Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Home Blog Page 793

What’s new from the Kawartha Chamber of Commerce & Tourism – June 27, 2018

By kawarthaNOW -
There are lots of ways to celebrate Canada Day in the Kawarthas on Sunday, July 1st, including enjoying horse-drawn wagon rides through the historic Lang Pioneer Village Museum in Keene during the annual Historic Dominion Day. (Photo: Lang Pioneer Village)

Kawartha Chamber Members Invited To Summer Social PBX next Tuesday – July 3rd

KLC County Fair

Members of the Kawartha Chamber have been invited to the Peterborough Chamber’s county fair-themed Summer Social Peterborough Business Exchange at Kawartha Lakes Construction.

The event will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, July 3rd at 3359 Lakefield Road, Lakefield.

This is a great opportunity to meet and connect with fellow community members. There will be tons of games, prizes, and delicious refreshments to go around to celebrate the season and our community.

Register now.

 

Did you know?

Chamber members get preferred rates on merchant services with First Data.

First Data offers a variety of services to merchants including Ecommerce, wired and wireless terminals, gift card solutions and more. They will meet or beat your current provider’s offer, or pay you a $1000 pre-paid MasterCard.

Find out more about this and other great discount programs available to Chamber members on the Member Discounts page.

 

Tourism Industry Awards Nominations Open

Tourism Industry Awards

The Tourism Industry Association of Ontario has announced nominations for various tourism organization awards:

  • The Tourism Industry Awards of Excellence (TIAO)
  • Culinary Tourism Awards of Excellence (Culinary Tourism Alliance)
  • Ontario’s Choice Awards (Attractions Ontario)
  • Tourism Marketing & Travel Media Awards of Excellence (Destination Ontario)

For more information on each organization’s awards, and to nominate a business, visit www.tiaontario.ca/cpages/2018ontariotourismawards.

 

Happy Canada Day! Canada Day Celebrations Sunday, July 1st

Activities at Historic Dominion Day on Sunday, July 1st at Lang Pioneer Village Museum in Keene include horse-drawn carriage rides, historical battle reenactments, educational pieces on confederation, schoolyard games, and live music. (Photo: Lang Pioneer Village)
Activities at Historic Dominion Day on Sunday, July 1st at Lang Pioneer Village Museum in Keene include horse-drawn carriage rides, historical battle reenactments, educational pieces on confederation, schoolyard games, and live music. (Photo: Lang Pioneer Village)

No matter where you are celebrating, the Chamber has you covered for Canada Day with events across the region:

The Buckhorn Community Centre is hosting a Canada Day Celebration at their location, 1782 Lakehurst Road.

  • Daytime celebrations run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
  • There will be a petting zoo, market place, beer garden, and much more
  • Evening Celebrations start at 8 p.m. with fireworks at 10 p.m.
  • More information

There will be a Canada Day Parade in Douro-Dummer.

  • The parade will begin at the intersection of County Road 4 and the Douro 4th Line
  • Parade starts at 3 p.m.
  • More information

A Lakefield Canada Day Celebration will be happening at Isabel Morris Park.

  • Celebrations start at 3 p.m.
  • Activities include a petting zoo, kid’s games, local vendors, fireworks and more
  • More information

Another Lakefield Canada Day Celebration is being hosted by the Lakefield Legion at 10 Nicholls St. Lakefield.

  • Celebrations run from 1 to 9 p.m.
  • Activities include music, the Lions Club BBQ Trailer, and more
  • More information

The Apsley Lions are hosting a Canada Day Parade & Celebration in Apsley.

  • Parade at 3 p.m. on Burliegh Street in Apsley
  • Food Booth from 4 to 8 p.m.
  • Fireworks in Lions Park at dusk
  • More information

Lang Pioneer Village is taking you back in time for Historic Dominion Day in Keene.

  • Celebrations run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
  • Activities include horse-drawn carriage rides, historical battle reenactments, educational pieces on confederation, schoolyard games, and live music
  • Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for students and seniors, free for children under five, and $30 for a family pass.
  • More information

 

Lakefield Jamboree This Weekend

Organized by the Lakefield Agricultural Society, the 7th annual Lakefield Country Jamboree is happening this weekend from June 28th to July 1st.

The Jamboree is hosting a great lineup of musicians, including James Ryce, Percey Kinney, and John Milner, and featuring the Tim Sander Band as the Main Stage backup.

Enjoy or participate in an Open Mic on Thursday evening, or Friday and Saturday afternoon with Paul Wasson Burnt River Band. And come for Gospel Hour on Sunday from 11 a.m. to noon.

Camping and walk-in passes are available. Read more information.

 

Lakefield Jazz Festival – Saturday, July 7th

Lakefield Jazz Festival

The Lakefield Jazz, Art & Craft Festival and Selwyn Township invite you, your friends and family to come to a breezy day of outdoor summer living beside Lakefield’s scenic Otonabee River.

Enjoy a wide variety of Jazz music, colourful works for sale by artisans and crafters, local food vendors, Black’s Distillery, and Publican House Brewery.

Arts and crafts exhibits open at 10 a.m. Musicians begin performing at 11 a.m. until 10 p.m.

Find out more.

 

Lakefield Literary Festival 2018 To Offer Writing Craft Talk

Michael Redhill, whose most recent novel "Bellevue Square" won the 2017 Giller Prize, will be delivering a talk on the novel at the Lakefield Literary Festival.

Michael Redhill, whose most recent novel “Bellevue Square” won the 2017 Giller Prize, will be delivering a talk on the novel at the Lakefield Literary Festival.

The Lakefield Literary Festival is taking place July 13th to 15th.

This year, authors Barbara Mitchell, Michael Redhill, and Kyo Maclear will be offering Writing Craft Talks on non-fiction, fiction, and picture book writing respectively.

These 90-minute sessions will include talks and discussion of the craft of writing, as well as optional practice exercises. Tickets are $30 (not included in festival pass).

Tickets for the festival and these talks are available online or at Happenstance Books & Yarn.

Visit lakefieldliteraryfestival.com for details.

 

Craftworks Cruise Nights Every Thursday

Craftworks at the Barn is hosting a Cruise Night every Thursday this summer.

Featuring tons of unique vintage, retro, classic, sporty and many more different kinds of cars, each week you also have the chance to win a trip to Las Vegas and the 50/50 draw, Great food and crafts are also available.

Cruise nights run from 4 to 8 p.m.

Read more. Craftworks also hosts a Farmers’ Market on Saturdays,

 

Family Paddle Day

Family Paddle Day is this Wednesday, June 27th.

Join Adventure Outfitters, Paluski Boats, The Lakefield Pantry, Lakefield Herald, and the Lakefield Trail Committee at Family Paddle day at the Lakefield Beach for an evening paddle on Katchewanooka Lake, in celebration of National Canoe Day.

Bring a canoe or kayak if you have one, Adventure Outfitters will have extra if you don’t.

The paddle starts at 5:30 p.m., there will be a beach bonfire afterwards. Read more.

 

Marlin Travel Early Booking Savings

Summer is here but its time to take advantage of the early booking savings for winter holidays.

Transat Holidays has extended their early booking specials to mid July. Low deposits of just $100 per person, free upgrades and price guarantees — it pays to book early with Marlin Travel. The group tour lineup for 2019 will see escorted tours go on the Douro River in Portugal, Scotland, Italy, Ireland and the Jewels of Europe from Amsterdam to Budapest. The 2020 Viking River cruise to Russia is now booking.

Located in store at Marlin Travel is the new Travel n Style Cruise and Leisure wear featuring Rapz. Colourful patterns and styles for everyone — and best of all its made in Canada. Check it out today. Call Marlin Travel to find out more about our private shopping parties.

 

Chamber Members are Hiring

If your business or organization has a job opportunity you would like to advertise, you can add them to the Chamber’s website through your Member Information Centre account (or submit the description to info@kawarthachamber.ca) and the Chamber will share them in its next Newsflash.

 

Great Canadian Giving Challenge on Now until June 30th

Great Canadian Giving Challenge

The Great Canadian Giving Challenge is on now until June 30th.

Give to any registered Canadian charity by the end of June and they will be automatically entered to win $10,000! Note that donations must be made through the charity’s donation challenge page.

This challenge makes it a great time to donate to a cause you believe in! Visit the Challenge website at givingchallenge.ca for more details and to donate.

Check the Chamber’s business directory and keep an eye out for some member organizations that are charities.

