CHRONICLE 15-16 ISSUE 14

I would just love it, 

if you actually knew that I wasn't a guy. 

- See pages 8-9 

Volume XLIV, Issue 14 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 

Honouring 

Canadian 

heroes 

page 3 

Photograph by Barbara Howe 

Out on 

the ice 

pages 40-41 

Photograph by Darren Jackinsky / Blue Fish Studios 

WANTED: 

More women 

in politics page 24 

Living 

with 

scoliosis 

page 7 

Photograph by Euvilla Thomas 

Photograph by Frank Katradis

2 The Chronicle March 21 - 27, 2017 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca

Community chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 3 

Vimy Ridge 100 years later 

Barbara Howe 

The Chronicle 

Students from across Durham Region 

are preparing for a trip of a 

lifetime to honour the Canadian 

men who died for their country in 

France 100 years ago. 

Approximately 1,000 high 

school students from the across 

the region will travel to Vimy 

Ridge next month to take part in 

a ‘Pilgrimage of Remembrance,’ 

which will culminate in a ceremony 

at the Vimy Ridge Memorial 

on April 9. 

Dave Robinson, national advisor 

and coordinator for EF 

Educational Tours, addressed 

approximately 200 participating 

students from four of the Durham 

Catholic District School Board 

schools at Father Leo J. Austin 

secondary school March 7. 

“The things you are going to 

experience are going to change 

your life on this tour,” said Robinson. 

The Battle of Vimy Ridge took 

place on April 9, 1917 during the 

First World War. It is regarded 

as the turning point in Canadian 

history. 

Four Canadian divisions 

fought together as a unified force 

for the first time and defeated the 

German forces. 

Though the battle claimed the 

lives of 3,598 Canadian soldiers, 

it is often regarded as a defining 

moment for Canada, according to 

the Vimy Foundation. 

Robinson, who has led tours to 

Vimy since the 90th anniversary 

said there will be approximately 

9,000 students, teachers and 

Photograph by Barbara Howe 

Taylor Chamberlain, a Grade 10 student from Monsignor John Pereyma Secondary School in 

Oshawa, is excited to be making the trip to Vimy Ridge. 

chaperones travelling to Arras, 

France representing every Canadian 

province and territory, but 

the Durham contingent is the largest. 

Taylor Chamberlain, a Grade 

10 student from Monsignor John 

Pereyma Catholic Secondary 

School in Oshawa said she was 

excited to be travelling on a plane 

for the first time, and was looking 

forward to seeing the battlefields 

and finding out more about the 

war where her ancestor, Horace 

Macdonald, fought. 

“My great-grandfather was in 

the Vimy war and he survived it. 

He was a sniper and he was shot in 

the back. He was about 22-yearsold.” 

Topher Malkin, a history teacher 

at All Saints Secondary School 

in Whitby, will lead a group of 42 

students, adults and chaperones 

on a trip which will take in Amsterdam, 

Paris and London. He 

said the trip will be an emotional 

experience for the students. 

“The trip ties the experiences 

of Canadian history students and 

helps create a direct link between 

their experience in the 21st century 

with the experiences of young 

Canadian boys who, 100-years 

ago, were living in trenches and 

fighting for their lives and making 

the ultimate sacrifice to fight for 

king and country,” said Malkin in 

a telephone interview. 

Malkin has led trips to Vimy 

on previous anniversaries and said 

it is hard to evaluate the life experience 

for the students. 

“Every student who has gone 

has told me after it was an experience 

they will never forget,” said 

Malkin. “I don’t think anyone 

who has been on this trip comes 

back without a positive experience.” 

Malkin said the students from 

All Saints have each researched 

a soldier who died at Vimy Ridge 

and a member of the armed forces 

who died in the Second World 

War during the Invasion of Normandy. 

They will lay a small poppy 

cross and memorial maple leaf at 

the headstone of their assigned soldier 

at the cemeteries which will 

symbolically fulfil their pledge to 

remember the fallen Canadians. 

The students will travel in different 

groups and experience various 

parts of Europe from April 3 

– 14. 

But, they will all converge 

at the Vimy Memorial on April 

9 for the memorial celebration 

which will be attended by members 

of the British Royal Family, 

Canadian Prime Minister Justin 

Trudeau, Governor General 

David Johnston, and the leaders 

of France, Belgium, and the U.K. 

Security will be tight and all 

students have been vetted by Veterans 

Affairs Canada to obtain 

their ticket to the event. 

Also accompanying the Durham 

delegation will be Oshawa 

City Councilor Bob Chapman 

and the Durham Regional Police 

Pipes and Drums Band. 

Robinson said the town of 

Arras has been planning the celebrations 

for April 9 for at least 10 

years and they have some spectacular 

things planned. 

He told the students they will 

have the opportunity to experience 

virtual life in the trenches 

through 3D goggles in an indoor 

exhibition hall. 

Additionally, there will be exhibits 

from the Hamilton Signal 

Corp, and the Invictus Games. 

Driving under the influence 

is an accelerating issue 

Logan Caswell 

The Chronicle 

It was the night before her high 

school prom. Rowen Reid of Ajax 

made the final preparations for the 

big night. But first, she had to drive 

a car home from her grandparents. 

What could go wrong? 

May 28, 2014. According to 

Reid, the skies were clear with 

some clouds floating around here 

and there. She stopped, waiting to 

turn left on Salem and Taunton 

Road in Ajax. 

As she turned, a large car ran the 

light and plowed into Reid’s vehicle 

head on. 

The impact left the 18-year-old 

with a fractured sternum and a 

fracture to a bone in her arm so 

severe it punctured her skin. 

The driver of the other vehicle 

had been drinking. His girlfriend 

owned the car but let her boyfriend 

drive it with a suspended license. 

After the collision, he tried to 

switch seats with her. 

While he tried to escape charges, 

Reid laid in a hospital bed. 

“I was taken to hospital where I 

had to have surgery on my arm and 

have two plates permanently placed 

in my arm,” she says. “Of course I 

missed my prom.” 

Impaired driving charges have 

bounced up and down since 2012 

with Durham Region’s highest 

totals coming in 2016. According to 

Durham Regional Police (DRPS), 

809 impaired driving charges were 

handed out in 2015 compared to 

908 in 2016. 

DRPS conducted its annual 

Festive Reduce Impaired Driving 

Everywhere (R.I.D.E.) campaign 

over the holiday season. Over a seven-week 

period, 99 motorists were 

charged with drinking and driving, 

19 less than last year. 

Over that span, almost no young 

people aged between 18-22 were 

charged with the offense according 

to the Durham Regional Police. 

Dave Selby, director of corporate 

communications for DRPS, is 

satisfied with the progress of the 

program. 

“We were quite happy that anyone 

in the category between 18-22 

weren’t caught,” he says. “Kids in 

that generation got the message and 

realize it’s not something you do. It 

used to be one of our biggest categories 

so that’s an improvement.” 

Selby says younger millennial 

drivers had more exposure to anti-drinking 

and driving messages. 

He says the biggest problem now 

isn’t them. “We found that we were 

catching those aged 25, 26 all the 

way up to middle aged adults on 

a fairly regular basis,” says Selby. 

Now more testing for impaired 

driving could be on the way. With 

the legalization of marijuana looming, 

police forces will potentially 

have more help on the road. 

“The federal government wants 

to supply police the tools to properly 

scientifically measure drug and 

not just alcohol,” says Selby. “We’d 

like to have something in place before 

the legislation being enacted 

in terms of decimalizing smaller 

quantities.” 

Several new devices are currently 

being tested in Europe that agencies 

such as DRPS hope to take advantage 

of. 

Danielle Oliveria, chapter administrative 

assistant at MADD 

Durham Region, is frustrated. She 

has also seen a change in impaired 

driving and not for the good. 

“You’ll notice over the last year 

more people have been driving impaired,” 

she says. “I’d like to say 

our numbers are decreasing, but 

we can’t right now.” 

Oliveria says detecting impaired 

driving is huge reason why charges 

are up from recent years.For some, 

such as Rowen Reid, MADD can 

be useful for telling stories, especially 

for people like her who have been 

affected but haven’t seen justice. 

“The police were going to charge 

Photograph courtesy of Blair Qualey 

A highway patrol officer stops a motorist for impaired driving. 

him with drinking and driving but 

he just made the legal limit and was 

only charged for driving with a suspended 

license,” says Reid. “I still 

deal with effects from the accident 

today.” 

Now, more than two years later, 

Reid has accepted what happened 

and hopes more people watch 

what they consume before driving 

a vehicle. 

“Make sure you’re an advocate 

for yourself and those around for 

not driving under the influence,” 

says Reid. “People need to realize 

it’s not OK.”

4 The Chronicle March 21 - 27, 2017 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca 

PUBLISHER: Greg Murphy 

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Brian Legree 

AD MANAGER: Dawn Salter 

Editorial 

CONTACT US 

NEWSROOM: brian.legree@durhamcollege.ca 

ADVERTISING: dawn.salter@durhamcollege.ca 

Cartoon by Toby VanWeston 

Procedure is path to refuge 

Asylum seekers from Turkey, 

Syria, and Yemen are trekking 

through the cold to cross the Manitoba 

and Quebec borders in search 

of a better life in Canada because 

of the current political climate in 

Trump’s America. 

Here in Oshawa, we do not see 

any strain on the system. As a result, 

people may think Canada 

should offer asylum to those who 

seek it. 

But the number of asylum seekers 

will likely rise as the temperature 

warms up. 

This influx will have long-term 

effects, which might not be beneficial 

to all. Those seeking a better 

life need to follow procedures. 

Asylum seekers are looking for 

international protection. Their 

refugee status is undetermined, but 

they can claim refugee protection 

on Canadian soil. 

The government of Canada will 

protect those who are fleeing injustice 

or cruel and unusual punishment. 

Since January, more than 1,000 

asylum seekers filed claims of refugee 

status at the Quebec and U.S. 

borders, and more than 100 have 

filed claims at the Manitoba border, 

according to Stephanie Levitz 

of the Canadian Press. 

Although it’s a criminal offence 

to cross borders illegally, there are 

no charges until refugee claims 

are processed, according to Karen 

Pauls of CBC News. 

Since Jan., RCMP officers have 

caught more than 2,000 asylum 

seekers crossing illegally into the 

country. 

Right now, according to Citizen 

and Immigration Canada, there 

are approximately 60,000 asylum 

claimants awaiting a decision on 

their claim. The average hearing 

will take place in 19 months. 

