Thursday, November 12, 2009

Local Sports for Thursday November 12

Fort Frances Muskies court teams will be battling for NORWOSSA championships today in Kenora.

The junior girls and senior girls basketball teams along with the junior boys volleyball team, all earned byes to this afternoons finals.

The senior boys volleyball team plays Dryden in a semi-final match with the winner to meet Kenora.


Fort Frances Lakers host the Sioux Lookout Flyers tonight in the last of a three-game home stand.

Game time at the Ice for Kids Arena is 7:30


Joe Basaraba has made it official.

The former Fort Frances Muskies was one of the first players to forward signed letters of intent to play for the University of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs next season.

Basaraba is currently playing with Shattuck-St. Mary’s High School.

Yesterday was the first day for of an NCAA early signing period.


Fort Frances women's volleyball league continues play tonight.

A Buck or Two has opened up a 5 point bulge on Gillon's Insurance for the league lead.

Lac La Croix is in a tight battle for third with four other teams separated by just four points.

Local Sports for Tuesday November 10

Fort Frances Thunderhawks have their paperwork sorted out and will play their first game tonight against the Kenora Thistles.

The new senior hockey club was forced to cancel two games with the Thunder Bay Twins on the weekend after learning not all of its players had been signed in time to be covered through Hockey Canada insurance.

General Manager Dean Bruyere says the situation has been sorted out and tonight's games with the Thistles at the Ice for Kids arena is a go.

It starts at 7 p.m.

In Bantam girls play from Monday night, the BDO Dunwoody Stars tied Energy 1-1 in a goaltending battle between Shailyn Loyie and Callie Clendenning.

Danielle Jackson and Shelby Rea scored the goals for their respective teams.

Network Up for Award

Northern Diabetes Health Network is up for a provincial award.

The network's Northern Ontario Aboriginal Diabetes Initiative is among finalists for an Innovation in Health Care Award to be presented later this month in Toronto.

The Initiative helped identify priority needs of Aboriginal communities and organizations in dealing with diabetes among First Nations people.

Airport Usage

Almost 650 aircraft used the Fort Frances airport in August.

That's about a 6 per cent drop from the number recorded in July and a decline of nearly 13 per cent from that recorded in August 2008.

Of the airport users this August, 139 were private aircraft and 63 were international flights.

Contract Offer Declined

People looking to get their driver's licence are not going to be behind the wheel any time soon.

Ontario's striking driver examiners, represented by the United Steelworkers, have rejected DriveTest's latest offer by 78 per cent.

The strike, which began in August, affects 93 full-time and part-time DriveTest sites, including the one in Fort Frances.

Managers at some DriveTest centres in Ontario are giving driving exams while unionized employees are on strike.

Six locations, including one in Thunder Bay, opened today.

Only partial services will be offered: written tests for all classes of licences, road test for commercially classified licences and out-of-province or out-of-country licence exchanges.

Sixth Street School Plans

It could be some time before Community Living Fort Frances District determines exactly what it wants to do with the former Sixth Street School in Fort Frances.

The agency purchased the vacant school and property for a dollar from the Rainy River District School Board.

Executive Director Alanna Barr says it could be a resources centre, but there's a lot of planning to do first.

"We're just looking at our options," says Barr. "and considering what is our best options that will meet our need, not only in the long-term, but in the short term as well."

Barr says its likely the existing school will be demolished as it is not accessible and would be too costly to bring it up to standard.

Local Soldier Recognized

A Fort Frances area soldier currently on duty in Afghanistan is being hailed a hero.

Sergeant Russell Gregoirie was recently awarded the Medal of Military Valour for his actions in June 2008 in which he helped lead a group of soldiers to safety while under heavy fire.

His girlfriend Angela Halvorson says she's proud of his accomplishments.

"I think what he does over there is amazing," says Halvorson. "For them to recognize him for his efforts and the fact that he had to go above and beyond to do what he did is pretty amazing.

Halvorson says Gregoirie is now part of a troop providing security to a reconstruction team helping to rebuild war-torn areas of the country.

He's to receive his medal at a ceremony to be held at a later date.

Soldiers Remembered

Hundred of residents gathered at cenotaphs across the Rainy River district for Wednesday's Remembrance Day ceremonies.

In Fort Frances, Pastor Barb Miller asked that we never forget the sacrifice soldiers have made.

"May we never forgot the price that men, women and their families have paid so that we can live in freedom," said Miller. "May we generally honour them by working for peace."

