News

 

“The truth is, if you come to South Dundas you’re going to want to come back every year because it’s such a welcoming place to come to,” said Stormont, Dundas and South Glengarry MP Guy Lauzon.

Lauzon was one of several people invited to the official opening of the 2nd annual Galop-Canal Bluegrass Festival on June 15th at the Iroquois Locks.

According to organizing committee member Geraldine Fitzsimmons, this year’s festival, lasting from Friday, June 15th through Sunday, June 17th, saw a definite increase in guests.

“Gate admission was up from last year, which tells me that more people came,” she said.

In addition, there were 93 campers on site to enjoy the sunny weather and bluegrass music, also an increase from last year’s number.

“There were not a lot of local people,” said Fitzsimmons, who is hoping that next year the organizing committee is able to find ways to entice more locals to attend the weekend-long event.

As for those who did show up, “they all just loved it. Everybody really loves our community.”

Fitzsimmons pointed out that several of the campers had taken trips into Iroquois to go shopping. 

Several of these people, she explained, had never been to South Dundas before or had been here during last year’s festival and liked it so much that they decided to return.

This year’s event saw a few changes from last year, including the addition of local vendors on-site. 

The Ottawa Bluegrass Association and the Morrisburg and District Lions Club donated the use of tents to provide guests with a little shade while the Riverside Heights Snowmobile Association donated the use of some chairs for those who needed them.

Like last year, the Iroquois Matilda Lions Club hosted an on-site barbecue.

While this year was filled with “growing pains,” Fitzsimmons and the Bluegrass Festival’s organizing committee are taking note of what worked and what didn’t so that they can make next year’s event even better.

Members of the organizing committee include Fitzsimmons, Mike Anderson, Doris Clary, Dick Cropp, Barb and Jerry Gurnhill, Sharon and Dick Piche, Paul and Ruth Robertson as well as a representative from the Iroquois Matilda Lions Club.

The Bluegrass Festival is a major fundraiser for the Galop Canal Revitalization Project whose goal is to restore the Galop Canal, bringing life back to the Iroquois waterfront. The project is also an attempt to protect and preserve the history of the area.

[…]

 

Ready your lawn chairs and your sunshades because there are going to be some great times at the Cruickshank Amphitheatre this summer.

The Amphitheatre board has just announced that River City Junction, local group Ruckus and Ridin’ Shotgun are confirmed at the theatre. These talented musicians will be putting on some memorable concerts this summer for area audiences. 

And there is absolutely no admission price. The performances are all free.

River City Junction kicks off the summer series on Saturday, July 21. This Canadian Blues-Rock band is making a real reputation for itself, especially with the release in 2010 of their album Convergence. Caroline Addison, Jason Fryer and Tom Joanisse are talented and highly accomplished musicians who claim “music is a way of life.” They blend old school Chicago Blues, Funk, Motown and classic rock in a cocktail that is “raw, organic and uplifting.” Look for great songs like “Hold On,” “State of Grace’ and “Better Days.”

Ruckus steps on the stage on Saturday, July 28. Formed by some outstanding local musicians, Ruckus promise a rollicking and entertaining afternoon of Irish and East Coast music. There will be music for every taste.

The concert series winds up on Saturday, August 11, with the return of the popular country group, Ridin’ Shotgun. A hit with previous audiences, the band features Terry McClelland and Danika Ellson, and four back-up artists. With the motto, “not your Grandma’s country,” the band brings audiences some of country’s newest and most exciting sounds, including songs from stars like Carrie Underwood and Sugarland. Ridin’ Shotgun promises a foot-stomping, get up and dance performance. 

Every concert at the Amphitheatre this summer will feature draws for some very generous prizes. All concerts begin at 3 p.m., finishing at 5 p.m.

Bring your chairs, your blankets and your friends and take in some of the best entertainment of the summer at the Cruickshank Amphitheatre, down at the beautiful Morrisburg waterfront.

[…]

 

Every Monday, Molo gets ready for school, but Molo doesn’t get ready for any old dog school…no sir…Molo attends Morrisburg Public School with her best friend Delia Barkley. Together, the two read with the students from Nancy Beavers’ grade 1 class.

Molo, a seven year old mixed breed dog, is a registered therapy dog with Therapeutic Paws of Canada. In addition, she is registered in the Therapeutic Paws READ program; hence, her work with the children at MPS.

Molo got started on the road to therapeutic work after Delia and her son Denzil happened upon a Therapy Dog Evaluation taking place while they were vacationing in Toronto.

“We were watching an evaluation of the dogs and everything the dogs were required to do, my son and I were saying, “Molo can do that and Mola can do that.”

