They line up in three rows, taking up most of the room in the Oso Hall, to begin their 108-move set. Those who have been doing Tai Chi for five months, as well as the instructor, Dennis Dong from Kingston, who has been doing it for 27 years and has done it every day of many of them, do the same moves.

“A lot of Tai Chi is letting go,” said Dong during the tea break at the weekly Sharbot Lake class on Monday, as the class gathered to recount their experience with Taoist Tai Chi.

Some touted its health benefits, particularly in relation to back pain and other age-related ailments, while others talked about the mood-altering effects of the practice. “I always feel good after the classes,” said one woman, “no matter how I feel coming in.”

“I used to think Tai Chi was for wusses,” said one man, who started doing Tai Chi eight years ago to encourage his wife to exercise but hasn’t stopped, “and I still think that, but after eight years I realize that I must be a wuss myself."

Many others said that at this point they think they “are lifers”.

One of the attractive features of classes sponsored by the Tai Chi Society is that the moves are the same all around the world, so people who are travelling can join a group no matter where they are and will be able to fit right in.

Although there are enrolment fees for the classes, the money does not go to the instructors, who are all volunteers. “I volunteer to teach because I want to meet people, to help others, and because of what Tai Chi has done for me,” said Dennis Dong, who is now coming up from Kingston to teach in Sharbot Lake.

In the ’90s they were just about everywhere. They called themselves Country Church at that time and hardly a week went by without the smiling band of bluegrass gospel musicians taking the stage at a church gathering, a community picnic or a seniors home.

It all started innocently enough, recalls Gilbert Whan, a founder and still stalwart member of the Country Church Band to this day. “It was in February of 1992, after a men’s fellowship breakfast at the [Pentecostal] church here in Sharbot Lake. Ron Clark, who was the pastor at that time, had his guitar and Jim Heney [a member of the church], had his fiddle on hand and they started to play, and they asked me to get my guitar and join them. I asked Ron to get his banjo, and we started to play guitar, banjo and fiddle and it sounded pretty good. So we said, why don’t we play a song on Sunday morning. And it went on from there.”

Country Church played their first concert in Plevna at the Clar-Mill Hall in the fall of 1992, and shortly after that Janice Wilson (vocals, piano) and Bruce Walker (harmony fiddle) and Jim Smith (bass) joined the band.

Over the next six years Country Church released four cassette tapes, and sold enough of them to donate over $17,000 to the church’s renovation fund. They also performed over 300 concerts across Eastern Ontario, travelling as far east as Prescott, as far west as Brantford, south to Amherst Island, and as far north as Shawville, Quebec. The largest audiences they played over that time were at the fairs in Shawville and Perth (3 years in a row) where as many as 1,500 jammed the grandstands to see the show.

In the late 90s the original band broke up when Ron Clark left Sharbot Lake to take on a ministry in Frankford, ON, and Jim Heney moved from Maberly to Kingston to work in a brake plant.

Country Church, now known as Country Church band, continued on, with Gilbert, Janice and Bruce being joined by the Chatson family from Denbigh. Another former pastor at Sharbot Lake Pentecostal, Ed Beattie, played with them until his death in August of 2008. In addition to playing several hundred more concerts over the years, the Country Church Band has released a CD. In all its incarnations the band has performed traditional gospel and bluegrass in the style of the White and Cox family bands of the southern United States. Earlier this year Francis Chatson died as well, and Bruce Walker does not perform as often, leaving just Gilbert Whan and Janice Wilson to perform as a duet.

This Sunday, March 24, the original band will be getting together for a one day reunion, culminating in a concert at Sharbot Lake Pentecostal Church at 6:30 pm.

“Ron Clark is visiting from Swift Current, where he lives now, and Jim Heney is coming as well; also Bruce Walker along with Janice and myself,” said Gilbert Whan, “it should be quite a bit of fun.”

The band won’t exactly have a lot of rehearsal time, but they are playing at Sharbot Lake Seniors Home from 3 until 4 pm.

“That’ll be our rehearsal,” said Gilbert.

