A sign promoting the 1996 Peterborough Exhibition is one of the items the Peterborough Agricultural Society will be selling off in an online auction. According to a statement from the society on September 26, 2023, the City of Peterborough has invoked a buy-out clause in the Morrow Park agreement with the society, meaning both the society and the exhibition will have to find a new home after 135 years at Morrow Park. (Photo: Jason MacIntosh Auctions)
After 135 years at Morrow Park, the Peterborough Agricultural Society and the Peterborough Exhibition will have to find a new home.
“With mixed emotions the board of the Peterborough Agricultural Society would like to inform the public that Peterborough city council have given notice that they have invoked the buy-out clause within the Morrow Park agreement, asking the society to move from our long-term home at Morrow Park,” reads a statement from the society issued on Tuesday (September 26). “This is so they can proceed to develop this historical area.”
The annual four-day agricultural exhibition has been running annually from 1845 until 2019. It was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic, hosting virtual events instead.
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In 2022, the Peterborough Agricultural Society cancelled the exhibition due to its ongoing dispute with the city, which is currently constructing a $62-million sports complex in the west portion of Morrow Park, fronting Park Street south of Lansdowne Street West.
“It has become apparent that the City of Peterborough has no intentions to live up to the agreement,” the society stated in 2022. “We have repeatedly asked the city for a commitment, timeline, and budget to address the items that are listed in the 2017 agreement and they have failed to do so in the four years of the seven-year agreement.”
In 1938, the Morrow family gifted the 27-acre property to the City of Peterborough on the condition that it be available for the use of the Peterborough Agricultural Society, which was reaffirmed in the Peterborough Act of 1984.
An undated aerial photo of a past Peterborough Exhibition, one of the items the Peterborough Agricultural Society will be selling off in an online auction. In 1938, the Morrow family gifted the 27-acre Morrow Park property to the City of Peterborough on the condition that it be available for the use of the Peterborough Agricultural Society. The city is currently constructing a $62-million sports complex in the west portion of the park. (Photo: Jason MacIntosh Auctions)
The act states “that the (Peterborough Agricultural) Society, the Corporation (of the City of Peterborough), and the trustees of the R. A. Morrow Memorial Park Trust believe that it would be in the best interest of the Society and the Corporation that the property be conveyed to the Corporation to be used for park and recreational purposes and to be used by the Society as an exhibition grounds for an annual exhibition and for other purposes … in perpetuity,” adding that if the terms and conditions are not met, the property reverts to the Morrow family.
In 2011, the society and the city began negotiating the future of Morrow Park, with the society insisting the park should always be available for the August exhibition and the city seeking the ability to develop the park.
In 2015, the city and the society reached an interim agreement that would allow the city to develop 60 per cent of Morrow Park for “parks and recreation purposes,” with 40 per cent of the park remaining available for the society’s use.
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In 2017, the city and the society reached a seven-year agreement that would allow for the gradual redevelopment in Morrow Park, with the city agreeing to build two new horse barns, storage space, office space, and public washrooms for the society’s use at an estimated cost of $7 million. After the city approved construction of the $62-million sports complex in Morrow Park, which raised controversy about the city’s interpretation of the “parks and recreation purposes” condition of the original Morrow Trust, the society and the city have been at odds over the implementation of the 2017 agreement, which also included a “buy-out” clause.
“It is our intent at this time to go forward as the Peterborough Agricultural Society and to look for a new home and start a new beginning,” reads the society’s September 26th statement. “Our hopes are to form strong partnerships within the county of Peterborough and continue to promote agricultural education to the general public. Rest assured we are still here. We have a strong board of directors who are dedicated to the task of rebuilding this once strong institution. Please expect that there will be new things to come and opportunities for you, the public, to help.”
The society’s board has also decided to sell its assets that are no longer needed through an online auction. Run by Jason MacIntosh Auctions, the auction will run from October 10 to 17. Available items include assorted memorabilia from past Peterborough Exhibitions including T-shirts, photos and certificates, pictures, posters, and ribbons as well as office furniture and supplies, stall tube framing, wooden panels, livestock penning, plastic and metal barrels, and more.
Canadian roots band Sultans of String has just released its ninth album "Walking Through the Fire," which includes collaborations with award-winning First Nations, Métis, and Inuit artists from across Turtle Island. The band is launching a months-long tour in support of the album, including a stop at Lindsay's Flato Academy Theatre on October 4, 2023. Joining Sultans of String on stage will be Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk, Marc Meriläinen, Shannon Thunderbird, Don Ross, Leela Gilday, and The North Sound, with virtual guests on the big screen including Dr. Duke Redbird, the Northern Cree Pow Wow group, and more. (Photo courtesy of Sultans of String)
With National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30, a new multimedia music production is embarking on a months-long tour reminding Canadians that listening to Indigenous truths must extend beyond a single day.
Billboard-charting roots band Sultans of String will be bringing their latest album Walking Through the Fire to the stage, joined by the award-winning First Nations, Métis, and Inuit artists who collaborated on and shared their voices for the album.
Launching on a 30-performance tour this week, the production (which shares a name with the album) will be stopping at Lindsay’s Flato Academy Theatre at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, October 4th — the only performance in the Kawarthas region.
