An awards ceremony Sunday at police headquarters will tell the story of how Western Union agent, Laura Lodato, saved an elderly 53 Division couple from losing $2,800 to telephone conmen. The honour will come to Ms. Lodato and 21 other Toronto residents for their unselfish efforts to help fellow citizens in a ceremony attended by police board members and Chief Saunders. List of award winners and their stories here.

Nice recounting of Saturday night’s gathering on Hanna Rd. at the Radford family Leaf Shack by Nitish Bissonauth. It includes video of the ravages of last week’s ice storm and voluntary contribution of moneys to CAMH. Leafs won 4-3 and return to ACC Monday for Game 6.

Jubilation as Leafs hang on to win Game 5 by a score of 4-3 in Boston. Game 6 goes Monday at Air Canada Centre. There was joy in the Hanna Rd. Leaf Shack Saturday night.

• Go Leafs Go
• Leafs YouTube after game page
• Leafs survive Bruins’ frenzied rally, avoid repeat of 2013 collapse

The @MapleLeafs take Game 5 and are coming back home 🙌🏽 Get ready for Game 6 Monday night! 🏒 #GoLeafsGo 💙 pic.twitter.com/AZlUnYVxBG

— Virgin Radio Toronto (@VirginRadioTO) April 22, 2018

The love of old-fashioned plastic records and perhaps youthful curiosity seem part of a commercial phenomenon known as Record Store Day. This was the day — it was number 12 — and there was a long lineup to get into Sonic Boom Records at 215 Spadina. City News.

Mayor inspects electric bus/CBC

Charging stations top up buses on route/New Flyer

Canadian-built electric buses that re-charge at stations along the route are now in revenue service with Winnipeg Transit. They’re made by the New Flyer Company in the Manitoba capital. Saturday, Mayor Tory inspected the New Flyer bus and all-electric buses made by two other companies, BYD of China and Proterra of California. The TTC will begin testing buses from all three companies in a purchase of ten from each firm in 2019. The vehicles eliminate emissions of any kind. The battery technology by which they re-charge permits them to run fuel free without overhead wires, and without constricting tracks that foul traffic and make any kind of breakdown a total nightmare. Of course no one at City Hall wants to talk about getting rid of streetcars yet. We can dream.

Recycling at EYTC

Gently-used footwear

Davisville Dragon bags

It is a week since we watched the ice build up on everything outside the front door. This sunny change was used by thousands to get about important chores like recycling old TV sets (and other electronics) at the Leaside Rotary dumpster in the East York Town Centre parking lot (left). Centre, a glimpse of the hundreds of shoes and clothing items for kids, all gently used, at the Davisville Public School sale. At right, dragon bags were sold for $15 to hold as much as you could stuff into them.

No winning ticket was sold for the $33 million jackpot in Friday night’s Lotto Max draw That means the jackpot for the next Lotto Max draw on Apr. 27 will grow to approximately $50 million, and there will be two Maxmillions prizes of $1 million each up for grabs.

Looking south towards McRae/Merton

Cleaning time

South Bayview streets were clogged with traffic that otherwise would be on the Don Valley Parkway Saturday. The DVP is being cleaned this weekend. It will be the same tomorrow but maybe not quite as bad. The lineup of vehicles on Moore Ave waiting to turn left onto the Bayview extension was backed up past Mallory Crescent. Bayview Ave through the business district was like morning and afternoon rush hour together. And so it went. The parkway re-opens Monday at 5 a.m.

Toronto Sun

CTV

Barry Matthew/Hamilton

Police departments across southern Ontario are asking business owners to consider whether they really need an ATM in their stores. This as the province has experienced an orgy of crash and yank ATM thefts that’s running at 58 since January of 2017. The pattern of overnight attacks by thieves in a stolen vehicle, usually a pickup truck, is familiar to cops. They have occurred at businesses in Brant, Waterloo, Hamilton, Owen Sound and Niagara, OPP. “These guys are driving these trucks right into these businesses, right through the windows — plate glass windows and doors — and it’s not hard to break glass with a truck,” said OPP Sergeant Dave Rektor. “Everybody has these machines with lots of money in them and they’re easy targets for thieves,” he said. Damage to a single building ranges from $20,000 to $250,000 and in some cases has left it structurally unsound. The loss of the ATM averages about $10,000, plus repair costs and loss of revenue while the store is closed, police said, while the average profit from an ATM is approximately 20 cents for every $20 dispensed.

NZ PM Jacinda Arern and Clarke Gayforde

Queen and PM

Maori cloak is a Korowai

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was a distinguished presence at the Commonwealth meeting in London this week. Ms. Ardern, who was present with her partner Clarke Gayforde, is expecting. She wore an elegant Maori cloak called a Korowai. Her toast at Buckingham Palace is worth a listen. Could we transplant this woman to the Canadian Commons please? Then, also distinguished, Ottawa inventor Midia Shikh Hassan, honoured by the Queen for her work in the making of prosthetics. Below that, drop in at the Met in New York and catch a phrase or two of Verdi’s melodic Luisa Miller. The stars are luminous. Finally, soprano Greta Bradman talks of her love and admiration of her granddad, a cricket star who was also a composer. Distinguished. You bet.