Both concerts are open to the public and everyone is welcome. There is no admission fee; a freewill offering will be taken.

The Eastern Ontario Model Forest (EOMF) is pleased to announce a new project, supported by the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation (FCFDC), entitled “Growing Forest Certification in Frontenac County and Beyond”.

The focus of this project is to expand the EOMF’s established Forest Certification Program further into Frontenac County so as to increase the amount of privately-owned forested area managed under the Forest Stewardship Council®, or FSC®, certification system.

The EOMF forest certification is the gold standard of forest certification. It encompasses a forest management plan (something that woodlot owners under the Managed Forest Tax Incentive Program are familiar with) to ensure the sustainability of the forest, but includes additional measures as well. It requires the identification of cultural heritage features in the forest, a harvest prescription that is approved by a registered professional, certified tree markers, contracts in place with all forest workers, and more.

There is a distinct marketing advantage to certification of forest products, ranging from lumber to maple syrup, as they will carry certification labelling that adds value to the product.

This project's activities will result in increasing the supply of Ontario certified wood products, and in particular Frontenac County's contribution to the certified wood basket, to further satisfy growing domestic and export markets for these products.

Although the focus is Frontenac County, some of the online tools and processes developed will also benefit other counties in eastern and southern Ontario by laying the technological foundations to enable other CFDCs to engage the EOMF, at a later date, in growing the Forest Certification Program into their areas by following the same model. This leadership role by FCFDC is gratefully acknowledged by the EOMF and is evidence of the commitment and leadership that the FCFDC has shown in the area of forest certification.

As part of this initiative, those owning private woodlots within Frontenac County may qualify to take advantage of a Frontenac County Private Woodlot Certification Funding Program. This Funding Program subsidizes 20 free on-site visits from a local forest management consultant for those interested in joining the EOMF's Forest Certification Program.

Two landowner information sessions entitled the “Who, What, Why and How of Private Woodlot Certification” will be held in Frontenac this spring. The first is in Sharbot Lake on May 9 and the second in Verona on June 13. For details please visit: www.eomfcert.ca. This dedicated website has been developed to administer the project efficiently through an online stepped process, by taking event registrations, and by offering a broad range of free printed materials, engaging videos, as well as an informative Forest Management E-Learning Course.

About the EOMF: The Eastern Ontario Model Forest is a not-for-profit, charitable organization devoted to the people and the forests of eastern Ontario. Its flagship  Forest Certification Program has been instrumental in establishing and growing third-party Forest Management (FM) and Chain of Custody (CoC) certification in the region resulting in more sustainable forest management practices and new market opportunities for primary and secondary wood manufacturing industries.

For more information please contact Melanie at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 613-258-8365.

Over 20 residents from North, Central and South Frontenac were bussed into Kingston on March 6 to attend the a meeting of the Limestone District School Board (LDSB) at the school board office. The residents made the trip in support of Jamie Riddell, a Mountain Grove resident who made a presentation to the LDSB's board of trustees. Riddell opposes the process that led to their choosing the name Granite Ridge Education Centre for the new school in Sharbot Lake.

In his opening remarks Riddell said that in his eyes, the process was "marked for failure right from the word go”. He said that the chosen name did not meet the needs of the people and was not on the original list of names put forth by the Naming Sub-committee.

Riddell wonders why Granite Ridge was added back to the list of names that was presented to the board, after the board appointed naming committee had eliminated it.

He also raised concerns about a certain mass email he and other residents received from Board Trustee, Ann Goodfellow, which he felt showed that the name was decided upon well in advance of the actual process that took place.

Riddell asked the members of the board, “Was the name Granite Ridge already picked and this process just a smoke screen to satisfy the board's version of a diplomatic process?” He continued, “Granite Ridge was the name the board wanted and it appears it was arbitrated from the word go. You as trustees should hold your heads low today since in my opinion you have violated a code of trust.”

He also cited a “a breakdown in communication between the board and the general public”, saying that the announcement of the final vote came much quicker than he or the public at large had anticipated.