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Walking Through The Fire — both the album and tour — includes talents exploring a diverse range of sounds from rumba, rock and folk music, to spoken word and drumming, representing cultures and communities from across Turtle Island (North America).
Under the central theme that Indigenous experience and truths must be shared before reconciliation can begin, the musical collaboration was in response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s “94 Calls to Action” and its final report. More specifically, the project follows the recommendations to increase education and for Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples to work in collaboration to pave the way forward.
“This country has a history that has been ignored, distorted, twisted to suit colonial goals of destroying a people,” explains Sultans of String leader and violinist Chris McKhool in a media release. “We are so fortunate for the opportunity to work with Indigenous artists, sharing their stories, their experiences, and their lives with us, so we can continue our work of learning about the history of residential schools, genocide, and intergenerational impacts of colonization.”
VIDEO: Walking Through The Fire – Sultans of String
A three-time Juno-nominated and six-time Canadian Folk Music Awards winning Toronto-based band, Sultans of String is already well known for fusing international sounds and genres while highlighting voices of the marginalized, as evident in their 2020 album Refuge, which shared experiences of displaced people and newcomers in the country, and the 2021 follow-up Sanctuary, which featured recent immigrants and refugees to Canada as well as important Indigenous voices.
For the Walking Through the Fire tour, Sultans of String band members McKhool (violin), Kevin Laliberté (guitar), Drew Birston (bass), and Rosendo “Chendy” Leon (drums) will be joined by different groups of Indigenous artists on three different legs of the tour, with the first leg beginning on September 28 in Markham and ending on October 4 in Lindsay.
At the Flato Academy Theatre performance, violinist Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk of the Métis Fiddle Quartet is one of the Indigenous artists who will be performing. Her band collaborated on Walking Through The Fire with a song titled “Chanson de Riel,” with lyrics written from the perspective of Métis leader Louis Riel while he was imprisoned and condemned to death.
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In contrast, other stories on the album are more personal, like Ts’msyen singer-songwriter Shannon Thunderbird’s “Lost and Found.” According to the album’s promotional video, she wrote the song not long after the remains of the 215 children of the residential school system were discovered in Kamloops, British Columbia. Since then, the remains of more than 1,000 victims of residential school system have been found, prompting Thunderbird to reflect on the experiences of her own ancestors.
“I was in a lot of tears, thinking about my grandmother, thinking about my mother, thinking about what happened to me — all of these things that came out of this horror,” explains Thunderbird in the video.
The singer will be one of the featured artists at the October 4th Lindsay performance, along with P.E.I.-based Mi’kmaw fingerstyle guitarist Don Ross, husband-and-wife duo The North Sound, Dene language singer-songwriter Leela Gilday, and Ojibwe singer-songwriter Marc Meriäinen (Nadjiwan).
VIDEO: “Black Winged Raven” featuring singers Shannon Thunderbird and Kate Dickson
Joining the onstage performers will be virtual guests on the big screen, including Inuit throat singers Kendra Tagoona and Tracy Sarazin, powwow group Northern Cree, and Chippewa/Anishinaabe Elder and poet Dr. Duke Redbird, who largely inspired the album following his collaboration with Sultans of String on their Refuge album. Now, on Walking Through The Fire, Redbird’s new poem “Our Mother The Earth” is set to music.
Speaking to the importance of using Indigenous language to keep it alive, both the recording and show includes pieces with lyrics in Dene, Inuktitut, Sm’algyax, Cree, and Michif.
Despite the dark truths discussed throughout the project, Walking Through The Fire portrays a hopefulness that becomes evident in the symbolism of the title, where fire represents both something that destroys and something that nourishes and creates a new path forward.
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“When we drop the word reconciliation on people, there’s a large group of people who don’t understand what that means,” explains the album’s Indigenous art director, Mark Rutledge, in a media release.
“When you don’t understand something, you’re fearful of it. But if we go through the same experience together, we walk through that fire together, and we come out together on the other end and have that unified experience together — that’s the power of this album.”
Rutledge was one of many Indigenous advisors, musicians, designers, and filmmakers who guided the production of the project, including filmmakers/videographers Eliza Knockwood and Marc Merilänen. The band also met with Murray Sinclair, Ojibwe Elder and former chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, to discuss the project.
Originally from Toronto and now based in P.E.I., award-winning fingerstyle guitarist and composer Don Ross, of Mi’kmaw and Scottish heritage, will be joining other Indigenous performers at the Sultans of String’s “Walking Through the Fire” tour stop at Lindsay’s Flato Academy Theatre on October 4, 2023. Ross and Métis bassist Marie-Josée (MJ) Dandeneau performed on the track “Highway of Tears” on the Sultans of String’s latest album, a collaboration with Indigenous artists from across Turtle Island. (Photo courtesy of Don Ross)
Additionally, to ensure Walking Through the Fire only positively impacts Indigenous communities, all bed tracks were recorded at an Indigenous-owned studio and funds for the record were not provided by Indigenous grants. The band will also not be applying for any Indigenous awards.
Walking Through the Fire comes to Lindsay’s Flato Academy Theatre on Wednesday, October 4th beginning at 8 p.m.
