The heat and humidity were getting to the audience at the springtime Sydenham High School graduation last week (Thursday, June 27)

With over 200 graduates, and dozens of special awards to hand out, the audience had to struggle to maintain their enthusiasm at times.

Not so when Tyler MacComish took the stage to receive awards from the Kingston Community Credit Union and the Sydenham High School Staff Association, when the audience erupted in sustained applause, the loudest cheer for any of the deserving award winners all evening.

Because he has been a student in the School to Community Class, Tyler is now 20 and has been at the school longer than almost all of the graduating class, and his impact has been felt by the entire Sydenham High School community.

One of his teachers, Karl Hammer, met Tyler in September of 2006.

“Tyler began as a very quiet and shy young man, but slowly began to show his true personality over the course of the year. Tyler is one of the most well-mannered and positive people I have ever met.”

Over the past 7 years Tyler has been a manager for soccer, football, basketball, volleyball... he also played junior boys basketball, football and dressed and took the final snaps in the annual Bubba Bowl game in SR football this year. He has twice won manager of the year, and won a special award at this year's athletic banquet for his commitment and service to the athletic program at the school.

He has done co-op programs in the school and at the local Foodland store, where he has become an integral member of the Foodland family.

At SHS he has been the student council representative from the school to community classroom.

“Tyler is Mr. Sydenham,” said Karl Hammer. "He is known by all and highly respected for the joy he brings to people's lives. He is here with me helping me get my classroom ready for next year. Although he has moved on as a student and will leave my program... he will now become one of my close friends.”

Atoms

by Karl Hammer

Atom Bulldogs: Back Row - (coaches) Derek Joynt, Karl Hammer, Alex Westwater, Jim McNeely, Zach Kennedy, Blair Veldman. Middle Row: Ben O`Meara, Jack Hammer, Chad Branscombe, Warren Amey, Seth Bryan, Grady Westwater, Gavin Goodfellow, Hailey McNeely, Barret Joynt. Front Row: Nic Kott, Owen Deyo, Rein Olvet, Rhett Senior, Jacob Snider, Brody Badour, Bryson Gilpin, Mason Mcdonald. Very Front: Brahma the "Bulldog" and Keiren McNeely

The TIMFL (Thousand Islands Minor Football League) held its championships this past weekend at LaSalle High School. There were three divisions.

The Bulldog teams from Sydenham competed against teams from Gananoque, LaSalle, Frontenac.

The Bulldogs 1 team won the Atom division championship vs Falcons 21 - 7. This was the third year in a row that the Bulldogs reached the final game having to face the Falcons in each of these games. Sydenham won 2 of the 3 times.

Coach Karl Hammer says that in all his years coaching football, regardless of the age level, this team this year had the most eager and disciplined kids that he's ever coached. Each week they worked hard to prepare for their next challenge and enjoyed the process of learning the game of football.

Pee Wee

by Brock Palmer

The two Sydenham teams in the Peewee division met for a third Bulldog Bash of the season, this time for all of the marbles in the title game. Following some heavy hitting, the Bulldogs 1 team managed to pull out a victory by the score of 21 - 0, capping off an undefeated season. All three matchups between these clubs were decided by only a few plays, as each team sported dynamic offences, stingy defences, and exceptional special teams.

This team has elite player leadership and discipline for a group of grade 5 and 6 athletes. Their ability to prepare themselves mentally and execute physically is beyond their years.

This game was certainly a matchup that all of the kids wanted. It's tough to go out there and push around your friends, but both sides came out hard and tough, throwing some big blocks and making fantastic tackles. I am most proud of the sportmanship these young athletes display. They spend an hour hitting each other, then shake hands and pat pads with a smile on their face. They truly appreciate each other as rivals and teammates.

The committment to team speaks to the dedication of all the Bulldog players and their parents, who together as one group, gave each other a well deserved standing ovation and a bow following the final whistle of the season.

Hats off to the Parent Council at Loughborough Public School in Sydenham who entertained hundreds of students and their families on June 14 under sunny skies at their annual fundraiser, which was back this year after a one-year hiatus.

Multiple events took place inside and outside the school and included many games, a presentation by Ray's Reptiles in the school gym, demonstrations by the Frontenac OPP, Fire Department and ambulance services, and a bake sale in the school’s main foyer. In the library a silent auction fundraiser took place with many notable donations from local businesses and individuals. Also up for grabs was an impressive selection of fine art paintings, created by LPS students and representing each of the individual classrooms at the school. Jason Silver played his acoustic guitar and provided the perfect musical back drop to the day.

