Four years ago, a group of friends who remember their days at Sydenham High School fondly, started up a fundraising campaign in honour of Mike Woodcox and Andy Green, former SHS footballers who both died of cancer when they were young men.

The first Sydenham Tackles Cancer dance was a success and the organizers, Matt Rennie, Stephanie Lauren and Karl Hammer decided to run the event for four years, with each year representing a quarter in a football game. This year will be the final event in the series.

Each year about $5,000 has been raised for the University Hospital Foundation – Kingston, and organizers are hoping to go out with another success.

This year’s event will take place on Friday, September, 28 at the SHS gym. Doors open at 8:45 and the music will be provided by The Stares (starting at 10 pm). As has been the custom, the licensed event will include a silent auction and a number of extra fundraising activities in addition to music and dancing. Tickets are $20 and are available at the door. There will be a free bus back to Kingston after the event. For information contact SHS at 613-376-3612 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Photo: Joe Gallivan at pubic meeting for the County’s Official Plan in Sydenham.

As part of their efforts to update county residents on the basic document of the county’s Official Plan, Frontenac County staff made a presentation to about 25 people at the Sydenham Public library on August 23.

The meeting, which was the third of five public meetings whose aim is getting public input to the county’s first Official Plan, was better attended than a similar meeting held in Sharbot Lake and Ompah a week earlier. The plan is a legal document that provides land use policies regarding growth and development, and also takes into consideration the social, economic and environmental issues of the County.

While the four lower-tier municipalities each have their own plans, which focus on specific issues in their municipalities, the County OP hopes to take a more regional, watershed-based approach. Its function is to deal with planning issues that cross regional boundaries as well as the City of Kingston and neighboring townships where county plans do not exist.

The county's Manager of Sustainability Planning Joe Gallivan said that though the meetings have been somewhat quiet so far, a lot of good ideas have sprung from them.

“I plan to talk to as many people as possible in advance of finalizing the document because this is a big issue and collaboration is key here. We want people to talk to us about what they feel will be important over the next 20 years in order to help us grow as a county,” Gallivan said.

He will present the plan to county council later this year or in early January 2013 for adoption.

Gallivan stressed that the main difference that adopting the OP will make for county residents is that once it's approved, the County of Frontenac Council will become the approval authority for all of the four townships’ plans.

“That is a big step forward because then the eight county councilors will be able to make the important decisions regarding the municipal OPs rather than the Ministry of Municipal Affairs. Currently the ministry has strong positions on settlement and I have already had some conversations with them and have told them that we are not like other counties that have larger communities with full services. We are made up of a number of small communities that do not have the standard full services [i.e. water and sewer] that are available in other larger communities. People live here because they want to live in the countryside. The reality here right now is that a lot of the growth is going to be incremental and small and a lot of that growth will be on the lakes, not in the communities like Sydenham and Verona,” he said.

At the Sydenham meeting various issues were raised. The first was how the plan would handle the Endangered Species Act. Gallivan answered that the act and its rules will have to be recognized but that a lot of the guidelines are not as hard and fast as they seem.

One audience member wanted to see more regulations regarding creating lawns on lakeshores. “We need to protect our lakes and lakeshores by protecting the trees and other growth along them.”

Gallivan responded that he felt that the lake associations are going a long way in educating the public about the ribbon of life and also mentioned tree planting programs being sponsored by them.

Councilor McPhail asked about the growth studies that have been done for the plan.

Gallivan answered that the population projections show that the youngest populations will be in the south and that input from previous public meetings have shown that there is a need for more diverse housing across the county.

For those who missed the meetings but would like to voice their input, there is a survey regarding the OP that can be filled out online at the county’s website at www.frontenaccounty.ca

Two more meetings will take place, on Wolfe and Howe Islands on September 5 & 6.

Photo: The Barefoot Players performed "Teapest in a Tempot", a kid-friendly adaptation of Shakespeare’s play "The Tempest" at the Sydenham Public Library on July 27

On July 27, Queen’s University drama students took their kid-friendly production of Shakespeare's “The Tempest” to the Sydenham Public Library in the hopes of getting youngsters hooked on the bard. The six-member troupe known as the Barefoot Players performed their 30-minute show, which was titled "Teapest in a Tempot", to an enthusiastic audience who gathered on the lawn where the troupe set up their traveling stage.

