Located at 983 Burnham Street in Cobourg, the 151-bed Golden Plough Lodge is the only municipally operated long-term care home in Northumberland County. (Photo: Google Maps)
A fire on Saturday afternoon (March 1) at Golden Plough Lodge, the only municipally operated long-term care home in Northumberland County, has displaced seven residents but there were no injuries.
Emergency services responded at around 2:50 p.m. on Saturday to a fire in a resident’s room on the main floor in the Mcmillan Cottage area of the 151-bed Cobourg facility. There was no one in the room at the time of the fire.
While the fire was contained to the resident’s room and extinguished, smoke and water damage affected two other resident rooms on the main floor and, on the floor below, two additional resident rooms, a nurse’s station, and two office spaces.
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All residents and staff in the vicinity of the fire were assessed. Although five staff members were transported to hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation, all residents were cleared with no health impacts.
“Staff are supporting and reassuring residents through this incident,” said Glenn Dees, Golden Plough’s director of health and human services, in a media release after the incident. “Northumberland County and Golden Plough Lodge staff thank the members of the Cobourg Fire Department, Northumberland Paramedics, and Cobourg Police for their timely and professional response to this incident.”
After the Cobourg Fire Department gave the all clear, all residents but seven were able to return to their rooms. Six of the displaced residents will be relocated to other rooms and Golden Plough are working with Ontario Health atHome to find an alternate placement for the seventh displaced resident.
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County facilities staff have completed an assessment of the affected areas of the home. Restoration work is now underway and is anticipated to take several weeks.
In a second media release after the fire, Dees thanked staff “for their unwavering professionalism and quick action” in response to the incident.
“Special thanks also to the broader Northumberland County team for their rapid response, to our colleagues at Northumberland Hills Hospital and other partner agencies who offered support, and once again to our first responder partners, who acted with speed and expertise to ensure the safety and well-being of everyone involved,” Dees added.
Regular visiting hours resumed at the home on Sunday morning.
Community Care Peterborough's fundraiser in support of the Meals on Wheels program, "Meals to Go" sees pre-ordered meals delivered by volunteers to workplaces across Peterborough. (Graphic: Community Care Peterborough)
By treating themselves to lunch delivered to their desks, Peterborough business owners and employees can help put dinner on the table for the growing number of community members who rely on Meals on Wheels.
Community Care Peterborough has announced the return of “Meals to Go,” its spring annual fundraising appeal. The popular fundraiser, which takes place on Wednesday, March 26, is a semi-annual event that sees meals delivered directly to local workplaces by Meals on Wheels volunteers.
Each meal sold helps subsidize the cost of Meals on Wheels in Peterborough, “ensuring that nutritious food remains accessible to those who need it most,” Community Care Peterborough noted.
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Danielle Belair, CEO of Community Care Peterborough, shared a few thoughts with kawarthaNOW about the importance of the fundraiser.
“Meals to Go is more than a fundraiser,” Belair said. “Every lunch delivered, every meal donated, and every volunteer hour contributes to a legacy of care that has supported Meals on Wheels for the past 60 years.”
The demand for Meals on Wheels has grown and community support is vital for the success of the program, Belair added.
“The need for Meals on Wheels has increased considerably in the last few years and this initiative helps us further our efforts to fight food insecurity for seniors and adults living with physical challenges.”
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The $15 meal features a Greek chicken pasta bowl (served cold) with a triple-chocolate fudge cake dessert. Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and lactose-free alternatives are also available. The menu has been crafted in collaboration with Mapleridge Retirement Residence, which prepares hot Meals on Wheels in Peterborough.
To take part, groups of co-workers must order meals in advance, with one representative submitting the full order. The deadline to order is Tuesday, March 18. Orders can be placed online at www.commcareptbo.org/mealstogo.
In addition to purchasing meals, Community Care Peterborough invites businesses and community members to donate non-perishable food items in support of Vinnie’s Food Pantry, a Peterborough food bank operated by the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul. A donation collection will be available at the time of meal delivery.
Community Care Peterborough is also seeking new volunteers in March for the Meals on Wheels program.
“We have set a goal of recruiting 60 new volunteers to support Meals on Wheels, and other essential services we offer, as we commemorate the 60th anniversary of Meals on Wheels in Peterborough,” Belair said.
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In December, Meals to Go surpassed its goal of 600 donated meals for clients in honour of the anniversary milestone. Meals to Go also coincides with March for Meals, an annual campaign that raises awareness of Meals on Wheels programs across North America.
In Ontario, more than 68,000 people rely on Meals on Wheels, and Peterborough is home to one of Canada’s earliest programs. Today, Community Care Peterborough delivers more than 50,000 meals annually throughout the city and county.
“We are so grateful for the incredible support that has sustained Meals on Wheels for 60 years,” Chris LeBlanc, director of donor and public relations at Community Care Peterborough, said in a media release.
“It takes the entire community — businesses, volunteers, donors, and partners — to keep this essential service going. Meals to Go is a fantastic way for businesses to enjoy a great meal, support Meals on Wheels, and now, give back even more by donating non-perishable food items to help those in need.”
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Meals to Go is made possible through the support of sponsors, including Mapleridge Retirement Residence, Sysco, Outpost Packaging, and Crosswind Farm.
Community Care Peterborough is a multi-service charitable organization dedicated to promoting health, wellness, and independence for seniors and adults living with disabilities across the city and county of Peterborough.
Through services including Meals on Wheels, transportation, and wellness programs, Community Care Peterborough “enriches the lives of thousands in our community each year.”