Tickets cost $42 and are available both online at www.flatoacademytheatre.com or in person at the box office at 2 Lindsay Street South (open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday).
A 32-year-old man is dead after being struck by a commercial motor vehicle on Highway 115 just south of Peterborough on Monday afternoon (September 25).
Peterborough County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and emergency crews responded to a reports of a collision at around 12:20 p.m. on Monday between a pedestrian and a commercial motor vehicle in the southbound lanes of Highway 115 between The Parkway and Airport Road.
The victim was transported to Peterborough Regional Health Centre with undisclosed injuries.
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The victim, who police have since identified as a 32-year-old man, was later pronounced dead at hospital. Police have not yet released information about the victim’s identity.
Highway 115 southbound lanes were closed between The Parkway and Airport Road for almost eight hours while police documented the scene.
The cause of the collision remains under investigation. Anyone who witnessed this incident or who may have dash-cam video that may assist in the investigation, and has not already spoken with police, is asked to contact the Peterborough County OPP at 1-888-310-1122.
The original version of this story has been updated with information that the collision was fatal, with the age and gender of the victim, and with the reopening of the southbound lanes.
Peterborough police are seeking a grey Hyundai Genesis with no license plate that fled a traffic stop on September 23, 2023. (kawarthaNOW screenshot of police video)
Peterborough police are asking for the public’s help in identifying a car that fled from a traffic stop early Saturday morning (September 23).
At around 1:50 a.m. on Saturday, an officer on general patrol conducted a traffic stop in the area of George Street and Lansdowne Street for a car that had no license plate.
The car initially stopped for the officer but, when the officer got out of his vehicle and approached the driver, the car sped off at high speed. A short pursuit was called off.
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The vehicle, which police describe as a grey Hyundai Genesis with no license plate, was last seen heading westbound at Lansdowne Street at Monaghan Road.
The traffic stop was captured on the Peterborough police’s in-car camera system and police are supplying a portion of the video in an effort to help identify the vehicle and driver (see below).
Anyone with information is asked to call the Peterborough Police Service at 705-876-1122 ext. 274. If you prefer to remain anonymous, you can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at stopcrimehere.ca.
As we head into the fourth fall of the pandemic, sick of COVID-19 or not, we now know a lot about how not to get sick from COVID-19.
Before the pandemic, public health worked to prevent seasonal respiratory illnesses, such as influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), among others. When the World Health Organization declared the global emergency from COVID-19 over in May of this past year, the ‘new normal’ we’ve discovered is a lot different from what respiratory illness season looked like in the past.
Local outbreak data makes the degree of this change clear. Before March 2020, we had an average of 20 to 30 respiratory outbreaks in retirement and long-term care homes every year. In 2023, we have already had over 70 outbreaks, and fall has only just begun. This is less than the 170 outbreaks our region had in 2022, but far more than we had before the pandemic.
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Clearly, ‘normal’ has changed. With that, our approach to preventing illness must change as well. We have learned a lot about how to stop respiratory viruses, including COVID-19, over the past four years. Now is the time to apply these lessons to prevent illness this fall and winter.
Fortunately, we are entering the respiratory virus season with much better evidence to reduce the risk of transmission. One of these resources is Peterborough Public Health’s COVID-19 and Respiratory Virus Risk Index, which is updated weekly on Wednesday afternoon.
The index consolidates everything that we have learned throughout the pandemic about how to reduce and manage risk, and it is a very good resource to help you make personal health decisions this fall. We even know of at least one local church that has decided to put it in their weekly bulletin.
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While this year is different, and life looks a lot more normal compared to what we’ve experienced over the past three years, we should still be doing our best to prevent getting sick. Prevention should be our goal for many reasons, not least of which because COVID-19 continues to impact our health.
Consider, for example, that over 2,000 people have died this year in Canada from COVID-19, and many remain at high risk for serious health complications.
Ultimately, however, prevention remains worthwhile because, really, who likes getting sick?
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There is much you can do to make prevention your personal health goal this respiratory virus season. First and foremost, if you get sick, stay home to prevent others from getting sick. You can also continue to test for COVID-19 using rapid antigen tests, which are available for free from Peterborough Public Health and elsewhere in the community.
Testing is important if you’re eligible for antiviral treatment, because the medication needs to be started within five days from the start of symptoms. Anti-viral treatment can reduce risk of hospitalization by 90 per cent, and for this reason is a very helpful and possibly lifesaving tool for eligible residents at high risk of complications from COVID-19.
We have also learned that COVID-19 transmits via aerosols, or the airborne route. This means that the air you breathe is important to preventing infection as well. Strive to spend more time outside while the weather permits. As temperatures drop, ensure effective ventilation by keeping windows and doors open, or by using air filtration to clean the air you’re breathing. If risk levels increase, wearing an N95/KN95 style mask is a key measure you can take to prevent yourself and those around you from getting sick.
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Lastly, one of the best ways you can protect yourself is to be up-to-date with COVID-19 and influenza vaccinations. For most people, the benefit of an additional dose of COVID-19 vaccination with the new XBB variant booster will quite simply outweigh the risk of getting sick, and it will be a good idea to roll up your sleeve again. For those at higher risk because of age or health status, accessing a booster shot is very important.
