Frosty's food drive exceeds expectations

By Chris Lewis | April 8, 2021

This year’s food drive by the Frosty Festival committee and the Mount Pearl Sports Alliance was one of the most successful yet, despite the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

That’s according to Frosty Festival chairperson Robert Hayes, who like dozens of other Mount Pearl volunteers, braved the damp, cold weather conditions Saturday to man reception points for donations of food and money from the city’s citizens. All week leading up the event, members of the city’s business community showed up early to make their contributions too.

Hayes admitted the success of this year’s food drive was slightly unexpected, given as how the past year has been a rough one for many people and small businesses.

“It went really well … One of the best ones we’ve done yet I would say,” Hayes said, noting that although they had yet to do a proper tally of all the food and money received, it was clear it would be well over what they had anticipated.

“This was a rough year, and we know that some of the people who had been donating for a long time now find themselves needing the food bank’s services,” Hayes added. “Food banks play a very important role, and right now the number of people making use of them is even more than it was a year or two ago. That’s why things like this food drive are so important right now.”

Hayes said that under normal circumstances, the donations from the food drive are kept and sorted at some local churches or schools but, since it would be difficult to get people in and out of those buildings, Hayes’ employer, Old Dutch, stepped in to provide the space needed. For the time being, that is where the food donations will be held while they are counted up for a final tally before being sent out to the food banks.

Hayes anticipates the final numbers will be ready by this weekend.

Some local businesses came forward with donations upwards of $5,000.

“Really, it was great to see it do so well this year,” said the Frosty chief. “Like I said, we all know the food banks need some extra help these days, and that’s what this was all about.”

Stoyles hits the ground running as Mount Pearl North's new MHA

By Chris Lewis | April 1, 2021

Lucy Stoyles spent over 20-years on Mount Pearl city council. Now, she has stepped up to the role of MHA.

Stoyles, a familiar face to many residents of Mount Pear after first stepping into city politics about 25 years ago, announced late last year she would not be running again in the upcoming municipal election.

As Mount Pearl residents soon found out however, that did not mean she was stepping away from politics.

Stoyles announced herself as the Mount Pearl North Liberal candidate for the recently concluded provincial election, an affair that spanned some 10-weeks.

Although Stoyles said the election went on for longer than she or likely any other candidate had expected, she was feeling good about her success.

Stoyles came out on top against incumbent PC candidate Jim Lester by only 109 votes, with the Liberals claiming 46.69 per cent of the ballots cast while the PCs notched 44.6 per cent. The other votes went to Jennifer McCreath of the NDP with 337, and 136 votes for the NL Alliance’s William Neville.

Stoyles’ initial estimate, she said, was that she had about a 50/50 chance of winning. According to the numbers following the election, her guesses were fairly close to reality.

“I mean, this has been a strong Tory district for a number of years. It’s only been myself and Eric Gullage to have turned it over,” Stoyles said of her victory, noting that she had actually helped Gullage with his own political campaign back in 1987. “It’s a difficult district to win in … I worked very hard, day and night, and then spent all my days home on the phone when the lockdown hit.”

Having won and lost elections throughout her career, Stoyles was proud to have won the vote of the people this time around. Aside from the work put into her campaign over the course of the election, Stoyles said her name was a recognizable one around Mount Pearl by this point and she was happy to see that play a role in her success.

Stoyles said she is confident in her new role and eager to show the constituents what she can bring to the table as a Member of the House of Assembly.

“They’ve given me a chance to represent them. Helping people is what it’s all about, and that’s exactly what I plan on doing – that’s why MHAs were put in place,” Stoyles said. “I’ve spent my lifetime doing just that, and I continue to do it now. As I always say, that’s what I’m good at.”

Although it has not yet been a week since Stoyles was elected, she has already begun some of the hard work. The former executive assistant to Mount Pearl – Southlands independent MHA Paul Lane, who managed to get re-elected, said she has been on the phone with people since the result, trying to set up meetings with higher level government officials to discuss the needs and wants of the people of the city.

“I’ve served on city council for 25 years, so now I’m in the middle of arranging to get (MP) Seamus O’Regan to come in and have a meeting with them, to talk about some possible funding and other ways that we can work together with the federal government,” Stoyles said. “Hopefully, in the next two weeks, I’ll be sitting around the council chambers again in one of those meetings, just this time as their MHA.”