 

Upcoming Events

  • Buckhorn Farmers’ & Craft Market Opens – June 26th
  • Tek Savvy Seniors Seminar – June 27th
  • Warsaw Cruise Night – June 27th
  • Lakefield Farmers’ Market – Every Thursday
  • Cottage Country Farmers’ Market at the Barn – Every Saturday
  • Gallery on the Lake Mark Berens Exhibit Opens – June 30th
  • Church-Key Summer Concert Series: Queen & Son – June 30th
  • Canada Day Celebrations – July 1st

 

For more information about the businesses and events listed above, please visit the Kawartha Chamber of Commerce & Tourism website at kawarthachamber.ca.

All photos supplied by Kawartha Chamber of Commerce except where noted.

Absurdist play ‘The Chairs’ marks the end of an era for The Theatre on King

By Sam Tweedle -
Di Latchford and Randy Read star in Eugene Ionesco's play "The Chairs" at The Theatre on King from June 27 to 30, 2018. Directed by Ryan Kerr, this production will be the last staged at The Theatre on King's space in downtown Peterborough. (Photo: Andy Carroll)

On Wednesday, June 27th, The Theatre on King (TTOK) closes its 2017-2018 season with Ryan Kerr’s production of Eugene Ionesco’s absurdist comedy The Chairs.

Featuring the talents of Di Latchford and Randy Read, The Chairs also marks an end of an era for TTOK as the final theatrical production performed at their much-beloved performance space at 159 King Street in downtown Peterborough.

The Chairs

When: Wednesday, June 27 to Friday, June 29 at 8 p.m.; Saturday, June 30 at 2 p.m.
Where: The Theatre on King (159 King St., Suite 120, Peterborough)
How much: $15 at the door or pay what you can

Written by Eugene Ionesco and directed by Ryan Kerr. Starring Di Latchford and Randy Read. Costumes by Kate Story, set by Kate Story and Paul Oldham, and lights and sound by Shannon McKenzie.

Since presenting The Bald Soprano in the fall of 2016, Ryan Kerr has made Eugene Ionesco productions a regular occurrence at TTOK. Filled with clever word play, zany characters ,and politically charged allegories, Ionesco’s plays are often difficult shows to produce, but Ryan and his company have risen up to the challenge again and again, making his Ionesco shows not only some of the most memorable productions Ryan has produced but also entertaining, audience favourites.

“The challenge in Ionesco, or any of the writers of the theatre of the absurd, is that it a completely different style,” Ryan explains. “There isn’t necessarily a through line. There’s not necessarily character development.

“It’s more about ideas, the situation, and the language. It really highlights the words as opposed to the people or the characters. They are a challenge for the actors, the director, and the audience.”

Ryan says he also enjoys Ionesco because he finds the plays “hilarious”.

“A lot of the writers in Europe writing plays just after World War Two were very deeply touched and affected by the war, and it’s interesting they chose to write with humour as a way to understand what had happened. I think there had to be a certain kind of pressure gauge that had to be released, and these shows acknowledge that they world is indeed absurd — but it can also be funny, and also poignant and touching.”

In "The Chairs", Di Latchford and Randy Read play an old married couple who are frantically preparing chairs for guests who are coming to hear the old man's astounding revelation. (Photo: Andy Carroll)
In “The Chairs”, Di Latchford and Randy Read play an old married couple who are frantically preparing chairs for guests who are coming to hear the old man’s astounding revelation. (Photo: Andy Carroll)

Written in 1952, The Chairs has been described as being “a tragic farce.” The show presents an older married couple who, although having been together for decades, retain a loving marriage. Recently the man has come upon “a message” he feels must be told to “everyone” and calls for a great meeting at his home.

Together, he and his wife prepare for their guests, and to reveal the man’s message to the world. Of course, there is much more to the story, but in all honesty it is best for the audience to discover the show just as I did. Allow yourself to be surprised and delighted, and buckle up for a very funny and surprising journey.

“It’s all about what’s real and what’s not,” Ryan says. “I don’t want to give any more away.”

Randy Read and Di Latchford bring something very special to this show. Their delivery of the material is much different than that of other Ionesco shows Ryan has produced in the past. In other shows, the actors tend to accentuate the absurdity of the language and situation by creating over emphasized characters with a certain over-the-top tone to the comedy. However, with Randy and Di, a different tone is created by having the two characters played in a much more straigthforward fashion.

Starring Di Latchford and Randy Read, "The Chairs" is directed by Ryan Kerr with costumes by Kate Story, set by Kate Story and Paul Oldham, and lights and sound by Shannon McKenzie. (Photo: Andy Carroll)
Starring Di Latchford and Randy Read, “The Chairs” is directed by Ryan Kerr with costumes by Kate Story, set by Kate Story and Paul Oldham, and lights and sound by Shannon McKenzie. (Photo: Andy Carroll)

It’s interesting to listen to these characters be placed in such a ridiculous situation, but present it as if it’s the most normal situation in the world. The result is an entirely different dynamic than what I’ve come to expect from one of Ryan’s Ionesco shows. There’s warmth between the two characters, who thereby become much more relatable to the audience despite the insanity presented on the stage.

A regular on the local stage and at TTOK, this marks Di Latchford’s first appearance in one of Ryan’s Ionesco productions.

“I’ve had Di cast in another roles at TTOK and she’s fantastic,” Ryan says of his leading lady. “I wanted to give her a role that would show off what she can do, but also challenge her.”

The Chairs is also a rare acting appearance by local favourite Randy Read, best known as the artistic director of New Stages Peterborough, who makes his TTOK debut in something completely out of his element.

“Randy has done a lot of acting in his life, but he hasn’t been doing a lot of acting recently,” Ryan explains. “He did do Our Town at Market Hall recently, but he has never done any acting at The Theatre on King before.

“Randy also tends to explore more non-absurd theatre in his own productions, so I knew this would be a challenge because it is new for him. It’s a new space for him and, although we’ve worked together before, he hasn’t worked with me as a director.

"The Chairs" runs from June 27 to June 30, 2018 at The Theatre on King. (Poster: Theatre on King)
“The Chairs” runs from June 27 to June 30, 2018 at The Theatre on King. (Poster: Theatre on King)

“Di and Randy are the perfect choices for this production. It’s been interesting working with them, and seeing them rise to the challenge. They both get along really well, and they are the perfect cast for this show.”

While not all of the absurdist theatre that Ryan produces at TTOK could necessarily be called audience friendly, what I personally love about Eugene Ionesco is how genuinely entertaining his plays are. Although the language might be challenging and the plots and events up for personal interpretation, the themes of the shows are fairly straightforward and understandable.

The Chairs is no exception to this, with much of the same themes of the uncontrollable nature of events and absurdity of power being explored. It’s an easily accessible and entertaining show completely different from what is being produced by any other theatre company in Peterborough.

“We don’t necessary learn this history of theatre anymore,” Ryan points out. “We are in the age of very popular musicals. That’s fine, but it means that some of the really good plays written in the past are being skipped over and forgotten. You need to know where you came from in order to go forward.

“I also think absurdist plays are very appropriate for the times that we are living in. Our leaders are not who they appear to be. There’s an awful lot of absurdity and randomness that we have no control over. In some sense, we can identify with some of the characters and what they are going through.”

The Chairs also features costumes by Kate Story, set by Kate Story and Paul Oldham, and lights and sound by Shannon McKenzie. It is truly the best of what patrons have come to expect of TTOK’s mission at creating interesting and thought-provoking theatre.

As mentioned, The Chairs will also mark the end of an era for The Theatre on King. When the final curtain comes down at the 2 p.m. matinee on June 30th, it will mark the final theatrical performance for the TTOK, as a popular and much-loved artistic hub, at the King Street location.

Rumours of major changes in the works for TTOK have been circulating through the arts community in recent days. Although nothing official has been announced yet, things will look much different for the theatre company when they launch their 2018-2019 season in September.

In the meantime, the LLAADS troupe (Lindsay Unterlander, Luke Foster, Adam Wilkinson, Adam Martignetti, Dan Smith, and Sarah McNeilly) will continue to perform their popular comedy show at the space through June and July, and a few other events will be held before the theatre closes for August. But as for theatrical productions, The Chairs will be the final chance for audiences to enjoy the experience of seeing unique theatre in this black box space again. The Chairs is a perfect way to say goodbye to the TTOK that we’ve come to know.

The Chairs runs from Wednesday, June 27th to Saturday, June 30th at TTOK in downtown Peterborough, with performances at 8 p.m. except the closing matinee on Saturday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15 at the door or pay what you can.

