud she was. Naturally I didn’t tell her. Today you can’t get me drunk enough to grab the mic in a karaoke bar. With that, music of all kinds has been a big part of my life. I enjoy it even more than reading. Especially now in lockdown. And so I listen to it every day for hours. But it’s not the music I grew up with anymore. Rock and Folk and the rest of it. I’ve kept all my CDs but I can’t play them. I have a problem with all those lyrics now. They get in the way of what I want to hear, and I’ve heard them too many times. Even my old favourites, like Dylan, McCartney, Cohen, Lightfoot, Baez, Mitchell and Taylor—to name a few— have remained unplayed for a few years. “Where words fail, music speaks,” said Hans Christian Andersen of a different kind, music that bypasses the mind and stirs something deeper. I didn’t exactly grow up with this kind of music, though I always knew it was there, hanging back until I was ready. My earliest musical memory is Enrico Caruso singing “O Sole Mio” on a 78-rpm record that my mother had to play for me over and over again because I was only three and wasn’t allowed to touch the gramophone. The record itself sounded like my breakfast cereal, full of snap, crackle and pop, but I

never tired of hearing that voice hit the high C and hold it longer than I could hold my breath. The other song I remember back then was Patti Page singing “How Much Is that Doggie in the Window” and something called “Teddy Bears’ Picnic” that gave me nightmares for a week. A dozen years later I was well into Buddy Holly, the Everlys, Del Shannon, Frankie Valli, the Beatles, Stones and Animals, when I found my mother’s album of love songs by a guy named David Whitfield. He sounded like Jay Traynor of Jay and the Americans doing “Cara Mia,” and in his rendering of “Maria” from West Side Story he hit the high C like another Caruso. One of his songs was a syrupy ballad called “Farewell My Love” which the album notes said copied the opening theme of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1. I liked it enough to go and buy my first classical album, but not knowing a piano concerto from a symphony I bought Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 1 (Winter Dreams) by mistake. I quickly overcame the shock of not hearing any piano and was soon enthralled by the music. I nearly wore out the record. My high school had an excellent orchestra but they didn’t need a triangle player so I was content to sit in the audience and listen to them play. Good as they were, they weren’t quite up to Tchaikovsky, so I bought a ticket to the Toronto Symphony to hear it perform concerto and symphony in the same afternoon. I didn’t tell my friends because they would have thought it weird. Around that time I had an English teacher who loved jazz. He would sometimes play his records in the

classroom while we were working on assignments. Piano and sax mostly. The likes of Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Theolonius Monk, and John Coltrane. So another seed got planted, again for a later time. Fast forward through years of Dylan, Paul Simon, Elton John, Freddie Mercury, Neil Young and James Taylor. I spent many of those years in England where the only music station back then worth listening to was Radio 3. It was all classical, and so I heard a lot of music I was unfamiliar with. Tchaikovsky was rarely played because he was considered entry level, whereas the real masters were Brahms, Mozart, Beethoven, Mahler, and Schubert. Some I liked, others I wasn’t ready for. But I started buying albums that appealed. Jazz remained in the wings until a teaching colleague introduced me to Oscar Peterson, Stan Getz, and Miles Davis. The energy in this music, and the lack of words, appealed to me. So did the whole impromptu aspect of jazz, like they’d never rehearsed, and the instruments seemed to be extensions of the musicians. So I started buying jazz. So far I had managed to resist whole operas. Too much shouting, I felt. Until another colleague showed me what I was missing out on. I’d come at it from the wrong end, he said. Wagner. Yikes. Whenever Radio 3 played Wagner I turned it off. You can’t start with Wagner, he said. Too much shouting. He introduced me to the more lyrical romantic composers like Bellini, Donizetti, Verdi, Puccini, and Bizet, all featuring tenors that sounded better than

