The Tilbury Times

Year: 2021

  • NACI recommends a3rd dose of vaccine for some immunocompromised people

    Canada’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) recommends a third dose for some immunocompromised individuals, while health authorities are still urging the rest of the population to receive both doses.
    In a update published Friday, NACI strongly recommends giving three doses of messenger RNA vaccine to  moderately to severely immunocompromised individuals in the permitted age groups.
    This could include, for example, people who have had an organ transplant, undergoing cancer treatments, or some HIV patients.
    At the same time, Dr. Teresa Tam, Chief Executive Officer of the Public Health Agency of Canada, is once again calling on Canadians who have not done so to get vaccinated.
    In a press briefing on Friday, she pointed out that although 85% of the eligible population has received a first dose and 78% of people are adequately vaccinated, significant gaps remain.

    Millions of Canadians still need to be vaccinated

    According to her, 7.3 million eligible people are still not adequately vaccinated. In addition, there are 4.8 million children too young to be vaccinated under the rules currently in force.
     There are still far too many people at risk of contracting the virus and spreadingit, said Dr. Howard Njoo, Canada’s Deputy Chief Public Health Officer at the same press briefing.
    He says that  if all goes well,some COVID-19 vaccines could be approved for under-12s towards the end of the year or early next year.
    On average, there are more than 3700 new cases and 18 additional deaths daily in the country at the moment, according to health authorities.
    Between the end of July and the end of August, unvaccinated people were 12 times more likely to be infected with COVID-19 than adequately vaccinated people. They were also 36 times more likely to be hospitalized than the latter, says Dr. Tam.

  • Milton Candidate Chris Kowalchuk: Green Party of Canada

    By: Laura Steiner, Local Journalism Initiative
    Anger with status quo is the reason Green Party of Canada candidate Chris Kowalchuk is running. “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore,” he said. The 59-year old from Oakville boasts a 40 year history as an activist at all three levels of government.  He worked briefly as a lift supervisor at Glen Eden in the 1980’s. Kowalchuk is running against  Nadeem Akbar for the Conservative Party, Muhammad  Riaz Sahi for the NDP, Sibli Hadad for the People’s Party of Canada (PPC), and incumbent Adam van Koeverden representing the Liberal Party of Canada.
    He believes  the Green Party’s platform will be good for Milton voters because it’s driven by science and brings decision making to a local level, including on the CN Intermodal. “A Green mandate would ensure that the local community has first say on where development happens in their community, as Milton’s representative, the priority would be to make sure the 325 conditions are met,” Kowalchuk said.  The CN Intermodal was approved by the federal cabinet in January with 325 different conditions.
    Green Party of Canada leader Annamie Paul has been calling for a coordinated national strategy to fight COVID-19 since last year.   Kowalchuk believes hyper-partisanship between the Liberals and Conservatives have turned it into a political football between federal government and the provinces.  “A proactive and non-partisan approach is the Green party is the Green Party way”, he said.
    The Green Party’s economic platform addresses some of the weak spots highlighted by the pandemic.  They propose a Guaranteed Livable Income, as new universal programs on childcare, and Pharmacare.   A Green Party government would also bring long-term care under the Canada Health Act.  The constitution assigns responsibility for running the healthcare system to the provinces, while the federal government is responsible for funding it.
    Climate Change is in in every facet of the Green Party platform.   “The primary tenet of Green politics is to create a sustainable economic, social, and ecological system,” Kowalchuk explained.  The platform includes measures to develop a green infrastructure, and transition the Canadian economy away from fossil fuels, as well moving to a net zero approach.
    The Green Party condemns the Indian Act as racist, and is committed to dismantling it. “Greens will support Indigenous Peoples’ work and efforts towards self-determination to ensure no one is left behind or excluded from their rightful heritage.”  They will commit to enshrining the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP) into law.  Bill C-15 was passed by the Liberals earlier this year, which calls for Canada to respect the declaration.  The Green Party will also implement the calls from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.  They will respect the treaty rights.
    Why Vote for the Green Party?
    “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.  Vote Green as if your children, and grandchildren’s life depend on it, because it does.” For more information on the Green Party of Canada’s platform visit their website .Election day is September 20, 2021.

    Reporter’s Note: I have reached out to all five candidates.  Chris Kowalchuk was the first to respond.  I’m still trying to reach out to the other four candidates.

