A Snowy Owl On Christmas Eve At Peterborough Airport

[UPDATE: December 28th: After seeing our post, Peterborough Airport says in a tweet that the snowy owl lives at the airport every winter. “She can be seen perched all over the airport and stays well clear of the runways.”]

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ORIGINAL POST

We’re not sure if this snowy owl was at the airport hoping for a flight to warmer parts but whatever the case naturalist Drew Monkman was there and caught beautiful pictures of the bird there on Christmas Eve.

Photo by Drew Monkman

Drew says he first saw the adult white owl perched on a red-roof building adjacent to Flying Colours at the very end of Brealey Drive, and then it flew to the runway taxiway sign where Drew caught these amazing pics.

Photo by Drew Monkman

Drew tells PTBOCanada the pictures “were taken with a 600mm lens and then cropped, and photographed from Flying Colours parking lot.”

Photo by Drew Monkman

[UPDATE No. 2]: Drew also snapped another picture of the owl more recently at the airport…

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100 Women Peterborough Raises Nearly $50,000 In First Year Of Existence

The 100 Women Peterborough group announced at their final meeting of 2018 that they raised more than $13,000 for New Canadians Centre in under an hour, bring their total raised for organizations to nearly $50,000 for their first year.

The contribution from 100 Women Peterborough will help to fund the New Canadians Centre Youth Group at NCC, a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to supporting immigrants, refugees, and other newcomers to become full and equal members of Canadian society.

Photo courtesy 100 Women Peterborough

"Students from all of the high schools in Peterborough participate in the New Canadians Centre Youth Group,” says Yvonne Lai, Director of Community Development.

“It's a unique space where local students and newcomers come together to support one another academically, share experiences, connect and grow. This generous donation of $13,000 from 100 Women Peterborough not only helps to close the gap on the funding cut to this program, it's a powerful endorsement from our community that integrating our local and newcomer youth is vital for the continued growth and vibrancy of our community."

Cheque presented to Carol Lawless (middle) from New Canadians Centre

HOW 100 WOMEN PETERBOROUGH WORKS

-> Members commit to donate $100 at each of the four events hosted throughout the year. The aim is to help women learn about the multitude of different causes in the community, help people in need, and join other like-minded women to empower and multiply the impact of their contributions.

-> 100% of the funds raised by the membership will be donated to four non-profit organizations determined by the membership throughout the year.

-> In their first year, 100 Women Peterborough has managed to increase their membership to well over the original goal of 100 members that contribute to different organizations on a quarterly basis.

-> The collective donations throughout the first year were able to impact four organizations chosen (Hospice Peterborough, Youth Unlimited, Warming Room Community Ministries and New Canadians Centre) significantly, with close to $50,000 donated.

-> Women that are interested in joining the group are encouraged to reach out via the website here.

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Peterborough Police Canines K9 Wolfe And K9 Hal Days From Retirement

After serving the community for the past five years, K9 Wolfe (partner Constable Tim Fish) and K9 Hal (partner Constable Sam McCullum) are retiring from our K9 Unit at the end of this year, Peterborough Police Service says in a Facebook post.

“In just a few more days they will retire from active duty and begin enjoying retirement living inside their partner's home,” police say.

Police thank Constable McCullum and K9 Hal along with Constable Fish and K9 Wolfe for their dedication and hard work in serving Peterborough, Lakefield and Cavan Monaghan.

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Instagram Worthy Alleys & Urban Spaces Of Peterborough Perfect For Photo Shoots

Peterborough has awesome alleys and cool urban spaces downtown that make perfect backdrops for photo shoots for Instagram. Here are just a few great options that Rob “Electric City” James captured on a recent trek around town…

Location: Water & Hunter Street

Location: Water & Hunter Street

Location: Water & Hunter Street

Location: Chambers & Hunter St. W.

Location: Chambers Street at Hunter

Location: Charlotte & George Street

Location: Hunter & Aylmer Street

Location: Hunter & Aylmer Street (reverse angle)

Location: Water & Hunter Street

Location: Water & Hunter Street

Location: Hunter Street facing Simcoe Bus Terminal

Location: Near the corner of George & Hunter Street

Know any other cool urban spaces and hidden alleys? Email here!

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OHL And AAA Petes To Honour Steve Richey For Contributions To Local Hockey

The OHL Peterborough Petes and Peterborough Minor Hockey Council “AAA” Petes have announced they will honour late scout, coach and mentor Steve Richey, who passed away on April 13th at age 54 as the result of a heart attack.

