KILLALOE – Children in Killaloe-Hagarty-Richards Township are getting some incentive to put a lid on it.
Two kids helped kick off the Kids with Lids program at the regular council meeting on November 20, with Sheldon Keefe there to witness it.
“Kids with Lids is a helmet safety program and it’s meant to encourage kids to make their own decision about wearing their helmet during recreational activities,” Volunteer Coordinator Maria Mayville explained. “The program started because it’s a hard world out there and things happen quickly, and when you least expect it, and kids need to realize that.”
The program is geared towards elementary school children, in hopes that they will agree to wear a helmet not only on, but also off, the ice.
Maya and Lucas Rosandic were to be the first two children to agree to wear their helmets during recreational activities.
A package was made, with a small description of the program as well as a pledge sheet, where the children sign their name saying that they will always wear a helmet, not only because their parents ask them to, but also because they want to.
This package will be given to all children in the KHR Township.
Sheldon Keefe is the general manager and coach of the Pembroke Lumber Kings, and is supporting the initiative by offering children the opportunity of attending one of their games.
“I am really excited to be here,” Keefe said. “I believe is going to be very well received. It is very important to the kids of the area and I really see some potential for it to really blossom in the region, and to take on a life of its own.”
Keefe said the Lumber Kings are very enthusiastic and are putting in the effort in doing their part to spread the word.
“With that, we want to have each child to come to a Lumber Kings game and receive a free ticket,” Keefe added.
“We are going to have a Kids with Lids night at the Pembroke Memorial Centre on January 25, where each of the
kids taking part in the program, their [free] ticket will be for that game.”
kids taking part in the program, their [free] ticket will be for that game.”
Keefe spoke about the night, stating that there will be a draw held through the program pledging.
The prize for the draw is the opportunity to join the players on the ice and drop the puck to kick off the Kids with Lids night.
“We are very excited about it. I think it is a very important program,” he said.
This program was created in Killaloe, and is unique to the area.
“It is home-grown here,” Mayville said.
“This may put KHR on the map,” KHR Mayor Janice Visneskie said excitedly. “We are very proud of this program.”
WIND TURBINE UPDATE
Carmen Krogh was present during the meeting in order to update council on the ongoing research surrounding the affects of wind turbines.
Krogh has been collecting information on how wind turbines affect those surrounding the area’s health.
She added that Canada is making good headway in their research.
“I have been expressing my concerns that they need to make sure that they address some of the very complex factors that happen such as terrain and soil… It’s not an easy study to do. It’s not like one plus one equals two. I am hoping to be getting a little more headway there,” she said.
“Its significance is it’s the first controlled study. In other words, it is comparing people living a certain distance with those that don’t,” she said. “The gap between living close by and not is really substantial… The symptoms are real, this is really happening.”
According to Krogh, the research is slow moving, and consists of a lot of hard work.
“One of the barriers is the lack of acknowledgment that the symptoms are real… It would be really nice if we could have a starting point that this is real,” she said. “Instead we are trying to prove.”
She said that they are hearing that most of the attention for wind turbines is in southern Ontario.
“Some of the projects going in are very large. I think I reported last time that according to one of the people that counted up the number of homes exposed in one of the really big projects near Hamilton might have 4,000 homes within range,” Krogh continued, adding that she has not heard much about whether or not they will be brought to the KHR area.
She stated that there is more of a request for a delay in the construction of such projects.
“Ten or 12 MP’s have asked for a moratorium,” Krogh said. “I know people are really upset because the newer projects, the impacts are very quick.”
The affects of the turbines have increased due to the growth in size from 1.65 to 2.3 megawatts.
“We have people within days now that are hit with vertigos, which I never used to see that as common as I am seeing now,” Krogh stated. “There is a certain something with that threshold of them bigger and the distances are the same.”
Visneskie said that the projects projected for the municipalities surrounding KHR have fallen through.
“It was not cited as the best place in Ontario to put these things. That was a good news story for us if that’s in fact that case,” Visneskie said.
According to Krogh, it may be difficult to receive liability insurance because they are unable to control who comes onto the property.
“They are affecting people,” she said.
Story continues in the November 28, 2012 issue of The Valley Gazette.