Environment Canada has issued a winter weather travel advisory for Lindsay and southern Kawartha Lakes for overnight on Tuesday (December 17).
Snow squalls are possible overnight into Wednesday morning as strong winds help snow bands penetrate far inland from Georgian Bay.
Travel may be hazardous at times due to heavy and blowing snow reducing visibility and rapidly changing conditions. Local snowfall amounts of near 10 cm will be possible by late Wednesday morning when the squalls move out of the region.
Although the travel advisory has only been issued for Kawartha Lakes, there is also a risk of snow squalls in Peterborough, Haliburton, and Hastings counties, with snowfall amounts of 2 cm.
After the snow squalls move of the region, the temperature will fall to -13°C on Wednesday afternoon, with gusty winds resulting in a wind chill of -24°C. On Wednesday night, the temperature will fall to -21°C, with a wind chill of -28°C and a risk of frostbite.
With extreme cold in the forecast, drop-in hours for the One Roof Community Centre (99 Brock St. Peterborough) will be extended on Wednesday and Thursday to provide daytime shelter from the cold. Instead of normal operating hours of 12 to 7 p.m., hours will be extended to 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Planet 12 Productions is presenting a staged reading of the 1964 cult movie "Santa Claus Conquers The Martians", widely considered one of the worst films ever made, at The Theatre on King in downtown Peterborough from December 19 to 22, 2019.
Planet 12 Productions presents Santa Claus Conquers The Martians
When: Thursday, December 19 and Saturday, December 21, 2019 at 8 p.m.; Friday, December 20, 2019 at 7 p.m.; Sunday, December 22, 2019 at 2 p.m. Where: The Theatre on King (171 King St., Peterborough) How much: $15 adults, $10 children 12 and under (or pay what you can)
A staged reading of the 1964 film directed by Derek Weatherdon and featuring Sam Weatherdon, Abbie Dale, Emily Keller, George Knechtel, Liv Leeson, Nicole Roy, Brad Brackenridge, Ben van Veen, Nathan Govier, Sheila Charleton, and Keith Goranson. Costumes by Kathryn Bahun.
This week, bring your friends and family to The Theatre On King (TTOK) in downtown Peterborough and get ready to shout “Hooray for Santa Claus!” as local theatre group Planet 12 Productions presents a dramatic reading of the 1964 cult film Santa Claus Conquers The Martians.
At this family-friendly event, director Derek Weatherdon and his company bring a hot cup of holiday weirdness and intergalactic mayhem to TTOK for a memorable evening of yuletide delight.
Deemed by many film critics as one of the worst films ever to be released theatrically, Santa Claus Conquers The Martians may not have garnered the same popularity of films such as It’s a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street.
But for many movie fans, this strange film has become a holiday classic all its own, and over the decades has become a popular oddity in the holiday film canon.
Advertisement - content continues below
Directed by Nicholas Webster in the summer of 1964, Santa Claus Conquers The Martians tells the story of a group of well-meaning (albeit misguided) green-skinned alien invaders who decide to kidnap Santa Claus from Earth so that he might bring joy to Martian children who have forgotten how to have fun. To help them find Santa, the aliens also kidnap two Earthling children (who later become Santa’s helpers).
A subplot involving political unrest among the Martian people and toy making also takes place, alongside terrible acting, cardboard sets, maniacal laughing, outdated red-scare politics, and a Santa Claus who might or might not be drinking off camera.
Will Santa save Christmas on Mars and return to Earth in time for Christmas? All will be revealed on the TTOK stage in four spirited readings running from Thursday, December 19th to Sunday, December 22nd.
“As a film, Santa Claus Conquers The Martians fails in about every way a film can,” says Planet 12’s Derek Weatherdon. “It looks cheap, the script is poor to the point of being nonsensical, the effects are laughable, and the acting is weak. Almost every technical or human aspect of it is far below any acceptable standard.”
“But taken on its own, it’s a great concept. The premise is fantastic. For Planet 12, that makes it worth trying to revive.”
When released in December 1964, Santa Claus Conquers The Martians did surprisingly well, and for the next few years was re-released cinematically on the matinee circuit. However, by the end of the 1960s, the film fell into obscurity until it found a new fan base when popular TV film show Mystery Science Theater 3000 aired it in 1991.
VIDEO: “Santa Claus Conquers The Martians” (1964) Trailer
The response from their viewership was so positive that the program re-aired the film yearly and even officially released it alongside their own riff track, increasing its popularity and turning it into a cult classic.
“It’s a classic piece of trash, but one person’s garbage is someone else’s treasure, right?” Derek says of the film. “But regardless of how good or bad the original film is, it has a charm. I think our challenge has been to get that charm on stage for audiences to experience.”
“We have had a lot of fun working on it. For anyone who wants just to take a break from how hectic this time of year can be, and catch a quick show with Santa in it … man, this is the one!”
Advertisement - content continues below
But, as Derek goes on to point out, finding Santa Claus in any of the local Christmas theatre offerings is actually a rare thing.
“As always, there is a lot of choice for audiences this holiday season, with major shows at the Peterborough Theatre Guild and Arbor Theatre,” Derek explains. “But none of those shows really involve Santa Claus as a character. For most of us, I think Santa is a direct connection to the Christmases of our childhood, and getting back in touch with that isn’t a bad thing.”
“It’s a bit depressing that it seems only place a child can see a Santa up close these days is at a shopping mall. Why not at a theatre?”
In the 1964 science-fiction comedy “Santa Claus Conquers The Martians”, Santa is kidnapped by the denizens of Mars to bring joy to Martian children who have forgotten to have fun.
“With Planet 12 being what it is, we try never do anything too typical or obvious,” Derek says. “So taking a film property that some people might have heard of, and fewer still have seen, and putting on a show with it seemed a good choice.”
“Plus it’s got the best title you could ask for. It literally says it all right there. You have Santa. You have Martians. Santa having a space adventure is a great idea. There should be more stories like that — maybe better written, but still more.”
Of course, while reworking a poorly written script from the past, some surprising moments of social commentary come to the forefront in the film, whether they were intentional by the original writers or not. In a strange way, the film also predicted a future oddly reflecting our current society.
Advertisement - content continues below
“There is a sort of driving theme in the story that Martian children have become withdrawn and zombie-like as a result of their over-consumption of screen-based media directly from Earth,” Derek observes.
“Santa brings Christmas fun to Mars!”. The original theatrical poster for 1964’s “Santa Claus Conquers The Martians”.
“At the time, they were talking about TV sets and programmers, but that could ring very true today with video games, on-demand streaming content, tablets and smart phones in every hand, and the need to be constantly hooked in and entertained electronically.”
“We were pretty surprised at how timely and contemporary a message from a 55-year-old piece of work seemed. It’s funny how times change, but problems don’t.”
Derek also points out that Santa Claus Conquers The Martians includes some political themes.
“You have a problem with zoned-out kids and a faction of the government that wants to take radical means (kidnapping and importing Santa Claus) to fix it, but also others who feel their traditional way of life is fine and it shouldn’t be threatened by radical changes.”
“I wouldn’t go so far as to say there is an underlying theme of ‘Make Mars Great Again’ running through the narrative, but maybe more ‘Things are fine and I am threatened by change, so let’s not mess with things even though Rome is burning’. Maybe that all seems a bit heavy for a campy show about Santa in space, but I think the freeze rays and rocket ships make up for it.”
Bringing Dropo, Voldor, Bomar, Gimar, and the rest of your favourite forgettable holiday characters to life are many of Planet 12’s regular members including Sam Weatherdon, Abbie Dale, Emily Keller, George Knechtel, Liv Leeson, Nicole Roy, and Brad Brackenridge, who are joined by Ben van Veen, Nathan Govier, Sheila Charleton, and Keith Goranson in the role of Santa Claus, with costumes by Kathryn Bahun.
