The provincial government is expanding eligibility for fourth doses of the COVID-19 to Ontarians 60 years of age and older as well as First Nation, Inuit, and Métis people and their non-Indigenous household members aged 18 and over.
Starting at 8 a.m. on Thursday (April 7), those eligible can book their fourth dose appointment through the COVID-19 vaccination portal at covid-19.ontario.ca/book-vaccine/ or by calling the Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre at 1-833-943-3900.
Appointments can also be booked directly through public health units that use their own booking systems, through Indigenous-led vaccination clinics, participating primary care settings, and at participating pharmacies listed at covid-19.ontario.ca/vaccine-locations. Locations and timing for additional boosters may vary by public health unit based on local planning and considerations.
Advertisement - content continues below
Share on Bluesky
“As we continue to live with COVID-19, we are using every tool available to manage this virus and reduce its impact on our hospitals and health system, including by expanding the use of booster doses,” says Ontario health minister Christine Elliott in a media release. “Vaccines are our best defence against COVID-19 and its variants.”
“Because of our exceptionally high vaccination rates and Ontario’s cautious approach, we currently have one of the lowest hospitalization rates in the country and have performed well throughout this pandemic when compared to other similar sized provinces and states. I encourage everyone who’s eligible to get boosted as soon as you’re able.”
Since December, Ontario had been offering fourth doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to vulnerable populations including residents of long-term care homes, retirement homes, First Nation elder care lodges, and older adults in other congregate care settings that provide assisted-living and health services.
Friendly Fires owner Alex Soubliere, pictured with his wife Lorraine, their two children Sequoia and Noah, and their Portuguese water dog Olive, has donated $25,000 to the Peterborough Humane Society for the new Peterborough Animal Care Centre. (Photo courtesy of Soubliere family)
Alex Soubliere, owner of Peterborough-based fireplace and barbecue retailer Friendly Fires, has donated $25,000 to the Peterborough Humane Society for the new Peterborough Animal Care Centre.
Currently under construction at 1999 Technology Drive in southeast Peterborough, the 24,000-square-foot facility will house the Peterborough Humane Society’s adoption and education centre and regional high-volume spay and neuter clinic, as well as the Ontario SPCA’s provincial dog rehabilitation centre — the first of its kind in Canada.
“We are so very fortunate to have such a dedicated, hard working and committed team at the Peterborough Humane Society that goes above and beyond caring for animals,” Soubliere says in a media release. “The fact that they have spearheaded an initiative to have a new world-class animal care facility built right here in our city is a testament of just how great this team really is.”
Advertisement - content continues below
Share on Bluesky
“My entire family, including our Portuguese water dog Olive, is very happy that we could help contribute to the new animal care centre and we hope this helps encourage others to do so as well.”
In recognition of Soubliere’s donation, the Peterborough Humane Society will name the memorial patio at the centre as ‘The Friendly Fires Patio’. The gift will also be recognized on the Donor Wall located in the lobby of the new centre as Alex Soubliere & Family / Friendly Fires. Once the Peterborough Animal Care Centre is open, the Friendly Fires Patio will be used for education sessions, business meetings, and for staff and public use.
One of Canada’s largest fireplace and barbecue retailers, Friendly Fires was founded in Peterborough more than 20 years ago and has since grown to include showrooms in Cobourg, Kingston, Carloton Place, and Belleville.
The new 24,000-square-foot Peterborough Animal Care Centre under construction at 1999 Technology Drive in March 2022. Construction is slated to be completed at the end of 2022. (Photo courtesy of Peterborough Humane Society)
“Support from local businesses like Friendly Fires and individuals like Alex and his family are incredibly important to the success of this project,” says Peterborough Humane Society executive director Shawn Morey.
“This new centre will put Peterborough on the map in regards to setting a new standard in animal wellness and care, which in turn will also support our local businesses and community. We are extremely grateful for these relationships, they are what makes our region so amazing.”
