The Converged Citizen - October 29, 2015.

The Power Of The Future Inside

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Thursday, Oct. 29, 2015

Pumpkin memorial illumination

Photo by Danielle GagnierRoch and Rachelle Ethier stand in their front yard filled with Halloween decorations Oct. 19. The decora-tions and pumpkins are a memorial for their son Daniel.

YARD PAGE 2

Windsor-Essex RegionalChamber of Commerce presi-dent Matt Marchand believesthe city can access some ofthe infrastructure funds prom-ised by Justin Trudeau’sLiberals.

Infrastructure spending possible for cityHis comments came even

after Windsor and EssexCounty elected three MPs tothe third party opposition.

During the election cam-paign Prime Minister-desig-nate Trudeau promised to dou-ble investment on infrastruc-ture in the country, raising thecurrent $65 billion to approxi-mately $125 billion.

Marchand said the chamberwould use its network of con-tacts locally, provincially andnationally to bring some ofthose funds to the region.

“We’re going to be leverag-ing our chamber network andour local friends, allies andpartners to bring forward theWindsor voice and we’regoing to look forward to

working with the new govern-ment as they pursue the newagendas,” said Marchand.

The chamber CEO said hemet with both NDP represen-tatives and spoke with theLiberal Party the week of Oct.19 to maintain contact acrossparty lines.

Sean PrevilConverged Citzen Staff

SPENDING PAGE 5

“Get busy living orget busy dying.”

—TimRobbins/Andy

Dufresne

QOTDQuote of the Day

*Volume X Issue 13 *October 29, 2015www.themediaplex.com

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ONVERGED CITIZENOCTOBER 29, 2015C2

news

While he was growing up,Daniel Ethier’s favourite holi-day was Halloween and on theHalloween before he died, hecarved 15 pumpkins on hisown.

Since Daniel’s death fromosteosarcoma in 2013 whenhe was 14 his parents, Rochand Rachelle, have held a spe-cial pumpkin celebration inhis honour.

“He loved carving pump-kins,” said Roch. “He’d go onthe internet for hours on endlooking for the perfect pic-tures, but then he would have

the patience to actually carvethe pumpkins.”

Although Daniel enjoyedcarving pumpkins, he alsoliked the concept ofHalloween. His parents saidhe loved the idea of dressingup with his friends to go out tocollect candy. Once he wasolder, he began to enjoy deco-rating the house to scare thetrick-or-treaters. The Ethierscontinue to decorate forHalloween, inviting theirfriends and family to help dec-orate their yard.

While Daniel was sick, Rochkept a blog online in order tokeep people updated onDaniel’s life. The fall afterDaniel died, Roch askedeveryone on his blog, as well

as family and friends, to bringa pumpkin to their home forDaniel and the tradition wasstarted.

“It keeps Daniel’s memoryalive,” said Rachelle. “Eventhrough everything that’s hap-pened, it brought the familymuch closer together.”

The first time the Ethiershosted Pumpkins for Danielwas in Oct. 2013. It was only asmall gathering with familyand friends but they wereshocked when they received139 pumpkins. It took approx-imately one and a half hours tolight all the candles. Last year,they received over 275 pump-kins and hope to beat thatnumber this year.

“I think he would love it,”

said Roch. “He was just likeme. I prefer Halloween overChristmas and so did he. I’msure he’d be happy with 275pumpkins lit up in his frontyard.”

In 2014, Roch invited thefathers from his support groupto bring pumpkins carved inmemory of their children sothat they could celebrate theirchildren together.

“Even though they may notbe the best looking pumpkins,what they meant to me waspretty special,” said Roch.“We’re doing it again this yeartoo.”

Last year was also the firstyear Roch purchased pumpkinseeds from Windsor, N.S. sohe could grow giant pumpkins

to put in his yard as the mainattraction during the event. Hesucceeded in growing twopumpkins weighing over 400pounds and one weighing 250pounds. Unfortunately, grow-ing conditions this summerwere not ideal so they did notgrow any pumpkins as large aslast year.

At the Pumpkins for Danielevent, his parents ask every-one to bring a pumpkin and alarge candle to their home tolight on Halloween night. The“Pumpkins for Daniel” eventtakes place Oct. 24 from 1p.m. - 4 p.m. but families arewelcome to bring pumpkins tothe Ethiers’ home at 1833Lesperance Rd. anytimebetween Oct. 24 andHalloween.

YARD PAGE 1Danielle Gagnier

Converged Citizen Staff

Finding a workplace and lifebalance is critical, St. ClairCollege President Patti Francetold the 2015 winners of thestudent Athena award at theannual luncheon Oct. 23.

More than 300 people wereon hand to congratulate SarahDavidson, 27, Jordynne Ropatand Sara Santarossa, 25, whohave all graduated from theUniversity of Windsor andhave gone on to graduate or

.(left to right) Patti France the keynote speaker, Jordynne Ropat, Sarah Davidson, and Sara Santarossa recipients ofthe Athena Scholarship Fund pose for a picture in the hallway of the Caboto Club.

Photo by Lyndi-Colleen Morgan

Lyndi-Colleen MorganConverged Citizen Staff

doctoral studies elsewhere inthe province. Each of themreceived a $5,000 scholarshipwhich is sponsored by corpo-rate partners as well as indi-vidual community members,the University of Windsor andSt. Clair College.

Davidson, Ropat andSantarossa said they werehonoured and grateful toreceive the award and therecognition is overwhelming.Ropat said the AthenaScholarship opens new doors,

connecting the recipients toleaders in the community whohave the ability to offer adviceand needed help.

“The Athena Scholarship isa way to recognize individualswho want to raise up womenand girls so that they mayachieve their dreams andgoals,” said Ropat. “I am sograteful to be recognized andam so happy to be receivingthis award.”

The Athena ScholarshipFund Windsor was started in

1999 and the committee pres-ents three women with theaward each year. To date, thescholarship has been present-ed to 44 women from Windsorand Essex County. Thewomen selected for this awardare individuals who have livedin and attended postsecondaryschool in Windsor. This schol-arship is presented to womenwho have demonstrated theAthena spirit, which meansthey have excelled in academ-ics, leadership, mentorship

and commitment to volun-teering their time to benefitothers.

“It’s a great opportunity torecognize females who havenot only shown their accom-plishments academically butalso with their involvement inthe community,” said France.“I think it’s great to recognizethem and encourage them,and I think that the recogni-tion and encouragement willallow them to mentor mem-bers in the community mov-ing forward.”

France is St. Clair’s firstfemale president. She has 25years of experience in post-secondary education and hasherself been widely recog-nized for her professionalexcellence, volunteer workand mentorship.

France spoke about findingthe balance between work andpersonal time. She said eachof the recipients showed ded-ication toward achieving theirgoals and encouraged them towork hard, also telling themthe time they put into thework is worth the recognitionthey will receive for the endresults.

“I wish to remind us all thatthere is someone else with ustoday in spirit, who is a veryhard worker,” said France. “Itis Athena, a multitasking jug-gler and the goddess of every-thing. Wisdom, courage,inspiration, civilization, lawand justice, mathematics,strength, strategy and arts.”

Applications for the 2016Athena Scholarship will bemade available in the newyear. Information about thescholarship and informationon donations can be found atwww.athenaleadership.ca

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newsVoter turnout highest since 1993

John Bezaire being interviewed after casting his vote at the Immaculate Conception Catholic School Oct.19. Bezairesaid he voted because he believes his vote makes a difference.

Photo by Sean Frame

Oct. 19 the Canadian federalelection saw its highest voterturnout in more than 20 years.In this year's election, rough-

ly 68.5 per cent of eligiblevoters in Canada cast theirvotes, with the Liberals com-ing out on top. In the Windsor-West area, 55 per cent of theeligible electors voted whichis almost seven per cent high-er than the 2011 election.These numbers do not includevoters who registered the dayof the election.TheConservative Party of Canadalost roughly 220,000 votesfrom the previous election butthe Liberal Party of Canadaamassed over four millionnew voters.

