Peterborough Woman Posts Inspiring Message About Eating Over Holidays

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Peterborough's Celestine Patricia Helen posted an empowering message to her Facebook page along with a photo of herself (see below) encouraging people to eat over the holidays and not to be self conscious about their bodies.

Here was the Facebook message Celestine posted...

This was the selfie she posted with her message...

photo on Facebook page post

The Facebook post garnered lots of positive response from women, such as "We need to hear this more often" to "Yes! It's not always an obvious thing to remember" to "I got up in the middle of the night twice to eat cheese."

Celestine (photo via Facebook)

Celestine tells PTBOCanada what motivated her to write this post on social media...

"I posted it because I have a history with a variety of eating disorders," she tells PTBOCanada. "The big family dinners are always nerve racking for me, and I know that they can be for a lot of others too."

"I just wanted to let people know that they're not alone, and that they possess the strength to survive the holidays without the guilt or the shame or the fear."

Kudos to Celestine for her honest and inspiring words.

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This Inspiring Wall Of Hope In Peterborough Shows Kindness To New Refugees

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Hundreds of hand-written messages from students, teachers and other community members have been installed on the New Canadians Centre’s Wall of Hope to welcome refugees.

The Wall of Hope at New Canadians Centre in Peterborough

For people who feel powerless in the face of what is happening in the world today, a few words of kindness can mean a great deal.

One child who came here 7 years ago as a New Canadian wrote this powerful message...

Here are some of the other messages written to newcomers (and yes, it will get warm here eventually)...

You can view more messages on the Wall of Hope here.

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Peterborough Police & Fire Services Now Equipped To Receive 9-1-1 Calls Via Text

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Peterborough Police & Fire Services Now Equipped To Receive 9-1-1 Calls Via Text

The service in intended to help those are deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired

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The Invisible Bully: Peterborough Boy Pens Powerful Letter About Living With A Concussion

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The PVNCCDSB shared a powerful letter on their Facebook page (see in its entirety below) from Grade 6 St. Catherine Catholic Elementary School student Jack Crawford. The 11-year-old, who plays hockey for the Minor Peewee AA Petes, wrote about what it's like to live with a concussion—"I had my own invisible bully in my brain but I couldn’t stand up to it," he eloquently says.

His mother Amelia tells PTBOCanada seeing her child suffering through this was devastating: "A concussion is a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and 'traumatic' would be how I would describe this experience as a parent. To see your child suffer physically, socially and emotionally is devastating. I would tell Jack over and over again that 'God always has a way of making something good come from difficult.' Now that Jack has had a chance to tell his story, he truly feels like good has come from his struggle, which is amazing."

Jack Crawford

Here is the letter Jack wrote...

I am very lucky kid. I have a great family, I have lots of good friends, I play on a great hockey team, and school is fun. I am grateful for all of these things, but something happened to me that has changed how I felt about everything.

About one year ago, while I was outside playing, I ran straight into a pole. It sounds funny, it probably even looked funny, but it was a big deal and it changed my life. I suffered from a pretty bad concussion, and I had no idea what impact it would have on me. I thought a concussion was just a big headache, but it was so much more than that.

For about a week after my concussion, I had to miss school and after-school activities. I slept for days. I couldn’t stand to be near a light, see a screen, read or do anything that I had to focus on. I slowly started to feel okay but I was very frustrated when I started to feel a bit better and I couldn’t do anything. No TV, no reading, no screens. All I was allowed to do was go outside and walk.

I went back to school a couple weeks later, and I thought because I felt good enough to go back to school that I was totally better. I didn’t realize concussions lasted a long time. The sound of the bell bothered me and I couldn’t go out on the schoolyard because it felt like there was too much going on. My relationships with my friends seemed strange and I was really sensitive about everything. I felt like people were making me sad a lot easier than before. I was acting funny and I never thought before I spoke.

When people joked around with me I thought they were being serious and took it personally. I wasn’t myself. I tried to be cool but I was just being bold and weird. I was angry at myself for not being ‘me.’ Whenever I woke up in the morning I told myself, ‘This is a new day and I can be myself again.’ But, I would come home from school or hockey crying all the time. It seemed to me that everyone I was around didn’t like me. It was like I had my own invisible bully in my brain but I couldn’t stand up to it.

My parents did lots of things to try to help me feel better, but nothing seemed to be helping me. I was still getting good grades in school, but I could feel I didn’t have the same ability. I was missing important details because I was getting so distracted. I had trouble focusing, something changed with my concentration. Even when I was on the ice (which is my favourite place to be), I wasn’t able to pay attention. I would always be upset with myself because of that. I knew I was missing little key notes in drills, but I couldn’t do anything about it. I would cry every night after hockey because when my coaches tried to give me advice I felt like they were disappointed with me, because I was frustrated. They were really just trying to help me like they always do.

Nobody ever knew I was so upset all the time (except for my family) because I wouldn’t break down in front of anyone else. All of this happened because a bump to my head! I think it would be easier to have a cast because then everyone would see that I had something wrong with me. But I looked fine so people just thought I was being weird.