Riddell also cited a recent school naming by the Ottawa School Board. He said that the Ottawa board opened up the name selection to all the families served by that school by holding an on line vote for the final name selection.

He also spoke of the historical significance of the name Sharbot. “Yes, it is the name of just one of the communities served by the new school but it holds past, present, and future significance and it is the name of the founder of that community, Francis Sharbot. I would have thought that this fact alone would have had more weight than the name of the rock (granite) that was in the end chosen but it seems I was mistaken.”

In closing Riddell asked the board to reconsider their final decision. “It's not too late to fix this. It's not too late to correct the process that was broken from the start and to repair the damage that has been done and to restore our faith in the decisions of the people we have chosen to represent us.” He added, “If the process had been completed fairly and transparently, I would be satisfied with the outcome of the chosen name but that was not the case.”

Board Director Brenda Hunter next made a Powerpoint presentation outlining the steps leading up to the final vote for Granite Ridge (as was outlined in Jeff Green's article “Granite Ridge Naming Debate Persists”, Feb. 28).

Both presentations received very little feedback from board members. Trustee Ann Goodlfellow stated that she has heard from both sides on the issue and felt “confident that all of the parties involved in the naming process had followed the proper guidelines and procedures and had acted fairly and responsibly” and that she “looked forward to now focusing on what is best for all of our students, who will greatly benefit from this wonderful new school”.

Her comment elicited some audible groans and laughter from many of Riddell's supporters. The only other question came from Trustee David Jackson, who wondered if there was any history of school names that included some kind of additional vocational name or sub-name below the actual school name.

Board Director Brenda Hunter said that off the top of her head she did not know of any in this district. Central Frontenac Mayor Janet Gutowski was present at the delegation and tried to address the board, but was rebuffed by Chair Helen Chadwick, citing the Board’s procedural bylaw.

Following Hunter's presentation all of Riddell's 25 plus supporters left the chambers. One supporter, Marcie Asselstine, left copies of a history of the Sharbot Lake community, which she invited the trustees to read.

Students in Stephanie Leeder's grade 5/6 class at Sharbot Lake Public School fired multiple questions at one local hockey hero when he visited the school on March 8. And like the great goalie he is, Graeme Gemmill easily managed to catch and return every single one of them.

The 16-year-old goalie from Godfrey, who was named Midget Goalie of the Year last year for the Kingston Canadians and who currently plays goalie for the Greater Kingston Junior Frontenacs, has been playing in the Ontario Minor Hockey Association for eight years. During his visit to the school, Graeme not only gave students a chance to get up close and personal with his skates, goalie mask, pads and stick but also spoke of how he, an all around high achiever, manages to balance a serious hockey life with teenage student life. Graeme is a grade 11 student at Sydenham High School. He started playing hockey at age eight at the Frontenac Arena and started playing goal at 12, which is a later than usual start.

However he was able to use his story to stress to the students that any serious endeavor can begin at any age. “It doesn't matter how old you are when you start whatever it is that you want to pursue. I know that a lot of hockey players start playing at 4 and 5 years old, but I don't think the age at which you start something is what matters most. What does matter most is that you have the drive; that is what counts.” While the students were eagerly inspecting Graeme’s gear, his mother Sue told me that her son “is a humble player and most importantly has learned how to balance his time”. Graeme later shared that priority with the students. “No matter what else you want to include in your life, be it a sport or any other endeavor, I can't express how important it is that school comes first”, he said. Graeme fielded typical fan queries from his young audience. His favorite NHL team? Montreal. His favorite player? Price.

He also shared numerous personal stories – one was about one of the first NHL games he attended, when a sign that his mother had made for him attracted the attention of a young Jaroslav Halak, who ended up giving Graeme his goalie stick. “That was one thing that really set me off and made me really want to strive to get to that level of play myself.”

Asked about any unusual rituals he partakes in before games, Graeme said that he puts all of his gear on - left side first. He also loves to juggle pucks. “I'm one of the weird guys. Other guys like to warm up before games and get really hot and sweaty but I hate getting hot before a game and will only run for about five minutes as my pre-game warm up. I also prefer not to talk much before a game.”