While the sudden warm spells last winter meant Ontario maple syrup producers tapped trees earlier than usual, this also shortened the timeframe for sap collection and ultimately meant a smaller yield. This year's maple syrup season is promising to be more typical, according to the Ontario Maple Syrup Producers' Association. Consistent below-freezing temperatures at night followed by gradually warming temperatures during the day will allow for a more traditional maple syrup season running from late March to early April. (Stock photo)
Did you know it takes 30 to 40 litres of maple tree sap to make a single litre of maple syrup? That’s a lot of sap and a lot of time spent tapping trees.
Unfortunately for farmers, it’s not always easy to predict how long each maple syrup season will last or how much sap they’ll be able to collect over the season.
Unusually warm weather last January and February led to earlier-than-normal tapping of maple trees, while this winter’s cold weather suggests a more traditional maple syrup season — although nothing is certain when it comes to the weather these days.
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“Like the rest of farming, it’s mother nature and you have no control over that,” says Jill Staples of Staples Maple Syrup, located between Cavan and Bethany.
Founded in 1973, the award-winning producer is a member of the Ontario Maple Syrup Producers Association. The farm began with Jill’s husband, Robert, making maple syrup in a cast iron pot with his father in the 1960s and has, over the years, turned into a full family business with the help of their children.
Today, the Staples have three sugar bush areas with 3,500 trees they will tap for the 3,500 litres of sap they will collect on average in a given year. This year, however, it might be a few weeks still before the Staples are collecting sap.
Staples Maple Syrup in Cavan taps 3,500 trees every year to produce their award-winning maple syrup. An open house at Staples Maple Syrup on April 6, 2025 during the province-wide Maple Weekend will be one of many activities taking place in the Kawartha region while the sap runs. (Photo: Staples Maple Syrup)
For trees to be suitable to start tapping, the sap must begin to flow which only happens when the weather fluctuates enough that temperatures are above zero in the daytime, but still below freezing at night. The fluctuation causes a build-up of pressure in the sapwood, causing the sap to run.
While this typically happens between February and April in Ontario, sometimes it can happen earlier — as was the case last year, when Staples Maple Syrup produced its first batch of maple syrup on January 30th.
“Our son who’s more involved now just thought we need to start tapping because the temperatures were going up,” she says, noting it didn’t last more than a few days before drying up again. “Several people didn’t have a good amount last year because they missed those first few really good runs.”
Jill says last year was the earliest they’d ever tapped, more than two weeks earlier than the previous record of February 14. Part of the job, she explains, is having to be flexible and “watch the signs.”
“You can just tell things are changing,” she says. “There’s a smell in the air, the crows start cawing more.”
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While the sudden warm spells last winter meant producers tapped trees earlier than usual, this also shortened the timeframe for sap collection and ultimately meant a smaller yield for the season.
This year’s maple syrup season is promising to be more typical, according to the Ontario Maple Syrup Producers’ Association. Consistent below-freezing temperatures at night followed by gradually warming temperatures during the day will allow for a more traditional maple syrup season running from late March to early April.
In addition, the large amount of snow that fell this winter will provide moisture for trees while also moderating daytime temperatures during warm spells, preventing the sap from flowing too quickly.
The production of maple syrup can be traced back to Indigenous peoples, who were the first to harvest the sap of maple trees to create a syrup for medicinal purposes and to preserve meat and who shared the process with European settlers. Historical and modern techniques of boiling sap will be on display during the Warkworth Maple Syrup Festival taking place on March 8 and 9, 2025 at the Sandy Flat Sugar Bush. (Photo: Warkworth Maple Syrup Festival)
However, that could all change if there’s a sudden warming trend and Ontario experiences an early spring.
“If it warms up too quickly, the run could be very intense and very short, so that’s the other thing we don’t know,” she says. “You never know from one year to the next what the quantity’s going to be like or what your sap is going to be like.”
Tapping too late into the spring, when the buds are beginning to swell, could result in sap that is more bitter rather than sweet. Jill notes this is often a “fine line,” and can result in sap that comes out very dark and milky.
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In the Kawarthas region, maple syrup season kicks off with the 37th annual Warkworth Maple Syrup Festival, taking place on Saturday, March 8 and Sunday, March 9. During the weekend, you can hop on a free shuttle to Sandy Flat Sugar Bush for a day filled with pancake breakfasts, horse and wagon rides, sugaring-off tours, maple taffy making, live entertainment, and nature trails. Admission costs $5 per person.
The fun doesn’t stop when you get back to Warkworth Village, as there will be a vendor sale, a beer garden, indoor mini golf, the storybook walk, and more live entertainment. All proceeds for the event go to the Warkworth Community Service Club. Visit warkworthmaplesyrupfestival.ca for more information.
The sweet celebrations will continue into Maple Weekend, which is held on the first weekend in April every year. Taking place on April 5 and 6 this year, Maple Weekend sees many producers inviting guests to see how the syrup is made and giving out free samples of fresh maple syrup and maple-based confections.
Maple taffy tasting is one of the many fun activities taking place at Sandy Flat Sugar Bush during the annual Warkworth Maple Syrup Festival on March 8 and 9, 2025. (Photo: Warkworth Maple Syrup Festival)
Back for the 28th year, the Sunderland Maple Syrup Festival will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on both days. Located 30 kilometres east of Lindsay in Durham Region, the festival includes tour buses to Salem Alpaca Farm and Harlaine Maple Products, where visitors can see how maple syrup is made using modern practices.