  • This election is tight — and last night’s debate likely did little to change that

    They came. They pitched. They argued.
    The federal party leaders held the first of two back-to-back debates on Wednesday — a spirited and occasionally raucous encounter in French that provided glimpses but no sustained view of the differences among them.
    Climate change. The cost of living. Cultural identity. The pandemic and mandatory vaccines. Justice and foreign policy. Those were the official topics for the two-hour debate. The five leaders threw in a few of their own.
    Trust and integrity. Whether this election is even necessary. They were keen to talk about those things, too.
    Why did you call an election in the middle of a pandemic? Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole demanded to know in his first exchange with Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau on whether vaccines should be mandatory.
    This isn’t the time to be dividing people.
    The only reason to call an election is a selfish one. To gain more power. That was not the right thing to do, added NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh.
    Trudeau — who has faced hostile protesters opposed to vaccines during campaign stops in the days leading up to Wednesday’s debate — stood his ground, arguing as he has since the start of the campaign that Canadians deserve a say on how the country gets out of the pandemic.
    Viewers can see how deep the differences are in our positions on how the pandemic should be dealt with, he said.
    It was one of the few sparks to emerge from a debate format that gave few opportunities for extended arguments.
    O’Toole found himself on the defensive early on for releasing the cost of his party’s platform just hours before the debate.
    That analysis, provided by the parliamentary budget officer, clearly confirmed what O’Toole wouldn’t in the first French language debate last week — that under a government led by him, the Liberals’ $6 billion child care deal with the government of Quebec Premier Francois Legault would be a one-time transfer.
    We are going to help all Quebec families immediately, O’Toole said, adding he would work closely with Legault on child care. There’s going to be a transition because our plan is going to help all families in Quebec.
    He doesn’t understand the first thing about child care in Quebec, Trudeau shot back. He’s going to scrap the $6 billion that would have created 37,000 new child care spots. Quebec families have been waiting for months and even years for spaces and he says no.

    No knockout blow

    Federal leaders’ debates always come with high expectations. But it’s rare for them to offer the kind of dramatic moments or turning points that can influence the outcome.
    Last night’s debate was no exception.
    It did, however, signal that the languid pace of this summer campaign is over now.
    Their messaging, their efforts to stand apart from their opponents, the occasional barbs they traded back and forth — they all amounted to an acknowledgement by the party leaders that the public opinion polls they profess to ignore are right.
    This race is close. A majority government appears out of reach for the two frontrunners, Trudeau and O’Toole.  Many voters remain uncommitted ahead of Sept. 20.
    That, at least, suggests the stakes tonight in the only English-language debate will be high. The challenge facing the leaders is to stand out.
    Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet proved, again, that he remains a formidable opponent in these French-language debates — needling both Trudeau and O’Toole while making his case that he and his party are the only ones who will protect the interests of Quebeckers in Ottawa.
    Green Party Leader Annamie Paul has spent most of this campaign in Toronto Centre, where she’s hoping to win a seat on her third try. Last night, she found herself on centre stage — at the middle podium — attempting to reach voters in other parts of the country.
    But she often struggled to break in during the two-hour debate inside the Canadian Museum of History across the Ottawa River from Parliament Hill.
    Pollster David Coletto, who heads the firm Abacus Data, said there’s more value to these debates than people think, even if there’s no obvious change in the polls. No knockout punch.
    You have an opportunity, unlike any other, during a campaign to speak with millions of people who are tuning in and do it in a way that allows you to contrast yourself with the other candidates on that stage, he said.
    So tonight, the leaders will do it all again, in English, covering most of the same topics in front of another national audience. One more chance to seal the deal with voters with only 11 days left before they go to the polls.
    Chris Hall  · CBC News

