Wheel-Trans bus hits man, dogs on Kingston Rd. sidewalk

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trans A man and two dogs were knocked unconscious by a Wheel-Trans bus when it veered onto the sidewalk at Kingston Rd. and Main St Wednesday. morning. The man as taken to hospital and the dogs were being treated at an animal hospital, police said. They are not sure what caused the Wheel-Trans bus to go out of control. Paramedics said the pedestrian seemed to have life-threatening injuries and a second man, the driver, was also taken to hospital. One dog was found on scene without vital signs.. Rescuers had to be careful because the bus struck a hydro pole and brought down wires. Photo by Ian Caldwell via Twitter 

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Bully and the Beanstalk funny, thoughtful for CGS children

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CGS students get the joke at performance of Bully and the Beanstalk

CGS students had a special treat this week when the school’s Parent Association engaged Michael McMurtry of Merry Tale Theatre to present his one man show Bully and the Beanstalk to the whole school. This creative children’s theatre featured Jack of the original Beanstalk fable in a stage presentation that was funny, thoughtful and inspiring. (picture above shows some of the funny part). Jack learned how to be brave and stand up to the bully Brandon with a little help from a great cast of characters. Two CGS students and one staff member were part of the action. Well done Grade 4 students, Isabella and Elie and Grade 1 teacher, Jordan.

PARENT ASSOCIATION

The CGS Parent Association sponsors a special event/workshop for the children every term. This one counts among the best events to date. The children learned about why bullies may behave as they do and strategies to use if you are being bullied, all while being incredibly entertained. Michael’s story empowers children on both sides of the issue to ask questions and show empathy. If you have a chance to see this show or invite Micheal to your school, take it.

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Michael McMurty of Merry Tale Theatre

 

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Instructive moment from Bully and the Beanstalk

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CGS teacher Jordan (right) helps tell Beanstalk fable

NEWS BRIEFS: Western doctors transplant a hand

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Doctor of the University Health Network working at Western Hospital  have transplanted a forearm and hand in a procedure that lasted about 14 hours. The transplant recipient is a 49-year-old woman who had lost her arm below the elbow in an accident years some The surgery was led by Dr. Steven McCabe, director of the Toronto Western Hospital’s hand and upper extremity transplant program. He was part of a surgical team in Louisville, Ky., that performed the world’s first successful hand transplant in 1999. There have been more than 110 hand transplants worldwide but this is the first in Canada.

TWO TRACKS have reopened on the Lakeshore West GO Transit line and regular service is resuming after a person was struck near the Port Credit station Tuesday afternoon. GO Transit says the person, who was struck on the westbound line, has died. Peel Paramedics could not confirm the age or gender of the victim.

MAYOR TORY AND PRIME MINISTER TRUDEAU will meet privately for 45 minutes before the two hold a news conference at City Hall Wednesday. .Hope is higH there will an announcement about funding for the Smart Track project.  Before his meeting at City Hall, Trudeau will be at the MaRS Discovery District where the Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (CCRM) says “a major announcement with a global impact” will be made.

Josh Matlow meeting aimed at getting rid of the OMB

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Councillor Josh Matlow has sent out a release about a meeting on January 26, 2016 at North Toronto Collegiate, 17 Broadway Ave.to discuss how he and others can “free Toronto from the OMB” That’s the Ontario Municipal Board. The release indicates the proceedings will be structured as a panel discussion moderated by Christopher Hume, of the Toronto Star, with contributions by Mr. Matlow, Peter Baker of the umbrella group of residents associations FoNTRA, MPP Peter Milczyn and Kerri Voumakis of the City Planning Department. Time is 7 p.m.

GM returns to cabriolet market with the Buick Cascada

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The Detroit Auto Show opened today and for the first time since its 2009 bankruptcy, General Motors has returned to the family convertible or cabriolet market in North America. What’s a cabriolet look like?  You can see dozens every day on Bayivew Ave in the snow. They’re called BMW, Audi, Mercedes and VW. In fact, General Motors makes a German cabriolet too. It’s called the Opel there. So much better than a Mustang or Camaro.

JACKPOT? When lives fall apart after a lottery win

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Here is a wrenching story from CNN about lottery winners who lose it all and in many cases die in the aftermath of being given enormous wealth. This happens everywhere and gives testament again to the truth that poverty is caused not by a lack of money but by human behaviour. Most government lotteries in North America have counselling on how not to lose winnings. But no one can force winners to listen. By the way, the jackpot for Wednesday’s Powerball drawing in the U.S. has grown to $1.4 billion, the world’s largest lottery prize.

TORONTO BAKERY SELLS POWERBALL TICKETS

World Class Bakers on St. Clair Ave. West at Humewood Drive is giving away up to 500 Powerball tickets with every purchase of $20 or more Tuesday and Wednesday. Canadians are allowed to buy tickets for the jumbo multi-state lottery, but they are not sold in Canada. Some adventurous people have driven to Buffalo and spent 20 minutes in the U.S. to obtain one. Websites offer to purchase tickets on behalf of Canadians, Powerball cautions people against doing so. The tickets themselves cost US$2. The Powerball draw takes place at 11 p.m. on Wednesday.

FRANK McKENNA: 70% of refugees head to 3 biggest cities

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Frank McKenna

Frank McKenna says the federal government should require more Syrian refugees to settle in Atlantic Canada, The former New Brunswick premier and now TD Bank deputy chairman says the region badly needs more and younger people. While the efforts to bring Syrian refugees to the country have been successful, the handling of immigration in general has not, says McKenna. “It is not a Canadian success story at present in terms of widespread distribution; 70 per cent of all immigrants now go to the three major cities, and we only get 2.5 per cent of immigrants in Atlantic Canada, so we are not receiving our fair share of immigrants,” he said in an interview Monday. McKenna, a Liberal, is one of the most respected former politicians in Canada.