Ceremonies were also highlighted by a group of young students from F.H. Huffman School reciting the poem "In Flanders Fields."

Parents Charged

The parents of two young children have been charged after OPP found the youngsters, one without clothes and the other wearing only a diaper, alone on a Kenora street.

The toddlers, aged one and two, were found around 4:30 a.m. Sunday.

Police were led to the children's home where they found the parents inside and a large quantity of marijuana.

A 42 year old man and a 38 year old woman face charges of failing to provide the necessaries of life, as well as drug trafficking charges.

The children have been turned over to Children's Aid.

Citizen of the Year Named

Fort Frances' Citizen of the Year says she's honoured but humbled by the recognition.

Diane Maxey was bestowed the honour in an announcement by Mayor Roy Avis last night.

Maxey says its an honour she accepts on behalf of the many people she works with.

"No one person ever does anything by themselves," says Maxey. "It takes many, many people. It takes a team to make anything work well. That's what I always been privileged and honoured to have with me, people who are committed and willing to do things. It's a great honour."

Maxey is best known for her development and direction of the Choraliers and the Rainy River Hand Bell Ringers

Northern Producers at Royal

There is a strong northwestern Ontario flavour to this year's Royal Winter Agricultural Fair in Toronto.

Seventeen different products from companies between Thunder Bay and Kenora are on display at this year's agricultural showcase.

Rural Agricultural Coordinator for the Rainy River Futures Development Corporation Jeannette Cawston says attendance at last year's event convince them to join forced with other communities this year.

"All of the Community Future Development Corporations are on side to send their product," says Cawston, "like Atikokan, Kenora, Thunder Bay, Dryden and Rainy River district. We have products from all those regions. So we're going there are a region and try to knock their socks off."

The fair includes a separate section for northern Ontario which Cawston says better help local producers promote their products to fair goers.

H1N1 Flu Shots Available to All

The Northwestern Health Unit is making the H1N1 vaccine available to the general public.

Acting medical officer of health Doctor James Arthurs says he feels that a majority of people in the priority groups who want the vaccine have received it, and it's times to open it up to others.

The first of a number of walk-in clinics will happen today (Tuesday) at Robert Moore School in Fort Frances.

The vaccination for pregnant women is available by appointment through the Northwestern Health Unit.

Crash Victims Identified

Two of three men who were killed in Friday's plane crash in a remote section of northwestern Ontario have been identified.

Cat Lake First Nation search coordinator Russell Wesley, says Ronald Ombash of Cat Lake and Dean Meekis, formerly of Deer Lake, were both passengers aboard the Lockhart Air Service charter plane that went down southwest of the community.

Wesley, who says he was related to both men, says their deaths are a great loss for the community and grief counselling has been made available.

The pilot has not yet been identified.

Seeding Money Announced

The province is setting aside six-million dollars to purchase $13.5-million tree seedlings for forest renewal.

Forestry Minister Michael Gravelle says the sector will eventually rebound and this will help ensure its future is strong.

He says 70 jobs will be created this winter for site preparation with another 420 planting jobs being added next summer.

Paper Machine Keeps Going

A paper machine at the AbitibiBowater mill in Fort Frances that was to shutdown at the end of October is being allowed to continue at least until the middle of December.

The extended operation of machine number six was identified in court documents filed last week as part of ongoing monitoring of the company during the creditor protection process.

A recent increase in customer orders is allowing the AbitibiBowater to continue operating the machine for up to an additional six weeks.

Pensions Up for Discussion

AbitibiBowater workers and former employees in the Fort Frances area will get an update today (Tuesday) on what's being done to protect their pensions.

Two sessions are part of a series of meetings hosted by the Communication, Energy and Paperworkers Union across eastern Canada.

Pensioners are to receive an update on what the company and union have proposed to maintain their benefits while the company restructures.

Contract talks were recently suspended until the two sides would talk with governments over the pension issue.

Deer Problems Discussed

Some residents in Fort Frances are looking for a solution to an increased presence of deer in the community.

About twenty property owners were at town council last night for a Ministry of Natural Resources presentation on the reasons behind deer being seen in town.

Helen Crook calls the damage caused by the animals a horrible problem.

"What can we do?," asked Crook. "We really need better bylaws. We need to have higher fences. We need some help. It's causing us endless amounts of trouble."

The town has a ban on the public feeding of deer, but the MNR says its going to take a couple of severe winters to help reduce the herds.