Hunter Street Bridge Documentary Set to Premiere For Peterborough

As the Hunter Street bridge celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, a documentary marking the milestone called “Building the Ashburnham Bridge” will air on YourTV on Aug. 2.

Steve Russell, project manager of the documentary was the eldest of four children in his family. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The documentary was created by archivist Elwood Jones and former engineer Steve Russell. It tells the story of the planning and construction of the bridge — also known as the Ashburnham Bridge — between 1919 and 1921.

The project began in 2019 after a grant was given to the Trent Severn Waterway from the Trillium Foundation to take all the old pictures of Quaker Oats and the bridge construction according to Russell.

Russell’s grandfather, John E. Russell from the Russell-Townsend Company built the bridge during interesting economic and political times of Peterborough’s history.

That inspired Steve to do the documentary after learning that fact and discovered his grandfather in archived photos.

“Once I identified him (grandfather), that really accelerated my interest for the documentary,” said Steve.

Longtime retired broadcast journalist Graham Hart narrated the half-hour documentary where he met with Steve weekly to work on the project.

“Building the Ashburnham Bridge” airs at 7:00 p.m. on YourTV on Aug. 2.

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Ennismore Woman Wins over $200,000 In Lottery Winnings

Anne Hickey of Ennismore has $208,034.90 to put toward her dreams after winning a LOTTO MAX second prize in the Sept. 8, 2020 draw announced Thursday.

LOTTO MAX players in Ontario have won over $6.5 billion since 2009 including 87 jackpot wins and 714 MAXMILLIONS prizes, right across the province. Photo Courtesy of OLG.

Her ticket was purchased at Sullivan’s General Store on Ennis Road in Ennismore.

Hickey is a regular lottery player with LOTTO MAX and LOTTO 6/49 being her favourite games.

“I’ve been playing the same numbers for the last five years, which won me this prize,” she said.

The 63-year-old discovered her win after using the OLG Lottery App on her phone late one night.

“I was sleepy, but when I saw Big Winner, I was wide awake,” she laughed.

The avid gardener plans to use her winnings to fund her retirement.

“I’m going to make some investments and be responsible,” smiled Hickey. “But I do plan to treat myself to some new glasses.”

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Kawartha Lacrosse Receives Donated Lacrosse Sticks From Peterborough Lakers Alumni

Girls participating in the Kawartha Lacrosse camp received lacrosse sticks donated by the Peterborough Lakers Alumni Association at Kenner Collegiate Vocational Institute on Wednesday.

Peterborough Lakers Alumni Association was established in 2018 as a non-profit organization to promote lacrosse within the Peterborough area community through communication, outreach and strengthen ties between past and present players. Photo by PTBOCanada.

Pete Dalliday and Bruce Oglivie represented the Lakers Alumni, presenting the sticks to the club. Lakers player Zach Currier and Warrior Lacrosse donated 44 heads to the Alumni while the Alumni locally purchased 44 lacrosse shafts to support the camp programs of Kawartha Lacrosse and Trent Women’s Lacrosse.

“Their generosity is invaluable,” said Oglivie. “We’re just a supporter and that’s what the Alumni is about. These organizations are doing excellent jobs of getting more youth and young athletes involved in lacrosse.”

The week-long camp runs for girls aged 4-11 that teaches them the basics of field lacrosse. They also participate in several activities such as soccer, arts and games.

It is run by the camp director and head instructor Jocelyne Lemay and Kawartha Lacrosse alumna Sage Darling.

“A lot of these girls are brand new,” said Lemay. “They’ve never played before. We teach them all the necessities and how to play the game.”

“You’re trying to get them immersed in the sport so they can enjoy it with their friends,” said Fred Blowes, Kawartha Lacrosse president. “Hopefully they can continue playing down the future for us.”

Twenty sticks were donated to Kawartha Lacrosse while the rest went to Trent Women’s Lacrosse who run similar programs. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

Over 600 alumni members support local athletes and organizations through fundraisers and donations.

The annual Peterborough Lakers Alumni Golf tournament is hosted at Keystone Links on Sept. 24. Anyone is eligible to participate.

Monthly open euchre tournaments are held at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 52 on Lansdowne Street.

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Young Beekeeper is Buzzing About The International Meeting of Young Beekeepers

Young beekeper Heidi Westbye from Cavan has her eyes set on the International Meeting of Young Beekeepers in 2022.

