For the third year in a row, Peterborough theatre icons Linda Kash and Megan Murphy will once again be clad in yellow and purple tracksuits for a spirit-raising fundraiser in support of cancer care at Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC).

Taking place at 7 p.m. on Thursday, November 7th at Market Hall Performing Arts Centre in downtown Peterborough, Cancer Takedown offers an evening of song, storytelling, humour, and connection “for anyone touched by cancer.”

“An event like this aims to bring people together to say we’re not alone and we’ve got people around us,” says Amy Kemp, co-founder of Cancer Takedown. “It helps when we share with others how we’re feeling and how we’re doing and we’re honest about it.”

First held in 2022, the event — which Kash calls the most “uplifting” annual fundraiser she hosts — was created by Kemp and her husband Rick after his diagnosis with metastatic kidney cancer in 2019 and then CNS lymphoma in 2021.

“There is a mental and emotional burden that comes along with having cancer, and if we shed some light on that, bring attention to it, and create these events and spaces where people can talk freely about it, then the more you learn and bring awareness to it,” says Kemp.

“Our goal is creating a brand that appeals to the very human insight of what having cancer feels like, and generating awareness and empathy for it — the struggles, the optimism, the rollercoaster of emotions, the dread, the hope — and uniting people through this shared experience.”

VIDEO: Cancer Takedown 2023

Kemp assures the fundraiser approaches the cancer experience with “humour, lightness, and a lot of hope.” But, she says, it’s also honest.

“It helps to hear people talk about it, because often cancer is something that people still don’t talk about a ton,” she says. “We don’t ask people who have cancer because we’re worried about bringing it up and don’t want to be a downer or make them feel sad or scare them. But in our experience, certainly you need to talk about it, and it helps when people around you ask.”

The event will include music by Kate Suhr, Melissa Payne, Kate Brioux, Denise Oucharek, and Anthony Bastianon, along with a guest performance by The Weber Brothers.

“Our musicians have all been impacted in some way, shape, or form by this disease and they’re very thoughtful in their approach,” says Kemp. “They choose songs that really resonate, and though they’re not written about cancer, they really touch on some of the feelings and emotions that many people with cancer have. They mix rally cries and songs with others that are more reflective.”

Playing between performances will be videos featuring the musicians and other community members sharing stories about their own experiences with cancer. Those at the event in past years can be assured this year will offer all new videos and stories.

“There’s no shortage of cancer patients, unfortunately,” Kemp says. “It’s an opportunity to get a little deeper into their personal stories around how cancer has made them feel.”

Kemp adds that the stories will all centre around the mental toll rather than the physical burden of the disease.

“The physical is what is usually asked about — ‘What are you going through?’, ‘What’s your treatment like and do you feel sick?’ — but we try to bring attention to asking people more about how they feel and give them an opportunity to just let it out,” she says. “An event like this brings that to the forefront in a way that feels okay and safe and hopeful and there’s a camaraderie and community that comes from going through some really dark times.”

With Cancer Takedown now an annual event in Peterborough, Kemp is hopeful that it could inspire other communities.

“I think a lot of communities could benefit from the same event, so hopefully that’s in our future to expand out,” she says. “The more attention you bring to it, the more awareness we have, and ideally we get to a place where there’s a mental health professional on every person’s oncology team that can walk them through the mental process and the emotional process, just like we have great care on the physical side.”

If there wasn’t enough reason to come together for a good cause, as Kemp says, “Megan and Linda in velour track suits will never disappoint.”

Tickets for Cancer Takedown are $39 for general admission and $54 for assigned table seating and are available at markethall.org.

Kawartha Lakes Food Source (KLFS) is hoping people will open their cupboards and their hearts by setting aside one food or other item every day in November for people in need.

As the holiday season approaches, KLFS is gearing up to launch its annual “reverse advent calendar” food drive. This year’s drive will run for the month of November.

KLFS said the idea behind the reverse advent calendar is simple: rather than getting something each day, it’s calling on the community to give something every day in November by setting aside a food or household item to donate and, at the end of the month, to deliver the collected items to the not-for-profit distribution centre in Kawartha Lakes.

Erika Henry, KLFS donor stewardship coordinator, told kawarthaNOW the goal of this year’s initiative is to collect 3,000 pounds of food.