After a number of starts and stops over the past two years, the curtain is finally set to rise on the Peterborough Theatre Guild's production of "Annie" at Showplace Performance Centre in downtown Peterborough. Directed by Jerry Allen (left) with a big assist from production manager Pat Hooper (right), show dates for the popular musical are April 29 and 30, May 4, 5 and 6, 7 p.m., with 2 pm matinees May 1 and 7. (Photo: Paul Rellinger / kawarthaNOW)
While good things often come to do those who wait, great things inevitably come to those who persevere.
Peterborough Theatre Guild presents Annie
When: April 29 & 30, May 4 – 7, 2022 at 7 p.m.; May 1 & 7, 2022 at 2 p.m. Where: Showplace Performance Centre (290 George St. N., Peterborough) How much: $34.50 adults, $32.50 seniors, $22.50 students.
Directed by Jerry Allen and starring Shay-Lyn Burd, Heather Knechtel, Christie Freeman, Brian McDonald, Natalie Dorsett, Mark Hiscox, and many more. Tickets available online at tickets.showplace.org
For the cast and crew of the Peterborough Theatre Guild’s production of Annie, the past two years have presented one frustrating and disappointing challenge after another. But now, all those associated with the production of the much-loved musical are looking forward, not back, as they ready for an eight-show run at Showplace Performance Centre in downtown Peterborough — the first major theatrical production at the venue since the pandemic began.
First cast in November 2019 with rehearsals held in January 2020 for stagings at Showplace that spring, the mid-March declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic brought everything to an abrupt halt.
Advertisement - content continues below
Share on Bluesky
No problem, thought director Jerry Allen at the time. Pivoting, after all, was the name of the pandemic game.
“We thought, ‘When do we come back?’,” recounts Allen. “Maybe in the summer of 2020? Nope, couldn’t do that. In the fall (of 2020)? No, again. In January 2021, I sent something out to everybody involved and said let’s aim for the summer of 2021 and we’ll see if we can gear up for a November (2021) production.”
“A month after we decided that, one of our lead characters, Darcy Mundell (playing Daddy Warbucks), died in his sleep. We asked Mark Hiscox, who auditioned for the role, if he would step in and he said he would.”
“We started rehearsals in August 2021. We got to October and we could see there was no way things were going to open up in November, so we shifted to February 2022. Then omicron came along and we couldn’t do that. So it was let’s shoot for May — our original time slot but two years on.”
The cast of “Annie”, including Shay-Lyn Burd in the title role, rehearses at Showplace Performance Centre. Directed by Jerry Allen, the Peterborough Theatre Guild production opens April 29, and continues with performances April 30, May 1, 4, 5, 6 and 7. (Photo courtesy of Pat Hooper)
With rehearsals now going full tilt, Annie will open on the main stage at Showplace on Friday, April 29th, with curtain at 7 p.m., with another performance the following night and then again at 7 p.m. from Wednesday, May 4th until Saturday, May 7th. There will also be two matinee performances, at 2 p.m. on Sunday, May 1st and again on Sunday, May 7th.
Tickets cost $34.50 for adults, $32.50 for seniors, and $22.50 for students, and are available in-person at the Showplace box office (10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Thursday) or online at tickets.showplace.org.
Allen notes there have been a few cast changes from the original lineup, but not as many as one would think.
“Some people had to drop out because their schedules weren’t going to work,” he admits. “A lot of the orphans, frankly, got too old. There were in grades 9 and 10 and all of a sudden they’re in grades 11 and 12. We were trying to keep them as young as possible. A lot of the principal people were able to stay on.”
“Lindsay Barr, who was to play Miss Hannigan, had to drop out because she got pregnant and was going to be too far along. We shifted one actor (Heather Knechtel) into that role and brought in Christie Freeman, who’s a beautiful singer, to play the role of Grace. There have been all kinds of moving parts, but we’re settled now.”
Advertisement - content continues below
Share on Bluesky
As for the title role, that has belonged to Shay-Lyn Burd since that first casting call.