Advertisement - content continues below
Santa Claus Conquers The Martians plays into the fun yet strange sensibilities that Planet 12 — celebrating their third year as a company — has become known for. It also manages to work itself into the bigger universe that has been an ongoing part of the company’s body of work, with a surprise cameo from one of their past productions.
“If we’ve earned any measure of cache in the local theatre scene at all, I would hope that we are known as a group that produces good shows with strong casts and that tells very offbeat stories extremely well,” Derek says. “Obviously, this is a lot lighter than some of our previous productions like Boy Wonders, Incident on Gun Mountain, or Tex. This is much more of a family show and one you could — and should — bring your children to.”
Planet 12 Productions’ staged reading of “Santa Claus Conquers The Martians” runs for four performances at The Theatre on King in downtown Peterborough from December 19 to 22, 2019. (Poster: Planet 12 Productions)
“As always, we just want to be trying to do things that no one else seems to be doing. Other theatre groups do live readings of Christmas classics, but I wanted us to do a story that no one else in their right mind would even consider.”
As a fan of the film, I applaud Derek and his team at Planet 12 for such an offbeat and original idea. I’ve already pulled out my DVD copy of the film and watched it this year, but I can’t wait for a double shot by celebrating the holiday on Mars at TTOK.
Santa Claus Conquers The Martians runs from Thursday, December 19th to Sunday, December 22nd at TTOK (171 King St., Peterborough). Thursday and Saturday shows start at 8 p.m., and Friday has a 7 p.m. start, with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday.
Tickets are $15 at the door ($10 for children 12 and under) or pay what you can.
Our look back at business and organizational news in 2019 in Peterborough and the Kawarthas includes this past summer's launch of the Trent-Severn Trail Town program, Canada's first waterway "trail town" program that links communities along the Trent-Severn Waterway (including Campbellford, Hastings, Lakefield, Buckhorn, Lindsay, Bobcaygeon, Fenelon Falls, Coboconk, and Rosedale) to encourage regional tourism and support local business. Pictured at the August 22nd launch at Ranney Falls (Locks 11-12) in Campbellford (from left to right): Cycle Forward founder and trail town consultant Amy Camp, Northumberland-Peterborough South MP Kim Rudd, Kawarthas Northumberland/Regional Tourism Organization 8 (RTO8) Executive Director Brenda Wood, Parks Canada Associate Director for Ontario Waterways Dwight Blythe, and Northumberland-Peterborough South MPP David Piccini. (Photo courtesy of RTO8)
Every week, our managing editor collects news and events related to businesses and organizations from across the Kawarthas. If you’d like us to promote your news or event in businessNOW, please email business@kawarthanow.com.
This week’s businessNOW™ takes a month-by-month look back on some of the notable business and organizational news headlines of 2019, including businesses that opened or came under new ownership, businesses that closed, businesses and business people that won awards, government funding announcements, changes in organizational leadership, milestones, and more.
Advertisement - content continues below
January
Following the trend towards plant-based food, Nateure’s Plate opened in downtown Peterborough. The restaurant serves vegan comfort food like this “meatball” sub. (Photo: Nateure’s Plate)
Catalina Motta opens House Of Commons Vintage Market in downtown Peterborough.
Martin Yuill becines executive director of Cleantech Commons at Trent University.
February
Peterborough mayor Diane Therrien (middle) cuts the ribbon for the official opening of the renovated Jo Anne’s Place health food store at 1260 Lansdowne Street West in Peterborough. Also pictured (left to right) are city councillors Kim Zippel and Lesley Parnell and Jo Anne’s Place owners Margo and Paul Hudson. (Photo: Jeannine Taylor / kawarthaNOW.com)
The Ontario government invests $12.3 million to expand natural gas access to Fenelon Falls, Cameron and Cambray.
Robin Binèsi Cavanagh joins The Canadian Canoe Museum as the new Director of Indigenous Peoples’ Collaborative Relations.
Town of Cobourg wins marketing award for its Armistice18 campaign.
Hastings Highlands enters into a deal for a cannabis production facility.
Payless Shoe Source and Home Outfitters retail stores in Peterborough close.
March
Olympus Burger in Port Hope was selected as having the ninth best burger in Canada on a list of the top 50 burgers assembled by Big 7 Travel. (Photo: Olympus Burger)
Fenelon Falls Brewing Co. transforms historic building into Kawartha Lakes’ newest craft brewery.
Peterborough advertising agency BrandHealth rebrands as Outpost379.
Campbellford suffers double blow after Nicholson Bros facility destroyed by fire and Dart Container Corp. announces plant closure.
Globus Theatre in Bobcaygeon hires its first-ever general manager.
Huntsville eco-lifestyle retail store Sustain is the grand prize winner of Win This Space Peterborough.
New live music venue called Simcoe Ptbo opens in downtown Peterborough.
Green Earth stores in Peterborough’s Lansdowne Place Mall and Lindsay Square close.
Golden Wheel Chinese Restaurant in Peterborough is under new ownership.
Innovation Cluster launches H2O Makerspace to support clean technology research.
Rustically Signed announces new store and workshop space at Pie Eyed Monk Brewery in Lindsay.
Advertisement - content continues below
April
2019 Women in Business Award winner Monika Carmichael (second from right) and 2019 Judy Heffernan Award winner Kim Appleton (right) along with Tara Spence from Trent University and Jo Oanh Ho from Fleming College, the recipients of the 2019 Female Business Student Award. Not pictured: Erin McLean and Bridget Leslie, the two finalists for the 2019 Women in Business Award. (Photo: Bianca Nucaro / kawarthaNOW.com)
Sam’s Place Deli in downtown Peterborough unveils renovated space and new logo.
Electric City Bread Company in Peterborough is under new ownership.
Innovation Cluster announces plans to expand into City of Kawartha Lakes.
Lake Edge Cottages on Katchewanooka Lake in Lakefield is under new ownership.
Bill Pappas, original owner of Pappas Billiards in Peterborough, passes away.
John Gillis becomes new interim president and CEO of the Innovation Cluster.
Port Hope’s Cameco Capitol Arts Centre announces $1.75 million expansion project.
Peterborough DBIA wins award for Downtown Vibrancy project.
Sweet Beast Fine Meats & Fish opens in Peterborough’s East City.
Federal government provides $200,000 in funding for Random Acts of Green in Peterborough.
Maar’s Music announces plans to relocate from downtown Peterborough to Brookdale Plaza.
Sweet Bottoms Coffee in Fenelon Falls announces plans to close.
The Carousel restaurant in Peterborough announces plans to close.
Little Britain entrepreneurs launchT he White Lightning Shopping Bus free rural transit service in Kawartha Lakes.
May
Dylan Trepanier of Alexander Optical and Cheryl Gould of Electric Juice Factory won the 2019 Bears’ Lair Entrepreneurial Competition. (Photo: Bianca Nucaro / kawarthaNOW.com)
Bobcaygeon & Area Chamber of Commerce names Shaukat Mohamad as Citizen of the Year.
Lindsay Brock merges Amusé Coffee Co. into The Edison at VentureNorth in downtown Peterborough.
Pedego Kawartha Lakes e-bikes expands to Lindsay.
Fusion Bowl opens in downtown Peterborough.
Government of Ontario provides $71 million to Eastern Ontario Regional Network for mobile broadband services.
Shantelle Bisson and Murdoch Mysteries’ actor Yannick Bisson open Shantilly’s Place on Chandos Lake in North Kawartha.
Conner and Tasha Clarkin announce plans to open new plant-based Revelstoke Café in downtown Peterborough.
Simcoe Ptbo in downtown Peterborough closes.
The Thirsty Loon in Lakefield announces plans to close.
Venture13 Innovation Centre in Cobourg celebrates its one-year anniversary.