  • Singer-songwriters will share their songwriting process at 4th Line Theatre

    By: Brendan Burke, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Peterborough Examiner
    MILLBROOK — In the tradition of “Writers in the Round,” four artists will  share the 4th Line Theatre stage during four musical evenings in September and  October, showcasing different artists each evening.
    “The Barnyard Sessions: All About the Song,” produced by singer-songwriter  Kate Suhr, will feature Suhr and other area singer-songwriters such as Greg  Keelor (Blue Rodeo), Evangeline Gentle, Julian Taylor, Sean Conway, Ben Kunder,  Kelly McMichael, Melissa Payne, Jack Nicholsen, Dylan Ireland, Benj Rowland,  Eric Brandon and Lauryn MacFarlane with more names to be released over the  coming weeks.
    In the intimate setting of Winslow Farm, they will take turns discussing  their original music and how they craft their songwriting, detailing the process  behind the lyrics, according to a press release.
    “The four artists will get together, introduce a song, explain where the  inspiration came from, why they wrote this particular piece, and then they play  it, and then the next person goes, so it’s a really beautiful intimate  gathering. It’s a celebration of songwriting,” Suhr told The Examiner.
    Suhr, who was responsible for finding the artists and developing the show,  said she had to think about who would be nicely paired with one another. She  also looked at balancing gender equality for each performance.
    Every performance will be a mixed bag of genres, featuring rhythm and blues,  country, folk — in the true Americana songwriter style — and a little bit of  pop, as well, she said.
    “I just kept thinking, they’re all such brilliant song writers and I’m a firm  believer in sharing all genres. It will be so beautiful for the audience to get  an eclectic feel, to feel the different styles of music and see artists that  maybe they haven’t seen perform before,” Suhr said.
    “It makes them (the audience) feel like they’re a part of something. When an  album is released, we listen to a song, and we’re moved. We have our own  interpretation of what the writer could be talking about or what they were  trying to express. In this case, the audience will be able to hear first-hand  how a piece of music was created.”
    The concerts will take place 7 to 8:30 p.m. Sept. 30 with Sean Conway, Lauryn  MacFarlane, Kelly McMichael, Benj Rowland; Oct. 1 with Greg Keelor, Melissa  Payne, Julian Taylor, and one other still to be announced; Oct. 14 with Eric  Brandon, Evangeline Gentle, Dylan Ireland, JD Nicholsen; and Oct. 15 Aphrose and  Heather Crawford, Ben Kunder, Kate Suhr, and others to be announced.
    Benj Rowland, who will perform Sept. 30, was born and raised in Millbrook and  is a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist folk musician based in  Peterborough.
    He has toured across Canada and Europe with his band, the Mayhemingways. His  first solo EP, “Community Garden,” produced by Joel Plaskett, is scheduled for  release this year.
    Another performer, Kelly McMichael, is from Peterborough but is now based in  St John’s and will also perform Oct. 1. She’s known for her stage presence,  striking vocals and clever songwriting, says the press release.
    She has toured Canada, the U.K. and the U.S. with various projects, most  recently keys and vocals with Sarah Harmer. Her debut LP, released in May,  incorporates psychedelia, synth-pop, americana and grunge.
    Tickets for The Barnyard Sessions go on sale Tuesday and are available for  purchase through 4th Line Theatre’s box office. The capacity for each  performance is 50 seats.
    This presentation will adhere to all provincial and local health unit COVID  mandates and guidelines for maximum audience numbers, physical distancing and  mask wearing.

  • Green platform promises large, uncosted social programs, vows to end fossil fuel industry

    Without holding a formal platform launch featuring party leader Annamie Paul, the Green Party of Canada has quietly released a series of expensive, largely uncosted promises for the 2021 election campaign.
    The platform proposes a new slate of social programs such as universal pharmacare, dental care, an affordable child care plan and free university on top of the cancellation of all student debt.
    While cost of the platform has not been analyzed by the Parliamentary Budget Officer, the platform estimates that the cost of a free university education would be $10.2 billion a year.
    The Greens are also promising to create a universal long-term-care system that would be governed by national standards of care under the Canada Health Act.
    The system would be funded directly by the federal government through a new stream that would be called the Senior’s Care Transfer.
    The Greens are also proposing to introduce a guaranteed livable income that would provide every Canadian with a basic revenue source, ensuring that people can cover basic expenses such as food and accommodation.
    The program would be based what is required to have a livable existence in each part of the country. The platform says that this would alleviate the pressure on provinces to provide programs such as welfare, freeing up provincial budgets to focus on the rising cost of health.
    Our platform is what this moment calls for. Many of the tragic events that unfolded during the past 18 months revealed gaping fault lines in our society, vulnerabilities that, if not addressed, will leave us in a perilously weak position to face the immense challenges of the 21st century, Paul said in a statement.

    Shutting fossil fuel industries

    The plan would also call for an increase of Canada’s emission reduction commitments under the Paris agreement — currently sit at cutting emissions 40 to 45 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 — to a reduction of 60 per cent over the same time period.
    Part of the way to get there, the platform states, is to increase the price on carbon. Right now,  Canadians pay $50 per tonne, which rises $15 per year until it hits $170 in 2030. The Greens want to bump the yearly increase to $25 a year, rising to $250 a year by 2030.
    The Green platform says the party can do this with a series of measures that will shut down the fossil fuel industry in Canada, including: ending the extraction of all fossil fuels in the country; cancelling all new pipelines, including the Trans Mountain pipeline; cancelling all new oil exploration projects; and ending the leasing of federal land for fossil fuel production while retiring existing licenses, banning fracking, and ending fossil fuel subsidies.