Caruso, with high Cs at every turn. And sopranos, mezzos, basses, and baritones, all accompanied by the most sumptuous orchestral music I had yet heard. I started buying opera. And going to it. One evening at a performance of La Boheme in London, I sat behind an elderly man dressed in a tux who quietly wept through the final scene. He was still shaking as he stood for the curtain calls, and so was I. Not because Mimi dies at the end. Mimi always dies at the end. It was the music. And the voice. The purest instrument of all, I sometimes think in my musical illiteracy. And so it’s jazz, classical and opera that sustain me in this lockdown. Sure, there are words in opera but they’re in Italian, or German, or Russian, and anyway what the words mean is less important than how they sound, because the plots are mostly dumb and predictable and not what it’s really about. If there’s a point to all this, it’s to acknowledge the many people in my life from whom I learned nothing about music except how to enjoy it. All kinds of it over the years, and especially now when I really need it. It’s a crap world these days and we’re all looking for ways to nourish and pacify our souls in a time of darkness. So a special thanks to Enrico for his sunshine, his sole mio. This music crept by me upon the waters, Allaying both their fury and my passion With its sweet air. Thence I have followed it, Or it hath drawn me rather. May we all find our music and stay healthy. ♦

Local youth sports teams in limbo

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OBITUARY

OBITUARY

BOUCK, Charles Thayer Zeron

KEITH, Ruby Ilene (nee Bannister)

Thayer passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home on Friday, June 5, 2020 at 85 years of age. Beloved husband of Mae Bouck (nee Bailey). Loving father of Deborah Bouck, Julie Giammarco (Mario) and Kristopher Bouck. Cherished grandfather of Kyle, Marisa and Ridley. Dear brother of Adeline Colley, Barbara Good, Wendy MacDonell and the late Frances Macrae. Brotherin-law of Charlie Bailey and Marie Davison. Also missed by his extended family. Thayer taught at Welland Eastdale Secondary School for almost 35 years where he was head of math and a hockey coach. He was the past president of the Canadian Tire Coupon Collectors Club. He was an avid reader with a love of history, theology, animals, and plants. He rarely found something that he didn’t want to collect or a person that he didn’t enjoy talking with. The family will gather for a private funeral service at the Pedlar Funeral Home, followed by interment at Fonthill Cemetery. As an expression of sympathy, donations may be made to the Fonthill Baptist Church. Online condolences and stories may be shared at www. pedlarfuneralhome.ca

Passed away peacefully at the Welland Hospital on Wednesday, June 3, 2020 in her 90th year. Predeceased by her beloved husband Lt. Cmdr. Robert John Keith (retired) (1996). Loving mother of Bob Keith (Ingrid), Kelly Sherwin (John), Keith Mark Keith (Debra) and Patrick Joseph Andrew Keith (Ellen). Cherished grandmother of Jeff, Scott, Keith, Kathleen, Dallas and great grandmother of Juniper, Roman and Cecily. Dear sister of Lyle Bannister and predeceased by siblings Shirley, Ann and Roy. Ruby held the rank of Lieutenant in the Canadian Navy Reserve, she taught at the riffle range and lovingly knitted mittens for the children of Fitch Street School. In keeping with Ruby’s wishes cremation has taken place. The family will hold a private memorial service at a later date. As an expression of sympathy donations may be made to any local animal shelter, Covenant House, Terry Fox Foundation or the World Wild Life Foundation. Online condolences and memories may be shared at www. pedlarfuneralhome.ca

situation will be revisited on June 15. They do not yet know if the season will be cancelled for either Rep or House League programs. Other baseball associations in Niagara are suggesting that they could operate a season that would extend into September, should they be given approval from the OBA and the provincial government. Local youth soccer is still in limbo, as Ontario Soccer, in consultation with Canada Soccer and government sport and public health advisors, continues to monitor the most recent developments surrounding the coronavirus. No date for a return to play has been issued in this province. Ontario Soccer (Canada’s biggest provincial sports organization, with some 500,000 participants) submitted its Return to Play plan and is now working with Canada Soccer towards finalizing that document. The reality is at the present time in Ontario, there is no confirmation from the provincial government regarding amateur (team) sport Return to Play timelines. The South Niagara Rowing