“The best thing that can happen, in addition to KLFS gaining inventory to make it through the later winter months when the need is the greatest but donations tend to drop off, is raising awareness about the record-breaking number of food bank visits we are experiencing,” she said.

In 2023, KLFS recorded 13,670 visits to its member food banks and is averaging 1,127 monthly visits this year.

“The more help we receive, the lighter the load becomes for everyone, which is crucial in this moment when inflated food and living costs are making things more challenging for all,” Henry added. “Every little bit counts.”

Residents can complete the reverse advent calendar by collecting as many items as they can from KLFS’s list. On a weekday after November 30, residents can drop off their completed calendar to the KLFS distribution centre located at 164 Needham St. in Lindsay.

Items on the list include canned ham, stuffing, pasta noodles, pasta sauces, canned fruit, pancake mix, canned potatoes, coffee, and hot chocolate.

The full list of items assigned to each day between November 1 and 30 can be found on the KLFS website at www.kawarthalakesfoodsource.com.

KLFS also invites community members to stay tuned to its social media channels for weekly posts and updates.

“This event is particularly exciting when you team up with a group to help you collect each item,” a media release noted. “The reverse advent calendar is a great way for school classrooms, sports teams, or offices to work together with their cohorts to give back to the community and make a difference this winter.”

KLFS said now that summer employment opportunities are finished for the year, it is anticipating another increase in food bank use throughout the winter months, due to a loss in income for seasonal workers.

“The reverse advent calendar is one of the opportunities KLFS has created to help the community engage in our fight against hunger,” the organization said. “Many of the donations collected through this initiative can be distributed in time for Christmas, providing food and hope to our friends and neighbours who are struggling.”

In a quest to fight food insecurity, KLFS operates from a centralized distribution centre, where it collects food from reclamation sources, buys food in bulk, sorts and stores food, promotes awareness of hunger and its impact, and co-ordinates fundraising.

It provides food and personal care items to its member organizations on a monthly, fair share basis. The organization supports eight food banks, six social service agencies, and 21 student breakfast programs.

When a Northumberland County resident who has dementia received a visit at his home from Northumberland Paramedics and therapy dog Ivy Joules, the resident was moved to lie down in the grass and rub the golden retriever’s belly.

The man and the pup began snuggling. He began recalling and vocalizing memories about his own former dog with the paramedic during the visit he received as part of Northumberland County’s community paramedicine program.

“He was eagerly awaiting this visit, and was very inquisitive, asking about Ivy’s training and who she goes home with,” Northumberland Paramedics Chief Susan Brown shared with kawarthaNOW. “He got right down on the ground with her at the end of the visit.”

Ivy joined Northumberland Paramedics as a therapy dog in 2023. Before the pandemic, Brown thought having a therapy dog to support paramedics would be a good idea. She originally bought another dog for that purpose but, with the restrictions of the pandemic, there wasn’t access to the necessary training and that dog, now five, is Brown’s own pet.

As for Ivy, she turned one this past July and her role has evolved to include doing home visits after she received a warm reception from paramedics, staff, community members and others she has met to date.

As a way to further spread the joy Ivy brings to people, Northumberland Paramedics is launching a “heartwarming fundraiser” to provide holiday meals for community members in need, by selling 2025 calendars starring the therapy dog.

“This initiative aims to spread smiles, laughter, and raise money for a good cause,” the county noted in a media release.

The 12-month photo calendar, available for $15 plus HST, “showcases Ivy’s big heart and huge personality.”

Her name, Ivy Joules, reflects vital treatments used in emergency care. “Ivy” refers to IVs used for intravenous therapy and “Joules” refers to the unit of power used to shock a heart using a defibrillator.

“Ivy has given our team so much joy over the past year,” Brown said in a statement. “With this calendar, we want to share her warmth and positivity with the community and help spread some holiday cheer.”

“With orders arriving in December, this calendar would be a thoughtful holiday gift for a dog-lover, or a cherished addition to your own home or office. Either way, it is sure to spread smiles and helps contribute to a meaningful cause.”

Brown regularly receives calls from staff members in a variety of the county’s other 11 departments who wish to have a visit from Ivy. Her presence has proven to be helpful for employees during stressful times, such as during budget preparations.

Ivy has also been a comfort to hospital staff during high-intensity paramedic calls that land her at Northumberland Hills Hospital in Cobourg, Brown said. Ivy has been embraced by staff who have stepped out of the building to visit the pup.