Stoyles said she has also been in contact with a number of community groups around the city, such as the various churches, to let them know about her new role and to discuss possible funding and other opportunities that she might be able to help with.

“I’ve already started working … I’ve done this job in a different capacity, working with Paul Lane over the years, so it’s not all that new to me,” Stoyles said. “It’s all about getting in touch with people in a timely manner, and doing what you can to help them out.”

City makes provision for mail-in voting... if necessary

By Chris Lewis | April 1, 2021

Provincial elections just clewed up this week, but municipal elections are right around the corner. And Mount Pearl is getting ready.

The 2021 municipal elections across Newfoundland and Labrador are scheduled for Tuesday, September 28. During the most recent meeting of council in the City of Mount Pearl on March 23, councillor Bill Antle said he hopes the majority of the province’s population will have received a COVID-19 vaccination by then, with public health guidelines in place to allow for in-person voting.

Ultimately though, he said the impact the pandemic will have on municipal voting turnout is still largely unknown.

Given that uncertainty, Antle said, there has been consideration given to alternative voting methods.

“The Municipal Elections Act allows for vote by mail subject to resolution of council,” Antle noted.

He proposed the City take what he described as a hybrid approach this fall to allow for traditional in-person voting as well as voting by mail.

Antle said in order to conduct an election by mail, regulations will have to be drafted for council’s consideration and approval, with further approval required from the Minister of Environment, Climate Change and Municipalities.

“The Act also requires the appointment of an alternative returning officer,” Antle added.

The councillor presented his colleagues with two resolutions for their approval. The first was to see the Director of Corporate Services, Cassie Pittman, be appointed to the position of returning officer. The second was for approval be granted by council to authorize voters to vote by mail in the September election.

Mayor Dave Aker said the resolutions were highly motivated by COVID-19, and saw it as a good move for the City to be prepared.

Councillor Isabelle Fry said the resolutions were a requirement in municipal legislation, given the City had not had these alternative voting methods in place in the past.

“It’s something we had to consider given the current situation we are in,” she said. “It might be a viable option moving forward from here, too.”

Deputy Mayor Jim Locke supported the changes and highlighted the effects the pandemic have had on the provincial election this past 10-weeks or so.

“The provincial election has been thwarted and delayed, unforeseen. I think this is just due diligence, and if it can encourage people to vote with another opportunity to cast their vote, I see no downside to this,” Locke said.

Put to a vote, Antle’s motions passed unanimously.

Ultimately, the motion in favour of approving these resolutions was met with

Deputy Mayor Jim Locke grateful to folks who helped him fight COVID-19

By Chris Lewis | Mar. 25, 2021

Mount Pearl Deputy Mayor Jim Locke had a blunt and heartfelt message for his fellow councillors and citizens on Tuesday: “You do not want to get COVID,” he said during the regular bi-weekly meeting of council.

Locke, a department head and social studies teacher at Mount Pearl Senior High, which was hit by a cluster of Covid-19 cases tied to an especially contagious variant of the virus earlier this year, was one of the many students and teachers who got infected.

After missing two previous meetings of council, Tuesday marked Locke’s return to the chamber, though like his colleagues, in a virtual sense given that everyone was meeting online due to the provincial government’s restrictions against in-person group meetings.

Mount Pearl’s most recent meeting of council on Tuesday, March 23 saw the return of Deputy Mayor Jim Locke, who had been absent from the previous two meetings for unspecified reasons.

Locke said he has been fighting the virus and its impact since around February 6.

And while he was happy to report that he is no longer infected, the deputy mayor admitted he is still dealing with the virus’ after effects.

“I want to remind our residents that you have to stay vigilant,” Locke said. “You’ve got to wear your mask. You have to wash your hands. You have to socially distance. This is not something to play with.”

Locke said for him personally, he has lost a lot of energy, and his breathing ability is not back to where he is used to it being.

“It’s real, and it’s not pleasant,” he admitted. “But, on that note, I do want to take this opportunity to acknowledge all members of our healthcare providers. From the nurses that swabbed me three times up at the Reid Community Centre, the X-ray technicians, and I had to go to the emergency (department) on one occasion. The service has been absolutely top notch. These individuals in our healthcare have been going steady, full-out, for over a year right now … We don’t want to tax the system any more than it is already being taxed.”

Mount Pearl gamers rack up multiple wins, funds for MS Society

By Chris Lewis | Mar. 25, 2021

A Mount Pearl group is using video games to help in the fight against a challenging neurological disease.

