New Queen of the River Crowned at Tubies

September 2, the upcoming South Dundas municipal election gained another candidate when Phillip Blancher filed nomination papers announcing his intention to seek election as South Dundas councillor.

“I want to make a difference, and improve things in South Dundas,” said Blancher, who has been considering seeking election for quite some time.

Blancher moved to South Dundas just over nine years ago. 

“Over those nine years, I haven’t always agreed with council decisions, and how things have been handled,” said Blancher. 

As a father with a young family, and the owner of a small business that specializes in communications and web development, Blancher believes he would bring a different perspective, a younger perspective to the South Dundas council table.

“I am younger than those who currently sit on council, and having a young family, I think I see things a little differently than they do,” said Blancher, explaining that because council decisions affect everyone in South Dundas, it would be nice to bring the perspective of someone with a young family into that process.

Blancher was raised primarily in the Gananoque area, and was educated in journalism at Sheridan College.

“As much experience as I have, I have no direct experience sitting around a municipal council table,” said Blancher, who hopes to get elected as councillor and gain that experience. “Also, no matter who you are at the table, you only have one vote.”

Blancher’s community involvement includes being president of the South Dundas Soccer Association and Seaway Kickers. He is vice president of the South Dundas Historical Society and served on the Morrisburg Waterfront Implementation Committee.

His platform is available on his website phillipblancher.ca, and includes getting back to basics, good customer service, putting South Dundas first and a focus on economic development.

The nomination deadline for the upcoming municipal election is September 12. So far Steven Byvelds and Evonne Delegarde are the only two candidates for mayor. With the withdrawal of Leslie Disheau, Jim Locke is now unopposed for the deputy mayor’s chair. The three council seats are being contested by Phillip Blancher, Bill Ewing, Bert Geertsma, Jim Graham and Archie Mellan. The list of candidates is not finalized until after the nomination deadline.

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MP Guy Lauzon was on hand at the St. Lawrence Acoustic Stage on Saturday, June 6, to present the board of directors with $25,000 in funding over two years from the Canada Arts Presentation Fund. 

“The Government of Canada is pleased to support the St. Lawrence Acoustic Stage Performances,” Lauzon said, in making the presentation. “Congratulations to the Stage’s organizers and volunteers, who developed this event from a showcase for local artists to an eight-show season that highlights both emerging and professional artists.” 

Sandra Whitworth of the SLAS accepted the cheque on behalf of the board. “The funding from the Department of Canadian Heritage plays a critical part in ensuring that we have the capacity to present high-calibre musicians as part of our annual music and workshop series. We are enormously grateful for the support.”

The St. Lawrence Acoustic Stage, run completely by volunteers, provides a showcase for touring professional musicians and for up and coming emerging artists. The Stage gives audiences, who might otherwise have to travel to large urban centres, the chance to enjoy live, original music right here in South Dundas. The Stage has also arranged workshops with several of these visiting professional artists for  amateur area musicians. 

In recent months, the SLAS has also established a program which brings performers into local schools, introducing a wide range of participatory music to children and their teachers. Educational  musical outreach is an area that the Stage is hoping to develop fully in the future.

Saturday, June 6, was a memorable occasion for the SLAS in other ways as well.

Madison Violet, Lisa MacIsaac and Brenley MacEachern, with Jakub Zapotonczny, performed before a sold out house, the third sold out concert in the Stage’s 2014-15 concert series. 

This was also the final concert which will  be held at the Operating Engineers, the Morrisburg Meeting Centre, the Stage’s venue since it first launched several years ago. In September, as the 2015-16 concert series kicks off, the SLAS will transfer to the Upper Canada Playhouse venue. 

The St. Lawrence Acoustic Stage board will formally announce the musical artists’ line up and performance dates later in the summer.  

[…]

Forensics is a part of policing that was once relegated to the basements, garages and back rooms of stations across the province.

That is no longer the case.

April 17, a newly constructed 13,510 building was officially opened at Long Sault. This is the last of 13 forensic services facilities that have been constructed across the province. The new local facility, is a stand-alone building located across the street from the Long Sault OPP detachment.

On hand for the official opening ceremony were the OPP’s top cops, including OPP Commissioner Chris Lewis. The 100 invited guests included area dignitaries, media and retired members of the Ontario Provincial Police force.

“The proper collection, analysis and storage of physical evidence is essential to solving modern crime and keeping dangerous offenders off the street,” said Lewis.

OPP Forensic Identification Services are responsible for collecting physical evidence at crime scenes and storing it until trial.

Advances in forensics and its importance in prosecuting offenders now have the units operating in new buildings with advanced tools to analyze evidence and solve crimes. 

The building includes a lab area with three biohazard suites which are used to keep evidence related to the crime scene, the victim and the suspect separate.

A chemical room, photo studio, multimedia room, multi-function storage room are also included in the building. 

A bloodstain room provides space for investigators to conduct bloodstain pattern analysis. 

Most impressed by the new facility were the retired officers who remember the ‘old days of forensics’.

“You guys remember the days when body parts were stored in the same fridge as your lunch,” said Lewis to a crowd of retired officers nodding in agreement.

The Forensics unit at Long Sault is staffed by four constables and one sergeant. It is shared with the Belleville and Perth units.

[…]