According to Bill Redekop of 

Winnipeg Free Press, 65 per cent 

of asylum claims are approved in 

Canada. This is more than half of 

the applications. 

The problem is the length of time 

for processing. A backgrounder on 

the challenges faced by Canada’s 

asylum system, which appears on 

the Government of Canada website, 

says it takes four and a half 

years from the time a claim is 

made until a rejected claimant is 

removed. 

This is not factoring in wait times 

for the current influx. There are 

15,000 claimants in the process 

of being deported from Canada. 

There are, however, approximately 

38,000 asylum seekers who are 

unaccounted for and subject to an 

immigration warrant. 

Rejected applicants run the risk 

of being detained by the government, 

or deported. For Canada 

Border Services Agency, this can 

cost anywhere from approximately 

$1,500, or $15,000, if the deportation 

is escorted, according to Pauls. 

The influx of asylum seekers will 

cause a strain on existing social 

services. While waiting, they can 

live and work in Canada and have 

access to a range of social benefits. 

According to lawyer Mark Benton, 

asylum seekers are overloading 

the refugee system. Manitoba 

Premier Brian Pallister has called 

on the federal government to act 

more on the recent influx. Pallister 

has asked the Trudeau government 

to help fund health care coverage, 

temporary housing, and employment 

income assistance, direct 

employment and labour market 

supports. 

With political leaders closing 

borders in countries such as France, 

the Netherlands, and the United 

States, Canada needs to lead with 

open arms. This requires process 

as much as it does empathy. If Canadians 

figure this out, the rest of 

the world may follow. 

Jessica Stoiku 

with files from: 

Laura Metcalfe 

Euvilla Thomas 

Logan Caswell 

EDITORS: Jenn Amaro, James Bauman, Logan 

Caswell, Rebecca Calzavara, Sharena Clendening, 

Dean Daley, Alexander Debets, Travis Fortnum, 

Tyler Hodgkinson, Barbara Howe, Noor Ibrahim, 

James Jackson, Christopher Jones, Frank 

Katradis, Daniel Koehler, Angela Lavallee, Laura 

Metcalfe, Tommy Morais, Joshua Nelson, Nicole 

O'Brien, Samuel Odrowski, Devarsh Oza, Trusha 

Patel, Matthew Pellerin, Asim Pervez, Alex Ross 

Emily Saxby, Tyler Searle, Jessica Stoiku, Euvilla 

Thomas, Toby VanWeston, Kayano Waite, Brandi 

Washington, Michael Welsh, Jared Williams, Erin 

Williams. 

The Chronicle is published by the Durham College School of Media, Art 

and Design, 2000 Simcoe Street North, Oshawa, Ontario L1H 7L7, 721- 

2000 Ext. 3068, as a training vehicle for students enrolled in Journalism and 

Advertising courses and as a campus news medium. Opinions expressed 

are not necessarily those of the college administration or the board of governors. 

The Chronicle is a member of the Ontario Community Newspapers 

Association. 

PRODUCTION ARTISTS: Brandon Agnew, Justin 

Bates, Zach Beauparlant, Kayla Cook, Nathalie Desrochers, 

Charlotte Edwards, Yannick Green, Madeline 

Grixti, Stephanie Hanna, Lijo Joseph, Sarah 

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Josh Mcgurk, Katie Miskelly, Louisa Molloy, 

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Kaela Richardson, Madeleine Riley, Alex Royer, 

Spencer Stevens, Rachel Thompson, Geroge Tsalavoutas, 

Alexandra Weekes, Cameron Westlake. 

MEDIA REPS: Rachel Alexander, Angela Bahnesli, 

Sarah Bhatti, Anokhi Bhavsar, Steven Brundage, 

Chanel Castella, Brandon Clark, Scott Cowling, Leanne 

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Publisher: Greg Murphy Editor-In-Chief: Brian Legree Features editor: Teresa Goff Ad Manager: Dawn Salter 

Advertising Production Manager: Kevan F. Drinkwalter Photography Editor: Al Fournier Technical Production: Keir Broadfoot

chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 5 

Opinion 

Canadians will stand 

together in support 

of a diverse country 

Trudeau won't 

let Canada 

change, or lose 

our trade with 

the states 

In one of the greatest Canadian moments, 

a vigil was held in Quebec 

for the mass shooting at a mosque 

in Quebec City which left six people 

dead. 

Canadians came together in support 

of the grieving families and 

showed the victims and the families 

they are part of this country. 

Now as a people, Canadians 

should stand as a united front to 

the world, stand behind the Prime 

Minister and reach out to the countries 

alienated by President Donald 

Trump. 

The reality of Trudeau cooperating 

with Trump would make a lot 

of people grimace. 

The Prime Minister represents 

Canada and its people on a global 

scale and according to a poll from 

the Nanos Research group, which 

surveyed 1,000 Canadians between 

Dec. 16 and Dec. 19 in 2016, 75 per 

cent of Canadians want Trudeau to 

stand up to Trump. 

However, the PM also needs to 

look out for the best interests in 

Canada. 

The U.S. is Canada’s biggest 

trade partner. Statistics Canada 

shows the goods exported to the 

U.S. were over 34 million dollars 

Kevin 

Steinbach 

in December last year. 

That is 11 million more than 

Canada’s exports to the European 

Union, the second largest trading 

partner. 

On the other side, Canada is only 

the second biggest trade partner of 

the U.S. since 2015. Our dependency 

on them is higher than their 

dependency on us. 

Trudeau’s decision to not stand 

up to Trump is a necessary evil and 

Canadians should grant the Prime 

Minister some understanding and 

support. 

But as a people, Canadians can 

do so much more than simply support. 

Being Canadian means more 

than just enjoying maple syrup, 

bacon, or poutine. 

It’s more than being a fan of hockey 

and more than enjoying a warm 

cup of Tim Horton’s coffee in the 

morning while munching on some 

Timbits. 

Canada is a blend of cultures and 

languages coming together as one, 

while sharing diversity. 

Many Canadians can track their 

ancestry from somewhere else in 

this world. 

So as Canadians they hold on to 

two identities: the Canadian one 

right now and the one from wherever 

they came from, including 

traditions, habits and languages. 

Trudeau acknowledges and embraces 

that fact. 

In October 2016, Trudeau announced 

January would be Tamil 

Heritage month, and October 

both Islamic and Hindu Heritage 

month. And let’s not forget Toronto’s 

Caribbean Carnival Parade 

every summer. 

The Prime Minister took steps 

to accept Canada’s diversity and 

unite it. Announcing the heritage 

months allows Canada to have 

more opportunities to bring diversity 

together. 

In reaching out to others and 

embracing diversity as part of 

Canadian culture and identity, 

Trudeau is not the only one to 

do so. 

Some educational institutions 

do too. 

Lakehead University and the 

University of Winnipeg made the 

change for students to require a 

three-credit course on Aboriginal 

Culture and History to graduate, 

to better help graduates communicate 

and work with the aboriginal 

population there. 

Canada should continue being 

so progressive. 

Canadians should support and 

unite behind their Prime Minister 

and be an example to the world. 

Canadians can support the country 

by embracing their culture 

and unite with other cultures in 

Canada. 

Stand behind the Prime Minister. 

Trudeau is dealing with 

Trump for the sake of Canada’s 

trade with the U.S. 

Athletes are overpaid 

In the last NBA off-season, players 

such as Mike Conley have signed 

some of the biggest contracts in 

NBA history. 

There are hundreds of millions 

of people who are homeless but 

millions of dollars are being given 

to these athletes for putting a ball 

into a basket. 

Basketball players should be 

given a large amount of money as 

they are the best in the world at 

what they do. 

But making eight figures in a 

single season? Nine figure contracts? 

That is outrageous. 

Memphis Grizzlies point guard 

Mike Conley currently has the biggest 

contract in the NBA, which 

is actually the biggest contract in 

NBA history: $153 million dollars 

over 5 years. 

Conley is not even a top-five 

player at his position. 

Overall he is ranked 36th in the 

league in points per game at 19.2 

a game and 18th in assist at 6.2 

a game. 

It is reminiscent of rapper Jay 

Z’s lyrics “Would you rather be 

underpaid or overrated?” 

Under the NBA’s new Collective 

Bargaining Agreement (CBA), 

Golden State Warriors star point 

guard, Stephen Curry, could reportedly 

earn over $200 million 

over a span of five years. Just outrageous. 

The CBA is an agreement between 

the league and the players 

with a list of rules about salary 

cap, tax arrangement, free agency, 

anti-drug agreement, NBA Developmental 

League, rookie salary 

scales and minimum annual 

salary scales. 

According to therichest.com, 

former President Barack Obama 

earned $400,000 annually while 

Asim 

Pervez 

in office. 

With other bonuses like an expense 

account, a travel account and 

an entertainment budget, that totals 

up to approximately $670,000 annually. 

Not bad at all. But compared 

to NBA players, that number is 

dwarfed. 

Four hundred forty-four NBA 

players are going to make more 

than $670,000 this season alone. 

The highest earner in 2016-2017 

is Cleveland Cavaliers superstar 

forward LeBron James. He will 

make just under $31 million this 

season. 

According to the buisnessinsider. 

com, doctors make anywhere from 

$204,000 to $443,000 annually, depending 

what type of doctor they 

are. This isn’t a bad amount by any 

means. 

But these people help change 

and save lives. Someone may need 

a lifesaving operation, and a whole 

family could be depending on that 

doctor to help save a life. 

That being said, being an NBA 

player is not easy either. Not just 

anyone can make it. But what is 

really more important? Saving a 

life? Or putting a ball in hoop? 

Health before wealth. 

So ask yourself, should athletes 

really have nine figure contracts? 

Should they really be making eight 

figures in a single season? Should 

people who impact people’s lives 

and help save lives make more 

money? 

Or are athletes just really overpaid? 

Employees taking a backseat to cleavage in restaurants 

Ever since the introduction of 

Hooters in 1983, skimpy outfits on 

female servers have been the norm. 

Just last year, a restaurant called 

Bombshells, which boasts servers in 

military style crop tops and miniskirts, 

announced a plan to whip 

out 100 new locations across the 

United States. 

But this isn’t just happening 

south of the border. 

Restaurants in Canada have 

been increasingly adopting the ‘sex 

sells’ phenomenon since the start 

of 2012. 