Political analyst LydiaMiljan said she believesLiberal supporters from previ-ous years felt disenfranchisedwith the party because of pre-vious scandals. With youthfulJustin Trudeau, Miljan saidthe supporters were givenhope for the future of Canada.

“That will depend,” saidMiljan when asked if theincrease of voters will be anongoing trend for future elec-tions. “Are the Liberals goingto live up to expectations? Arethey going inspire people tobe hopeful? Or are they going

to be mired in scandal likeevery other government we’veever had?”

Elections Canada predicted ahigh turnout of voters theweek prior with their advancepolls and the numbers fromthose were to be consistentwith the Oct. 19 results. Voters had various reasons to

cast their votes Oct. 19.

Annette Rennie’s reason wassimple, she said she votesevery year because she isCanadian.

“In a lot of countries theydon’t get that option,” saidRennie fresh from the polls. “Ifeel voting is very importantand I want my vote to beheard.” Richard Simpson has lived in

Sean FrameConverged Citizen Staff

Windsor his whole life, butsaid he has never voted beforethis year. Simpson said thisyear he is casting his votebecause he wants change. It is believed the high turnout

is partially due to the Liberal’splatform of helping the middleclass and having an honestgovernment, according toMiljan. Miljan made the com-

parison of this year’s electionto when President Obamatook office in the U.S. Whenhe became president he wasable to increase voter turnout,but when defending his titlehis numbers had dwindled.Whether this indicates a futureof dedicated Canadian votersor just a diamond in the rough,only time will tell.

Abass WaliConverged Citizen Staff

An expert in cross-bordertrade is confident the TransPacific Partnership will bene-fit all the countries havingsigned the agreement, includ-ing Canada.The Trans Pacific Partnership

is a document signed between12 countries which hasopened a new path forCanadian businesses to exporttheir products in the worldmarkets.

“Canada will get lots of ben-efit from the new trade deal,especially with Japan becauseJapan has a big market espe-cially Japan’s auto industry. Itwill open more markets for theCanadian export,” said BillAnderson, director of theCross Border Institute at theUniversity of Windsor. “AfterJapan, other fast – growing

places like Malaysia andVietnam are other opportuni-ties for Canadian exports tobring Canadian products likefruit and minerals to thoseworld markets.”

According to the TorontoSun, current trade agreementsdeal with trade in goods andservices. Since the servicesector now accounts for closeto 70 per cent of Canada’sGDP, it is by far the biggestpart of Canada’s economy.

Anderson said all tradeagreements going onward willinvolve trade in services.

“Some countries under theTPP deal, particularly NewZealand and few others, want-ed to have access to theCanadian market and didn’twant Canada to close its mar-ket in those South Americancultures,”said Anderson. “It’sactually three to four per centof that market to competition,

from those 12 countries. NewZealand, for example, willhave a close competition withCanada in milk and dairyproducts.”According to Foreign Affairs’

Trade and DevelopmentDepartment, Canada has suc-

cessfully settled negotiationsregarding the Trans-PacificPartnership, the largest freetrade initiative in history. It is

a complete, economic, strate-gic and stable agreement thatwill increase Canada’s posi-tion in the Asia-Pacific coun-tries.

Anderson also said there aresome differences between theNAFTA and the new TransPacific Partnership.

“There is very strict rolesthat if you’re going to exportsomething, for example, fromthe United States to Canadaunder NAFTA, it has to be 60per cent of the buyers of thatgood that has to come fromone of the three NAFTA coun-tries,” said Anderson. “Nowwith the TPP, you have got 12countries and its only requiredin a smaller amount, about 45per cent, so this is one of thethings that some of the partmanufactures in Canada wereconcerned about.”

According to GlobalResearch, the TPP could have

New additions to Trans Pacific partnershipimplications beyond US eco-nomic interests in the Asia-Pacific. The region hasbecome increasingly viewedas of being vital strategicimportance to the UnitedStates.

Throughout the post-WorldWar II period, the region hasserved as an anchor of USstrategic relationships, first inthe containment of commu-nism and more recently as acounterweight to the rise ofChina.

In 2005, the TPP was merelyBrunei, Chili, New Zealandand Singapore. Since Oct. 5,2015 and after five years ofnegotiations, Australia,Canada, Japan, Malaysia,Mexico, Peru, the U.S. andVietnam have finally joined tomake that number 12 in theTrans-Pacific Partnership.

According to theToronto Sun, currenttrade agreements dealwith trade in goods andservices. Since theservice sector nowaccounts for close to 70per cent of Canada’sGDP, it is by far thebiggest part ofCanada’s economy.

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news

Residents of Walkerville areconcerned about the recentdeath of a motorcyclist andlocal driving habits. They arewondering what the plans areto tackle the many citywidetraffic issues.

Joe Baker has resided nearthe corner of Richmond Roadand Chilver Road since 1984.He has watched the traffic inhis area with growing concernover many years. His con-cerns are based on the numberof near misses he has recentlywitnessed. He said studentstravelling on foot and by bicy-cle are frequently put in dan-ger and feels the city is notdoing enough to fix the failedintersection. “It would be a real tragedy to

have someone injured serious-ly or worse,” said Baker.“That didn’t have to happen ifthere was better managementof traffic control at this cor-ner.”

Ward 5 councillor EdSleiman said traffic in the citycan be hectic at times andissues are not just happeningin Walkerville. He said thecity is taking time to revise its

traffic calming measureswhich have not been looked atin nearly 10 years. The policy can lead to differ-

ent measures being imple-mented in problem areas.After a lengthy processincluding gathering raw dataand police enforcement,changes can be made to prob-lem areas. No less than 66 percent of residents in an areaneed to agree to any changesin their neighbourhood.

Changes could include trafficcircles, narrowing of road-ways or just a stop sign.

“The devices we areinstalling, whether it’s verticaldeflection, horizontal, what-ever the case, it will take careof the speeding,” saidSleiman. “If we have theproper calming measures, Idon’t think we need police orthe road to be inspected.”

Before incurring costs fornarrowing streets or addingstop signs, the city takes raw

data gathered by the trafficengineering department to theWindsor Police Service.

Constable AndrewDrouillard explained once thedata is organized they havemany options available tothem.

“Those areas will be targetedby our traffic officers, theywill go out to those locations,determine whether or notthere is an issue,” saidDrouillard. “(with) peoplerunning stop signs, peopledriving very fast in a specificarea, that’s how they targetcertain areas.” The police notice many prob-

lems happen around rush hourwhen people are entering andleaving the city. According toBaker, Richmond Road is oneof those roads. Baker said thelocal traffic picks up when thelocal schools admit and thendismiss their students. Heworries for the students whofrequently weave through traf-fic in what he describes as afailed intersection. The new policy is to go up in

front of council in the comingmonths. If passed, it will givethe various departments moreoptions for dealing with issuesof traffic control within thecity.

Dan GrayConverged Citizen Staff

High traffic intersectionworries local residents

Tecumseh Road East during rush hour in Windsor Oct. 22. As one of the major tho-rughfares in the city, it is consistently targeted by police for traffic enforcement.

Photo by Dan Gray

Voters Oct. 19 brought on amini-orange crush inWindsor-Essex, while muchof the rest of the country wentLiberal red.

Three of the four ridings inWindsor-Essex became seatsfor the New Democratic Partyas voters in Essex replacedConservative Jeff Watson withthe NDP’s Tracey Ramsey,Brian Masse was easilyretained in Windsor West, andin the open seat of Windsor-Tecumseh Cheryl Hardcastlewas chosen to take the placeof the retiring Joe Comartin.“What a night. The people of

Essex have sent a clear mes-sage,” said Ramsey as sheaddressed supporters at St.John’s Church parish hall inWoodslee.

Ramsey, 44, defeated theincumbent Watson by lessthan 3,500 votes according tothe unofficial vote counts, aswell as the Liberal candidate,Audrey Festeryga.