June
Peterborough-based McCloskey International, which employs around 900 people in Canada, the U.S.A., and Northern Ireland, was acquired by Finnish industrial machinery company Metso. Pictured are McCloskey International founder, president, and CEO Paschal McCloskey (second from left) and Ian Lough of McCloskey International (far right), along with Mark Nodder and Jeremy Fitch of Invest Northern Ireland at Granville Industrial Estate in County Tyrone in Northern Ireland. (Photo: McCloskey International)
Peterborough bio-tech startup Noblegen secures $25 million in Series B financing.
ARIA in downtown Peterborough closes.
Gerti’s in downtown Peterborough officially reopens under new ownership.
Tora Bistro opens in downtown Peterborough.
Steelworks Design of Peterborough rebrands as AVIT Manufacturing.
Mama Milisa’s Kitchen opens in Keene.
Lindsay & District Chamber of Commerce names Claus Reuter as Citizen of the Year.
Peterborough’s healthy dessert company Chimp Treats’ Nicecream featured by Loblaw and Sobeys.
YWCA Peterborough Haliburton executive director Lynn Zimmer announces her retirement.
Dream Cyclery bicycle shop opens in downtown Peterborough.
Advertisement - content continues below
July
PedalBoro’s 15-passenger party bike received a fair share of attention in July during the bike tour company’s inaugural downtown tour from The Olde Stone Brewing Company to the Publican House Brewery before heading to Millennium Park. (Photo: Paul Rellinger / kawarthaNOW.com)
Hajni Hõs resigns from New Canadians Centre to become new executive director of Hospice Peterborough.
New cannabis production facility planned near Lindsay.
GreenUP wins five awards from Green Communities Canada.
Kit Coffee Espresso Bar and Bake Shop opens in downtown Peterborough.
The Cat and The Fiddle in Cobourg closes.
Frank’s Pasta and Grill in Cobourg closes.
August
Central Smith Creamery owner Ian Scates (second from left) and vice-president/marketing Jenn Scates (right) present a cheque for $13,420.25 to Jane Lovett (left) and Lesley Heighway (second from right) of PRHC Foundation on August 1, 2019 at the dairy’s location at 739 Lindsay Road in Peterborough. The Scates raised the funds during an ice cream social in the summer. (Photo courtesy of PRHC Foundation)
Peterborough engineering company Lab Improvements partners with Peterborough Regional Health Centre to develop innovative laboratory device.
Savage Arms, including Lakefield location, purchased by private investors.
Federal government invests $1.4 million in Northumberland CFDC’s DELIA lending platform for women-owned and women-led enterprises in Eastern Ontario.
Nexicom receives $1 million in federal funding to bring high-speed internet to Douro-Dummer.
Mickaël’s Café Librairie opens a second location in Omemee.
Blowes Travel and Cruise Centres of Stratford and G. Stewart Travel Services of Peterborough merge.
Neo Rare Metals expands operations at its Peterborough plant.
Long-time Lindsay businessman Dominic Fox passes away.
Huge Shops Ontario Inc. selected to apply for a cannabis store operator licence in Fowlers Corners.
Canada’s first Waterway Trail Town program launches in Kawarthas Northumberland.
September
In September, Tara and Adam Genge of antique and vintage furniture refinishing business Chalk Therapy announced they were launching Electric City Works, a new retail marketspace hub in downtown Peterborough. The 5,000-square-foot space, which will also be the new location of Chalk Therapy, is intended for makers, creatives, artisans, entrepreneurs, and small businesses. It opened in November 2019. (Photo courtesy of Chalk Therapy)
Pensieri Shoes in Peterborough rebrands as Blue Shoes Ptbo.
Peterborough Memorial Centre box office becomes the Grant Thornton box office.
Smart City Readiness Project aims to help Peterborough become a “Smart City”.
Innovation Cluster partners with Peterborough Utilities Group to expand cleantech in Peterborough.
Church Key Brewing owner John Graham sells Church Key Pub & Grindhouse in Campbellford.
Heather Doughty Photography opens a new studio in downtown Peterborough.
Publican House Brewery and Bobcaygeon Brewing Co. take home 2019 Ontario Brewing Awards.
Peterborough’s Signarama expands into custom apparel and promotional products industry with Fully Promoted sister franchise.
Lucky Strike Bait Works in Peterborough celebrates its 90th anniversary.
Pinnguaq Association launches Lindsay Makerspace.
Spark Photo Festival announces new festival director Jennifer MacKenzie.
Advertisement - content continues below
October
Dooher’s Bakery in Campbellford, known for delicious baked goods including its famous cream-filled crueller, was named “Sweetest Bakery in Canada” for the second year in a row in an online competition sponsored by Michigan-based Dawn Food Products. The family-owned bakery won a grand prize valued at almost $7,000. (Photo courtesy of Dooher’s Bakery)
Millbrook’s Pastry Peddler wins first place in the 2019 Kawarthas Butter Tart Tour Taste-Off.
Local game developer Canuck Play releases its third Canadian football title.
Peterborough-based Chimp Treats unveils new branding for its Nicecream frozen dessert line.
Andy Cragg becomes new executive director of New Canadians Centre Peterborough.
Kawartha Chamber of Commerce & Tourism names Sally Harding of Nightingale Nursing as Citizen of the Year.
Peterborough Chamber of Commerce names Carmela Valles as Business Citizen of the Year.
Robotics company Servo Socks wins grand prize at the Kawartha Lakes Small Business Innovation Awards.
Paper Planter Project and Eco-Care Project win FastStart Peterborough’s Pitch It! competition.
November
Staff at Elmhirst’s Resort in Keene celebrate the 2019 Tourism Employer of the Year from the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario. (Photo: Elmhirst’s Resort / Facebook)
Electric City Works holds a grand opening of its new downtown Peterborough store and marketspace.
Curve Lake First Nation economic development officer Katie Young-Haddlesey wins national award.
The Kawartha Buttertart Factory is moving into The Little Building Company’s new building in Douro-Dummer next year.
New garden shop Plant Goals opens in downtown Peterborough.
The McLean family of Lakefield is named Peterborough County’s 2019 Farm Family of the Year.
Charlotte Products’ OptiSolve wins ISSA Innovation Award.
LLF Lawyers pledges $25,000 for the Peterborough Humane Society’s new animal care centre.
Peterborough-based The Loomex Group to manage Dryden Regional Airport.
Treetop Trekking wins an international award for its innovative Treewalk Village for kids.
Fleming College students win 2019 Cubs’ Lair entrepreneurship competition for their Paper Plant Project.
December
The Ontario government has announced an investment of more than $1.5 million over two years to create 100 local training and career opportunities for incumbent workers and job seekers in the aviation and aerospace sector in Peterborough, Kawartha Lakes, and Northumberland. Pictured at the December 6, 2019 announcement at Peterborough Airport are The Loomex group president and CEO Trent Gervais, Ontario minister of labour, training and skills development Monte McNaughton, Fleming College president Maureen Adamson, and Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith. (Photo: Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development)
New vintage clothing shop Statement House opens in downtown Peterborough.
The Kawartha Store wins the Fenelon Falls Downtown Revitalization Award.
Crayola Canada raises $45,132 for United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes.
Rustically Signed in Lindsay announces plans for to move to larger location featuring a new makers market with more than 50 vendors.
One Eyed Jack Pub & Grill opens in location of former Carousel Restaurant in Peterborough.
Peterborough & the Kawarthas Business Advisory Centre supports six local entrepreneurs with Starter Company Plus funding.
"Máxima", directed by U.S. filmmaker Claudio Sparrow, is the opening night feature film on January 23, 2020 at the 2020 ReFrame Film Festival in downtown Peterborough. The documentary tells the story of Máxima Acuña, 2016 Goldman Environmental Prize winner for South and Central America, a farmer who stood up for her right to peacefully live off her own land, a plot of land in the Peruvian highlands sought by Newmont and Buenaventura Mining to develop the Conga gold and copper mine. (Photo: Goldman Environmental Prize)
Organizers of the 16th annual ReFrame Film Festival have announced the festival’s opening night feature film, along with several other documentaries including three showcasing local filmmaking talent.