Chains such as Moxies, Hooters, 

and the Tilted Kilt, coined 

breastaurants, require their female 

staff to wear scanty uniforms such 

as miniskirts, heels, and cleavage-bearing 

tops as part of the 

restaurants’ image or brand. 

Other chains such as Jack Astor’s 

require female staff to wear Lulu 

Lemon tennis skirts (priced at $74), 

three pieces of jewellery, and make- 

Noor 

Ibrahim 

up. Some, such as The Keg, even 

provide servers with a uniform including 

a built in push-up bra. 

The objectification of women 

through the food industry is a 

lazy sales gimmick to cover up the 

shortcomings of eateries while still 

managing to take a step backwards 

in gender-equality and ten steps 

forward in the exploitation of income-driven 

youth. 

Some may argue big breasts and 

butts are part of advertisements 

everywhere. Selling sex is an archaic 

concept. What makes breastaurants 

any different? 

Breastaurants use their staff’s 

looks and sexual appeal to cover 

up for the shortcomings of the restaurant. 

According to a 2017 Financial 

Post article by Hollie Shaw, 

full-service restaurants in Canada 

have been taking losses for the past 

year, and the drops are expected 

to continue. 

For that reason, restaurants 

might have turned to marketing 

their own staff as a desperate plot 

to amp up their customers. However, 

the objectification of female 

bodies in the work force takes a toll 

on their mental health. 

According to a 2015 Business 

Insider study, all the waitresses 

interviewed at an unnamed breastaurant 

experienced feelings of 

anxiety, depression, anger, and 

degradation. 

Fans of breastaurants might 

also argue in order for women to 

be exploited, they’d have to have 

been forced into the job. But these 

women applied for the jobs themselves, 

so they must be happy and 

willing to work, right? Satisfaction 

may not always be the case. 

In a 2016 interview with CBC, 

chief commissioner of Ontario Human 

Rights Commissions Renu 

Mandhane said people working at 

breastaurants, often times students 

trying to make rent or pay off university 

fees, are “fairly precarious.” 

These restaurants are manipulating 

the desperation of young 

women to survive and get income 

knowing well enough that making 

top dollar would take a front seat 

to being objectified. 

That same incentive leads youth 

every single year to the silver pole 

at strip clubs. 

If most of these women are 

desperate to pay rent, why would 

they quit their job when they’re 

presented with an uncomfortable 

uniform? 

When working at a breastaurant 

can make you up to $700 a night, 

many youth battling precarious 

employment may think a mini skirt 

isn’t worth losing income. 

So why isn’t there a flood of complaints 

from servers? The process 

of filing a human rights complaint 

against an employer is so time consuming 

that it takes years to present 

a resolution. The simplest option 

would be to quit your job. 

Breastaurants are a breeding 

ground for mental health issues 

amongst workers. 

They normalize sexually-objectifying 

environments that we have 

been combatting for years and 

give the impression that workers 

are content. Breastaurants have 

no place in a country trying to end 

both the wage gap and sexism in 

the workforce. 

If the breastaurant industry continues 

to thrive on the objectification 

and manipulation of its female 

staff, we might as well be teaching 

young girls to incorporate their cup 

size onto their resume.

6 The Chronicle March 21 - 27, 2017 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca Opinion 

Year in Review 

Editorial cartoons by Toby VanWeston 

September 2016-March 2017

Campus chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 7 

Scoliosis: Face of hope 

Frank Katradis 

The Chronicle 

When Melissa Carroll was only 

twelve years old she was given a 

diagnosis that would change her 

life. She was told she had scoliosis. 

According to mayoclinic.org, 

scoliosis is a sidewayas curvature of 

the spine. Something that is more 

common in women than men. 

It has been noted that cerebral 

palsy and muscular dystrophy can 

cause the disease, but for the majority 

of patients suffering from scoliosis 

the cause remains unknown. 

It happens mainly during growth 

spurts. Many cases do not require 

treatment. 

However, that wasn’t the case for 

Carroll. 

Her spine formed in the shape 

of the letter “S” with a 56 degree 

curve. As time progressed, Carroll 

faced many issues. 

Photograph by Frank Katradis 

Melissa Carroll, who has gone through two surgeries to try and fix her spine, is happy to help 

other girls facing scoliosis. 

Photograph provided by Melissa Carroll 

An X-ray of Melissa Carroll, showing the two metal rods that 

were fused to her spine. 

“A lot of my problems regarded 

around my legs, and my spine obviously,” 

she says. “I was just very 

uncomfortable a lot of the time. I 

couldn’t walk for long distances, I 

couldn’t sit for long periods of time, 

my right leg would go numb pretty 

much the majority of the time. I just 

had a lot of problems doing anything 

physical, it just impacted me 

pretty severely.” 

Dr. Nicholas Antony, a chiropractor 

at the Campus Health 

Centre, and adjunct professor for 

the Faculty of Kinesiology and 

Health Sciences for the University 

of Ontario Institute of Technology 

(UOIT), has had many patients 

come to him with similar issues 

from scoliosis. 

“Typically, what I see, in terms of 

complaints is that as a result of the 

curvature, muscles are tight joints 

are sore,” says Antony. “And with 

prolonged postures which typically 

aggravate people in general, it 

will make people that have scoliosis 

more prone to muscle tightness, 

sprains, strains with more repetitive 

or prolonged sitting.” 

“It impacted how I grew up and 

who I became,” says Carroll. “I was 

so young when I first found out that 

I had it and it was such a quick process 

to me learning you have this 

disorder and just straight to ‘I need 

to have a spine surgery’. It was so 

overwhelming for me that I had a 

hard time going to school, really 

connecting with people, because I 

felt like I was different, I felt there 

was something severely different 

about me versus others.” 

Carroll had her first surgery 

September 30, 2013. She had a full 

spinal fusion, which is the procedure 

of permanently joining two or 

more vertebrate to form one solid 

bone with no space in between, 

according to Healthline.com.Carroll 

had two titanium rods surgically 

placed alongside her spine 

with eight bolts and six screws to 

help keep it straight. The surgery 

didn’t just affect Carroll physically 

though. It also impacted her mentally. 

“I was always active, I always 

played sports, I was a very sociable 

person,” she says. “I loved to 

be out and about with people, and 

after my first surgery I physically 

couldn’t go out just because I 

couldn’t do anything. I lost everything 

that kinda gave me joy in 

life.” 

Not able to do much, and feeling 

different from others, Carroll 

began to isolate herself. 

Melissa Bosomworth, a life coach 

for Durham College’s Access and 

Support Centre (ASC), says mental 

health for everyone is different, 

but isolation mainly has negative 

effects on people. 

“When you isolate yourself, 

you’re ultimately reducing the 

amount of resources you have to 

support you,” says Bosomworth. 

“People are very social. When a social 

person begins to isolate themselves 

they’re taking away, perhaps, 

some of their coping tools. Such as 

going out, laughing with friends, 

or doing something of interest to 

them. Skiing, bowling, that kind of 

stuff. They could start taking away 

the things that bring them pleasure 

or peace, or they could be reducing 

their coping tools, and once they 

start reducing those coping tools, 

then you’re not as effectively dealing 

with… you’re not giving yourself 

the good feelings that you used 

to get.” 

For Carroll, things got worse. 

Ten months being told her first 

surgery was the only one she needed, 

a rod broke in her back. A very 

rare circumstance. Her doctors at 

the time were unsure of their next 

move. As a precaution, Carroll had 

a second surgery in November of 

2015 to remove all hardware in 

her back. She also went through 

bone grafts, had two of her ribs 

removed, and she received bones 

donated from donors to help rebuild 

her back. 

This was supposed to be a final 

solution. That wasn’t the case. 

“In August, I learned that that 

surgery unfortunately failed as 

well.” she says. “The bone graph 

isn’t holding up and my spine is 

curving again.” 

Currently, Carroll is looking 

into a potential third surgery. She 

was actually booked to meet with 

neurosurgeon Dr. Mohammed 

Shamji to help fix her spine. However, 

that meeting ended before it 

began. 

Dr. Shamji was charged with 

killing his wife in December of 

2016. Carroll is still waiting to see 

another doctor. 

Carroll has taken her story to social 

media outlets. It’s been over a 

year. Ever since then young women 

from all around the world who also 

have scoliosis have gotten into contact 

with her. 

Carroll admits she was nervous at 

first, hoping not to give the wrong 

advice. But as time progressed she 

felt more comfortable talking to the 

women who contacted her. 

“They started to DM (direct message) 

me though Instagram and Facebook 

asking me questions, saying 

they were going through the same 

process,” she says. “They either 

had a failed surgery or their first 

surgery, and they just had so many 

questions for me. It just felt really 

good trying to help them out and 

explain to them that if you do take 

care of your body and do this right 

this can be a life changing thing.” 

Bosomworth believes that this is 

a really positive thing for all these 

girls, including Carroll. 

“By increasing her network of 

people though social media… that’s 

reaching out to other people,” says 

Bosomworth. “And by sharing her 

story, she’s also letting other people 

know that ‘hey, you’re not alone in 

It was so 

overwhelming 

for me that I 

had a hard time 

going to school, 

really connecting 

with people, 

because I felt like 

I was different. 

this’. So now they have a place to 

belong.” 

“I felt happy,” says Carroll. “Because 

I was always so ashamed of 

the fact that I had scoliosis and that 

I had gone through this. I had no 

one to talk to. It was very foreign to 

me. So when all these girls started 

to come to me it was cool to kind 

of connect with a community that’s 

going through the same thing 

you’re going through. I’ve never 

had that before, so that was a really 

comforting feeling.” 

There is more good news. According 

to Dr. Antony, scoliosis will 

not curve one’s spine forever. 

“The one thing to note about 

scoliosis, idiopathic scoliosis, is 

that it stops the progression of the 

disease as you reach maturity,” 

Antony says. 

Carroll, who turns 19 in April, 

wants to let others know just because 

her surgeries didn’t work out 

they shouldn’t be discouraged. She 

still regards a full spinal fusion to 

be a life-changing surgery and can 

be very beneficial for those who 

need it. 

“Just because this happened 

doesn’t mean it will happen to you,” 

she says. 

“Bad things happen in life, that’s 

a part of life. You just got to live 

with it, and move on.” 

Photograph provided by Melissa Carroll 

An X-ray of Melissa Carroll 

once the rods were removed 

from her spine.

8 The Chronicle March 21 - 27, 2017 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca Community 

Misgendering, a not so silent killer 

Photograph by Jessica Stoiku 

Sid MacIsaac, a gender non-conforming youth from Oshawa. 