    Carbon border adjustments and other promises

    The platform makes a series of other proposals including to:

    • Declare housing affordability and homelessness a national emergency and immediately appoint a federal housing advocate.
    • Invest in the construction and operation of 50,000 supportive housing units over 10 years.
    • Build and acquire a minimum of 300,000 units of deeply affordable non-market, co-op and non-profit housing over a decade.
    • Allocate $10 billion to post-secondary and trade schools.
    • Decriminalize possession of illicit drugs for personal use.
    • Conduct an immediate review of the RCMP role in policing municipalities and reserves and identify areas for “detasking” police and reducing police spending.
    • Ban and condemn the practice of medically unnecessary surgeries on intersex Children.
    • Ban and condemn the practice of conversion therapy, in all its forms.
    • Develop and implement carbon border adjustments to ensure Canadian businesses do not face unfair competition from polluting jurisdictions.
    • Expand VIA Rail to a rail and bus system.
    • Replace one-third of Canada’s food imports with domestic production, bringing $15 billion back into the economy.
    • Call on the Pope to apologize on behalf of the Roman Catholic church for its role in residential schools
    • Ban the development of new nuclear power.

    Peter Zimonjic  · CBC News

  • Meghani Issues Amended Instructions for workplaces

    By: Laura Steiner
    Halton Region’s Medical Officer of Health  (MOH) Dr. Hamidah Meghani has amended COVID-19 orders for workplaces.  The new orders will consolidate instructions issued May 8, and February 12, 2021.
    The new instructions provide guidance for additional contact tracing  measures in certain premises, including the collection of information from customers.  They require businesses and organizations with over 100 employees who work on physical presence to:

    • Establish, implement and ensure compliance with a COVID-19 safety plan
    • Establish, implement and ensure compliance with a COVID-19 workplace vaccination policy

    The order changes the amount of time required for isolation:

    • Those with high-risk exposures such as seniors, and those with chronic medical conditions must isolate for 10 days, instead of 14
    • Those who are in the high-risk category including seniors, and those with chronic medical conditions have recovered from COVID-19 or have already been vaccinated will no longer be required to self-isolate at the discretion of public health.

    These changes will be in effect as of Friday September 10, at 12:01 a.m.  The adjustments will bring Halton in line with provincial orders.
    The Region of Halton has added an increase of 101 COVID-19 cases.  Of these, 23 are from Milton.  83% of eligible Milton residents have had both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.  The Region didn’t update its dashboard yesterday due to the Labour Day holiday

  • Justin Trudeau hit with rocks as he exits London campaign event

    By: Calvi Leon, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, London Free Press
    Simmering tensions along Justin Trudeau’s campaign trail flared in London Monday night when the Liberal leader was struck with a handful of rocks thrown from a crowd of protesters.
    About 100 protestors, many wearing the purple of the People’s Party of Canada, gathered, chanting with signs outside London Brewing Co-Op in east London where Trudeau had stopped for a brief appearance inside with local Liberal candidates. It was his first campaign stop in London.
    As he stepped back into the campaign bus, someone threw a handful of small rocks that appeared to hit him. Trudeau glanced back, but the pebbles appeared to cause no harm. A national CTV reporter said two members of the media were also hit, and unhurt.
    The craft beer pub is located in London North Centre, where Liberal candidate Peter Fragiskatos is seeking a third term in office. The riding has been largely Liberal-held for decades, dating back to Joe Fontana.
    Trudeau is the first federal party leader to visit London since the election was called Aug. 15. Trudeau pulled the plug on his minority government, sending Canadians to the polls Sept. 20, nearly two years since the October 2019 election.