Club (SNRC) was back on the water as of this Monday, June 8t, following the re-opening guidelines created by Rowing Canada and endorsed by Row Ontario. New COVID-19 related measures are being implemented to ensure all rowers, staff, coaches, and volunteers stay healthy and safe. All registered program participants will be required to sign the SNRC COVID Code of Conduct (CCC), and will be given a club orientation of the COVID-19 measures that have been implemented during their first session. Updates and changes will be available on the club website and Facebook page. Summer programs for experienced and novice rowers are available at various age levels for youth and adults. Much of the training for experienced rowers will be in singles, while novices will receive training in larger crew boats, provided social distancing restrictions are lifted. Members of the same household can row in doubles, in compliance with current social distancing guide-

It’s a game of wait-and-see for most sports BY DON RICKERS

Special to the VOICE

If your youngster plays golf or tennis, the good news is that they are probably already back in action. If lacrosse is their passion, they will be languishing on the sidelines for a while. Possibly the entire summer. Individual sports which lend themselves more easily to social distancing measures have been reactivated despite the grip of the pandemic. But baseball, lacrosse, and soccer are still playing the waiting game. If and when youth team sports resume, expect equipment and hands to be sanitized repeatedly throughout games. There will be no huddles, no high fives, no handshakes or team hugs. Lots of space on team benches will be the new norm. Even parents cheering in the bleachers will be spaced wider apart. Provincial sport bodies have retrofitted their sports with physical-distancing adaptations, and prepared return-to-play proposals. If the summer season can

be salvaged, start dates will vary from region to region and sport to sport, based on provincial government timelines and approvals. One view has consensus amongst all provincial and national youth sport groups: when team sports return, the focus (at least initially) will be on low-risk, individual skill exercises that maintain safe distancing, rather than competitive games. Equipment sharing will be minimal. The Ontario Lacrosse Association has directed provincial clubs to postpone lacrosse programs until June 15, and is monitoring the situation closely. Cancellation of the 2020 season is a real possibility. Spencer Tanguay, President of the Pelham Raiders Minor Lacrosse Association, told the Voice that his executive made the difficult decision about a month ago to announce that their teams will not be participating in any competitive lacrosse this summer. “We are still hoping to offer some sort of lacrosse programming this summer,” he

Pelham Pee Wee Rep, in what seems now like the ancient times of July 2017. BETH GRANT said. “It could be as casual as having open floor time for players to just throw the ball around, or as formal as exhibition games. Our association plans to run these programs at a very modest cost. But nothing will happen without consent from our local and provincial government, along with direction from health professionals.” Tanguay said that refunds will be issued to parents for any registration fees paid. The association posts weekly skills and drills for play-

ers on their website, as well as instructional videos on Facebook and Instagram, which feature Pelham minor lacrosse graduates who have gone on to accomplishments in the game at a higher level. It won’t be “batter up!” for Pelham Minor Baseball Association (PMBA) anytime soon. A message posted on their website on May 28 indicated that no definitive timeframe for a return to competition had been established by the Ontario Baseball Association (OBA), and that the

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See LIMBO Page 7

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The Voice, June 10, 2020

Voice

FAITH LIFT

by Pastor Rob Weatherby

CROSSWORD SPONSORED THIS WEEK BY

Ravi Zacharias, evangelist to intellectuals

O

n May 19 of this year, Ravi Zacharias passed away at age 74 after a brief battle with cancer. Tributes poured in from many people around the world who were impacted by his speaking and writing ministry over the past five decades. So, who was this man with such a global impact?

