‘It’s been a super trip’

Waterford Valley Rotary applauds two new Harris Fellows

By Mark Squibb
September 29, 2023 Edition

Waterford Valley Rotary Club members Gary Ball and Dennis Rousell joined the ranks of Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, Pope John Paul II, Ghandhi, and King Charles, among others on Wednesday when they were inducted into the John Harris Fellowship at a Rotary meeting at Smitty’s Restaurant in Mount Pearl.

“One of the highlights of being president of the Rotary Club is the opportunity to recognise a person, or persons, whose life demonstrates a shared purpose with the objective of Rotary, that is, ‘Service Above Self,’” said club president Rick Tiller. “Dennis and Gary have shown exemplary leadership in steering our club to where it is today. The club is 46 years old, and we’re advocating for environmental projects at the Waterford River and for mental health awareness, and the two of these gentlemen have been instrumental in making these causes happen. Dennis and Gary, in my opinion, and in the opinion of a lot of other people, exhibit the true ideals of Rotary, which is ‘Service Above Self.’”

The men were presented with an official certificate from Rotary International and a pin bearing the emblem of the Paul Harris Fellowship.

“This emblem is known all over the world in Rotary,” said Tiller. “If you go to the upcoming international conference in Singapore, people will know what it is. If you go to a Rotary meeting in Ottawa, people will know what it is. If you go to a meeting anywhere, they’ll know you’re a Paul Harris Fellow. It’s one of the most recognisable pins in the Rotary world.”

The Waterford Valley Rotary Club boasts some 16 members, and Tiller said he would like to see more members inducted into the fellowship, which was founded in 1957 in honor of Rotary founder Paul Harris.

“This Club is one of the most committed groups of people I’ve ever worked with,” said Tiller. “And this club is comprised of many members who have decades of Rotarian experience and many who are, in my opinion, deserving of being Paul Harris Fellows.”

Tiller said he believes it possible his club’s entire membership could be inducted into the Fellowship by 2027, when the Club celebrates it’s 50th anniversary. With Ball and Rousell’s induction, the club now has six Harris Fellows.

“I never expected anything like this,” said Ball. “This represents everybody in this room. It really does. It’s because everybody came together and worked together that got this club to where it is here today, and why I’ve got this. I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished over the last number of years. It’s been a super trip all the way.”

Two members of the Waterford Valley Rotary Club, pictured here with their wives, were inducted into the John Harris Fellowship at a Rotary meeting this week. From left are Marcie Rowsell, inductee Dennis Rowsell, inductee Gary Ball, and Brenda Ball. Mark Squibb photo

130 trees planted at Mount Pearl Summit Centre

September 22, 2023 Edition

Some 50 volunteers planted 130 trees and shrubs at the Mount Pearl Summit Centre last Saturday as part of TD Bank’s commitment to plant one million trees by 2030. Mayor Dave Aker said the annual TD Tree Day is a chance to “celebrate the forest within the community,” and thanked the volunteers who participated in the event, including little Lincoln Noseworthy, Serena Benoit, and Arlo Noseworthy, pictured here with councillor Chelease Lane, Mayor Dave Aker, and councillor Bill Antle. Submitted photo.

Mount Pearl handing Frosty a loan to get him back on his feet

By Mark Squibb
September 22, 2023 Edition

Although you’re likely to see Christmas merchandise on the shelves any day now (and maybe you have already), winter still seems too far off to think about yet.

Mount Pearl council, however, is already looking ahead to winter — or at least the City’s landmark winter festival.

Council this week unanimously approved a $25,000 loan for the Frosty Festival board. The loan is part cash, amounting to $15,000, and part Glacier Arena pay forgiveness, worth another $10,000.

The Pearl followed up with staff following the meeting, who clarified there is an expectation the loan will be repaid.

There was no discussion on the matter, though mayor Dave Aker spoke to the motion briefly.

“We’re navigating post-COVID, and we’re navigating through a lot of inflation, which has really driven up costs,” said Aker. “But we’ve got a really healthy Frosty Festival, and we’ve got a solid board, and we’re working together to make sure we have one of the best festivals that we can possibly deliver. But it is a new environment out there, so this motion I think sets the table going forward for a good working relationship.”

The Frosty Festival has been held annually, with two exceptions, since 1983. Last year’s festival marked the triumphant return of Frosty after the festival had been cancelled for two years due to COVID-19.

Last November, council approved a one-time donation of $30,000 to help Frosty get back on his feet following COVID.

