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(Editors note: The following was forwarded by Emma Cronk’s mother, Leslie, who lives on the Cronk farm near Parham. It was written in response to media reports about a dearth of primary care physicians in the Town of Perth, but it applies as much to her home communities in Frontenac County. She attended the former Hinchinbrook Public School and Sydenham High School, where she began her basketball career as a Golden Eagle)

Dear Perth Residents,

I am sorry.

My name is Emma Cronk, and I was raised on my parents 2,000-acre ranch in Parham, Ontario and I am currently a family medicine resident physician in Atlanta, Georgia at Emory University.

I tried for two application cycles for medical school in Canada, and even applying broadly in addition to Ontario medical schools, from the East Coast of Memorial University to West Coast of University of British Columbia. After two years filled with rejection letters, I decided to apply internationally at Ross University School of Medicine in the Caribbean. I had come to realize that a lot of Canadian students were following this same path.

I was a NCAA D1 collegiate athlete in undergrad, where I played on a full basketball scholarship while simultaneously completing my BSc in Biology. I also was part of the Center for Performance training camps, where the top athletes in Canada would come together to train on weekends throughout the year in Toronto. Furthermore, I played for Team Ontario and competed at the Canada Summer Games in Regina, Saskatchewan, the second largest sporting event in the world, besides the Olympics. Our team even brought home a gold medal, and we were awarded at Parliament for our efforts and our accomplishments.

Even after my travels with basketball, my end goal was to be a rural primary care physician near my hometown, as I wanted to give back to my community. I understand the hardships that come from living an hour away from the nearest city and the importance of establishing care with a rural physician that has not only provided care to you, but to your entire family. I understand the struggle with transportation to get to appointments, to potentially reschedule, to have options for home visits, and let me tell you: I so desperately wanted to be that doctor for you.

After learning about how seats are saved for international students at our medical schools in Ontario, I was livid. I represented not only our province, but our country on an athletic level. I had competitive grades, I had numerous hours of volunteer work at KGH in the ICU, I balanced a heavy basketball commitment at fifty hours a week in addition to completing a demanding science degree, I have strong leadership capabilities along with time management skills, and was raised on family values with a farm work ethic. I was wanting to graduate and work in rural primary care, where doctors are needed the most. Instead, we take international students, who pay triple the price and who graduate and then go back to their home country. Furthermore, we have saved physician visa jobs for Saudi Arabians, who after they finish their training in Canada, leave to go back home, taking potential spots for Canadian students, and this still leaves us with physician shortages and it is not fixing the underlying problem.

Canadians NEED doctors, and especially in primary care. So here I am, a small-town country girl who struggled to get a loan to attend medical school internationally, while Canada receives payment from international students to study medicine in my own country. Something is wrong here. Something needs to change. In order to facilitate this change, I would encourage every Canadian to petition their MP in regards to this problem.

I am sorry that our healthcare system failed you, Perth. I am sorry that 2,300 residents are now without a primary care physician. I wanted to be that physician. I wanted to be your doctor. I wanted to practice rural medicine. I am a damn good physician and unfortunately, Canada is losing quality doctors every single year to the United States.

I hope that this piece helps open up the much-needed conversation that change needs to happen. I hope that if only one person reading this feels the frustration that I feel, then that change will eventually come. And if anyone sees my mother at the local grocery store or in town, give her a hug, as I know she misses her daughter in Parham.

Written by Emma Cronk, MD
Emory University School of Medicine Family Medicine Resident
Her parents and sisters still reside in Parham, Ontario

Published in Editorials

Kyleen Menard is happiest when she’s caring for others.

Speaking from Carveth Care Centre where she has worked as a Personal Support Worker for the past four years, the 29-year-old Sunbury woman is gaining recognition for helping people reach their fullest potential.

“I really like it here,” she says about the accredited long-term care home in Gananoque. “I enjoy all of the residents. My coworkers are great.”

Asked about her work, the mother of two notes, “It’s very tough. It’s also very rewarding because you get to help people with the things they are no longer able to do themselves. It makes me feel good when I help them.

“I like being in the tub room,” she explains about her favourite part of the job. “You get that one-on-one time with the residents who are relaxed and talk more.”

Speaking on behalf of the home, Assistant Director of Care Lynn Vereeken notes, “Kyleen is dedicated to the health and wellness of our residents. She is a thoughtful coworker and compassionate health care professional. We appreciate her training in Excellence in Resident-Centered Care which she is now sharing with staff. It is a pleasure to recognize her as our Employee of the Month for August. We are grateful to have her on our nursing team.”