There will also be a new, publicly funded RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) vaccine campaign to protect residents 60 years and older in long-term care who are at high risk. As always, if you have questions or concerns about vaccines, you should talk to your health care provider.
To some, this may sound like a lot, but think about it like the pre-season warmup for your immune system so you’re ready to fight off viruses this coming respiratory season. If you have questions as we head into fall, I am hosting an event on Peterborough Public Health’s Instagram @ptbopublichealth at 5 p.m. on Thursday (September 28). Please bring any questions you have and I will be able to answer them live. Peterborough Public Health is here to help you make prevention your goal.
Bobcaygeon Truth and Reconciliation Community created the "215+ Taken" art installation after the remains of 215 Indigenous children were detected buried on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia in May 2021. For the third annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30, 2023, Bobcaygeon Truth and Reconciliation Community and the Mishkodeh Centre for Indigenous Knowledge are hosting a commemoration on the grounds of Boyd Museum in Bobcaygeon. (Photo: Bobcaygeon Truth and Reconciliation Community)
This Saturday (September 30) marks the third annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a day dedicated to recognizing the legacy of Canada’s residential school system and its devastating impact on generations of Indigenous peoples. Reflections, traditional ceremonies, flag raising, educational activities, and family events are taking place in communities across the greater Kawarthas region.
Established in 2021 in response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s “94 Calls to Action” to further reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities, the day is an opportunity to reflect, educate, and honour the survivors of residential schools and those who did not return.
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation intentionally coincides with Orange Shirt Day, which takes place every September 30 to recognize and raise awareness about the history and impact of Canada’s residential school system. The date of September 30 was chosen because it is the time of year when Indigenous children were taken from their homes and forced to attend Canada’s residential schools, where they were separated from the families and communities and stripped of their language, culture, and heritage.
To commemorate National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day, head over to Fresh Prints at 219 ½ Hunter Street in Peterborough to purchase an orange T-shirt from Nish Tees, an Anishinaabe-owned local business. Proceeds from this year’s orange shirt sales will go to NATWIN, a Curve Lake-based initiative that provides essentials to northern communities.
Listed below are highlights of just some of this year’s events leading up to, on, and following National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day in the greater Kawarthas region.
VIDEO: 2022 National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Flag Raising
In advance of the regular council Meeting on Tuesday (September 26), the City of Kawartha Lakes will be hosting a flag raising at 12 p.m. on the eastern lawn outside of City Hall In Lindsay.
All members of the public are invited and encouraged to wear orange and take a moment to reflect as the flag is raised.
Trent University – September 25 to October 2
This year, Trent University’s Head of the Trent annual rowing regatta overlaps with the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Varsity athletes will be wearing orange jerseys during the warm-ups and a moment of silence will be held prior to the start of the first game. Orange lapel pins will be available for attendees at the Peterborough Rowing Club, the Alumni Welcome Tent, and at the Justin Chiu Stadium.
Leading up to the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, Bata Library and Archives has curated “It Begins with Children,” an educational display of Indigenous items centred on the lives of children that will be on display at the Bata Library Display Case until October 6. Additionally, a market of Indigenous artists, crafters, and vendors will be hosted at the Bata Podium on September 27 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
On September 28, the Peterborough campus will host a film screening of The Honour of Senator Murray Sinclair followed by a conversation with Michi Saagiig survivors of residential schools. Beginning at 7:30 p.m., the event can be attended virtually through Zoom registration, or in person in Stohn Hall at the Trent Student Centre.
With Trent University’s Head of the Trent annual rowing regatta overlapping with the third annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30, 2023,, varsity athletes will be wearing orange jerseys during the warm-ups and a moment of silence will be observed. (Photo: Trent University)
The Peterborough campus will host its ceremony on Monday, October 2nd beginning with a sunrise ceremony at 6:30 a.m. at the Mindoowag Akiin Traditional Area, and followed by a heart garden reflection from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Traill College’s Kerr House, a walk-and-chalk community conversation from 10 a.m. to noon at Lady Eaton Bridge at Lady Eaton College, a Three Sisters community lunch at noon at the Gzowski College Quad while supplies last, and a community sacred fire at the Champlain College fire pit from noon to 4 p.m., including a campus reflection and moment of silence at 2 p.m.
Trent University will also be hosting events at its Durham campus in the week leading up to National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, including the “Every Child Matters” educational exhibit at the Durham Library Display Case, a screening of The Honour of Senator Murray Sinclair on September 28, and a sacred fire, community reflection, and medicine garden rock painting on September 29. For details, visit www.trentu.ca/truthandreconciliationday.
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Fleming College – September 25 to 29
All three of Fleming College’s campuses in Peterborough, Lindsay, and Haliburton will be recognizing National Day for Truth and Reconciliation with an entire week of learning and awareness beginning on September 25.