Gamers vs MS is a project for the MS Society of Canada that has been in place for about three years. Consisting of seven people based in Mount Pearl, the group aims to use streaming services such as Twitch to raise both funds and awareness for those suffering from MS and the MS Society of Canada as well.

Through platforms such Twitch, the gamers are able to livestream themselves to an audience as they play video games, showcase talents, or just go about their every day lives on camera. Gamers vs MS however has a focus on the video game aspect of streaming, and the players have been using that avenue to keep Multiple Sclerosis on the minds of their viewers.

Each year for the last three years, Gamers vs MS hosts an event they call the relay, which Project Director John Michael Bennett described as something of a baton pass wherein various video game streamers take on six to 12 hour shifts of streaming, with the event as a whole going on for an entire week: about 168-hours of back-to-back streaming.

There have been five of those relay marathons thus far, with the next one just around the corner, set to begin on April 3.

Although the core group making up Gamers vs MS are based in Mount Pearl, Bennett said the relay marathon features streamers from all over the country taking up shifts throughout the 168-hours, with just about every province in Canada covered off by at least one person.

These events have, so far, raised a collective total of about $110,000 for the MS Society of Canada.

Despite their successes, Bennett said one of the biggest things they find themselves explaining to people about the events is how exactly one raises money by playing video games.

For the most part, he said, funds come from direct donations made by those watching the livestreams, but the donation aspect is a little more personal and interactive than what people may be used to when donating to a charity.

“Over the course of the week, we’ll have each streamers’ video and chat embedded into our website, so you’ll be able to see the game they are playing, their webcam, and a little chat log where the viewers interact with them live,” said Bennett, who also served as co-founder and president of Sandbox Gaming for seven years before taking on Gamers vs MS. “People can just type in and donate right there on the website. When you donate, it pops up on the stream with whatever name you want, so it can remain anonymous if you prefer – so it might say ‘Newfoundlandfanatic1989 donated $20.’ That will pop up on the screen, and the streamer will be able to thank you right then and there in real time. The chat might even get a little hype about it, and then it’s a whole thing. It’s this interactive theme that I think is really cool.

In total, the upcoming relay marathon in April will feature 23 streamers each taking on lengthy shifts in the spotlight. Bennett is among them. He regularly streams Nintendo games to an audience on Twitch, and will be opening the event with his own stream.

“But, you might also come across someone who is an art streamer and will make different pieces of art, live, for donations. Or, back to gaming, you might see someone on there who plays horror games on stream like Dead By Daylight or Resident Evil,” Bennett said. “So, that’s what it’s all about. You might be watching someone from Newfoundland one hour, and someone from Quebec, Alberta, or Ontario and so on the next hour. It’s like one big gaming variety show that goes on for a whole week.”

The last relay marathon, held in November, raised over $33,000. They don’t have a goal set for this upcoming event just yet, but Bennett said they generally aim for some $20,000.

“But, at the end of the day, it’s about raising awareness and funds. Any amount that we raise is a win for those affected by MS,” he said.

The first streaming marathon was in June of 2018. At the time, he said they were just getting their footing. In the years following, they have aimed for two events each year, with each one seeing an increase in funds raised.

“Of the $110,000 we’ve raised, I think about $69,000 of that was raised last year alone,” Bennett said. “Like anything, as people start to recognize it, it gets bigger … It’s really exciting. As we were building up to the April relay last year, a lot of people with the national aspect of (the MS Society of Canada) became interested in it. That really helped lead to its growth as well. It’s just so cool to not just see it grow in fundraising, but to see it become legitimate in a way that not only does it have the Society’s backing, but also the belief of so many streaming communities and people across Canada.”

The relay marathon begins on Saturday, April 3, with a full slate of streamers gearing up for the week long marathon, coming to an end 168 hours later on Saturday, April 10. Those looking to watch the livestreams can tune in via the group’s website, www.gamersvsms.ca.

Mount Pearl awaiting feasibility study for new community centre

By Chris Lewis | Mar. 18, 2021

The City of Mount Pearl is hoping to lay the foundation for the eventual construction of a new community centre.

City staff have been tapped to gauge residents’ views on the necessity of such a facility. Councillor Isabelle Fry said it is well-needed in the city, and is a development that she and the rest of council have grown excited about.