Under a previous agreement between the City and the Frosty Festival board, the City paid an annual operating subsidy of $35,000.

That memorandum of understanding (MOU) ended in March 2022.

Last year, the city and the Frosty Board agreed to hammer out a one-year MOU regarding the upcoming festival, but the details are still being worked out.

The $25,000 loan approved by council this week exists outside of the MOU.

Mount Pearl preparing the ground, literally, for Canada Games

By Mark Squibb
September 22, 2023 Edition

Councillor Bill Antle noted during this week’s city council meeting that work is continuing at the Team Gushue Baseball field in preparation for the 2025 Canada Summer Games, as the City received a shipment of 53 containers of clay and brick earlier this week.

Recreation Director Jason Collins said that preparing for the Games has been a joint effort by staff across all departments.

“We started yesterday clearing sand, and as councillor Antle referenced, a lot of clay has arrived, so hopefully that will start going down later this week,” said Collins. “Actually, someone was down from Baseball Canada the other day and they seemed very impressed with what was happening and with what the field is going to be like.”

Collins said an employee of Halifax Seed, the company supplying the clay, will visit Mount Pearl next week.

“They’re going to work with staff and work with our baseball association on building mounds and giving them some tips on how to maintain the clay, because it is very different than dealing with sand,” said Collins. “It’s certainly been a group effort, and I do think our staff are really enjoying the chance to build something. They’re really enjoying it, and so it’s great to see.”

The 2025 Games will mark the fourth time since their inception in 1967 that Newfoundland and Labrador have hosted them.

The province hosted the Summer Games in St. John’s in 1977 and in 1999, and the Winter Games in Corner Brook in 1999. The 2025 Canada Summer Games will be hosted by the City of St. John’s from August 8-24, 2025 with Mount Pearl, Conception Bay South, Paradise, and Logy Bay-Middle Cove-Outer Cove also hosting some of the competitions.

Watch for the signs, says Rice

By Mark Squibb
September 22, 2023 Edition

It’s not unlikely that you’ve gotten stuck in traffic due to construction in Mount Pearl in recent weeks.

Councillor Mark Rice asked residents during this week’s public meeting to play it safe and abide by all signage posted in construction areas.

“We’re trying to finish off a lot of construction in the area,” said Rice. “And there’s quite a bit of construction on the go, so that means manhole covers are protruding through the ground, and there’s open pits and holes. So, if you go along Ruth Avenue or up Farrell Drive or across on Roosevelt Street, there’s always construction. There’s companies, like Dexter Construction and other companies, moving along and trying to get those areas done before the winter sets in… So please abide by the signage. The signs are there for your safety.”

Rice also asked residents to pay attention to the onsite workers directing traffic.

“Safety is our utmost concern in the city, and we don’t want to see anybody get hurt, so please be patient and cautious as you slowly drive through those construction areas,” said Rice.

Provincial champs Mount Pearl Blazers Boys 15UA team

September 22, 2023 Edition

The Mount Pearl Blazers Boys 15UA team are the provincial champs in the tier 1 U15A division, winning the gold medal game in St. John’s on August 27. The team includes, starting in the back row from left: Jayden Hanlon, Connor Holloway, Connor Coates, Dane Munn, and Cole Hickey; in the middle row from left: coach Chris Buott, coach Bryan Power, Evander Norman, Ben Kennedy, Matthew Abbott, coach Chris Abbott, and coach Greg Hogan; and in the front row from left: Hunter Hogan, Jaxson Power, Noah Murrin, William Buott, and Brady Nickel. Photo courtesy of Mount Pearl Minor Baseball.

City encourages residents to get in a pickle on Park Avenue

By Alexandra Brothers
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
September 15, 2023 Edition

The City of Mount Pearl has expanded its pickleball offerings.

The racquet sport has been spreading across North America nearly as quickly as Covid, but with much more beneficial outcomes.

The City initially made courts available at the Reid Community Centre for its converts and enthusiasts, and now residents can get involved with it on their own time at a brand-new outdoor court on Park Avenue. The Mount Pearl Tennis Club also has two courts set aside for pickleball play.

“Pickleball is a cross between ping pong, tennis, and badminton,” said councillor Bill Antle. “It’s quite interesting and it’s a growing sport, so if anyone wants to take a chance and learn how to do the sport, on Park Avenue it’s free, take your own paddles and off you go,” he said.