In addition to scheduled events listed below, a children’s shoe collection will be on display at all three campuses to recognize, remember, and honour Indigenous children lost to Canada’s residential school system. Local Indigenous business Nish Tees will be selling orange T-shirts throughout the week at scheduled times, including from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday to Friday at the Sutherland campus in Peterborough, with all proceeds donated to the National Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
At the Sutherland campus, events begin on Monday (September 25) with a welcome and drum opening from 10 to 11 a.m. at the main foyer, followed by orange shirt beading from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. On Tuesday, there will be a reading of “Phyllis’s Orange Shirt” from 10 to 11 a.m. in the main foyer, followed by a screening of The Secret Path at 1 p.m. at Whetung Theatre.
On Wednesday, orange rock painting will take place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the Steele Centre patio. On Thursday, there will be a second reading of “Phyllis’s Orange Shirt” from 1 to 2 p.m. in the main foyer. The week’s events conclude on Friday with rock painting and orange shirt beading from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the main foyer.
At the Haliburton campus, orange T-shirt sales and rock painting will take place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesday (September 27) in the Great Hall.
On Thursday and Friday, Lindsay’s Frost Campus will host a reading of “Phyllis’s Orange Shirt” at 12 p.m. followed by rock painting from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Both events take place in the ISS Lounge 180A.
Flag Raising in Peterborough – September 29
Peterborough County Warden Bonnie Clark, in recognition of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, will raise the Every Child Matters flag at the Peterborough County courthouse (470 Water Street, Peterborough) at 9 a.m. on Friday, September 29. Invited guests include Curve Lake First Nation Chief Keith Knott.
Sacred Fire and Film Screening in Cobourg – September 29
On Friday (September 29) from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., EarlyOn Cobourg (800 Division Street) will host a sacred fire with Nogojiwanong Friendship Centre featuring tobacco offerings, kid and adult activities, and community booths with information about Orange Shirt Day.
At Division and Third/George Street in Cobourg, there will also be a special screening of “Bones of Crows” at 8 p.m. Friday in collaboration with the Downtown Business Improvement Area. Those attending are encouraged to bring their own chairs.
Truth and Reconciliation Ceremony in Colborne – September 29
There will be a special commemorative ceremony at 11 a.m. on Friday (September 29) in Victoria Square Park in Colborne featuring knowledge sharing and reflection, moments of silence, and a flag raising and smudge ceremony. Orange shirts will be available for purchase towards the Dibaajimowan Cultural Centre.
Orange Shirt Day at Nogojiwanong Friendship Centre in Peterborough – September 29
The Nogojiwanong Friendship Centre is hosting its Orange Shirt Day event tomorrow on Friday (September 29) from 2 to 6 p.m. at its location at 580 Cameron Street in Peterborough.
Nogojiwanong Friendship Centre will also be at EarlyOn Cobourg (800 Division Street) earlier in the day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to host a sacred fire with tobacco offerings, kid and adult activities, and community booths with information about Orange Shirt Day.
Hiawatha First Nation – September 30
In honour of Orange Shirt Day and in recognition of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Hiawatha First Nation is inviting everyone to an “afternoon of awareness” at Confederation Square in downtown Peterborough from 4 to 6 p.m. on Saturday (September 30).
The afternoon of reflection and education will include invited speakers, the Kairos Blanket Exercise, and big drum singers. A traditional feast will follow at The Gathering Space at 431 Hiawatha Line at Hiawatha First Nation.
Participants are reminded to bring a chair for the afternoon, wear an orange shirt, and bring an “Every Child Matters” flag. Registration is required for the feast.
Curve Lake First Nation is honouring Orange Shirt Day on Saturday (September 30) beginning with a 6 a.m. sunrise ceremony at Lime Kiln Park.
Gather at 10:30 a.m. in the field behind the community centre (closest to the health centre) for opening remarks from guest speakers Chief Keith Knott and Councillor Arnold Taylor with a prayer by Councillor Debbie Jacobs.
A walk will begin at 11 a.m., followed by lunch at the community centre. Participants are asked to wear their orange shirt. Remembrance pins will be given to those who participate in the walk.
Alderville First Nation – September 30
On Saturday (September 30) from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Alderville Health and Social Services in Roseneath, join Alderville First Nation with a day of activities for the whole family, including giveaways, bouncy castles, jingle dress dancers, drumming, and singing.
There will be a shuttle to the event from Cobourg, picking up at Victoria Hall (55 King St. W.) at 9:30 a.m. and returning at 12 p.m. and 1 p.m.
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Free Aabnaabin exhibit at Lang Pioneer Village Museum in Keene – September 30
For the third annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30, 2023, Lang Pioneer Village Museum in Keene is offering free admission to its “Aabnaabin: Looking Back to Where We Come From” permanent exhibit, which explores the impacts local pioneer settlements had on Michi Saagiig Anishnaabeg. Visitors can also visit the wigwam at Aabnaabin Camp, pictured. (Photo: Lang Pioneer Village Museum)
From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday (September 30), Lang Pioneer Village Museum (104 Lang Road) in Keene is offering free admission to its “Aabnaabin: Looking Back to Where We Come From” permanent exhibit, which explores the impacts local pioneer settlements had on Michi Saagiig Anishnaabeg.