The first step in the process, she explained, is to engage a consultant to create a feasibility study, which includes a concept design and a report on the viability of such a development.

At its March 9 meeting, council agreed to hire KMPG International for the work at a price tag of $45,000 plus HST.

Fry said the study is expected to be completed by Wednesday, April 7.

Councillor Lucy Stoyles said she was happy to see council move forward with the project. “This is not just for the seniors, but for all of the community groups,” she said. “Having a building that’s accessible to everybody is important.”

Stoyles added that while seniors are not getting together lately because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was still a bit of a struggle to do so prior to the lockdown. The Park Place Community Centre posed some accessibility issues due to the size of the one elevator; it being so small that only two people could fit in there comfortably.

The elevator, she clarified, was certified and well maintained, but still not the best when it came to large groups of seniors getting together.

“It’s so important that they can go and do everything under the one roof, on the same level,” Stoyles said. “I’m delighted to see us moving forward with such a project.”

Councillor Bill Antle agreed the Park Place Community Centre is simply too active for the number of people who were making use of it prior to the lockdowns.

“If you turned on the kettle in one room, you were likely to turn the lights off in another room because there were so many people using it,” he said. “Moving forward, I think the residents are going to be so happy with this.”

Mayor Dave Aker echoed the concerns, describing not just the accessibility issues, but also a load-bearing wall and even signs of cracking and leaking in the basement. It is the perfect time for a new centre like this, he argued.

“I think it’s going to be a really good fit for the community from our cadets to our Brownies, Girl Guides, Scouts, Cubs, to the service groups like the Kinsmen and the Kinettes,” he said.

Council, as of right now, is not certain as to where or how the new community centre will be developed. That will be outlined in the feasibility study.

Once the report is compiled, Antle said council will be swift in its next announcement about the new centre.

Mount Pearl mystery played out through St. John’s library

By Mark Squibb | Mar. 18, 2021

Amateur sleuths who have already re-read all their Agatha Christie novels during the lock down and are looking for a new thrill, along with first-time detectives alike, might consider tuning into a Morrigan Mystery Evenings virtual murder mystery game.

The most recent game was hosted by A.C. Hunter Library last week and was accessible, free-of-charge, to anyone with a library card and an internet connection.

Participants get to watch the improvised drama unfold, as a host of characters accuse one another of the murder of a local man. Of course, everyone is a suspect, and everyone seems to have a motive. So, whodunit? That’s for the audience to discover, as they themselves interact with the characters, ask questions, and formulate a solution.

Because of the interaction between participants and actors, the drama is more interactive and less predictable than a typical staged production.

“We would have improvised scenes where we knew what the outcome had to be, but we didn’t know the path we would use to get there,” said Christine Hennebury of Morrigan Mystery Evenings. “While there may be some difference from performance to performance, a scripted play is just that — it’s scripted. And while a different director or a different actor may bring out different nuances, the order of how things are going to go is already laid out. In ours, what we have, is that each actor has been given a character and just a few elements that they have to include. They know whether or not they’re the murderer. And they know that they have maybe five pieces of information that they have to share during the course of the discussion. They can’t just come up to someone and say, ‘Jim over there used to throw rocks at people, and you’ll notice that the weapon was a rock.’ You can’t do that. So, they have to come up with a little story about Jim and the rock throwing and hope that the people that they’re talking to pick up on it. So, we’re leaving it up to the audience to connect the dots, and the actors have a lot more freedom in how they deliver these things.

“As long as it doesn’t contradict the basic storyline we’ve established, we can really run with things, because we never know what the audience is going to ask us. They’re wondering about things the characters’ mothers said to them or who they sat next to in Geography in high school. I’m always astounded by our audiences’ imaginations and where they end up with their information is amazing. They should all be working on murder mysteries.”

Hennebury’s own character for the night was created on-the-fly.

“My character was supposed to be completely different,” said Hennebury. “But because I had trouble with my internet and whatnot, I was frantic by the time I signed in. So, I was inventing who my character was as I was talking. It was a coincidence that I happened to lean too close to the camera, and I thought, ‘I look ridiculous— my character is going to do this the whole time,’ so, I just ran with it in that moment. She was supposed to be much more reserved and held back, but instead I decided to lean right into her weirdness that I accidentally started.”

The current incarnation of the Mount Pearl-based Morrigan Mystery Evening group started in 2010, but Hennebury said she has been putting off murder mysteries in one form or another for the past 20 years.