Heidi working on a hive in her protective gear. Photo courtesy of Charlina Westbye.

Westbye’s interest in beekeeping was sparked when she started visiting her neighbours farm and learning about the hives they had on their property.

“I saw my neighbours working around bees and I thought it was really cool,” Westbye said.

The 12-year-old joined the Kawartha Junior Beekeepers, a program hosted by her neighbours, about four years ago though the program has since been paused due to COVID-19.

In the program participants learn about everything that goes on while beekeeping from equipment preparation to honey harvesting. When not in the classroom students observe and identify bees, split colonies and monitor the progress and health of the hive.

Anyone aged 9 - 14 can participate in the once monthly program.

While the program is temporarily halted Westbye has continued to out her neighbours with work at their apiary.

“My favourite part about working there is when we get to extract the honey,” Westbye explained, highlighting the different tools and picks used.

Westbye notes that the worst part of beekeeping is when the bees get angry and recalls a time she wasn’t wearing her full protective suit and got stung 16 times.

“Over the years if you get stung multiple times you start to build a tolerance,” she said.

Westbye is hoping to go to the International Meeting of Young Beekeepers in 2022 where junior beekeepers from all over the world will learn more about their craft.

Spots to go are limited so Westbye will participate in a series of tests to qualify to go.

The International Meeting of Young Beekeepers is a combination of competitions that will test participants theoretical and working knowledge of bees and beehives as well as a cultural and social program. The aim of the meeting is to connect young people with similar interests and continue the tradition of beekeeping.

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Fleming Establishes Two New Research Centres With Provincial and Federal Funding

Fleming College has been awarded nearly $8 million in long-term funding for two new applied research centres.

Fleming is also home to the Centre for Advancement in Water and Wastewater Technologies – an internationally recognized research centre that has been providing applied research and technology development services since 2005. Photo Courtesy of Fleming College.

The new additions will include a Centre for Advancement in Mechatronics and Industrial Internet of Things (CAMIIT) and Centre for Innovative Aquaculture Production (CIAP).

Both centres will receive $2 million in funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) to support research activity over the next five years. They will also receive $2 million from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) and the Ontario Research Fund College-Industry Innovation Fund (ORF-CIIF) to support the creation of the research spaces and fully-equipped laboratories.

“Both centres will build experience, capacity and expertise in emerging areas of applied research at the College,” said Brett Goodwin, Vice President, Applied Research and Innovation at Fleming. “Our researchers and students work shoulder-to-shoulder with industry partners to bring innovation to small and medium-sized businesses. This funding will ensure that more of our students will have opportunities to engage in high quality research and build vital skills and connections for their future careers.”

The CAMIIT will be at the Sutherland Campus and the CIAP will be at the Frost Campus in Lindsay.

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Peterborough Petes Mason McTavish Invited to Canada’s National Junior Team Summer Development Camp

Petes forward Mason McTavish has been invited to attend Canada’s National Junior Team summer development camp.

McTavish is one of 51 players that will attend the National Junior Team summer development camp. Photo Courtesy of The Peterborough Petes.

The camp will run from July 28 - August 4 at the Seven Chiefs Sportsplex on the Tsuut'ina Nation near Calgary.

McTavish will join Five goaltenders, 16 defencemen and 30 forwards, including his U18 Hockey Canada teammates Shane Wright and Brennan Othmann.

The camp will also feature combined practices and intrasquad games with players attending Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team summer development camp.

McTavish is currently ranked second amongst all North American Skaters and is the highest rated forward on NHL Central Scouting finalized rankings. The 6’2”, 207 lbs centre is a projected top 10 pick in 2021 NHL Draft.

While the OHL awaited the start of the 2020-21 season he was loaned to the e EHC Olten of the Swiss League where he amassed 11 points (nine goals, two assists) in 13 regular season games and seven points (two goals, five assists) in four playoff games.

The Petes will welcome the Sudbury Wolves for their home opener on Thursday, October 14 at 7:05 pm.

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Peterborough Musicfest is Returning as a Drive in Concert

Peterborough Musicfest is returning with its first ever drive in concert on August 29, 2021.

The Sam Roberts Band has been nominated for fifteen Juno Awards, winning six, including Artist of the Year (2004 and 2009) and Album of the Year (2004). Photo Courtesy of Peterborough Musicfest.

