The Community Is Rallying Around Sarah McNeilly

Sarah McNeilly is an amazing performance artist who is a huge part of the local, inclusive Peterborough arts scene—including recent productions at The Theatre on King, Mysterious Entity, Showplace Players and more.

Photo of Sarah by Andy Carroll

Shortly after her 31st birthday, Sarah was diagnosed with cancer. And now, the community Sarah has given so much to and so loves is giving back to her as a GoFundMe campaign has been launched for her as she begins her battle against it.

Photo of Sarah by Andy Carroll

"Sarah is one of the most popular and loved artists in this town," fellow performing artist Ray Henderson tells PTBOCanada. "She has her hands in so many different projects and mediums. A singer, actor, Improv artist, just to name a few. Her fire and passion is tireless and relentless."

"The smile you see in all her pics is genuine because she is just so full of life," adds Henderson. "Her partner, Spencer Allen, is just as loved as he is such a valuable piece to the artistic puzzle of this community. You won't find another couple whose outlook, work ethic and creativity provides such a rich environment in our community. Sarah herself is such an incredible and beautiful soul."

Sarah is going to have to take a lot of time off work to fight this cancer, and her and Spencer need the community's help for all of the expensive treatments, prescriptions, travel and time off work that will be required.

Spencer and Sarah

Give what you can to the GoFundMe campaign here, and spread the word on your social media channels. (Already, more than $7,000 [**UPDATE: more than $14,000 has now been raised***] of the $10,000 campaign goal has been reached in a short period of time.)

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Peterborough Hound Named Odie Not Overly Excited About Fox Being In Backyard

Gwyneth Jones witnessed a real life fox and hound in her backyard Thursday morning (May 19th) on River Road just north of Peterborough—except her hound, Odie, just didn't seem nearly as interested as the fox.

The view from Jones' back patio of the interaction...

"At first I was worried the fox would attack—I think it's a mama and there may be some kits in the woods," Jones tells PTBOCanada. "It's too big to be a baby, but was definitely curious and maybe even wanting to play."

The fox certainly looked like it wanted to do something gauging from this picture Jones took...

Odie ignores fox

So why would 10-year-old Odie ignore the fox? Jones isn't sure.

"I was stunned at my dog's reaction, or lack thereof," Jones tells PTBOCanada. "It's almost like he didn't acknowledge this was an animal. He would have freaked if a dog was on our property, and he chases squirrels and rabbits. It was very odd."

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A Time Capsule From 1976 Was Discovered At Buckhorn Bridge

Warden J. Murray Jones from Peterborough County Council was presented with a time capsule on Wednesday (May 18th) that was recently found during a rehabilitation project at Buckhorn Bridge.

Mike Harris, Brad Wilson and Andrew Black—employees of National Structures Inc.—were on-hand to formally present the capsule to Warden Jones and Kendra Reid, Senior Engineering Technologist with Peterborough County.

"The event is an opportunity to appreciate our past and celebrate the future,” Warden Jones says.

The capsule dates to 1976 and contains a number of documents, including a written history of Buckhorn Public School, a listing of the 1976 Harvey-Smith Senior Citizen’s Club executive, a postcard of the Trent Canal and the history of the Peterborough Examiner newspaper as well as a printed edition from June 16, 1976.

The capsule was placed by Charlie Came and Thomas Mason in the secrecy of night in 1976. A rededication ceremony will take place on June 13th at 11 a.m. Members of the Came and Mason families—as well as family members of the senior citizen’s club executive—will be on hand to see the original time capsule contents, as well as additions from present day, placed into the new bridge structure.

Representatives from Buckhorn School, the Peterborough Examiner, and National Structures will also be in attendance.

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Here Is The 2016 Hootenanny On Hunter Street Lineup

Sloan has been announced as the headliner for the 2016 Hootenanny on Hunter Street on Saturday, August 13th.

Melissa Payne is also returning to play again at this free music festival event which has become such a part of the fabric of summer in downtown Peterborough. See the poster below for the rest of the lineup...

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New Summer Music Series Coming To Downtown Peterborough

A new summer music series is coming to downtown Peterborough, through a partnership with Peterborough Square, Gerri’s Arts and Crafts and the Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA).

From May 27 through to the end of August, there will be live music every Friday from noon to 1 pm in the Peterborough Square Courtyard at the corner of Water and Charlotte streets. “Live and Local Lunches is going to help animate downtown while showing off some local talent and local food,” says DBIA Executive Director Terry Guiel.

Here is the great lineup for the summer:
 
• May 27 - Bridget Folley
• June 3 - Wylie Harold
• June 10 - Nikki and Keith
• June 17 - Rick and Gailie  
• June 24 - Beau Dixon  
ׇ• July 8 - Bailien
• July 15 - Terry Finn
• July 22 - Rob Phillips & Marsala     
• July 29 - Brianna Cotton    
• August dates to be announced

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UPDATED: Peterborough Teacher Wins Canadian Family Teacher Award

UPDATED: August 15th, 2016

St. Catherine Catholic Elementary School’s Sylvie Copland has won the 2016 Canadian Family Teacher Award. Copland wins $2,500 for school programming and supplies in the 10th Annual Canadian Family Teacher Awards, courtesy of program sponsor Johnson Inc.

A 26-year veteran educator, Copland was recognized for her kind and loving nature. Her teaching philosophy focuses on encouraging her students to take risks, be charitable, and to love and respect all. Her caring nature is also demonstrated through her annual fundraisers where she raises awareness and foreign aid funds for children threatened by malaria.