Christine Marshall, chair of the LPS parent council, was pleased with the turnout. She said that the funds raised by the fun fair will go towards supporting the school’s music department and program, which was brought back this year after a few years’ absence. Funds will also be used to put in a new technology system at the school called Synervoice, which uses an automated messaging service to let parents know of upcoming events at the school.a

Larry and Christine Showler, owners of Frontenac Outfitters, the paddlers’ paradise located at 6674 Bedford Road, kitty corner to Frontenac Provincial Park, decided to bring something new to their 29th annual spring sale and open house, which took place from May 3-5. Not only were they offering up for test paddling and sale over 400 of the world’s finest canoes, kayaks and stand up paddle boards, along with a free BBQ, numerous prizes and a live country rock concert courtesy of Rock Bottom, but this year the couple also invited their friends from Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre in Napanee to the event to raise funds for the centre.

Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre is located at 8749 County Road 2 in Napanee, and is a federally and provincially licensed rehabilitation wildlife centre. It has been in operation since 1994 and is the only facility of its kind between Montreal and Toronto. The centre's aim is to “help all injured and orphaned wildlife and to release them back into their natural habitat.” The centre also offers free advice and assistance to property owners who are having problems with their wild animal neighbors and will offer humane alternatives to resolve conflicts. Volunteers at the centre work closely with veterinarians and humane societies across Ontario.

Sandy Pines is located in a small clinic facility that has recently acquired some additions, including a new aviary for raptors, who require 100 feet of flying space to pass their pre-release fly test. The centre relies 100% on donations, and staff and volunteers are hoping to build a larger hospital facility that will cost between $250,000 -$300,000.

Faye Wan is Sandy Pines’ fundraising coordinator and was present at the event. She said the centre uses up most of their resources for everyday operations so finding funding to build a new hospital will be a difficult undertaking. Sandy Pines was founded by Sue Meech, a former nurse who has been caring for sick and injured wildlife for over 25 years. She said that for most of her life she has been inundated with injured and sick animals as people began to bring them to her.

Frontenac Outfitters and Sandy Pines recently forged ties when the Showlers had a pair of wild foxes living on their porch. Seven of the pair’s young pups developed mange after they lost their mom even though dad tried to feed them on his own, supplying them with small prey he killed. When left untreated, mange can be life threatening. The Showlers found out about Sandy Pines, whose crew was able to rescue and rehabilitate five of the seven pups. They were treated and released back to the wild.

Sue Meech said when I spoke to her by phone earlier this week, “I think that it is man’s inhumanity to animals on a large scale that keeps me working in the field.” Sue works at the centre on average 80 hours per week and she said that this kind of work is “the reason that I get out of bed every morning.”

On the day I spoke to her she was up at 8am, answering phone calls and arranging for drivers to pick up rescued animals. Then she helped numerous turtles who were having their fractured shells mended; fed the rescued barn animals and birds; checked on the progress of the new aviary; helped examine a slew of new animals that were being admitted that day including birds, raccoons squirrels and rabbits; helped feed a rescued loon; drove her interns to town to get groceries; and worked out at the gym for 45 minutes before grabbing dinner and heading back to the centre for more work.

At Saturday’s fundraiser Faye Wan had on display a number of photos of various animals that had been rescued and rehabilitated at the Sandy Pines over the years. One was a young fox that had been badly injured on its face and legs by a carelessly disposed of fishing hook and line, which Faye said unfortunately happens all too often. Helium balloons and their lines also pose a huge threat to wild animals. The centre also rescues countless animals that have been kidnapped from the wild as well as those injured by cars. While lack of funds does not allow the centre to care for animals that are too sick or severely injured to be released back to the wild, the volunteers still manage to care for, treat and release close to 2000 animals a year.

Before my conversation with Sue Meech ended, she recalled for me the words of a song written by an unknown author who was similarly inspired to help injured wild life.

“Once in a while we have a chance to give back a little from all that we take,

And a wild one returned to the circle of life is a part of the change that we make.”

For more information about Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre visitwww.sandypineswildlife.org.