Sloan headlines The Hootenanny On Hunter Street on August 11

By kawarthaNOW -
Sloan is headlining The Hootenanny On Hunter Street music festival on August 11, 2018 in downtown Peterborough. (Publicity photo)

Toronto-based rockers Sloan will be headlining this year’s The Hootenanny On Hunter Street, which takes place in downtown Peterborough beginning at noon on Saturday, August 11th.

This is the first year the annual street festival is being organized by the Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA).

“It’s been exciting watching this lineup come together,” says DBIA executive director Terry Guiel. “Sloan was booked to play Hootenanny two years ago, but was unfortunately rained out. We’re thrilled to announced that they’ll be headlining our 2018 lineup.”

VIDEO: 2018 Hootenanny on Hunter Street Lineup

Along with Sloan, the lineup features local musicians Missy Knott and Lindsay Barr, along with Charmie, Gene Hardy & Sparkjiver, Band Of People, Blue Sky Miners, Secret Broadcast, and YUKA.

Hootenanny runs from noon to 11 p.m. on Hunter Street West between George and Aylmer streets. Admission is free.

Here’s the full lineup with performance times:

  • 12:00 p.m. – Missy Knott
  • 1:15 p.m. – Charmie
  • 2:30 p.m. – Gene Hardy & Sparkjiver
  • 3:45 p.m. – Lindsay Barr
  • 5:00 p.m. – Band Of People
  • 6:15 p.m. – Blue Sky Miners
  • 7:30 p.m. – Secret Broadcast
  • 8:45 p.m. – YUKA
  • 10:00 p.m. – Sloan.

Catholic school board celebrates $650,000 investment in high school welding program

By kawarthaNOW -
As part of a $650,000 investment in Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington Catholic District School Board's welding program, the board's six secondary schools located in Peterborough, Cobourg, Lindsay, and Clarington are being equipped with state-of-the-art welding booths thanks to partnerships with the CWB Welding Foundation, which funded nearly half of the project, as well as McCloskey International for its donation of all 36 welding booth structures. (Photo courtesy of Galen Eagle / PVNC)

At a media conference held earlier today (June 26) at St. Peter Catholic Secondary School in Peterborough, the Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington Catholic District School Board (PVNC) celebrated a new $650,000 investment to improve the welding program at the board’s six secondary schools located in Peterborough, Cobourg, Lindsay, and Clarington.

Related story

Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program helps break gender stereotypes in the skilled trades

After more than a year of planning, the board will install 36 new fully outfitted welding booths at its secondary schools between now and the end of August 2018. The project will also help train teachers on the most current welding techniques, with more than a dozen educators undergoing enhanced welding training attending the media conference.

The board’s improved welding program will offer students enhanced learning and better prepare them for co-op placements as part of Specialist High Skills Major programs and Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Programs throughout the region. The new welding facilities will also allow PVNC to enchnce partnerships with local colleges including Fleming, Durham, and Loyalist.

Attendees at the June 26, 2018 media conference celebrating the new $650,000 investment in the Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington (PVNC) Catholic District School Board's welding program. PVNC director of Education Michael Nasello (pictured in the front row, far right) praised the announcement as a significant advantage for students to receive much-in-demand welding skills while still attending high school. (Photo courtesy of Galen Eagle / PVNC)
Attendees at the June 26, 2018 media conference celebrating the new $650,000 investment in the Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington (PVNC) Catholic District School Board’s welding program. PVNC director of Education Michael Nasello (pictured in the front row, far right) praised the announcement as a significant advantage for students to receive much-in-demand welding skills while still attending high school. (Photo courtesy of Galen Eagle / PVNC)

“Earlier this year, we hosted a group of industry leaders who described the dire need for qualified welders in the local and provincial job markets,” said PVNC Director of Education Michael Nasello. “That is why this enhanced welding program at PVNC will be an advantage to our students, giving them an early taste for the skilled trades while providing them with valuable skills that are so desperately needed by employers.”

Local aggregates equipment company McCloskey International donated all of the 36 welding booth structures, and CWB Welding Foundation — a national charity that supports Canada’s welding industry by increasing public safety awareness in welding and addressing the welding skilled trade shortage — funded around half of the project.

“PVNC has proven to demonstrate a great interest and commitment in improving its school welding facilities and upgrading educator welding skills,” said Andrew Bartlett, acting executive director of CWB Welding Foundation.

As part of the newly enhanced welding program, PVNC will also be providing advanced welding training to its welding teachers in order to provide educators with the most current techniques to pass onto students. (Photo courtesy of Galen Eagle / PVNC)
As part of the newly enhanced welding program, PVNC will also be providing advanced welding training to its welding teachers in order to provide educators with the most current techniques to pass onto students. (Photo courtesy of Galen Eagle / PVNC)

“We are proud to partner with and provide funding to organizations like PVNC as their goals align with those of CWB Welding Foundation, to enhance the learning experience of welding students by creating a safer, better equipped shop.”

The new welding booths are being installed this month at Holy Cross and St. Peter Catholic Secondary Schools in Peterborough and St. Stephen Catholic Secondary School in Bowmanville, and will be installed by August 2018 at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School in Lindsay, St. Mary Catholic Secondary School in Cobourg, and Holy Trinity Catholic Secondary School in Courtice.

“Great things like this don’t just happen,” Nasello said. “They happen because visionary teachers and school leaders, dedicated staff members and generous, civic-minded community members all dedicated to the success of future generations come together. They bring their talents, and their ideas and their resources to the table and out of that they craft a new opportunity where none existed before.”

The new welding booths include shop electrical upgrades, fume extraction equipment installations, curtained welding booth structures, and booth-by-booth welders and related equipment. (Photo courtesy of Galen Eagle / PVNC)
The new welding booths include shop electrical upgrades, fume extraction equipment installations, curtained welding booth structures, and booth-by-booth welders and related equipment. (Photo courtesy of Galen Eagle / PVNC)

Starship featuring Mickey Thomas opens Peterborough Musicfest on June 30

By Paul Rellinger -
Starship featuring Mickey Thomas opens the 32nd season of Peterborough Musicfest with a free concert at Del Crary Park in downtown Peterborough on Saturday, June 20, 2018. (Publicity photo)

If Mickey Thomas’ music career had ended in 1976, he would have exited the stage on a high note.

A backing singer with The Elvin Bishop Group at the time, Thomas was invited to sing the lead vocal on “Fooled Around And Fell In Love”. Elvin Bishop selflessly handed over the reins, figuring Thomas’ smooth singing voice to better suited for the track.

Peterborough Musicfest presents
Starship featuring Mickey Thomas

When: Saturday, June 30, 2018 at 8 p.m.
Where: Del Crary Park (100 George St. N., Peterborough)
How much: free

Bring your own lawn chairs or blankets (lawn chairs are available to rent for $4/chair). VIP seating available for Sponsors and Fest Friends. No smoking, alcohol, or pets permitted. There’s no public parking at Del Crary Park, but there’s neighborhood street parking nearby and ample parking in downtown Peterborough.

That was a very good call. Released as a single, the rock ballad zoomed to #3 on the Billboard Top 100 chart, but more notably it brought Thomas to the attention of Jefferson Starship — the band that evolved out of the pioneering 1960s psychedelic rock band Jefferson Airplane following the departure of bassist Jack Casady and guitarist Jorma Kaukonen. Jefferson Starship which recruited him as its lead singer in April 1979.

Now, close to 40 years later — after a couple of name changes and a mostly new cast of performers — Starship featuring Mickey Thomas comes to Del Crary Park in downtown Peterborough on Saturday, June 30th at 8 p.m. as Peterborough Musicfest opens its 32nd season of free summer concerts.

VIDEO: “Fooled Around and Fell in Love” by Elvin Bishop featuring Mickey Thomas

For sure, Thomas will perform the song that brought him out of the shadows all those years ago, but expect a full helping of the iconic hit songs that made Jefferson Starship, and later Starship, and now Starship featuring Mickey Thomas, a top-selling staple on the crowded 1980s pop-rock landscape.

“I was flattered to get the call … I at least owed them (Jefferson Starship) the courtesy of going over there and seeing what’s up,” recalls Thomas of the audition call, in a 2013 interview with Nick Deriso of www.somethingelsereviews.com.