The show, which includes numerous props, songs, dances, puppets and a fast-paced, rollicking plot line, is part of the students’ summer study program at Queen's University in Kingston. The troupe began rehearsing the show in April and have since performed at numerous schools, libraries and parks across the county. The play was written and directed by Kim Renders, the company’s artistic director. Nadia Leiningen, one of the actors with the company, said the goal of the play is to introduce Shakespeare to young children in a fun way. “It's always a daunting task to introduce teenagers to Shakespeare in high school. We figure that if we can introduce it to them earlier, and in an enjoyable way, they will be able to enjoy it more when they meet the plays later in high school,” she said.

The work experience that the company provides the students is part of a program called the Student Workplace Experience Program and it gives Queen’s students a chance to work within their field of learning. For the students the work is a paid position that not only gives them an opportunity to test their acting chops but also gives them the experience of running a traveling theatre company. The actors told me that the most challenging parts of the show are the costume changes since each actor plays a number of characters. Not surprisingly, the troupe members are all fans of Shakespeare, which makes their job an enjoyable one and which translates into fun and laughs for the whole family.

The troupe regularly performs two shows a day. Anyone who missed the show in Sydenham can check their website at www.queensu.ca/drama/barefootplayers for upcoming show dates and locations.

Photo: Blind atlete Ron Hackett crosses the finish line aided by Marc Lemieux. Hackett finished first in his age group overall as well as in the disabled category.

Now in its fourth year, the Sydenham Triathlon-Duathlon event continues to grow in popularity, attracting athletes from all over Eastern Ontario and further afield. At this year's event, which was held on Sunday, July 8, over 600 participants, including athletes from Guelph, Toronto, and a few from south of the border, gathered at the Point in Sydenham to test their mettle in a number of races. The Tri-Du took place at Sydenham's Point Park, where the waterfront beach, trails and park provide the perfect natural surroundings that make the event a popular one for athletes of all levels, and one they return to year after year.

According to race director with Somersault Productions, Richard Cadman, who both founded the event and has been its director since its inception, the highlights of this year's events included a couple of notable winners who crossed the finish line first in their events despite additional personal challenges.

One such athlete was Clive Morgan of Yarker, who placed first in the Olympic Triathlon event in the age 50-54 category and who completed the event in a time of two hours and fourteen minutes. Clive, according to Cadman, is a long time triathlete and a “real notable character” who runs the majority of his races barefoot. Clive's Sunday race in Sydenham was no exception and he crossed the finish line, first in his age category and the only participant who ran shoeless.

What made his finish even more noteworthy was the fact that his son Blair Morgan, who ran in the sprint triathlon (19 years of age and under) crossed the line almost at the same time, winning his event with a time of 59 minutes 34 seconds.

Another athlete who came to the attention of the numerous cheering fans was Ron Hackett of Kingston, the one and only blind athlete, who competed in the Olympic Tri with his guide Marc Lemieux, owner of Black Dog Pottery in Kingston. Ron was guided through the swimming and the running sections of the event with Marc by his side, giving him directions and pointing out any obstacles in his way.

In the bike section of the tri the two rode a tandem bicycle, for which Cadman said organizers designed a special lane at the transition area so that they would be unimpeded by the other athletes. Hackett ran a great race and finished first not only in the disabled category but also placed first in his age group overall, which was an incredible double victory for him.

Other notable highlights for Cadman were the rain-free weather and the coming together of entire community for the event. “The energy that the community volunteers put into the event is spectacular and their energy goes a long way in keeping everything and everyone moving along and making for a very enjoyable day for everyone involved. We get so many notes sent to us following the race from participants who have nothing but good things to say about the volunteers and the event,” Cadman said.

Maryanne Takala of Sydenham, who is the event's assistant director, echoed Cadman's comments, adding that the race continues to get bigger and better every year. “We're finally getting to the point where we are able to fine tune things and with the help of our volunteers from the Sydenham Legion we are able to both set up and tear down a lot faster than in the past. That and the fact that our volunteers are now completely familiar with the event and know exactly where they have to be and what they have to do, all allows the day to run very smoothly.”