“She fortunately didn’t grow that much,” Allen laughs. “She’s fantastic — a natural. I tell her to do something and she gets it right away. She embellishes in a good way. It’s a very strong cast. Brian McDonald is playing Rooster Hannigan and Natalie Dorsett is playing his girlfriend (Lily). She would have been a natural for Miss Hannigan too. Having two veterans like those two, and Mark (Hiscox) as well (in the role of Daddy Warbucks), it’s just so much easier.”
Not lost on Allen, and something he hopes will resonate with local theatre-goers, is that Annie “is ideal” for presentation now “after all we’ve gone through.”
“The sun will come out tomorrow. It will be a much better day. It’s been a hard-knock life. The last song is New Deal For Christmas. All the themes are absolutely perfect. This is the best musical for this time period. It’s such a positive affirmation. Things may appear to be bad, but they will get better. You get knocked down and you pull yourself back up.”
“Everybody likes a feel-good story,” he adds. “It’s very much the same story as Charles Dickens’ Oliver. Kids are in desperate situations and being exploited by bad people and some good people come along and save the day.”
This is the third time Allen has directed Annie, the first being in 1986 for a Peterborough Theatre Guild staging and the second time at St. Peter’s Catholic Secondary School.
An orchestral ensemble, brought together by musical directors Justin Hiscox and Brian McDonald, rehearses with the cast of “Annie” at the Showplace Performance Centre. The Peterborough Theatre Guild is presenting the much-loved musical after a series of forced postponements during the course of the pandemic. (Photo courtesy of Pat Hooper)
In choosing to present the musical, the Peterborough Theatre Guild has gone with a proven winner. Based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie and loosely based on the 1885 poem “Little Orphant Annie” written by James Whitcomb Riley, the original Broadway production opened on April 21, 1977 and continued until January 2, 1983 — a run of 2,377 performances — and won seven Tony Awards, including for best musical.
Released as a feature film in 1982, it introduced a much wider audience to its now endeared songs, written and set to music by Martin Charnin and Charles Strouse, including “It’s The Hard Knock Life” and “Tomorrow.”
The story centres around an orphan in a facility run by the mean Miss Hannigan, who believes that her parents left her there by mistake. When a rich man named Oliver “Daddy” Warbucks decides to let an orphan live at his home to promote his image, Annie is selected.
While Annie gets accustomed to living in Warbucks’ mansion, she still longs to meet her parents, prompting Warbucks to announce a search for them — and a reward — which brings out many frauds.
Advertisement - content continues below
Share on Bluesky
Musicals hold a very special place in Allen’s heart, who has directed 18 of them over a 50-year theatre career.
“It’s the bringing together of all the art forms,” he says. “You’ve got music, you’ve got acting, you’ve got choreography, you’ve got set design, you’ve got lighting … all of these things that people study to become proficient at come together in musical theatre.”
And working with young people, well, that keeps him young too.
“We’re all still kind of kids at heart. Play acting like we used to do as kids. That’s the thing I’ve always found with theatre, right from the time I got involved. There didn’t seem to be any age barriers or differences. You’d be conversing with people on a friendly basis who have a 50-year difference in age.”
With two years passing since the original casting of the Peterborough Theatre Guild’s production of “Annie”, some cast members had to drop out and many of the original “orphans” grew too old for their roles. However, a lot of the principal cast, including Shay-Lyn Burd in the title role, were able to stay on. (Photo: Peterborough Theatre Guild / Facebook)
“And there’s the social aspect — all the really great people you get to work with, like this woman here,” Allen says, referring to past Showplace board chair and Annie production manager Pat Hooper. “It’s an odd mix of people. Half of them are introverts and half of them are extroverts. The introverts thrive having extroverts around. Extroverts get a chance to relax a little bit and introverts get a chance to come out a little bit.”
For her part, Hooper is over the moon at the prospect of theatre audiences returning to Showplace and is thrilled to work with this cast and crew.
