COVID-19 Booster Dose Eligibility Expanded to 18 Years Old As Of Monday
/Starting Monday, the provincial government will be expanding eligibility for COVID-19 booster doses to all residents turning 18 years of age or older in 2021.
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Peterborough Blogs
StoosNews Spotlight: Check Out The Business Beat This Week Featuring Ancient Trail Soap, Friendlily, Renew MediSpa and Anne Marshall
/PTBOCanada is delighted to be running StoosNews columns each week here, spotlighting new businesses and startups in Peterborough and the Kawarthas. Here is this week’s edition…
Ancient Trail Soap is Bay Morgan’s new online retail company. Bay offers milk soaps that are all natural and handmade in small batches using locally sourced ingredients first.
Goat’s milk, olive oil and coconut oil are used as the primary ingredients and no palm oil or synthetics are added. Each batch of soap is made using the “cold process” with botanicals and clays for colour, taking a cure time of six weeks. Choose from many different types, colours, exfoliants, and fragrances from their online shop ancienttrailsoap.com
Jim Riches has taken his years of experience in the charitable sector and turned it into a unique new online shopping experience that features a percentage of every online sale going to a charity of your choice.
Nationwide, the website is designed to bring businesses, consumers and charities together in an everybody-wins scenario. When you visit the site you can explore the charities, the businesses, the products, and when you make a purchase, a percentage goes to the charity you choose. So, whether you are a charity, a business, or a consumer, check it all out at friendlilyshop.com
Roxanne McDonald-Brown created Renew MediSpa to deliver high-quality medical aesthetic services and advanced spa treatments to her clients.
Roxanne is a Registered Practical Nurse, with specialized certificates in Advanced Foot Care and Medical Aesthetic Practitioner. She and her staff offer a suite of services including laser hair removal, chemical peels, microdermabrasion, deep moisture facials and many more. Located at 755 Lock Street, check out renewptbo.com
Congratulations to Anne Marshall of Elmhirst Resort on her recent induction into the Tourism Industry Association of Canada Hall of Fame.
Peterborough is teeming with people who deserve this sort of national recognition, and Canada’s Volunteer Awards is currently looking for nominees. Recognizing the contributions of volunteers for not-for-profits, social enterprises, businesses or individuals. Just search for volunteer awards at Canada.ca.
Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy's Celtic Family Christmas Had The Memorial Centre Tapping Their Toes All Night Long
/Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy, along with their family and friends, put on an electrifying night of Celtic music at the Peterborough Memorial Centre on Friday Night.
All seven children made an appearance on stage, ranging in age from 3 to 16.
While the night was mainly celtic music, Donnell noted that his band members from all over the world have influenced his music style.
Notes of jazz, Latin music and of course Celtic tunes could be heard throughout the night.
Two Advocacy Groups Hosted 'Treat In The Street' Event Friday
/Friends Peterborough, along with Street Level Advocacy hosted ‘Treat in the Street’ outside the Friends office on Friday.
Scott Couper and David Fisher outside Friends Peterborough. Photo by Angela O’Grady.
Initially, ‘Eat on The Street’ was meant to be an event during which chili was distributed to anyone passing by though, due to COVID protocols, volunteers passed out hot chocolate, baked goods and care packages and changed the name to ‘Treat In The Street’.
Care packages included things like warm clean socks, toques, mittens and hygiene products.
David Fisher, Friends Peterborough, organized the event in partnership with Scott Couper, Street Level Advocacy.
In October Friends Peterborough celebrated their tenth anniversary. They are a group based out of Selwyn Outreach Centre, though they emphasize that their mission is not to ‘convert’ anyone they help.
“We’re not here to convert people, we’re not outwardly Christian - we just try to treat people the way that Jesus would,” said Fisher. “If they thought Friends Peterborough was a Christian organization some might hesitate to come in.”
Friends Peterborough assists those in need with things like filling out applications for for financial aid, contacting social services and providing locations of food banks etc.
They also file income taxes for free year round.
“We’re the only organization in town that does that for free all year round. A lot of our people are on ODSP or Ontario Works so they get different benefits. If they don’t file their taxes on time their benefits get suspended until they file. A lot of people living on the street won’t know how to do taxes, or they just don’t have the means to do them.”