Asked to describe herself, Kyleen notes, “I’m shy at first, but once you get to know me, I’m outgoing and friendly. I’m someone you can rely on.”

When she’s not at work, the South Frontenac Township woman likes to spend time with her husband and two sons.

“I like to read a lot,” Kyleen says with a smile. “I’m a reader.”

Asked about her future goals and plans, she replies, “Right now, I’m comfortable where I am. I have a Diploma in Social Services. Someday, I’d like to get into the school board and help children with mental health issues and addiction.”

Questions for Kyleen

If you could rule the world, what would you do on day one?

“I’d end poverty.”

If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

“Probably fly. I like to travel.”

If you weren’t at your current job, what would you be doing?

“I would be working with children if I wasn’t here.”

Carveth Care Centre is grateful for the good work of Kyleen Menard. To learn more about living or working in our home, please visit www.gibsonfamilyhealthcare.com

 

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC

Ghost Road, Maple Fire, Zombie Sunset, Sheer Agony, Red Viper . . . sounds a bit like the upcoming season of The Walking Dead, doesn’t it?

But no, these are a few of the 13 varieties of hot sauce available from MissFortuneS Unforgiving Hot Sauces, which are produced in the kitchens of St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Sydenham, by father and son team Erik and Taylor Miazga.

And after about three years in business, there are plenty of signs that they may just be on to something.

“We’re pushing 40 locations (where their sauces are available),” Taylor said.

These include where you might expect in the Frontenacs such as Food Less Travelled, Trousdale’s, Seed to Sausage and Foodland, but they’re also expanded out to Gananoque, Perth, Trenton, Belleville, Kingston.

The hot sauce business isn’t a full-time gig for either of them — yet — but that’s definitely looking like a distinct possibility.

Taylor drives truck for Findlay Foods and through his deliveries, he’s managed to cultivate a network of contacts that’s paying off.

Erik was injured a couple of years ago in a car accident and hasn’t really been able to do other work, but that’s OK, he’s kind of the creative end of the team — both in the kitchen and product development/artwork.

“I used to do a lot of the cooking around home,” he said. “But I’m not one of those who sticks to recipes.”

To that end, he started “experimenting” with red pepper jellies which he would give to friends and families.

“(But) with jellies, you have to put pectin in and I could never really come up with the right consistency.”

So, the natural progression of his culinary art led him to sauces — hot pepper sauces.

But Miazga is definitely his own man, and his philosophy led him to a rather unique product line.

“We’re not out to fry somebody’s face off,” he said. “We start out with a flavour and then add the heat.”

For example, Maple Fire is 30 per cent (“local” maple syrup) with hot pepper added.

“We have 13 flavours, all with their own heat level,” Erik said. “It might be cranberry, sweet & sour, curry or Louisiana style.

“Then we add what peppers, or combination of peppers, we think will work best.”

This isn’t your typical little bottle of Tabasco or Frank’s Red Hot.

MissFortuneS comes in a mickey-sized flask bottle with some of the most unique labelling around.

“People seem to like our labels,” Erik said.

For example, one flavour is “Kamikaze” which features the tag line “to die for.” And then there’s “Asylum Serum” for “when you can’t make up your mind.” That one features artwork of the asylum Lizzie Borden ended up in.

And even though their current product line is doing well, the Miazgas aren’t about to rest on their laurels. They see expansion into marinades, meat rubs and such. They’re also working with restaurants like Mesa Fresca in Kingston to develop house sauces and bulk for places like Gilmour’s who use in in their .38 Special sausages.

“And we’re trying to devise a logo for sway,” Taylor said. “I’d like to see this a full-time thing for sure.

“Right now, I can spend a full day in the kitchen, 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. and then have to work the next day.”

The way things are heating up this grilling season, that could easily be just around the corner.

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC

Chad and Nicole Van Camp have owned the Verona Hardware store for 15 years, but they have a way to go to match the longevity of the previous owners.

Ken and Evelyn Harper purchased the store in 1971 and ran it for 33 years. Steven and Victor Merrill, a father and son team, opened the Verona Hardware store in 1929 and ran if for 42 years before selling to the Harpers.

“90 years under only three owners, that’s a pretty good record for continuity in a small-town business,” said Chad Van Camp earlier this week. It wasn’t easy for him to find a lot of time to talk, because it is July and the summer traffic is here.

“It’s a very, hands on business. There is no hiding, people expect to see you, they expect you to have what they need and to be able to bring it in if you don’t have it. Service is everything in this business, and every day is different,” he said.

Just that morning, a call came in from a customer in Toronto, saying his wife was at their cottage with a dead battery in her vehicle.