To honour their former scout, the OHL Petes have renamed their Education Fund Scholarship/Bursary Award after Steve. The award is given annually to a graduating PMHC player.

“Steve was a wonderful and valued part of our scouting staff for numerous years,” says Petes General Manager Mike Oke. “He was highly regarded in and made invaluable contributions to the Peterborough hockey community, and as such, we’re honoured to recognize him by renaming this award.”

Steve Richey

Steve gave back tirelessly to the sports community throughout his life, acting as a coach and mentor to many. In addition, The Peterborough Minor Hockey Council “AAA” Petes will honour Steve by re-naming their annual Midget tournament the Steve Richey Tournament of Champions.

“Every January for the past 12 years, the PMHC has hosted some of the top minor and major Midget teams, featuring players who are eligible for the OHL Priority Selection, that come to showcase their talent and skills for scouts,” says PMHC President and Petes alumnus Mike Martone. “We feel, as an organization, that it’s only fitting to rename our tournament in honour of Steve, who played his minor hockey in Peterborough, played in the OHL, and scouted for the Petes.”

The 2019 Steve Richey Tournament of Champions take place January 17th to 20th, 2019. For more information, click here.

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How A Peterborough Woman With A Prosthetic Got Her Fitting Paddle

Peterborough’s Rachel Quilty was born with a partial left arm and has lived with a prosthetic for most of her life. The 19-year-old, who is affiliated with War Amps, had always wanted to become a camp counsellor at Camp Oconto—an all-girls camp where she had spent many years as a camper.

With her prosthetic, she wasn’t able to complete level D instruction with a traditional paddle which she’d need to teach canoeing as a counsellor. After seeking advice from fellow camp counsellors and getting the word out, The Canoe Museum writes in a blog post how volunteers, retail business and organizations came together to make a paddle that worked for her.

Photo of Rachel with her fitted paddle courtesy Canoe Museum

THE ORIGINAL PROTOTYPES

“Wild Rock Outfitters donated a used paddle for the first prototype, in which a hole was added to accommodate the hook at the end of her prosthetic arm,” the Canoe Museum writes. More than 10 design prototypes were made over the next year to fit with Rachel’s prosthetic.

When Five Counties Children’s Centre asked Wild Rock if there was anyone they could recommend as this project evolved to find her the perfect fitting paddle, they suggested the Canadian Canoe Museum and that’s where volunteer Rick Schuett became involved.

Rachel and Rick at Canoe Museum

Rick, who has been creating custom canoe paddles for three decades, carves paddles on the second floor in the artisan exhibit area on Fridays. Rick’s first paddle for Rachel worked well, with its middle connector on the shaft for movement, but over time the constant pressure eventually broke it apart and the metal hook from her prosthetic wore down the wood on the paddle’s grip.

For the second paddle, the Canoe Museum says that “Rick re-designed the middle connector pieces with stronger materials that enabled the lower portion of the paddle to be mobile for more ease and control. In addition, he added a piece of metal to the paddle’s grip to prevent wear and tear from the hook.”

Photo courtesy Canoe Museum

HOW RACHEL USES THE PADDLE

-> Rachel puts the hook from her prosthetic arm through the hole in the grip and uses her right arm to move the bottom of the paddle.

-> The notch in the middle acts as the wrist she doesn’t have on her left hand and then she’s able to maneuver the paddle to perform various strokes.

With Rick’s expertise and dedication, he has given Rachel the means to accomplish her goals. The Canoe Museum says that in addition to becoming a camp counsellor, Rachel is working as a certified lifeguard and swim instructor at the Peterborough Sport and Wellness Centre where she also uses the specialized paddle to teach swimming.

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Check Out The Little Lake Cemetery Web Mapping Application and Story Map

An interactive web mapping genealogical tool and a new Little Lake Cemetery Story Map which tells the story of the cemetery and some of the early residents of Peterborough is now available.

Residents can explore the updated Little Lake Cemetery Guide and discover something new about their community by using the interactive historical timeline. The mapping application and Story Map can be found here and here.

The interactive map allows users to explore more than 5,500 marked grave sites and provides information on the oldest name and date identified on the monument, a visual location, and a photograph of the marker.