Photograph by Michiko Bown-Kai 

Michiko Bown-Kai, a genderqueer individual living in Toronto, 

is from Whitby. 

Photograph provided by Drew Dennis 

Drew Dennis identifies as a non-binary individual and lives in 

B.C. 

Dean Daley 

The Chronicle 

Insects, trees and people congregate 

at a PFLAG camp tucked inside the 

Durham Regional Forest near Uxbridge. 

This camp welcomes people 

no matter what race, gender or sexual 

orientation they are. You’re supposed 

to feel accepted. 

However, even with all the support, 

Sid MacIsaac still felt uncomfortable. 

Miserable. Misplaced. 

Misgendered. 

Diana tries to make MacIsaac 

feel more feminine. She says people 

weren’t judging. 

MacIsaac is a gender non conforming 

individual. 

Gender non conforming (or 

non-binary), refers to people who 

do not follow other people’s ideas or 

stereotypes about how they should 

look or act based on the female 

or male sex they were assigned at 

birth. 

Sid prefers “they, them and their” 

as opposed to “he, him and his”. 

In 2015, the singular ‘they’ 

became widely accepted as a 

gender-neutral pronoun. “They” 

was the American Dialect Society’s 

(ADS) word of the year. According 

to ADS’ website, “They was recognized 

by the society for its emerging 

use as a pronoun to refer to a known 

person, often as a conscious choice 

by a person rejecting the traditional 

gender binary of he and she.” 

In a clearing in the woods, MacIsaac 

slumps over, breathing shallowly 

while a friend, Diana, rests 

her hand on MacIsaac’s back in an 

attempt at reassurance.Kevin, the 

director of the camp, walks towards 

Sid and Diana. He notices Sid is 

having an anxiety attack. 

“Sid you’re a great guy and any 

person would be lucky to know a 

dude like you,” says Kevin. 

With each word, the anxiety 

worsens. Any help Diana is providing 

becomes useless. 

“He was a gay guy hosting this 

gender variance, sexuality variant 

camp for a whole week and it was 

him out of all people who made me 

feel like shit,” says MacIsaac. 

This experience is called misgendering. 

According to the Oxford dictionary, 

to misgender someone is 

to refer to someone, especially a 

transgender person, using a word, 

especially a pronoun or form of address, 

that does not correctly reflect 

the gender with which they identify. 

David Moulton, registered therapist 

and Canadian certified counsellor, 

says misgendering comes in 

two forms: intentional and unintentional. 

Intentional misgendering is when 

a person knowingly refers to another 

individual by the wrong gender. For 

example, if a person would like to be 

called he but another person refuses 

and calls the individual a she. 

Unintentional misgendering 

happens mostly by accident. For 

example, going to a Wal-Mart and 

referring to the cashier by “Sir” but 

really, her gender is female. 

Almost every individual whose 

gender does not match their assigned 

sex at birth person has been 

misgendered either intentionally or 

by accident. 

Although MacIsaac was misgendered 

and can look at his past and 

grow from it, other misgendered individuals 

like Kyler Prescott cannot. 

Kyler Prescott was a Southern 

California transgender teenager 

who was nearly 15-years-old when 

he died by suicide in May 2015, 

due to intentional misgendering by 

medical professionals. 

Prescott was admitted to the hospital 

in San Diego Calif. for suicidal 

ideations and self-mutilation. Prescott 

was born a female but realized 

his assigned gender at birth didn’t 

reflect who he truly was. 

While at the hospital, his parents 

requested the nurses call him Kyler. 

They didn’t comply. Six weeks later, 

Kyler died by suicide. 

According to Moulton, people 

can react differently when misgendered. 

But they often feel dysphoria 

about their bodies. 

Gender dysphoria occurs when 

there is a conflict between assigned 

gender at birth and the gender an 

individual identifies with. According 

to the American Psychiatric Association, 

people who experience 

gender dysphoria are very uncomfortable 

not only with their gender 

assigned at birth but also with their 

body. 

According to Moulton, misgendering 

causes anxiety and it can 

cause an individual to be in distress. 

Misgendering can slowly chip away, 

and in some cases, Moulton says 

misgendering can lead to suicide. 

As many as “77 per cent of trans 

respondents in an Ontario-based 

survey had seriously considered 

suicide and 45 per cent attempted 

suicide,” according to the Canadian 

Mental Health Association. 

Moulton says intentional misgendering 

can be very hurtful and 

can have a large impact on an individual. 

Michiko Bown-Kai is a genderqueer 

individual living in Toronto. 

Genderqueer is an umbrella term 

for people whose identity does not 

conform with either male or female. 

Bown-Kai had many unfavourable 

experiences when first coming 

out as genderqueer. 

People who knew Bown-Kai for 

a long time would say things like, 

“You’re so feminine why can’t I use 

she and her pronouns?” 

The problem was Bown-Kai, who 

prefers to use “they” rather than 

“she”, felt others were trying to 

give their opinion on Bown-Kai’s 

personal identity. “In the moment 

that I was coming out to them and 

that’s where the hurt was done,” 

says Bown-Kai. 

According to Bown-Kai, it was as 

if people were deciding their opinions 

were more important than how 

Bown-Kai felt inside. 

Intentionally misgendering someone 

during their transition may be a 

sign of transphobia, says Moulton. 

A transition can happen in more 

than one way. 

Clinical transition occurs when 

someone surgically starts the procedures 

to change their gender. A 

social transition happens when an 

individual requests people start referring 

to them using a preferred 

gender. 

According to Moulton, misgendering 

someone going through their 

transition has a very negative effect. 

Moulton says it’s deliberately 

disrespectful and undermines the 

new self the individual in transition 

is building. It also can be discouraging 

and can lead someone to believe 

they shouldn’t transition. 

Although unintentional misgendering 

may not be as hateful as intentional 

misgendering, it can be 

hurtful all the same. 

MacIsaac says unintentional 

misgendering is very hurtful and 

can be tiring, especially when first 

trying to come to terms with identity. 

When people assume Sid was 

male, it would make Sid feel dysphoric 

because feeling male was 

uncomfortable. 

Early on, Sid identified as female 

and would wear dresses, skirts, 

and makeup. Sid says this was an 

attempt to escape masculinity and 

embrace femininity. 

Although Sid doesn’t feel right as 

a female and feels best as a non-conforming/non-binary 

identity, being 

unintentionally misgendered, as an 

individual who was born as a male, 

is still bothersome. 

When people see Sid, often they 

notice the clothing or hear Sid’s 

I would just love it, if you knew that 

I wasn’t actually a guy. 

deep voice and assume Sid is male. 

This leads to the use of masculine 

descriptors such as “dude” or “sir”. 

“I would just love it,” says Sid, 

“if you knew that I wasn’t actually 

a guy.” 

Bown-Kai, the Torontonian who 

moved from Whitby, also faces similar 

experiences of being unintentionally 

misgendered. 

The unintentional misgendering 

makes Bown-Kai feel invisible. “It’s 

every person you talk to, it’s every 

time you go outside, it’s every conversation 

happening in the media 

about what it means to be a male 

or woman, it’s all those things that 

piled up very quickly,” says Bown- 

Kai. “For me the struggle wasn’t 

necessarily that it happened once 

in awhile, it’s that it happened consistently.” 

Drew Dennis is the co-founder of 

TransFocus consulting, a consulting 

group that helps companies become 

more trans friendly. 

Continued on page 9


The green behind garbage 

Dan Koehler 

The Chronicle 

On a cold winter Sunday afternoon, 

a tall, long-haired man sorts 

through recycling bins in front of 

houses across Whitby, Oshawa, and 

Courtice. 

William, a retiree from the Oshawa 

General Motors plant who 

started working there in the 1970s 

and retired in 2005, has been collecting 

empty bottles and cans since 

2007. He got the idea after seeing 

others do the same. 

“For kicks, I said to the wife, 'I’m 

taking the van out just to see what’s 

out there',” William says. “I came 

back with maybe half a van load, 

and then once you start adding it 

up you’re thinking ‘holy crap this 

is good money’.” 

While many see collecting recyclables 

or trash for money as a 

small-time hobby to help with the 

bills, in reality there is a big business 

behind the idea. 

In the grungy industrial area of 

South Whitby, metal clashes and 

scrapes as customers drop off scrap 

metal and old electronics. 

Art Northcott, owner and general 

manager of ANJ Recycling in 

Whitby, also makes a buck from 

other people’s waste, just on a bigger 

scale. He started his business 

after collecting scrap on the side 

while working for a different recycling 

company. 

“When I was in steel, I used to 

watch people come in and make 

money and I’m going, ‘I could do 

that’,” Northcott says. “I drove 

around picking up scrap, saved my 

money, and opened it up.” 

Northcott opened his business in 

2007. He hasn’t looked back since. 

While both Northcott and William 

help reduce the amount of 

waste that ends up in a landfill, 

both the federal and provincial 

government need to implement 

more initiatives to reduce waste 

that makes its way to a landfill. 

According to the Region of Durham’s 

annual Waste Management 

Report, in 2014 the region diverted 

55 per cent of collected waste from 

landfills, an increase of 22 per cent 

since 2004. The region also made 

$5.3 million in revenue from the 

sale of blue box recyclables. 

According to the Liquor Control 

Board of Ontario, from May 2008 

to May 2009, a year after the bottle 

return program came back, 259 

million wine and spirit containers 

were returned for a refund. Of 

that number, 145 thousand tonnes 

of glass was recycled rather than 

being dumped in a landfill. 

South of the border, the industry 

is even bigger. According to IBISworld.com, 

the American scrap 

metal industry alone provides over 

34 thousand jobs and brings in $36 

billion in revenue annually. 

In recent years, more and more 

governments have put in place 

rules to try to increase recycling 

numbers and lower waste numbers. 

Durham Region has both a roadside 

compost and yard waste program. 

In 2014 the region collected 

27,007 tonnes of organic material 

for compost, and 32,123 tonnes of 

yard-waste. They are now looking 

into a clear bag policy for garbage. 

Ontario even had an Environmental 

Handling Fee (EHF) introduced 

in 2014. This is essentially 

a tax when purchasing electronics, 

but the money does come back to 

the public… sort of. The fee reflects 

the cost to responsibly recycle 

electronics rather than the e-waste 

going to a landfill. 

The fee is part of the Ontario 

Electronic Stewardship (OES). 