“Just as our truck was headed out the man phoned back said a neighbour had stopped by and boosted the battery so we didn’t have to. Our truck as going that way anyway on a call, so it wouldn’t have been a problem. When the phone rings, you never know what’s going to happen.”

Since Verona Hardware sells Rona products, Chad feels they can compete on price with stores in Kingston, but as an independent store he is also able to bring in product lines, like outerwear in winter and fishing tackle in the summer, that he can’t get from Rona. And he can provide the kind of service that creates loyal customers.

This Saturday, to mark the 90th anniversary, Verona Hardware is holding a party. The first 100 customers in the store will receive a free 5-gallon Rona pail, and everything they purchase that fits in the pail will be half price. There will be specials throughout the store all day, as well as $10 propane tank fill-ups.

Between 11am and 3pm there is a fundraising BBQ, with all proceeds going to Frontenac Minor Hockey.

“We want to celebrate, and bring people into the store,” said Chad, “it is the summer time, after all.”

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC

The Cloyne Pioneer Museum and Archives opened its doors for the 2019 summer season Saturday and it was an occasion, in part, to say good-bye to the one person many credit with its success.

Margaret Axford, has stepped down after 10 years as curator.

“It’s an opportunity to toast and roast a lady who’s been a wealth of information for this organization,” said historical society president Shirley Sedore.

“She’s (Axford) been very gracious, welcoming and cordial, also a great stabilizer,” said Wendy Hodgkin.

“This museum is one of the best in the country for its size,” said Katherine Grant. “And we know who we have to thank for that.

“Her passion, her vision, her taste have left us with such a good platform.”

Emma Veley, who’s worked at the museum for seven years, takes over as curator for the summer.

“Everything I’ve learned and my knowledge of the area comes from Marg,” Veley said.

“She’s never been an insider, just an observer,” said Gord McCulloch. “Marg comes on very softly but she’s a little like the sting of a bee and she gets things done.

“She’s shown us what it should be.”

The museum is located on Hwy 41 across from the Post Office.

It’s open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in July and August.

It’s partially funded by Trillium Foundation grants and the sales of its historical calendars and books, available at the museum and its online store.

Published in ADDINGTON HIGHLANDS

Ihor Gawdan likes to “keep busy.”

To that end, the former Nortel employee has built his own home, which is heavily influenced by the works of J.R.R. Tolkein.

He loves working with wood and has taken several course in things like joinery and other construction techniques.

A few years ago, he decided to take up quilting with his wife and took courses.

The two of them made a quilt together and he made another “for my daughter”.

But somewhere along the line, he discovered that he “didn’t like sewing in straight lines.”

After a trip to Africa, he came back with some new fabrics and things started to change. He started to incorporate non-traditional quilting squares within the traditional quilting format.

“I saw a quilt hanging on a parapet and started collecting African fabrics,” he said. “I was attracted by the vibrancy of the colours.”

After a trip to Australia, which included a trek across the Outback, the ‘straight lines’ totally disappeared.

“I came back with about $500 worth of aboriginal fabrics and decided I’d better do something with them,” he said.

The result was an 8’x8’ masterpiece depicting his experiences Down Under, that ended up winning a Viewer’s Choice nod.

“Australia Sonoline” is a collage of images ranging from the Sydney Opera House to Uluru (formerly Ayers Rock) and all sorts of modern and traditional inclusions that just sort of flow together in an organic flux that moves the viewer’s eye all around his textured canvas. You literally have to keep reminding yourself that this is a quilt.

His latest work promises to be his masterpiece, a 4’x8’ exploration of evolution inspired by one of his son’s songs — Beneficial Symbiosis. The lyrics are stitched into bottom of the piece.

It’s a visual journey that begins with the creation of the Earth, through periods of volcanism, the beginnings of life, the advent of mammals and finally including the colonization of Mars, with a myriad of images and concepts in between.

He’s entered it in the Colour with a U show put on by the Studio Art Quilt Associates in March and April of 2020 in Kitchener.

The piece itself may be a metaphor for Gawdan’s philosophy and is certainly a product of his methodology and the way he likes to work.

“I don’t spend hours on a computer designing a quilt,” he said. “This one started out as a little sketch on paper.

“As I go on, I look at the colours, the flow of the material.

“At some point, I may say to myself, ‘I have to go out and buy some more green.’”

He said these last two quilts have taken about “five or six months, working four or five hours in the morning.

“I usually go to bed early and get up around 3 a.m.”

Gawdan refers to his quilting as a hobby, and says that’s what it will stay.

“I’ve never wanted my hobbies to become a job,” he said. “But as we get older, we need to keep the brain moving.