“They were going for a harder edge at that point in time. Then here we come with Jane. That was quite a statement. It worked because when you think about it, a lot of what we think of as hard rock bands from back in the day, it all goes back to the blues. With Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, all of those bands, it was about the blues, so it really kind of made sense. We got together and were really able to forge a new style that worked as Jefferson Starship.”

VIDEO: “Jane” – Jefferson Starship

Buoyed by the success of 1979’s “Jane” — it attained #14 on the Billboard Top 100 — Jefferson Starship recorded four albums with Thomas, front-and-centre with the legendary Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane fame in the mix for three of those.

But 1984 brought upheaval when guitarist Paul Kantner, the last remaining founding member of Jefferson Airplane, left Jefferson Starship and took legal action against his former band mates over the Jefferson Starship name. That gave rise to Starship featuring Thomas and Slick.

Starship’s 1985 debut album Knee Deep In The Hoopla produced two huge-selling singles in “We Built This City” and “Sara”. The 1987 follow-up No Protection spawned the monster single “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now”. Featured on the soundtrack of the comedy film Mannequin, it reached #1 in the United States and the United Kingdom, and earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.

VIDEO: “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” – Starship

At the time, it made Slick, at age 47, the oldest woman to have a number one single in the United States — a record later broken by Cher at age 52 courtesy of “Believe” in 1999.

“With Knee Deep In The Hoopla, we definitely made a conscious effort to sort of redefine ourselves and say ‘Let’s go in and try to do a completely different approach to music. Let’s use a different method. Let’s try to have a couple of hit singles. Let’s just go for it.’

“My career, and Starship’s career, has encompassed so much more than just that pop period. Those are the songs that have the lasting value though. They’re the kind of fabric of people’s lives. That’s OK. The success of those songs is one of the biggest reasons why I’m still able to go out and perform 75 to 100 shows a year, and still bring the music to the people. ”

VIDEO: “We Built This City” – Starship

Thomas understands the criticism, then and still now, leveled by diehard Jefferson Airplane fans that see Starship’s commercial pop music success as an affront to the music that defined 1969’s Summer of Love in San Francisco.

“If you wanted to survive, if you wanted to continue to be a viable band and make records, and to stay together, then you better conform to the times,” he says. “At that point in time, it had reached a point that if you didn’t get Top 40 airplay and you weren’t on MTV, then you just weren’t part of the game. You had to have that presence.”

Starship, minus Slick who left the band in 1989, closed out the 1980s with a third album, Love Among The Cannibals,, which featured the top charting singles “Wild Again” and “It’s Not Enough”.

VIDEO: “Sara” – Starship

While Love Among The Cannibals didn’t enjoy anything near the commercial success of Starship’s first two albums, it remains Thomas’ favourite of the bunch.

“It’s just the one that, for my personal tastes, I would enjoy going back and listening to … it still sounds fresh to me,” says Thomas.

“Of course, there was a lot of other stuff going on during the making of that record. Grace had left the band and then Paul was suing the band. Then Grace was suing Paul and Paul was suing Grace, and they were suing our manager. That’s kind of what made me come up with the title and the song Love Among the Cannibals. I thought, ‘Wow, these people kind of exemplify the whole love generation of the late 1960s, peace and love and wearing flowers in your hair and let’s change the world and now all they want to do is sue each other.”

VIDEO: “It’s Not Enough” – Starship

In 1992, Thomas renamed the band Starship featuring Mickey Thomas and 24 years would pass until the band’s next studio project, Loveless Fascination.

The band has undergone a number of personnel changes since its heyday — Stephanie Calvert (vocals), Jeff Adams (bass), John Roth (guitar), Phil Bennett (keyboards) and Darrell Verdusco (drums) are now in the mix — but Thomas’ unmistakable vocals remain the anchor 43 years after Elvin Bishop stepped aside and gave the Georgia-born singer his shot.

And in case you’re wondering, there’ll also be a taste of some of the classic tunes from the band’s namesake Jefferson Airplane.

“Stephanie Calvert and myself do a medley in the show that’s a kind of historical tribute to the band,” Thomas says. “Stephanie performs a couple of Grace Slick’s most notable songs, ‘White Rabbit’ and ‘Somebody to Love.'”

VIDEO: “White Rabbit / Miracles / Count on Me / Somebody to Love” Medley – Starship featuring Mickey Thomas

Peterborough Musicfest is presenting 18 free-admission concerts featuring a total of 20 acts during its 32nd season — each staged on Wednesday and Saturday nights at Del Crary Park.

Overseen by general manager Tracey Randall and staff, a board of directors, and numerous volunteers, Peterborough Musicfest’s stated mission is to “provide diverse, affordable live music to enrich cultural and economic prosperity in our community.”

For more information on this concert or the entire 2018 season, visit www.ptbomusicfest.ca or phone the Peterborough Musicfest office at 705-755-1111.

It’s going to be hot this Canada Day weekend, so leave your pets at home

By kawarthaNOW -

The Canada Day long weekend is shaping up to be a hot one, with temperatures forecast to reach 31°C on Saturday and 34°C on Sunday (Canada Day).

During extreme heat, it’s obvious to most of us that you never, ever leave children or pets unattended in parked vehicles. But it’s not just during a heat wave: even on relatively mild days during the summer, and even with a car parked in shade and with the windows cracked open, the temperature inside a car can reach a deadly level.

Because of the greenhouse effect, within five to 15 minutes the interior of a car can become 30°C hotter than the outside temperature. Cracking the car windows has a negligible effect; it only reduces the interior temperature of a parked car by a single degree. That means that leaving a child or pet in a parked car during the summer can be a death sentence.

There's no excuse for leaving your pet unattended in a vehicle during the summer. (Graphics: Ontario SPCA)
There’s no excuse for leaving your pet unattended in a vehicle during the summer. (Graphics: Ontario SPCA)

Pets are particularly vulnerable to hot temperatures. Dogs, for example, have a limited ability to sweat. This means that even a brief time in a hot environment can be life threatening — irreparable brain damage or even death can occur within minutes when interior temperatures increase over 39°C.

Unfortunately, the issue of owners leaving their pets unattended in vehicles during the hot summer months is a serious and ongoing problem across Ontario.

“People still aren’t getting the message about how dangerous it is to leave your pet unattended in a vehicle,” says Shawn Morey, Executive Director of the Peterborough Humane Society.

“It’s completely unacceptable. Leave your pet at home, and if you must take your pet, make sure that someone is with it at all times.”

VIDEO: “No Excuses. No Hot Pets”

To help raise awareness and safeguard the lives of animals, the Ontario SPCA encourages you to visit www.nohotpets.ca and take the “No Hot Pets” pledge to never leave an animal in a vehicle — and to report it if you see it happen.

Those who make the pledge will receive a free “No Hot Pets” window decal for their vehicles (while supplies last).

Remember: if you see an animal unattended in a vehicle, report it immediately by calling the Ontario SPCA at 310-7722 (no area code needed), your local humane society, or your local police.

The British are coming to Bobcaygeon in Leisa Way’s hit musical adventure

By Sam Tweedle -
Singer Leisa Way with members of The Lonely Hearts Club Band (Fred Smith, Sam Cino, Bruce Ley, Bobby Prochaska, and Nathan Smith) in "Across the Pond: The British Invasion", which runs from June 26th to July 7th at Globus Theatre at Lakeview Arts Barn in Bobcaygeon. (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)

On Tuesday, June 26th, Globus Theatre at the Lakeview Arts Barn opens its landmark 15th season in in Bobcaygeon with the return of popular performer Leisa Way and the Wayward Wind Band. Across the Pond: The British Invasion, featuring the music of Britain’s most iconic and beloved performers, runs for 14 performances until Saturday, July 7th.

Globus Theatre presents
Across the Pond: The British Invasion

When: Tuesday, June 26 to Saturday, June 30 and Tuesday, July 3 to Saturday, July 7, 2018 at 8 p.m.; Wednesday, June 27, Saturday, June 30, Tuesday, July 3 and Thursday, July 5, 2018 at 2 p.m.
Where: Lakeview Arts Barn (2300 Pigeon Lake Road, Bobcaygeon)
How much: $35.50 (theatre only) or $71 (dinner and theatre)

Featuring Leisa Way and The Lonely Hearts Club Band (Fred Smith, Bobby Prochaska, Nathan Smith, Sam Cino, Aaron Solomon, Randall Kempf, Bob Hewes, and musical director Bruce Ley). A three-course table d’hôte menu is available at 6 p.m. prior to every evening performance. For tickets, visit the box office at Lakeview Arts Barn or call 705-738-2037.

