ENJOYING THE PANCAKES
Veteran journalist considers running for Ashburnham Ward seat on city council
Student Sam Bloom feasts on pancakes Tuesday morning as the Breakfast Program at St. John School on Park St. S. marks Shrove Tuesday.
For seven years, local writer Paul Rellinger has gone up on the roof of The Brick in Peterborough and camped out there for a weekend to raise money for charity, but it’s not going to happen anymore. Rellinger says the fundraiser Relly on the Roof is done.
“I just think it’s run its course,” he said.
Rellinger’s camping weekend used to take place in May, and in its most successful year, 2016, raised a bit more than $9,300 for Habitat for Humanity.
But fundraising totals varied year to year, Rellinger said: in 2017 it collected roughly $5,000.
Meanwhile Rellinger said he may have a very busy year in 2018: he’s seriously considering a run for city council in October in Ashburnham Ward.
“I am planning for that, at this point,” he said. “It’s going to be a lot of work.”
Rellinger, 59, worked as a journalist for Peter borough This Week from the time the newspaper began publishing in 1989 until the start of 2015.
Recently he’s been writing for the website Kawartha Now and also running his business Rellinger Writing Services.
Rellinger is a life-long resident of Ashburnham Ward, and although nomination papers can’t be filed at City Hall until May 1 he wants to run.
“I just think I can contribute something,” he said. “I can devote the time to it ... and I don’t want to do something half-way.”
Meanwhile he said there are other factors that played into his decision to end Relly on the Roof, too. He notes that the late musician Jan Schoute, who died suddenly in November, was instrumental in lining up live music for Relly on the Roof for years.
“I just couldn’t imagine doing it without Jan,” Rellinger said.
Relly said he announced the end of the fundraiser on Facebook recently, and got warm thanks from Habitat from Humanity and also from scores of supporters.
Relly on the Roof was presented by Peterborough Cares, a community group that has been promoting and organizing fundraisers for charities across the city for years.
Most recently the group organized Stand With Tim, where Peterborough Police Deputy Chief Tim Farquharson stood on a downtown street corner all night on Jan. 26 and raised a bit more than $10,000 for local homeless shelters.
On Tuesday Peterborough Cares founder and CEO Camille Parent thanked Rellinger for his work over the years.
Parent and Peterborough Cares Vice-President Lindsay Mitchell are now organizing a new event inspired by Relly on the Roof.
Parent said that on the weekend of July 20, Smitty’s owner Todd Kralik will camp out on the roof of his pancake restaurant on George St. while bands play alongside him.
Mitchell said more than 30 bands will be involved in the event they’re calling Smitty’s Pancake Palooza.
Mitchell also said there will be some well-known guests joining the restaurant owner on the roof, although she wasn’t giving any names this week.
“People will know who they are ,” she said. “We’re looking forward to this – we’re very excited about this event.”