Youth in India

Zacharias was born in 1946 in Madras (now Chennai) and grew up in Delhi, India. His mother was a teacher and his father a prominent civil servant. His family religion had been Christian for several generations since his ancestors converted from high caste Hinduism. As a youth, however, Zacharias’ faith was only nominal and he was much more interested in cricket than education or religion. Sadly, at age 17, feeling distraught and unable to meet his father’s expectations, he attempted suicide. A Christian friend visited him in hospital and left a Bible. He opened it and God spoke to him through John 14:19 — “Because I live, you will also live.” This promise from Jesus led him to surrender his life to the Lord and commit himself to the pursuit of truth.

Cong in Vietnam. He was almost killed. Back home he became a seminary teacher and itinerant speaker.

Global impact

In 1984, at 38, Zacharias founded “Ravi Zacharias International Ministries” (RZIM) and moved to Atlanta, Georgia. His ministry motto was, “Helping the thinker believe and the believer think.” He was always more interested in the questioner than the question. In his words, “People weren’t logical problems waiting to be solved; they were people who needed the person of Christ.” In debating worldviews, he always encour-

See FAITH LIFT Page 14

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aged sensitivity, gentleness and respect for what the hearer held valuable. During the 1980s, his radio ministry called, “Let My People Think” began. It is now heard in 32 countries. Over the past 50 years, Zacharias has spoken on hundreds of university campuses around the world. He could see the intense longing of students searching for meaning and identity in their lives. His last message was to some 7000 people at the University of Miami on the topic, “Does God Exist?” Zacharias wrote 28 books.

New home in Canada

In 1966, Zacharias, now 20, immigrated to Canada with his brother. Living in Toronto, he met and married Margie, and began 48 years of marriage and ministry together. They had three grown children and five grandchildren. Zacharias became a minister with the Christian and Missionary Alliance (CMA) denomination. As a young man he took part in a dangerous mission to the Viet

Page 17

CLEAN CUTBACK DECK DING DUDE EPIC

FLOATER GLASSY HUMPBACK PADDLE TUBE WAVE

1. Protects from weather 4. Superhigh frequency 7. Southern constellation 8. Swines 10. Self-righteously moralistic person 12. United Arab Emirates city 13. Surinam toad 14. Sign language 16. Tattoo (slang) 17. Makes level 19. Sun up in New York 20. It must be scratched 21. Where people live 25. Swiss river 26. Buddy 27. One of two equal parts of a divisible whole 29. Shrek is one

30. Egyptian unit of weight 31. Fiddler crabs 32. Carroll O’Connor’s TV wife 39. No longer having life 41. Former OSS 42. A way to emit sound 43. Mandela’s party 44. Adult female chicken 45. U. of Miami’s mascot 46. Southeastern Chinese people 48. Casino game 49. Amos Alonzo __, US football coach 50. Joint connecting two pipes at right angles 51. Will Ferrell film 52. River in NE Scotland

1. Occur 2. Show up 3. Capital of Taiwan 4. Former French coin 5. Some are bad 6. Monetary unit 8. Package (abbr.) 9. Indian religious person 11. Crew 14. Antidiuretic hormone 15. Makeshift 18. Baseball box score stat 19. Make a mistake 20. Not moving 22. Even distribution of weight 23. Clumsy person

24. Paddle 27. Worked the soil 28. Alias 29. Plant cultivated in Peru 31. Side-blotched lizards genus 32. Wild dog 33. Immoral act 34. Pound 35. Manning and Lilly are two 36. Put on the shelf for now 37. Baltimore ballplayer 38. Cuddle 39. Dashes 40. Related on the mother’s side 44. Witch 47. Kilogram force (abbr.)

