Peterborough Blogs
2nd Annual Legacy Blood Drive In Honour Of Dr. Chan
/Dr. Andrew Chan was a well-respected member of the Peterborough community for nearly 20 years.
He joined the Medical Centre as a gastroenterologist in 1996. Throughout his career, he became known as a great leader. He stayed current in his field while investigating innovative medical technologies, was constantly pushing to improve patient care, and all the while never lost sight of the importance of bedside manner.
In honour of Dr. Chan’s contributions to his patients and this community, the 2nd Annual Legacy Blood Drive is taking place from Wednesday, September 6th to Friday, September 8th.
Organizers tell PTBOCanada they are excited to try and reach their goal of 150 donations this year—surpassing the 117 units collected last year.
For more info on blood donor times, see the poster below. To register, call 1-888-236-6283 or go online to blood.ca.
A Group Of Peterborough Artists Collaborate On Powerful Strong Heart Song For SickKids Foundation
/UPDATE: September 1st. The beautiful "Strong Heart" video has just been released. Watch it below...
ORIGINAL POST
In less than a year, cancer would change the lives of three Peterborough families forever. Harrison McKinnon, Eliza Vivian, and Neave Alderson were all diagnosed with various forms of cancer between November 2015 and July 2016.
In collaboration with SickKids Foundation, these kids—and others like them—are being honoured in a powerful soon-to-be-released song called "Strong Heart" that is written and performed by local musician, Melissa Payne.
Melissa recording with her niece Eliza
"Strong Heart" also features Jimmy Bowskill and Natalie McMaster, and is produced by James McKenty. The music video was directed by filmmaker Megan Murphy and shot by Rob Viscardis.
Melissa and Megan both have a personal connection to the cause, as both of their nieces have been receiving cancer treatment at Sick Kids this year. "This is our way of giving back," Megan tells PTBOCanada.
Melissa Payne, Natalie McMaster, Jimmy Bowskill, James McKenty and Eliza Vivian during recording session of "Strong Heart"
SickKids Foundation is going to be promoting the song as part of their big campaign for Childhood Cancer Awareness month, which begins September 1st.
"We will be launching the music video that day as well, and all proceeds from the song will be donated to SickKids Foundation," Megan tells PTBOCanada.
Neave Alderson and Eliza Vivian (Frame grab from "Strong Heart" video to be released September 1st)
"Strong Heart" is a tribute to not only Eliza, Neave, and mighty Harrison, who fought relentlessly until losing his battle in June 2017, but also to all of the young warriors who have come before and who will unfortunately come after them.
Neave
As devoted aunts to Eliza and Neave, singer-songwriter Melissa Payne and filmmaker Megan Murphy have witnessed the devastating heartbreak and the awe-inspiring bravery these warriors embody.
As artists, they channeled their own fear and inspiration into this project. The proceeds from this song will be donated to the SickKids Foundation—because no strong heart should have to face this battle alone.
Megan's niece Neave with her mother Kate
“Strong Heart”, comes out September 1st on YouTube. To donate to this campaign—their goal is to raise $5,000 and proceeds will go towards furthering paediatric cancer research through the SickKids Foundation—click here.
You can watch the behind the scenes footage below from the video...
All of us have been touched in some way by a child with cancer. Please share this on your social media channels and give what you can.
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Your Guide To How Peterborough Utilities Group Responds To Watermain Breaks
/Curious about how the Peterborough Utilities Commission (PUC) responds to watermain breaks and leaks? Want to know why some outages are short and some outages take longer to repair?
Below is key information about watermain breaks in this special guest post provided to PTBOCanada by the Water Utility VP, Patrick Devlin, written in collaboration with his team...
WATERMAIN BREAKS: WHAT THEY ARE AND HOW THEY HAPPEN
Watermains are underground pipes that distribute water from reservoirs, pumping stations and the water treatment plant to the homes and businesses of Peterborough.
Watermain breaks in Peterborough are most common within the winter months, primarily due to the low temperature conditions which cause the water within the soil to freeze and expand. This freezing activity can result in increased stress to be placed on the pipe, which can cause cracks and or breaks in the watermain that tend to occur at weak points along the pipe.