Other activities over the weekend include pony rides, a petting zoo, bouncy castles, maple leaf painting contest, bathtub races, and live music and entertainment. For more information, visit maplesyrupfestival.ca.
As for Staples Maple Syrup, they will be hosting an open house on Sunday, April 6. Visitors can get a tour of the equipment, watch the boiling process, and sample some fresh maple products.
“We’ve always felt it very important for people to know where their food comes from,” Jill says.
Maple syrup producers in the Kawarthas region who are participating in Maple Weekend are listed below.
The Peterborough Theatre Guild's production of Lauren Gunderson's "Silent Sky" brings the unsung story of brilliant 19th-century female astronomer Henrietta Leavitt to the stage for 10 performances from March 21 to April 5, 2025. (Graphic: Peterborough Theatre Guild)
If you’re struggling to comprehend live theatre’s appeal to those who truly love the creative art form, then sit down, if even for a few minutes, with Bea Quarrie.
Should you somehow not come away with a better understanding of that appeal, you will gain on some level an appreciation for the passion and commitment that is at the heart of Quarrie’s more than five decades of bringing stories to stage life, be that as a director or actor.
At the Guild Hall on Rogers Street in East City, Quarrie donned her director’s hat as she sat down for a chat with kawarthaNOW about Lauren Gunderson’s Silent Sky, the fifth play of the Peterborough Theatre Guild’s 2024-25 season, which opens March 21 and runs for 10 performances until April 5.
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“Theatre is an art form that continues to puzzle and continues to challenge,” assesses Quarrie.
“You can go to sleep. I don’t want to do that. This keeps me awake; keeps the old brain cells working. It comes with so many challenges in terms of teamwork, in terms of concepts and ideas, so there’s always something that’s intriguing, something elusive. You’re always chasing something.”
“Just to pull something off the page and make it come to life so the audience will enjoy it .. this communing together is magical. It’s like nothing else. That’s why a lot of actors keep working for pennies. It’s addictive.”
In bringing Silent Sky to local audiences, Quarrie is satisfying an addiction more than five decades in the making; a live theatre legacy that took root in 1970 when she moved to Peterborough from Guelph, secured a job teaching drama at Thomas A. Stewart Secondary School and shortly after made her Peterborough Theatre Guild acting debut, playing eight roles in Dylan Thomas’ Under Milkwood.
She says Silent Sky, co-produced by Ina Stenner and Antje Burness and starring five actors including Lindsay Unterlander in the lead role, checks a lot of boxes in terms of piquing her interest and keeping it, and in terms of the themes it presents.
Directed by Bea Quarrie (right), the Peterborough Theatre Guild’s production of Lauren Gunderson’s “Silent Sky” stars Lindsay Unterlander (left) in the leading role as the brilliant 19th-century female astronomer Henrietta Leavitt. The play also starte Lyndele Gauci, Kevin O’Neill, Laura Lawson, and Lela Fox-Doran. (Photo: Paul Rellinger / kawarthaNOW)
Written in 2011 by Atlanta native Lauren Gunderson as a commission for California’s South Coast Repertory Theatre, Silent Sky relates the true story of the 19th-century astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt who, when she begins work at the Harvard Observatory, isn’t allowed anywhere near a telescope or to even express an idea.
Along with a group of female “human computers” (women who performed calculations by hand), Leavitt charts the stars for renowned astronomer Edward Charles Pickering who, having no time for the women’s theories, calculates projects in “girl hours.”
Undaunted, Leavitt, in her free time, attempts to measure the light and distance of stars. At the same time, she finds herself taking measure of her life in an attempt to balance her dedication to science with family obligations and the possibility of love.
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“A friend of mine said ‘There’s this play I just adjudicated that’s the most popular and most often produced play in North America called Silent Sky’,” recounts Quarrie, adding she had never heard of it let alone read it.
“I got a copy and I read it and I went ‘Now I understand why.’ It’s such a life-affirming play. It’s historically based, but it lifts you up at a time when we all need that — something positive, something that makes you feel like you’re part of a bigger plan. It’s about what makes us human.”
Quarrie notes Leavitt developed a system for measuring the distance to stars “that is still used today. She was pretty well unheard of until this play came to be.”
Henrietta Leavitt at her desk in an undated photo from the early 1900s. (Photo: Margaret Harwood, courtesy of AIP Emilio Segrè Visual Archives, Physics Today Collection, Shapley Collection)
After studying thousands of Cepheid variable stars in two dwarf galaxies, Leavitt discovered how their intrinsic brightness is directly related to their pulsation period. Her discovery provided astronomers with the first “standard candle” (a term coined by Leavitt) for luminosity with which to measure the distance to other galaxies.
Leavitt’s breakthrough provided a crucial tool for measuring vast cosmic distances, leading to the discovery of the expanding universe. The famed astronomer Edwin Hubble, who was prompted by Leavitt’s discovery to position the Milky Way galaxy away from the centre of the universe, often said she deserved the Nobel Prize for her work.
While a Swedish mathematician tried to nominate her in 1925, he learned she had died of cancer at the age of 53 four years earlier, making her ineligible for a Nobel Prize as it is not awarded posthumously.
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Tasked with portraying this little known but strong character, actor Lindsay Unterlander says all the characters, including the one she’s playing, “are beautifully developed and beautifully flawed, but that makes them so charming and lovable, and relatable even though they are historical figures from more than 100 years ago. Their struggles and their story are universal.”
“We’re always curious about what’s going on outside us,” she says. “We’re always overwhelmed with family obligations and things that pull us away from our passions.”