Visitors can visit the wigwam at Aabnaabin Camp or chat with the curator to learn about how the museum’s partnerships, including with Curve Lake First Nation and Hiawatha First Nation, came together to start telling the story of how settlement affected Indigenous people and how the museum has shifted directions with its programming to include more of the story, including the parts present-day settlers may find challenging.
Admission is free in honour of National Day of Truth and Reconciliation.
Commemoration in Bobcaygeon – September 30
Visit the Boyd Museum grounds (21 Canal Street East) in Bobcaygeon at 3 p.m. on Saturday (September 30) for a commemoration hosted by the Truth and Reconciliation Community Bobcaygeon and the Mishkodeh Centre for Indigenous Knowledge.
Curve Lake First Nation drummer and Elder Dorothy Taylor will be joined by knowledge holders Anne Taylor and Brittany Taylor for an afternoon of honouring and remembrance.
Virtual tour and talk at Port Hope’s Capitol Theatre – September 30
For the third annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30, 2023, the Municipality of Port Hope and Northumberland County are hosting a virtual tour of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg, followed by a conversation between Port Hope Mayor Olena Hankivsky and special guests Jeannette Corbiere Lavell and her daughter Dr. Dawn Lavell Harvard. (Photo: Canadian Museum for Human Rights )
For National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, the Municipality of Port Hope is taking participants on a virtual tour of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg from 4 to 6 p.m. on Saturday (September 30) at the Capitol Theatre in Port Hope.
Presented in partnership with Northumberland County, “Inspiring Change” is a free, guided live-streamed virtual tour of the museum, with a focus on the Truth and Reconciliation exhibit. Following the virtual tour, Port Hope Mayor Olena Hankivsky will host a conversation with special guests Jeannette Corbiere Lavell and her daughter Dr. Dawn Lavell Harvard.
An Indigenous women’s rights advocate, Corbiere Lavell was born into the Wiikwemkoong First Nation on Manitoulin Island but was stripped of her status under the Indian Act when she married a non-Indigenous man. At “Inspiring Change,” she will recount her actions in challenging the Indian Act in recognition that the same rules did not apply to Indigenous men.
Corbiere Lavell’s daughter Dr. Dawn Lavell Harvard is a proud member of the Wiikwemkoong First Nation on Manitoulin Island, the first Aboriginal Trudeau Scholar, and has worked to advance the rights of Aboriginal women as the president of the Ontario Native Women’s Association since 2003. She is also director at the First Peoples House of Learning at Trent University.
Tickets are free and can be reserved at capitoltheatre.com. To help local Indigenous students achieve their dreams of post-secondary education, donations to Trent University’s First Peoples House of Learning are encouraged.
Benefit Concert at Crook and Coffer in Peterborough – September 30
A benefit concert for National Day for Truth and Reconciliation will be held from 5 to 10:30 p.m. on Saturday (September 30) at the Crook & Coffer at 231 Hunter Street West in downtown Peterborough. Performers include Andy McDonald, Samara Johnson, Andrew Arnold, and Jacques Graveline, along with Craig McEachern, who will be performing the music of John Prine.
Admission is by donation, with proceeds supporting the local Downie Wenjack Fund and local Treaty 20 non-profit organizations.
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Indigenous performers at Lindsay’s Flato Academy Theatre – October 4
VIDEO: Walking Through The Fire – Sultans of String
Inspired by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s “94 Calls to Action” including Indigenous and non-Indigenous voices working together, Juno-nominated instrumental band Sultans of String has collaborated with award-winning First Nations, Métis, and Inuit artists from across the country for their latest CD Walking Through The Fire.
As part of a 25-performance tour across Ontario around National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, the Walking Through The Fire tour will be making a stop at Lindsay’s Flato Academy Theatre on Wednesday, October 4th.
Walking Through Fire features a diverse range of musical offerings from artists across the country, including performances from Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk of the Métis Fiddler Quartet, Ojibwe/Finnish singer-songwriter Marc Meriläinen (Nadjiwan), Coast Tsm’syen Elder and singer-songwriter Shannon Thunderbird, Mi’kmaw fingerstyle guitarist Don Ross, Dene singer-songwriter Leela Gilday, and Saskatchewan’s The North Sound, along with virtual guests Duke Redbird, Northern Cree, Kendra Tagoona, Tracy Sarazin, and more.
Thirteen quilled wiigwaasii makakoons (pronounced weeg-wah-see mah-ka-coons) are visiting their ancestral lands on Michi Saagiig territory until November 19 at the Peterborough Museum and Archives (300 Hunter Street East).
Michi Saagiig women gave the 13 birch bark baskets (makakoons) to the Prince of Wales on September 7, 1860, when he stopped at Rice Lake village (now Hiawatha First Nation) as part of a cross-Canada Royal tour.
Entitled “To Honour and Respect: Gifts from the Michi Saagiig Women to the Prince of Wales, 1860,” the exhibition explores the cultural knowledge, love, respect, and diplomacy that went into the makakoons. The Peterborough Museum & Archives is providing a safe and accessible home for the ancestral makakoons while in Canada.
The Peterborough Museum and Archives is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday and from noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday, and most holidays. Admission is by donatin.