Weak points within a watermain can arise for a variety of reasons:
-> External Corrosion (pipe age, pipe material, soil conditions)
-> Improper Installation (bedding material, fitting/valve installations)
-> Differential Ground Settlement (nearby construction)
Peterborough benefits from good soil conditions that do not actively promote external pipe corrosion. The PUC also works to minimize the above conditions through redundant construction inspection processes as well as active monitoring and liaison of construction activities within the Peterborough area.
However, watermain breaks still occur due to underground excavations associated with construction activities. For that reason, Ontario One Call (1-800-400-2255) must be notified prior to any ground excavation activities taking place within your property.
NOTIFICATION TO RESIDENTS
There isn’t always time to inform residents of an outage. Once the break has been controlled, there will be a written or verbal notice given to residents informing them of the predicted timelines for repairing and reinstating their water.
Some breaks may cause longer outages than others.
There are two classifications of water main breaks: Category 1 and Category 2. Category 1 breaks are low risk breaks that maintain positive flow during excavation and have no evidence of contamination of the watermain. Generally, Category 1 breaks can be repaired quickly with limited implications to the customer.
Category 2 breaks pose a potential risk of contamination and are usually more severe breaks. These breaks are reported to the Ministry of Health (MOH) as well as the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change’s Spills Action Center (SAC). If this type of break occurs, the outage will be longer due to the increased repair and testing procedures required.
There are also a number of other factors that can impact the duration of water service outages due to a watermain break:
-> Size and material (concrete, PVC, cast iron)
-> Location (limited access, high density)
-> Traffic
Overall, the City of Peterborough’s water distribution system is built of varying pipe sizes. If a break occurs on a large diameter trunk main, it may require heavy machinery onsite, as well as larger scale cleanup and traffic control efforts. Access to the watermain can be difficult in some locations which may also lead to increased outage times.
WATER MAIN BREAKS CAN BE DANGEROUS: SAFETY IS THE FIRST PRIORITY
There may be instances when you see and are near a possible water main break. It is important that you keep your distance to ensure your safety. Water from the break may have washed away subsurface soil under paved areas or saturated the soil causing unstable conditions to occur.
If you see a potential hazard, be sure to contact the PUC at (705)-748-9300.
HOW WATERMAIN BREAKS ARE REPAIRED
-> Determine and locate the problem.
-> Control the leak to reduce the risk to public safety and property damages by closing valves and isolating the damaged length of pipe.
-> Contact emergency locate services to ensure no other utilities will be hit while the excavation for repair of the watermain occurs.
-> Once locates have been received, pinpoint and excavate for repair taking all precautionary measures to minimize trench material entering the watermain.
HOW SCHEDULED OUTAGES WORK
Some outages are planned in advance to allow us to repair, replace, and make improvements to our water system. Some outages may be individual residences so that staff can perform work requested by customers such as replacing water services or installing meters.
Each year the PUC repair watermains through the process of cement mortar lining, structural lining and complete replacement.
We make every effort to schedule these outages to be as short as possible and to affect the least amount of customers.
Affected customers are contacted over the phone or by hand delivered notice in advance of scheduled outages. We can have problems notifying people if their contact information is out of date. If you haven’t already done so, please contact us with any updates to your contact information. You can email your updated information to info@peterboroughutilities.ca.
Our staff is dedicated to responding to outages quickly. Your call will be answered 24/7 and Peterborough Utilities staff will work together to get your water back on as quickly as possible, while remaining safe. We understand that outages can be a major inconvenience and we work hard to minimize these disruptions to you. —guest post by PUC
[Related: Guide To How Peterborough Utilities Group Responds To Power Outages]
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5th Annual Paint The Town Red Has 30 Restaurants Participating This Year
/The 5th annual Paint the Town Red all day event in support of United Way Peterborough takes place on July 19th.
Participating restaurants, cafes and pubs will be donating 25 percent of their daily sales to support United Way Peterborough & District, with proceeds directing impacting vital social services in your community.
La Hacienda is one of participating restaurants
This year, there are already 30 participating restaurants—up from 22 this year.