So upon returning home, Delia researched and found the Brockville chapter of Therapeutic Paws.

Delia and Mola (Denzil is also certified) were successful in the evaluation process, and the rest is history. For the past two years, they have been visiting seniors at The Hartford in Morrisburg, “and after we started doing that I wanted her to be part of the Therapy Dog Reading Program.”

“I contacted Nancy Beavers at the school to determine if there would be any interest in the program, and she said that she would be.”

MPS principal Beverley Bethune agreed that Molo could be evaluated in the school setting, “so my team leader came here to do the evaluation. If Mojo had shown any nervousness or agitation, or if she had been aggressive in any way, we wouldn’t have gotten the go ahead.”

The reading consists of one child who sits on a blanket with Delia and Molo in an otherwise empty classroom. While the child reads, Molo lies quietly on the blanket listening. She exudes calmness and is a very good listener.

According to the Therapeutic Paws website, “studies have shown that reading to dogs encourages confidence and builds self esteem in children who struggle to read aloud in class.”

“I’ve notice a huge improvement in the children’s reading over the year,” said Barkley who was with Molo at the school Friday morning. “Nancy’s original idea was to involve the children who were struggling with their reading, but all the children wanted to read to Molo, so now they take turns.”

Molo’s mixed breed includes Golden Retriever, Black Labrador and Burmese Mountain Dog. Her size is slightly larger than the Retriever and the Labrador but slightly smaller than the Burmese.

“I think her temperament is Burmese. She is very loyal, and we didn’t train her to be that way. But it makes her easy to train because she wants to please us.”

Delia explained that therapy dogs must have a very calm temperament and they have to like people. They cannot show any aggression, and must be calm during unexpected noise or movements. They also have to be comfortable around walkers and wheelchairs and not attracted to food.

Both the dog and the handler is evaluated in the process.

In addition to her contribution to the grade 1 reading program, Molo is a popular visitor at The Hartford and well-known at the Barkley family’s apple stand at McHaffie’s Flea Market where she is known as the ‘apple dog’.

“She is very well-received at The Hartford,” says Delia. “Some of the residents there had their own pets, and they enjoy her visits. We just walk around and she has her regular friends.”

“It’s a great thing to do with your dog, if you have the right dog,” says Delia. “If there are other people out there who think they could do this and they think their dog is suitable they can check out the Therapeutic Paws website or call me at 613-543-0162. The process takes a couple of months, and the evaluation is a couple of hours.”

“It’s a fun thing to do. I work a lot of the time, and I wanted to do some volunteering. And I just felt that I should share Molo. I have a wonderful dog who is suited to this sort of thing, so why not use her.”

When Molo is not wearing her Theraputic Paws vest and either visiting with seniors or reading with young students, she is like any other dog…she likes long walks and playing with her family.

[…]

 

There was a lot of work and research involved, but now that their study of the World War II bombing of Hiroshima is complete, the grade 4 class at Morrisburg Public School has a wonderful keepsake to cherish.

The keepsake is a beautifully produced book titled Peace Island. It includes colorful artwork and the class-produced story of two pilots, one American and one Japanese who were shot down on a South Pacific island during World War II.  The story tells how the pilots  became friends.

“The topic was about peace,” said grade 4 teacher Jim Lamoureux. 

The large project started in December and the students completed a lot of reading, mainly of books dealing with the bombing of Hiroshima.

The students worked in teams of two and from their studies they wrote and illustrated their own book, Peace Island. Each of the two person teams was responsible for two pages.

“We did the whole plot,” explained Mr. Lamoureux. “We brainstormed the story as a whole class. We had an idea wall, and worked out what each of the characters should look like. Then for every page that had the character,  the kids used that as their bookmark for their artwork.”

“The theme of our book is that by working together, peace can be achieved.”

The students posted their pages on the Wiki class website, and Mr. Lamoureux did the final editing.

“It turned out really, really well,” said Lamoureux. “We did some fund raising to bring the cost down and make it affordable for each of the kids to purchase. It’s not published for sale.”

Through their studies of Hiroshima, the students discovered the story of Sadako Sasaki who was two years old when the atomic bomb was dropped on August 6, 1945, near her home in Hiroshima. In 1955, she was diagnosed with leukemia which was linked to her exposure to the radiation.

During her illness, Sadako was introduced to the ancient Japanese story that promises that anyone who folds a thousand origami cranes would be granted a wish by the Gods.

The story is that Sadako died before she completed the 1,000 cranes, and her friends completed them after her death.