ANSWERS ON PAGE 18

Page 18

The Voice, June 10, 2020

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

Dancers show solidarity for Blackout Tuesday COVID-19 makes protesting challenging, but not impossible BY MEGAN METLER

Special to the VOICE

Last week on June 2 was “Blackout Tuesday.” It was

a day, amongst the recent protests that followed the death of George Floyd, for the entertainment industry to show solidarity with

A tale of a man’s decision to steal a cursed medal from a graveyard. Raymond’s actions cause chaos to ignite from within the medallion. There is a woman who suffers from the effects of the cursed medal. Sally encounters the ghosts as she passes by Raymond. Will Raymond return the medal? The Cursed Medal is available for purchase on amazon.ca for $0.99.

the black community and acknowledge how their industry has been greatly benefited from black culture. For this important day, dancers from Foundations Dance Company, their families and community members peacefully protested in Niagara Falls. Janet Zanutto, a Fonthill resident and parent who helped organize the event, told the Voice how her daughters got involved. Zanutto said that the owners of the Niagara Falls dance studio decided to be a part of the Blackout, and like the other arts organizations blocked out their goods and services for the day. “So what that means for a dance studio is that they cancelled all their classes, removed everything from social media for the day and kind’ve represented their solidarity by taking their voice out of the equation to make room for black voices,” Zanutto said.

With their virtual dance classes cancelled for that day, the dancers decided to use those hours to protest on the street and show their support. They made signs, homemade masks and ensured that everyone who wanted to participate had safe transportation. Zanutto said that 40 to 50 families showed up from their dance studio as well as members from the community. “Predominantly they got a really great response, lots of honking from cars and people waving and fists in a good way out the window not in the shaking them in your face kind of way,” she said. “There were one or two rude gestures, one person shouting something about why don’t we focus on getting people their jobs back or something like that. But really overwhelmingly a positive response.” While participating in See BLACKOUT back page

Foundations Dance Company dancers protesting in Niagara Falls. JANET ZANUTTO

x

Voice

HOROSCOPE

ARIES – Mar 21/Apr 20 Aries, when faced with too many options, you may have difficulty making a final decision. Time to bring in a second opinion. TAURUS – Apr 21/May 21 Don’t let indecisiveness get in your way, Taurus. You really know what you want deep down, so put those plans into action as soon as you can. Others may come along for the ride. GEMINI – May 22/Jun 21 Don’t feel like you need to make sense of everything all of the time, Gemini. Sometimes things will work themselves out and will become more clear over time. CANCER – Jun 22/Jul 22 Don’t put too many eggs in one basket, Cancer. Look for different opportunities to diversify your skill set and make yourself more attractive to both acquaintances and employers. LEO – Jul 23/Aug 23 There is little point focusing all your energy on a situation that you know will not go in your favor, Leo. Instead, start zeroing in on a different project or task. VIRGO – Aug 24/Sept 22 Creative pursuits are keeping you busy, Virgo. While they may fill the hours, figure out a way to turn hobbies into something profitable. You may need the money soon enough. LIBRA – Sept 23/Oct 23 It is hard to foster tight relationships when you do not actively work on them, Libra. Sometimes you need to take the lead and initiate contact with others. SCORPIO – Oct 24/Nov 22 Don’t be too hard on yourself if

some poor news at work seems to be directly related to one of your assignments, Scorpio. You were only one factor in this situation. SAGITTARIUS – Nov 23/Dec 21 Take as many moments as you can steal for yourself in the days to come, Sagittarius. Soon enough you will be too busy to sit and relax for any amount of time. CAPRICORN – Dec 22/Jan 20 Friends certainly have your back, Capricorn. You must be willing to accept their assistance in your time of need. Even though you’re a giver by nature, accept the help. AQUARIUS – Jan 21/Feb 18 Aquarius, it may be up to you to step up and make up some of the financial deficit in your household when you get news that affects everyone. You can quickly recover. PISCES – Feb 19/Mar 20 New career goals may have to be put on hold for the time being, Pisces. Another issue takes precedence at the moment. FAMOUS BIRTHDAYS JUNE 7 Iggy Azalea, Rapper (30) JUNE 8 Torrey DeVitto, Actress (36) JUNE 9 Natalie Portman, Actress (39) JUNE 10 Kate Upton, Model (28) JUNE 11 Shia LaBeouf, Actor (34) JUNE 12 Adriana Lima, Model (39) JUNE 13 Tim Allen, Actor (67)