“Of all the productions with the Guild, this has been most collaborative,” she says. “We sometimes tend be in our own little silos. The pandemic has created an opportunity — that whole ‘We’re all in this together’ thing. It’s like when a tornado comes through and knocks things down. You build better. We’re building better.”
Advertisement - content continues below
Share on Bluesky
“It’s an incredibly cohesive group,” she adds. “In spite of all they’ve been through, they all like each other. They applaud each other.”
Besides the cast, also very much in the mix is a 10-piece orchestra ensemble under the musical direction of Justin Hiscox and Brian McDonald, who also has a stage role as Rooster, with Peter Sudbury conducting.
Also play key roles in Annie’s staging are Melissa Earle (choreography), Seanon Yip Choy (stage management), Karen Workman (props), costumes (Caitlin Haveman), and Shelley Moody (makeup/hair).
And then there’s the chorus whose members, says Allen, “don’t get all the glory but have stayed with us for the whole two years.”
The Peterborough Theatre Guild’s production of “Annie”, running from April 9 to May 7, is the first major theatrical production at Showplace Performance Centre since the beginning of the pandemic. Tickets are available at the Showplace box office or online at tickets.showplace.org. (Graphic courtesy of Peterborough Theatre Guild)
As opening night draws nearer, Allen does admit to some nerves.
“I’ll start to get very, very tense over the next couple of weeks,” he says.
“I don’t take that out on the cast. I’ve done it (directed) enough to know that they’re working their hardest, but I’ll get more and more particular with stuff. If you’re a painter, you want the right brush stroke. If it doesn’t look right, you need to fix it a little bit.”
“The goal it to make the audience forget they’re watching a play and enter into the illusion. The last musical I did was The Buddy Holly Story (in May 2016). Audiences were up dancing. I thought ‘This works.'”
For more information about Annie and the Peterborough Theatre Guild, visit the Guild’s new website at peterboroughtheatreguild.com.
kawarthaNOW is proud to be a media sponsor of the Peterborough Theatre Guild.
50-year-old Robert Ladoceur of Buckhorn was last seen in Peterborough on March 22, 2022. On April 3, his body was located in a field off Lakehurst Road near Six Foot Bay Road in Trent Lakes. Police are treating his death as suspicious and are asking anyone with information about his activities leading up to his disappearance to contact them. (Police-supplied photo)
A missing 50-year-old Buckhorn man has been found dead.
Robert Ladoceur was reported missing last Monday (March 28), after having been last seen in Peterborough on March 22.
On Sunday (April 3) at around 11 a.m., Peterborough County OPP responded to the report of a body located in a field off Lakehurst Road near Six Foot Bay Road in Trent Lakes.
Advertisement - content continues below
Police identified the body as Ladoceur’s. A post-mortem examination has been completed and police are treating the death as suspicious at this time.
The Peterborough County OPP Crime Unit is continuing the investigation, under the direction of the OPP Criminal Investigation Branch (nd with assistance from Central Region OPP Criminal Operations and OPP Forensic Identification Services and in conjunction with the Office of the Chief Coroner for Ontario.
Investigators are asking anyone who may have any knowledge about Ladoceur’s activities leading up to his disappearance to contact the Peterborough County OPP at 1-888-310-1122.
If you wish to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or online at stopcrimehere.ca, where you may be eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $2,000.
Peterborough city council has endorsed the awarding of a non-standard procurement contract to Elexicon Group Inc. to purchase and install 16 electric vehicle (EV) charging ports for the use of city vehicles, with the possibility of an additional eight ports for public use in downtown Peterborough should a grant application to the federal government be successful.
The decision was made at council’s general committee meeting on Monday (April 5) and will be considered for final approval by city council at its meeting on Monday, April 25th.
In 2020, the city applied to Natural Resources Canada’s Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program for a subsidy of 50 per cent of the project operating costs to purchase and install 16
EV charging ports. Due to the pandemic, most of the funds in the federal program were frozen so city council approved an allocation of $282,000 from its climate change reserve fund to proceed with the purchase and installation of the charging ports.
