Members of the Peterborough County Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) have joined forces to seek the public’s help in identifying the person or persons who were responsible for shooting a deer during the closed season on Trent University property.

On the afternoon of Friday, February 3, 2017, a conservation officer from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry’s Peterborough office located evidence on Trent University property that suggested a deer had been shot and dragged to a location where it was then loaded into a vehicle.

The location of the property where the evidence was found is along the Trent Canal at Nassau Mills Road, between Armour Road and University Road, in the City of Peterborough.

Not only is hunting is not permitted in the area where the deer was shot, but the deer was killed outside of the open season for deer (which closed on December 31, 2016).

Investigators know the area is frequented by outdoor enthusiasts and are seeking any witnesses who can assist in identifying suspects.

If you have any information about this case, please contact the MNRF TIPS line at 1-877-847-7667 toll-free any time, or call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

The City of Peterborough Cenotaph will soon be adorned with 600 ceramic trilliums, created by volunteers at the Kawartha Potters Guild, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

The trilliums, part of a city initiative to honour area citizens who sacrificed their lives during the First World War, will be placed at the mound of the cenotaph in Confederation Square for a ceremonial service on Sunday, April 9th at 1:30 p.m.

“I am thrilled with the community’s support of this important commemoration,” says Deputy Mayor Henry Clarke, who is a Lieutenant Colonel with the Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment and Chairman of the Vimy 100 Committee. “We want to provide a visual vestige for people to be able to see at the cenotaph and remind them of what Canadians did 100 years ago.”

The Battle of Vimy Ridge is considered a defining moment for Canada as a nation, as it was the first time the four divisions of The Canadian Corps fought together as a unified fighting force.

The German army held the seven-kilometre ridge, located in northern France, which was heavily fortified with tunnels, artillery, machine-gun nests, barbed wire, and three rows of trenches. Previous attempts by British and French forces to seize the ridge had failed, resulting in more than 100,000 casualties.

Beginning on Easter Monday on April 9th, 1917, more than 15,000 Canadian infantry soldiers attacked the ridge. While the assault was meticulously planned, soldiers displayed incredible bravery and discipline as they moved forward 4,500 yards (4,115 metres) under heavy fire, even when their officers were killed. Canadian soldiers single-handedly charged machine-gun nests or forced the surrender of Germans in protective dugouts. By April 12th, 1917, stunned by the Canadians’ success, the Germans retreated and the Canadians held the ridge.

However, the victory came at a great cost, with 3,589 Canadian soldiers killed and another 7,104 wounded during the battle. During the entirety of the First World War, more than 60,000 Canadian soldiers were killed, including 11,285 in France who have no known graves.

Of the 600 ceramic trilliums to be placed at the Peterborough Cenotaph, 16 will be painted red to symbolize local lives lost at Vimy Ridge. The remaining 584 trilliums will be painted white to represent the number of people from the city and county of Peterborough and local First Nations who were killed during World War I.

The trilliums are available for purchase, or may be sponsored for $30 each. Those who sponsor trilliums will get a tax receipt, and the flower will remain available for others to purchase.

While many of the trilliums are already purchased, you can still sponsor one by calling City Hall at 705-742-7777 extension 1860 or emailing Bernadette Lawler at blawler@peterborough.ca.

Proceeds from ceramic trilliums will benefit two causes: half of the proceeds will be used to repair the masonry base at the war memorial, and the remainder will be used to enhance government treatment resources for veterans and their families.

The ceremony commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge will take place at the War Memorial in Confederation Square at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, April 9th.

Confirmed participants in the service include MC Graham Hart, representatives of local cadet and reserve units, representatives from First Nations, and local dignitaries including Peterborough-Kawartha MP Maryam Monsef, Peterborough MPP Jeff Leal, City Mayor Daryl Bennett and County Warden Joe Taylor.

VIDEO: volunteers with the Kawartha Potters Guild working on ceramic trilliums

Citizens will also read from letters and diaries of the Great War during the ceremony, and Deputy Mayor Clarke encourages people to email personal stories for the service to hclarke@peterborough.ca.

“We want to tell the story through living history of people who were there,” Clarke says. “Please look through your belongings for letters, diaries, scrapbooks or photos of the First World War.”

As well as the Peterborough ceremony, events will be held in France and in Ottawa to mark the 100th anniversary. A delegation of government officials will travel to the Canadian National Vimy Memorial, located in northern France, to participate in the commemorative events there.

Prince Charles and his sons Prince William and Prince Harry will attend a ceremony for the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge at the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in France on April 9th.

The Peterborough County detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is investigating the theft of more than $60,000 of power sports equipment from a marina in Apsley last week.

On Friday, March 10th at around 10:30 a.m., OPP officers were called to investigate a theft from Tucker’s Marine on Highway 28 in Apsley.

Between 3:15 a.m. and 3:40 a.m. on Friday morning, two suspects were captured on security cameras moving trailers around the boat yard. The suspects stole the shop truck and hooked onto a side by side on a trailer. In this vehicle, thieves also loaded two outboard motors and a power washer.

A second suspect in another vehicle backed into the property and hooked onto an enclosed snowmobile trailer containing two snow machines.