SOLUTIONS DOWN 1. Happen 2. Arrive 3. Taipei 4. Sou 5. Habits 6. Franc 8. BDL 9. Sikh 11. Gang 14. ADH 15. Stopgap 18. SH 19. Err 20. Idle 22. Balance 23. Oaf 24. Oar 27. Hoed 28. AKA 29. Oca 31. Uta 32. Jackal 33. Sin 34. Lb 35. Elis 36. Tabled 37. Oriole 38. Nestle 39. Dahs 40. Enate 44. Hag 47. KGF

CROSSWORD ANSWERS

SOLUTIONS ACROSS 1. Hat 4. SHF 7. Ara 8. Boars 10. Prig 12. Dubai 13. Pipa 14. ASL 16. Ink 17. Evens 19. EDT 20. Itch 21. Neighborhoods 25. Aar 26. Pal 27. Half 29. Ogre 30. Oka 31. Uca 32. Jean Stapleton 39. Dead 41. CIA 42. Blare 43. ANC 44. Hen 45. Ibis 46. Hakka 48. Slot 49. Stagg 50. Ell 51. Elf 52. Dee

Enjoy out Take-out Fish & Chips Fridays! From our family to yours...stay safe

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

“Rowers do more before 8 AM than most people do all day.” Anonymous

The Voice, June 10, 2020

Sporting Green The Niagara

Page 19

“No member of a crew is praised for the rugged individuality of his rowing.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

The Voice and TheVoiceofPelham.ca | June 10, 2020

2019 CSSRA champion E. L. Crossley senior women’s eight.

BSPN

Crossley coxie misses CSSRA regatta High school rowing season lost to COVID-19 BY BERNIE PUCHALSKI

BPSPORTSNIAGARA.COM

Friday, June 5 should have marked the first day of racing in the 75th Annual Canadian Secondary Schools Rowing Association championships on Martindale Pond. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic cancelled the regatta and left athletes like E. L. Crossley coxie Lauren Dudzik missing an event that typically culminates a year of hard work on and off the water. To take her mind off what might have been, the 2019 CSSRA champion in senior women’s open eight, has picked up some extra shifts at Sobeys in Fonthill last weekend. Instead of rowing, she was working from 7 AM to 4 PM Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The 17-year-old Fonthill resident joked that her father didn’t help matters because he sent her a Facebook memory from three years ago that showed her winning a CSSRA gold in the senior women’s 72-kilogram eight be-

fore she became a coxie. “He told me it was one of his proudest moments of me and I said, ‘Thanks, if I wasn’t sad enough already,’” Dudzik said with a laugh. Like her peers, the 2019 Stotesbury Cup champion in the senior women’s coxed four has lived through a series of disappointments since the world came to a halt in March. “When I found out that we were going to be off school for three weeks, I was already heartbroken,” she said. “I was wondering what I was going to do without rowing because that is my therapy. I would literally be upset over school, go to rowing and come home happy because it was my therapy and made me happy. Rowing is a little stressful but coxing makes me happy.” Dudzik started rowing when she was 12 with the South Niagara Rowing Club’s Learn to Row program and took to the sport

Lauren Dudzik.

immediately. “It was love at first sight,” she said. “I was always an athletic kid but I wasn’t gung-ho about competing. I always tried different things but they were just never my thing.” That changed with rowing. “The first race I was in it was horrible but the second race we got gold and I was like, ‘This is it when you finally get what you’ve earned and it all pays off.’”