“Quilting is like woodworking without the splinters.”

Published in General Interest
Wednesday, 19 June 2019 12:44

An appreciation for a colleague

After twenty-nine years of teaching and impacting the lives of many students, Randy McVety has decided to retire. Sharbot Lake High School and Granite Ridge Education Centre have been extremely fortunate to have had this incredible teacher for twenty-six of those years and he will be dearly missed.

Mr. McVety has always taught in the Social Sciences department; teaching geography, history, civics, philosophy and law. He enjoys providing enrichment opportunities through field trips and guest speakers, making his lessons come alive. He has encouraged his students to be active members of society and understand their responsibilities through such organizations as United Way, Student Vote, and 30 Hour Famine. Mr. McVety was the driving force behind the Youth and Philanthropy Initiative in the civics class which has resulted in numerous charities receiving funding based on student presentations.

His teaching extends beyond the engaging lessons he has provided in his classroom. He has taught students how to give of themselves and to be kind to one another. His infectious smile and his big heart are fondly remembered by students as they understand that he genuinely cares and respects each individual student while encouraging them to reach their full potential as they pursue their dreams.

Since his first year of teaching, Mr. McVety has unselfishly dedicated his time to students by coaching numerous teams, attending leadership camps, and acting as an advisor to Student Council. Students remember those special moments where they travelled to Ottawa or Toronto or even to Costa Rica and Europe. He has been instrumental and creative in fundraising to make these opportunities feasible for students.

As a colleague, Randy has been a mentor to many. He has been a liaison between our schools and the Faculty of Education at Queen’s University, passing on his knowledge and expertise to future generations of teachers. Randy cares deeply about his colleagues and has always been a welcoming agent for our small, northern, rural school.

On behalf of all the people who have been influenced by this exceptional teacher and kind man, we want to thank Mr. Randy McVety for the wonderful memories. We congratulate Mr. McVety on a fabulous career and wish him all the best in his retirement.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

It’s almost hard to imagine Granite Ridge Education Centre (and its predecessor Sharbot Lake High School) without Mr. McVety.

But that’s the way it’s going to be once the spring semester of 2019 finally lets out for summer vacation.

And last Friday night, his contemporaries and co-workers gathered in the cafetorium to send him off to retirement in style (sprinkled with healthy doses of lunacy).

But how else would you say good-bye to a legendary performer?

Mr. Randy McVety has been a teacher for “almost 30 years” according to a slide show featuring some of the best moments of his youth provided by his family that led off the “McVety Minute” talk-show format good-bye.

Ben Moser served as talk show host on the McVety Minute, with sidekick Wade Leonard and the band “Three People Not Named Randy.”

First guest on the talk show was Liz Steele-Drew who confided she’d worked with McVety for 26 years.

“It had its moments,” she said. “But for the most part, they’ve been awesome.

“Randy did try to kill me a couple of times, though.”

“Randy carries every assignment he’s ever written in his little brown bag,” said Moser. “He actually invented the Dewey Decimal System (actually Melvil Dewey in 1876).

“Eight of his fingers have never touched a typewriter keyboard (and) he loses it twice a year just to prove to the kids he still has it.”

He was thanked by the IT department for “creating enough work for two techs — without you, our computers and projectors would be working just fine.”

He was remembered for legendary field trips, showing movies like Bad Santa, Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay and Quest for Fire, and cited as a legend in the world of car pooling as well.

As far as retirement plans, McVety told The News he wasn’t going to be one of those teachers who just can’t seem to give it up by accepting numerous supply teaching assignments.

He did say, however, that he planned to remain active in the school sporting community, continuing with one of his passions — coaching soccer.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

Bill Campsall never thought he’d survive the war.

Sitting in his room in a retirement home in Amherstview, the gentle 95-year-old’s eyes glisten with tears as he talks for the first time about his service, 78 years earlier, as a paratrooper in WWII.

“I hadn’t got my notice yet,” he says about his voluntary enlistment in October, 1941.

Born and raised on a farm in Sydenham, Bill went to Fort Henry in Kingston at the tender age of 17 to join the Canadian Armed Forces. After a routine medical review, he was offered a medical certificate to discharge him from infantry service, or hernia surgery. He chose surgery, and by the next March, he was in basic training in Cornwall.

“When that finished, I went to CFB Borden for advance training, where I was one of a handful of soldiers hand-picked for special services,” says Bill, proudly. “We were sent to Manitoba for tower jumping and classwork to prepare us for parachute jumping in Germany.”