Brown said Ivy has also had a big impact on clients of the community paramedicine program, a preventative care program that delivers non-emergency in-home health care directly to residents in need, including vulnerable community members and seniors.

“A client who lives alone initially seemed a bit unsure how to proceed with Ivy, but quickly warmed up when asked if she used to have dogs,” the chief said. “She started talking about old family dogs and was happy to give a treat to Ivy when offered. Ivy sat by her side for the whole visit and gave lots of kisses when welcomed.”

“This client spoke about how her granddaughter’s husband was sick in the hospital and was looking forward to photos of Ivy’s visit. She was very appreciative of the visit, and of the opportunity to share the photos. Not only was this visit meaningful for someone in our community, but it was also impactful for someone living across the province.”

As for the calendar, all proceeds will go towards purchasing holiday meals for vulnerable community members who may be spending the holidays at home, alone, or in need of food support. No determination has yet been made on the logistics of meal provision.

Those interested in a calendar can order theirs by visiting Northumberland.ca/IvyCalendar. Advance orders are available until November 15, with orders available for pick-up at the Northumberland County office (555 Courthouse Rd., Cobourg) from December 2 to 20.

To see Ivy’s work with Northumberland Paramedics, follow her on Instagram @we.need.ivy.stat.

A new partnership between Miranda Water Technologies and Fleming College exemplifies why Peterborough and the Kawarthas is a world-renowned hub for excellence and innovation in watertech.

At an event at the post-secondary institution’s Kawartha Trades and Technology Centre (KTTC) in Peterborough on Thursday (October 17), Miranda Water Technologies announced a collaboration with Fleming’s Centre for Applied Machine Intelligence and Integration Technologies (CAMIIT) to develop technology for improving efficiency, sustainability, and performance in wastewater treatment.

The partnership aims to drive innovation in sustainable water management while advancing treatment and hands-on learning opportunities for students.

“Miranda Water Technologies is a global, established company that’s now taking its next steps in the Peterborough region with local ownership investing in the technology,” says Jamey Coughlin, Managing Director of Peterborough and the Kawarthas Economic Development (PKED). “In Peterborough, we’ve had many companies active in this space. This is something we do well, so it makes sense it’s happening here.”

Since 2008, Miranda Water Technologies has been a globally recognized leader in supporting the sustainable and environmentally friendly treatment of water and wastewater with water reuse systems for commercial and residential areas. Deployed in more than 40 countries across six continents, the company has 1,200 installations running globally, treating about 60 million litres of wastewater every day.

Originally founded in Türkiye, the majority of the shares of the company were acquired earlier this year by Peterborough investment company Viva Industries Inc. The focus of Miranda Water Technologies on re-using and repurposing biologically treated wastewater to water lawns, run irrigation systems, and clean roads, instead of using drinking water, was a large draw for Michael Skinner and Ryan Moore, Managing Partners of Viva Industries.

“They have a very strong focus on conservation, sustainability, and water reuse, so that’s the first thing that drew us to them,” says Skinner, who is also CEO of Miranda Water Technologies. “Miranda is not just cleaning or eliminating wastewater, but repurposing it.”

Compared to traditional centralized plants that rely on large-scale infrastructure, Miranda Water Technologies offers a modular system that can process wastewater from as few as 20 homes to as many as 1,500. The system is scalable so that, as housing projects expand over time — such as when a developer initially builds 50 homes before adding on another 100 or 200 homes in later years — new modules can be added.

“That makes it less expensive for a developer, which means those costs — or the interest on those costs — don’t get pushed down into the homeowner,” says Skinner. “If it’s not affordable for people to buy those homes, it doesn’t help the crisis we have when it comes to housing.”

In alignment with the Ontario government’s goal to build 1.5 million homes by 2031, the Eastern Ontario Wardens’ Caucus (EOWC) has developed a regional housing plan that proposes to build 7,000 community rental units to address community housing wait lists. It is likely that communal services, which provide water and wastewater treatment to clusters of residences and commercial areas, will be part of this plan.

“We have lots of land in our region, so making that land serviceable will help on housing almost immediately,” Skinner says. “There’s a huge demand for repurposing water in Ontario and, with new subdivisions going in, we can connect the output of our system to support community fire suppression as well as lawn sprinkler systems.”