Paddling enthusiasts can learn more about Frontenac Outfitters at www.frontenacoutfitters.ca

In recognition of National Volunteer Week (April 21-27), staff at Southern Frontenac Community Services (SFCS) in Sydenham held a special celebration at the Grace Centre to thank their 143 volunteers, who assist staff in bringing a myriad of health, social and financial support services to individuals, families and seniors in the community. Close to 60 SFCS volunteers attended the event, which included an informal meet and greet, a plethora of tasty snacks and beverages and a special ceremony emceed by Kingston stand up comic Mark Nesseth. Nesseth kept the ceremony lively, upbeat, and very entertaining and he introduced the individual members of the SFCS staff, who each spoke of their programs and praised their volunteers.

The SFCS programs include transportation, the food bank, the Good Food Box Program, the Rural Women's Group, Meals On Wheels, Diners Club, home visits, foot care, income tax clinics, and a myriad of other social and recreational programs.

David Townsend, the executive director of SFCS, stated unequivocally, “There is absolutely no way that we at the SFCS could do half of what we do without the support of our volunteers.” He went even further, stating how the programming at SFCS has expanded as a direct result of its volunteers and he cited specific statistics. “Our food bank grew by 29% last year as a direct result of the deeply committed 15 volunteers who are working weekly on that one particular program. Our seniors programs grew by 10% and now we are able to serve 725 clients, up from 661, all because of our volunteers. In fact, we now we have a wait list for our Adult Day Program and currently are looking for new volunteers for that program to accommodate those who are waiting to be able to participate.”

Townsend's advice to those considering volunteering at the organization, “Come on out and have a look at what it means to be a volunteer in any number of our programs. If it looks interesting, if it looks like fun and like something you'd be interested in then we can sit down and talk about it. If not that is okay with us too.”

He also stressed that the organization benefits from volunteers of all ages. “We play host to the Sparks and Brownies here and they are volunteering their time and effort by helping to take care of the gardens and grounds and they have also done a food drive for us. We also have older volunteers like those from Maple Ridge who come and volunteer in the kitchen. People should know that no matter their age, they can definitely serve us in some way.”

I spoke with long time SFCS volunteer David Row who has been running the seniors' Tai Chi program at SFCS for close to 12 years now and whose classes serve anywhere from 6-20 seniors who regularly participate. Row who has been practicing Tai Chi for over 40 years said the practice has helped him ”de-stress” and he pointed out how getting old itself can be stressful. “By helping others to de-stress through Tai Chi, I can justify my own dedication to it.”

This was the second year that the volunteer celebrations have been held at SFCS's new home, the Grace Centre. Staff and board members are excited to be entering a new fundraising drive that will support a new addition to the centre, which since it was acquired in 2011 has become the central hub for seniors' programming. Board members and staff hope to see the centre become the permanent home to all of the services that the organizations offers. Anyone interested in donating to the organization and/or becoming a volunteer can visit www.sfcsc.ca or call 1-800-763-9610 or 613-376-6477.

Bargain hunters mark that date on your calendar.

From top to bottom, the village of Sydenham will be filled with yard and sidewalk vendors selling any and all kinds of items. A number of local businesses will be holding sidewalk sales and/or putting on specials for the day as well.

This first time local event is being organized by Anne-Marie Young, a relative newcomer to the village. By day, Anne-Marie is the Economic Development Officer for Frontenac County, but she has a history with this kind of event, and she wants to bring it to her new home town.

“I was involved in the start of a village-wide yard sale when I was living in Williamsburgh, a small town near Morrisburgh. I was the manager of a local Canadian Tire store at the time, and in the first year 1,500 customers came to the store that day when there would normally have been about 300, so it worked for the business community and the local residents as well. The Canadian Tire store is gone from Williamsburgh now, but the village yard sale is going strong after 20 years,” she said.

Last weekend Young approached a number of businesses and other local residents about the idea, and received a universally positive response, so the event is a go.

“I wasn't sure how people would react to me, because a lot of people don't know me in Sydenham yet, but everyone seemed to like the idea once I explained how it works,” she said.

One of the nice things about this kind of event, Young added, is that there are no real hard and fast rules. All people have to do it set up a yard sale on that day, although she said she would like people, and businesses, to contact her beforehand so she can publicise where there will be yard sales taking place.

A number of businesses are already committed to participating in the event, which will take place on the Saturday after the Victoria Day weekend.