Director of Recreation and Public Safety, Jason Collins, said the reason the sport is gaining such popularity is that it is easy to pick up. He encouraged those who are unfamiliar with pickleball to look it up to see how fun it is. Collins reported the new pickleball court is being well used and is in high demand this season.

The new sport is just one of many recreation activities the City offers. Councillor Antle commented that all of Mount Pearl’s recreation programs are going strong. Collins added that the Reid Centre is continuing to expand its offerings each year and that registration for its various offerings has been blocked solid already for the fall season.

City lends moral support to ‘fighting the fire’ of arthritis

By Alexandra Brothers
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
September 15, 2023 Edition

Mayor Dave Aker has proclaimed September as “Arthritis Awareness Month” in the City of Mount Pearl.

A proclamation signed by the mayor last week outlined the necessity of drawing attention to this condition.

“Arthritis is not just arthritis,” said Aker, reading from the proclamation. “Arthritis is serious. It causes debilitating pain, restricts mobility and diminishes quality of life. Six million Canadians – one in five – live every day with the fire of arthritis and there is no cure. Without a greater spotlight on this growing issue, the number of Canadians with arthritis will rise to nine million by 2040.”

Councillor Bill Antle shared his own struggles with the condition. And councillor Isabelle Fry added her support for the City’s efforts to raise awareness about the illness.

“I’m happy to see this here,” Fry said, “because it’s one of the oldest known diseases. It affects so many people and it’s a very complex disease.”

Community support is vital to combatting the debilitating disorder, said Aker. It is through such support that Arthritis Society Canada has been able to “fulfill its mission to fight the fire of arthritis with cutting-edge research, bold innovation, fiery advocacy, and evidence-based information and patient-centered support” for over 75 years, he added.

“During Arthritis Awareness Month, we seek to raise voices and awareness, and we are encouraging everyone who lives with arthritis – and all those who know and love them – to fight the fire of arthritis,” read the proclamation.

The dog days of Mount Pearl

By Alexandra Brothers
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
September 15, 2023 Edition

“Looks like the dogs have it these days,” said Mayor Dave Aker — the “it” being a new kennel and grooming services.

The City of Mount Pearl approved the development of another dog-oriented business at a public council meeting last week. The business, Republic Pets, is to be a kennel located at 5-7 Commonwealth Avenue that will feature an outdoor fenced area to promote activity among the dogs in their care. This is the second such approval in as many council meetings. At the previous public meeting on August 22, council approved the proposed development for a Change of Use at 952 Topsail Road for the new business, Xylo’s K9 Kingdom, a combined kennel and animal grooming business.

The Republic Pets kennel was approved in spite of some public concerns that were raised last month about the development. In keeping with City requirements, council circulated notice of the Change of Use for the property on Commonwealth Avenue to the public in advance of its final decision on September 5. Council also invited written feedback from the public on the City website and in a local newspaper. Notice was also circulated to 81 residents within a 150-meter radius of the proposed development via mail.

Councillor Isabelle Fry reported the City received four written submissions and two telephone calls expressing concerns regarding the kennel. The feedback was mainly related to noise, though the development also brought up other worries such as the reduction of property values in the area, animal waste disposal and odors, potential competition with other animal, grooming and pet-related businesses, and increased traffic congestion on Commonwealth Avenue.

“Council has considered all concerns raised and appreciates the interest that was shown,” said Fry.

“I can see the concerns and I can sense why they were brought up,” said Mayor Aker.

However, council believes the proposed business will abide by all the City’s regulations. The City held a public briefing session on August 24 in the council chambers to address some of the concerns.

“The briefing session was well attended, and the proponent did genuinely address concerns of those in attendance,” said Fry.

The kennel will include fencing that will act as both a noise and visual buffer, and the operating hours for the outdoor area will be 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Additionally, 24/7 on-sight staff will implement training measures “to reduce problem behaviours such as barking and over excitement,” said Mayor Aker.

“This is a welcome business in the City of Mount Pearl,” he added. “At the end of the day, we want to make sure that our residential neighbourhood that is nearby can continue to thrive like it is now and also have a dog kennel business nearby, and I think the two are compatible. It’s something new for the City and I think our residents overall will like to see this type of business being opened.”

Fry agreed, noting that by the end of the public briefing session, most of the attendants seemed satisfied with the development. “That location has been vacant for awhile so it will be nice to see it developed,” she said.

Councillor Chelsea Lane declared a conflict of interest regarding the vote, but the remaining councillors all voted in favour of the development.