  • Trudeau ratchets up talk on mandatory vaccinations, says he’ll protect businesses, people from lawsuits

    In a move designed to push mandatory vaccination to the front of the election debate, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau said today that a re-elected Liberal government would introduce protections for businesses targeted by anti-vaxxers and anti-lockdown activists.
    There have been examples in Canada of businesses or individuals who are choosing to display anger and contempt, and look for measures to punish, or to go after in the court, businesses that put forward vaccine certificates or mask mandates, Trudeau said Monday in Welland, Ont.
    We’ve simply said that we will be there to have those businesses’ backs as they do the right thing.
    Trudeau also drew attention to his platform promise to establish a $1 billion COVID-19 Proof of Vaccination Fund to cover the cost of implementing proof-of-vaccine credentials for non-essential businesses and public spaces at the provincial level.
    Trudeau did not provide details of how protections for business would evolve, but he said the Justice Department is looking at ways to protect businesses from being sued for implementing strict public health measures.
    Trudeau was asked why he decided to hold a press event in a medical setting. He responded that all measures were taken to protect health care workers and patients but that he needed to go there to show support for health care workers who  have come under attack by activists against vaccines and public health measures taken to fight the pandemic.
    The Liberal leader also defended his decision to call an election, saying the choice is now clear: between someone who will stand up for public health and a leader who cannot because he is beholden to parts of his base.
    The far right, anti-vaxx fringe wing won’t let him. What Erin O’Toole is doing is not leadership, it’s pandering to special interests, he said.
    Peter Zimonjic , David Cochrane  · CBC News

  • Does Western Canada need its own federal party?

    By: Serena Lapointe, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter,  Whitecourt Press
    Maverick Party candidate Colin Krieger made a pit stop in Whitecourt on Monday, August 30, inviting residents to attend a town hall event at the Forest Interpretive Centre. During the hour-long talk, Krieger spoke about his past experiences and why the time is right for a west-only party. “I am not a politician by trade. I drove truck, had a small business, and the last 15 or so years I’ve worked as an oilfield operator,” said Krieger. His great grandfather moved into the Valleyview area in the late 1920s, and his grandfather homesteaded in the area. “We’ve been there pretty much ever since.”
    On why he wanted to put his name in the ring for the Maverick Party, Krieger said that this step is the most important thing he can think of doing. “I’m a new grandpa. I have an eighteen-month-old grandson. He is an absolute joy in my life, and it occurred to me that the way things are going, left unchecked, his opportunities will not be the same as mine or ours. The things that we had available to us for opportunities will not be his and indeed will not be your children and grandchildren’s either.”
    As signs pop up across the area, residents might be wondering if the party is new, and the answer is yes. “The Maverick Party is approximately one year old. We are new, but that does not mean we are inexperienced. Our interim leader Jay Hill was a member of parliament for 16 years in the riding by Dawson Creek. He served underneath Stephen Harper and is a very accomplished man. He knows how the system works and knows what it takes to start a new party because he was also involved at the very beginning stages of the Reform Party.”
    Krieger explained that Western Canada needs “a clear voice in Ottawa” and that the representatives elected here do not fully provide that because of party politics. “National parties need to be re-elected, and they are chasing the prime minister’s chair. They want to fill that chair with somebody from their party. If they want to do that, they need votes in Ontario and Quebec, and if it takes money to accomplish that from Western Canada, then that’s what they will do. We know this. We’ve seen it.”
    A fan of history, Krieger brought up a cartoon that many Albertans would recognize. “In 1905, Alberta became a province. Ten years later, there was a very famous cartoon printed. It’s a large map of Canada with a cow standing on it, being fed on the West coast and milked on the East. That was printed in 1915. Just ten years later, Albertans were starting to realize that we were getting a raw deal in this Canadian confederation. A hundred and six years later, that cartoon still matters. People from here still understand what it means. That is the reason we need the Maverick Party.”
    Krieger said that getting solid representation in Ottawa would mean not pleasing Eastern voters, which no other party can risk doing. “The only way that we can do that is by never running candidates there. The Maverick Party will only ever be fielding candidates in Western Canada, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia and eventually the territories. The reason we do that is so that when we go to Ottawa, we can advocate our needs without worrying about how it’s going to be viewed in the East.”
    One of the Maverick Party’s promises is that Maverick MPs will have two goals: a twin-track solution. “Track A is constitutional change,” began Krieger, including a Triple E Senate (Equal, Elected and Effective). “Equal means every jurisdiction in the country will get the same number of representatives no matter how many people live in that province or territory. Elected means that we can fire them if they aren’t doing their jobs. Just like me. You need to be able to fire me if I’m not doing my job. And it needs to be effective.”
    Track B is about what to do if Track A doesn’t work. “We would begin the process of supporting Western independence in all of its forms, up to and including statehood. There are smaller measures that we can support on the way.” Krieger said that since independence is a provincially-driven change, not federal, Maverick MPs would pressure provincial leaders if that’s what voters wanted.
    “The only similar party is the Bloc Quebecois. We may not like them or like what they stand for, but there is no denying they have been very effective for the people that live in their jurisdiction because they’ve had that clear voice, and they’ve had that person, that party, only advocating for them. That’s what the Maverick Park wants to do for the West. We need it,” explained Krieger.
    When asked about vaccine mandates, Krieger said that the Maverick Party’s platform puts more layers of insulation between federal authority and provincial authority areas. “Anything to do with health is a provincial authority area. We as citizens should be dealing with our provincial people as it’s their responsibility and not Ottawa’s.” He also added that the party’s emblem, specifically the I in Maverick, says Freedom. “That’s not an accident, and it’s not a byline. That means that you, as citizens, should have the freedom to choose whether or not you have a vaccine. It means that you should have the ability to travel within the jurisdictions of Canada freely. That is our, and my, personal position on that and one that I will not back down on. We are built on freedom of choice, and the minute that starts to break down our society is not far behind it.”
    A big question asked by attendees had to do with vote splitting. Krieger said that he understood the fear. “Although we are running in every province in the west, the Maverick Party is not running in every riding. We have handpicked 50 ridings.” Why only 50 ridings? “In this riding in the last federal election, Arnold Viersen won with over 80 percent of the vote. In this federal election, even if the Maverick Party and the Conservative Party split the vote right down the middle, both the Mavericks and the Conservatives would have three to four times more votes than the next person after them. It would be impossible for an NDP or a Liberal or a Green candidate to slide up the middle between us. That’s why the Maverick Party has done that,” said Krieger. “We have to take a stand.”