“There are a lot of events scheduled for the long weekend,” said Young, “and I thought the following weekend would be a better idea, even though it is a busy weekend as well.”

It will likely be a busy Saturday in Sydenham on the 25th, particularly between 8 am and 2 pm when the yard and sidewalk sale is scheduled. For further information and to confirm participation, call Anne Marie at 613-376-3519.

Sydenham Water: still $1 million short – a primer

Treasurer Louise Fragnito came to South Frontenac Committee of the Whole to ask for direction in addressing three financial questions related to the Sydenham water treatment plant: unfunded liability, user rates and the need to build a reserve fund for future capital replacement.

As of the end of 2012, $1,018,886 remains unpaid, or in 'treasurer-speak' an un-funded liability, while the projected reserve funds which were to have come from user fees have been largely eaten away by the escalating operating costs of the plant.

The Unfunded Liability

This has two parts: A) from the beginning, the Township agreed to temporarily carry $530,550, an amount projected to be paid off as new connections, such as subdivisions, are created. This year, a new subdivision within the Sydenham area is projected to contribute $155,330, which would reduce this portion of the debt to $375,220. Utilities Kingston, in cooperation with the Township's Public Works

Department, is conducting a capacity study to confirm the system has sufficient growth capacity to eventually pay off the remainder.

B) is the township's portion of the nearly $1 ½ million cost of the plant upgrade, to improve the treatment process. (This was necessary because the combination of chlorine and organic matter that passed through the filters in the original design led to the development of potentially dangerous chemical by-products.) The federal and provincial governments each covered one-third of the upgrade, but the remaining third was a township responsibility.

There was a lawsuit, presumably against the original designers of the system, which the township won. However the details of this have never been made public, and $488,336 remains outstanding.

Previous councils have always been very clear that the price of Sydenham water treatment is a Sydenham, not a township responsibility. Sydenham presently has 174 active water users: the remaining 104 are not connected to the system, but are required to also pay the basic mandatory user fee of $41 a month, the cost of 18 cubic metres of water. Fragnito could not say what actual volume of water the average household currently uses, but she has agreed to provide that information.

The township has an Investing in Ontario reserve of $300,698, which could possibly be indirectly used to help pay down a large part of the township's portion of the upgrade.

However, this is money that would otherwise be available for projects in other parts of the township.

User Rates and Capital Replacement Reserve

The news only gets worse: the current operation of the plant is not generating sufficient funds to both cover operating costs and build a reserve for future capital costs to replace/repair plant parts as they wear out.

Where Next?

Public Works and Utilities Kingston are working on a new water rate financial plan to bring to Council later this year, which will take into account projected capital replacement costs, present and projected operating costs, and inflation.

As for the nearly half a million upgrade, Council had no easy answers. Councilor McPhail made a notice of motion to come to the next Council meeting, directing staff to look into the possibility of reopening negotiations with the School Board, which made a substantial one-time payment toward the original cost of the water system, but does not pay any ongoing user fees.

And The Good News

Sydenham water remains free of harmful by-products, no longer smells or tastes of chlorine, and is reasonably soft, therefore much easier than local well-water on taps and appliances.

Major Changes Coming to Local Waste Sites

When it comes to garbage, South Frontenac is facing some big challenges:

• The provincial government is continuing to tighten its rules around waste site capacity and management (they're not pleased that Portland's once reassuringly large capacity is mostly in the swamp),
• It costs a lot to keep five waste sites open and staffed for a total of 87 hours a week,
• We - all of us - are producing more and more waste every year,
• South Frontenac residents do not recycle/divert nearly as much waste as they could, or as many other municipalities do, in spite of weekly curbside blue-box pick-up.

In February, Council approved a new waste disposal operational plan intended to address some of these issues. As of May 1st,

• Portland and Loughborough will be open two, not three days a week; Salem, Bradshaw and Green Bay one day a week each, with some of Bradshaw's summer hours moved to Sunday,
• Salem, Bradshaw and Green Bay will accept no waste other than tagged household garbage (Portland and Loughborough will accept neither of these.)
• Portland will take large articles, mixed loads, brush, shingles and construction waste,
• Keeley Road (household hazardous waste) is the only site for small appliances, e-waste, hard plastics, bale/boat wrap and hazardous waste,
• Loughborough will accept large articles (furniture) and construction waste.
• A weigh scale will be installed at Portland, and tipping fees have been raised to more closely match those of neighbouring municipalities.