Screengrab of applications

With the help of student interns supported by Young Canada Works, the map has been expanded and enhanced to include the location and information on more than 10,000 unmarked graves within the cemetery.

With the updates, users now have the ability to submit additional information about interments. City of Peterborough geomatics/mapping staff, heritage preservation staff and Little Lake Cemetery collaborated on the mapping projects.

The Story Map application is an interactive webpage that allows users to explore themes relating to the City’s first burial ground, the growth of garden cemeteries, the development of Little Lake Cemetery, and stories of some historical figures from Peterborough’s past.

With nearly 30,000 burials in Little Lake Cemetery, the current map is not a complete record of interments at the cemetery. The City of Peterborough and Little Lake Cemetery foresee future projects will expand the numbers of graves recorded and the narratives presented on the story map.

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Peterborough-Based Tech Startup Ribitt Raises $600,000 In Seed Financing, Continues To Expand

Ribitt, a local tech startup focusing on rewarding consumers for purchases at local shops in their neighbourhood including Peterborough, announced it has raised $600,000 in seed round funding led by angel investors to expand to new neighbourhoods with its one-of-a-kind collective rewards program for local shops.

Using Ribitt’s mobile app, consumers can pay for purchases and collect Ribitt points when they grab their morning coffee, get a haircut or buy holiday gifts at participating local shops. Consumers can redeem these Ribitt points at any participating shop and for the first time, users do not have to wait to to fill out a full stamp card to use their points. Every purchase, no matter the shop, adds to the consumer’s Ribitt points.

Ribitt Co-Founders Sana Virji & Ribat Chowdhury

RIBITT EXPANDING INTO TORONTO & BEYOND

Ribitt, Co-Founded by Sana Virji and Ribat Chowdhury, has more than 30 shops partnered in Peterborough and more than 100 in Toronto. Earlier this year, Ribitt launched in Roncesvalles and The Junction neighbourhoods in Toronto, and plans to begin its expansion across Canada in 2019.

“The future success of local shops lies in them coming together and leveraging their combined network,” says Co-Founder Sana Virji. “Participating in a rewards program at a single coffee shop is more effort than the value for consumers, so when local merchants in a neighbourhood join Ribitt’s single rewards program, they create huge value for their customers while giving them the competitive advantage of scale that bigger chains have.”

Screengrap from Ribitt app

Ribitt’s reward program comes at a time when neighbourhood revitalization and preserving local commerce is a key focus for cities across North America. While Ribitt says there are 27 million “mom and pop” businesses in Canada and the U.S., individually they leave a small footprint and are stunted by the scale of larger retailers and service providers.

“My café and the Ribitt app launched around the same time, so it was a great opportunity to cross-promote each other starting out,” says Lindsay Brock, owner of Amusé Coffee Co. in Peterborough. “Ribitt has been wonderful in terms of gaining awareness for my business and it is a great opportunity for any business that is starting out in a new community or is trying to grow.”

Ribitt is yet another success story coming out of the Peterborough-based Innovation Cluster. As a client of the Innovation Cluster working out of its downtown incubator, Virji and Chowdhury have been able to grow their team, launch their mobile app, partner with stores in Peterborough and Toronto, and raise investment through the Peterborough Region Angel Network.

They have tremendous momentum heading into 2019 and beyond.

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Flying Colours Corp. Breaks Ground For New 100,000 Square Foot Hangar At Peterborough Airport

Global Aviation Services company Flying Colours Corp has broken ground as work starts on building its largest hangar to date at Peterborough Aiport. Industrial construction company Vicano Construction Ltd braved the cool weather to formally begin the fourth phase of expansion plans at the Peterborough, Canada-headquartered company this month. 

On completion in mid-2019, the new building will house a climate controlled, dedicated paint-shop, a spacious hangar large enough to hold up to A220-size aircraft, as well as offices, customer meeting rooms, interiors workshops and a board room. The investment of approximately $25 million will add a further 100,000 square feet to the Peterborough footprint.  

A rendering of the new hangar due to open in mid-2019

More than 100 team members are currently being recruited to bolster the increased demand as the search for maintenance, interiors and paint expertise leads the recruitment drive.

“Our business has grown significantly over the last twelve months and we were running out of space to accommodate all our clients’ requests,” says John Gillespie about the expansion. “Once the building is complete, we will be using it to provide additional capacity for completions, refurbishment and heavy maintenance work scopes on large jet airframes.”

To learn more about Flying Colours, click here.

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