A community celebration of documentary film and media art, ReFrame opens on Thursday, January 23rd and runs until Sunday, January 26th at various venues in downtown Peterborough.
The opening night feature film is Máxima, which tells the incredible story of 2016 Goldman Environmental Prize winner Máxima Acuña, a farmer from the Peruvian Andes who is standing up to the largest gold mining company in the world. Directed by U.S. filmmaker Claudio Sparrow, Máxima was the winner of the Audience Award at the Hot Docs Canadian international documentary festival in Toronto in May 2019.
Máxima will be shown on Thursday, January 23rd at Showplace Performance Centre. The screening is sponsored by Nibi Emosaawdamajig and Camp Kawartha.
VIDEO: “Maxima” Trailer
Also announced is nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up. Written and directed by Tasha Hubbard, a First Nations/Cree filmmaker and educator living in Saskatoon, the documentary tells the story of Colten Boushie, a young Cree man from Saskatchewan who was killed on Gerald Stanley’s farm in 2016.
The high-profile trial and Stanley’s subsequent acquittal drives Boushie’s family to confront the racism embedded within Canada’s legal system and take the international stage in their pursuit of justice.
nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up was the winner of the Best Canadian Feature Documentary Award at Hot Docs in May 2019, the Colin Low Award at the Doxa Documentary Film Festival in Vancouver in May 2019, the Audience Choice Award for Best Feature at Toronto’s imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival in October 2019, the Discovery Award from the Directors Guild of Canada Awards in October 2019, and the Magnus-Isacsson Award at the RIDM Montreal International Documentary Festival in November 2019.
As part of the screening, ReFrame audiences will receive a special presentation by Jade Tootoosis, Colten’s cousin and a leading activist.
VIDEO: “nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up” Trailer
Other award-winning docs that will be screened at ReFrame in January include For Sama by Waad al-Kateab and Edward Watts, One Child Nation by Nanfu Wang and Lynn Zhang, and The Hottest August by Brett Story. And acclaimed Indigenous director Alanis Obomsawi will be coming to Peterborough with Jordan River Anderson, The Messenger, her 53rd film.
Local projects this year at ReFrame include the world-premiere of a feature-length version of Town of Widows, the incendiary film by Rob Viscardis and Natasha Luckhardt about the fight by Peterborough GE workers for compensation for health-related conditions incurred on the job. A version of the documentary was broadcast earlier this year on CBC Docs POV.
Filmmakers Viscardis and Luckhardt, along with several subjects featured in the film, will be in attendance at the ReFrame screening.
VIDEO: “Town of Widows” Trailer (CBC version)
ReFrame alum Lester Alfonso returns to this year’s festival with a sneak preview of his short documentary Circus Boy.
The moving film about family dynamics features Peterborough’s Academy for Circus Arts founder Thomas Vaccaro, who finds reconciliation with his mother when he and his husband adopt a boy that he’s training for circus school.
A live circus performance at the screening will be sure to delight festival-goers.
VIDEO: “Circus Boy” Teaser
Also screening at ReFrame is award-winning filmmaker Yung Chang’s This Is Not A Movie, an intimate portrait of Robert Fisk, the rabble-rousing writer famous for his no-holds-barred international reportage of current events.
POV Magazine describes the film as “a necessary portrait of journalism in action.” The film was edited by local resident Mike Munn.
Chang, who was born in Oshawa, will be attending the screening. ReFrame audiences will have the opportunity to learn more about Chang and his work as part of ReFrame’s expanded program of talks in Showplace’s Nexicom Studio.
VIDEO: “This Is Not A Movie” Clip
ReFrame organizers will be making more announcements in the coming weeks including schedule details, volunteer opportunities, evening feature films, and programming in VentureNorth’s Virtual Reality hub.
ReFrame 2020 promises to be a weekend full of eye-opening cinema celebrating art, confronting injustice, looking back on cultural trailblazers, and searching for ways to change the world.
ReFrame passes and tickets make great holiday gifts! They are available online at reframe.tickit.ca. A festival pass costs $60 ($50 for students, seniors, and the underwaged), opening night tickets cost $15 ($10 with a festival pass), and day passes (all films on either Friday, Saturday, or Sunday) cost $25.
Tickets are also available at the GreenUP Store (378 Aylmer St. N., Peterborough, 705-745-3238) and Watson & Lou (383 Water St., Peterborough, 705-775-7568), and in Lakefield at Happenstance Books and Yarn (44 Queen St., Lakefield, 705-652-7535).
As always, rush pay-what-you-can tickets will be available at the door for every screening (subject to availability).
Six new businesses were launched at the December 2019 edition of the Starter Company Plus Showcase. Each entrepreneur received a $5,000 grant to support growth in their business. From left to right: Brett Pritchard (B & B Game Designs), Kristin Cole (Kawartha Complete Care), Katelin Turcotte (Wilde Beauty), Anna Perry (Your Second Family), Nicole Cooke (Organized by Design), and Sonja Martin (Rooted Lavender). Over 50 guests attended the showcase at Showplace Performance Centre on December 5, 2019. (Photo: Alyssa Cymbalista)
Every month, Peterborough & the Kawarthas Economic Development (PKED) shares its latest news and information of interest for the local business community. This month’s edition features the winners of grants in the December 2019 intake of the Starter Company Plus program, focus groups and a survey on the feasibility of developing a food terminal in Peterborough County, and the “Building PTBO: Future Workforce” event held in downtown Peterborough.
The entrepreneurs behind six new businesses launched at the December 2019 edition of the Starter Company Plus Showcase each received a $5,000 grant to support growth in their business. From left to right: Madeleine Hurrell (PKED), Sonja Martin (Rooted Lavender), Nicole Cooke (Organized by Design), Katelin Turcotte (Wilde Beauty), Kristin Cole (Kawartha Complete Care), Anna Perry (Your Second Family), and Brett Pritchard and Brian Pritchard (B & B Game Designs). Over 50 guests attended the showcase at Showplace Performance Centre on Thursday, December 5th. (Photo: Alyssa Cymbalista)
Peterborough & the Kawarthas Business Advisory Centre announced $30,000 in funding to support local entrepreneurs with their business growth, on Thursday, December 5, 2019.
This program has been a key stepping-stone for businesses and entrepreneurs looking to grow in the region. Since 2017, it has resulted in the creation of 65 startups and supported 37 business expansions. The program has also seen the opening of 15 bricks-and-mortar locations in the region and has created 140 jobs in the local community.
“This program is generating results for our community and strengthening our region as a destination for small business,” explains Madeleine Hurrell, the Economic Development Officer who oversees the Starter Company Plus program. “Since this program began in March 2017, we have seen over 122 entrepreneurs supported through the program, with $200,000 grant dollars announced.”
Julie Chatten, constituency assistant for the office of Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith, brought greetings on behalf of the province, councillor Stephen Wright brought greetings on behalf of the City of Peterborough, and Peterborough County CAO Troy Speck brought greetings of behalf of the County of Peterborough.
Over 50 people were in attendance and enjoyed catering from former Starter Company Plus graduate La Mesita.
The announcement of funding was for participants in the December 2019 intake for Starter Company Plus, a Government of Ontario funded program. This program, which has been running since March 2017, supports entrepreneurs in starting, growing or acquiring a business, offering a robust series of workshops to support the creation of a formalized business plan, culminating in the chance to pitch for competitive grant dollars. This intake’s grant recipients are:
Entrepreneur
Business
About This Business
Location
Anna Perry
Your Second Family
Your Second Family provides respite services to individuals with developmental and/or physical disabilities in Peterborough & the Kawarthas.