Funds were raised to build a memorial to her and all of the children who died from the effects of the atomic bomb. 

Sadako has become a leading symbol of the impact of nuclear war and every year, school children around the world make and send paper cranes to Japan to be placed at the base of her memorial.

“So everyone in this classroom has folded origami cranes,” said Mr. Lamoureux. “We have strung them together in garlands of 100, and we are shipping them to Hiroshima where they will be placed on our behalf.”

[…]

 

The Dundas County District Council of Easter Seals Ontario met on June 14th at the J.W. McIntosh Seniors’ Centre in Williamsburg for their annual general meeting.

In 2011, Dundas County raised $19,467.85 through its many fundraising events, which include Paper Eggs, Ball Hockey, Bowling, Snowarama, Curling, and Blooperball.

Council chair Ian McLaughlin attended the provincial annual general meeting  weeks ago and reported that only four per cent of every dollar goes to administration and seven per cent to fundraising costs, leaving a whopping 89 per cent for Easter Seals children.

Currently, there are approximately 11 families in Dundas County registered with Easter Seals Ontario.

Children, youth and young adults up to age 19 are eligible for services through Easter Seals Ontario. At age 20, services are then available through the March of Dimes. 

According to McLaughlin, the main difference between the two groups is that March of Dimes receives financial support from the government whereas Easter Seals relies solely on donations and fundraising efforts.

“We’re very proud of the fact that 2012 is the 90th anniversary of Easter Seals in Ontario,” he continued. “It was started by eight rotary clubs in 1922 in Windsor, Ontario.”

“One of the major funding projects that Easter Seals supports is camping.” The two camps are Camp Merrywood and Camp Woodeden.

“Most Easter Seals kids will tell you that their favourite memory is camping.”

For those who don’t want to go to camp, McLaughlin explained that there is a summer recreational choices program as well where families are eligible to receive financial assistance for alternatives like a family vacation or day camps.

In addition to providing information about Easter Seals Ontario and the many fundraisers, the Dundas County District Council of Easter Seals Ontario recognized and awarded some of the many community volunteers who helped raise money for the cause in 2011. 

There were four awards to give out this year beginning with two for the Snowarama fundraiser and two for the Paper Eggs fundraiser.

The first Snowarama Award, in remembrance of Debbie McHaffie Strader, is awarded to the club that raised the most funds for the event. This year, like several before, the award went to the South Dundas Snowmobile Club. Jean McDougal was on hand to receive the award.

The second Snowarama Award is awarded to the first time participant who raised the most money for the event. Chris MacMillan, a grade 8 student at St. Mary’s-St. Cecilia’s School in Morrisburg won the award.

The first Paper Eggs Award is awarded to the company with under five employees who raised the most money for the event. For the fifth year in a row, Cook’s Corner of Morrisburg won the award. Debbie Denis was on hand to receive the award.

The second Paper Eggs Award is awarded to the company with more than six employees who raised the most money. For the first time ever, Mike Dean’s of Winchester won the award.

The Dundas County District Council of Easter Seals Ontario members include Harriet Clarke, Ron Gillard, Deanna MacKillican, Ian McLaughlin, Margaret Reynolds, Bob Ruddock and Marja Smellink.

McLaughlin pointed out that the council is on its 12th year and that they’re “always looking for volunteers. We meet once a month on the second Thursday night” at the J.W. McIntosh Seniors’ Centre in Williamsburg. There are no meetings in July or August.

“We certainly are always looking for new and interesting volunteers to help us out with one project or more,” he concluded.

[…]

 

To commemorate the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812, six attractive blue signs have been strategically positioned in South Dundas to mark significant locations/events that took place at or nearby their locations. Two of the signs can be found at Mariatown which was located in a key place on the “life-line” of Upper Canada–The St. Lawrence River. It was at Mariatown that the first local volunteers mustered for duty. Two signs are located at Iroquois and two are on Highway 2 east of Morrisburg. The signs at Iroquois commemorate The American Landing and Occupation of the Front of Matilda and the Skirmish at Doran’s Farm. East of Morrisburg the signs mark The Burning of Nash Creek Bridge and the November 10 &11, 1913 Battlefield at the Nine Mile Road to Fetterly’s Farm. “What I am hoping is that people will stop, look and envision what happened 200 years ago,” says Morrisburg resident Bill Shearing who was involved in the South Dundas sign program. Shearing pointed out that the signs were placed where it was felt motorists could stop, pull off the roadway and read them. Brochures explaining the signs are currently available at the South Dundas Economic office in Morrisburg. In addition to the more widely known Battle of Crysler’s Farm, there were several lesser known events and skirmishes that took place in the South Dundas area. The sign pictured above, is located in a very picturesque setting on the westerly limit of Mariatown.