Of Leavitt, Unterlander says she “fell in love with her right away. I understood her desire to be taken seriously. I loved her humour. She has a habit of blurting and speaking her mind that sometimes gets her in a bit of trouble. I can relate to that. I often say what I’m thinking before I think about my phrasing.”
“I’m blanking on who it was, but there’s this great actor who said ‘You know when you pick up a script and read the role, if you hear it in your voice, you know it’s yours.’ That was how I felt the first time I read it. My partner read every other role and I read Henrietta’s. We were sitting in the kitchen. Bea had just given us the script and we were like ‘Let’s read’.”
Circa 1890, Henrietta Swan Leavitt (third from left) works among “The Harvard Computers” who assisted astronomer Edward Charles Pickering at the Harvard College Observatory. The assistants also included Annie Jump Cannon, Williamina Fleming, and Antonia Maury. Reflecting the sexism of the time, the group was also nicknamed “Pickering’s Harem.” (Photo courtesy of Harvard College Observatory)
Not unlike many actors drawn to a particular role, Unterlander says there are similarities between her personality and that of Leavitt that are helping her make a connection.
“Where she was excluded from the world that she wanted, I remember being a kid and saying ‘When I grow up, I’m going to be a professional athlete … a hockey player or a baseball player,’ and having that bubble burst. Just like the way Henrietta is told she’s not an astronomer because she doesn’t have the degree, I didn’t have the genitalia to be a professional athlete.”
Unterlander adds her goal “is that Lindsay is never on stage.”
“If I feel I’m Lindsay up here, that’s when I’m breaking character. I don’t see myself in her, but I understand her. I see her as someone who is fiery and charged up and loud. She’s a force to be reckoned with. Someone else might see her as awkward and aloof. A different actor could play her differently, but the fun thing is how you interpret or understand her, with the help of your director.”
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For Quarrie, Unterlander — who been part of previous Guild production casts including that for Cats — possesses and projects Leavitt’s spirit.
“She’s got that curiosity about the world that’s so fundamental to exploration — not just exploration in terms of astronomy, but exploration in terms of the human condition,” says Quarrie.
“If a director casts a show right, 90 per cent of her work is done. We have a lot of wonderful interactions. The chemistry is good on stage. But it was her spirit — a feisty determination to find things out and, if it isn’t what it could be, she’s going to go for it. She’s going to dig deep.”
With the next few weeks promising rehearsal upon rehearsal, both Quarrie and Unterlander are excited in anticipation of the tie that binds them together: the presentation of their work before an audience.
VIDEO: “Silent Sky” promo
While performing in front of an audience “is a whole different level of adrenaline” according to Unterlander, she admits her favourite thing about theatre is the rehearsal process.
“(It’s a) time to explore and discover new things, and meet your character and the characters you’re playing against,” she says. “I enjoy the process — the challenge of learning the lines and trying out different things. It gives you something to talk about and debate and discuss.”
Quarrie echoes that sentiment, terming the process “the most fascinating thing.”
“I keep saying to the actors ‘You’ve got to play process. Don’t play resolution.’ By the time we get to opening night, certain things will be resolved in terms of where we’re going with it, but not where we’re going to end up.”
“If you’re questing all the way through to find the best possible solution for every single thing that’s put in your way, it’s exciting. Then it comes alive. The audience senses that. It’s not dead on delivery.”
A scene from a 2015 production at TheaterCNU at Christopher Newport University in Virginia of Lauren Gunderson’s “Silent Sky,” one of the most produced plays in the U.S. American Theatre Magazine has referred to Gunderson’s signature style as a “dramatic blend of science, history and romance.” (Photo: Alan Skees Christopher / Newport University)
Joining Unterlander on stage for Silent Sky are Lyndele Gauci, Kevin O’Neill, Laura Lawson, and Lela Fox-Doran, with Lisa Dixon as assistant director.
Other credits include stage management by Marilyn Robinson, assisted by Hayley Griffin-Montgomery, with set design by David Green and and lighting and projection design by Esther Vincent.
Silent Sky will be staged at the Guild Hall at 364 Rogers Street in Peterborough’s East City, with evening performances at 7:30 p.m. on March 21 and 22, 27 to 29, and April 3 to 5, with 2 p.m. Sunday matinees on March 23 and 30.
Assigned seating tickets are priced at $30 for adults, $27 for seniors, and $20 for students and can be purchased by calling 705-745-4211 or online at www.peterboroughtheatreguild.com.
kawarthaNOW is proud to be a media sponsor of the Peterborough Theatre Guild’s 2024-25 season.
The City of Kawartha Lakes is inviting local musicians to sign up for the 2025 "Concerts in the Park" series of 15 free concerts in Lindsay's Victoria Park. (Photo: City of Kawartha Lakes)
While warm summer days and outdoor concerts are still a few months away, the City of Kawartha Lakes is looking to line up local musicians now for the city’s 2025 “Concerts in the Park” series.
The parks and recreation division, in partnership with local bands and sponsors, has been providing free concerts at Victoria Park in downtown Lindsay for 33 years.
With a series of 15 concerts planned for this summer at the Frank Banks Gazebo, the municipality is inviting performers to put their names forward.
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“We’re aiming for a diverse line-up of performers, ensuring there’s something for everyone to enjoy,” the city’s manager of parks and recreation Ryan Smith told kawarthaNOW. “Our goal is to offer multiple talented artists the opportunity to share their unique performances with the audience.”
Weather permitting, concerts take place on Wednesday evenings from 6 to 8 p.m. and on Sunday afternoons from 2 to 4 p.m. during July and August.