City of Peterborough
Kristin Cole
Kawartha Complete Care
Kawartha Complete Care provides in-home care and nursing services to seniors and those wishing to remain in their homes. We offer home health care services, such as respite and support with day-to-day living, as well as staffing. We believe clients deserve more. RNs, RPNs and PSWs are on staff to provide dedicated client care and support. KCC services both Peterborough and Kawartha Lakes, including the communities of Bobcaygeon, Fenelon Falls, Lindsay, Omemee and North Kawartha.
City of Peterborough
Sonja Martin
Rooted Lavender
With over 25 years in the field, Rooted Lavender uniquely offers mindfulness, yoga and behavioural consultation to families, communities and educators. We support children on the autism spectrum, worried parents and frustrated teachers. We offer mindfulness training to staff, group classes and one on one mental, emotional and behavioural health support.
City of Peterborough
Katelin Turcotte
Wilde Beauty
Wilde Beauty offers non-invasive, non-medical, safe and aesthetically pleasing pedicures. Trained at The North American School of Podology, Wilde Beauty offers more than a standard pedicure by providing an in-depth assessment of the feet and lower limbs before performing a fully customized pedicure. The Certified Master Pedicurist is trained to address common challenges that work against healthy feet such as calluses, cracked heels, corn clusters, sweaty feet, and more! They are also gentle enough for diabetics. Wilde Beauty’s assessment is extremely educational and stresses the importance of regular foot care maintenance, no matter what stage we are in life.
City of Peterborough
Brett Pritchard
B&B Game Designs
B&B Game Designs is an innovative 3D design company. Bringing 3D design and print services to the local and global table.startertop games world. With a vision to offer these emerging technologies to the greater Peterborough business community.
Selwyn Township
Nicole Cooke
Organized by Design
Organized by Design offers professional organizing solutions for residential and commercial clients. Residential services include purging, sorting, packing, storage solution design and move management. For commercial clients we offer process redesign, organizing and/or development of filing systems, space management and assistance with client events. Our goal is to help homeowners live in an uncluttered, relaxed and stress-free.
The agri-food sector as a key economic driver for Eastern Ontario. Through consultation with stakeholders in the astern Ontario food ecosystem, Peterborough & the Kawarthas Economic Development is valuating the feasibility of developing a food terminal in Peterborough County. (Photo courtesy of Peterborough & the Kawarthas Economic Development)
Peterborough & the Kawarthas Economic Development (PKED) has identified the agri-food sector as a key driver to not only Peterborough County’s economy, but for the Eastern Ontario region as well.
PKED is currently evaluating the feasibility of developing a food aggregation/distribution centre in Peterborough County. The feasibility and business case study will assess the need to establish a wholesale marketplace that will facilitate the aggregation, storage, and distribution of locally produced food to wholesale buyers in the Eastern Ontario region.
“It is important that we hear from key leaders throughout this region to understand the opportunities and risks associated with our goal to expand the local food ecosystem,” says Gabi Dragomir, PKED’s Rural Economic Development Officer. “We are excited to invite key agriculture stakeholders and community members to help shape our region’s future food industry opportunities.”
The first part in this process will involve gathering opinions, ideas, and visions through focus group discussions from food producers, processors, wholesalers, retailers, distributors, educational institutions, and other stakeholders involved in the Eastern Ontario food ecosystem.
To support the information gathering process, PKED is inviting these stakeholders to participate in one of our three 90-minute focus group sessions to ensure that their voice and insights have a meaningful impact.
Then, to assist with the feasibility evaluation, PKED will survey food producers/processors, distributors, wholesalers, and retailers that are operating in Eastern Ontario. The information obtained in the survey will help to assess demand, evaluate the volumes and types of food produced and distributed within the region, and identify gaps and opportunities.
If you have any questions regarding the survey, or would like more information about the nature of this initiative please contact Gabi Dragomir, Rural Economic Development Officer for PKED at gdragomir@peterboroughed.ca or 705-743-0777 ext 2160.
Building PTBO: Future Workforce event
Some of Peterborough & the Kawarthas’ largest employers were in attendance for “Building PTBO: Future Workforce” at VentureNorth in downtown Peterborough on December 6, 2019. (Photo: Alyssa Cymbalista)
Peterborough & the Kawarthas Economic Development (PKED) recognizes the importance of building our region’s future workforce.
To help facilitate that growth, PKED (in partnership with the Kawartha Manufacturing Association) held the “Building PTBO: Future Workforce” event at the VentureNorth building in downtown Peterborough on Friday, December 6th.
Several local businesses came out to meet with some of the post-secondary educational institutions in Ontario that will guide and direct those that will lead the future of work.
Many of the City and County of Peterborough’s biggest employers were in attendance, including the Peterborough Regional Health Centre, Quaker, Siemens Milltronics Process Instruments Inc, AON, and Savage Arms, among many more.
“It was a great event and we were able to directly connect our future workforce with our current employers,” says Steven Tripp, Business Retention & Expansion Officer for PKED.
“When you talk about building a talent pipeline, you don’t have to restrict yourself to one region, which is why we invited post-secondary institutions from across Ontario,” he adds.
— Peterborough Economic Development (@PtboEcDev) December 9, 2019
PKED connected business owners and human resource representatives with Fleming College, Trent University, and the University of Waterloo to discuss the benefits of experiential learning, co-ops, internships, and new graduates.
“Local businesses can benefit from gaining a new and unique perspective that comes with hiring a student,” Tripp explains. “The students benefit from gaining real-life work experience that will help guide them in designating a career path that suits their values and lifestyle.”
“The wage subsidies and tax credits the government offers are just another added bonus. I think the businesses found real value being able to directly connect and speak with the post-secondary educational representatives.”
For more information on events and how to connect with post-secondary educational institutions, please reach out by e-mailing Steven Tripp, Business Retention & Expansion Officer for PKED, at stripp@peterboroughed.ca or call him at 705-743-0777 ext 2123.
Lindsay lawyer Chantel Lawton has been practicing for almost 18 years, primarily in the area of family law. The focus of her practice is in the area of alternative dispute resolution, including mediation and collaborative process. She supports her clients each step of the way, as they work through the important issues of custody, access, income sharing or support, and property division. (Supplied photo)
After years litigating matters and watching clients be stressed and frustrated by the legal process, Lindsay lawyer Chantel Lawton decided to change her focus so she could offer support in a different way.
Her evolution of change started in 2012 when she trained in collaborative process. After hours of study and learning, she is now also an accredited mediator — using a whole new approach when it comes to helping clients navigate the challenges of relationship break-ups.
Chantel is accredited through the Ontario Association of Family Mediators (OAFM). OAFM requires the completion of several hours of course attendance in person to learn mediation skills and, in addition to this, Chantel completed 100 hours of an internship with experienced mediators to provide hands-on training.
She now uses every bit of that learning to support her clients during a difficult time in their lives.
Mediation starts with an intake where Chantel meets with both parties to make sure the process is going to benefit their situation. Then the work begins to move both parties out of what can be an uncomfortable limbo that starts when couples decide to split, but don’t know what steps to take next.
“This can be the difficult part,” Chantel says. “A couple might have decided to separate, but they are still living in the same house and don’t know what’s next. This is often where we start.”
Chantel explains that mediation is about helping both parties understand where the other person is coming from and their goals.
“I don’t decide anything,” she says. “I’m focusing on what’s important to both parties and finding consensus. People feel heard more because we’re taking the time to understand and listen. Litigation does not always provide that time.”
What litigation can do is keep both sides stuck in a position, without conversation, with lawyers going back and forth between the couple and judges making decisions that may or may not fit each unique situation.
It can be a long, slow process that can makes a tough situation even tougher for regular people who just want to figure out what happens next with newly changing relationships.
Through the mediation process, Chantel works with both parties to develop a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that can cover anything from living arrangements and financial responsibilities to parenting roles.