As well as fire and emergency response, Peterborough Fire Services provides public fire and safety education and fire prevention, investigation, and Fire Code enforcement. (Photo: Peterborough Fire Services)
The Ontario Fire Marshall’s Office and Peterborough police are investigating after one person died in a fire at a Peterborough home on Sunday morning (September 24).
At 11:32 a.m. on Sunday, Peterborough Fire Services responded to a report of a structure fire at a home on Meadowview Road in the east end of Peterborough, with one occupant trapped inside the home.
Upon arrival, fire crews found heavy smoke exiting the structure and confirmed one occupant of the home was still unaccounted for. They searched the home and located the missing occupant deceased inside the structure.
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Fire crews then extinguished the fire, with estimated damage at $400,000.
No further information has been released as the Ontario Fire Marshall’s Office and Peterborough police are investigating the incident.
Unconfirmed media reports are that the fire began in a basement apartment, four people were inside the home at the time of the fire and three escaped, and the occupant who died was female.
This is a developing story and will be updated when more information is available.
"Everyone is welcome on my bench," wrote East City resident Ashley Bonner on social media during Peterborough Pride Week, reflecting her passion for building community, for which she will be recognized with a "Top 4 Under 40" Peterborough Business Excellence Award from the Peterborough and the Kawarthas Chamber of Commerce on October 18, 2023. In 2020, Bonner combined her passion with her experience in both social work and social media to create a community hub on Facebook for her neighbours to offer and ask for help of each other during the pandemic. (Photo courtesy of Ashley Bonner)
Ashley Bonner will be stepping out of her comfort zone on October 18 when she takes to the stage at Showplace Performance Centre to receive a ‘Top 4 Under 40’ Peterborough Business Excellence Award from the Peterborough and the Kawarthas Chamber of Commerce.
Though she will be recognized for her efforts and successes in community building and development, Bonner is more accustomed to working behind the scenes — and behind the screen.
Not only does Bonner own Smarketing, a social media marketing and management service, but she’s also behind number of neighbourhood Facebook and Instagram accounts and groups, including the East City Community Hub created for her own neighbourhood where she has spent most of her life. Through these outlets, she has organized neighbourhood events with the goal of creating community, building resilience, and encouraging local shopping.
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“I’ve always been very passionate about helping the local economy,” explains Bonner, adding that with her diploma in social service work and double major in international development and psychology, she has always thought about ways to develop communities.
When her mother was diagnosed with cancer shortly after the onset of the pandemic in 2020, she slowed down her social media work, and started thinking about ways to help immune-compromised individuals like her mother during this time of emergency and uncertainty.
“My background in social work and development and social media came together to make me think, ‘what can I do to help this situation?'” Bonner recalls.
Each Mother’s Day weekend, Ashley Bonner organizes the East City neighbourhood yard sale. This year, local businesses participated in the community initiative alongside upwards of 90 residential houses. Visitors come from as far as Toronto to browse through the sale items. (Photo courtesy of Ashley Bonner)
That’s when Bonner created the East City Community Hub on Facebook, to encourage people to offer their neighbours help when they could, and to ask for help when required.
“I was aware that we were isolating and had no real way to connect with our neighbours. What if my neighbours needed something, especially the seniors?”
Though she initially used Google Forms so people could offer and ask for help, she found the community would willingly post directly on social media to offer assistance, like delivering groceries and goods to those in need. Bonner eventually created a resource document to make it easy for neighbours to get the assistance they required during the pandemic. Information on the document included anything from grocery store hours to delivery services and ideas for families to entertain their young children.
“It had some really vital information in those initial days, because we were all just reacting — we weren’t really responding,” she says, adding that she was impressed by the number of people who were eagerly offering help.
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Months later, in September 2020, Bonner’s mother lost her battle to cancer. Though Bonner was really struggling throughout October, she helped manage her grief by planning a Halloween scavenger hunt for the neighbourhood children who were unable to go trick-or-treating due to the pandemic.
“It brought my passion for stimulating local economy and my passion for building community together, but it also just filled me up to know that I was bringing joy to other people because I was in such a low spot,” Bonner explains.
She would partner with businesses like East City candy shop Flossophy and East Bank Variety for the participating children to collect their prizes.
“There’s research that demonstrates the more we know our local business owners, the more likely people are to shop, so these types of opportunities are a chance to get to know the local businesses and build that rapport with them and connect on a commonality.”
When Ashley Bonner’s mother passed away in September 2020, she helped manage her grief by planning a Halloween scavenger hunt for the neighbourhood children who were unable to go trick-or-treating due to the pandemic, both bringing the community together while also supporting local businesses with whom she partnered. In 2023, Bonner is organizing the Hunter Street Haunt on Thursday, October 26. (Graphic courtesy of Ashley Bonner)
Bonner has continued to host the scavenger hunt every Halloween since and, now that she doesn’t have to consider physical distancing, she’s hosting the Hunter Street Haunt in collaboration with the Witch Flash Mob that Canadian Family Health Counselling organizes each Halloween. Open to all residents, this year’s event takes place from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 26.