Advertisement - content continues below
Since then, funds under the Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program have become available again, and Elexicon Group Inc. — a company created in 2019 by the merger of Whitby Hydro Energy Services and Veridian Corporation — has become a delivery agent for the federal program.
The city’s application through Elexicon has been approved for an $80,000 federal subsidy for the 16 charging ports ($5,000 per charger). The 16 ports would be used to charge city vehicles at four locations, with eight of the ports to be installed at the Wastewater Treatment Plant on Kennedy Road, four of the ports at the Public Works Operation Centre on Webber Avenue, and two ports each at the King Street Parking Garage and the Transit Bus Barns on Townsend Street.
The city is now also applying through Elexicon for a federal subsidy for 50 per cent of the project costs to purchase and install an additional eight charging ports for public use at two downtown locations. Should the application be successful, four ports would be installed at the Simcoe Street Parking Garage and four ports would be installed in the marina parking lot at Del Crary Park.
Advertisement - content continues below
The eight public EV charging ports would be level 2, which can charge a vehicle from zero to 80 per cent in around four hours. They will be free to use with paid parking. Parking in the spots where the ports are installed would be restricted to charging electric vehicles with a maximum time limit of four hours per vehicle.
The city estimates the annual cost of electricity for the eight public charging ports at $6,000 per year in the first year of operation, with the cost to be covered in future operating budgets.
The total estimated project cost for the 16 EV charging ports for city vehicles is $155,700 plus tax, with an additional $84,000 plus tax for the eight EV charging ports for public vehicles (if the federal subsidy is approved). Along with a $20,000 project contigency, the total project cost would be $263,918.72.
Advertisement - content continues below
The electrical work required to install the city and public EV charging at the six locations would need to be completed by November 1, 2022 according to the requirements of the Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program.
While the city’s purchasing by-law normally requires a competitive procurement process for amounts exceeding $100,000, an exception can be made when only one supplier is able to meet the procurement requirements.
“The city treasurer has considered this matter and is in agreement with a non-competitive procurement for the supply and installation of EV chargers,” reads an April 4th memo to general committee from Michael Papadacos, the city’s interim commissioner of infrastructure and planning services.
YWCA Peterborough Haliburton is inviting local businesses and members of the community to join the YWCA Challenge for Mom from May 1 to 8, 2022 and directly support local resources for women and their children to safely escape gender-based violence, build upon their existing strength, and move forward in their lives. (Photo courtesy of YWCA Peterborough Haliburton)
With Mother’s Day fast approaching, the YWCA Peterborough Haliburton is inviting local businesses and members of the community to join the YWCA Challenge for Mom and help women experiencing gender-based violence.
All proceeds from the fundraiser — which begins on Sunday, May 1st and runs until Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 8th — will directly support local resources for women and their children to safely escape gender-based violence, build upon their existing strength, and move forward in their lives.
“Violence against women has intensified,” says YWCA executive director Kim Dolan. “Locally, the need for YWCA shelter and support services for women and children increased by 30 per cent during the pandemic. We’ve also witnessed an alarming increase in the severity of abuse being inflicted.”
Advertisement - content continues below
Share on Bluesky
To support women experiencing gender-based violence, join the YWCA Challenge for Mom by visiting ywcapeterborough.org, where you can register as an individual or a team, set a fundraising goal, and invite your family, friends, and coworkers to show their support by making a donation online.
Challenge participants who raise $250 or more will be entered in a draw to win one of three prizes donated by six local businesses: a decor prize valued at $750, a foodie prize valued at $475, and a home care prize valued at $300.
Funds raised through the challenge will support YWCA programs that receive only partial government funding, including Crossroads Shelter, Haliburton Emergency Rural SafeSpace (HERS), Family Court Support, Transition Support, Nourish, and more.