  • Cycling enthusiast pedals over 900 kilometres for kids with cancer

    By: Dariya Baiguzhiyeva, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TimminsToday.com
    Regardless of the weather during the month of August, Yves Viel would try to go out and ride his bike to help children with cancer.
    Viel took part in the Great Cycle Challenge Canada, where people of all ages and fitness levels pedal to achieve their riding goal throughout August and raise money for SickKids Foundation to help fight kids’ cancer.
    Viel surpassed his goal of achieving 600 kilometres within the first two weeks. He ended up cycling 902 kilometres and raising $4,393.
    “I tried to go every day that I was capable of going to ride whether it was nice or not outside,” he said. “My mentality was, ‘These kids don’t pick when they fight cancer. Why should I get to pick when I should ride?’”
    He rode for his father, who’s a prostate cancer survivor.
    “Out of my family, he’s the only one who has had cancer. And now he suffers from dementia,” Viel explained. “They ask if you want to ride for someone and I ride for my dad.”
    He cycled around Timmins using a mountain bike and a road bike and tracking his rides through the Strava app. He also handed out business cards with a QR code, which would take people to Viel’s fundraising page.
    “This year, the weather was nice. And the scenery has been nice to watch. As I’m riding, I get to observe and feel more in-depth with nature,” Viel said.
    Every time he went for a ride, he would bring coffee and food with him, regardless of how long the ride would be. He would always make a stop to sit down, have a cup of coffee and a little snack before turning around and going back.
    Viel registered for the challenge as a member of O’Reilly SFS team. The 10-member team has raised over $10,700.
    “It’s not about the money,” he said. “It’s about the comfort knowing your mom and dad can be there with you or something like that. Hopefully, in the end, they can find the cure for leukemia and all other sorts of cancer that are out there.”
    On some days, Viel logged over 100 kilometres. When you get to 75-80 kilometres, it starts becoming mentally challenging, Viel said.
    “You have to tell yourself, ‘OK, shut up legs, you’re going to keep going and we’re going to get through this.’ Because you do get tired, you get exhaustion, you get the wind that’s not in your favour as well,” he said. “The struggle is real.”
    This was Viel’s third time participating in the challenge. In the first year, he rode 300 kilometres raising just over $2,500. In the second year, he raised about $1,800.
    Donations for his fundraiser this year came from community members, organizations and businesses, including Rehab Plus, Girones Lawyers, Club Richelieu – Les Perles du Nord, National Bank, Viel Auto Body.
    “Every time, somebody does a donation, it sends me a notification. So, I’ve personally replied to every single donation thanking them for their support,” Viel said. “If it weren’t for everybody supporting, these kids’ lives would be of a greater shamble.”
    Les Perles du Nord donated $250 to Viel’s fundraiser.
    “We donated because it’s for sick kids. Most of our donations, we always try to give towards children,” said the club’s president Michelle Couture.