The concerts provide an opportunity for people to meet and interact, and the event overall helps develop community spirit while supporting local musical talent.
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Smith said the concerts are important to residents and musicians alike.
“The event provides free, easily accessible entertainment, making it a valuable resource for the community,” he said. “It serves as a platform to showcase local talent and fosters a sense of connection among attendees.”
Attendance for each concert typically ranges from 50 to 100 people, “creating an intimate yet engaging atmosphere for those that attend,” Smith added.
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When asked what types of artists and music genres are desired, Smith said the main objective is to ensure the musicians are offering a family-friendly show.
“We kindly ask performers to tailor their set and language to suit a broad audience. We typically feature a dynamic mix of genres, ranging from jazz to rock, ensuring a variety of musical styles for all tastes.”
The 2025 series, sponsored by the Lindsay & District Chamber of Commerce, will feature an open mic concert once a month. These shows will provide aspiring performers with the opportunity to display their talent in three songs or less during a 15-minute set.
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When the first concert of the season takes place on Wednesday, July 2, residents and visitors can grab their lawn chairs or blankets and settle in at Victoria Park, which is located at 210 Kent St. W., to take in the outdoor live music.
Performers interested in volunteering their time and talent to the concert series are asked to reach out to the parks and recreation department.
Four female leaders in Peterborough (left to right, top and bottom: Maryam Monsef, Kim Dolan, Bonnie Clark, and Joy Lachica) share what International Women's Day means to them and why it's imperative to accelerate action towards gender equality in 2025. (kawarthaNOW collage of supplied photos)
“This day is more important than it ever has been.”
Though International Women’s Day (IWD) has been around for more than 100 years, Peterborough city councillor Joy Lachica’s comment resonates with three other female leaders in Peterborough, including Maryam Monsef, Kim Dolan, and Bonnie Clark.
Officially marked by the United Nations in 1975, IWD is marked around the world every March 8th as a celebration of the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women, and as a call to action that more work can be done to advance women’s equality — something that’s even more prominent under this year’s IWD theme of “Accelerate Action,” which is a call to take immediate steps to move women closer towards gender parity.
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Maryam Monsef, founder and CEO of ONWARD, is a former MP for Peterborough-Kawartha and former federal Minister for Women and Gender Equality. (Photo courtesy of Maryam Monsef)
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“We are far from equal, despite how far we have come culturally and legally in accepting the fundamental rights of women and girls,” says Maryam Monsef, former Peterborough-Kawartha MP and founder and CEO of ONWARD. “In fact, we are seeing backsliding to progress. Accelerating action is necessary.”
According to the Global Gender Gap 2024 from World Economy Forum, it is predicted that gender parity will not be achieved for another 134 years — approximately five generations beyond the 2030 target of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Monsef, who was federal Minister for Women and Gender Equality (previously known as Minister for the Status of Women) from 2017 to 2021 and established Canada’s first Department for Women and Gender Equality during her time in parliament, suggests the reason a gap remains is because “there is complacency with some who believe women have achieved equality.”
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Kim Dolan is the executive director of YWCA Peterborough Haliburton, which provides safe shelter, resources, support and crisis services for women who experience violence and abuse of any kind. (Photo courtesy of YWCA Peterborough Haliburton)
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Kim Dolan, executive director of YWCA Peterborough Haliburton, suggests the fallout of this disparity can be seen in our communities.
“The fact that many women, of all ages, races, and socioeconomic status, live in fear in our homes, in our workplaces, and in our communities is a barometer of how well we are doing as a society,” Dolan says. “Most women don’t speak of the fear of violence in their homes and workplaces, and how state-sanctioned poverty, hunger, and homelessness create even more barriers to achieving the best possible social determinants of health outcomes.”
Dolan points to the UN’s theme for this year’s IWD (“For ALL women and girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment”), stating that “the theme is particularly poignant as we witness the steady eradication, led by politicians, far-right religious leaders, and billionaires, of over 100 years of human right gains.”
“We cannot ignore the influence of the sociopolitical climate south of the border, where we’ve already seen the impact on women’s lives — when access to sexual health care isn’t just disappearing, it is illegal,” Dolan pointed out. “State-sanctioned misogyny and attacks on LGBTQI+ individuals and communities are feeding hate and fuelling fear.”
The recent threats to Canada’s economy made by U.S. President Trump could also pose a larger risk to women in comparison to men. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), there was 11.5 per cent difference in 2023 between employment wages for Canadian men and women in the same decile, leading women to retire with a smaller pension and contributing to gender poverty.
“When women earn a living wage, have safe, affordable housing in their name, have access to healthy, nutritious food, have access to education and healthcare, and feel welcome in their communities, they thrive, their families thrive, our economy thrives,” says Dolan.
“Let’s ask ourselves what would happen if women’s rights here and around the world accelerated backwards. Women and girls represent just over half of our local and global communities. It isn’t possible to achieve the rich possibilities that a world of abundance offers when half of the population has less access to income, housing, food, education, healthcare, safety, and physical and emotional health and wellness.”
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Bonnie Clark is the warden of Peterborough County and the 2025 chair of the Eastern Ontario Wardens’ Caucus. (Photo courtesy of Peterborough County)
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For Peterborough County warden Bonnie Clark, the IWD theme of “Accelerating Action” means “we need to simply stop talking about gender equality and start living it more and working towards it.”
To live up to this, Clark attends elementary and secondary schools to talk to students about her career in public service and to demonstrate women in power, believing the need to educate and inspire women from a young age.