Also, a big red spoon (with a touch of plaid) has been introduced this year by the United Way Peterborough, built by United Way cabinet member Terry Guiel (pictured above and below)...
Sam's Place is one of participating restaurants
Fresh Dreams Peterborough is participating
For more info on Paint the Town Red, click here and check out the hashtag #PaintPtboRed.
If you're a restaurant that would like to participate, contact Erica Richmond at the United Way Peterborough here.
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Special Hockey International Tournament In Peterborough Raises $8,400 for Local Teams
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Kawartha Komets and Electric City Maroon & White receive donations from tournament
Read MoreCommunity Makes 3,007 Safe Nights At YWCA Crossroads Shelter Possible For Women & Children Fleeing Abuse
/Community support of YWCA Peterborough Haliburton’s 9th Annual Walk a Mile in Her Shoes surpassed the "3,000 Safe Nights Challenge" presented by Merrett Home Hardware Building Centre.
A grand total of 3,007 Safe Nights ($138,204.12) have been made possible through YWCA Walk a Mile in Her Shoes, which took place at Confederation Park on Friday, May 26th.
Donations raised through this year’s event will be invested directly in providing Safe Nights at Crossroads Shelter for women and children fleeing abuse.
“The demand for our services increases each year,” says YWCA Executive Director, Lynn Zimmer, “This year at Crossroads Shelter we provided 8,471 Safe Nights. With the 3,007 Safe Nights provided through Walk a Mile in Her Shoes, we are well on our way to raising the $45.96 required for each Safe Night we provide.”
With more than 420 people of all ages, genders and abilities in attendance, this year’s Walk A Mile was the biggest yet.
To learn more about YWCA programs and services that help women escape abuse and rebuild their lives, or to make a donation in support of the YWCA, click here.
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Flood Warning: Water Levels Will Continue To Rise Along Otonabee River And Kawartha Lakes
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The latest update as of Sunday (May 7th) from City of Peterborough
Read MoreYWCA Delivers "Wake Up Call" To Peterborough Businesses & Community Members
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Campaign reinforces that violence against women is all around us
Read MoreRegistration Begins For 17th Annual Peterborough Dragon Boat Festival
/Registration for the 17th annual Peterborough Dragon Boat Festival has begun. Organizers announced the return of “The Dragon’s Lair”, as well as brand-new social media and fitness challenges and incentives for participants and teams.
The Dragon will return once again to Del Crary Park on Saturday, June 10th, 2017 for a day of competitive dragon boat racing between community teams, as well as breast cancer survivor teams. Proceeds of the popular fundraising event will continue to help keep breast cancer screening and diagnosis right here at home.
Photo by Peter Curley, Peterborough Clicks
THE DRAGON'S LAIR LUXURY TENT IS BACK
Festival Co-Chair Michelle Thornton says that the organizing committee’s focus this year continues to be on finding fresh and exciting ways to let teams engage with each other, battling it out not just on the water, but to see who can raise the most for breast cancer care in our community.
“It’s all about the ‘dragon bragging’ rights once again,” says Thornton. “Last year, we introduced ‘The Dragon’s Lair,’ a luxury tent where the top fundraising team was treated to a prime Festival location, comfy furniture to relax on between races, catered breakfast and lunch, their own team masseuses, fantastic swag and more. It was a huge success and competition for ‘the Lair’ was fierce in the week leading up to the deadline. Well, it’s back again for 2017 and it’s going to be better than ever. We’re keeping the details a surprise but here’s a hint— this year’s top fundraising team will even have their own dedicated butler!”
Photo by Peter Curley, Peterborough Clicks
Participant and team social media engagement during the weeks leading up to the Festival is getting even more emphasis this year, adds Thornton. “By joining our private Facebook group, teams and participants will be able to take part in weekly challenges, get fitness and fundraising tips, access exclusive training and conditioning videos, and have a chance to win exclusive Dragon Boat prizes,” she says.
Photo by Peter Curley, Peterborough Clicks
Team registration is now open and all proceeds will go to the PRHC Foundation and support the purchase of a new, state-of-the-art mammography machine for Peterborough Regional Health Centre’s (PRHC) Breast Assessment Centre.
Photo by Peter Curley, Peterborough Clicks
