Pigs of Hope, upcoming events, free meals, ‘at-risk’ snakes

Morning Coffee – By Aaron Hall

Weather forecast from Friday, November 24, 2017 to Sunday, November 26, 2017

Today – Sunny. Wind becoming southwest 20 km/h gusting to 40 then increasing to 40 gusting to 60 near noon. High 10.

Tonight – Increasing cloudiness. 40 percent chance of showers overnight. Wind southwest 40 km/h gusting to 60 diminishing to 20 gusting to 40 near midnight then becoming northwest 20 gusting to 40 before morning. Low plus 5.

Saturday, November 25 – A mix of sun and cloud. 30 percent chance of showers late in the afternoon. Wind northwest 30 km/h gusting to 50. High 7.

Saturday night – Cloudy periods. Low minus 4.

Sunday, November 26 – A mix of sun and cloud. High 7.

Sunday night – Cloudy periods. Low minus 1.

Upcoming events

– The Catherine McVean Chapter IODE are holding their Tree of Tribute event on Friday night in Dresden. A tree lighting will take place at 7 p.m. at the corner of Metcalfe and St. George Street. The event supports the Dresden Community Health Foundation.

– A free clothing drive is taking place in Wallaceburg on Saturday, at Faith Baptist Church, located at 225 Nelson Street in Wallaceburg. The event is geared towards anyone in need. There will be clothes, coats, boots, shoes and other items for all ages. The drive will run from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

– Tupperville Zion United Church is holding a Christmas Craft Sale, running from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Tupperville Fire Hall. Baking, crafts, gifts, preserves & lots more will be available. A soup & sandwich lunch will be available for purchase and there will be free coffee.

– The 6th Annual Christmas Bazaar is taking place at the Walpole Island Sports Complex (Arena) on Saturday, November 25th, 2017 from 9am – 1:30pm.

– The Vaudevillian are playing in Wallaceburg on Saturday. Organizer say they are one of the most entertaining and unique blues bands in Canada today. Tickets are $25. The show at the Jeanne Gordon Theatre starts at 7 p.m.

– Looking ahead to next week, the Paint The Town Red event is taking place on ‘Giving Tuesday’ in support of the United Way of Chatham-Kent. Participating restaurants will be donating 25% of their daily pre-tax food sales. Participating restaurants in Wallaceburg include: James Street Eatery, The Black Goose Grill and The Clubhouse at Baldoon.

– The ‘Late Night Christmas Shoppin’ under one roof’ event is taking place in Dresden at the Old Czech Hall on Thursday Dec. 7. it will run from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. There will be 20 different vendors and there will be 50 swag bags for the first 50 people tom come through. Santa will alos be there. All proceeds will go to back to the Czech Hall.

– And finally, the Dresden Santa Claus parade, with the theme “A Truly Canadian Christmas” is taking place on Dec 9 at 6 p.m. It will coincide wth Dresden’s ‘Christmas Night Market’ running from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Free meals in Wallaceburg in December

Here is the free meals calendar for Wallaceburg:

Pigs of Hope are back supporting the Canadian Cancer Society

The Canadian Cancer Society Chatham-Kent Community Office is running their Pigs of Hope Campaign again this year in support of the Wheels of Hope Transportation Service.

The Wheels of Hope Transportation Service provides Chatham-Kent residents with transportation to and from cancer related appointments enabling them to focus on fighting cancer and not on how they will get to treatment.

In Ontario, 1 in 5 cancer patients cannot get to their cancer-related appointments because of physical or financial challenges.

Local Cancer Society officials say in 2016, Chatham-Kent volunteer drivers provided 219 cancer patients with 3,664 rides to their cancer related appointments.

“Our 37 volunteer drivers drove 347,221 kilometres,” Cancer Society officials said in a press release.

“These drivers took patients from Chatham-Kent to London, Windsor, Hamilton, and Toronto. The average cost to provide one ride to and from a cancer related appointment is approximately $50. A cancer patient typically rides with our Wheels of Hope Transportation Service 10 to 17 times, costing $500 to $850 per client.”

Chatham-Kent Residents can support their community by adopting a Pig of Hope during the campaign, which runs from November 13, 2017 to January 2, 2018.

With the average cost of one ride being $50, local Cancer Society officials are asking residents to pledge the cost of one or more rides.

“By feeding your Pig your spare change, you’ll be able to raise the amount. There will be a prize for the
best dressed Pig of Hope.”

To adopt a Pig of Hope, visit 746 Richmond Street in Chatham or call 519-352-3960.

‘At-risk’ snakes in the LTVCA region

The Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority continues to release information about aquatic species at risk in their watershed.

Here are some details about three different at-risk snakes:

Province and Chiefs of Ontario reaffirm commitment to work together toward reconciliation

Premier Kathleen Wynne and Ontario Regional Chief Isadore Day released this joint statement following the fourth annual Chiefs of Ontario Leaders in the Legislature event in Toronto:

“For the past three days, over 25 Provincial Cabinet Members and First Nations Chiefs from across the province met to discuss our shared interests, the challenges we face and the collaborative steps we are taking to move forward on our journey toward reconciliation.

Generations of oppression and abuse have created systemic inequality for First Nations people. These are complicated, multifaceted issues — but by actively coming together to create more opportunities and more fairness, we are addressing them.

Events like the Leaders in the Legislature are part of an ongoing process to rebuild — or, in some cases, build for the very first time — strong partnerships based on mutual trust, respect and fairness between Ontario and First Nations communities.

The productive conversations at this year’s forum surrounded three overarching themes: safe communities and cannabis; community well-being and lifelong learning; and environment, energy and infrastructure.

We discussed Ontario’s plans for the largest policing transformation in a generation, focusing on community safety and well-being. This includes the opportunity for First Nations communities to establish their own police service boards under provincial policing legislation, better enabling the provision of culturally responsive practices for the communities they serve.

Acknowledging the unique challenges for Ontario and the Chiefs of Ontario, we shared our thoughts on the safe and sensible regulation of the use and distribution of recreational cannabis. This is an issue that is closely related to building healthy and safe communities, whether it’s addressing concerns about health impacts on communities or exploring how First Nations communities could participate in retail and distribution. We agreed that all parties, including Canada, have much more work to do with First Nations immediately and into the future, engaging and consulting First Nations on implementation of cannabis programing.

And we talked about our plans to develop resources responsibly and equitably as partners. We share the desire to develop projects together in a way that uses traditional knowledge to protect land and water for future generations, and to make progress on negotiating resource revenue sharing arrangements for forestry and mining. We only have to think about the impacts that historical mercury discharges into the English and Wabigoon Rivers have had on Indigenous communities to understand why we need to be vigilant about protecting the environment and working in partnership with First Nations.

As an example of Leaders in the Legislature activities, the presentation of a four corner table process highlighted the value in bringing together all four orders of government — First Nations, municipalities, the province and the federal government — in order to promote community safety and eliminate the racism and violence encountered by far too many First Nations people in urban areas. In the weeks and months to come, there will be more four corner table national engagements, with a report to be presented in July 2018 at the Assembly of First Nations’ Annual General Assembly in Vancouver.

The work to rebuild trust and community is ongoing and sometimes difficult, but the progress we are making is real. We still have so much to do in order to bring about real and lasting change for this generation, our children and our grandchildren. Today, we recommit to taking the necessary steps to strengthen our government-to-government relationship and, most importantly, create more fairness and opportunities for First Nations communities across Ontario.”