One of the most popular traditions of Globus Theatre’s summer season, this year marks Leisa’s fifth summer at Globus Theatre. A Leisa Way show is always an event to look forward to, with her high-energy stage presence, captivating storytelling, and genuine warmth making her an audience favourite year after year.

One of the busiest performers in the country, Leisa’s roster of musical shows are in high demand across Canada every summer. In fact, her stop in Bobcaygeon is part of a tour through Ontario and Quebec where she’ll be doing 65 performances in only eight weeks.

“We’re having a blast,” Leisa tells me via telephone from Hudson, Quebec, where she was performing Across the Pond at the Hudson Village Theatre. “People ask us if we’re tired and yeah … but it’s a good tired. Every time I leave the stage I’m literally moving a mile a minute changing into different costumes. I have twelve costume changes.

“It’s very intense. If you lose your focus for a moment the whole audience will know. Most everyday life you can be unfocused, but in our case for two and a half hours, we need to keep our focus. But we love it.”

VIDEO: Across the Pond: The British Invasion

Filled with memorable songs, stories and interesting musical trivia, tributes and costume changes, Leisa’s performances are not impersonation as much as concerts that celebrate a certain artist, genre, or time in music.

“I never call my shows revues — they’re concerts,” Leisa explains. “They have really great music and stories. That’s what I love to share with the audience, and the British Invasion has given me a huge wealth of material to draw from.”

Making its debut in 2017, Across the Pond is loving tribute by Leisa and her band (renamed The Lonely Hearts Club Band for this show) to the British Invasion, one of the most exciting and dynamic movements in music history, aand features the music of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Animals, The Hollies, Tom Jones, Procol Harum, The Seekers, Van Morrison, and more.

In "Across the Pond: The British Invasion", Leisa Way as Shirley Bassey sings the theme from the 1964 James Bond movie "Goldfinger", the film that began the tradition of Bond theme songs introduced over the opening title sequence. (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)
In “Across the Pond: The British Invasion”, Leisa Way as Shirley Bassey sings the theme from the 1964 James Bond movie “Goldfinger”, the film that began the tradition of Bond theme songs introduced over the opening title sequence. (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)

Leisa reveals that a big influence for the show was the memories of discovering her love of music through her older sister.

“All the music that I knew as a child was from my sister,” Leisa recalls. “I idolized her. She got married when I was seven years old, and I would go and visit her and sit on the floor of her living room with the big huge head set and go through her record collection. I’d spend summers with her, because she ran a restaurant up north, and I had hours and hours to sit in front of her stereo.

“I remember falling in love with Elton John’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road album with the huge yellow fold-out with all the lyrics on it. That was my favourite memory because it was so cool to have all the lyrics to sing along with. So my sister really started me off on my journey. My mom and dad loved music, but it was my sister’s record collection that got me started.”

Leisa also turned to her husband, actor David Naim, and her good friend and famed Canadian playwright Norm Foster as a starting point to developing Across the Pond.

“David and Norm were the first people I emailed and said ‘Give me the first 25 songs that I can’t do without for this show,'” Leisa says. “When I compared their lists, there were only six songs that were different.”

Not only is it a matter of picking the best songs to do one of Leisa’s shows, but it takes a ton of research to create the thread that ties the show together. For Across the Pond, Leisa had to discover her own interpretation of the impact that British music had on North American culture in the late 1960s.

In "Across the Pond: The British Invasion", The Lonely Hearts Club Band sings "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" by The Beatles. (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)
In “Across the Pond: The British Invasion”, The Lonely Hearts Club Band sings “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” by The Beatles. (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)

“Researching the show and learning about the artists and their stories and how it all happened was so exciting to me,” Leisa says. “In the late 1950s music was starting to falter. Artists like Pat Boone and Fabian were starting to conform to the norm. So something had to come along to shake things up and The Beatles were that thing.

“When the Beatles first hit the States, music critics were saying they were awful and they couldn’t sing or play. But when you look back you realize that, no, what they were doing was brilliant. The Beatles set a new bar. Whether you wrote or performed that kind of music or not, that bar to beat was set by The Beatles. It was an interesting journey in more ways than just musically. It was something that the teenagers needed to scream about and idolize.”

While the impact that The Beatles had on North America is obviously a huge part of the show, Across the Pond features the full roster of artists that came out of the British movement. As Leisa points out, the early days of the British Invasion were dominated by men, which allows the members of her band — including Fred Smith, Bobby Prochaska, Nathan Smith, Sam Cino, Aaron Solomon, Randall Kempf, Bob Hewes, and musical director Bruce Ley — to take centre stage and show off their musical talents.

Nathan Smith sings as Sting and Leisa Way sings as Annie Lennox in "Across the Pond: The British Invasion". (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)
Nathan Smith sings as Sting and Leisa Way sings as Annie Lennox in “Across the Pond: The British Invasion”. (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)

As anyone who saw Leisa’s show Oh Canada, We Sing for Thee last summer at Globus can attest, these guys are not only incredible performers in their own right, but share the same warmth of energy that makes Leisa so popular with audiences.

“In a lot of ways this is really a guy show,” Leisa admits. “It’s close, beautiful harmonies and the guys in my band were excited to do this show because they are so good at it. In the first bit of the show, I tell the story of what happened, but I don’t sing that much.

“It really was a time that was dominated by male performers. In the beginning of the show, it’s about The Rolling Stones and Garry and the Pacemakers and Herman’s Hermits and The Dave Clark Five. There were not really that many girl groups in England.”

In "Across the Pond: The British Invasion", you will hear Leisa Way and The Lonely Hearts Club Band sing classic British tunes such as "Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procul Harum, "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen, "Pinball Wizard" by The Who, and "Stairway to Heaven" by Led Zeppelin. (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)
In “Across the Pond: The British Invasion”, you will hear Leisa Way and The Lonely Hearts Club Band sing classic British tunes such as “Whiter Shade of Pale” by Procul Harum, “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen, “Pinball Wizard” by The Who, and “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin. (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)

However, that doesn’t stop Leisa from continuing the famous tribute portions of her shows where she recreates the looks of some of the musical icons of the era. In Across the Pond, Leisa has 12 costume changes where she does musical tributes to Lulu, Petula Clark, Dusty Springfield, Dame Shirley Bassey, and more.

And Across the Pond doesn’t stop with the 1960s. Leisa and her band trek right into the 1970s and beyond, featuring the music of a diverse range of British performers such as Led Zeppelin, Queen, Annie Lennox, George Michael, Sting, Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton, Adele, and Ed Sheeran.

“At the end of the show, I tell the audience that the British Invasion never really went away,” Leisa says. “There are so many great artists from Britain that continue to thrill North American audiences. I don’t think that’ll ever end.”

Leisa Way makes 12 costume changes during "Across the Pond: The British Invasion". Here she is as Petula Clark singing "Downtown". (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)
Leisa Way makes 12 costume changes during “Across the Pond: The British Invasion”. Here she is as Petula Clark singing “Downtown”. (Photo: Way-To-Go Productions)

Leisa Way’s musicals are always a true treat and make a perfect summer outing. No matter which genre or artist she is covering, it’s impossible not to be affected by the energy, the positivity, and the pure joy that goes into one of her shows. Leisa’s on-stage charisma, matched with the sheer perfection of her extremely talented band, has made her a favourite with audiences everywhere she plays.

With with her popularity growing across Canada, it is a truly wonderful that she comes back to the Kawarthas year after year. Leisa’s shows are among the ones I look forward to the most each year, because I know I’ll be treated to a truly enjoyable night of performance and music. This is the reason while Leisa Way remains one of my favourite performers. She never ceases to deliver, so I can confidently say Across the Pond: The British Invasion is a guaranteed winner and well worth the drive to Bobcaygeon.

Across the Pond: The British Invasion runs from Tuesdays to Saturdays from June 26th to July 7th at the Lakeview Arts Barn. Shows start at 8 p.m., with 2 p.m. matinees on June 27th and 20th and July 3rd and 5th. A three-course table d’hôte menu is available at 6 p.m. prior to every evening performance.

Tickets are $34.50 for the show only, or $71 if you want the dinner and the show. For tickets, visit the box office at Lakeview Arts Barn or call 705-738-2037.