[…]

 

On May 16th the Township of South Dundas received a letter from Mart Prost requesting cleanup of the Moffat-Fetterly Drain.

Don Lewis, manager of planning and enforcement, suggested that council use section 78 of the Ontario Drainage Act, “improving the works without the use of a petition.”

He pointed out that Prost has been unable to get any neighbours to sign the petition because they aren’t farmers whereas Prost himself wrote in his letter that “I grow approximately 110 acres of cash crops on land affected by lack of proper drainage maintenance.”

Lewis estimated that there hasn’t been any substantial work done on the drain since possibly before the 1960s. 

Council agreed that Lewis should come back to council with a cost estimate as well as information on who would pay the bill before any decisions are made.

[…]

 

Beginning in September, Seaway District High School will offer a second option in the Specialist High Skills Major program.

On June 12th the province made it official and the local high school is now accredited for the Transportation High Skills Major in addition to the Agriculture High Skills Major already being offered.

According to principal Terry Gardiner, Seaway staff members Robert Knapp, Tanya Crosby and Mark Lewis were instrumental in securing the new accreditation.

The Specialist High Skills Major program allows students in grade 11 and grade 12 to focus on a career path that matches their skills and interests.

The Ontario Ministry of Education offers several options within the Specialist High Skills Major program in addition to agriculture and transportation. 

Seaway’s “excellent shop facilities” was just one of the reasons staff chose to pursue accreditation in the transportation program, said Gardiner. 

He also explained that “a component of the High Skills Major is co-op and we have partners in the transportation industry that provide co-op for our students.”

In addition, the transportation sector is “a large employer in this part of Ontario.”

Gardiner also pointed out that the two programs, agriculture and transportation, compliment one another. He has students in the agriculture program, for example, who are focused on transportation opportunities within agriculture.

“The High Skills Major program has shown that it engages students. When they are interested in their studies, they do better and they attend more.”

He also pointed out that the program “allows students to explore work options in high school before they make decisions about  college.” 

They have the opportunity to try a career to see if it fits for them and, as Gardiner admitted, there are students who have said “yes, this is for me” and others who have said “no, not for me.”

The first set of Seaway students to graduate from the Agriculture High Skills Major will do so this year, said Gardiner.

As for the Transportation High Skills Major, students have already begun expressing an interest and signing up for September.

[…]

 

On June 16th, Issac Rutters had his hair cut at the Dutch Touch in Morrisburg. The remarkable thing about Rutters’ hair cut is that it is the second time he has grown and cut his hair for cancer.  

On September 24th, the grade 5 student from Rothwell-Osnabruck donated six three-inch ringlets of hair to Angel Hair for Children in Mississauga. That donation led to wigs for four children with cancer.

Feeling good about helping other children, Rutters decided to do it again. Dutch Touch hairdresser Melanie McCourt was able to retrieve 12 ringlets this time, double Rutters’ last donation.

Rutters is one of three children belonging to Jennifer and Jeff Rutters of Ingleside.

Alongside Rutters during the visit to the hairdresser was maternal grandmother Muriel McRoberts of Winchester.

She explained that one of Rutters’ sisters has been a regular visitor to CHEO and during one of those visits, grandmother and grandson learned of the idea of donating hair for cancer patients through one of the nurses on staff.

Together, the pair visited the cancer ward of the hospital and were shocked to discover how young the children were who had been affected by the disease. McRoberts said it was then that her teary-eyed grandson decided this is what he wanted to do.

In fact, going forward he intends to make the donation a yearly event. According to grandfather Lloyd McRoberts, “we call him the Chia Pet.”

Unlike many other companies that make wigs for cancer, Angel Hair for Children doesn’t have a length requirement.

According to McRoberts, the company was happy to receive the natural curly hair Rutters sent in last September.

[…]

 

Upper Canada Village hosted a Medieval Festival, June 9-11. Thousands of visitors, including nearly 5,800 school children on Monday, June 11, took in events ranging from noble knights jousting, hosted by Shane Adams of TV’s Full Metal Jousting, to demonstrations of armed combat. Visitors could see working Medieval weapons, watch the jongleurs and entertainers including Kobbler Jay, the Juggler, the mischievous Knot Brothers and Zoltan the Adequate, magician. Booths which featured Medieval wares, falconry shows, dancers, even a Royal Court made the experience educational, but also wildly exciting for everyone who attended. The ‘Dark Ages’ definitely lit up the Village last weekend.

[…]