Street Level Advocacy is a new organization, operating out of the Friends Peterborough office.
Currently, Couper is the sole volunteer but hopes that in the new year he is able to recruit more people.
Couper has been a pastor in the Peterborough area for ten years, and just recently decided he would like to take those skills to the street and help those in need.
His main goal is directing people towards any resources available that may apply to them.
For those looking to contribute, both Friends Peterborough and Street Level Advocacy are accepting physical donations for their care packages during the winter months.
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Local Chambers And Rural Businesses Are Asking The Community For Support This Holiday Season
/The Hometown Holiday campaign, organized by four local chambers of commerce is underway, and encouraging Peterborough County and the Kawarthas to support local businesses and shops located in the city and surrounding townships.
“I can appreciate that it’s a different experience in smaller communities - in the best way,” said Joel Wiebe, Peterborough Chamber. “When you go into the smaller communities around Peterborough County you experience that quaintness that we love about these communities.”
While Wiebe acknowledges how important local businesses are within the city of Peterborough, he points out how unique small businesses that are located outside the city can be.
“They’re not trying to be a big city, you can be so in touch with the people you’re buying from. It has a whole other level of community feel to it,” he said.
“Now more than ever it is very important that people support the small businesses in their community so the businesses can continue to be there for the community in the future,” said Bernadette MacNeil, owner Millbrook Mercantile.
The Millbrook Mercantile is a mix of both retail and culinary products. They source locally whenever possible, and provide everything from health and beauty to gourmet food.
“Because we don’t have any big box stores out here, I think its super important that the community try to get an mush shopping done locally and then if they need, leave whatever big purchases for your Costco runs - just get as much done here and limit your purchases at the bigger stores.”
“We rely on locals to keep us going, because cottagers come up all summer long and then ts just locals over the winter- we try to keep them happy the best we can and keep the shelves full,” said Lynn Northup, assistant manager at Havelock Home Hardware.
Located about 40 minutes from Peterborough and 15 minutes from Cambellford, small shops in Havelock may be the only option for some residents that are unable to drive.
“We’re surrounded by little towns, but this town has so much to offer so if you don’t drive this is the only place you can get most of your stuff so we try to stock as much as we can so people have that option.”
Located between Lakefield and Peterborough is Garden Style Bridgenorth, an almost 20 year old business that attributes their success to the support of their community.
“The key element of shopping local is that youre supporting someone that lives in your community,” said Michelle Gay, owner. “If people don’t shop in these little stores there just not going to be around anymore - because we need the people in our community to maintain our business.”
Garden Style carries a wide range of décor items, all focusing on being unique.
“Most of the people who shop here are people who live here or the immediate area - so those people rely on the smaller shops bc they don’t want to have to drive into the city. So, if you don’t have those small shops people would have to make that commute to get what they need. We rely on our community to support our business.”
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Norwood Lights Up The Town For Christmas
/The Township of Asphodel Norwood has organized their annual Light Up The Township map and will be hosting their Holiday Night market on Saturday night.
Photo courtesy of the Township of Asphodel Norwood.
The township has compiled a list of houses decorated in the area and mapped them out in an interactive, online map.
Anyone who’s home or business is featured on the map is automatically entered in a random draw.
The first place draw will receive a $250 gift card from The Christmas Corner (2351 County Rd 45). The second prize is a fresh cookie Platter from Florna Sweets, and the third prize is a fresh turkey from Hiltz Butcher Shop.
There is also an opportunity for fans to vote for the best display. The house with the most votes will win a fresh turkey donated by Ralphs Butcher Shop.
Houses can be viewed online, and votes submitted here.
The township is also gearing up for a Holiday Night market, happening on Saturday from 5 - 8 p.m.
County Road 45 will be closed from Hwy. 7 to Alma Street, and transformed into a winter wonderland.
Visitors can enjoy music, Christmas characters and shop with local vendors.
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Local Creamery Fills the Truck With Over 5,000 Pounds of Goods For Local Food Bank
/After roughly 5,000 pounds of food and $9363.50 later, Central Smith Creamery’s “Fill the Truck” campaign was a success in making their donation to Kawartha Food Share (KFS) on Friday.