At the Teutonia Club inWindsor, Windsor-TecumsehNDP candidate Hardcastleand Windsor West’s Massecelebrated their victorytogether. Masse took the rid-ing for the sixth straight timeby defeating main rivalsConservative Henry Lau andLiberal David Sundin.“I want to thank the residentsof Windsor West who haveonce again rejected the nega-tivity of other campaigns andother messaging,” Masse saidto the cheering crowd.

Hardcastle, a journalist andthe former deputy mayor ofTecumseh, celebrated herelection to the only open fed-eral seat in the region.“For us here in Windsor-Tecumseh, I feel that it’s veryconfirming that we have votedto keep our seat NDP,” saidHardcastle during her victoryremarks. “We voted to rejectthe politics of fear and divi-sion, we voted for a better andmore inclusive Canada.”

Hardcastle defeated a strongchallenge from Windsor citycouncillor Jo-Anne Gignac,running for the Conservatives,and Liberal candidate FrankSchiller. The seat has beenNDP since Joe Comartin wasfirst elected in 2000.

The fourth area riding,Chatham-Kent-Leamington,remained Tory blue with DaveVan Kesteren being reelected.

The local tide of orange wasa contrast to a red revolutionacross Canada. The LiberalParty, under the leadership of43-year-old Justin Trudeau,son of Pierre Elliott Trudeauand becoming the only fatherand son to serve as prime min-isters of Canada.

The Liberals earned 184seats in the Canadian Houseof Commons, the most sincethe 191 earned under the lead-ership of Louis St. Laurent inthe 1949 federal election.

The Conservatives underPrime Minister StephenHarper were reduced to 99seats and Official Oppositionstatus. The Tories had a 166seat majority after the 2011election. The national NDP,under leader Tom Mulcair, hasbeen returned as the third-party, falling to 44 seats from103 four years ago.

Harper, speaking from hisAlberta riding of Calgary-Heritage, announced he wouldstep down as ConservativeParty leader Oct. 19, pavingthe way for a Tory leadershipcampaign.Elections Canada reported 68

per cent of eligible voters castballots Monday, an increasefrom 61 per cent in 2011 andthe highest voter turnout since1993. Among the four localridings, voter turnout was anaverage of 56.5 per cent.Windsor West, particularly,recorded the third lowestturnout nationwide, with just55.4 per cent of residents vot-ing.

The date the 42nd CanadianParliament will be convenedhas not been determined.

Windsor-Essex goes orangewhile Canada goes redMark Brown


“If we have the prop-er calming measures,I don’t think we needpolice or the road tobe inpsected.”

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news

Members of the Office of the Fire Marshal look at agas meter while investigating a natural gas explo-sion in the 1400 block of Francois Road in WindsorOct. 21. Two neighbouring houses were also dam-aged in the explosion. The resulting fire caused$260,000 in damages to the houses. There were noinjuries. Seven people have also been displaced dueto the explosion.

With the NDP holding thirdparty status however, there isconcern among local politi-cians and experts aboutwhether the new and return-ing MPs in Windsor-Essex,Brian Masse (Windsor West),Cheryl Hardcastle (Windsor-Tecumseh) and TraceyRamsey (Essex), will be ableto bring funding to the region.

Lydia Miljan, political sci-entist at the University ofWindsor, said holding thirdparty status will not benefitWindsor’s infrastructure.

“It’s going to be more diffi-cult to get our voices heardand I suspect that a lot of that

money is going to go to sayToronto where they over-whelmingly voted in favourof the Liberals,” said Miljan.

Windsor Mayor DrewDilkens said even with poten-tial struggles, the City willcontinue to work at bringingfunds for infrastructure.

“We’ll be at the table fight-ing for our share to make sure

that we get a share of theinfrastructure dollars that aregoing to be made available todeliver for this community,”said Dilkens. Trudeau’s infrastructure plan

includes money to be puttowards affordable housing,“green” projects and publictransit, which Marchand saidis an issue in Windsor-Essex.

Photos by Justin Prince

Francois explosion results in approximately $260,000 in damage

SPENDING PAGE 1

“It is an issue that comes upon our chamber surveys to seewhat we can do to make thattransit system a little bit bet-ter, a little bit wider, a littlemore frequent,” saidMarchand. But Windsor’s location is the

primary reason the Liberalgovernment should invest inthe region. Marchand said it

Construction work continues on Wyandotte Street West in Windsor Oct. 22.

has a draw on a global scale.“We are the number one

trading location in the worldand we need to enhance thatinfrastructure,” saidMarchand.

Marchand said he plans towork with the new govern-ment when they reconvene,as well as the cabinet, whichTrudeau said in a press con-ference, the day after the elec-tion, he plans to form Nov. 4.

“We’re going to make surethat Windsor-Essex, they’regetting their fair share andgetting its voice heard andworking collectively acrossparty lines as we always do toensure that our voice isheard.”

Marchand said though hewants to see more opportuni-ties for local business, it willbe up to the mayor and thewarden to discuss specificprojects to bring forward toparliament.

Meanwhile, with Parliamentexpected to reconvene earlyin the new year and a newcabinet being identified priorto that, it won’t be longbefore local speculation aboutinfrastructure spending is putto rest.

Photo by Sean Previl

“We’re going tomake sure thatW i n d s o r - E s s e x ,they’re getting theirfair share and gettingits voice heard...”

---Matt Marchand

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The reality of multi-vitaminsExperts say prolonged

deficiency of certain vitaminscan lead to illness anddiseases. However, there issome debate about whethervitamin supplements arenecessary for healthyindividuals.

According to Dr. ShahnazAhmed, Internal Medicinespecialist, Florida, if you eat ahealthy diet full of fruits,vegetables and whole grains,there is a good chance youalready reach your suggesteddaily intake.

“If you are taking a vitaminsupplement in addition toeating well, you may bereaching vitamin levels whichmay be higher than yourrequirement,” said Ahmed.“Excessive use of vitamins canpotentially cause toxicities.”

Vitamins and other nutrients

play essential roles inmaintaining good health.

Taking supplements can bebeneficial only if nutrientneeds are not being met by ahealthy food-based diet.

“A supplement generallyprovides 100 per cent of thedaily recommended allowancefor all vitamins and minerals,”said Ahmed. “It is

recommended before takingvitamin and mineralsupplements, talk to physicianabout personal dietary plan.”Huda Samaan, a pharmacist

at Real Canadian Superstore,said vitamins are divided intotwo groups water-solublevitamins and fat-solublevitamins. They are dividedinto these groups according to

how they are dissolved andstored in your body. Water-soluble vitamins dissolve inwater and generally are notstored in your body. Fat-soluble vitamins reside in yourbody's fatty tissue and liverand are used as needed in thebody.

“Water-soluble nutrientswork best if you get them in

the proper amounts. When youeat or take more than yourbody needs, it excretes theexcess from your body,” saidSamaan.

But certain water-solublevitamins in excess can causeproblems, for example toomuch vitamin B6 can causenerve problems and excessvitamin C can cause kidneystones. Excess folic acid mayalso mask a vitamin B12deficiency which is mostcommon in people over 50.

She also said fat solublevitamins are one that dissolvein fat and stored in bodytissues like vitamin A, D andE. Sometimes they canaccumulate to dangerous leveland can cause toxicity leadingto a condition calledhypervitaminosis.

Mariana John, a registereddietitian, said nutrition is

VITAMINS PAGE 7

In a recent study, 90 per centof 300,000 Canadians say theyfeel overwhelmed and stressedin their academic and dailylives.