Inclusive Advisory offers accounting, legal, and wealth management advice in a new and different way

By Barb Shaw -
Inclusive Advisory is not your traditional accounting, law, and wealth management firm. Managing director Michael Konopaski (second from right) has been building a team to deliver accounting, legal, and wealth management advice in a new and different way. From the stand-out yellow exterior of the company's building in downtown Peterborough, to the whimsical and welcoming offices inside, to the team-based collaborative business model where staff closest to the clients have decision-making authority, Inclusive Advisory's approach is both comprehensive and effective for clients. (Photo courtesy of Inclusive Advisory)

Michael Konopaski’s skill set is as diverse as the physical environment he has built for the Inclusive Advisory team on George Street in Peterborough.

The long-time entrepreneur, Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA), Certified Financial Planner (CFP), and professor — he’s also got a PhD in entrepreneurship — has been building a team to deliver accounting, legal, and wealth management advice in a different way.

Part of the Inclusive Advisory approach is about the physical space, and part of it is based on the diverse skills and abilities of the hand-picked team of professionals who deliver accounting, legal, and wealth management services to individuals, entrepreneurs, businesses, and not for profits across the region.

It's hard to miss the yellow building housing Inclusive Advisory, located at 521 George Street North at McDonnel in downtown Peterborough, just north of City Hall. (Photo: Bruce Head / kawarthaNOW.com)
It’s hard to miss the yellow building housing Inclusive Advisory, located at 521 George Street North at McDonnel in downtown Peterborough, just north of City Hall. (Photo: Bruce Head / kawarthaNOW.com)

From the yellow exterior of the building at 521 George Street North to the whimsical interior offices, the place has a noticeably unique look and feel and vibe. It’s playful and welcoming to both clients and to staff — who Konopaski views as partners in the business.

Everyone enjoys bright, open, and colourful work spaces that are full of personal touches like artwork and photographs. While there are many areas within the office with sit/stand work spaces and shelves of toys, costumes, and props for spontaneous team building and problem-solving sessions, the office is not all fun and games.

“Due to the nature of the business, there are often delicate and sensitive issues and we want to be respectful of our clients that are having a difficult time,” Konopaski notes.

And fully supporting the needs of clients is what Inclusive’s team of accountants, lawyers, and investment advisors is all about.

Solving problems for clients is a big focus of Inclusive Advisory, and that means empowering staff. The company's "inverted pyramid" governance structure means that the staff closest to the client have more decision-making authority and choice of action. (Photo: Barb Shaw / kawarthaNOW.com)
Solving problems for clients is a big focus of Inclusive Advisory, and that means empowering staff. The company’s “inverted pyramid” governance structure means that the staff closest to the client have more decision-making authority and choice of action. (Photo: Barb Shaw / kawarthaNOW.com)

“We offer an unconventional alternative to the traditional world of professional services,” Konopaski says, taking a seat in one of the shared meeting rooms. “This is a multi-discipline practice. We’re not just sharing space — we’re partners, and we’re sharing decision making and ownership.”

Unconventional? Maybe, but don’t be fooled. Not only do the almost 25 professionals have a diverse set of skills to offer clients, but years of experience as well.

The most seasoned professionals act as mentors to the younger staff and the interns from Fleming College and Trent University that Inclusive takes on (and often hires). Guiding the next generation of future accountants, lawyers, and financial planners is imperative to sustain the business (and Peterborough) in the long run.

Sharing is a big deal to Konopaski. Since this business is being built for the long run, he doesn’t believe in personal brands — although his values and his belief system flow through the Inclusive Advisory space, through every level of the corporate culture, and into the services delivered to a diverse client base. But he insists he is not Inclusive Advisory, that it truly is a team.

A sign on a wall at Inclusive Advisory repeats the company's mantra: "Better together. We've created a new business model. We believe that accountants, lawyers and investment advisors work better when they're together in one space. It's an innovative, team-based approach to financial advisory. It's inclusive." (Photo: Barb Shaw / kawarthaNOW.com)
A sign on a wall at Inclusive Advisory repeats the company’s mantra: “Better together. We’ve created a new business model. We believe that accountants, lawyers and investment advisors work better when they’re together in one space. It’s an innovative, team-based approach to financial advisory. It’s inclusive.” (Photo: Barb Shaw / kawarthaNOW.com)

“I’m not the business,” he says more than once, just to be clear.

As a strong believer in the strengths of teams, it’s tough for Konopaski to see people wanting to connect with professionals who are representing “themselves” as a brand, encouraging others to emulate their actions.

And, unlike their competitors who are either branches of national firms or have partnered with U.S. companies, Inclusive Advisory is truly local — 100 per cent of the revenue the company generates stays in the local community.

And that’s the point of Inclusive Advisory. You don’t have to be what they are — they will work with you, where you are, on whatever service you need. There’s no minimum financial threshold and there are no barriers. Konopaski says as long as you’re open-minded and looking for exceptional advice, Inclusive Advisory wants to work with you.

As a former professor of entrepreneurship, Konopaski is naturally focused on sharing knowledge and making learning possible for his team and their clients.

He believes that entrepreneurship is about solving problems, and that’s also a big focus for Inclusive Advisory. They’re solving pain points with their innovative, multi-discipline approach that results in greater efficiency of service delivery. Their “inverted pyramid” governance structure means that the staff closest to the client have more decision-making authority and choice of action. It’s a streamlined approach that works for their fast-growing number of clients.

Shelves of toys, costumes and props for spontaneous team building and problem-solving sessions enjoy sharing space with Konopaski's academic robe. (Photo: Barb Shaw / kawarthaNOW.com)
Shelves of toys, costumes and props for spontaneous team building and problem-solving sessions enjoy sharing space with Konopaski’s academic robe. (Photo: Barb Shaw / kawarthaNOW.com)

When you visit the Inclusive Advisory office, it’s easy to notice the difference Konopaski and his team of partners have been working so hard to craft. There is a constant buzz of activity, but there is also laughter. There’s music, and every decoration has a story to tell. On the days they take turns baking fresh bread for team meetings, the place even smells awesome.

It’s not just a new business model: it’s the creation of an innovative new process within industries that have been around for hundreds of years. It’s totally inclusive — and it’s working. Or, as Inclusive Advisory likes to say: “Smart collaboration. Better together.”

Inclusive Advisory is headquartered at 521 George Street North in downtown Peterborough, with a second location at 250 Queen Street in Port Perry. For more information, call 705-743-0266, email info@inclusiveadvisory.ca, or visit inclusiveadvisory.ca. You can also follow Inclusive Advisory on Facebook and Twitter.

As a former professor of entrepreneurship, Inclusive Advisory's managing director Michael Konopaski is naturally focused on sharing knowledge and making learning possible for his team and their clients. Drawing from his wealth of entrepreneurial experience and knowledge, he has instilled values of inclusivity, collaboration, and empowerment into the company's governance and corporate culture. The end result is streamlined and efficient service delivery for the company's fast-growing number of clients. (Photo: Barb Shaw / kawarthaNOW.com)
As a former professor of entrepreneurship, Inclusive Advisory’s managing director Michael Konopaski is naturally focused on sharing knowledge and making learning possible for his team and their clients. Drawing from his wealth of entrepreneurial experience and knowledge, he has instilled values of inclusivity, collaboration, and empowerment into the company’s governance and corporate culture. The end result is streamlined and efficient service delivery for the company’s fast-growing number of clients. (Photo: Barb Shaw / kawarthaNOW.com)

Exclusive interview: Peterborough Huskies founders Dave and Cathie Tuck cleared of fraud

By Paul Rellinger -
Cathie and Dave Tuck (right), with their sons Jeffrey (left) and Criss, in happier days before the founders of the former Peterborough Huskies special needs hockey team were arrested and charged with fraud in November 2016. A judge cleared the Tucks of all wrongdoing on June 25, 2018 after a five-month trial. (Photo: The Tuck family)

Dave and Cathie Tuck walked out of a Peterborough courtroom Monday (June 25) after a five-month trial, fully vindicated of a fraud charge laid against them in connection with their management of the former Peterborough Huskies special needs hockey organization.

In her acquittal directive, Justice Jennifer Broderick said she found no evidence to convict the Tucks on the fraud over $5,000 charge laid against them in November 2016.

kawarthaNOW contacted the Tucks shortly after the ruling for an exclusive interview.

“We told the truth and the truth came out,” says Dave Tuck, adding the verdict was “quite emotional and overwhelming and exciting all rolled up into one.”

“I had full confidence from the get-go that neither of us had done anything wrong. We stood by that. Our testimonies and what the judge said today (Monday) proved we didn’t lie in court. We didn’t lie to anyone in the organization. We didn’t lie to anybody. We were forthcoming with information, we were open, and the judge picked up on that.”