The government pays for the electronics 

from a processor such as 

Greentec, the company the DC 

Sustainability office works with 

through their program. The processor 

breaks down and takes apart 

the electronics to extract precious 

metals. A processor buys e-waste 

from a generator, such as Northcott, 

who buys the electronics as 

scrap from the public, still in its 

original form, completing the cycle. 

Tanya Roberts, Sustainability 

Coordinator for Durham College, 

says since we’ve extracted so much 

from the earth through mines and 

put it into electronics, now we can 

start extracting from e-waste. 

“Now we have above-ground 

mines which are these processing 

plants,” she says. 

Northcott says in the past copper 

was the scrap metal with the best 

return but now electronics have 

taken over. 

“It’s definitely changing, people 

are going green,” Northcott says. 

Roberts receives equipment from 

IT and what can’t be re-sold as 

used is sold as e-waste to Greentec, 

who is paid by the government with 

the money from the OES program. 

“People probably aren’t even 

aware of how much of a lucrative 

business (e-waste) that has been and 

is becoming,” Roberts says. 

“Electronics, we recycle probably 

2 million pounds of per year, it’s 

kind of our bread and butter,” says 

Northcott. 

In a perfect world, Roberts 

says the government would offer 

incentives to everyday people for 

recycling, but in reality that won’t 

happen. 

“The government isn’t going to 

offer those incentives unless there’s 

value,” says Roberts. 

Photograph by Dan Koehler 

Art Northcott, owner and general manager of ANJ Recycling, standing behind his receiving desk where customers bring in scrap 

electronics and metal. 


Employees of ANJ Recycling taking apart scrap before sorting 

it. 

William on the other hand, gets 

his scrap a little differently. He 

either uses a van, or a bicycle he 

equipped with a low horse-power 

motor. He hauls a child’s wagon 

that he rigged up behind the bike 

to carry the empty bottles and cans. 

He says the main reason for doing 

what he does is due to the rising 

cost of bills. 

“The one thing that’s killing 

middle class and lower that have a 

house is hydro,” William says. “My 

wife just smokes when she opens up 

the hydro bill each month.” 

When William retired from GM, 

his income dropped nearly 300 per 

cent. Like many in his situation, 

his kids, both in their early 20s, 

still live at home. With two kids at 

home, one looking for work after 

finishing post-secondary and another 

saving for a house, his GM 

pension wasn’t cutting it. 

“I just used it to help supplement 

my pension,” William says. “I realized 

it was a pretty good thing to 

do.” 

Roberts has been watching 

people collect bottles the same way 

William does for years outside her 

home. She thinks collecting bottles 

is a great idea, and has seen it come 

a long way over the years. 

“It (collecting bottles) has definitely 

evolved,” she says. “There 

are a lot of opportunities from the 

government for rebates.” 

At age 67, William’s health is 

limiting his ability to collect empties. 

“This year hasn’t been a good 

healthy year for me, this will probably 

be my last year doing it,” he 

says. 

For Northcott, 2017 is looking to 

be a big year. He is opening up 

a new location in Courtice that is 

twice the size of his current location. 

Unlike his current location, 

the new place will be equipped to 

take in steel, something he’s never 

been able to buy. 

“When we open the new location 

we’re gonna have 5 or 6 more 

guys,” he says. “We’re hoping summer, 

July or August.” 

Northcott says he doesn’t want 

his business to get too big. 

“I don’t want to get too big. 

When you get too big you get too 

many headaches,” he says. 

He is hoping to pass the business 

on to his son when he retires, who 

is already part owner. 

Even with people and businesses 

like William and ANJ Recycling, 

Canada still has a lot of work to 

do to catch up to countries such as 

Germany, a powerhouse when it 

comes to clean energy and recycling. 

According to GB Resources 

Group and wefuturecycle.com, 80 

per cent of waste is recycled in Germany, 

while 80 per cent of waste in 

Canada goes to a landfill. 

Like Germany, Canada needs to 

make it worth the public’s while to 

recycle. More incentives need to 

be made towards recycling, both 

private and commercial, which will 

lead to the already lucrative waste 

market increasing even more. 

If you live in Whitby, Oshawa, 

or Courtice North of Highway 

2, chances are you have heard 

the putter of William’s makeshift 

motorcycle cruising down your 

street. 

Where there is waste there is 

opportunity. In a never-ending 

world of garbage, one man’s trash 

really can be another man’s treasure. 

(Since what William does is illegal 

under City by-law, only his first name 

can be used.)


Help save our planet 

Toby VanWeston 

The Chronicle 

Global warming is one of the greatest 

concerns facing our generation 

today. It’s not a matter of debate 

anymore, it is a fact. 

The Earth is heating up. 2016 

was the warmest recorded year on 

the planet. Modern recordkeeping 

began in 1880. Data collected by 

NASA and the National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Administration 

(NOAA) show that the Earth’s 

surface temperature was warmer 

last year than ever before. This is 

part of a trend, one that is happening 

very quickly. Last year was 

the third year in a row to set new 

records for global average surface 

temperatures. 

The changes in environment are 

largely due to increased carbon dioxide, 

and other man-made emissions 

to the planet’s atmosphere. 

The key to solving this problem is 

to make changes in how our society 

interacts with the environment. 

Perhaps just as crucial, however, 

is the need to instill awareness and 

passion in the next generation. 

“Do little kids need to know 

about global warming and climate 

change? No, not a chance. What 

they need to do is love the earth,” 

says Jacob Rodenburg, instructor 

for Environmental Science for 

Teacher Education at Trent University 

in Peterborough. “So instead 

of waiting until they’re adults, 

and then hitting them with these 

massive problems, teach them to be 

advocates and ambassadors while 

they’re growing up.” 

Rodenburg is also the Executive 

Director of Camp Kawartha, a notfor-profit 

organization that teaches 

environmental education to youth. 

The main camp is located on Clear 

Lake, and an Environment Centre 

is located at Trent University. 

The camp’s focus is to foster 

stewards, which Rodenburg defines 

as “people who care for each other 

and care for the land”. 

Rodenburg found a lot of the 

problems about environmental 

education over the years was 

“issues-based.” He found children, 

the future protectors of the environment, 

did not respond to this kind 

of approach. 

“There’s a term for it, it’s called 

‘Eco-phobia’. If we’re not careful, 

and you keep dumping these ideas 

into kid’s heads without giving 

them tools and a sense of hope, you 

do them a disservice,” explains Rodenburg. 

“In fact, you scare them 

into apathy.” 

With Camp Kawartha, Rodenburg 

sought to find a different 

way to get children interested and 

passionate about protecting the environment. 

“We see environmental education 

and stewardship very much 

about building hope, and empowering 

and inspiring,” says Rodenburg. 

The camp sees about 10,000 

people come through each year. 

Camp Kawartha focuses on 

teaching children through experiences, 

games, activities, science 

projects, and art. It offers traditional 

day and overnight summer 

camps. The outdoor education centre 

provides programs for elementary 

and secondary students. The 

Environmental Education Centre 

located at Trent is “one of Canada’s 

most sustainable buildings” and 

provides environmental education 

training for future teachers. 

Rodenburg believes kids should 

be fostered to be stewards as early 

as possible. This means naturalizing 

schoolyards, creating more 

nature-rich cities, having access 

to green spaces, and the chance to 

care and tend to space. 

The hope is that creating passionate 

children will lead to passionate 

adults. 

Tanya Roberts is the Sustainability 

Coordinator for Durham 

College. Roberts increases environmental 

programs and initiatives on 

campus, improving campus operations. 

She also works on projects 

with students to make the college 

“greener”. 

Eric Lacina is one such student. 

Photograph by Toby VanWeston 

Eric Lacina, Environmental Technology student, poses with a 

#muglife mug, an initiative he helped start. 

Lacina is in the Environmental 

Technology program, and a member 

of the Student Green Team at 

Durham College. 

One project the Green Team 

has found success with recently 

has been the #muglife campaign, 

an awareness campaign to reduce 

disposable coffee cups by offering 

reusable mugs. So far the campaign 

has received well over 100 pledges 

from Durham College and UOIT. 

Lacina says every little bit of 

recycling makes a difference, and 

reduces the amount of waste that 

simply sits in the open. 

Research from POLOS ONE, a 

peer-reviewed open access scientific 

journal published by the Public 

Library of Science (PLOS), reveals 

startling statistics about land-waste. 

According to research conducted 

in 2014, there are more than five 

trillion plastic pieces floating in 

the world’s oceans, weighing over 

250,000 tons. 

“E-waste always ends up in 

landfill. And it just sits there. It 

doesn’t do anything. So if we are 

diverting to e-waste programs, 

we’re reducing the need for it being 

shipped over to China,” says 

Lacina. “[There’s documentaries 

about it] and it’s actually horrendous 

to see three-year olds digging 

through piles of copper-wire.” 

Stay connected 

to nature so 

that you realize 

that you're 

dependant. 

This is something Roberts has 

personal experience witnessing. 

Ten years ago, she volunteered in 

Guatemala City, and saw first-hand 

the effects of mishandled e-waste. 

“There were all these families 

built up around the landfill. The 

men went and collected materials, 

and built tin shacks that didn’t even 

have air-holes, and they were cooking 

in them,” says Roberts. 

This left a strong impression on 

her, and Roberts encourages students 

to volunteer if possible. 

“It opened up my eyes to the environment,” 

says Roberts. “Young 

people: get out and volunteer overseas. 

See the world.” 

Students should get out and explore 

the world now, because it is 

changing at an alarming rate. 

NASA data shows globally-average 

temperatures were 1.78 degrees 

Fahrenheit (0.99 degrees Celsius) 

warmer than the mid-20th century 

mean. Furthermore, the planet’s 

average surface temperature has 

risen about 2.0 degrees Fahrenheit 

(1.1 degrees Celsius) since the late 

19th century. 

Temperature is rising at a fast 

rate. Most of the warmest temperatures 

have taken place in the 

last 35 years. In fact, 16 of the 

17 warmest years recorded have 

taken place since 2001. Eight of 

the twelve months in 2016 were the 

warmest recorded in history. January 

through September (excluding 

June), all set records 

. 

Not surprisingly, the warm temperature 

patterns have bled into 

2017 as well. Records have already 

been set this year. 

This affects our population in 

ways you might not realize. 

The warm temperature does not 

necessarily translate to tranquil 

weather. Weather patterns have 

fluctuated drastically. Days have 

ranged from record warm to freezing 

in the span of a single week. 