While Skinner notes the housing crisis in both Canada and the U.S. means Miranda would find success anywhere in North America, Peterborough is an especially good fit for the company because the region is world-renowned for its cleantech sector. In 2018, Water Canada labelled the region as the second-largest cleantech sector in Canada and Peterborough as the second-best city in Canada — and the best in Ontario — to launch a watertech start-up.

“Water and wastewater technology has always been our sweet spot because we’re surrounded by lakes, rivers, and clean waters,” says Coughlin. “But it’s also something which both of our post-secondary institutions are centres of excellence in.”

Along with the Centre for Applied Machine Intelligence and Integration Technologies, Fleming College also houses the Centre for the Advancement of Wastewater Technology (CAWT), the college’s longest-running applied research centre and the only college water research facility of its calibre in Canada. Based at the Frost Campus in Lindsay, CAWT is an internationally recognized hub for research, expertise, and resources with more than 25 accredited courses in wastewater training, inclusive of co-op training programs.

There’s also Trent University in Peterborough which, in addition to offering one of the country’s leading Environmental & Life Sciences graduate program, is the home of the award-winning Water Quality Centre, the most comprehensive mass spectrometry facility in Canada. The centre encourages and promotes award-winning research in the development and application of innovative techniques for measuring isotopes and trace amounts of contaminants in water and other environmental compartments.

“Peterborough has a really, really good reputation,” Skinner points out. “Both academic institutions are doing a lot of research internationally that’s getting great coverage, and they have great teams.”

Coughlin agrees, adding “It’s great to see another company choose Peterborough as the launch pad.”

The new partnership with Fleming College will see Miranda Water Technologies leveraging CAMITT’s work in automating processes to develop a SmartCell Control Module that will enhance Miranda’s Miracell® Rotating Biological Contactor (RBC).

The module uses a series of sensors to monitor wastewater in real time, offering a timelier and more consistent analysis compared to sending samples to a lab once per month. The real-time data can also be shared with users so they know how much water they are saving and, down the line, can be used for health studies and research.

“As part of our sustainability efforts, we really want to understand wastewater and its characteristics,” Skinner says. “The module is monitoring the characteristics of the wastewater, both when it comes into our system and when it goes back out. It lets us know how much our system is purifying and cleaning it, but it’s also monitoring the overall health of the system.”

The aim is not only to deploy this innovation on new systems, but also to implement it in the 1,200 existing installations across the world — which would generate a wealth of data. Skinner notes that, while individual communities might have their own data on wastewater, he is not aware of any studies that consolidates and compares wastewater real time data on a worldwide scale.

At the October 17 announcement, Fleming College President Maureen Adamson highlighted the broader impact of the collaboration.

“Partnering with forward-thinking companies like Miranda Water Technologies allows Fleming College to address critical challenges while giving our students invaluable hands-on experience with cutting-edge technologies,” she said. “This partnership exemplifies how Fleming is shaping the future of technology needed for sustainable, resilient communities.”

Skinner adds that the partnership will support student innovation and lead to success in multiple industries, as it combines IoT (Internet of Things) and wastewater management, which aren’t fields that typically go hand-in-hand.

“Individuals that work with us are going to come out having been exposed to two different and very important emerging industries,” he says. “Some of those students may not end up working for us — they may become entrepreneurs and maybe they’ll end up building an add-on piece to one of our systems — but having a strong ecosystem is really important. The more industries that are like-minded, the more that can work together for success.”

While Miranda Water Technologies manufactures its products mainly in Türkiye and partly in Brazil, Skinner explains that the “IoT and data management aspect would be the Canadian contribution.”

“The idea of making the system smart is the Canadian invention that gets set on top of the existing systems,” he says. “It all ties back to research. Peterborough makes perfect sense because we’re in close proximity to those students and faculty members that we can work with closely.”

Skinner notes the growth of watertech in the region would not be what it is without the help of Peterborough and Kawarthas Economic Development.

“They have been pushing water and green technology for a long time, and it’s their promotion that helped us identify why we can be here,” he says. “If a cleantech or watertech start-up were to launch in Canada, it makes sense to start in Peterborough.”

For more information about for Miranda Water Technologies, visit mirandawater.com.

This branded editorial was created in partnership with Peterborough & the Kawarthas Economic Development. If your organization or business is interested in a branded editorial, contact us.