But while the acquittal has left both delighted, there are scars that will take a long time to heal — if they do at all.

“I’ve got two boys and it was part of their life too and that got taken away from them,” says Dave.

“What (the accusation) did was end that life for us. It put what we had left of our life on hold for 20 months. We had people threatening us, calling us names, pointing at us. Our lawyer, Brad Allison, instructed us to keep our heads down and we will get through this and our day will come. Today is that day.”

Dave and Cathie Tuck founded the special needs hockey team the Peterborough Huskies in 2013 as a way to give people of all ages who have disabilities the opportunity to participate in traditional group sports. After the Tucks were accused of defrauding the organization they started, they were ostracized by the Peterborough community and the team was rebranded as The Electric City Maroon and White. (Photo: Peterborough Huskies)
Dave and Cathie Tuck founded the special needs hockey team the Peterborough Huskies in 2013 as a way to give people of all ages who have disabilities the opportunity to participate in traditional group sports. After the Tucks were accused of defrauding the organization they started, they were ostracized by the Peterborough community and the team was rebranded as The Electric City Maroon and White. (Photo: Peterborough Huskies)

Dave and Cathie founded the Peterborough Huskies in 2013 as a way to give people of all ages with disabilities the opportunity to participate in a group sport. They were widely heralded for doing so and received much community support.

That all changed after a police probe into alleged misuse of donated money, and the couple were accused of withdrawing thousands of donated dollars for their own personal use.

Within days of the accusations, others involved with or supporting the Peterborough Huskies broke all ties with the founders. A new organization with a new board was established, and the Peterborough Huskies was rebranded as The Electric City Maroon and White.

“We really need to find out why all the families with the Peterborough Huskies just stopped talking to us,” he says. “They didn’t contact us or say anything either way. We don’t know if they were told not to contact us or if (they decided not to) on their own.”

“The only stipulation after the charge was laid was that we couldn’t touch third-party money,” Dave recalls. “We were not ordered not to run the operation. It was taken from us overnight.”

Dave doubts he and Cathie can ever return to the special needs hockey realm in the aftermath of their ordeal.

“I knew as soon as we were arrested it was done. The community would (no longer) support it, regardless of whether we were found innocent or guilty.”

Cathie adds it was the court of public opinion where the Tucks were judged and, even with the acquittal of the charges against them, people will continue to harbour doubts about their innocence.

“I think it’s going to take a long time for some people to change their view,” Cathie says. “A picture was painted of us. People judge base on what they read, not on who you actually are.”

“It’s sad because it was our life. It wasn’t something we did to get noticed. We have special needs kids of our own and we saw the challenges they had getting into a mainstream organization to play sports. There was so much more to the Huskies than sports.”

Much more critical of the Tucks’ ordeal is Dave’s brother Ken Tuck. He took to Facebook shortly after the verdict to express his anger over “the hell they went through based on an anonymous letter sent to Peterborough Police.”

“Dave and Cathie lost all of their life savings over this ordeal,” Ken writes. “They had little to begin with and less than little now. This city lost an amazingly positive resource to help special needs kids have a good life and a community. Their sons also went through hell and had to deal with small minded people leveling angst against them for something they were not guilty of.

“My sister, mother and I sat in the courtroom in tears, listening to the judge exonerate Dave and Cathie. Now I feel very strongly that they need the support of the community they supported with everything they had.”

This story will be updated as more details on the ruling become available.

businessNOW – June 25, 2018

By kawarthaNOW -
Representatives from the Peterborough Destination Association (the Holiday Inn Peterborough Waterfront, Best Western Plus Otonabee Inn, Comfort Hotel & Suites Peterborough, Motel 6, and Quality Inn Peterborough) has presented The Canadian Canoe Museum with a gift of $50,000 to support the construction of the museum's new facility beside the Peterborough Lift Lock. (Photo: The Canadian Canoe Museum / Facebook)

This week’s business news features a donation of $50,000 from local hotels and motels to The Canadian Canoe Museum, the appointment of Fleming College’s first female president, a new initiative involving trolley service to be announced for downtown Peterborough, a mobile app developed by a former nurse and doula in Kawartha Lakes, Lois Tuffin leaving Peterborough This Week, and the merger of Park Place Financial and Terry Windrem Insurance Agencies.

Regional business events are winding down for the summer. New events added this week include a pancake breakfast hosted by the Northumberland Central Chamber of Commerce during the Cobourg Waterfront Festival (June 30th to July 2nd) and an accessibility workshop for businesses in Warkworth on August 13th.

We publish businessNOW every Monday. If you’d like us to promote your business news or event in businessNOW, please email business@kawarthanow.com.

Association of Peterborough hotels and motels donates $50,000 to The Canadian Canoe Museum capital campaign

Architect's rendering of the new Canadian Canoe Museum beside the Peterborough Lift Lock. (Graphic: heneghan peng architects / Kearns Mancini Architects)
Architect’s rendering of the new Canadian Canoe Museum beside the Peterborough Lift Lock. (Graphic: heneghan peng architects / Kearns Mancini Architects)

The Peterborough Destination Association has donated $50,000 to The Canadian Canoe Museum support the construction of the museum’s new facility beside the Peterborough Lift Lock.

The association comprises the Holiday Inn Peterborough Waterfront, Best Western Plus Otonabee Inn, Comfort Hotel & Suites Peterborough, Motel 6, and Quality Inn Peterborough.

“The Peterborough Destination Association is so pleased to support The Canadian Canoe Museum and what is sure to be a jewel in Peterborough and the Kawarthas, one that will attract visitors from near and far,” said Grant Zwarych, the association’s president.

The new museum will be an 83,400-square-foot facility designed by an award-winning team of heneghan peng architects (Dublin, Ireland) with Kearns Mancini Architects (Toronto, Canada). The museum has also partnered with world-class exhibition design firm GSM Project to create one-of-a-kind visitor experiences.

The Canadian Canoe Museum is currently raising funds for the $65 million cost to build the new facility, and has so far received foundational financial support from municipal, provincial and federal governments, as well as a leading private donation of $7.5 million from The W. Garfield Weston Foundation.

For more information about the new museum, visit canoemuseum.ca/museum-on-the-move/.

 

Maureen Adamson is Fleming College’s new president

Maureen Adamson has been selected as Fleming College's new president. (Photo supplied by Fleming College)
Maureen Adamson has been selected as Fleming College’s new president. (Photo supplied by Fleming College)

Maureen Adamson has been selected as Fleming College’s sixth president — the first Fleming alumnus, the first female, and the first Peterborough native to hold the position.

Most recently the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Sport with the Ontario government, Adamson has 25 years of progressive leadership experience in the post-secondary, health care, government, and not-for-profit sectors. She has previously held the position of Deputy Minister of the Status of Women in Ontario, president and CEO of the Michener Institute, and CEO of Cystic Fibrosis Canada.

She holds an MBA from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto, a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Lakehead University and a diploma in Business Administration from Fleming College and is an accredited Director with the Institute of Corporate Directors, Canada.

“I am excited to have the opportunity to lead Fleming College to its next generation of excellence where students are our priority and our society benefits from the talent that we produce at Fleming,” Adamsom says. “It’s great to be home and I look forward to working with our local communities and building strategic partnerships within and beyond the region.”

Adamson will succeed Dr. Tony Tilly, who will end his 14-year tenure as Fleming’s president on June 29th. Adamson will officially assume the role on August 21, 2018.

 

New trolley service to launch in downtown Peterborough?

The Town Trolley from Dromoland Orchard & Stables in Little Britain offered free rides in downtown Peterborough in May 2018. The Peterborough DBIA will be making an announcement about a new trolley service on June 27, 2018. (Photo: Dromoland)

The Town Trolley from Dromoland Orchard & Stables in Little Britain offered free rides in downtown Peterborough in May 2018. The Peterborough DBIA will be making an announcement about a new trolley service on June 27, 2018. (Photo: Dromoland)

The Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA) will making an announcement about a new initiative involving trolley service in downtown Peterborough.

Details about the new initiative will be announced at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, June 27th before the DBIA’s annual general meeting at Showplace Performance Centre (290 George St. N., Peterborough).

kawarthaNOW speculates the new service may involve the Town Trolley owned by Dromoland Orchard & Stables in Little Britain. Once owned by the City of Kawartha Lakes before it was purchased by Michael Bryant of Dromoland, the trolley car offered free rides through downtown Peterborough as part of Doors Open Peterborough on May 5, 2018.