Crossley’s highly decorated rowing program was the perfect place for her to pursue her rowing dreams. “Number one, it is everyone’s determination and they join that team to be a part of it,” she said. “No one sees the side of it about how many people join and how many people drop it because not everyone is cut out for it. It is not everyone’s sport because you are going to be killing yourself almost 24/7. I like to describe rowing as rowing yourself into a wall for eight minutes SUPPLIED because that is basically what a race is.” Crossley’s rowers train six days a week for the entire school year under the leadership of head coach John Ruscitti, a stern but motivating taskmaster. “Some days, you think he is pushing you a little too hard but he cares about you and the well-being of the team, and he wants everyone to do well,” Dudzuk said. Ruscitti is all about his athletes.

“It’s not about him having all these titles and his boats won those races, but he wants you to feel accomplished for how hard you worked,” she said. “Everyone works hard every day practising on that course.” With her online schooling ending this week, Dudzik is looking forward to her next steps. “I thought about looking at an American scholarship for a coxie but after taking the SATs, I decided I didn’t really want to go to the States,” she said. “It wasn’t a dream for me and I did want to stay close to home.” She toured Western, McMaster, UOIT, Guelph, Waterloo and Queens before deciding on Western to pursue a degree in engineering. “When I went to Western for its open house, it felt like home and it felt like it is where I was supposed to be,” she said. “Everyone was so nice and so kind and luckily I got a chance to meet the rowing team and everyone was very welcoming. “I wasn’t necessarily shooting for a school that had a rowing team but it had to be good luck that they did.” She hopes when the pandemic ends, she will be coxing Western crews first across the finish line.

Page 20

The Voice, June 10, 2020

www.thevoiceofpelham.ca

BLACKOUT

continued from Page 18

INFECTIONS

continued from Page 3 As of Friday, June 5, total number of Niagara cases since outbreak began: 707 Total number of active cases: 85 Total number of deaths: 60 Some 25 percent of total

cases were found in longterm care or retirement homes. Among those cases, 83 percent died. Total number of historic cases among the general public by municipality Fort Erie: 15 Grimsby: 14 Lincoln: 12 Niagara Falls: 69

NOTL: 19 Pelham: 29 Port Colborne: 10 St. Catharines: 144 Thorold: 16 Wainfleet: 4 Welland: 56 West Lincoln: 6 With files from the NOTL Local.

the protest, families maintained physical distancing measures by spreading six feet apart and wore masks to ensure safety. “It really gave them an opportunity and a sense of having power and a voice even in times where exercising that voice is made all the more difficult by the pandemic,” Zanutto said. “On the best of days, it’s difficult to stand up for something that you know is right, but you see great conflict in the community and the world and that was certainly made harder by our circumstances now.” Zanutto expressed the importance of amplifying the voices of young people and said, “For us to raise aware children and have our children grow into aware adults who have that broader world view of what justice looks like, we really have to make that extra

effort to provide them with that opportunity.” She believes that the dancers really got a chance to see collectively what they can do. Foundations Dance Company dancers and protest participants Kira Welcome, Olivia Rondinelli, Milana and Ivana Mascia shared their experiences of the event with the Voice. Welcome said that it’s important to stand together against racism because no one should be afraid to leave their house or encounter police just because of their skin colour. “You can spread this message by bringing it up in conversation with others and even posting about it on social media platforms,” she said. “I feel proud being a part of the movement because I am getting my voice out there and not staying silent.” Welcome also said that everyone deserves to have the same opportunities and chances in life and that it

shouldn’t be affected by the colour of your skin. Rondinelli said that the significance of the event is to not only to stand with people of colour but also to listen and learn from them. “I felt nervous and emotional but at the same time proud of myself and my team for stepping up,” she said. Milana and Ivana Mascia wanted to make everyone aware that black lives matter and that everyone of colour should be treated equally. Milana said that once she started their peaceful protest, she felt empowered to make a difference and realized that she could, no matter her age. Ivana added that, “Other ways we could spread this message are as simple as treating everyone with love and respect at all times. Actions speak louder than words.”

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