Since the Sydenham Tri-Du's inception four years ago a few changes have been made. The transition area was moved from the ball diamond to the foot ball field, which allows for a smoother and safer transition to the biking portion of a number of the events. And as far as traffic goes, this year members of the OPP were placed on Rutledge Road closer to Harrowsmith so drivers were made aware of the event and could take an alternate route to avoid being held up in traffic.

Photo: l-r, Jessica Crain, Stephan Hiller, Sydenham Lions Tail Twister Wray Gillespie, Tim Smith and Thomas Cabral at Rivendell

Jim Kelly of the Sydenham and District Lions club was thrilled to report that their recent golf tourney fundraiser, which took place at the Rivendell Golf Club in Verona on June 15, was by far their most successful to date.

The tournament raised over $5,000 for the No Child Without program, which provides MedicAlert bracelets to students in need. This year’s proceeds will assist students at Harrowsmith Public School.

Kelly said the tournament’s overwhelming success this year was largely due to the generosity of the many sponsors and prize donors, as well as the many neighboring Lions Clubs members who made the trip from Tamworth, Verona and Amherstview to participate in the tournament. The Sydenham and District Lions have supported the No Child Without Program in many of our local area schools over the years.

Policy Needed for Extension of Sydenham Water Mains

Council deferred a motion to approve an ad hoc solution addressing the cost of a proposed Sydenham water extension a short distance east along Rutledge Road. They have asked Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth to develop a policy addressing any further extensions of the water mains,taking into account the capacity of the system, once the new village subdivision and all residents in the present service area are hooked up. Such a policy would address protocol and procedure, including ‘who pays for what.’

Coat of Arms: “Yes,” Logo Change: “No”

Council examined and approved a revised version of the Coat of Arms sketch: a couple of small details have been deleted, and the native medicine wheel with the four traditional colours (red, black, white and yellow) has been added. A formal rendition will now be ordered.

A proposal to alter the existing township logo by replacing the centre landscape with features derived from the Coat of Arms was soundly defeated: “A community group worked hard to design this logo (at the time of amalgamation,) and it’s on all our vehicles and stationary” said Davison: “I see no reason to replace it.”

Portland Waste Site Response to MOE

As discussed at last week’s Committee of the Whole, three alternatives for addressing concerns about the Portland landfill will be proposed for further review over the summer: 1)Water level management, 2) Partial capping of the site, and 3) Temporarily restricting use of the site. If the MOE approves, the review will be followed in September by an implementation plan that, Segsworth says, “Could end up being one of these alternatives, or some sort of combination of all three.”

Memorial Endowment to Enhance Township Office Streetscape

The interest from a 1999 memorial endowment will be used for purchase and installation of a new park bench, planters and plants outside the Municipal offices. This anonymous gift, to be administered by the Township, is intended for “community purposes in the Village of Sydenham to improve health, security, cleanliness, comfort and ornament of the village.”

Robinson Congratulated

Mayor Davison congratulated Councillor Robinson for having received a pin from the Sydenham Legion, recognizing 55 years of service.

Photo: The cast of the student production of Arsenic and Old Lace.

As a play, Arsenic and Old Lace has it all: romance, murder, madness, comedy, deep family secrets, and a large cast. I went to Sydenham High School’s production twice (where else can you enjoy an evening of live theatre for less than $10?). The first night was well done, but there were some rough spots. However, by Friday night the cast had fine-tuned their performances and the result was a real treat.

Directors Rutherford and Lalonde worked with an even larger cast by doubling four of the main roles, so that the onstage players varied with every performance. “It allows us to include more students, and it’s more challenging for the actors, not always playing to the same people,” explained Rutherford. 

The action and intrigue of the play centers around five wildly eccentric characters, and all were well acted. Jesse Bell plays brother Teddy, who is convinced he is Teddy Roosevelt. His delightful bit of business with toy soldiers was different in each of the performances, and stole the show both times. Bryar Vuik as Jonathan projected an air of terrifying menace, managing to never lose his focus in spite of the wildly funny performance of Jacob Sharpe as his sidekick, Dr Einstein. Lacy Evans, Daphne Kennedy, Richelle Gallant and Kricket Gow take turns playing the two lovable but dangerously delusional elderly Brewster sisters who are certain their poisoned wine is a fit antidote for loneliness.