(from left to right) Jenn Scates, Central Smith Creamery co-owner; Ashlee Aitken, Kawartha Food Share general manager; Ian Scates, Central Smith Creamery co-owner and Derek Fraser, Central Smith Creamer truck driver piled among the totes and bins of the food collections from over 40 different businesses. Photo by David Tuan Bui.
The Selwyn creamery asked over 20 businesses to be drop-off locations for the collected goods from Nov. 26 to Dec. 17. Once the campaign caught on, it quickly grew to over 40 participating businesses and organizations.
“The Women’s Business Network (of Peterborough) was a big help in getting it up to 40 as well as our network of people in the height of the pandemic,” explained Jenn Scates, Central Smith Creamery co-owner. “We reached out to local businesses and highlighted them in our reel and we just reached out to those people again and asked if they wanted to be on board and many of those people jumped into this.”
@ptbo_canada @central_smith is helping others have a wonderful Christmas Time with their food drive for Kawartha Food Share! ##wonderfulchristmastime ##fooddrive
♬ Wonderful Christmastime - Edited Version / Remastered 2011 - Paul McCartney
Scates along with husband and co-owner Ian highlighted notable donors such as Kawartha Metals Corporation donating $5,000, Kawartha Orthodontics matching the cash donations made at the Creamery dollar for dollar and Chemong Public School organized their own food drive to contribute. The couple was grateful to all participants in the campaign.
When Central Smith dropped off the goods to KFS, Ashlee Aitken, KFS general manager believes that the total goods could weigh more than 5,000 pounds. An official weight will be determined over the weekend.
"I had full expectations that they would fill the truck but seeing it here in person and fill it to the brim is just absolutely insane," she said.
The food will be distributed to 37 food agencies affiliated with KFS. Donated toys will be given to the Salvation Army.
“It's exciting to be a part of Peterborough and we've always said it's one of the most generous communities that anyone could live in," said Ian. "We feel so grateful and fortunate to be a part of it."
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Ontario Government Placing Tighter Restrictions To Help Curb Omicron COVID Variant
/The Ontario government is applying additional public health and workplace safety measures in order to limit the rapidly spreading and highly transmissible Omicron variant of COVID-19 announced Friday.
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The restrictions include capacity and social gathering limits to help curb transmission and continue to safeguard Ontario’s hospitals and ICU capacity as the province continues to rapidly accelerate its booster dose rollout.
“Throughout this entire pandemic, we’ve never faced an enemy like Omicron given how quickly it spreads,” said Doug Ford Premier. “We need to do everything we can to slow its spread as we continue to dramatically ramp up capacity to get as many booster shots into arms as possible. Doing so is the best way to safeguard our hospital and intensive care units.”
The latest modelling suggests that the increased transmissibility of the Omicron variant could put additional strain on Ontario’s hospital capacity, making it critical to slow the spread as the government dramatically increases vaccine capacity and expands eligibility for third booster doses according to the Ontario Government.
The province recently doubled its vaccination capacity and continues to ramp up further to get as many vaccines into arms as possible. Over 156,000 doses were administered on Dec. 16 with capacity increased to 200,000 to 300,000 in the coming days.
To further strengthen its response to Omicron and reduce opportunities for close contact as the province gets as many vaccines into arms as possible, Ontario is introducing a 50 per cent capacity limit in the following indoor public settings:
Restaurants, bars and other food or drink establishments and strip clubs
Personal care services
Personal physical fitness trainers
Retailers (including grocery stores and pharmacies)
Shopping malls
Non-spectator areas of facilities used for sports and recreational fitness activities (e.g. gyms)
Indoor recreational amenities
Indoor clubhouses at outdoor recreational amenities
Tour and guide services
Photography studios and services
Marinas and boating clubs
These limits do not apply to any portion of a business or place that is being used for a wedding, a funeral or a religious service, rite or ceremony. Businesses or facilities will also need to post a sign stating the capacity limits that are permitted in the establishment.
To further reduce the spread of COVID-19 and the Omicron variant, additional protective measures are also being applied:
The number of patrons permitted to sit at a table will be limited to 10 people and patrons will be required to remain seated in restaurants, bars and other food or drink establishments, meeting and event spaces and strip clubs.