Bill remembers his first night-jump, when 60 soldiers refused to jump out of the airplane. That left Bill and 14 others to complete the program, which included three weeks of explosives training.

“We had to carry a one-ounce bottle of nitroglycerine in training,” he explains. “Six soldiers wouldn’t do it which left eight of us, besides myself. They taught us to land on our heels because we carried the nitroglycerin on our chests and a timer in our back pockets. We jumped out of a Halifax bomber or glider, depending on the mission.”

Bill and his special services unit landed in Scotland in January, 1942.

“They took us off the train in Yorkshire and sent us to an estate for lodging,” he notes.

According to Bill, a lieutenant at the time of his service, the military had Europe marked off in zones and had effective communication through an underground network.

“We boarded a plane in Yorkshire and dropped into the continent between midnight and 2am,” he explains. “Through contact with underground, we were brought back by fishing boats.”

Bills eyes fill with tears, remembering a break from the fighting on the third week of July to visit a wax museum of the Royal Family. Over four hours, a tour guide named Lizzy gave them a detailed account of the wax figures located in an underground cavern. When Bill learned Lizzy’s last name was Windsor, he soon realized his tour guide was Princess Elizabeth of the British Royal Family.

“It was quite an experience,” he said.

The next month, it was almost daylight and Bill was returning from a mission with three of his men when they were hit with a detonated hand grenade.

“My three-men were killed, and I was pretty banged up,” he says quietly.

When Bill awoke in a field hospital, he discovered the near fatal damage to his lung, heart, stomach and bowel. He lost almost 50 pounds in one month as he fought for his life.

By January, he was stretchered aboard a boat to Halifax with 600 other wounded soldiers. He was transported from the East Coast to a hospital in Kingston where he was discharged on March 31, 1945. Bill was only 21 years old.

Awarded a medical disability pension, Bill reunited with his girlfriend Marg, whom he quickly married that fall. The first of the couple’s three children arrived a year later.

Over his lifetime, Bill held many jobs, such as a turnkey at the county jail, manufacturer at Alcan, bus driver in Kingston and operator at a water sewage treatment plant.

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC

The Doner family and “Doner Studio at the Mill” kicks off its summer season this weekend by hosting their annual art festival

It is, in part, a fine craft show with 40 guests artists who produce a stunning array of work; paintings using various techniques, potters, glass artists, a found object sculptor, weavers, woodworkers, in addition to soaps, skin products and teas. All of the artists are chosen by Randall and Darlene Doner to ensure that the show reflects quality and variety.

The guest artists will be displayed on the grounds of the mill property. Randal, who sculpts in metal, shows his work in the mill studio and in the sculpture garden on the property, Darlene’s jewellery studio and The Baby Jane and KSSD studios, featuring the works of their daughter and daughter in-law, will be open as well.

The restored mill and grounds make for more than a mere backdrop for the art, they are a second feature of the show.

When the Doners bought the mill in 2003 it had been vacant for 35 years and needed a great deal of refurbishing, but its history had not been lost. The property was the home of a water powered sawmill, which was torn down when the Rideau Canal was built. In 1861 a grist mill was built on the property and the mill was the basis of a thriving business through to the early 20th century. The grist mill was torn down in 1942 and replaced with a hydro generating system which still operates.

Joshua Kiell and his son Keith operated their own electrically powered mill, in the former storage elevator at the site, between 1943 and 1968. In 2003, when the Doner’s arrived, Keith Kiell, who lives in nearby Joyceville, was an early visitor and has assisted with research as the Doners restored the property.

One of the must-see elements to the art fetival is a visit with 92-year-old Keith Kiell, who will be on hand once again this year to show and talk about some of the archived material from the colourful history of what locals still call the Washburn Mill.

Christine Harvey, of the My Drama Queen, will be running kids activities all weekend, musicians Doug Reansbury (Saturday 10am -1pm) and Craig Jones (Saturday 14 and Sunday 10-4) will be performing all weekend, and there will be food. Mio Gelato with artisan gelato and sorbetto will be there, and a food truck from Glocca Morra Grills Food Truck will be available all weekend as well.

On top of all that, the Heritage Costume Club of Kingston will be holding a picnic on the site during the weekend. The club is devoted to making or purchasing, and wearing Victorian Clothing and dressing up for events. Their presence will make a stunning visual at a property that was originally developed during that very era.

The show runs from 10am-4pm on Saturday and Sunday at 1439 Washburn Road (From Inverary take Moreland Dixon to the end, turn right and then left on Washburn to 1439)

For information, go to Donerstudio.ca and click on the Art Festival link.

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC
Page 3 of 82
With the participation of the Government of Canada