Advertisement - content continues below
“The YWCA Challenge for Mom is an opportunity to engage with members of our community and ensure that there is widespread knowledge of the resources that continue to be available at the YWCA for women and their children, while also working together to raise funds for core shelter and support services,” explains Ria Nicholson, the YWCA’s lead philanthropic advisor.
To learn more about how the pandemic has intensified violence against women, or to discuss possible corporate partnership opportunities, visit ywcapeterborough.org or contact Nicholson at 705-743-3526 x113 or rnicholson@ywcapeterborough.org.
The YWCA Challenge for Mom is sponsored by Ontario Insurance Network and Baker Tilly, along with local media sponsors kawarthaNOW, Move 99.7, Pure Country 105, Freq 90.5, PTBOTODAY.ca, Oldies 96.7, Peterborough This Week, and The Peterborough Examiner.
kawarthaNOW is proud to be a media sponsor of the YWCA Challenge for Mom.
Peterborough resident Matthew Crowley. (Supplied photo)
Peterborough native Matthew Crowley has announced he intends to run for councillor in the city’s Monaghan Ward in the October 24, 2022 municipal election.
Crowley, who was born and raised in Peterborough and lives in Monaghan Ward with his wife and three daughters, issued a media release on Tuesday (April 5) announcing his intentions.
“As a lifelong Peterborough and Monaghan Ward resident, I have seen the city go through a myriad of changes,” Crowley says. “Peterborough is at a serious tipping point. We have major issues affecting every facet of the city, from escalating crime in the west end, a decaying downtown core, major transit, and transportation problems, with homelessness and addiction treatment being particularly contentious.”
Advertisement - content continues below
“Peterborough deserves better. It requires fresh, new leadership in city council to solve these problems. I will work to ensure these issues are properly addressed and bring positive change to Monaghan Ward, and to the entire city.”
After graduating from Sir Sandford Fleming College as a systems analyst, Crowley has worked as an IT support specialist with GM Financial for the last 20 years.
He has also been active in the local arts and music scene since his teens, writing and playing music with local bands as well as booking local and internationally renowned musicians in various venues throughout the city.
Peterborough Public Health is investigating a confirmed report of avian influenza (H5N1) discovered in a backyard flock located in Selwyn Township, noting that the risk to human health is low.
This is the fifth report of the highly pathogenic virus confirmed by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) in Ontario since March 27. Avian flu has also been found in poultry flocks in the townships of Guelph/Eramosa, Zorra, and Woolwich, as well as in a backyard flock in the Township of Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation.
Each infected premise has been placed under quarantine, according to the CFIA website, which points out H5N1 is spreading in wild bird populations across the globe and presents a “significant national concern” as birds migrate to Canada. Avian flu was detected in Newfoundland and Labrador in December and January and in Nova Scotia in February and March. In April, three cases of avian flu have been detected in Quebec geese.
Advertisement - content continues below
Share on Bluesky
“The risk to human health remains low and we are not aware of any local human cases at this time,” says Peterborough medical officer of health Dr. Thomas Piggott in a media release. “The virus does not easily cross from birds to humans, and the current strain is listed as being of ‘lower than normal’ concern for spreading to humans.”
Avian influenza is a viral disease that affects mostly domestic poultry and wild birds such as geese, ducks, and shore birds. Wild birds, especially waterfowl, are a natural reservoir for mild strains of avian influenza. The highly pathogenic H5N1 strain H5N1 is known to kill both wild birds and commercial poultry.
The spread of H5N1 in wild and commercial poultry in Ontario has been primarily attributed to the migration of infected waterfowl.
Dr. Piggott says the health unit is working closely with provincial and federal partners, including the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and CFIA, on the investigation.
Advertisement - content continues below
The health unit advises residents not to touch any wild bird (including waterfowl) that is sick, injured, or dead. Any sick or dead birds (including waterfowl) should be reported to the Ontario Regional Centre of the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative at 1-866-673-4781.