I am feeling better now. I had massages, I went to a chiropractor, my doctor, and did different vision exercises to help my brain speed. My parents make sure I eat better (because I wanted sugar all the time) and I always get lots of sleep now. So, I don’t know what made me get better, but I am glad I feel more like myself again.

I still get tired really easily, my attention still isn’t where it was before, and I know I am not the same as I was before, but that’s okay. I just want other kids to know that one concussion changed my life. I want other kids to know that even if you are feeling well enough to play sports again doesn’t mean your ability to learn and emotions are all back to normal.

I am lucky that I feel way better now. —by Jack Crawford


Jack's mom Amelia reiterates to parents the importance of taking a concussion seriously:

"My plea to other parents would be to not underestimate the devastating short and long-term effects of concussion. Your son/daughter might be upset about missing sports or activities, but our job is not to please our children—it's to protect them. Please listen to coaches, doctors, educators and, most importantly, your child, if a concussion is suspected."

PVNC has great concussion resources available here.

**Please share this post with others that you think would be interested in learning what it's like to experience this.

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Help Safe Haven For Refugees Reunite 13 New Syrian Refugees With Family Living In Peterborough

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Safe Haven for Refugees Peterborough has announced plans to sponsor 13 new Syrian refugees in order to reunite them with family members already living in Peterborough.
 
This year has been an even more dangerous time in Syria and the Middle East than ever. Described by the United Nations as a “refugee crisis like we have never seen before,” hundreds of thousands of Syrians have been killed and millions of families have fled into adjoining countries, waiting in limbo and fear until they are welcomed into a new homeland.

“On December 24, 2015, the Safe Haven for Refugees Peterborough was honoured to learn we would have that opportunity to welcome one of these families, the Alftihs, to our community,” says Chantilly McKinnon, committee member.

“The Alftih family—Mohamed, Randa, Karim, Omar, Ghaith, and Sham—have experienced much love and kindness since arriving in Peterborough. We are also thrilled to see Casa Maria welcome Mohamed’s sister, her son and grandchildren to our community. Yet, Randa’s family—including her mother, sisters and their children, whose home in Aleppo was completely destroyed by bombing this year—had to separate and flee to Lebanon.”


Safe Haven for Refugees Peterborough has partnered with Grace United Church in raising funds for this additional sponsorship to put the safety of these families as a collective goal.

“We cannot think of a better way to truly honour our own families than by helping this family in reunification," adds McKinnon. "As a partnership, our organizations have committed to bringing to the Peterborough area 13 members of Randa’s family. We have already raised over $100,000 towards the sponsorship, but need to raise an additional $30,000 in air flight and settlement costs for all family members. If we can raise this funding, we may be able to celebrate this success in 2017!”


Donate to the Safe Haven for Refugees fund at Grace United Church or to Grace United Church (Safe Haven fund) through CanadaHelps.ca. Visit safehaven4refugees.com for more information.

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A Peterborough Girl With Type 1 Diabetes Just Rocked Parliament Hill To Give Voice To Kids For A Cure

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Peterborough's Matt Stimpson and his daughter Tilly, 8—both of whom have Type 1 diabetes—just returned along with her mother Jo from an amazing two days on Parliament Hill where Tilly was one of 25 children from across Canada selected to attend Kids for a Cure Lobby day at Parliament Hill.

Bottom row: Tilly pictured second from left at Parliament Hill

During her visit there, Tilly met with Members of Parliament and Senators to show them the face of diabetes, share her personal journey with them about living with diabetes, and ask them to invest in clinical trials to help find a cure.

Tilly (pictured far right with her father, Matt) meeting with MPs

The Stimpson family have been advocating for JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) since Tilly was diagnosed at the age of two and a half. They raised more than $20,000 for JDRF over the past five years with the tremendous support of the giving community in Peterborough.

Tilly bottom row (second from left) pictured with the rest of the kids and their parents from across Canada

Tilly wants to make a difference for those living with Type 1 diabetes, and she's having a great impact. Her goal was to raise $500 for JDRF this year but with the help of this amazing community, she far exceeded it, raising a whopping $2,739.

"I'm very proud of the work that Tilly Stimpson and her family are doing to raise awareness about Type 1 diabetes," says Maryam Monsef, who met with Tilly during her visit. "Many of my colleagues told me that they were impressed with Tilly's advocacy work, and that she is a great ambassador for all Canadians who live with Type 1 diabetes every day."

Tilly meeting with Maryam Monsef on Parliament Hill

The Stimpson family and the other families even got a wave from Prime Minister Trudeau during Question Period when they were sitting in the Gallery:

"I wanted to be sure to share Tilly's story with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau so on Monday just before Question Period, I pointed out the family as they were sitting in the gallery," Monsef tells PTBOCanada. "As I shared their story with him, he gave the Stimpsons and the other families participating in 'Kids for a Cure Day' a wave from the floor of the House of Commons. I can't wait to see the good work that Tilly will do in our community."