Implementing these measures, with residents' cooperation, should extend the township's landfill capacity until 2032, and result in a savings of more than $7 million over twenty years.

With full awareness that change is never easy, and that some of these changes will be controversial, the Public Works Department has set up two public information sessions next week: Wed. April 17 at Bedford Hall,1381 Westport Rd, from 7 - 9pm, and Thurs April 18, Verona Lions Club, 4504 Sand Road, 7 - 9pm.

A love for music, and hours of practice combined with a deep passion for the events of Easter produced a more than memorable musical offering that was enjoyed by close to 100 listeners at St. Paul's Anglican Church in Sydenham on Good Friday.

Easter represents the most solemn event in the Christian calendar and that feeling was both captured and shared at performance of Charles Wood's Saint Mark Passion by choir members of St. Paul’s United in Harrowsmith, St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Sydenham, Trinity United in Verona, St. George's Cathedral in Kingston and singers from the local community.

The performance opened with the impressive and illustrious sounds of the church organ, masterfully played by Ian Bevell, organist and musical director of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Kingston. The organ accompaniment greatly assisted in setting the solemn and highly dramatic tone of the performance and Bevell's emotive playing ranged from soft, reflective, lightly played sections in the first gospel section of the piece to the later thundering, spine tingling sections when Jesus tells his disciples that the hour has come when he will be betrayed. These moods were doubled in feeling as the chorus also expertly portrayed a wide range of feelings, depending on the section of the narrative. They sung a solemn, reflective lament in the second gospel and conversely sang in open, full voices with no holds barred when they told of Jesus' warning to Peter of the third crow of the cock in the third gospel. The key solo sections, sung by Neil Hobbs as the Evangelist, Phil Rogers as Jesus, George Turcotte as Judas/ High Priest/Bystander, Ralph McInnis as Peter, Connie Shibley the soprano solos and Maid 1, Paul Belshaw as Pilate and Gayle Robertson as Maid 2, each shouldered much of the musical drama in this highly narrative piece and every soloist sang their roles with precision, feeling and musical adeptness.

Conductor Brad Barbeau, the musical director at St. Paul’s in Sydenham definitely had his work cut out for him in this complex piece and his skillful management of the 30 + member choir proved that he was more than up to the challenge. High points in the piece included the chorus' suspenseful anticipation of Christ as he came to Gethsemane and fell to the ground to pray, as well as the gorgeously multi-layered chanting of the text "Crucify Him". Listeners were visibly moved by the performance and filed out of the church quietly following the dramatic performance. Afterward, I had a chance to speak with Rev. Bridgewater about how this kind of performance suits the events of Easter. “It can often be very difficult to articulate the mystery of Good Friday, the death of Jesus and the resurrection. It's sometimes easier to let the scriptures speak for themselves and for the music to add that dramatic effect and element. These community concerts are also a great opportunity for singers from the various local area church choirs to come together. So often we hear of how religion creates boundaries and this is a chance for various religious groups in the community to come together and to share at a very important time of the year.”

Though many Royal Canadian Legion branches across the country are finding it difficult to make ends meet due to declining memberships and lack of funds, the Sydenham Legion Branch 496 is one example of a rural Legion striving and finding success in its goal to offer Sydenham and its surrounding communities a family-friendly place to meet, lounge, play games and enjoy a meal and/or a beverage.

First began as an organization solely to help veterans, their families and dependents, many Royal Canadian Legions like the Sydenham Legion have expanded their membership to include all members of the community.

That being said, history still holds a special place at the Legion in Sydenham. Hanging on the back wall of the downstairs meeting area in a wooden oval frame is a photo of Robert Miles Richardson, for whom the branch was named. A note beside the photo tells of Bob Richardson, who was born March 18, 1875 and died May 31, 1949. He served in the First World War and went overseas with the 146 overseas battalion before joining the 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles on November 3, 1916 while serving there in the field. He served both at Vimy Ridge and Passchendaele and on December 21 his regiment occupied the trenches in Loos, France and remained there for one month.

On December 22, 1917, Richardson was struck in the temple by a bullet that lodged itself part way into his skull and on December 31, he was struck off the regimental strength and repatriated to Canada. Deemed to be inoperable, the lump on his forehead was visible until the time of his death.