Whether yoga and meditationoriginated in India 5000 yearsago or in 500 B.C. in the timeof Buddha, experts say there isno doubt students today couldbenefit from the power ofchanting a few “ohms.”Yoga and meditation are

different in small ways. Yogameans “union,” and comesfrom the ancient Sanskritlanguage. It means the unionbetween the person and theirgod or universe. The wordmeditation also comes from

Sanskrit, another word for it is“dhyana” which means thestate of awareness of the mindwhich can shut out otherdistractions in life and focus onthe peace someone practicingyoga is trying to achieve.The owner of the Downtown

Yoga Studio in Windsor, GinaWasserlein, said she has beenpracticing yoga for 18 yearsand has had her studio for 13years.“When you practice yoga and

meditation, which go hand-in-hand, you release a stresshormone called cortisol. Deepbreathing will help withlowering that stress level,” saidWasserlein.Over time, these practices can

lower anxiety and lowerdepression and can increase

tolerance, memory and self-awareness. They can evenmotivate for goal setting.

Yoga and meditation canimprove heart rate, making iteasier for oxygen and carbondioxide to move evenlythroughout the brain.

Meditators also have higherlevels of Alpha waves, whichis electrical activity in thebrain, indicating the brain is ina state of consciousness andrelaxation. This increasesempathy and has been shownto reduce sadness, tension andanger.Sarah Smith, 23, is a

University of Windsor student,who has experienced a lot ofthese benefits over the threeyears she’s been practicing.“I suffered from anxiety and

depression like you wouldn’t

believe. I would have anxietyattacks almost every day and Istarted to practice with a friendwho was really into it,” saidSmith. “Eventually sheconvinced me to go to classeswith her and I haven’t had anattack in months. It’s reallyhelped me in my life and I feelhealthier too.”

Wasserlein said practicingyoga and meditation is likeprogramming the mind to takeaway negative thoughts.Continuous thoughts of “Ican’t do this” or “I hate this”will result in a negative habitpattern.

“Yoga breaks that pattern.You’ll notice how much betteryou sleep, how much betteryour day is. You’re so muchmore calm, less reactive and it

helps a lot of people with angerissues if you practice longenough,” Wasserlein said.

It can also change the size ofthe brain. Over a period ofeight weeks of practicing yogaand meditation, researchersfound that the amygdala,which deals with stress, bloodpressure and fear had actuallydecreased in gray matter. Graymatter increased in the areasdealing with memoryprocessing, emotions andlearning.

Although most people,particularly students, havebusy lives and hardly havetime for themselves, practicingboth yoga and meditation a fewtimes a week could be a greatway to reset the mind and keepcalm through hectic schedules.

Naureen AhmedConverged Citizen Staff

The power of yoga and meditationSamantha Wigfield


Photo courtesy of WebMD

CONVERGED CITIZEN OCTOBER 29, 2015 6

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ONVERGED CITIZENOctober 29, 2015C7

health & lifestyle

MEDIAPLEX CONVERGED TEAM

Managing EditorsAshley Ann MentleyMichael Hugall Caleb Workman

Mark BrownNaureen AhmedJosh Teixeira

Anthony SheardownTyler Boissonneault

Alannah Wills

WWW.THEMEDIAPLEX.COMEMAIL: [email protected]

Christian BouchardJordan Caschera

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Julia PoehlmanRhiannon LotzeSamantha Wigfield

David DyckVictoria Parent

for everyone and there are avariety of foods that give you the nutrients

you need to maintain yourhealth, feel good and haveenergy. These nutrients includeprotein, carbohydrates, fat,water, vitamins and minerals.According to Canada’s Food

Guide, a healthy, balanced dietwhich is rich in vegetables andfruits can help reduce the risk

of various diseases and sometypes of cancer. It can alsoprovides a solid foundation forlong-term weight control.

These food groups are agood source of carbohydrates,vitamins A and C, potassium,magnesium, folate and fibre.

To get the most from fruitsand vegetables, eat at least onedark green vegetable, such asbroccoli, green peas or beans,spinach, and one orangevegetable, such as carrots,sweet potato or squash, each

day. Choose vegetables andfruit prepared with little or noadded fat. Choose vegetablesand fruit more over juice.People should check with a

doctor or a registered dietitianabout which vitamin ormineral supplements might bebest. They should alsoremember that while there arecircumstances when it may beappropriate to take vitamin ormineral supplements, they arenot a replacement for a healthydiet according to John.

VITAMINS PAGE 6

Some local parents haveproposed a plan that involvesclosing three schools in anattempt to keep HarrowDistrict High School open.Oct. 13, the Greater Essex

County District School Boardvoted 5-4 to close the schooloriginally built in 1939.According to protocol, those inopposition have a 30-daywindow to appeal the decision.

“We now have 23 days toreverse this,” said Harrowresident Bryan Meyer at anOct. 20 meeting of residentsand parents.

This is the fifth time closing

the high school has beendebated over the past 30 years.Meyer said he has always beenfighting to keep it open, but itis now time to hand it over tothe younger generation.

His daughter RebeccaRobinson and local businessowner Bill Parr gave thepresentation this time. Parrsaid he wants to help keepHarrow youthful, lively andable to expand. Having a highschool in the town centre isnecessary for this to happen.Their proposal, which he said

he knew might upset somepeople, is to consolidateHarrow District High School,Harrow Public School,Colchester North Public

School and Malden CentralPublic School.

“Our goal was to try andmove emotion out of ourpresentation and look at thefactual numbers,” Parr said.Parr and Robinson explained

the school board views andevaluates schools based on“empty seats.” Last year,Harrow High had 254 students,but approximately 485 emptyseats. The other three schoolsalso have high numbers ofempty seats, all operating atless than 90 per cent capacity.Parr said this means they willalso eventually be on thechopping block.Meyer said the first thing they

need to do is get trustees to

listen to their plan and whilethis is certainly not the onlyavailable alternative, it is atleast one option to keep the

school open. The proposalstates when comparing costs ofrelocating Harrow students toKingsville versusconsolidating the four schools,the plan for consolidationwould be significantly moreaffordable for the board. It willalso solve the problem of toomany empty seats and allowHarrow to keep a high schoolwithin its town centre.

“Protests don’t work,” Meyersaid. “We need to approach thison a professional basis.”

Both Robinson and Parragreed and said it will take agreat deal of communitysupport for this initiative to besuccessful.

“We need onecommunication with onevoice, moving in the samedirection,” Robinson said.

The next school boardmeeting is Nov. 3 and theyhope to be given enough timein front of the trustees toexplain their proposal and savetheir school.

Trying to save Harrow High

Photo by Ashley Ann Mentley Bryan Meyer speaks to a group of concerned parents and residents at the Harrow Arena Oct. 20 regarding the recentdecision by the Greater Essex County District School Board to close Harrow District High School

Ashley Ann MentleyConverged Citizen Staff

FINAL_Layout 1 10/29/2015 12:39 PM

SRC Halloween Food Drive: Satisfying the hunger


health & lifestyle

The St. Clair StudentRepresentative Councilwrapped up its annualHalloween Food Drive Oct. 20and 21.The food collected will be

donated to the St. Clair Collegefood bank for students who arein need of assistance.

The SRC’s Halloween foodbank collection began with thedistribution of bags to areas ofCabana Road, Grand MaraisStreet W. , Dougall Avenue andCalifornia on the evening ofOct. 13. The following week,volunteers collected the bagsfrom those neighbourhoodsbefore bringing them to the TDStudent Centre to be countedand taken to the studentfoodbank.The event was started by the

SRC 10 years ago. In 2014,8,000 cans were collected frommembers of the community.This year the SRC collectedanother 8,000 cans during twonights of collection.

Miranda Underwood,president of the SRC, said theevent uses the novelty of trickor treating to collect donations.Instead of candy members ofthe community can give foodthat will assist those who needit.

“I am still receiving phonecalls from the communitymembers about

donations,”said Underwood.“Whether it was about cansthat were missed duringcollection or about people whoweren’t part of the collectionroute, the community iscontinuing to get involved.”

Underwood also said theHalloween event is one inparticular that affects theoutcome of the food bank andis where the majority of itsfood supply comes from.Underwood said the system

the food bank uses iscompletely confidential,relieving some of the

embarrassment students mightfeel when asking forassistance. The location of thefood bank in the TD StudentCentre helps this as well.