The Sam Roberts Band with special guest The Webbers Brothers Band will take to the Enbridge Energy Stage at the Memorial Centre for this free event.

“All Musicfest concerts are free of charge thanks to our incredible sponsors, says Musicfest board chair Paul Rellinger. “We’re so pleased we could partner with the Memorial Centre to bring our fans this show, it’s going to be a great time.”

Free-admission tickets to the show will be available starting at 10:00 a.m. on August 9 online or by phone at 705.743.3561.

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Local Recording Studio Looking to Break Out Past the Pandemic

The music industry has not been spared from the COVID-19 pandemic but David Joyce and Treblecock Studios are ready to make their mark on Peterborough as the province opens up.

Treblecock Studios is located at 159 King St. Suite 108 just off the corner of George Street in Dowtntown Peterborough. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

Joyce opened the recording studio in downtown Peterborough on June 2019. He was inspired to stay in Peterborough after a second date at the downtown music venue The Garnet for a live show. He had a home studio in Ajax during the time.

“I’m a bit of an old-school guy. I grew up loving music in the ‘70s and 80’s and the music scene everywhere was enormous,” said Joyce. “When I discovered Peterborough, it was like a snapshot in time. Live music is everywhere and I was really gravitated towards that.”

He was shut down since the world went into quarantine in March last year and closed up again on Boxing Day.

During the first quarantine period, he met local musician SJ (Sarah-Jayne) Riley through a Facebook acting group. The film industry was able to operate during the pandemic according to Joyce and recruited her as an actress.

They would take part in filming short films found on the studio’s Youtube page until Joyce heard of Riley’s singing ability.

The duo have collaborated on a number of songs and videos since meeting each other as a result.

Several of Riley’s songs were produced by Joyce and Treblecock Studios such as “Mansion of Broken Hearts” and “Whoever This Was Written To.”

Riley is performing her first major live gig at the PTBOLive Summer Concert Series this Friday, opening up for country music star Chad Brownlee.

Riley has performed in Peterborough twice in local venues such as the Dark Horse Pub and The Garnet. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

When Treblecock opened back up last month, Joyce noticed a surge of musicians that wanted to record music to regain a sense of normalcy for Peterborough.

“When I was able to open again this June, it feels like everybody wants to get in here and record some music that they've been writing during the pandemic,” said Joyce.

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95th Anniversary of Tragic Balsam Lake Accident Recognized With Film Screening

Today marks the 95th anniversary of a tragic accident on Balsam Lake. Brotherhood, a film depicting the event will be nationally broadcasted on Super Channel Entertainment Network at 7:15 p.m.

Newspaper clippings from 1926. Photo courtesy of Brotherhood1926.com.

In 1926 the Brotherhood of St. Andrew leadership camp located on Balsam Lake encountered a freak summer storm. Eleven boys died when their canoe was overturned by a large wave and they could not make it back to shore.

“It’s a transformative story about boys becoming men over the course of an evening,” said Director Richard Bell.

Crews began filming in 2017 and the first screening was on July 20, 2019 at Balsam Lake.

When the pandemic hit Canada screenings of the film were slowed due to theatres closing. When they re-opened briefly in the summer months the film was screened 127 times.

Image from the film Brotherhood - 2020 winner of the Canadian Screen Award for Achievement in Visual Effects. Photo Courtesy of brotherhood1926.com

Director Richard Bell says the COVID-19 pandemic has caused him to look at this film in a completely different way.

This film takes place ten years after the Spanish Flu pandemic and touches on themes like brotherhood, loss, grief, guilt, and trauma.

Director Richard Bell wears a shirt with the names of the boys lost in 1926. Photo Courtesy of Brotherhood1926.com.

“I didn’t know when I released the film that another pandemic was coming,” he said.

Bell recalls a line in the movie in which a character in crisis says ‘We can’t go back. We can only go through.’

“This last year has been so divisive,” he said. “I’ve seen neighbour turn against neighbor and people divide. What I want to say is the same as this character - we can’t go back we can only go through.”

The broadcast is poignantly timed to begin at 7:15 p.m as the boys would have been gathering on the dock to prepare for their adventure across the lake in 1926.

Super Channel titles are also available to access via Amazon Prime. Brotherhood is available to rent on Apple TV (iTunes), You Tube, Google Play and can be accessed on-demand through Shaw, Bell and Telus.

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