On February 6, Environment 

Canada issued a weather statement 

warning snow, rain and freezing 

rain for Toronto. On February 7, 

thousands were left without power 

after the freezing rain hit the city. 

By February 18, the city was setting 

record high temperatures. The 

18th saw temperatures hitting 11.9 

Celsius, breaking 2011’s record of 

10.8 Celsius. Spring-like weather 

continued for the rest of the weekend. 

This fluctuation has an adverse 

effect on our food as well. 

“Crops are losing their entire 

production because of weather. It’s 

on a cusp. [Depending] if there’s 

another couple of good rainfalls, 

you can have the best season ever. 

But if you don’t get that, you’ll have 

to pull your crops altogether,” explains 

Roberts. 

According to Environment Canada, 

Toronto only had 48.8 hours 

of sunlight in the month of January. 

That’s only slightly more than half 

the seasonal average of 85. This is 

attributed to the rising temperature, 

as warmer weather produces 

cloudier days. Environment Canada 

recorded this January as the 

fourth warmest in over 80 years. 

Roberts explains there are a lot 

of simple things that everyone can 

do in their day-to-day life to help 

the environment. These range from 

Photograph by Toby VanWeston 

Tanya Roberts, Sustainability Coordinator for Durham College, 

holds a #muglife mug, one of DC's Living Green projects. 

reducing water, turning lights off 

in rooms, unplugging your devices 

when they are fully charged, and 

being mindful of the products you 

buy. Recycling and using re-usable 

packaging goes a long way to reducing 

waste. 

“Especially in this area, we primarily 

run off nuclear. But once 

you go past nuclear, everything 

is taken up by natural gas,” says 

Lacina. “So if we can reduce our 

energy use to that baseline of nuclear, 

we won’t have to use natural 

gas.” 

Roberts says one of the simplest 

and most important things people 

can do to help the environment is to 

stay connected to it. By doing this, 

she says you realize how dependant 

you are on it. 

“Get outside, stay connected 

to nature so that you realize that 

you’re dependant. Your water 

doesn’t just come from a tap. Your 

air isn’t just clean because your 

house is clean,” says Roberts. “It’s 

all inter-connected. Stay connected 

to that external life.” 

“Also, maintain an understanding 

of where things come from. 

And what happens to your waste. 

No one just comes by with a magic 

wand and it just disappears,” adds 

Lacina. 

Despite all the challenges of facing 

the problem and the necessary 

work ahead, Jacob Rodenburg, 

Executive Director of Camp 

Kawartha, remains hopeful that 

this is a struggle that can be overcome. 

“Nature is extremely resilient, 

and it will bounce back. The effects 

that we’re causing, eventually 

will heal. I have every hope that 

somehow, someway, people can 

learn to live in more balance,” says 

Rodenburg. 

To Rodenburg, this begins with 

education. 

“Instead of thinking about what 

kind of world we want to leave for 

our kids, we should think about 

what kind of kids we want to leave 

to the world,” says Rodenburg.


Photograph courtesy of Colleen Scala Ferguson 

Colleen Scala Ferguson fostered 19 kittens in the summer, and adopted two of them, Harvey (left) and Oreo. 

The danger of 'no kill' shelters 

Trusha Patel 

The Chronicle 

Before Colleen Scala Ferguson had 

children, she used to foster animals 

for the Toronto Humane Society. 

She stopped once she got pregnant 

with her first child, because handling 

kitty litter while carrying a 

baby wasn’t a safe option. Her kids 

are now ages 17 and 13, and both 

are very interested in animals. To 

fulfill her daughter’s wish, Ferguson 

fostered 19 kittens in the past 

summer, and recently adopted two 

of them from the Durham Humane 

Society. 

According to People for the Ethical 

Treatment of Animals (PETA), 

thousands of abandoned, neglected 

and abused animals are brought 

into animal shelters around the 

world. 

Based on the 2015 shelter statistics 

from the Canadian Federation 

of Humane Societies (CFHS), there 

was an intake of 139,433 animals 

around the country. 

In order to reduce or end the 

cycle of animal births, homelessness 

and deaths, the root cause 

must be addressed. 

According to PETA, runaway 

animal birth rate is the source of 

the huge number of animals in 

shelters. 

Danielle Johnson, the manager 

in the Humane Society of Durham 

Region says the birth rate is definitely 

contributing to the homelessness 

and deaths of animals. 

“When unaltered animals are 

allowed to roam at large, such as 

stray cats and such like that, it definitely 

contributes to the increase of 

the shelter population, especially 

in the spring and summer months 

in this area dealing with cats and 

kittens,” says Johnson. 

The Canadian Federation of 

Humane Societies statistics show 

2,022 animals were born in shelters 

in Canada in 2015. 

That is almost six animals per 

day. 

Caring for animals begins at 

home. Most people in Canada 

have good access to veterinary 

care, and according to the World 

Animal Protection organization, 

the best way to keep pets healthy is 

by consistently meeting their needs. 

Johnson, who works with animals 

on a daily basis, says, “The 

best way to keep an animal healthy 

is to keep them in their environment, 

take them to the veterinarian 

regularly, feed them a good quality 

diet, give them a lot of enrichment 

and love that they need, proper 

exercise.” 

A past foster parent to many kittens, 

Ferguson currently has five 

cats and one dog. 

She makes sure her pets’ diet is 

healthy and the vet appointments 

are regular. 

While adopted animals receive 

the care they need, there are many 

others who tolerate a lot of negativity. 

In Canada and around the 

world, many pets suffer from inadequate 

care, abuse, neglect, and 

abandonment. 

According to the CFHS statistics, 

there were 5,604 cases of abuse 

and 36,698 animals surrendered by 

their guardians. 

Stacey Dickson, an animal care 

attendant at Oshawa Animal Services, 

sees animals surrendered 

everyday. 

“If people might have to give up 

their animal, it might be because of 

allergies, if their kids are allergic, or 

if they are moving, unfortunately, 

and they can’t take the animal with 

We wait until they're better before 

we adopt them out. 

them,” says Dickson. 

Johnson, who works with animals 

who have been surrendered by 

their owners’, says there has been 

many situations animals have been 

rescued from. 

“(They have been) rescued from 

neglect cases, so just severe neglect, 

not being offered the necessities of 

life, without access to food and 

water, without access to proper 

medical care,” Johnson says. 

“We deal with different kind of 

animal abandonment, and stray 

animals, and we’ve had animals 

tied up to our front door abandoned 

outside of our shelter.” 

According to Johnson, the local 

municipal animal services shelters 

or animal control typically takes 

care of animals found roaming at 

large. 

The Humane Society of Durham 

Region exists to take on animals 

surrendered by their owners. 

Oshawa Animal Services also 

takes care of animals on the loose. 

“There was this dog that came 

in, and he must’ve been outside for 

months, because he came in covered 

in maggots and could barely 

walk and was in so much pain,” 

says Dickson. 

The animal care attendants got 

the dog shaved and it was as if he 

was a completely new dog. “He was 

happy,” says Dickson. 

According to the Ontario SPCA, 

there are more than 18,000 cases 

of animal cruelty and/or abuse reported 

in a year. 

For the Humane Society of Durham 

Region, the length of stay for 

an animal depends on the animal 

itself. 

Continued on page 13


From page 12 

“Some animals come in and go 

out on the same day, some animals 

require medical procedures or behaviour 

modification and are here 

for a little bit longer, so it definitely 

varies,” says Johnson. 

For Oshawa Animal Services, 

however, shelter animals have to 

stay in the shelter for 72 hours before 

they are put up for adoption. 

“That’s how much time the 

owner has to come forward and 

find them,” says Dickson, one of 

the many animal care attendants 

who care and nurture the animals 

in the shelter. 

Johnson, who manages the shelter 

operations, says, the Humane 

Society of Durham Region does 

not determine if an animal is unadoptable 

or not. 

“We try to do our best to find 

a home for every animal," says 

Johnson. 

"In cases where there are severe 

medical issues, that’s something 

(to be) discussed with a veterinarian, 

we have one in the staff and a 

decision is made about their quality 

of life and what’s humane for 

them.” 

Dickson says if a really sick 

animal comes in the shelter, the 

animal care attendants take it to 

the vet and, get the proper medication, 

which may or may not include 

surgery. 

“We wait until they’re better before 

we adopt them out,” she says. 

Not all animal shelters are the 

same. 

While there are open-admission 

facilities staffed with professional 

caring people, there are also “nokill” 

or “turn-away” shelters that 

refuse animals deemed unadoptable. 

According to PETA, the results 

of “no-kill” are often worse than 

a peaceful death through euthanasia. 

When shelters give in to the 

pressure of “no-kill,” there are 

various consequences. 

Though some shelters refuse to 

euthanize animals once they have 

Harvey (left) and Oreo are two of the 19 kittens Colleen fostered. They were later adopted by Colleen. 

reached their capacity, animals 

still die, but in pain. 

Euthanizing animals brings a 

peaceful death in a caring person’s 

arms. 

According to the CFHS statistics, 

euthanasia in shelters was 

20,977 with 1,890 animals being 

healthy, 10,912 being unhealthy 

or untreatable, and 4,042 being 

owner-requested. 

Johnson, who works in a no-kill 

shelter, says, “The only time we 

euthanize as a last resort when the 

animal is suffering or their quality 

of life is diminished.” 

According to PETA, animals 

can begin to deteriorate psychologically 

and become withdrawn, 

depressed, aggressive or anxious 

after as little as two weeks in a traditional 

shelter. 

Even if these animals are adopted, 

there are chances they may be 

returned because of behavioural 

issues. 

“Sometimes animals are adopted 

out and returned just because 

it doesn’t work out in their home 

or it’s not a good fit, it’s more than 

they thought it could handle,” says 

Johnson. 

Dickson says animals being returned 

due to behavioural issues 

happens at the Oshawa Animal 

Services but not often. 

Colleen's daughter, Tessa, plays with kittens Marbles (left), Patches (middle), Speckles (right), and Shady (top). 



“When that happens we try 

and find a behaviouralist who will 

work with the animal,” says Dickson. 

Homeless animals are also 

found, tortured and killed by 

abusers and hoarders, who aren’t 

screened, according to PETA. 

To increase the “save” rates, 

some shelters promote animal 

abandonment. 

According to PETA, not only 

are these abandoned animals at 

risk of infection, disease, starvation, 

being hit by cars, attacked 

by dogs and wildlife, and abused 

by cruel people, but also the ones 

who survive can eventually reproduce, 

resulting in more homeless 

animals. 