“Some students are strugglingto support a family or pay theirtuition, sometimes even bothand don’t always have extrasfor groceries,” said LancelotPratt, a second year studentvolunteer. “They don’t have toworry, this is a place they cango so that some stress isrelieved and they don’t have tofeel embarrassed about thehelp.”

In 2014, Food Banks Canadapublished a report claiming onaverage 841,000 people visitfood banks for relief assistanceeach month. This is theequivalent of filling the RogersCentre 17 times.

Another study conducted in2014 by the OntarioAssociation of Food Bankssaid four per cent of postsecondary students in Ontariovisited a food bank during theirschooling. This number was anincrease from the previous yearwhen the total was 3.7 per cent.Logan Poels, a member of the

SRC and first year participantsaid events like the Halloweenfood bank collection help bringawareness about theimportance of food banks.

“We all know there are thelucky students and that thereare the students who needhelp,” said Poel. “What wewant to show is that we allshowed up at St. Clair and thatwe all have support systemsthat we can reach out to whenwe need help and also that it’snot just students helpingstudents but the communityhelping students as well.”

Underwood said the SRC’snext event is the student pubnight at St. Clair College’sGriff’s Tavern Oct. 29.Students are encouraged tobring two canned food itemsinstead of paying the entrancefee of $2.Underwood also said

donations are accepted at anytime for the student food bankand can be dropped off at theSRC office in the TD StudentCentre downtown at theintersection of UniversityAvenue and Victoria Avenue.They can also be dropped off atthe SRC office at the college’smain campus.

For more information aboutdonations and drop off pointscontact Miranda Underwood,at 519-972-2727 or email [email protected].

Religion plays an importantrole in the lives of many andinfluences day to dayactivities.For Buddhists and Hindus,

that sacred place is in India.Thousands visit the Banarasfrom all over the worldseeking to connect with theircreator or God. Christianshave Vatican City and placeslike Lourdes. Jews can go toIsrael and Jordan and Muslimshave Saudi Arabia, Meccawhere they perform their Hajj.

The Hajj is an annual Islamicpilgrimage to Mecca, It is amandatory religious duty forMuslims that must be carriedout at least once in theirlifetime by all adult Muslimswho are physically andfinancially capable ofundertaking the journey, andcan support their family duringtheir absence.There are many reasons why

people visit those holy placesand spend so much moneythey could spend in otherways. Salwa Bazzi of FalconTravel said it takes about$7,000 to $10,000 per person

to carry out Hajj for those whowant to go from Windsor.

Umrah Hajj costs about$3,000 per person. Pilgrimsfrom all over the world visit

Mecca to perform their Hajj.Mohammed Wares Khan,

who performed Hajj with hiswife, is happy he could visitthe sacred place. For manypeople it’s the dream oflifetime.

“I would love to visit again ifI get the opportunity,” saidKhan

Banaras of India is the sacredplace for Buddhists, Hindus,Sikhs and Jains. Hindus bathein the Ganges river to purifythemselves. Buddhists believethis is the place where Buddhastarted his preaching. Known

as the spiritual capital of India,pilgrims from all over Indiaand the world visit to connectwith their creator or god.

Many spend their hard-earned money to getsomething from being there.Most are not asking for proofof whether there is a god or notor is there is any life afterdeath.

“As a Muslim, I believe thereis a life after death and I willmeet with my creator and Ihave to face the judgementday,” said Khan.

Religious Travel

Photo by Lyndi-Colleen Morgan(Left to Right) Lancelot Pratt, Emily Staley and Danielle Ryan display bags from thefirst nights collection, Oct 20. In total, 8,000 cans were collected between the twonights.

Lyndi-Colleen MorganConverged Citizen Staff

Rabiul BiplobStaff Converged Citizen

“Hajj is an annualIslamic pilgrimageto Mecca, and amandatory religiousduty for Muslimsthat must be carriedout at least once intheir lifetime by alladult Muslims”

FINAL_Layout 1 10/29/2015 12:39 PM


health & lifestyle

Standing among rows uponrows of coins ranging inappearance from dull togleaming on a recent Sundaymorning, Dan Jones takes outa key and opens one of themany cases protecting thecoins. He pulls one out andgives a fascinating history les-son.

“Here’s a neat Edwardiancoin, this one for sure we havedated,” said Jones, presidentof the Essex County CoinClub. “This one is 1567, andthis coin has Queen ElizabethI. It was hand-hammered,meaning it was made with apress by hand. The man wouldhave made a plate, put a blanksilver in and he’d pull it.What’s interesting about thisis, these would have only trav-eled with the merchant classand the nobility.”

The 1567 coin was one ofthe oldest on display at the11th Annual Essex CountyCoin Show held Oct. 4 at theRiverside Sportsmen’s Club inWindsor. Over a dozen collec-tors presented thousands ofcoins and other artifacts tobuy, sell and trade. In addition

Coin show brings history alive

to rare coins and paper money,the show also showcased rarewatches, jewelry and evenmilitary memorabilia. Jonessaid those items often come incoin trades and are displayedwith the rest.

“When I go out to buy a col-lection, I get a gamut ofthings,” said Jones. “Mostlythese are seniors we deal with,and they’re moving – a lot ofthem are downsizing so they

have coins. Often with thecoins are other little thingssuch as military (artifacts)…and even little pieces of jewel-ry.”

Jones, a retired schoolteacher who has been collect-ing since he was 12 years old,said it is a treat to see how thestyles of jewelry have changedover the years. Pocket watcheswere the most prominentpieces of jewelry on display at

the show, which raised fundsthrough donations for theCanadian DiabetesAssociation. Joyce Montrose,the Windsor and district coor-dinator for the association,said they are pleased with theshow’s support over the years.

“We get a donation at thedoor and they contribute thatto the Canadian DiabetesAssociation,” said Montrose.Montrose said they have been

involved with the show since2009 and are glad that theshow supports the associa-tion’s mission, providing sup-port and resources to the over49,000 Windsor-Essex resi-dents who are diabetic.

Wandering around the show,visitors saw a wide range ofartifacts that included com-memorative coin sets fromthe 1976 Summer Olympicsin Montreal as well as the his-tory of the Ford MotorCompany. Numerous militarymedals were on display, aswell as giant 18th centurycoins referred to as pennies.

Collector Thomas Clarke ofWindsor also had a relic – a1954 Canadian $1,000 bill.

“They made them as late as1986,” said Clarke who addedthat bills of that denominationwere frequently used in ille-gal activity. They were retiredby the Canadian governmentin 2000 as part of an effort tocurb organized crime.

The Essex County CoinClub meets on the secondWednesday of each month.For further information, con-tact club president Dan Jonesat 519-819-1805.

Dan Jones, president of the Essex County Coin Club, shows off an 1817 British half-crown coin with a profile of King George III during the annual Essex County CoinShow at Riverside Sportsmen's Club in Windsor Oct. 4.

Mark BrownStaff Converged Citizen

Photo by Mark Brown

Windsor Sea Cadets are rais-ing money for their branchesone tag at a time.

Sea Cadets from HerMajesty's Canadian ShipAgamemnon took to the

streets on tag day Oct. 16 toraise money for their localbranch. Tag day is when allavailable Cadets head out todifferent locations across thecity and ask for donationstoward their program. If thecadets receive a contribution,the donor receives a tag from

the cadets thanking them fortheir help.

“Tagging is crucial to helpsupport the Cadet Corps andthe Navy League and theDepartment of NationalDefense has always been greatfor providing the Cadets withwhat they ask for. However,

Windsor sea cadets tagging Windsor

Photo by Johnathan Hutton

Johnathan HuttonStaff Converged Citizen

Andre Doucharme (right) receives donations from a child (left) while tagging atDevonshire Mall Oct. 16.

they can’t cover everything,”said Shirley Beresford, presi-dent of the Navy LeagueWindsor Branch. “Donationsall go towards providing theCadets with equipment suchas rope, uniforms and instru-ments.”