Playwright Marie Pike not afraid to “break the rules”

Marie Pike, a writer from Mount Pearl, has dabbled in many forms of writing, from short stories that have been published in literary reviews to plays and performance arts pieces that have been performed at festivals and theatres across the province. Photo Ritche Perez.

By Alexandra Brothers
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
September 8, 2023 Edition

Whether on the page or on the stage, Marie Pike’s writing takes on a unique life of its own.

Pike, 39, was born and raised in Mount Pearl. Though she left the province for some time after completing her Bachelor of English Literature degree at MUN, she has returned to her childhood neighbourhood, just a few houses down from the house where she grew up.

“I am very much still a Pearlian,” she said.

Pike said writing professionally was a thought that she didn’t entertain until a few years ago.

“It wasn’t until 2016, I was living in Fort McMurray and the wildfires happened, and I had so much stress from that that I just started writing and I couldn’t stop writing,” she said.

After that, she took several creative writing courses at MUN under local authors Lisa Moore and Robert Chafe that helped launch her writing career.

She began by writing short stories, some of which were published in the Humber Literary Review just months after deciding to pursue creative writing. Pike said that writing fiction offers a complete freedom that she had never experienced before. She has since branched out from short stories, writing everything from novels to screenplays and scripts.

“I would say that writing short stories and playwrighting is probably my favourite,” she said. “Playwrighting especially has been a perfect fit for her as a writer.”

“Right away from the very first short play that I wrote, I was hooked. I knew I was obsessed,” she said. “I love dialogue so much, when writing. The first thing that I hear when I’m writing a story is the voice and so I just write down all of the dialogue that’s coming up and kind of write a story around it.”

The topics Pike likes to write about are often a little out of the ordinary.

“There’s always an element of absurdity,” said Pike, who sometimes makes inanimate objects come to life or manifests a character out of thin air.

“There’s always comedy,” she added. “As much as I try, I can’t get away from that.”

Pike’s plays have diverse and captivating concepts. Before Greta Gerwig’s Barbie set box office records, Pike took inspiration from the iconic doll in her short play Garden by Mattel. The play, in which a Barbie doll comes to life, was entered in the St. John’s Short Play Festival in 2019. This year, Pike ventured even farther into the absurd with a production entitled The Heart Play, which was performed from July 27 to July 29 at the LSPU Hall. In this play, the main character Venus’s heart comes out of her body to confront her about her life choices.

For Pike, the community aspect of theatre makes producing plays an especially rewarding experience. She said she loves the people that she surrounds herself with when she works in theatre. She collaborated with a company called White Rooster Theatre for The Heart Play, which she said was “an awesome experience and opportunity.” Pike’s theatre community is particularly close to her heart. Her mother and sister have both worked on her theatrical productions as costume and set designers, respectively.

Pike’s artistic pursuits don’t end with theatre, however. She also works alongside fellow artists Andrya Duff and Megan Allison in an artist collective called Grand Trine that approaches storytelling through an astrological lens. Together, these artists embark on numerous creative endeavours including a weekly CHMR show called Horo Stories, a dance production with Neighbourhood Dance Works, and an art installation piece at the CB Nuit festival.

What is clear from Pike’s extensive repertoire is that no creative idea is off limits. She said that reading different kinds of literature allowed her to see how certain literary conventions could be played with and even done away with at times. She advises aspiring writers to break free from any expectations or limitations that they might have imposed on themselves.

“Have fun and do things differently,” she said. “Just because it hasn’t been done before, doesn’t mean you can’t do it. And break the rules — but also, know the rules before you break them.”

Reading as much as possible helps with that last bit, she said.

Although making a career as a writer can be challenging from a financial perspective, it is well worth it for Pike. Giving up the stability of a regular paycheck to give herself ample time to write can be “terrifying at times,” she admitted, but it was a necessary decision for her. “I definitely have faith that this is my calling, and I can’t not write, so I have to go after it no matter what,” she said.

The payoff for Pike is in the tranquility that writing brings her.

“My favourite part of being a writer is connecting to the void,” she said.

She explained this concept as a “space of complete quietness and peace” that she can reach through writing. On top of this, her writing allows her to express herself freely and truthfully. “When my pen connects to the page… an honesty comes out,” said Pike. “I can truly express myself in a way that’s unfiltered, that’s loud. I guess that’s part of my absurdity, my inner voice is kind of loud and it really comes out on the page unfiltered.”