Hockey Skills to Revive dying school
Norwood ON: Rather than close their high school, the people of this town just east of Peterborough have decided to inaugurate a hockey skills program for both grades seven and eight, as well as a girls hockey program starting in September 2005. The idea behind the girls program is to provide opportunities for the women hockey players to apply successfully for American scholarships to schools with hockey programs.
They’re going to build a new arena ($4 million) immediately adjacent to the school, in the hopes of attracting at least 25 students each year, from the pool of students who might otherwise drop out of school altogether, or move to larger secondary schools
The town population of 1,300 believes, along with the principal of the school, Leigh Facey-Crowder, that when a town of this size loses its high school, it also loses its kids. The school is really the organic centre of the community, and the townsfolk do not want either to atrophy into oblivion.
The idea for the hockey program came from a 17-year-old female student who recognized that the sport is as important to the town as the fall fair. “Its Canadians’ culture. We’re in a hockey-mad area!” chimed in the co-ed at a public meeting of the whole community. Two other schools in Ontario, in Hamilton and Thunder Bay have noticed a positive response to a hockey skills curriculum.
Principal, Facey-Crowder, quoted in The Star report, June 27, 2004, says:
“We know we’re going to have some kids who are simply going to be better in school, better in classes, because they’re doing something they can be really successful at.”
Court Awards Damages to former Employee, in Wrongful Dismissal suit
Toronto: Former Rosedale Golf Club manager, Michael Geluch, recently won a wrongful dismissal suit against the club. In her judgement, Madam Justice Susan Himel of the Superior Court wrote: “He was not treated fairly by his employer and was not afforded any opportunity to tell his side of the story or to respond in any way.”
Geluch won damages of $250,000.
Geluch’s lawyer, Malcolm MacKillop commented: (as reported by Peter Edwards in The Star, June 26, 2004)
“I think this is very important in sending out a message to employers that they must do a full and fair investigation of someone prior to dismissing them for cause.”
There is some question about the firing having come in response to Geluch’s support for membership of George Cohon, founder and senior Chairman of McDonald’s Restaurants Canada. Mr. Cohon was admitted in 1997, the first Jewish member since the founding of the Club in 1893.
GOD is Not on the Ballot…but you’d never know in the U.S.
Religion and Politics: For a country that espouses a formal and legal separation of church and state, the U.S is spiraling dangerously close to annihilation of the principle. George W. Bush, an avowed born-again fundamentalist wraps himself and his campaign in “Godliness” at every stump appearance. His opponent, John Kerry, a very private Roman Catholic, is having to dodge the arrows of his Episcopate, many of whom are vowing to their priests to refuse any Roman Catholic from receiving Communion who takes a position on same sex marriages and on a woman’s right to decide (on abortions) that opposes the position of the Vatican and the church.
In the U.S. the percentage of admitted born-again fundamentalist, evangelical Christians reaches, by some polls, somewhere between 30 and 40% of the people. In Canada, the figure is more like 10-15%.
Head of Canada’s Christian College, Charles McVety, is quoted, before the June 28th election as saying, “What I’m most pleased about is that we are witnessing the consequence of a political party’s decision to desecrate marriage.” (The Star, June 26, 2004). He is also president of Canadian Family Action Coalition, which sent out some 300,000 voter cards showing how MP’s voted on a bill protecting sexual orientation in the Criminal Code, on the use of human embryos for research and some other votes. Without telling people how to vote, the cards championed ‘pro-family’ views.
Both the Canadian Jewish Congress and the Coalition of Muslim Organizations are involved in activities which include interviewing candidates ( by the CJC) to determine their perspective on Canada-Israel relations and all candidates’ meetings. They also claim not to tell people how to vote. However, the Canadian Islamic Congress did warn Muslims about voting for Stephen Harper, saying his plans for an “aggressive militant foreign policy” will divert funds from health and social programs.
In Toronto, one candidate indicates he received up to 30 questionnaires every day, inquiring about his positions.
The Canadian Prime Minister had to make a decision on whether or not to meet with the Dalai Lama, when he was in Ottawa. Such a move might have flustered some observers. It seems not to have caused even a ripple in the electorate.
Nevertheless the Roman Catholic Bishop of Calgary, Fred Henry, is quoted as saying publicly, (The Star, June 26, 2004) that Mr. Martin’s pro-choice view and support of same-sex unions showed signs of “moral incoherence” and was a scandal in the Catholic community. The Roman Catholic archbishop in Kingston wrote in the diocesan newspaper that it was “cowardice” for Catholic leaders to claim that abortion on demand is a “sign of Canada’s tolerance and goodness.”
Current Edition:
Hockey Skills to Revive dying school
(June 30, 2004)
Previous Articles
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(February 28, 2003)
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