Beresford said tagging daysusually bring in enoughmoney to cover the cost of thecadets' equipment andWindsorites have alwaysbeen very supportive.

“In past years, we have beenaveraging around $14,000. Idon’t think we will have thatthis year but we should comeclose to that,” said Beresford.

Around 40 Cadets fromH.M.C.S Agamemnon will betaking part in tagging acrossthe city. Andre Ducharme hasbeen in Cadets for three yearsand is a leading seaman. Hesaid tagging may not be fun attimes, but is well worth therewards it brings.

“We give out tags to peoplewho donate and if they are ofage to join cadets then we givethem a recruitment card," saidDucharme. “The most I’veever raised for tagging is$200, but it’s nice that wedon’t have to worry aboutbuying things like uniforms or

rope out of pocket.”Brayden Uttley is a lieu-

tenant in the Navy and theexecutive officer of CadetCorps. H.M.C.S Agamemnon.He said when he was a cadethe also had to participate intagging days.

“My experience with tag-ging is an interesting one, “said Uttley. "I have beensnowed on and rained on a lot,but when you are standing outthere and raising the moneyyou don’t do it because youenjoy it, you do it because ofwhat you get out of it. “

Despite the weather, Uttleysaid he is grateful for the sup-port he sees in the communityand tagging has many bene-fits besides raising money forthe corps.

“It’s nice to go out and talkto the community," saidUttley. “We get a lot of retiredservice members that come upand talk to us and it is alwaysnice to hear their stories andreceive support from them.

We have always done fairlywell in Windsor with tag days.Other corps I have talked tothat will have the same num-ber of cadets tagging usuallyonly bring in half of what weget.”

FINAL_Layout 1 10/29/2015 12:39 PM

Allanah WillsConverged Citizen Staff

“I hear he plays for threehours straight.”

“Last night his set was twoand a half hours and he didn’teven take a sip of water.”

These were some of therumours overheard around JoeLouis Arena before PaulMcCartney’s Oct. 21 show onhis ‘Out There’ tour. This washis first time in Detroit sincehis 2011 gig at ComericaPark. With a capacity of morethan 20,000, tickets for the JoeLouis show sold out withinminutes.

As thousands of peoplepoured into the venue itbecame clear the appeal ofMcCartney and The Beatleshas spanned generations. Theyoung, the old and the in-between waited in the standswith barely-contained excite-ment, many wearing Beatlesshirts and holding homemadesigns.

As the house lights dimmed,McCartney and his four-pieceband opened the show withthe Beatles’ upbeat 1964 songEight Days a Week.

As the show went on andmany, many guitar changescommenced, McCartney’senthusiasm and charm was

clear to see. By introducingnearly every song and thank-ing the crowd after finishingevery one, McCartney seemedto enjoy talking as much asthe crowd enjoyed listening.Extra applause erupted whenhe introduced songs from the‘60s.

When talking with the crowdhe often told personal stories.A stand out moment happenedwhen he spoke of Beatles gui-tarist George Harrison beforegoing into the Harrisonpenned song Something withphotos of the two playing inthe background.

Although his vocals werenoticeably more fragile than

McCartney rocks across the river

they were 30 years ago,McCartney’s charisma andstage presence made up for itas he shimmied across thestage. It would be easy to getlost in the lasers, spotlightsand bright, moving LED back-ground that changed withevery song, but McCartneycontinued to own the stagewith vibrancy and witty quips,never once seeming to losesteam.

McCartney played multiplesongs on the piano includingLet It Be, Maybe I’m Amazedand Lady Madonna. The cli-max of the piano songs, andperhaps the whole show, wasthe Wings hit Live and Let

Die. The spectacle includedflames and fireworks that hadthe audience gasping.

As the crowd stomped theirfeet and cheered McCartneycame back on stage askingthem if they wanted morebefore giving two encore med-leys of Beatles songs includ-ing I Saw Her Standing There,Yesterday, Carry That Weightand finishing off with TheEnd.

With the show spanningexactly three hours and a 41song set list tincluding 27Beatles songs, 73-year-oldMcCartney more than lived upto all the rumours.

Photos by Allanah WillsPaul McCartney performs in front of a sold out crowd at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit Oct. 21.


FINAL_Layout 1 10/29/2015 12:39 PM

ONVERGED CITIZENarts & entertainment OCTOBER 29, 2015C11

Fans of The Little Mermaidcan look forward to seeing theanimated film come to lifenext month on a Windsorstage.

Based on the 1989 Disneyblockbuster, Windsor LightMusic Theatre will bring theproduction to the ChryslerTheatre starting Nov. 13.

Photo courtesy of Windsor Light Music Theatre Facebook

Amber Thibert shows off her Ariel costume at Devonshire Mall Oct. 3. The cast was there promoting the show andpreviewing songs.

Allanah WillsConverged Citizen Staff

On Nov. 17, the classic animated film will cele-brate 26 years since its release in 1989. Based offthe 1837 fairytale by Hans Christian Anderson, thefilm grossed more than $200 million at the boxoffice, won two Academy Awards, two Grammysand two Golden Globes.

Take a look at some fun facts about the film!

1. The protagonist Ariel was animated using theinspiration of Alyssa Milano’s body and the hair ofastronaut Sally Ride as it waved when she was in

zero gravity

2. The villain Ursula was animated to look like

drag queen Divine, who had a starring role in the1988 film Hairspray.

3. The role of Ariel’s dad King Triton was offeredto Patrick Stewart, who was too busy with Star

Trek: The Next Generation to accept it.

4. The underwater special effects were some of themost complicated for an animated film at that

time. The film’s animator Mark Dindal estimatesthat a million bubbles had to be drawn.

5. The voice of Ariel, Jodi Benson, recorded theballad Part of Your World in a dark room to simu-

late the feeling of being underwater.

6. With around 23 million VHS copies sold and aneventual seven million DVDs sold, The Little

Mermaid is one of the most successful home videoreleases ever.

7. The film would be the last time Disney used tra-ditional hand-painted animation. The final wed-

ding scene was the first time they used a comput-er-assisted production technique. The system

scanned the drawings and coloured them in. Thistechnique was designed by non-other than Pixar,

who would eventually partner with Disney.

Compiled by Allanah Wills

The love story follows ayoung mermaid, Ariel, whowishes to become human.University of Windsor studentAmber Thibert plays the leadcharacter.

“It’s kind of daunting find-ing a good balance betweenwhat people expect me tobe….and what I want to bringto the character,” said Thibert.

This will be WLMT’s 132ndproduction since its first show,

The Pirates of Penzance, in1948. Founded by John H. L.Watson as Windsor LightOpera Association, the com-pany started by producing twofull scale shows a year and haskept the tradition going eversince. Originally based inWalkerville Collegiate,WLMT moved its perform-ances downtown in 1960. Thecompany runs with the help ofvolunteers.

“We are a registered charityso we rely on ticket sales,patron donations, sponsor-ships and fundraisers,” saidThe Little Mermaid directorChris Fazekas. TheLeamington native has direct-ed other shows, but this is hisfirst time directing for WLMT.

To take viewers “under thesea,” special costumes had tobe used. Music TheatreWichita in Kansas provided

WLMT with the wardrobe forthe show which will includefibre optics, stilts and tapshoes.

“This show is huge,” saidFazekas. “We would havespent more on material tomake the costumes than ittook to rent them, let alone thecountless hours it would havetaken the wardrobe depart-ment to design and createthem. The costumes are sobeautifully vibrant, I don'tthink there is a colour on thespectrum the Wichita seam-stresses missed.”

According to Thibert, thesets are also elaborate enoughto rival the movie.

“The sets are out of thisworld,” she said. “It’s such agreat group onstage but youwould not believe the level oftalents backstage. The peopleputting these sets together, it’sincredible.”