“As a grandmother to two young granddaughters, I need to walk (the talk) so they can see that you can be effective and a leader in this world,” she says. “When we empower women, it benefits everyone in our society.”
According to The Gender Snapshot 2024 from UN Women, despite making up 52.4 per cent of the world’s population, women held only one in every four seats (26.9 per cent) in parliament and one in three seats (35.5 per cent) in local governments.
On Peterborough County council, which comprises mayors and deputy mayors from each of the eight lower-tier municipalities in the county, six of the 16 members (38 per cent) are female-identifying, including Clark and the deputy warden Sherry Senis, who is mayor of Selwyn Township
“Women can bring a different dimension to the table than men do, so let’s put it together and have the best society we can,” Clark says. “When you look at a society that is gender equal, you get stronger economies, better health outcomes, and I see them as more peaceful communities. Through the steps that we are doing here in our community and if we’re working together, we can move the pendulum until we get there.”
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Joy Lachica is a Peterborough city councillor representing Town Ward (Ward 3) and second deputy mayor. (Photo courtesy of Joy Lachica)
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Peterborough city councillor Joy Lachica suggests having more women involved in politics provides an opportunity to accelerate action for equality.
“Based on everything we’ve achieved as a democracy, on any level — municipal, provincial, federal — I think we need to be trying and continue to strive for leadership excellence that includes the scope of the identities of the community,” she says.
“Being an intersectional individual who identifies as a woman, racialized, and queer, I have lots of intersections and I’m so lucky to have the opportunity to participate in change, in policy making, and in service to my community. I take that opportunity to look around the horseshoe (the council table at Peterborough City Hall) and I ask myself, ‘Have we achieved the scope of excellence we deserve in our municipal representation in Peterborough and do we reflect the gender representation of our city?’ And I have to say no, there is a great deal of work to do.”
Lachica, who is one of only two people who identify as a woman on Peterborough city council, highlights that gender equality is not an isolated issue but rather intersects with the need for all voices to be heard.
“I care deeply about looking at our landscape through a decolonization lens. We live in a city, Nogojiwanog, where there are two First Nations that are part of the area and we need to work on that equality in terms of our consultations,” she says. “The template for that should be designed by the Indigenous communities that we share the land with, and we should be asking Elders and women from the Indigenous communities for their voice.”
Lachica adds that this is even more imperative at a time when “DEI is on trial everywhere we look,” she says, referring to the organizational policy of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, which seeks to promote the fair treatment and full participation of all people, particularly groups who have historically been underrepresented or subject to discrimination based on identity or disability.
“One thing I believe that we as a people have in common is we believe in excellence — that’s what we look for in leadership and I don’t think anybody wants less than that,” she says. “It’s something that brings us all together and, as Canadians, many of us are feeling that on a deep level with the threats that have come our way from the south.”
“I think that belief in excellence is what does bring us together as a democracy. When we choose leaders, we have to uphold the critical achievement that we’ve gained, we have to hold our ground on the equity gains that we’ve worked so hard to embed in our democracy, and we can’t let them go.”
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Lachica notes that while it might be an “anxious” time, it’s also a time to stand together with the help of days like IWD.
“If we can channel it towards a political action and resistance and forging a way that is brighter and hopeful and optimistic, that will be the thing that shatters all of the negativity and the hate that is building up,” she says.
This year for IWD, the Kawartha Sexual Assault Centre and Kawartha World Issues Centre are teaming up to offer a free event on Saturday, March 8. At 11:30 a.m., a rally and march will begin at Peterborough City Hall and end at the Peterborough Public Library, where a community event featuring speakers, a panel discussion, live music, and more will take place until 4:30 p.m.
“I foresee that it’s going to be a big day around the globe in terms of attendance and in terms of solidarity,” Lachica says of this year’s IWD. “This is the time to be activists. This is the time to be political and to stand together as women.”
Built in 1925, the Kawartha Park Chapel is a heritage-designated property in Selwyn Township on the west side of Stoney Lake. The non-profit charity Hiawatha Chapel Association is aiming to raise $125,000 to restore the building and turn it into a community meeting place ahead of its 100th anniversary in August 2025. (Photo: Martha Hunt)
A not-for-profit organization is raising money to restore the Kawartha Park Chapel in Selwyn Township and turn it into a community meeting place ahead of its 100th birthday.
“The first goal is to preserve the building, and the second goal is to make a meeting place where our community can come together,” says Martha Hunt, the treasurer and a director of the Hiawatha Chapel Association.
Kawartha Park Chapel is located at 2488 Hiawatha Lane, on the west side of Stoney Lake in the township’s Smith Ward. The wooden chapel was built in August 1925 over a two-week period on a piece of land donated by Richard Birdsall Rogers, the engineer who built the Peterborough Lift Lock and who owned a cottage on Hiawatha Lane.
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The structure incorporates gothic revival elements including lancet windows, a gable roof, a porch with an awning, and the belfry with a bell that was added in 1929 through a donation from the CNR.
Sometimes known as the Church in the Wild Woods, the chapel operated as a non-denominational Protestant church from 1925 until around 2010, when it ceased operations to a lack of attendance.
While Hunt says she and fellow members of the Kawartha Park Cottagers Association have been thinking about restoring the chapel for close to a decade, the challenge was determining who owned the property.
The Kawartha Park Chapel pictured in August 1976. Sometimes known as the Church in the Wild Woods, the chapel operated as a non-denominational Protestant church from 1925 until around 2010, when it ceased operations to a lack of attendance. (Photo from 50th anniversary pamphlet)
Once they discovered it to be the Presbyterian Church of Canada, however, they incorporated the Hiawatha Chapel Association as a non-profit organization and were transferred the title with the Church paying all the legal costs.