“People like to solve a contained problem,” she said. “There is an awful lot of things in the world, problems and issues and whatnot, and they don’t have easy solutions.

“People have great problem-solving skills, but it may not be enough to solve this bigger problem. I think there’s something relaxing about coming into a situation that’s all contained, and you know no one is in actual danger, there is no peril for a wrong decision, and all you have to do is focus on these pieces and put it together like a puzzle. So, you get to use these skills that you have, that you enjoy using. And the solution is fun to come up with. And also, it really doesn’t matter in the big picture.”

Morrigan Mystery Evenings has been putting off virtual murder mystery games, most of which are free, throughout the pandemic.

Like other artists and performers, they have had to adopt to the COVID-19 restrictions which have shut down theatres, bars, and other performance spaces.

“There are a lot of people struggling,” said Hennebury, who also serves as chairperson of the Association for the Arts in Mount Pearl (AAMP). “Being able to do things through Zoom, or over the phone, or on Facebook Live, that’s one thing. But it is not the same as what they were doing before. People are struggling to do the things that are most satisfying for them. This is how they spend their lives, and it’s very jarring that there’s no way possible way to continue as they did before. And I think people are innovating and coping extremely well, but there’s still something missing, even as they do these things online.”

Hennebury suggested that, apart from buying art produced by local artists, those who wish to support the arts during the pandemic have a whole host of options available to them, from promoting artists, reviewing their work, offering to collaborate on projects, and supporting organizations that support the arts.

Meanwhile, the next mystery will be hosted in partnership with AAMP towards the end of April.

Coming together in prayer and faith

By Chris Lewis | Mar. 11, 2021

Mount Pearl’s ministerial community has gathered together to spread positivity and fellowship in the face of last month’s COVID-19 outbreak.

Noting that students and staff at Mount Pearl Senior in particular were facing a bit of a backlash from some people because much of the outbreak seemed to be based in the city, Mount Pearl’s ministerial community set out to put a balm on the negativity with some spiritual guidance and words of compassion.

Rev. David Burrows of the Anglican Parish of the Ascension said the leaders of the city’s eight different congregations tend to get together as a group around this time each year to put together a joint service for the annual Frosty Festival. The pandemic, of course, has nixed large social gatherings. But after seeing what was happening to the students and staff at MPSH, the church leaders became determined to find a way to move ahead, and so they recorded an online service that anyone in the community can attend “virtually.”

“We wanted to offer some prayer, some reflection, and a piece about hope for the high school community, and the whole of the city as well. There’s virtually nobody in Mount Pearl who has not been affected by this in some way,” Burrows said.

The nearly 20-minute video includes contributions from a number of figures in the city’s religious community as well as a handful of special appearances.  Some of the participants include Burrows himself, Rev. Barbara Boone of the Parish of the Good Shepherd, Father Wayne Dohey of St. Peter’s Parish and Mary Queen of the World Parish, Salvation Army Major Morgan Hillier, and Mount Pearl Mayor Dave Aker, all bringing words of kindness and positivity in their own way.

The video can be found via YouTube, titled “Ministerial Prayer Service.”

The goal, Rev. Burrows said, was to lift people’s spirits during a time when many are feeling the negative effects of lockdown. He noted that even during a pandemic, and perhaps especially so, he and the province’s other religious leaders need to stand as people of hope.

“With various mental health issues and anxieties going on during this pandemic, people can sometimes find themselves in a state of hopelessness or depression,” Rev. Burrows said. “So, we wanted to reach out to folks during this time and say ‘Yes, this is bad, but there are always things that we can be hopeful about.’”

Rev. Burrowns said he hopes the words in the video serve to remind people that, despite how it may feel to some, this pandemic is only temporary.

“Unfortunately, this can be a pretty dark and chaotic time for people if they choose to wallow in it, but I think, even when we can’t do things that we once used to do, there are so many things that we can do. (This prayer service) is about being appreciative of the small things in life that we may not have paid attention to in the same way before the pandemic,” said the minister.

Scary stuff

By Mark Squibb | Mar. 11, 2021

The Woman in The Attic, a psychological thriller by Mount Pearl author Emily Hepditch, has been voted this year’s NL Reads contest winner.