Barrister, Solicitor and Notary Public Chantel Lawton, is accredited through the Ontario Association of Family Mediators. (Supplied photo)
Once the draft is ready, her clients take the MOU for a review by their own lawyers — because when she’s acting as a mediator, Chantel is not representing either client as a lawyer.
She likes the process because it’s faster than litigation and can help build relationships through listening and understanding.
“Mediation teaches us to not get stuck in the battle,” Chantel explains.
While Chantel admits that mediation is not always the best way forward for everyone, she also recommends the collaborative process when she thinks it would be more suitable for the separating family. In these cases, Chantel only supports one client and joins other specially trained lawyers to help to resolve the situation.
“Collaborative process looks and feels different than litigation, because lawyers trained in collaborative process focus on resolutions rather than on advocating positions,” she says. “We provide legal advice and information, but our goal is to help the family have a resolution.”
The collaborative process can also include professionals such as financial professionals who help give the family financial advice and planning, and family professionals who provide communication support, help with managing emotions, and assist with parenting supports — all in a neutral way.
“We’re focused on providing support and creating workable solutions,” Chantel says. “At the end of the process, we have a separation agreement for all to sign together.”
Chantel recalls she was moved when seeing her child clients, through her work with the Office of the Children’s Lawyer in the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General, get stuck in their parents’ court battles for long periods of time. She was convinced there were better ways to deal with family matters.
“You know your family best,” she says. “Courts make people be on guard and they don’t help mend, build trust, or encourage communication.”
Chantel agrees that stress and challenging emotional times may make people behave badly but, through collaborative process or mediation, she believes that there are better ways to resolve disputes.
“You can’t make good decisions when you’re in a highly emotional state,” she notes. “But with the right supports and in an environment focused on resolution, such as the collaborative process or mediation, you can. Mediation and collaborative process can be a better process for your family in the long term.”
Chantel’s goal to make sure that families are okay when they move through difficult change is supported by her own commitment to self-care.
She makes time in her busy schedule to support and nurture herself through her love of music and a strong connection to her family, including spending quality time with her standard poodle, Kaya. She also plays the clarinet with the Kawartha Lakes Concert Band and says it is a great stress reliever — which keeps her prepared to provide support for those she guides through mediation or collaborative law processes.
Chantel M. Lawton, Barrister, Solicitor and Notary Public, is located at 189 Kent Street West (Kent Place Mall), Suite 200, in Lindsay. You can contact her office at 705-878-9949 or info@chantellawton.com. You can also connect with Chantel on LinkedIn and Facebook.
This story was created in partnership with Chantel M. Lawton.
Nation-wide vigils will be held in seven Canadian cities, including Peterborough, on December 15, 2019 on the third anniversary of the death of Soleiman Faqiri, a 30-year-old Afghan-Canadian with mental health issues who died while in custody at Central East Correctional Facility in Lindsay following an interaction with prison guards. This is the first year the annual community vigil has broadened into a national event. Soleiman's brother, Yusuf Faqiri, will speak at the Peterborough vigil, which takes place at 1 p.m. near the main entrance of the Peterborough Regional Health Centre. (Photo: Justice for Soli)
“The greatest measure of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable.”
As he continues his determined bid to secure justice in the late 2016 death of his brother, Yusuf Faqiri has quoted these words time and time again, never giving up hope that the end goal will be achieved.
This Sunday (December 15) at 1 p.m., Faqiri will speak at a vigil near the main entrance of the Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC), calling for accountability and transparency in the death of Soleiman “Soli” Faqiri, 30, who died three years ago to the day at Lindsay’s Central East Correctional Facility following an interaction with prison guards.
Advertisement - content continues below
A subsequent post-mortem report deemed the cause of the Afghanistan native’s death as uncertain while a Kawartha Lakes Police Service investigation found no grounds for criminal charges to be laid in connection with his death.
The matter is now in the hands of the Ontario Provincial Police following an ordered re-opening of the case by Ontario’s chief coroner — a step furthered by his family’s relentless call for answers combined with a extensive January 2019 investigative report by CBC’s The Fifth Estate into the circumstances surrounding Soleiman’s incarceration and death.
“The immediate mandate (of Justice For Soli) is we want criminal charges brought against the guards involved so we can get our accountability,” says Faqiri, noting Sunday’s vigil is one of seven being held across Canada under the Justice For Soli banner, the others being in Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Winnipeg, and Vancouver.
When 30-year-old Soleiman Faqiri died on December 15, 2016 at Central East Correctional Facility in Lindsay after an interaction with prison guards, he was suffering from schizophrenia and was being held in custody while waiting for a mental health assessment. (Photo courtesy of Faqiri family)
“My brother had 50 bruises, his legs and hands were tied, he was pepper sprayed twice, there was an eyewitness to his killing,” Faquiri says. “We’re not asking for something beyond reason. This is what my family deserves. Accountability for Soleiman’s death will be an important step on the road to fixing a broken system.”
According to Faqiri, what happened to his brother while he was under the care of correctional staff provides the central focus for a larger issue that continues to torment and haunt families across Canada: the vulnerability of those with mental health challenges and the all-too-often tragic outcomes that result from a lack of empathy for their condition and associated struggles.
“The goal of the vigils is to raise awareness of Soleiman’s story and the fact that people will mental illness are dying in prison,” says Faqiri.
“This is not a Lindsay story. This is not a Toronto story. This is a Canadian problem. This is a national issue. Every city has a Soleiman. Every city that the movement is going to has a loved one with mental illness die as a result of the justice system in prison. That’s why his story resonates — because this could happen to anyone.”
That said, accountability for Soleiman’s death is front of mind for Faqiri, his family, and the movement’s supporters.
Advertisement - content continues below
“We want criminal charges against those who killed Soleiman. My brother didn’t just roll over and die. He was given to my family in a body bag. There has to be accountability and transparency. At the end of the day, the decision lies with the Ontario Provincial Police. We’re waiting for them to make the decision. It’s been which them for almost a year now.”
Faqiri adds it’s his understanding that a decision on the matter by the OPP is “imminent.”
“It was very disappointing the way the Kawartha Lakes Police Service handled the investigation,” says Faqiri, alleging an eyewitness to the his brother’s death was never interviewed.
Yusef Faqiri, who has pursued justice for his mentally ill brother Soleiman since his death on December 15, 2016 while in custody at Central East Correctional Facility in Lindsay, speaks to reporters at a 2017 vigil. (Photo: Justice for Soli)
“A year into your investigation, you send an email to the lawyers saying there are no grounds for charges?,” adds Faqiri, referring to the police investigation.
“I was shocked by the way they handled it. I believe that our justice system can do good. It just needs to be fixed. It is a closed system that lacks accountability and transparency. This movement hopes to knock on doors and break those barriers. We all deserve accountability; we all deserve transparency.”
On December 4, 2016, Soleiman, who had long struggled with schizophrenia, was apprehended by police officers acting under the authority of the Ontario Mental Health Act, following a dispute between him and a neighbour during which he allegedly stabbed her in the stomach with an edged weapon.
Advertisement - content continues below
The following day he was remanded into custody at the Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay. He was placed in segregation (solitary confinement) while awaiting a mental health assessment.
Ten days later, according to a police report, Soleiman became quite agitated while taking a shower. Eventually agreeing to be handcuffed, he was escorted by guards back to his cell where his agitation heightened as he resisted entry to his cell.
After being pepper sprayed twice in his cell to negate his behaviour, Soleiman continued to resist. After he appeared to settle down, he was left handcuffed in his cell. Shortly after, he was discovered not breathing. Despite CPR and resuscitation with a defibrillator, Soleiman was pronounced dead by paramedics on December 15, 2016.