From the first audition to thefirst day of the show, Fazekassaid it takes about six monthsto put everything togetherwith more than 100 peopleinvolved in the process.

“Onstage, we have 65 peo-ple, 21 in our pit chorus and acrew that easily doubles thosenumbers,” said Fazekas.“When you include construc-tion, paint, hair, makeup,lights, sound, marketing,orchestra, backstage crew andall the active members withinthe organization that volunteertheir time, it really becomes astaggering amount of peopleinvolved.”

The Little Mermaid runs forsix days and tickets start at$16.

Disney's The Little Mermaid

Little mermaid swims into town

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The art of winning

Photo by Jordan CascheraEric Cunningham of the St. Clair Saints stands on deck in agame vs. the University of Windsor Oct. 21. Cunningham led theSaints with a .548 batting average on route to a 20-0 season.

Christian BouchardConverged Citizen Staff

The St. Clair Saints men’sbaseball team have enjoyedimmediate success ever sincehead Coach Dave Coopertook over in 2012.

After recording the first per-fect season in program historythis year (20-0), many arestarting to recognize the tal-ents of Dave Cooper. Enteringhis fourth season with theSaints, Cooper has alreadywon a CanadianIntercollegiate BaseballAssociation NationalChampionship (2012) andback-to-back OCAA andOUA/OCAA championships(2013-2014) as coach of theSaints. He was also honouredas the OCAA Men’s BaseballCoach of the Year in 2014-2015.

Cooper said a major part ofhis success with the Saints hasbeen the recruitment of play-ers from the summer baseballteam he has coached for oversix years. The TecumsehThunder has proved to be aperennial powerhouse overthe years winning threeNational Championshipsunder Cooper.

Eric Cunningham is one offive players to play forCooper with both the Saintsand Thunder. Cunninghamwas the recipient of the MaleAthlete of the Year Award lastyear at St. Clair and posted a.548 batting average this sea-son for the Saints. With all hisachievements in his baseballcareer, he credits his coach formuch of his success.

“He is the coach that isgoing to be there from begin-ning to end anytime you needhim,” said Cunningham. “Hepushes effort more than anyother coach I’ve ever had andgets the best out of his play-ers.”

The effort Cooper asks forproved to work as the teamposted a combined .330 bat-ting average and a teamEarned Run Average of .161.

While the Saints have beencruising to victories over the

years, Cooper said there arealways challenges the teammust overcome.

“Our pitching is so domi-nant,” said Cooper. “Our topthree have been unhittable.The problem is our playersknow if we get one or tworuns we’re probably going towin. The tendency is for a lotof the athletes to let the nextguy do it. When that startshappening you get yourself introuble.”

With all the success theSaints have had over theyears, they have experiencedlittle feeling of what it’s liketo lose. Cunningham said it issomething the team will needto figure out before the cham-pionships.

“It’s tough not losing,” saidCunningham. “Some guysstart coasting and take it easybecause we’re expected towin. Winning all the time is a

blessing but it has a cursebehind it.”

Cooper is also widelyregarded as one of the mostaccomplished local playersthat Windsor/Essex has everseen. As a player he wonseven Senior Men’s NationalChampionships with theWindsor Chiefs and anotherwith the Tecumseh GreenGiants.

As the Saints head toLondon. for the OCAA cham-pionships, they’ll be withouttheir head coach for theirnight game. Cooper will berecognized for his talents andinducted into the WindsorEssex Sports Hall of FameOct. 23.

“If we win they’ll say weshould have won,” saidCooper. “If we don’t, that’sgoing to be news. We don’twant to make too muchnews.”

Sports round-upBy Garrett Fodor

Cross Country Titles

The Windsor and Essex County Secondary SchoolAthletic Association championship was held at MaldenPark Oct. 22.

Vista Academy’s Mitchell Ubene took the senior boystitle. Ubene completed the 7km race in 24:02. EnriqueNepomuceno’s 2nd-place finish with a time of 24:30helped Holy Names take the division title with the schoolhaving four runners in the top 10.

In the senior girls race Vista Academy runners nearlyswept the podium with a one-two finish. Maddy Rivelisfinished first in the 5km race with a time of 19:15. WhileMadison Burnham placed second with a time of 19:27.

Noah Costa of Massey led another one-two finish for theMustangs in the midget boys’ 5km race. Costa won therace with a time of 12:59 while Chase Canty was rightbehind with a time of 13:00.

Massey won the AAA overall team title, while Vistascored the AA title and Harrow won the A title. TheSWOSSAA championship is Oct. 28 at Malden Park.

Junior B

The Leamington Flyers increased their lead in the stand-ings when they scored eight unanswered goals to beat thesecond place St. Thomas Stars with a score of 8-1 Oct.22. Forward Mark Gangnon had two goals for the Flyers.

High School Basketball

Walkerville Tartan Tess Snaden had 14 points, as she leadWalkerville over the Cardinal Carter Cougars 42-18 Oct.22.

Holy Name Knights beat St. Joseph Lasers 64-34.Leading the way for the Knights was Tiarra Davis whoscored 29 points in her team’s win.

The General Amherst Bulldogs held the BrennanCardinals to 14 points, on way to their 51-14 win. OliviaStarling had 18 points for the Bulldogs.

Concluding Oct. 22’s action on Kennedy Clippers won45-27 over Assumption Purple Raiders. Lydia Abrahascored 16 points. While Villanova Wildcats beat theMassey Mustangs 44-34.

Saints Baseball

The St. Clair College men’s baseball team finished theregular season with a perfect 20-0 record and will look towin their third straight Ontario Colleges AthleticAssociation title.

FINAL_Layout 1 10/29/2015 12:39 PM

sports & fitness13

Express bring in NBA talent for exhibitionRyan Blevins


A local professional basket-ball team will be competingagainst NBA talent nextmonth and donating proceedsto a local charity.

The Windsor Express of theNational Basketball League ofCanada will be playing thenewly formed Raptors 905 ofthe NBA’s DevelopmentalLeague on Nov. 5.

Mississauga will be home tothe Raptors 905 in what willbe their inaugural season afterthe city’s NBL Canada team,the Mississauga Power, wasabsorbed by the NBA’s D-League.

The exhibition game will beheld at the Windsor FamilyCredit Union Centre and tiptime is 7:30 p.m. Transition to Betterness is a

local non-profit organizationthat works to ensure comfortfor patients and families liv-ing with cancer and other dis-eases. T2B has partnered withWindsor Express for the eventand half the proceeds made inticket sales for the game willbe donated to the charity.

While the game is an exhi-bition, members of the organ-ization are relishing theopportunity to showcase theteam’s brand against NBA-caliber talent. Vice Presidentof Basketball Operations BillJones has been with the teamsince its inception in 2012 andsaid this game benefits theExpress a great deal.

“It’s about branding theWindsor Express Basketball,”said Jones. “What we’ve donein our three short years here iswe qualified for the playoffs,went to the semi-finals ourfirst year and then won in thechampionship the next twoyears. Now, to be able to cre-ate our brand and say weplayed against an NBA affili-ate is something that makesour brand look good.”

Not only does the gameimpact basketball fans locally,but it also effects people andfamilies who rely onTransition to Betterness toassist them while fightingcancer. Each general admis-sion ticket sold for this gamewill cost $5 and sitting courtside will cost fans $10.

Transition to BetternessFund Development Co-ordi-nator Melissa Iarusso said shewas thrilled when the Expressreached out to her organiza-tion in an attempt to make a

Photo By Ryan BlevinsVice president of Basketball Operations for the Windsor ExpressBill Jones poses for a protrait at his office with his basketballautographed by the team.

difference in the community.“The team approached us

(saying) that they have theexciting opportunity to playNBA D-League team Raptors905 on Nov. 5 and wanted towork with T2B so that half ofall proceeds would supportour organization,” saidIarusso. “Of course we werethrilled to have this opportuni-ty presented to us and we’vebeen working ever since tocome up with ideas to makethis a must-attend event.”