In contrast, the young lovers and the supporting roles of police, minister, etc have to be played more realistically, and are in some ways even more challenging for the actors. All do well: drama is definitely alive and well at SHS.

Photo: Kathyrn O'Hara of the SFCS with Lindsay Abrams and students who helped construct the SFCS's Grace Centre's new community garden

Over 50 students from Sydenham and Sharbot Lake high schools assisted in the community garden project at the new headquarters of Southern Frontenac Community Services (SFCS), the Grace Centre in Sydenham.

The project was part of Change the World-Ontario Youth Challenge, a program that encourages students to volunteer in their local communities. The community gardens were built by students and community volunteers over a three-week period. The gardens will provide fresh produce to the food bank and will help support the SFCS's Adult Day Program, in which participants will have a chance to garden outdoors in the specially designed raised beds. The project was supported by a one-time grant through the Change the World program, and grade 12 Sydenham High School student Lindsay Abrams was hired by SFCS to lead the project. Lindsay was assisted by Jennifer Linton, coordinator of the SFCS Food bank, Daryl Silver of the Silverbrook Garden Centre in Sydenham, Sue Clinton, the current chair of the Loughborough Emergency Christmas and Relief Fund and her husband Bob, and Team Depot, the Home Depot team of volunteers. In just three short weeks the students and volunteers constructed two raised beds, which will be used for fresh herbs, along with two ground plots that will also be used to grow fresh produce.

A number of guest speakers spoke at the celebration ceremony about the importance of community gardens. Joan Cameron, board chair of SFCS, stressed that saving the world begins close to home. “Changing the world starts with ourselves and by doing a project such as this we are providing opportunities to people who live in the community to serve others in the community. This is a project that we envision helping the community for many years to come and it could not have been done without the expertise offered by a number of knowledgeable members of the community.” The project will continue into the future and there are plans in the works to develop more gardens, which will be used to grow fresh produce to provide food bank families with a basket of fresh produce once per month. Lindsay Abrams spoke of the dedication of students who worked tirelessly on the project over the three weeks. “This was something that the students and I really enjoyed doing and is something that we are really proud of.”

Following the speeches, guests were treated to a free concert by local band Rock Bottom and a BBQ courtesy of the Sydenham and District Lions Club.

The stars seem to have lined up recently for former Sydenham High School graduate Amber Kilborn. Amber, who just graduated from Dalhousie University with a bachelor’s degree in architecture/environmental studies, was the first person who came to mind when Janette Haase, facilitator of the Southern Frontenac Community Services community garden at the Grace Centre, found out that the organization had received a $30,000 grant to build a greenhouse there.

Haase has known Amber since she was 12 years old. She said she knew Amber was “more than capable” of heading up the build and contacted her to see if she would be interested in designing and coordinating it.

Amber said initially it took a bit of convincing before she agreed to sign on, but she quickly realized that it would be a great hands-on experience. “It's been an amazing learning experience and I'm a quick learner, so that helped me out a great deal,” she said.

The 950 square foot building, which will be known as the Grace Centre Greenhouse, is 80% finished and it was officially opened at the Culture Days event on September 29. The project is Amber's first build and she said she “got her hands dirty and did a bunch of construction as well”.

One of the specifications for the building was that it be accessible to clients of the SFCSC's adult day program, who will be invited to work in it during their visits to the center. The building was built on a concrete slab and has one concrete block wall, both of which provide thermal mass to the space, allowing it to heat up in the day and give off heat at night. Five raised garden beds built at task height will allow SFCSC's clients to work in the gardens while standing. A hooped section of the building will contain the more production-based garden area with regular low-lying gardens. The building has no electricity or heating system; instead, it has a passive ventilation system that utilizes the site’s natural prevailing winds, which run east/west through the building through a channel of openings in the east and west walls, allowing the winds to pass through and take up any heat. The bottom-most hoops in the building will eventually roll up to allow cold air to enter at the bottom of the building, and operable openings at the building’s upper-most section can be opened to either let heat escape in the warmest summer months or keep it inside in colder months.

