Cheers & Jeers

Cheers to Brooks Roche of Montague, for earning a Sandra Schmirler Foundation $5,000 scholarship awarded to junior curlers pursuing their competitive careers while maintaining their post-secondary studies. Roche is a UPEI student studying Sustainable Design Engineering with plans to get his Master's degree in Architecture. He has represented his province at both the 2015 Canada Winter Games and the 2015 Canadian Juniors.

Cheers to Alvis "Al" Woods for stepping up to the plate to serve as guest speaker for the annual Morell Sportsmen’s Dinner this Saturday after Kelly Gruber was forced to back out for personal reasons. Woods was drafted by the Montreal Expos but spent most of his career with the Toronto Blue Jays, primarily as a left fielder. Woods was on the Opening Day roster for the Blue Jays' inaugural season and in his - and the team's - first ever major league game, on April 7, 1977, slammed a pinch hit homer.

Jeers to all those dog owners who let their little Fidos run wild on busy Island beaches. We’ve heard the story before: ‘Don’t worry, he won’t bite.’ That isn’t the question. Some of us are dog lovers, but others are not and we don’t want to be mauled, licked or otherwise pawed by a stranger’s dog while enjoying one of P.E.I.’s beautiful beaches. The National Park has been forced to ban dogs from its beaches, partly to protect natural wildlife and prevent dogs running wild on the beach. Banning dogs on other Island beaches is taking it too far. Common sense should prevail. Use a leash.

Cheers to community groups, organizations and the public who plan to nominate seniors in their communities for the 2015 Senior Islanders of the Year Award. The annual award recognizes the significant contributions of Island seniors in many areas of community life including: volunteerism, artistic achievement, fund raising, community participation, career achievements, fitness/recreation and other activities. The deadline for nominations is July 15. The awards will presented in October.

Cheers to Dr. Katherine (Livingstone) Bick, a native of Clyde River, who was a special guest speaker at an annual neuroscience conference public lecture Sunday evening in Charlottetown. Bicks is considered a pioneer and international leader in the understanding and research of neurodegenerative diseases. Her work helped transform thinking that senility was not a condition of ageing but a disease with profound impact on patients and their families.

Jeers to the Charlottetown Police Services for not enforcing the provincial bicycle helmet law and the law against riding bicycles on pedestrian sidewalks. Studies show helmets help prevent injuries while bicycles on sidewalks are a recipe for collisions. But jeers should also go to the cyclists who break these laws.

Cheers to seven more Island forest firefighters heading to help with the increasingly serious wildfire situation in western Canada. Two firefighters left last month to help with fires in northern Alberta. Thirteen Red Cross personnel from Atlantic Canada have also deployed to Saskatchewan over the past two weeks. Volunteers typically deploy for up to 21 days and donate their time.

Cheers to Charlottetown’s Island Hill Farm, one of four small businesses across the country, a co-winner of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business's #SmallBizLove contest.

Island Hill Farm joins Popp Chocolates in Winnipeg, Zucchini Blossom in Medicine Hat and Merchant of Tennis in Toronto, as Canada’s most loved businesses, having received the most votes in their regions across the country. Each will be featured in CFIB’s lead-up campaign to Small Business Saturday on October 24, 2015.