While Hunt notes the building’s “bones are really good,” some of the needed repairs include replacing rotting floorboards, making the footing sturdier, rebuilding the deck and steps, reinforcing the bell tower, putting in window screens, and replacing the shingles with a metal roof.
“We’re not changing the building at all — we are just trying to preserve it,” Hunt says.
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The Hiawatha Chapel Association successfully worked to get the Kawartha Park Chapel designated as a heritage property by Selwyn Township council in 2024.
According to an evaluation done by the heritage committee, “the property is a unique and important example of a non-denominational cottage community church erected in the early twentieth century” and “has direct associations with the development of the cottage community of Kawartha Park.”
The Hiawatha Chapel Association is aiming to raise $125,000 to support the construction and continued maintenance of the chapel and property. Currently, the charity is just shy of $50,000 in pledges.
While the overall structure of the Kawartha Park Chapel is in good shape, the necessary interior repairs include replacing rotting floorboards. (Photo courtesy of Hiawatha Chapel Association)Exterior repairs needed for the Kawartha Park Chapel include rebuilding the deck and steps, making the footing sturdier, reinforcing the bell tower, putting in window screens, and replacing the shingles with a metal roof. (Photo courtesy of Hiawatha Chapel Association)
“We’re very hopeful that we’ll be able to get the project started this spring,” says Hunt. “Once cottagers start arriving and see the work being done, they will get excited and feel the energy.”
“I hope that enough money comes in that we can get the project going this spring or summer, and then the big event will be the birthday party in August.”
Following the construction and the centennial celebration, Hunt says the hope is for the chapel to be used in any way the community sees fit, on a purely not-for-profit basis.
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“It would be nice to have a building where we could put on an art show, have yoga classes, or host a book club,” she reflects.
“It’s close to (Otonabee Conservation’s Heber Rogers Wildlife Area) so it would be great to have trails coming down to the chapel, and people can sit and rest (inside). I envision historical photos or maybe like a museum, it will have some artifacts from early cottage days.”
Since the chapel has no plumbing and limited parking, it wouldn’t be ideal for major events, though Hunt sees it as a place that would be accessible to all.
Year-round and seasonal residents have come together to form the Hiawatha Chapel Association and restore the Kawartha Park Chapel on the west side of Stoney Lake in Selwyn Township. The group recently received its charitable organization status and is now aiming to raising $125,000 to begin restoration of the heritage property in spring 2025. (Photo courtesy of Hiawatha Chapel Association)
“We’re hoping once it’s done, the doors will be open every day for people to wander in and just look or rest,” Hunt says. “Hopefully we will have some interesting things for them to check out, or maybe it’s just a place to have a cup of coffee with a friend. We’re hoping that we can find a way to open the doors every morning.”
Peterborough Action for Tiny Homes (PATH) and One City Peterborough have unveiled their first tiny home project in the Peterborough. The 400-square-foot home was constructed as an "additional rental unit" in the backyard of an existing west-end property owned by One City. (Photo: One City Peterborough)
Peterborough Action for Tiny Homes (PATH) has opened the doors to its first additional rental unit, which is akin to a tiny home, located in the backyard of a residential property in Peterborough’s west end that is owned by One City Peterborough.
PATH and One City, who worked together on the project, say the unique house will be available for tenancy as of Friday (February 28).
This project was initiated last September following planning approval from the City of Peterborough under its 2023 additional rental unit (ARU) guide. The project was funded by charitable donations from PATH and One City donors, along with gifts of building material from Kingdon Timber Mart and Gus’s Kitchen and Bath.
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“We are pleased and also feel very heartened by the many organizations that have reached out to show their support for our efforts to create permanent housing that is both affordable and respectful of individuals,” Keith Dalton, project manager at PATH, told kawarthaNOW.
“Through this model project we have learned a great deal about how to make projects like this successful and we will be moving forward on similar projects with organizations and individuals who share a desire to create affordable living spaces that address the need for housing of this type — decent housing that is built at low cost, hence affordable, and within the community, not isolated, so that residents will be a part of the Peterborough community and feel belonging and respect.”
PATH provided the design and contract management for the house and arranged for more than 1,500 volunteer hours toward the completion of the project to ensure it was completed on time and on budget, a media release noted.
PATH’s Keith Dalton working on the site of the new tiny home located in the backyard of an existing west-end property owned by One City Peterborough in 2024. (Photo: PATH)
The result is a 400-square-foot home that is fully equipped, accessibly designed, private, and affordable. It also adds to One City’s growing stock of supportive housing.
One City currently provides housing support to 34 people through its congregate housing program, all of which are congregate housing sites. This project is the organization’s first single occupancy housing unit.
“There is a distinct need for this kind of private accommodation for people who are transitioning from being unhoused,” said Michael Van Der Herberg, property development manager for One City, in a statement. “For many people who were previously unhoused, living in a shared space, while cost effective, is not ideal for personal recovery.”
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One City’s housing program delivers ongoing support for its residents. PATH and One City share a common drive to create permanent housing for community members who struggle to find housing that is safe, affordable, and integrated in the community.
“PATH’s goal is to encourage the development of permanent supportive housing for our unhoused neighbours, and this project is one example of how this can be achieved when organizations collaborate and rally around a common cause,” the release noted.
Plans are underway for similar units to be constructed in the year ahead at an estimated cost of $100,000 or less per unit. PATH said low-cost construction is key to making these tiny homes affordable.