The second oldest of five children, Soleiman Faqiri came to Canada as an eight-year-old child with his family from Afghanistan. A straight-A student in high school, Soleiman spoke three languages (English, Farsi, and Arabic) and was in his first year of studying environmental engineering at the University of Waterloo when he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Over the next 11 years, he was arrested multiple times by police under the Ontario Mental Health Act, often as a result of not taking his medication. (Photo courtesy of Faqiri family)
The post-mortem report listed more than 50 indicators of blunt force trauma, ligature marks on Soleiman’s wrists and ankles, and bruising on his neck. Internal injuries were also discovered during his autopsy.
“This is my family’s humble effort to see something good come out of a tragedy that I don’t wish for any family to go through,” says Faqiri.
“The way people with mental illness are treated in Canada is a black mark on our beautiful country. We’re a society that should be commended for a lot amazing things but this is an issue that needs to be fixed. We still have family members that receive their loved ones in a body bag and are not given any answers.”
Advertisement - content continues below
Terming himself “an accidental advocate”, Faqiri says “I didn’t choose this journey. After Solieman’s death, I was compelled to make a decision. I chose standing up and fighting. I never saw where this was going to go. I am just another Canadian, raised in Ajax-Pickering. I needed to do this to honour my late brother.”
“Soleiman’s life mattered. He had hopes and dreams like everyone else. He had a family. He had a mother. He had a father. He had brothers. He had a sister. He had nephews and nieces. All of that was cut short in the very institution that was supposed to take care of him. We want to make sure that doesn’t get lost.”
“I love my brother. I was very close to him. I hope he’s watching and knows we miss him. I hope he knows people are thinking about him. I hope he knows he is being honoured every day.”
The full version of “A Brother’s Story” is available for streaming on CBC Gem.
At Sunday’s rally outside PRHC, Faqiri will speak along with Aisha Francis, the founder and executive director of Project Restore FIBI (Families Impacted by Incarceration). Faqiri will also speak at the Toronto vigil scheduled for 6 p.m. later in the day at Dundas Square in the heart of the city.
“I believe we can do good from this,” says Faqiri. “I believe we can bring about change when it’s look at from a communal perspective, not an individual perspective. Our organization is made up of volunteers across Canada that are inspired by Soleiman’s tragedy.”
“The whole point is to give other families a voice. In our bid to get accountability, there’s an opportunity to give other families hope.”
For more information on Justice For Soli, including the opportunity to donate to the organization’s efforts, visit www.justiceforsoli.com.
Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement for possible significant snowfall during the day on Saturday (December 14) and into Saturday night.
UPDATE Fri Dec 13 4:15pm
Environment Canada has ended the special weather statement for all areas of the Kawarthas except for Haliburton and Hastings counties, where it remains in effect.
The special weather statement applies to all of the Kawarthas except for Northumberland County.
A developing east coast storm will bring heavy snow and the risk of freezing rain to the area on Friday night (December 13) into early Saturday morning.
Any freezing rain is not expected to last long, but will transition over to snow during the day on Saturday.
The snow will then continue, heavy at times, into Saturday night with significant accumulations possible by Sunday morning.
The heavy snow, in combination with strong and gusty winds and falling temperatures, will result in difficult travel conditions on Saturday night.
Give the gift of beauty and wellness to your loved ones this holiday season by purchasing gift cards from Euphoria Wellness Spa in downtown Peterborough. The full-service spa is one of Canada's top 50 spas and the only accredited 5-Star Spa of Canada in the Kawarthas. (Supplied photo)
When we choose to support locally owned independent businesses, it’s good for us because it’s good for our community. Choosing local first means more of the money we spend stays in our community, resulting in higher-paying jobs and contributing more to the local tax base.
Choosing local first also nurtures the unique character of our community, while reducing our impact of the environment. And local business owners are also residents of our community, supporting local charitable causes as well as other local businesses — creating a domino effect throughout the local economy.
Euphoria Wellness Spa
Your gift of beauty and wellness will be fondly remembered and appreciated when the recipient is enjoying one of the many services and products available from Euphoria Wellness Spa in downtown Peterborough. Instant gift cards are available in any denomination, starting at $10. Euphoria is also offering a special gift card package where you can spoil your loved ones (or even yourself) with complimentary services. (Supplied photo)
Euphoria Wellness Spa is a locally owned medical and wellness spa at 290 Water Street in downtown Peterborough. Owned and operated by Peterborough resident Simone Dobson, the full-service spa — now in its 13th year of operation and employing more than 50 people — is one of Canada’s top 50 spas and the only accredited 5-Star Spa of Canada in the Kawarthas.
This holiday season, you can spoil your loved one with the gift of beauty and wellness at Euphoria by purchasing a special gift card package that also includes complimentary services.
Purchase a $200 gift card and receive a free wash, cut, and style or a Revive manicure. Purchase a $300 gift card and receive both a free wash, cut, and style and a Revive manicure. Purchase a $500 gift card and receive a free wash, cut, and style and a Revive pedicure. For more information and to reserve your package, visit mailchi.mp/spa-euphoria.com/giftcards.
Gift cards from Euphoria Wellness Spa, which never expire and can be used for all services and products at the award-winning full-service spa in downtown Peterborough, are the perfect present for that hard-to-buy-for person on your list. (Supplied photo)
Not only do Euphoria Wellness Spa gift cards never expire, but they can be used for any of the services and products the award-winning spa has to offer — and there’s a lot to choose from, making a Euphoria gift card the ideal present for that hard-to-buy-for person on your list.
Spa services include a complete range of registered massage therapy (classic Swedish, therapeutic, hot stone, couples, and more), facials and body treatments, manicures and pedicures, sugaring and waxing, St. Tropez sunless spray tanning, steam room, infrared, and dry sauna — always complimentary with massage, facials, and body treatments.
There’s also the recently renovated and expanded Aveda® Hair Salon — where Euphoria’s hair stylists, colour technicians, and beauty and grooming experts will make your visit truly special with “everyday luxury” — and the Beauty Boutique, which features exceptional makeup and skin care products, making for perfect stocking stuffers to go along with your gift card.
Euphoria Wellness Spa in downtown Peterborough recently renovated and expanded its “everyday luxury” Aveda® Hair Salon (left). The only full-service spa in the Kawarthas with five medical doctors on staff, Euphoria offers the largest and only centre for CoolSculpting in the region (centre). Euphoria also has Peterborough’s only fully licensed Starbucks and Gelato Caffe (right). (Supplied photos)
Euphoria is also the only full-service spa in the Kawarthas with five medical doctors on staff, including a dermatologist, MD Code trained physicians, and two gynecologists. Euphoria offers medical esthetic treatments including permanent laser hair removal, laser tattoo removal, Latisse® eyelash enhancement, microdermabrasion, photo facial treatments, pixel laser skin resurfacing, skin tightening and overall skin rejuvenation, Botox, and Juvederm — and the largest (and only) centre for CoolSculpting in the region.
And last but not least, Euphoria has Peterborough’s only fully licensed Starbucks and Gelato Caffe.
In addition to special gift card packages, you can also purchase gift cards of any denomination, starting at $10, either in store or online. For more information and to purchase an instant e-gift card, visit euphoriawellnessspa.com/choose-gift-card/.
Along with gift cards, you can get stocking stuffers for that special someone at Euphoria Wellness Spa in downtown Peterborough. Euphoria carries products for both women and men. (Supplied photos_
When dropping in to Euphoria to purchase a gift card and some stocking stuffers (or whenever you receive spa services or treatments), you can park for free for one hour in the commercial parking lot located beside the spa. Just show your parking voucher to the Euphoria concierge when cashing out.
And, if you need a break from the stress of the holidays, you can indulge yourself with Euphoria’s special “Spoiled Pretty” holiday offer.
Euphoria will be including a Mimosa with all salon services every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday after 11 a.m. until December 21st (you must be of legal drinking age, non-alcoholic option available).