Streetcars developed by General Electric in Canada were an important part of Peterborough’s early industry at the turn of the 20th century, when they functioned as public transit before buses became available.

 

Former Kawartha Lakes nurse and doula launches mobile app for new moms

creenshots from the Android version of the Mamasoup app, how available from Google Play. (Photos: Colour and Code)
creenshots from the Android version of the Mamasoup app, how available from Google Play. (Photos: Colour and Code)
Joanne Ilaqua of Kawartha Lakes has launched Mamasoup, a mobile app for new mothers.

A nurse, doula, and Lamaze childbirth educator for 20 years, Ilaqua found the inspiration for the app when she was working as a nurse in labour and delivery and primary care. She discovered many new mothers sought support during their motherhood journey, and some struggled to find help or felt too uncomfortable to ask questions.

“Over those 20 years, it became very clear to me that moms aren’t receiving the support that we need and deserve while doing the most challenging job in the world,” Ilaqua says. “I realized that I can serve women in an innovative way and meet them where they’re at. So I took all of my experience and teamed up with a company in Lindsay called Colour and Code to create Mamasoup.”

Former nurse and Joanne Ilaqua created the Mamsasoup app with developer Colour and Code of Lindsay. (Photo courtesy of Innovation Cluster)
Former nurse and Joanne Ilaqua created the Mamsasoup app with developer Colour and Code of Lindsay. (Photo courtesy of Innovation Cluster)

Originally launched in February 2018 for iOS devices only, Ilaqua received a $7,500 grant from the Eastern Ontario Development Program (EODP) to design and develop an Android version, which is now available on Google Play.

Also available on the web for desktop computers, Mamasoup has social media features similar to Facebook, where a news feed of local mothers’ posts are available. Rather than adding friends, the app uses a mom’s location to provide a local support news feed. By only using a custom handle as an identity and avatars for profile pictures, users are able to stay anonymous while asking questions and providing tips.

Ilaqua is also planning to create online courses for moms who want childbirth education at their fingertips, from the practical perspective of a nurse and doula. Her first course, aimed at moms having a caesarean birth, will be available at the end of June.

For more information, including links to download the app from the Apple App Store and on Google Play, visit www.mamasoup.ca.

 

Lois Tuffin is leaving Peterborough This Week

Local media icon Lois Tuffin is leaving Peterborough This Week after 20 years to become fundraising cooordinator at Five Counties Children’s Centre.

Originally from Almonte in Lanark County, Tuffin joined the twice-weekly community newspaper as a reporter in 1998, becoming the editor-in-chief in 2003.

For more information, read our story at kawarthanow.com/2018/06/25/lois-tuffin//

 

Peterborough firms Park Place Financial and Terry Windrem Insurance Agencies announce merger

Park Place Financial co-founders of Mike D'Alessandro (left) and Darrell Wade (right) with Terry Windrem of Terry Windrem Insurance Agencies, who will become the President and CEO of Park Place Financial. (Photo courtesy of Park Place Financial)
Park Place Financial co-founders of Mike D’Alessandro (left) and Darrell Wade (right) with Terry Windrem of Terry Windrem Insurance Agencies, who will become the President and CEO of Park Place Financial. (Photo courtesy of Park Place Financial)

Two of Peterborough’s leading wealth and risk management firms, Park Place Financial and Terry Windrem Insurance Agencies, are merging.

Terry Windrem will become President and CEO of Park Place Financial, and staff of the two companies will merge and relocate to a renovated building at the location of the former Roland’s Restaurant on Highway 7 East by the fall of 2018.

The focus of the firm will continue to be financial, succession, and business planning for professionals, entrepreneurs, and high net worth clients.

Terry Windrem Insurance Agencies was founded in 1984 and, as a partner of The Protectors Group, grew into one of Central Ontario’s leading financial services firm, specializing in the needs of business owners and professionals across the province. Park Place Financial was co-founded by Mike D’Alessandro and Darrell Wade in 2012 and has grown to become one of Peterborough’s leading wealth and estate planning companies.

For more information, read our story at kawarthanow.com/2018/06/20/park-place-financial/.

 

United Way Peterborough & District Annual General Meeting on June 25

The United Way Peterborough & District is holding its annual general meeting from 4 to 5:30 p.m. on Monday, June 24th at the Holiday Inn Waterfront (150 George St., Peterborough).

The event is free and light refreshments will be provided.

 

Peterborough Chamber hosts seminar on marijuana and the workplace in Peterborough on June 27

As of October 17, 2018, marijuana will be legally sold in Canada for recreational use.

The next seminar in the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce’s Lunch Box Learning series is on the topic “Marijuana and the Workplace” from 12 to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, June 27th in the Chamber boardroom (175 George St. N., Peterborough).

Chris Russell, a human resources lawyer with LLF Lawyers, and Matthew Savino of Savino Human Resource Partners, will present the seminar followed by a question-and-answer session.

The seminar is free to attend with a Chamber membership or a Women’s Business Network of Peterborough membership. Bring your own lunch.

Register at www.peterboroughchamber.ca

 

Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area Annual General Meeting on June 27

The Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA) is hosting its annual general meeting on Wednesday, June 27th in the Nexicom Studio at Showplace Performance Centre (290 George St. N., Peterborough).

Networking starts at 5:30 p.m. with business at 6 p.m. The meeting will include updates on what’s happening in downtown Peterborough, as well as a general election of the board.

Everyone is welcome to attend, although only DBIA members can vote.

For more information on joining the board, contact Joel Wiebe at the DBIA at 705-748-4774 or joelwiebe@peterboroughbia.com.

 

Northumberland Chamber hosts Breakfast In The Park at Cobourg Waterfront Festival – June 30 to July 2

Volunteers with the Northumberland Central Chamber of Commerce will be serving a pancake breakfast every morning during the Cobourg Waterfront Festival. (Photo: Northumberland Chamber of Commerce)
Volunteers with the Northumberland Central Chamber of Commerce will be serving a pancake breakfast every morning during the Cobourg Waterfront Festival. (Photo: Northumberland Chamber of Commerce)

The Northumberland Central Chamber of Commerce is hosting “Breakfast In The Park” from 7:30 to 10 a.m. every day during the Cobourg Waterfront Festival (Saturday, June 30th to Monday, July 2nd).

Volunteer members of the Chamber will be serving up pancakes with fresh local strawberries and real maple syrup along with local barbequed sausages and a drink.

Breakfast will be served inside the Lion’s Refreshment Tent, located near the bandshell in Cobourg’s Victoria Park.

 

Summer Social PBX at Kawartha Lakes Construction on July 3

KLC County Fair

The Kawartha Chamber of Commerce & Tourism and the Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce have joined forces to host a county-fair-themed Peterborough Business Exchange (PBX) from 4 to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, July 3rd at Kawartha Lakes Construction (3359 Lakefield Rd., Lakefield)

A great opportunity to meet and network with Chamber members and others, there will be lots of games, prizes, carticatures, and delicious refreshments to go around to celebrate the season and the community.

The event is free and everyone is welcome. Register at either kawarthachamber.ca or peterboroughchamber.ca.

 

Northumberland chambers host accessibility workshop for businesses on August 13

The local chambers of commerce in Northumberland County are hosting the “Discover Ability Workshop” from 6 to 8:30 p.m. on Monday, August 13th at Warkworth Legion (6 Norham Rd., Warkworth).

You can learn about the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), how it applies to your business (including your responsibilities under the legislation), and the advantages of developing an inclusive workforce. Light refreshments will be provided.

For more information and to register, visit business.trenthillschamber.ca/events/details/discover-ability-workshop-2831.

1...792793794...1,074Page 793 of 1,074

Become a #kawarthaNOW fan

29,660FollowersLike
24,818FollowersFollow
17,835FollowersFollow
4,270FollowersFollow
3,399FollowersFollow
2,834FollowersFollow

Sign up for kawarthNOW's Enews

Sign up for our VIP Enews

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.

EDITOR'S PICKS

SIGN UP FOR OUR ENEWS




© Copyright kawarthaNOW® 1996 - 2025. All rights reserved. Unauthorized distribution, transmission, or republication strictly prohibited. Trademarks owned by kawarthaNOW include kawarthaNOW®, Keep It In The Kawarthas®, Web Sites That Work®, Kawartha Localist™, Know Your Locals™, businessNOW™, musicNOW™, artNOW™, nightlifeNOW™, encoreNOW™, and KNosh™.