In addition to the on-courtaction, the game will include ahalf time show, 50/50 rafflesupporting T2B and familyfriendly activities. Before thetwo teams square off a specialpre-game event featuring for-mer Maple Leafs Sports &Entertainment presidentRichard Peddie will be helddiscussing his new book, 21Leadership Lessons.According to Jones, the aver-

age attendance for homegames at the WFCU Centre isroughly 1,100 fans. Each ofthe team’s first three seasonshas seen a spike in both atten-dance and overall ticket sales.

Season ticket holder KurtRidgewell, 21, has not misseda game in three years and saidhe is excited to see NBA talentin Windsor.

“I think it’s going to be agood way for basketballCanada to promote itself. Iexpect the Express to competefor sure after winning back-to-back championships,”Ridgewell said.

Windsor has the uniqueopportunity this year of beingthe only NBL Canada team tohost an NBA level team intheir home venue.

While Mississauga is cur-rently the only NBA D-League team located inCanada, Jones said NBA D-League basketball may not beout of the question if theleague is ever looking to putanother team north of theboarder.“We are putting our best foot

forward in terms of showingthat we are a good organiza-tion. We’ve got good players,so if an NBA team is interest-ed in bringing another D-League team to Canada thenwe want to show that we are acapable franchise,” said Jones

The Windsor Express playtheir second exhibition gameat the St. Clair CollegeSportsPlex Dec. 13 againstthe Lima Express of Lima,Ohio and the MidwestProfessional BasketballAssociation.

Leclair goes pro

Photo courtesy of GoLancers.caKellen Leclair waits for the next play versus the Wilfred LaurierGolden Hawks in the Lancers' first win of the season Sept. 23at University Stadium.

Michael HugallConverged Citizen Staff

Amidst a 1-4 start to the2015 Ontario UniversityAthletics conference seasonthe University of Windsor hassomething to be proud of atthe strong-side defensive endposition.

Kellen Leclair, 20, is in histhird year of eligibility withthe Lancers football team. Inthe off-season he stays com-petitive through his love forone of Canada’s oldest andmost decorated sports,lacrosse.

“I’ve been playing lacrossesince I was four years old,”

said Leclair. Leclair, a nativeof Windsor, began his lacrossecareer with the WindsorWarlocks of the OntarioLacrosse Association. Fromthere he attained membershipto the Windsor Clippers of theOntario Jr. B LacrosseLeague, and stayed there from2011-2015 tallying 10 goalsand six assists in his tenurewith the club.

help the team make anotherMinto cup run,” said Leclair.“My ultimate goal is to makethe team, but I know I willgain a lot of valuable knowl-edge regardless.”

Leclair’s athletic ability hasnever been in questionaccording to his Lancer foot-ball teammates. At six feet,

Following the 2014 seasonLeclair tried out for the SixNations Rebels of the OntarioJr. A Lacrosse League, win-ning a Minto Cup this pastseason. Just as things seemedthey could not get anybrighter, Leclair was drafted26th overall to the CalgaryRoughnecks of the NationalLacrosse League three monthslater.

Leclair said although heentered the draft a year earlyhe hopes to garner experiencein the upcoming trainingcamp.

“I'm hoping to bring what Ilearn in camp back to SixNations in the summer and

LECLAIR PAGE 14

ONVERGED CITIZENOCTOBER 29, 2015C

FINAL_Layout 1 10/29/2015 12:39 PM

sports & fitness14

four inches tall and 225pounds he is a force at thedefensive end position, andlooks to bring his arsenal of

LECLAIR PAGE 13

All aboard the Toronto Blue Jays bandwagon

Photo by Peter Llewellyn-USA TODAY SportsToronto Blue Jay’s Jose Bautista celebrates a home run in Game 5 of the 2015 American LeagueDivision Series vs. the Texas Rangers at the Rogers Centre in Toronto. Baustista’s three-runhomerun would prove to be the game winning runs.

Christian BouchardConverged Citizen Staff

With over 11.5 millionCanadians watching some partof the broadcast, the TorontoBlue Jays right fielder Jose

Bautista stepped into the bat-ters box. It was the bottom ofthe seventh inning with twoouts, runners on the cornersand a 1-1 count in Game 5 ofthe American League DivisionSeries. What happened next

was the most important thingin over 22 years of Blue Jaysbaseball.

Bautista rested his bat onhis shoulders. The crowd wasroaring - even the bandwagonfans the Jays had gained not so

long ago. As the pitch wasthrown towards home plate,Bautista kicked his front legup into the air. When his batmade contact with the ball, itleft a loud crack throughoutthe Rogers Centre. Bautistaflung his bat into the air andwatched as the 97-mile perhour fastball had been directedover the fence for what wouldeventually be the games win-ning runs. As the fans cheeredeven louder, the Jays benchquickly emptied. TeammateEdwin Encarnacion raisedboth arms in the air andjumped up in celebration.

Jose Bautista had becomeimmortal in the eyes of manyBlue Jays fans. For others,they were just happy to be apart of something special.

The Blue Jays season tooka turn for the better on July 31,2015. The Jays traded for starpitcher David Price and short-stop Troy Tulowitzki.According to Joe Siddall,play-by-play announcer forthe Jays, this is where the Jaysgained an abundance ofCanadian fans.

“A big part of fans jumpingon board was GM AlexAnthopoulous trading allthose prospects for star play-ers,” said Siddall. “He sent amessage to his players andfans that the Jays are ‘All in’to win a championship.”

As the only Canadian base-ball team in Major LeagueBaseball, the Jays are gainingCanadian fans at an all-timerate. The Jays popularity hasrecently exploded with theteam’s official Twitter accountgaining over 350,00 followersin the past 10 weeks.

Perhaps it’s that the team isnow winning. Perhaps it’sbecause of the addition of thenew star players. Maybe it’seven because the fans werehere all along and the Jays’fans are excited to be a part of

something great.Dr. Craig Greenham, an

assistant professor at theUniversity of Windsor andresearcher of North Americanprofessional sports said thebiggest reason for all the sud-den Jays’s fans want to be apart of their success.

“I am not sure if it’s aneed; I think it’s more of awant,” said Greenham.There’s no questioning theclubs popularity nationallyand I think people want to bea part of that.”

The numbers proveGreenham has a point. Morethan 16 million Canadianswatched some part of the2015 Texas vs. Toronto ALDS– 46 per cent of the Canadianpopulation.

Siddall agrees with theidea that the Blue Jays have anentire country behind them.He described the sudden risein fans as a party with friends.When more people begin toarrive, it becomes more fun.As the Jays have continued towin, more people have joinedthe party and many have real-ly increased their love forbaseball and the Blue Jays.

“Many feel that it is prettycool to be a part of it all cheer-ing for 'their' team,” saidSiddall. “Fans seem to takeownership in the team when itis doing well.”

While winning goes a longway to putting people in theseats at the Rogers Centre, theJays will have their work cutout for them as they now trail3-2 in a best of seven serieswith the Kansas City Royals.

The Blue will look to battletheir way back into the serieson Oct. 23 as they travel toKansas City for Game 6.While we can’t predict theexact outcome, one thing isfor sure. Canada will becheering on their boys.

ONVERGED CITIZENOCTOBER 29, 2015C

both size and speed to theCalgary Roughnecks next sea-son.

“Kellen’s an important partof our ‘d’ (defence),” saidLancer safety Tarik Bonas.

“He brings a unique combina-tion of size and speed that youwon’t find in many defensivelinemen.” Bonas added, “It isno wonder why he’s able toexcel as a two sport athlete.”

Calgary Roughnecks campbegins on Nov. 17 and Leclairsaid he is excited to get outthere and prove himself.

However, Leclair will needto put the thought of profes-

sional lacrosse on the back-burner as he will look to leadthe Lancers to their secondvictory of the season on Oct.24 against the WaterlooWarriors.

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The Converged Citizen - October 29, 2015.

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