VIDEO: Make her wishes come true this holiday season
Euphoria Wellness Spa is located at 290 Water Street in downtown Peterborough. Extended hours until Christmas Eve (December 24) are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday to Friday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. On Christmas Eve, hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day). After Boxing Day, Euphoria will be open as usual until New Year’s Eve, when it is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (closed New Year’s Day).
To book an appointment, call 705-741-4772. For more information and to purchase gift cards online, visit euphoriawellnessspa.com. You can also follow Euphoria on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Do you own a local independent business? If you’d like to be featured in our “choose local” promotion, contact kawarthaNOW Publisher Jeannine Taylor at 705-742-6404 or jt@kawarthanow.com.
Peterborough singer-songwriter Lindsay Barr, who recently released her new single and video "I Don't Dance", is performing in downtown Peterborough at Next Door on Thursday, December 12th and at The Social on Saturday, December 14th. (Photo: Samantha Moss)
Every Thursday, we publish live music and performance events at pubs and clubs in Peterborough and The Kawarthas based on information that venues provide to us directly or post on their website or social media channels. Here are the listings for the week of Thursday, December 12 to Wednesday, December 18.
If you’re a pub or club owner and want to be included in our weekly listings, please email our Nightlife Editor at nightlife@kawarthanow.com.
7:30pm - Hits of '60s, '70s, '80s w/ Don Owen & Bruce Longman
Wednesday, December 18
8pm - Open mic
Coming Soon
Thursday, December 19 8pm - Karaoke w/ The Travelling Wilburs
Friday, December 20 9pm - Shawn Nelson
Saturday, December 21 9pm - Two For The Show
Sunday, December 22 2pm - Closed for staff Christmas party
Bancroft Eatery and Brew Pub
4 Bridge St., Bancroft
(613) 332-3450
Coming Soon
Saturday, December 21 9pm - Ugly Christmas Sweater Party ft Emily Burgess and Marcus Browne
Black Horse Pub
452 George St. N., Peterborough
(705) 742-0633
Thursday, December 12
7:30-11:30pm - Rob Phillips Trio w/ Marsala Lukianchuk
Friday, December 13
5-8pm - Rick & Gailie; 8:30pm - Brother Sweet Brother
Saturday, December 14
5-8pm - Rick & Gailie; 8:30pm - Jackets
Sunday, December 15
3-6pm - Jacques Russell Trio; 6:30-9:30pm - Mark Beatty
Monday, December 16
7-11pm - Rick & Gailie's Crash & Burn
Tuesday, December 17
7-9pm - Wylie Harold
Wednesday, December 18
7-10pm - Nicholas Campbell & Friends
Coming Soon
Thursday, December 19 7:30-11:30pm - Rob Phillips Trio w/ Marsala Lukianchuk
Friday, December 20 5-8pm - Rick & Gailie; 8:30pm - Pop Machine
Saturday, December 21 5-8pm - Rick & Gailie; 8:30pm - Courtney Bowles Band
Sunday, December 22 3-6pm - Washboard Hank & The Wringers; 6:30-9:30pm - Morgan Rider
Boiling Over's Coffee Vault
148 Kent St. W., Lindsay
(705) 878-8884
Friday, December 13
7-9pm - Darren Bailey
Coming Soon
Friday, December 20 6-9pm - Open mic hosted by Gerald Van Halteren
Canoe & Paddle
18 Bridge St., Lakefield
(705) 651-1111
Saturdays
8pm - Live music
Coming Soon
Tuesday, December 31 7:30pm - New Year's Eve Party ft. Ace & The Kid ($90 for three-course dinner, drink of choice and midnight champagne)
Champs Sports Bar
203 Simcoe St., Peterborough
(705) 742-3431
Thursdays
7pm - Open mic
Chemong Lodge
764 Hunter St., Bridgenorth
(705) 292-8435
Thursdays
5-9pm - Pianist Barry McMullen (dining room)
Wednesdays
5-9pm - Pianist Barry McMullen (dining room)
Coach & Horses Pub
16 York St. S., Lindsay
(705) 328-0006
Thursdays
10pm - Open Mic
Fridays
9:30pm - Karaoke Night
Wednesdays
7-11pm - Live music
Advertisement - content continues below
The Cow & Sow Eatery
38 Colborne St., Fenelon Falls
(705) 887-5111
Thursday, December 12
8pm - Karaoke
Coming Soon
Tuesday, December 31 6pm - New Year's Eve Party ft U Jimmy ($10)
Dominion Hotel
113 Main St., Minden
(705) 286-6954
Saturday, December 14
7:30pm - Hellfire Hal and the Hot Tub Hussies
Coming Soon
Friday, December 20 4-7pm - Customer Appreciation Event w/ Jeff Moulton
Saturday, December 21 7:30pm - Albert Saxby
Dr. J's BBQ & Brews
282 Aylmer St., Peterborough
(705) 874-5717
Coming Soon
Saturday, December 21 1:30-5pm - PMBA Deluxe Blues Jam hosted by Bywater Call (donations welcome, all proceeds to musicians in need)
Fiddler's Green Pub & Grub
34 Lindsay St. St., Lindsay
(705) 878-8440
Saturday, December 14
9pm - U Jimmy
Coming Soon
Sunday, December 22 1-5pm - Randy Reid
Ganarascals Restaurant
53 Walton St., Port Hope
905-885-1888
Coming Soon
Saturday, December 21 6-8pm - Cairdeas (Saskia Tomkins, Steáfán Hannigan, and Marsala Lukianchuk) ($20, with $5 going to Sounds of the Next Generation)
Tuesday, December 31 5-9pm - New Year's Eve with Hailiah & Friends ($10)
Ganaraska Hotel
30 Ontario St., Port Hope
(905) 885-9254
Saturday, December 14
2pm & 10pm - Tamin' Thunder
Sunday, December 15
2-6pm - Country Christmas ft Ginny McIllmoyle, John Noonan, Larry Adams, Stephen Francis, Darrin Johnson, Marty Hepburn, Mike and Sigrid McGiverin, & more
Coming Soon
Thursday, December 19 8pm - I'm Dreaming of a Blues Christmas ft Bad Luck Woman and Her Misfortunes ($20)
Friday, December 20 8pm - I'm Dreaming of a Blues Christmas ft Dave Mowatt and Curbside Shuffle ($20)
Saturday, December 21 2pm & 10pm - Blue Print
Sunday, December 22 3pm - I'm Dreaming of a Blues Christmas ft Emily Burgess and The Emburys ($20)
The Garnet
231 Hunter St. W., Peterborough
(705) 874-0107
Thursday, December 12
9pm - Out By Lucy w/ guests
Friday, December 13
10:30pm - The Kents ($10 at door)
Sunday, December 15
8pm - Looking for Heather w/ guests
Monday, December 16
8pm - Joel Parkes
Tuesday, December 17
8pm - Human Music Team w/ guests
Wednesday, December 18
7-10pm - Open Stage Night hosted by Dixie Que and Ále Suárez (7-9pm open stage, 9-10pm music and art jam, sign up at 7pm)
Coming Soon
Thursday, December 19 8pm - Lotus Wight & Luke Mercier
Friday, December 20 9pm - RockBitur Metal Xmas
Saturday, December 21 9pm - Pays D'en Haut
Sunday, December 22 8pm - Mark Wood
Golden Wheel Restaurant
6725 Highway 7, Peterborough
(705) 749-6838
Saturday, December 14
8pm - Classic Collective
Gordon Best Theatre
216 Hunter St. W., Peterborough
(705) 876-8884
Friday, December 13
9pm - Oberge w/ Peachykine ($10 at door or PWYC)
Saturday, December 14
7:30-11pm - Odd Man Rush ($10 at door, silent auction, all proceeds go to One Roof)
Coming Soon
Tuesday, December 31 9pm - The Starry Night New Year's Eve 2020 ft Death By Art School, All Girl Band, Belly Flop, Mary-Kate Edwards, Dixie Que, DJ Pete (19+, $5)
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.