He showed the students a number of videos, including one of a training session he participated in with Danny Taylor, who plays with Calgary in the NHL and with Abbotsford in the AHL, and a practice session he took part in at the Under 16 Program of Excellence in Oshawa. Lastly, he showed a warm up session that he was invited to attend with the Napanee Raiders.

Last year Graeme and his team, the Kingston Canadians, had numerous highlights and were the Cobourg Region Silver Stick Champions and OMHA finalists.

Students in the class came away inspired by his presentation. Megan Dunham, who started playing hockey at the age 10 for the Tay Valley Tornadoes, said that she hopes to play goalie one day. Eddie Brown, another student in the class who donned a Kingston Frontenacs toque, has seen Graeme play once before and was thrilled to have a chance to speak with him.

Following the presentation Graeme said that speaking in classrooms to young kids is something that he likes to do. “This is a way that I can give back to the community and also to let these kids know that if they set their heart on something that they truly want, they can achieve it. I have a strong work ethic and I want them to know that if you have that, anything is possible.”

As far as his future plans go, Graeme hopes to get a scholarship and play in the NCAA and has spoken with reps from various schools. And what about the NHL? Here Graeme demonstrated some of that realistic attitude and humbleness his mother mentioned earlier. “Of course it would be ideal to make the NHL but let's face it; there are thousands of guys who want those spots.”

Council scraps free Amnesty Load program

In a report to council, Waste Management Supervisor Kyle Labbett recommended that council cancel their amnesty load program. He cited “high costs and no identifiable benefits”.

The program, which has run for years, gave residents an opportunity to clean their properties of unsightly debris by allowing them one free truckload of garbage per year. In his report Labbett said that community groups now help with mass community clean ups and that none of the neighboring townships run amnesty load programs.

His report also cited negative financial implications running the program. Though the program cost the township $30,700 in 2011, the cost decreased significantly in 2012 to just $17,000. Labbett said the decrease was due to “a significant number of loads being paid for by excess bag tags (when the old tags were switched over to clear bags last year).” He also said that the costs do not factor in the loss of space at waste sites.

“Eliminating the free loads will help to prolong the life of our waste sites, which will keep costs down in the future” his report concluded.

Councilor Tom Dewey was the lone councilor who spoke against ending the program.

“I think we should give it another year. A lot of seasonal residents use the program to clean up their residences. I am also afraid that a lot of big items like chesterfields might end up getting dumped elsewhere,” he said.

Dewey’s concerns went unheeded, as council voted to end the amnesty program.

Frontenac Corridor Assessment approved

Council passed a motion supporting an assessment of the County’s major roadways (roads 506, 509, 38, 95 and 96) by the firm D.M. Wills Associates Ltd. in partnership with the County and the four townships at a cost of $10,740. The proposal resulted from a resolution by the County of Frontenac requesting that the townships' four public works managers collaborate in the areas of transportation and waste management. The plan will asses the corridor and develop a long-term capital plan that will be part of a comprehensive 10-year Asset Management Plan. The company who landed the contract is also carrying out bridge inspections for South, Central and North Frontenac townships. Mayor Janet Gutowski was pleased with the passing of the resolution, and stated, “This is good news. It’s nice to see that something good is coming out of these meetings.”

Council sluggish on changing governance structure

Mayor Janet Gutowski said that action needs to be taken quickly if a change in council composition is to be put in place before the next election. She supports making a change and said that her main motivation in promoting the change is to allow the public to determine who will be representing them at County council.

Currently the township's representative at County Council is appointed by council and not the public at large.

In a document on the subject that she submitted to council, Gutowski stated, “It is my opinion that Central Frontenac Council should formally consider a review of its governance structure and hold a public meeting for the purpose of determining if a bylaw to restructure council should be considered.”