Construction began in the last week of June and the finishing touches will be done in the next few weeks. Completion is expected for the end of October. Amber expects the first gardens to be planted before winter so that both the SFCSC food bank and the adult day clients will have fresh salad greens to eat in December.

Tanner Liscomb, a Sydenham High School student hired through KEYS ( Kingston Employment Youth Services), assisted with the build, along with local carpenter Brendan Arthur. A number of other committed local volunteers, Ingrid Golemiec and Ron Hipner, assisted with the build, as did students in Alan McDonald's grade seven Challenge class at Loughborough Public School. Kepler Bell Contracting also lent a hand in the construction of the building.

Janette Haase, who founded the outdoor community garden at the centre last year, said she is excited to also have the greenhouse now, which will extend the growing season. “I hope to have spinach, kale and swiss chard and other greens into December. We will start our transplants in May and then have our first spinach come April.”

The greenhouse will supply fresh produce for nine months of the year. Haase said this project has been the most wonderful one she has worked on to date. “So many people in the community took part and everything just came together so perfectly.”

Jennifer Linton, coordinator of the SFCSC Food Bank, said that being able to supply food bank clients with fresh produce for nine months of the year will be a real bonus. “The response from the clients has been great and people love getting fresh vegetables.” She also said that the number of clients using the food bank is on the rise. In 2012 the SFCSC food bank served over 1000 adults and 660 children, an increase of 29% from 2011, and Linton said she predicts that increase to rise to over 30% this year.

With her first project under her belt, Amber said she now plans to work in her field and then travel before returning to school in May, where she will studying for her master’s degree.

The beautiful rural setting of Sydenham is a big part of why the annual Sydenham Triathlon/Duathlon, which took place this year on July 7, continues to attract athletes of all ages and skill levels from larger centers around Ontario. So says Christine McKinty, partner in the Somersault Events Series, who puts on the Sydenham event, just one of the many events they run in the province.

The Sydenham Tri/Du began five years ago and was the brain child of its long-time race director Richard Cadman, who unfortunately will be retiring from that role this year. The event has been growing steadily in popularity since year one and this year it attracted over 600 participants, with 500 racers pre-registered long before race day and over 100 more registering the day of. “People really seem to love this event because its removed from the big city”, McKinty said when I spoke to her during the event. “It's a beautiful rural location and there is a lot of camaraderie here. Participants don't just come to run their event, collect their prize and then leave. They come to race and then relax, and they tend to stick around after their event and cheer others on.”

The premiere race of the day is by far the Olympic triathlon, which McKinty calls “one of the sexier events, for lack of a better term.” It includes a 1500 swim in Sydenham Lake, a 40 km bike ride and a 10 km run. The Sprint Tri is also popular and is comprised of a 500m swim, 20km bike and 5km run. “We've seen the Olympic triathlon grow hugely here since we started; I think because it's part of the Olympics and also because of people having seen Canadian triathlete Simon Whitfield in all his Olympic glory. I also think a lot of people want to go all out and really challenge themselves. People who run or who might come from another discipline want to put everything together and give it a try.”

McKinty also said that the shorter events are also very popular. “The shorter events tend to attract those who might be just getting started or else getting back into the events after having kids and it gives them a stepping stone to the longer races.” Race day involves the efforts of over 100 volunteers, who included members of the Sydenham Legion and the Kingston Multi Sports Club, plus many individual members of the community at large. Sydenham resident Marianne Takala has a big hand in organizing the event locally along with Richard Cadman, and they also bring along their own small army of volunteers.

Present at the event, though unfortunately this year only on the side lines, was long time and well-known local triathlete Scott Takala of Sydenham. Takala, who has won the Sydenham Olympic tri event for at least two consecutive years, was not able to run because of having suffered heat stroke during an earlier run this week, but he was present as a volunteer.

The weather proved to be pretty good. Although it was reported that parts of the courses could be a bit slick in certain areas due to the occasional bouts of rain, the overcast skies provided a break in what would otherwise have been a very hot day for the racers.

The Sydenham event is the furthest west event that Somersault puts on in the province and it tends to attract athletes and participants from Ottawa, Kingston and the Toronto area. McKinty said that Somersault is currently looking to hire a new race director for the Sydenham event. Anyone interested can make inquiries atThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.