Some of the requirements for additional rental units built in the City of Peterborough. (Graphic: City of Peterborough)
The organization will continue to work with community partners, local builders, and city staff to provide design studies, permit application, and construction support to see more homes constructed in the future, the release noted.
Meanwhile, One City is looking for donated items to help furnish the new tiny home, including a queen mattress and bed frame, night stand, lamp, hand mixer, drinking glasses, food processor, coffee table, television set, and pots and pans.
Police discovered a historical grenade along with other weaponry in a Bobcaygeon home on Wednesday afternoon (February 26).
At around 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Kawartha Lakes Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) received a call from a person about a dispute with an elderly man. The person who made the call immediately left after telling the man police had been called.
After arriving at the home, officers took the elderly man into custody without incident, and he was transported to hospital.
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During the investigation, officers found a historical wartime grenade in the home along with other weaponry. Officers contacted the OPP Explosive Disposal Unit (EDU), who in turn consulted with the Department of National Defence.
As a precaution, officers evacuated nearby residents and had the Bobcaygeon Public School placed on a hold and secure. After consulting with the EDU, the hold and secure was lifted.
A bomb technician from Canadian Forces Base Trenton arrived on the scene, safely removed the grenade, and took it away for disposal. OPP officers seized the other weaponry.
Police have not released any details about the nature of the dispute, the condition of the elderly man, the other weaponry that was seized, or whether charges will be laid.
The OPP is reminding members of the public who find weapons or explosives to call police, move to a safe location, and ensure no one else gets close. EDU members are trained in the safe handling and disposal of explosives to ensure public safety.
Premier Doug Ford delivering his victory speech to supporters on February 27, 2025 after winning his third consecutive majority government. The Progressive Conservative leader called a snap winter election to ask for a "strong mandate" from voters to protect Ontario from U.S. President Donald Trump's threat of tariffs. (kawarthaNOW screenshot)
Premier Doug Ford’s gamble of calling a snap winter election to ask for a “strong mandate” to deal with U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of tariffs has paid off — although maybe not as well as he had hoped.
Ontario voters have delivered Ford’s Progressive Conservatives a majority government for the third time in a row — the first time since 1959 that a party leader in Ontario has won three consecutive majorities — with PC incumbents re-elected in all four ridings in the greater Kawarthas region.
Within only 15 minutes of the polls closing at 9 p.m. on Thursday (February 27), all major Canadian news networks were projecting another majority for the PCs.
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As of 9 a.m. on Friday, with 99.9 per cent of the polls reporting, PC candidates were elected or leading in 80 ridings — three less than in 2022 and short of the larger majority of 90-plus seats Ford was reportedly hoping for. The PCs have gained only one more seat than they had when Ford called the election which, according to Elections Ontario, cost $189 million to run.
With 27 seats, the NDP have retained official opposition status, although they won four fewer seats than they did in 2022 and now have one less than they did when the election was called. NDP leader Marit Stiles easily retained her seat in Davenport.
The Liberals are projected to win 14 ridings, a gain of five seats from 2022, which gives them just enough seats to regain the official party status they lost in the previous two elections. However, Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie failed to win her seat in Mississauga East-Cooksville, despite having been the mayor of Mississauga for three terms before she resigned in 2024 to lead the Liberals. Although she does not have a seat in the legislature, Crombie has vowed to continue as Liberal leader.
The Green Party won in two ridings, with leader Mike Schriener re-elected in his Guelph riding, and Aislinn Clancy easily defeating PC candidate Rob Elliott by 11,209 votes.
The province’s only independent MPP, Bobbi Ann Brady in Haldimand-Norfolk, easily retained the seat she first won in 2022.
Of the 11.1 million registered voters in Ontario, just over five million voted on Thursday — a turnout of 45.4 per cent, around two per cent higher than the 2022 election. By comparison, voter turnout in the 2018 election when Ford earned his first majority government was 57 per cent.
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In the greater Kawarthas region, PC incumbent Laurie Scott easily held on to Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock, with almost 52 per cent of the vote and 14,692 votes more than Liberal Alison Bennie.
In Northumberland-Peterborough South, PC incumbent David Piccini also easily held on to his seat, garnering over 52 per cent of the vote and a margin of 10,498 votes over Liberal Dorothy Noronha.
In Hastings-Lennox and Addington, PC incumbent Ric Bresee captured over 48 per cent of the vote, with 7,782 more votes than the Liberal’s Lynn Rigby.
As was also the case in 2022, the race was tighter in Peterborough-Kawartha, where PC incumbent Dave Smith took almost 41 per cent of the vote, with a margin of 2,248 votes over Liberal Adam Hopkins. Over 53 per cent of the vote was split between Hopkins (36 per cent) and the NDP’s Jen Deck (17 per cent).
In all four ridings with one exception, candidates for the Green Party finished in fourth place. In Hastings-Lennox and Addington, Ontario Party leader Derek Sloan finished fourth, ahead of the Green Party, earning almost six per cent of the vote.
Voter turnout in the greater Kawarthas was higher than the provincial average, with 52.95 per cent in Peterborough-Kawartha (compared to 51.27 per cent in 2022), 48.91 per cent in Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock (compared to 47.63 per cent in 2018), 52.86 per cent in Northumberland-Peterborough South (compared to 51.3 per cent in 2018), and 49.27 per cent in Hastings-Lennox and Addington (compared to 46.98 per cent in 2018).
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Here are the final unofficial election results for the greater Kawarthas region as reported by Elections Ontario as of 11:30 p.m. on February 27.
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