For the Humane Society of 

Durham Region, Johnson says it 

depends on the capacity of their 

shelter. 

“We function as a no-kill shelter, 

so we only have a certain capacity 

for care, and we do not euthanize 

for length of stay or lack of space 

in our shelter," says Johnson. 

"So we often will provide other 

resources for people who are looking 

to surrender an animal if it’s 

something that could wait." 

All in all, the Humane Society 

of Durham Region works with everybody 

to come up with a solution 

for every animal. 

PETA says profiteers that breed 

and trade animals for money are 

succeeding, because the voice of 

animal rights is being weakened 

and good activists are misled into 

attacking each other rather than 

the ones who make money off of 

pet shops, breeders, and phony 

rescues. 

Ferguson, who has adopted 

many animals, says all her cats except 

her Bengal have been rescues. 

“I just believe that there’s absolutely 

nothing wrong with shelter 

cats or humane society cats at all, 

and they just need a home, and if 

you love animals why not just get 

an animal from a place where they 

can get out of the cages,” says Ferguson. 

Ferguson has five cats and one 

dog. 

People working together to 

strike at the root cause, which is 

the high birth rate, can wipe out 

animal homelessness. 

According to PETA, laws that 

have been proved effective in reducing 

unplanned births and shelter 

intakes, and developing a free 

or low-cost sterilization program 

in communities can help stop animal 

homelessness before it even 

begins.

14 The Chronicle March 21 - 27, 2017 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca Campus 

Blogging 

is BIG 


The Chronicle 

Kjerstin Gruys was a recovering 

anorexic. She had had body image 

issues since she was a teenager. Her 

perception of herself was based on 

what she saw in the mirror; if she 

thought she was fat, then she must 

be ugly. Gruys decided to avoid 

mirrors for a year. When her colleagues 

found out about her experiment 

they suggested starting a blog, 

which became the book, Mirror, 

Mirror Off the Wall. 

“I didn’t know anything about 

blogging…” writes Gruys. “Other 

than that it was something other 

people did, specifically other 

people who not only had mad 

computer skills, but also capable 

of writing something almost every 

day that was interesting enough or 

funny enough that other people 

actually wanted to read it.” 

Gruys gained thousands of followers 

through her blog. 

The Internet has created a 

global community. With billions 

of users, people with common interests 

can come together to share 

stories, pictures, and videos. 

Blogging is a simple concept 

but there is a lot of work to create a 

simple blog post. Blogging is journaling 

online, which can include 

text and pictures but there is more 

to this simple explanation. There 

is also a matter of finding a website 

to post blogs that match your 

brand and style. 

According to activeblogs.com, 

a blog marketing company, 81 

per cent of U.S. consumers trust 

information they find on blogs 

Blogging can be done for fun, to 

promote a business, or help make 

money for a blogger through endorsements. 

Where To Go 

Blogging can be an amazing 

way to connect to people but 

first you need to know how you 

are going to reach those people. 

You need to create the blog itself. 

Many sites provide free templates 

for blogging. Wordpress, Wix, 

Weebly, and Blogger are free and 

widely used by people and companies. 

These blogging hosts are user-friendly 

so even if a blogger 

is not fluent in computer coding 

they can still write text and post 

photos and videos online. When 

choosing a blog template, it’s important 

to remember updating 

your blog is essential to the success 

of the blog. Choose a site that is 

easy to use. Know how to upload 

and post media. Ensure the blog is 

easy to navigate and looks inviting 

to the intended audience. 

“A Beginner’s Guide to starting 

a blog”,on bloggingbasics101.com, 

is the most viewed content on the 

website, with “Choosing a Blogging 

Platform” being second. 

Doing it as a Hobby 

There are millions of people 

who just want to get online and 

share their interests with a global 

community. They blog as a hobby, 

not for money. 

“Blogging successfully is a lot 

of work,” says Mark Mueller, a 

chef and blogger for Earth, Food 

and Fire, who lives and works in 

Prince Edward Island. Mueller’s 

blog profiles the food he creates, 

the cooking books he recommends, 

and cooking and catering 

he provides. 

A great way to start blogging 

is to do it as a hobby. This means 

connecting with people who have 

common interests. There is no 

pressure to advertise or have endorsements. 

Hazel Ejercito, a photography 

student at Durham College, 

has a blog called Pathway 

to my Dreams, which showcases 

her photography and journalistic 

work. Ejercito says school makes 

it difficult for her to update and 

maintain her blog on a regular 

basis but the goal of any blogger 

is to get followers looking at your 

blog, so you need to have regularly 

updated content that is original 

and enticing to the reader. 

“You have to constantly be 

doing research, writing the posts 

in a creative way that will entice 

new readers and keep those that 

are regular readers,” says Jessica 

Duenas-Chan, a web designer 

who lives and works in Toronto. 

When writing a post, it is important 

to know what you are 

talking about. Chan has written 

for and managed a blog for a tech 

agency and says she takes days to 

do research on the newest technology 

to figure out how to gear her 

text and visuals to her audience. 

Writing the post is only half the 

job. There is also promoting the 

post by providing links through 

Facebook and Twitter. 

Chan says the most important 

thing about blogging for fun is to 

write about something you are 

passionate about. 

Mueller has expanded on his 

blog Earth, Food, and Fire blog 

because he has a passion for growing 

his own food. “Adding the 

gardening aspect to the blog was 

inspired by my own love for gardening, 

and being able to grow,” 

says Mueller. 

Although he does make money 

from his catering services, he 

blogs to keep his name out there 

and attract clients to his cooking 

services. Mueller has designed his 

blog so there is an opportunity to 

expand his services in the future. 

Blog For Business 

While Mueller is blogging 

to promote his business, Jessica 

Duenas-Chan uses a company 

blog to help sell products. Jessica 

Duenas-Chan is digital coordinator 

for Chive Inc. She works to 

make the products on Chive’s 

website appealing to customers. 

“It wasn’t until I started studying 

marketing that I realized how 

much it was used as a marketing 

tool,” says Chan. Blogging can be 

a lucrative business, if you know 

how to promote and if businesses 

stay up to on top of updating. 

According to activeblog.com, a 

blog marketing company, 61 per 

cent of U.S. consumers have made 

a purchase based on a blog recommendation. 

Chris Breikss, a writer for 

6smarketing.com, an agency specializing 

in digital marketing, 93 

per cent of Canadians go online 

for product information. This can 

come from blog recommendations. 

“I am essentially working on 

the blog every single day, promoting 

it on social media, writing a 

new blog post, and taking pictures 

and learning how to become a 

better photographer,” says Mueller. 

Although he is a chef, he has 

learned to take pictures to post on 

his blog. 

Working on a blog can take a 

lot more work than just researching 

and writing the blog, it can 

mean producing the product as 

well. This is what Helen Wilkinson, 

creator of the blog Helen’s 

Closet does. 

“My blog is quite involved because 

not only do I have to write 

a post, I have to sew the garment 

for the post and photograph it and 

edit the photos. I consider all the 

steps involved in this ‘working on 

my blog’,” says Helen Wilkinson 

whose blog not only showcases 

clothing she has created herself 

but also sells her patterns. 

Wilkinson has been posting 

on her blog twice a week for more 

than a year and a half. She is very 

active in the sewing community 

and appeals to those who like 

independent patterns and seller. 

Like most successful bloggers, she 

also uses social media to boost her 

blogging presence, she maintains 

a page on Facebook for her blog. 

Sophie Bernazzai, a writer for 

Hubspot.com, says that 76 per 

cent of total Internet usage is spent 

on Facebook. This means people 

spend almost a quarter of their 

time on social media where they 

can find a blog recommendation 

and then make a purchase. This 

can only happen if people and 

businesses invest the time to create 

new content and promote the 

blog posts. 

A company or blogger needs to 

do their research about their target 

audience as well. According 

to activeblog.com, 90 per cent of 

consumers find custom content 

useful, so it is vital to make any 

product information relatable and 

interesting to the audience your 

blog attracts. 

Chan says content is the most 

important thing for a blog. “Without 

content, there is no blog,” she 

says. Although some people might 

look at the design or marketing of 

a page the first visit, it is the content 

of the blog that brings people 

back time after time. 

Vlogging 

For those people who feel 

words aren’t enough to express 

themselves, there is also vlogging. 

This is blogging but on video. 

YouTube is a website full of people 

who vlog about interests or teach 

people through tutorials. 

Jacqueline Mackle, a student at 

Durham College, has a vlog called 

Jacqueline Sage, which details her 

everyday life, her interactions 

with her family, and her pets. She 

also sings occasionally on her vlog 

and hopes to make her channel a 

portfolio piece in the future. 

Melody McKinnon, a writer 

Photograph by Laura Metcalfe 

Second-year photography student Hazel Ejercito displaying her blog Pathway to my Dreams. 

for canadiansinternet.com, an 

online business magazine, says 49 

per cent of Canadians visit You- 

Tube at least twice a week. This 

means it is important for vloggers 

to make sure their content is being 

updated on a consistent basis. 

In addition to this, 71 per cent of 

those surveyed visited Facebook 

at least twice a week. Vlogging 

is a great way to attract followers 

but just like blogging, it needs to 

be promoted through other social 

media to be a successful venture. 

With so many blogs on the 

Internet, it would be safe to assume 

blogging must be easy. This, 

however, is not the case. Blogging 

takes an incredible amount of effort. 

There needs to be a template, 

which is easy to use and update. 

Decisions need to be made about 

who the target audience is so 

posts, videos, and pictures can be 

catered to the intended audience. 

In some cases, like Helen Wilkinson’s 

blog Helen’s Closet, the 

product needs to be made in order 

for a blog post and picture to be 

created. 

Mark Mueller, the chef who 

created his blog Earth, Food and 

Fire, learned basics of photography 

to be able to take pictures 

of the food he created to post on 

his blog. 

As Kjerstin Gruys discovered, 

blogging can be a source of encouragement. 

She often put polls 

on her blog to allow her followers 

to voice their opinions about style 

decisions. Gruys didn’t think she 

could be entertaining on a consistent 

basis. She thought wrong. 

Gruys made it through her year 

without mirrors. She still maintains 

her blog ayearwithoutmirrors.com, 

which has more than a 

million views.

Community chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 15 

Revitalization of 

the Mississauga 

language is vital 

for survival 

Angela Lavallee 

The Chronicle 

It’s the night of the weekly language 

class at the Suswaaning 

Endaajig (Indigenous Centre), a 

quaint area for students at Durham 

College to go and learn Ojibwa. 