The thieves stole the following items, valued at well over $60,000:

• a grey 2008 Chevrolet Silverado pickup with an attached silver Snow Dog snow plow
• a black 2016 Yamaha Wolverine 700 side by side
• an open deck 2017 Advantage galvanized trailer
• a black 2011 Yamaha Venture GT 900 snowmobile
• a silver 2016 Yamaha Apex 1000 snowmobile
• a black dual-axle 7×17 enclosed trailer
• two outboard motors
• a power washer.

In addition to the pickup truck stolen from the marina, police are also looking for a black 2008 to 2013 Chevrolet/GMC four-door pickup truck involved in this incident, which may also be responsible for other thefts in the region.

If you have any information that may assist police in their investigation, call the Peterborough OPP at 705-742-0401, the non-emergency line at (888) 310-1122, or Crime Stoppers at www.stopcrimehere.ca or call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

Two local businesswomen have teamed up for an initiative that’s having a big impact on charities throughout the Kawarthas. PTBO Needs connects with the community to collect donations for the local charities that need them the most.

Amy McLeish of County Home Inspection and Jennine Hadfield of Mortgage Intelligence get a lot of requests for charitable donations directed to their businesses. They wanted to help the community, but like most businesses they couldn’t afford to support every charity that came to their door.

That’s when they came up with an idea: they would advocate for a different charity every month, making it easier for everyone in the community to support local charities directly.

Jennine says that involving the community meant that their efforts could have more impact.

“You can do a donation every month, but it’s not going to be as significant as getting the community to work together.”

Every month, PTBO Needs posts a list of items needed by a local charity. People can drop donations at one of three drop boxes:

• Blushed Beauty Makeup & Aesthetics (464 George St N, Peterborough, 705-772-5987)
• Euphoria Wellness Spa (290 Water St, Peterborough, 705-741-4772)
• That’s A Wrap Catering (840 Armour Road, Peterborough, 705-768-7168)

If you want to make a donation but can’t access a drop box, you can contact PTBO Needs for a pickup.

Amy says that removing obstacles to charitable donation has brought forth incredible generosity from the community.

“It’s amazing how it took, how people grabbed hold of it and went for it. I think it’s because most people want to do something to help people, but you just assume it’s going to cost you a lot of money, or it’s going to take up a lot of time, or you can’t get to places to donate stuff.”

In their first month (December 2016), PTBO Needs supported YWCA Peterborough Haliburton. Amy says that she was surprised with the huge response. “It really amazed me the amount of stuff that came in.”

Jennine tried to take a photo of all of the donations they collected. “We put it all on my staircase and tried to take a picture. We couldn’t fit it all in.”

For their campaign for The Warming Room in January, they requested food, bedding and cleaning supplies. They collected enough fleece blankets to cover every cot in the Warming Room. Amy remembers one particularly generous donation.

“A lady contacted me to say that she had a couple of things for the warming room. I drove up to her house to go and get them and her husband told me ‘you’ll have to reverse your car up.’ They opened their minivan and it was just full: 36 juice packs, bleach, all of this stuff. It was so lovely.”

Last month they collected donations for the Peterborough Humane Society, including old blankets and towels, pet food, and treats.

This month, PTBO Needs is supporting YES Shelter for Youth and Families. Recently they posted a request for suitcases and Amy was surprised by the flood of responses.

“I thought people probably wouldn’t bother with that one, but now everybody seems to have suitcases!”

Switching charities each month allows Jennine and Amy to reach out to a variety of causes. In April, they will be supporting cancer charities — including Cuddles for Cancer — to coincide with the Canadian Cancer society’s fundraising month.

In May, they are working with the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada. They also have plans to assist the Brock Mission and the Kawartha Haliburton Children’s Aid Society.

Amy and Jennine both make monthly donations with their families. They have had a great response not only from their own children, but from other youth in the community.

Fisher and River Stevenson, aged 7 and 9, also donate monthly. They became involved when PTBO Needs was advocating for The Warming Room. According to their mom, Sherry Stevenson, an experience downtown inspired them to get involved.

“In January, we were driving downtown and passed a man sitting on the curb asking for money. We were right beside him at a red light and I looked in my rear view mirror and saw Fisher looking at him. I told him not to stare or say anything.

“So he waited and when the light turned green and we left he asked me why the man was there. I explained that he was probably homeless, and he was asking for money. Fisher immediately asked why I hadn’t given him anything and stated ‘maybe his mother has died and that’s why he’s homeless’. He mentioned it a few times that evening.”

That evening Sherry saw PTBO Needs’ Warming Room campaign on Facebook and showed the boys, suggesting that the man they had seen might use The Warming Room’s services. Sherry thought PTBO Needs was a great way to get her sons more involved in charity.

“My boys have a comfortable life. We aren’t rich, but they have beds and clothing and Pokémon toys, and eat McDonald’s more often than they should. I just think they need to realize that there are so many people needing help for different reasons. It seemed like time to do more.”

Jennine says that at this point they are looking to get more of the community involved. “Our major goal is to get the word out there.”

She appeals to local businesses to consider donating. “It’s a way to help the community and get good exposure for your business.”

Amy stresses that any donation, no matter how small, will have an impact.

“You don’t have to bring a great big ton of stuff. Just bring one thing and that one thing, with everyone else’s one thing, could be huge.”

You can stay up to date with PTBO Needs on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.

VIDEO: Jennine Hadfield and Amy McLeish explain how PTBO Needs works

All photos courtesy of PTBO Needs.