While remaining proud of its history, the Sydenham Legion’s executive are actively striving to debunk the idea that Legions are dark, somber places where only those associated with war veterans are apt to gather.

I recently met with John Pickernell at the Sydenham branch, now in his tenth year as Legion president, and he explained how he and his executive are actively striving to attract newcomers and younger members who may in the past have stayed away. The Sydenham Legion offers up what Pickernell describes as a friendly, “Cheers”-like environment where people go to meet up with friends and/or family on a regular basis and enjoy a game of cards, pool or shuffle board free of charge. Every day of the week, staff, members and volunteers offer visitors and members a wide range of activities.

On the third Mondays of every month members gather for regular meetings. Wednesday night is pool night and a local league of six teams get together to shoot a friendly game of eight ball. Every second Thursday is Wing Nite, when hungry folk can enjoy a pound of wings in a flavor of their choice for $8.99.

When I was visiting many groups were gathered downstairs, some chatting at tables and chairs and others leaning on the central bar, where long-time bartender Cindy Van Luven was serving up beverages to a number of regular customers.

The Sydenham Legion, like many other Legions, also strives to assist an array of local charity groups and organizations in the community. Last year alone they offered up the hall for free 81 times for various local fundraisers, which included events for the Canadian Cancer Society. They have also held Tai Chi classes in the past, as well as meetings for the local Girl Guides.

Membership over the years has continued to remain strong and currently there are 177 paid members. In their particular zone, the Sydenham Legion is the fourth largest. Pickernell says that is the case because, “We strive to attract younger people by offering our games free of charge, free music picks on Friday nights and free WIFI for those looking for free internet access … Basically we try not to be too strict. We have an open door policy here, unlike some other branches, where members are required to sign their guests in. We chose not to do that and feel that if people want to come and check us out first before they join up, they can.” Kids are also welcome.

Pickernell says also that part of the Legion’s success is because the building is entirely paid off, which makes the costs of running it much less than it would be otherwise. The Legion also boasts a “stellar executive board”, many of whom have long-time professional experience in their fields of expertise. One example is their financial officer, Jay Sheff, who has been a chartered accountant for over 40 years. Other long-time members like Marv Ostopovich, owner of Eskerod Signs, donates all of the organization’s event signage free of charge. Member Derrick Anderson, who is the entertainment director, is able to attract big name entertainment to the branch, like the band Ambush, who will be playing at their upcoming Halloween Dance on October 26 at 8pm.

Also upcoming is the Legion’s Car Rally/Dinner and Dance event, which will take place on October 5 (please register as soon as possible). For more information about membership or about any of the upcoming events contact Cindy Van Luven or Phil Somers at 613-376-6808. The Sydenham Legion is located at 4376 William Street in Sydenham and the hours are Monday to Thursday from 3 – 11pm; Fridays from noon till closing (which varies depending on the turnout) and Saturdays from noon to 8pm.

A special performance of the Saint Mark Passion by a community choir consisting of members of the Trinity United Choir in Verona, St. Paul's United in Harrowsmith, plus singers from the community and Kingston, will be performed at St. Paul's Anglican Church in Sydenham on Good Friday, March 29 at 3:30pm. The concert, which is sure to be a memorable and moving one, will see the 30 plus member choir perform the notably difficult oratorio, which was written by Charles Wood in the 1920s and tells the moving and mesmerizing story of the Crucifixion. The work includes numerous solos, chorus and organ sections. It will be directed by Brad Barbeau of St. Paul's in Sydenham with organist Ian Bevell of St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Kingston.

Annabelle Twiddy, musical director at Trinity United Church in Verona, has rehearsed the piece for over 80 hours with the Trinity United Choir in preparation for the concert. She will also be singing alto at the concert and says that the work has “numerous special effects, is incredibly moving and is sure to send chills up your spine.” She added that the calibre of the piece attracts singers who want to sing something musically significant and she explained that the piece “moves along very smoothly, with the music fitting the words of the story incredibly well.” The work was commissioned by an English archbishop in the UK who wanted to hear something other than the typical popular pieces written for this central event in the Christian faith. Unlike Sir John Stainer's work, “The Crucifixion”, which was performed last year at St. Paul's, the Saint Mark Passion includes ever changing music with very little repetition. This one time performance by local singers is definitely not to be missed. There is no admission charge but all donations will go to the Grace Centre. For information call 613-376-3003.