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ORIGINAL POST: May 17th

Canadian Family magazine has announced that Peterborough’s Sylvie Copland of St. Catherine Catholic Elementary School has been nominated for a 2016 Canadian Family Teacher Award.

Copland along with 11 other educators—shortlisted for their accomplishments in education—will participate in an online vote to determine the Top 3 winning teachers in Canada. The three winners will each be awarded $2,500 for programming and supplies.

Sylvie Copland

From a pool of nominations, the judging panel was tasked to define keynote characteristics and skills that they felt separated the top 12 finalists as truly extraordinary.

Sylvie Copland is nominated for her selfless and caring nature, through which she treats each student. Her charitable nature also extends beyond the school community, as she is commended for her fundraising initiatives to support children in developing countries. Specifically, Copland has empowered her classroom to sponsor four children in Africa. Further, each Spring her class raises funds to provide mosquito nets to children threatened by malaria.

Let's have the Peterborough community rally around Sylvie. Vote for her here, and spread the word! 

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Meet The Peterborough Dentist Who Travels Around The World To See Pearl Jam

Peterborough dentist Edward Segura has to be one of the biggest Pearl Jam fans on the planet. Segura, who owns every Pearl Jam album ever made, has been to about 40 Pearl Jam concerts around the world.

"I clearly remember the day in 1991 when I first heard Pearl Jam," Ed tells PTBOCanada. "My then-girlfriend and current wife Christine and I were hanging out at my parents’ home in Toronto after spending a day record shopping on Yonge Street. I had purchased this band Pearl Jam’s debut record, Ten, as it was being touted as an incredible record from a young angry band with great music and social integrity. I had heard 'Alive' on the radio as it was on regular radio play at the time. As soon as the needle hit the record….well that was the beginning of a lifelong affair for me with this unparalleled band."

Ed with his son Aidan in Prague to see Pearl Jam in 2012

Segura travels around the world, often with his wife and two boys, Aidan and Liam, to go to Pearl Jam concerts—working his vacation schedule around them, and getting front row seats as much as possible.

"A live show by Pearl Jam must be experienced to truly appreciate just how good this band is," he says. "They never play the same set twice, and play on average 2:45-3 hours a night in a world where most big bands will play on average 1.5 hours!"

Seeing Pearl Jam in New Orleans in 2013

The first time Ed saw Pearl Jam perform live was at Lolapalooza on August 5th, 1992 at Barrie’s Molson Park—an unbelievable experience for a self-described "19-year-old grunge pissed-off kid."

"The energy is one I will never forget," Ed tells PTBOCanada. "The crowds during the '90s grunge era were very aggressive and there was a lot of crowd-surfing and slam dancing. You had your ripped jeans or jean shorts,  a T-shirt under your flannel shirt, long hair, and Doc Martens with wool socks. That was the uniform. As I have gotten older, I have noticed: (1) crowds are older, as is the band obviously; (2) that youthful aggression and disdain for everything no longer exists but the excitement of seeing them perform live is alive and well; and (3) the crowds are familial."

The Pearl Jam tour shirts Ed has collected over the years

After Lolapalooza, Ed would see them perform anywhere near/in Toronto, where he was living at the time, and over the years things have snowballed since moving to Peterborough.

"I have been guilty of planning family trips around Pearl Jam tours," Ed tells PTBOCanada. "In 2012, my son Aidan and I saw them twice in Berlin and in Prague."

Ed's son Aidan with the tambourine Eddie Vedder gave him at Berlin concert

Indeed, an amazing moment with Eddie Vedder happened at one of the Berlin shows. "I managed to get Aidan, who was 10 at the time, front row seats, and Eddie Vedder gave him his tambourine at the end of the show—which was an unforgettable event for both of us."

"We stayed at the Four Seasons Prague and didn’t realize the band was also staying there (we missed them)," Ed adds. "That family trip was awesome, and seeing them perform in Europe was the icing on the cake."

Wristband tickets Ed scored in 2014 for Detroit concert

Ed (to the left) of Eddie Vedder rocking out in Detroit, 2014

Ed has travelled to various Canadian and U.S. cities to watch them over the years: Hamilton, Ottawa, Halifax, Toronto, New Orleans, New York, Detroit, Chicago, and somewhere in the middle of nowhere in Wisconsin for their 20th anniversary shows.

Seeing Pearl Jam in Halifax, 2009

Seeing Bono and Eddie, 2005, Toronto

Over the past week alone, Ed's family went to Ottawa to watch them perform—then saw them twice in Toronto. "All three sets were three hours long and vastly different," Ed says. "Any hardcore fan will tell you that there are no two PJ shows that are alike, and that is the beauty of this band."

Ed with his son Aidan seeing Pearl Jam in Ottawa, 2016.

Rocking out to Pearl Jam in Toronto, 2016

Another concert pic from Ed at Pearl Jam's Toronto show, 2016

Ed is such a huge Pearl Jam fan that he plays their songs as part of this grunge/classic rock cover band, the Jobbers, he's in in Peterborough with four other local fortysomething guys. He also loves discussing Pearl Jam with his patients, and has been known to play their music during his operatories.

He also has a collection of 40 guitars in his basement, and would love to get one signed by members of Pearl Jam some day.

Seeing Eddie in Halifax, 2005

Next up for Ed and his Pearl Jam tour: This August, he and fellow Peterborough dentist Dr. Brian Smith along their wives will be going to see Pearl Jam perform at Wrigley Field in Chicago. "That will be insane," Ed says.

Oh, and Ed adds that there are much bigger Pearl Jam fans than him: "Believe it or not, there are way crazier fans than myself. I just read about a guy who saw his 1000th show!!!"

—By Neil Morton

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