Those with backyard chickens or other domestic birds can get more information related to prevention and detection of disease in backyard flocks and pet birds by calling CFIA at 226-217-8022 or by visiting the CFIA website.
Transmission of avian influenza to people from the consumption of undercooked eggs or poultry is unlikely. As a general practice, food safety measures should always be practised when handling poultry and egg products such as washing hands before and after food handling, keeping products separate to prevent cross-contamination, cleaning and sanitizing all surfaces, and fully cooking poultry products.
Peterborough Subaru general manager Hernan Lagos (left) presents Peter Sullivan with a ceremonial cheque for $44,775, representing the grand prize jackpot of the PRHC Foundation 50/50 Lottery drawn on April 1, 2022. (Photo courtesy of PRHC Foundation)
Peterborough resident Peter Sullivan is $44,775 richer after winning the latest Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC) Foundation 50/50 lottery.
Sullivan won the grand prize when his ticket number D-1982608 was drawn last Friday (April 1). He also has the choice of a bonus prize of either a $2,500 Resorts of Ontario gift certificate or an additional $2,000 in cash.
Since the lottery launched last fall, over $240,000 has been awarded. Previous grand prize winners include Mary Overholt, Judy Johnston, Wendy Bianco, and Christina Dicosmo.
Advertisement - content continues below
The next PRHC Foundation 50/50 lottery, presented by Peterborough Subaru, is now underway. Tickets are on sale online only at prhcfoundation5050.com, where you can buy 10 tickets for $10, 40 tickets for $20, 160 tickets for $40, or 400 tickets for $75. Ticket buyers must be 18 years of age or older and in the province of Ontario to play.
The more tickets you purchase, the greater your odds of winning. Half of all the ticket sales in the 50/50 lottery go the PRHC Foundation to support equipment and technology at the hospital that the government doesn’t fund.
The lottery runs until midnight on Tuesday, May 17th with the grand prize winner drawn the following day. The grand prize consists of the jackpot, which grows every time more tickets are purchased, plus a bonus prize of a $2,500 Resorts of Ontario gift certificate or $2,000 cash.
Ticket buyers are also automatically entered in two early bird draws totalling $4,500 in cash on “WINning Wednesdays” — with $2,500 cash awarded on April 21 and $2,000 cash on May 5.
For more information about the PRHC Foundation, visit prhcfoundation.ca.
The last lock on the Trent-Severn Waterway before entering Rice Lake, Lock 18 is located in the Town of Hastings in Trent Hills, Northumberland County. Known as 'The Hub of the Trent'. Hastings was voted as Canada's Ultimate Fishing Town in 2012 and is a popular destination for anglers. (Photo courtesy of Kawarthas Northumberland / RTO8)
With things looking up for tourism in Ontario, Regional Tourism Organization 8 (RTO8) is opening a new seasonal visitor centre in the Town of Hastings in Trent Hills later this spring.
The Kawarthas Northumberland Visitor Centre is located at Lock 18 along the Trent-Severn Waterway. An official opening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place in late May.
RTO8 is a not-for-profit organization funded by the Ontario government to market the Kawarthas Northumberland region as a tourism destination to bring visitors to Kawartha Lakes, the city and county of Peterborough, and Northumberland County.
Advertisement - content continues below
The organization is now hiring two full-time student travel counsellors for the new visitor centre. The minimum-wage contract positions, which are open to those between 15 and 30 years of age, will run from early May to mid-August.
RTO8 has also partnered with local tourism hubs to bring digital kiosks into staffed locations across the region. The kiosks will be located in Bobcaygeon, Buckhorn, Campbellford, Fenelon Falls, Hastings, Havelock, Lakefield, Lindsay, and Peterborough
kawarthaNOW.com offers two enews options to help readers stay in the know. Our VIP enews is delivered weekly every Wednesday morning and includes exclusive giveaways, and our news digest is delivered daily every morning. You can subscribe to one or both.
Submit your event for FREE!
Use our event submission form to post your event on our website — for free.
To submit editorial content or ideas, please contact us.