Bars and restaurants, meeting and event spaces and strip clubs will be required to close by 11:00 p.m. Takeout and delivery will be permitted beyond 11:00 p.m.
Dancing will not be allowed except for workers or performers.
Food and/or drink services will be prohibited at sporting events; concert venues, theatres and cinemas; casinos, bingo halls and other gaming establishments; and horse racing tracks, car racing tracks and other similar venues.
The sale of alcohol will be restricted after 10:00 p.m. and consumption of alcohol in businesses or settings after 11:00 p.m.
In addition, to mitigate COVID-19 transmission that can occur at informal social gatherings, the province is also reducing social gathering limits to 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors.
These restrictions will come into effect at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday.
“This was not an easy decision to make before the holidays, but the evidence is clear that further public health measures are required to slow the spread of Omicron and prevent our hospitals from being overwhelmed,” said Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “As we expand booster eligibility and continue our Team Ontario effort to get as many shots into arms as possible, I am urging every single person to get their vaccine if they haven’t already done so, and sign up for their booster shot as soon as possible.”
In addition, in response to emerging global evidence of substantial increased transmissibility of the Omicron variant, the Chief Medical Officer of Health is updating the personal protective equipment requirements outlined in Directive 5 to provide interim guidance to require N95s for health care workers providing direct care to or interacting with a suspected, probable or confirmed case of COVID.
“As the rapidly spreading Omicron variant becomes the dominant strain of COVID-19 in Ontario, it is necessary to apply additional public health and workplace safety measures to reduce transmission, protect our health system and save lives,” said Dr. Kieran Moore, Chief Medical Officer of Health. “We all have a role to play in keeping ourselves, friends, families, neighbours and communities safe this holiday season. Please follow all public measures and get vaccinated with your first, second or booster dose if you have not done so already. Omicron will not take a holiday.”
The government and the Chief Medical Officer of Health will continue to monitor trends in key public health and health care indicators, including emerging data on the Omicron variant and will continue to take swift action to ensure the health and safety of Ontarians according to the press release.
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United Way Of The City Of Kawartha Lakes Receives $40,000 From Crayola Canada
/Crayola Canada presented a cheque for $40,000 to United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes this week.
Mike Soehner and Paul Murphy from Crayola Canada present a cheque for $40,000 to Penny Barton Dyke, Shantal Ingram and Emily Beall from the United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes. Photo courtesy of United Way of the City of Kawartha Lakes.
While COVID has forced the cancellation of many charitable special events corporations like Crayola Canada still supported United Way.
In addition to the $40,000 donation, employees raised $6,818.96 through their workplace campaign. This is the highest workplace campaign for Crayola to date.
“Our company has had a long-standing relationship supporting United Way CKL - more than 30 years. We are dedicated to our commitment toward corporate social responsibility in the community. We know people in our community need help more than ever as we move through the pandemic and we are proud that we can continue to support the important efforts of the UWCKL” said Paul Murphy, General Manager of Crayola Canada.
Although the annual Crayola Sale has had to be cancelled for a second year in a row, United Way Executive Director, Penny Barton Dyke said, “Crayola has always been outstanding in its support of our work and we have developed a deeper partnership through the Edwin Binney’s Community Garden. The garden is a multi-pronged approach to issues of food security and supporting food programs and in addition it is an education centre. With the use of this land owned by Crayola, we have produced over 34,400 pounds of food to date that has been donated to agencies to help fight hunger in Kawartha Lakes and in Haliburton areas.”
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Two New Dogs Join the Peterborough Police Service's K9 Unit
/The Peterborough Police Service’s team just got furrier and cuter with two new dogs joining the K9 unit announced Friday.
Gryphon. Photo Courtesy of Peterborough Police Service.
Police Service Dog (PSD) Gryphon is an 18-month-old Dutch Shepherd. He just completed his 15-week training course with handler PC Wentworth run by the Niagara Regional Police Service. Gryphon is now certified for general-purpose patrol.
K9 Gryphon is trained in human scent detection and location, suspect apprehension, article detection, handler protection, and narcotics detection.
Mag. Photo Courtesy of Peterborough Police Service.