The topic fueled much discussion. Most councilors said that they wanted to keep some degree of the current ward representation system in place, with at least four ward-elected councilors. Some suggested that the three other representatives be elected at large. Though it was determined that the cost savings would be minimal, roughly $14,000 per year per councilor, most councilors did not seem averse to downsizing.

The exception was Coucilor Bill Snyder who said he was happy with the system as it is. Councilors then discussed the possibility of a referendum on the subject to be included on the ballot at the next election, but that would mean that the change would not take place until the following election. With no one wanting to move forward immediately on the issue council ended the discussion by agreeing to visit the issue again at their next meeting on March 26.

Landscaping to proceed at proposed Multi-use Cultural Centre site in Sharbot Lake

Council passed a motion to contribute a yet to be determined amount of funds to the landscaped portion of the site for the proposed Multi-use Cultural Center. Councilor Frances Smith who is on the committee, said that the funds, which she said might amount to $5,000, would be used to clean up the trails, define the parking and perhaps plant some shrubs to make the site area more presentable. Council supported the motion, with the funds to be determined at budget time.

Delegate requests immediate attention to flooded roads

In a delegation to council, David Kendall brought to council's attention the dire state of Bebris, Baker Valley and Red Oak roads. Kendall outlined the current state of the roads, saying that spring flooding has made them dangerous and almost impassible for area residents. He asked that council consider making immediate upgrades to rectify the situation, since his correspondence with Public Works Manager Mike Richardson leads him to believe that budget restrictions will not allow for any further upgrades in the near future.

Following his presentation Council agreed to pass on the information to staff and asked staff to report back about possible upgrades at the next meeting.

A small group of theatre members are very busy these days learning lines and rehearsing for the spring show under the direction of Kelli Bell. The show chosen is God of Carnage by French playwright Yasmina Reza, translated by Christopher Hampton. It has been performed in many countries around the world, and won The Laurence Olivier Award in 2009 for the London production and Best Play Award on Broadway the same year. It was the longest running play on Broadway in the 2000's with 24 previews and 452 regular performances with mostly positive reviews. As well, in 2011, it was made into a film entitled Carnage directed by Roman Polanski and starring Jodi Foster, John C. Reilly, Christopher Waltz and Kate Winslet.

The play takes place in Cobble Hill, a neighbourhood of Brooklyn. Two sets of parents meet after the child of one set is hurt by the child of the other parents. They plan to discuss the situation in a “civilized manner”. Alan Raleigh, father of Benjamin, is a lawyer, constantly pre-occupied by his work and never off his mobile phone. His wife, Annette, is involved in “wealth management” (perhaps mostly her husband's wealth). Michael Novak, Henry's father, is a self-made plumbing wholesaler and Veronica is writing a book about Darfur.

The evening begins with tense politeness and civil discussion as the four adults enjoy coffee and clafouti in the Novak's living room but as the evening progresses and Michael brings out a bottle of rum, the gloves come off and the situation degenerates into childishly bad behaviour. All four begin to behave like rude children and their underlying characters begin to show. The play is funny at times but at the same time very serious with some intense scenes. How will it all end? Will they resolve “the problem” between their sons?

WARNING : This play has coarse language and is not recommended for children.

God of Carnage will be performed at Sharbot Lake High School Auditorium on May 2, 3, 4 and 5 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets will go on sale in early April. Watch for posters in area businesses and articles and ads in The Frontenac News.

On Sept. 24, Central Frontenac's own celebrity chef extraordinaire, Andrea Dickinson, gave the last of a three-workshop series on cooking with local food. The free workshops, which were all held at Oso Hall, were sponsored by the Sharbot Lake Farmers Market and funded by the County of Frontenac. Andrea did much of the food preparation beforehand, and so her presentation flowed very much like a TV cooking show as she demonstrated the steps of preparing some spectacularly delicious food to the participants - who also were able to enjoy the fruits of her labors.

The hallmark of Andrea's recipes is that they are actually simple to prepare while being impressive and full of flavour.

She also shared several tips. For garam masala, she recommended buying whole spice garam masala, dry-roasting it and then grinding it. She said that the same method also makes a huge difference with cumin.