“It’s been my dream to be a writer since I was a little girl,” said Hepditch, an O’Donel High School graduate. “So, just having the book published is the biggest dream completed. To be nominated for NL Reads was the win for me. To be alongside the amazing writers who were also up for the award, I felt so honoured and humbled. That was a win alone, a win in and of itself. And then to win, on top of that, I was completely mind blown.”

Other authors up for the title were Gemma Hickey, Douglas Walbourne-Gough, and Séan McCann with Andrea Aragon.

Hepditch, an avid fan of psychological thriller writers such as Lisa Jewel and Gillian Flynn, describes the novel as a traditional psychological thriller set in Newfoundland, inspired in part by road trips around the province.

“One of the things that really struck me the summer I wrote it was how haunting the geography is in Newfoundland,” said Hepditch. “You can go to any kind of abandoned or resettled community and see these salt box homes that are left there to rot. And I thought, ‘What a perfect setting for a thriller.’ Because honestly, it’s creepy, but still so hauntingly beautiful. I thought that the setting could be a character in and of itself.”

The genre could be described as a psychological narrative, largely dealing with a character’s innerworkings and understanding of the world as it appears to be, in a thriller setting. They often share elements of mystery, Gothic, and horror fiction, including murder, paranoia, and family secrets.

“I think everybody likes a good scare from time to time,” said Hepditch. “I think it was a book that appealed to a lot of readers, young and old. It’s a book people can pick up and feel the thrills.”

The story revolves around a young woman who returns home to help her mother transition into assisted living and discovers that her mom, and maybe even the very home, hold dangerous secrets.

Written in August of 2019 and published in April of 2020, the novel was released just as Newfoundland and Labrador was entering its first COVID-19 lockdown — and looking for books to read.

“People have told me that it’s been a distraction,” said Hepditch. “People, over the course of quarantine, have said, ‘This has been a nice break from my current reality.’”

Hepditch, who has since released a second novel, a thriller that follows four friends on a hiking trip that turns dangerous, shared some advice for those interested in pursing a career in writing.

“The best thing to do is build your network,” said Hepditch. “So, we have an amazing network, the Writer’s Alliance of Newfoundland. I strongly encourage anybody to join, even if you’re at the very earliest stages of your writing career, because it really does provide you with a support system. Because other writers want to support each other.”

She also recommended that aspiring writers be willing to step outside their comfort zone to make their voices heard.

“It’s a long road to get published. And, it can be very lonely and very scary, but at the end of the deal, if you have a story you feel compelled to tell, you’ve got to fight for an opportunity to tell it, so don’t give up,” said Hepditch. “Everybody who has a story to tell deserves the opportunity to share it.”

Mount Pearl-Paradise Skating Club celebrates another win

By Mark Squibb | Mar. 11, 2021

Perry Dalton is a staple of the Mount Pearl-Paradise Skating Club, but that hasn’t always been the case. In fact, he jokes heartily about his start at the club.

“I started out many, many years ago by bringing my daughter to the rink to learn how to skate, and I started to move some tables and chairs when need be, and someone said, ‘Sure, he’d be good on the executive if he can do that,’” said Dalton.

“I must have moved that table to the right spot.”

That was 18 years ago. Today, Dalton is club treasurer and director of registration (but will still move tables and chairs if he has too) and is a recent recipient of the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers, an award which recognises exceptional volunteers across Canada.

“I’m very honoured to have been nominated by my peers at the club,” said Dalton, who has been the receipt of numerous awards over the years, including, recently, the Skate Canada Volunteer of Excellence - Newfoundland and Labrador Award.

“I’m only as good as our club. I accepted this award, and I’ve accepted many awards, always on behalf of our club, on behalf of our cultures, our other executive members, our parents and our skaters.

Dalton, who hails from Cape Broyle originally, says all volunteers are an integral part of the community.

“We need a rink, we need coaches, and then we need a volunteer group,” he said, using the skating club as an example. “If people like us, the parents, don’t volunteer, then there won’t be anything there for our kids to go too. I’ve always felt that everyone has to do something. If everyone did a little bit to pitch in, it makes it easier for everyone.”

Dalton’s tips for anybody looking to start volunteering is just that; start volunteering.

“I started moving tables and chairs, that was pretty simple,” he said. “And then someone said, ‘Well, maybe he can help with this, or maybe he can sell some tickets, or maybe he can be in the door to guide people when they come in.’ At the end of the day, it’s about being friendly, being polite and being always there to help.”