It was a trip to Ottawa Matt and Jo Stimpson will never forget, as these proud parents witnessed their daughter Tilly give voice to Kids For A Cure on Parliament Hill.

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450 People In Peterborough Witnessed One Of The Most Powerful Mental Health Events Ever In Canada

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About 450 people packed into Trentwinds International Centre in Peterborough on Monday night (November 21st) for an Intimate, special night called "An Evening With Landsberg and Friends" in support of Sick Not Weak and Team 55 Tackles Suicide Awareness.

Celebrities such as Michael Landsberg, Theo Fleury, Jennifer Hedger, Andrew Jensen and Clint Malarchuk spoke with raw honesty to the hushed crowd about their mental health struggles, and the need for compassion and acceptance. "People are fighting battles that you know nothing about, so be kind," Malarchuk said.

The event was trending on Twitter in Peterborough, and here are just a few of the tweets that went out last night and today...

One of the guests in attendance, Laura Crann, summed up this powerful night this way:

"It was truly inspiring when the whole room of 450 people quietly listened to each guest share their stories. Every single person in that room truly reflected on their own lives or thought of someone who lives with mental illness."

Theo Fleury

Perhaps the most impactful line of many on the night came from the resilient final speaker Theo Fleury, who said this: “You can’t help if you don’t have compassion. Please tell someone about what you experienced tonight.”

It was a cathartic night for all in attendance, giving another huge step forward for the mental health movement in Canada. One can imagine this "An Evening With Landsberg & Friends" in Peterborough becoming a sort of travelling roadshow across Canada, having an impact across the country and keeping the conversation going.

Watch these vlogs Landsberg did shortly after the event talking about what this night meant to him...

Uploaded by SickNotWeak on 2016-11-22.

Uploaded by SickNotWeak on 2016-11-23.

Learn more about the mental health resources available in the Peterborough area by visiting the Canadian Mental Health Association's local chapter here.

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Beautiful Peterborough Trillium Project In The Works At Cenotaph For Vimy Ridge 100th Anniversary Commemoration

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A commemoration ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge will be held at the War Memorial, known as the cenotaph, in Confederation Square starting at 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 9th, 2017.

In what will be a powerful and visually stunning display, ceramic trilliums will cover the front of the mound at the Memorial, with each trillium representing a person from the County and the City of Peterborough who was killed in the First World War—16 red trilliums for those killed at Vimy Ridge and the Battle of Hill 70, and 600 white trilliums for those killed in the rest of the war.


“The reason behind the trilliums is both to commemorate the casualties from the First World War, but especially the 100th anniversary of Vimy Ridge and the Battle of Hill 70,” says Councillor Henry Clarke, Deputy Mayor, who is a retired Lieutenant Colonel.

Councillor Clarke got the inspiration for the initiative from the major art installation Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red at the Tower of London, in London, England, in 2014 that marked 100 years since the first full day of Britain’s involvement in the First World War. The 888,246 poppies, each representing a British military fatality during the war, encircled the Tower to create a spectacular display.

Kawartha Potters Guild has partnered with Councillor Clarke to support this community initiative. Councillor Clarke is asking the community to support this act of remembrance by purchasing a trillium for $30 (with the trilliums delivered to their owners after the commemoration ceremony), or by giving a donation for the project through the City of Peterborough, which is eligible for a charitable tax receipt. It will cost about $18,000 to create the trilliums for the display at the memorial.

Money raised through the initiative will go toward the repair of the masonry base of the War Memorial.

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A Sulawesi Forest Turtle Hatched At Riverview Park & Zoo

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The Riverview Park & Zoo's latest addition is a recently hatched Sulawesi forest turtle.

This was an exciting announcement for the zoo as it is only their second successful hatching (and they think only the second in Canada) of this critically-endangered species.

Check out more pictures below of the birth...

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Peterborough Police Offer A Vulnerable Person Registry

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The Peterborough Police Service offer a Vulnerable Person Registry for families and caregivers of vulnerable persons that they want the public to spread the word about. The information provided to police is entered into a secure database that will be used by police and other emergency services during a crisis situation.

In the event of an emergency, responding officers will have immediate access to this information, improving police understanding and response.

A Vulnerable Person is defined as a person who due to a medical, mental health or physical condition may exhibit patterns of behaviour that may pose a danger to themselves. This may include:

-> A tendency to wander

-> The inability to communicate

-> Fascinations or attractions (water, construction sites etc.)

-> Social responses (fear of strangers, aggression)

Examples include (but are not limited to) individuals with Alzheimer’s, Autism Spectrum Disorder or an acquired brain injury.

To use the registry, the vulnerable person must live in the jurisdiction of the Peterborough Police. (The family or caregiver who registers the person need not reside within the jurisdiction.)

You can register a vulnerable person either by using their online form or by attending the Peterborough Police station in person.

For more information or to fill out the online form, click here.

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