The scavenger hunts were only the first of the community-building projects that Bonner promoted using her Facebook hub. Since then, she has organized a neighbourhood yard sale that take place in East City each Mother’s Day in honour of her own mother. With local businesses invited to join the over 90 residential houses that participated this spring, Bonner explains that the annual yard sales have grown much larger than she ever anticipated. A fall neighbourhood yard sale in East City is scheduled for Saturday (September 30).
“It was all just out of my passion for community-building because the yard sale is beautiful and whether people are having yard sales or they’re out shopping, they’re meeting neighbours,” she explains. “You now have the economic activity that comes from both businesses benefiting and those having the yard sales benefiting.”
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Bonner adds that over the years, she’s heard from people having come as far as from the GTA to shop at the yard sale, and she has even heard stories about families deciding to house shop in East City because they admired the community gathering that was encouraged through the yard sale.
While Bonner has no plans to stop hosting neighbourhood yard sales or Halloween scavenger hunts, she thinks that in the future she’ll be focusing more on building neighbourhood resilience, as she again did during last year’s derecho storm, when she encouraged people to use the Facebook hub to offer assistance to neighbours who had lost power.
“I love building community and I have the skill set and I have the passion,” Bonner explains. “I feel this community, this neighbourhood, has been a support for me during my grief and my healing, and it’s been an outlet. It’s been a place where I can bring myself back up, whether it’s through events or through the support people share in the group.”
While Ashley Bonner has used a Facebook group to build community in her East City neighbourhood, she is currently working on a project to help build neighbourhood resilience that doesn’t rely on Facebook. (Photo courtesy of Ashley Bonner)
While Bonner is remaining tight-lipped about her exact plans for building neighbourhood resilience, she points out there are limitations with using Facebook as it is “not designed to help build resilience.”
“A resilient community is when neighbours know each other. The less it relies on a global system, the better it is for that community. The more finances stay in that community, the more opportunities there to develop a thriving community.”
“I’m working on seeing just what I could do to build that to the next level,” she adds.
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Though we might not get to hear about her plans quite yet, we do get to see Ashley Bonner on October 18 when she accepts her 4 Under 40 Award.
“It’s a very big honour and a privilege and I hope that my story helps inspire others in their journeys,” Bonner says.
For more information on Bonner’s social media services, visit smarketingptbo.ca. To keep up to date on East City community events, join the East City Community Hub on Facebook.
Peterborough Petes goalie Liam Sztuska stopped 45 of the 46 shots he faced from the Niagara IceDogs at the final OHL preseason game on September 23, 2023 at Cavan Monaghan Community Centre in Millbrook. With the 3-1 win over the IceDogs, the Petes ended up 3-2 in the preseason. (Photo: David Pickering)
The Peterborough Petes wrapped up their five-game OHL preseason with a 3-1 win against the Niagara IceDogs in a home game played at Cavan Monaghan Community Centre in Millbrook on Saturday night (September 23).
The last time the Petes faced the IceDogs, at their first preseason game on September 2 in St. Catharines, the team lost in a 7-1 blowout.
Unlike that last match-up, Saturday night’s game remained scoreless for the first two periods as an almost sold-out crowd cheered on the Petes.
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In the third period, the Petes’ Sam McCue scored the first goal on a powerplay, with Braydon McCallum and Jax Dubois also both scoring empty net goals. Petes goalie Liam Sztuska shut down the IceDogs, stopping 45 shots until Gavin Bryant scored.
With Saturday night’s win, the Petes ended up 3-2 in the preseason. After the September 2 loss to the IceDogs followed by a 5-3 loss to the Oshawa Generals on September 4 at the Petes’ first home game at the Jack Burger Sports Complex in Port Hope, the Petes won the next three games, defeating the Sudbury Wolves 6-4 in Sudbury on September 8, the Kingston Frontenacs 4-2 at a home game at the Asphodel-Norwood Community Centre in Norwood on Friday night, and the IceDogs 3-1 on Saturday night.
The Petes open their 2023-24 regular season with a home game at the Peterborough Memorial Centre on Thursday (September 28) when they face off against the Kingston Frontenacs. The Petes will be raising their 2023 OHL Championship banner before the game, with puck drop scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
"We're here, we're queer, we're fabulous. Come dance with us!" reads a banner at the Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade held on September 23, 2023 in downtown Peterborough. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)
With this year’s Pride Week drawing to a close, members of Peterborough-Nogojiwanong’s LGBTQ+ community and allies celebrated diversity and inclusivity during the annual Pride parade on Saturday afternoon (September 23) in downtown Peterborough.
The parade began at City Hall and travelled down George Street to Millennium Park, where the annual Pride in the Park celebration took place.
Many participants in the parade took to heart this year’s Pride Week Theme of “Love. Out. Loud.” by proudly wearing costumes, holding signs and banners, and dressing in rainbow colours or carrying the Pride flag.
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“This is a rally cry to be visible and vocal as we face threats from those who wish we would be silent,” Peterborough Pride organizers said about this year’s theme.
“We encourage you to embrace the theme in your participation in the parade and throughout Pride Week.”
Peterborough photographer Sean Bruce took photos of this year’s Pride parade and shared several of them with kawarthaNOW.
The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)
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The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)
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The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)
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The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)The annual Peterborough-Nogojiwanong Pride Parade on September 23, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Sean Bruce)
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