On the menu for the Flavors of Fall workshop were Fresh Corn Salad with Smoky Bacon and Feta, Sweet Potato Coconut Milk Soup with Coriander and Lime, and Pumpkin Streusel Bread. The recipes are all posted at handsonharvest.ca

Tom Revell, of Little Betty and Bauder Road infamy, has a penchant for playing heavy rock and blues, guitar-based music.

When he teamed up last week with the Centre Stage band, which has just added Denis Larocque, a second electric guitarist along with stalwart Terry Reynolds, there was no shortage of likely suspects whenever it was time for a guitar solo or three to creep into a song.

In the second half of last Thursday’s (September 18) show at the Sharbot Lake Legion, Tom Revell started out with the Neil Young standard Powderfinger, but before he started he nodded to Terry Reynolds, saying, “You take the first lead, then Denis, then me.” That set the tone for the set, and since all three of the guitarists have their own styles, the leads were distinctive, tuneful and relatively short.

In addition to all those electric guitars, Jim MacPherson kept pounding away on his acoustic guitar and took some of the lead vocals, which included belting out a memorable version of the Robert Johnson classic, Crossroads, near the end of the show. Gary Giller, bass and vocals, and Dave Limber, hidden behind the wall of guitars on the drum kit, kept up the bottom end.

Once again a feature of the Centre Stage Band concert series at the Legion is the enthusiasm that the house band and their guests bring to the performances. They play for the sheer joy of it, and the audience finds it infectious.

Next month, the show will feature Cajun fiddler and accordionist Jim Keith, which will bring a totally different sound to the Legion, stretching the Centre Stage Band in an entirely new way. The show is set for October 17 at 7 pm. Admission is a modest $4

The Center Stage Café house band sparked off a lively second installment of the Centre Stage Café on February 21. The house band has made the Sharbot Legion a popular draw for their new music series, whose aim is to showcase local musical talent. Interspersed throughout the evening was an eclectic choice of classic rock and pop tunes by the polished band, Garry Giller, Terry Reynolds, Dave Limber and Jim MacPherson.

Thursday night’s event started with an inspired set by singer song-writer Brian Robertson, who sang solo while accompanying himself on guitar. He began with an original tune titled “Man, It's Good to be Alive”. He harkened back to the '60s/'70s folk days of good old Americana music with his very pretty, James Taylor-esque finger-picked version of “Oh Susanna”. He let the crowd in on his musical meanderings to Cuba and played that country's popular Che Guevara revolutionary song, demonstrating his ease in the Spanish language and Cuban guitar stylings. His French version of “La Mer” also hit the mark, as did his version of Peter, Paul and Mary's “Kisses are Sweeter Than Wine”. Brian is a natural on stage and his ease and friendly banter made for a very memorable set that ended on a high note with the Leonard Cohen classic “Hallelujah”, which delighted the crowd.

Craig Bakay, whom many know as the other reporter in town, played next and his set also harkened back to the good old days of flat out heavy rock and blues. Backed by the Center Stage Band, Craig opened his fiery set with the boppy Downchild Blues Band classic “Flip, Flop and Fly”, which set the tone for a very inspired heavy rock/blues second half of the evening that got a few couples out onto the dance floor. His set list included numerous old classic heavy rock/blues favorites tunes like “Can't Ya See” by the Allman Brothers, Neil Young's “Down By the River”, Johnson’s “Crossroads” and “Who Do You Love”. Craig's low down, biting and guttural vocals did not miss a beat and the members of the house band seemed grateful for a chance to cut loose along with Craig, as Reynolds did in a number of inspired guitar solos that met Craig's own, lick for lick.

The series is fast becoming a highlight for music lovers in the area. The next café, which is coming up on March 21, will no doubt prove to be a more mellow, though no less entertaining evening, with special guests Rob and Nancy Moore and well known country crooner Mitch Barker, who made a name for himself at the Bedford/Piccadilly Sunday jams. I should note that the venue was greatly improved by added stage lighting.