Cassie Dillon is raring to go. 

The first-year health promotion 

student says her native language 

is Mohawk. She speaks a bit of her 

native language but she’s taking the 

online Anishinaabemowin (Native 

language) with Isadore Toulouse, a 

fluent speaker from Wikwemikong 

Unceded First Nation community 

located on the Manitoulin Island. 

Isadore Toulouse has developed an 

online platform to teach Ojibwa to 

anyone who wants to learn. 

“I’ve learned a lot just in a few 

weeks taking Isadore’s class. Mohawk 

is a difficult language to 

learn, it’s nothing like learning 

Ojibwa. He's dedicated to the 

langugae. I love his teachings,” 

says Dillon, who has been in the 

class for the three weeks. 

The Mississaugas of Scugog Island 

First Nation in the Durham Region 

is one of many First Nations dedicated 

to bringing the Mississauga 

language (Ojibwa) back to the community. 

According to the Scugog 

Island First Nations’ mandate, 

elders are committed to teaching 

community members the language 

of their ancestors. 

Laura Colwell, education advisor 

at Scugog, says the First Nation 

has limited fluent speakers but still 

offers evening classes. “We only 

have a few elders who speak the 

language. We lost a fluent speaker 

not that long ago,” says Colwell. 

Many strategies are suggested in 

They Came For The Children, a 120- 

page document from the final 

report put out by Truth and Reconciliation 

Commission(TRC) is 

an outline of what life was like in 

residential schools. 

The report details Indigenous children 

who faced language loss the 

minute they arrived at the residential 

schools. 

Upwards of 150,000 Indigenous 

children were affected by language 

and cultural loss, stripped 

of their identity and ripped away 

from their families and loved ones, 

according to Murray Sinclair, chair 

of the TRC. 

“You are no longer allowed to 

speak your language, if you do, you 

will be severely punished. From this 

day forward you must speak only 

English,” according to the final 

report from the TRC. 

Over time, children lost their language 

due to the lack of use after 

being placed with English-speaking 

foster parents. 

Throughout the five-year inquiry 

that took endless hours and hundreds 

of personal testimony, the 

three-member panel making up 

the TRC (Murray Sinclair, Commissioner 

Chief Wilton Littlechild, 

and Marie Wilson) compiled 

the information and determined 

Indigenous children of survivors 

in Canada and in Ontario did not 

want to speak their language or 

forgot it all together. 

As a result, the survivors did not 

teach their children the language. 

The Mississauga word for painted turtle. 

The TRC determined the residential 

school era was the main reason 

Indigenous people lost their language. 

When children came home, some 

after a ten-year absence, they could 

no longer communicate with their 

parents, grandparents, or other 

relatives. 

According to Chief Phyllis Williams 

of Curve Lake First Nation, 

she and others had safe speaking 

areas in non-native schools where 

they would speak the Mississauga 

language. 

Curve Lake First Nation is determined 

to revitalize the Mississauga 

language and according to Louise 

Musgrave, manager of education 

for Curve Lake First Nation, the 

community is eager to get started. 

Her department is involved with 

planning and strategies such as social 

gatherings where community 

members will speak only Ojibwa. 

“The elders who are fluent are the 

knowledge keepers for the community, 

they hold the Mississauga 

language and dialect that reflects 

the culture of Curve Lake First Nation,” 

says Musgrave. 

Anne Taylor, cultural archivist for 

Curve Lake First Nation, says the 

close proximity to Peterborough 

also contributed to language loss. 

“Over the last 30-40 years many 

have sought employment in the 

city,” she wrote in an email. According 

to Taylor, there are fewer 

than 60 fluent speakers in Curve 

Lake. 

But it’s not just classes trying to 

bring back Indigenous languages. 

Darrick Baxter of Ogoki Learning 

developed an App, released in 2013. 

The Ojibway App allows users to 

listen to the word or phrases. 

Another App by the same developer 

allows users to point the phone, 

take a picture, and have it transcribed 

into Indigenous languages. 

Dave Mowat of Alderville First Nation 

and Consultation of Lands and 

Membership supervisor for Scugog 

Island First Nation, says it's hard to 

find a fluent speaker on his reserve. 

“There are a few young people who 

speak a bit of the Ojibwa language, 

but I wouldn’t say they are fluent,” 

says Mowat. 

According to Mowat, Alderville 

First Nation suffered immense loss 

Photograph by Angela Lavallee 

of value for the Mississauga language, 

starting in the mid 1800s. 

In some schools in Ontario, there 

are Indigenous language classes 

for students who want to learn the 

language. 

The Kawartha Pine Ridge District 

School Board (KPRDSB) has put 

out a call for speakers at any level 

to teach youth the Mississauga language. 

Roseneath Public School near 

Alderville First Nation has offered 

language classes for close to a decade. 

According to the Board, there are 

currently four elementary schools 

in the area, two high schools and 

evening classes offered in the City 

of Peterborough. 

Back at Durham College, Cassie 

attends classes in the Simcoe Building 

every Monday. 

Although Isadore’s class does not 

include her Mohawk language, 

Cassie can still learn Ojibwa at 

Durham College, and her own 

language as well. 

She will have two Indigenous languages 

to pass onto future generations. 

Carion Fenn: Helping those who need it the most 

Logan Caswell 

The Chronicle 

Just over two-years ago, Carion 

Fenn was involved in a car accident 

that left her her with several rare 

conditions such as cigurmilia cure 

malformation, cervical dystonia 

and tissue damage. 

“I experienced a world that I 

didn’t know existed,” says Fenn. “I 

decided to do something about it.” 

So she founded the Carion Fenn 

Foundation, a non-profit organization 

that helps people with rare 

diseases such as Syringomyelia, 

Chiari malformation, epilepsy and 

many more. 

The foundation holds a support 

group meeting every second 

Thursday at Ajax Public Library, 

so people can come together and 

learn new coping mechanisms for 

pain and feel firsthand what other 

people are going through on a daily 

basis. 

“We’ve seen over 30 conditions 

over the last year,” says Fenn. “We 

see people come as far as five-hours 

away to be a part of our meetings.” 

People also have the option to 

Skype into the meeting and several 

already do across the world. 

“We have people that join us internationally 

and all around Canada,” 

says Fenn. “It allows us to support 

each other no matter where you 

are.” 

Darlene Dawson has attended 

these meetings for the past four 

months after Fenn commented on 

her husband’s walking cane at a 

Photograph by Logan Caswell 

Carion Fenn is founder of a non-profit organization that helps people with rare diseases. 

local Walmart. She battles fibromyalgia 

and degenerative arthritis, 

and deals with chronic pain from a 

car accident. 

Her husband, who attends the 

meetings with her, also deals with 

daily chronic knee pain from the 

same accident. 

“We found out about the foundation 

and haven’t missed a meeting 

since,” says Dawson. “I find it helps 

because I get to see other people 

who also live in pain. "It’s nice 

knowing you’re not the only one.” 

The support doesn’t stop there. 

Mental health forums are also 

offered through the foundation, 

which Fenn says will be registered 

as a full-time charity soon. 

Although Fenn is happy with the 

progress of her group, she hopes 

more people realize it’s OK to talk 

about what they’re going through. 

“There’s so many people in our 

community that are suffering in silence, 

not going out, not communicating 

with others. 

"We want them to feel accepted 

and that you’re not alone,” says 

Fenn. “It’s important to know what 

works for you.” 

Fenn has won numerous community 

awards such as the Ajax 

Civic Award, the Patti Dawson 

Award, Town of Ajax Accessibility 

Award, and many more.

16 The Chronicle March 21 - 27, 2017 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca Community 

The shock of hydro bills 

Sam Odrowski 

The Chronicle 

As the cost to produce hydro reaches 

record lows, Ontarians are paying 

more than they ever have on 

their hydro bills. The Liberal government 

has been under fire lately 

due to rising hydro bills, especially 

in rural communities. The causes 

range from an oversupply of power, 

global adjustment fees, over paying 

for green energy, and privatization 

of Hydro One. 

Ontario currently has to produce 

a certain amount of power each day 

to meet the demand of consumers. 

According to Gridwatch, an 

iPhone app that tracks how much 

energy is created in Ontario, how 

much is exported, and how much 

of each type of energy is used shows 

that Ontario produces between 

15,000 and 20,000 Megawatts 

(MW). To avoid power outages, 

more electricity is created than 

the amount needed and the excess 

energy is sold to Canada’s neighbouring 

states south of the border 

at rates lower than the cost of production. 

“There is a fine balance between 

making sure we have enough power 

and not too much,” says press secretary 

to the minister of energy, 

Colin Nekolaichuk. 

According to Nekolaichuk, Ontario 

has contracts with the United 

States and has sold around $200 to 

$300-million worth of extra energy 

in 2015. 

The money lost through the existing 

contracts with the U.S is paid 

for by ratepayers in the “global adjustment” 

line of their bill. 

Daniel Hoornweg, the associate 

professor and research chair 

in Faculty of Energy Systems and 

Nuclear Science, says the “global 

adjustment” fee is where electricity 

consumers pay for the costs to run 

and keep the system going. 

“It’s an attempt to capture the 

long-term costs of maintaining 

and fixing the energy supply’s 

infrastructure. As well as the cost 

of building a new plant.” Says Hoornweg. 

Bonnie Lysk, the auditor general, 

concluded in the 2015 Annual 

Report that ratepayers paid an 

extra $37-billion more than what 

was needed from 2006 to 2014 

through the “global adjustment” 

part of their bill. 

She also found electricity consumers 

will pay an additional 

$133-billion by 2032, due to the 

global adjustment line on the hydro 

bill. 

Lysk has criticized the government 

in the past for signing overly 

generous contracts, especially when 

the big push for green energy came 

in 2009. 

Although, In 2013 the provincial 

government took a small step in the 

right direction when they renegotiated 

its green energy contract with 

Samsung and managed to save Ontario 

$3.7-billion. 

Even after the renegotiations 

Lysk found in 2014, Ontario still 

pays twice the market price for 

solar energy and three and a half 

times the price for wind energy. 

Premier Kathleen Wynne visits Durham College and UOIT to speak with students. 

The Provincial government has 

not since renegotiated any of their 

generous contracts with green 

energy companies. Nekolaichuk 

says the costs will drop over time. 

“As the technology matures, the 

price of wind and solar will continue 

to go down,” Nekolaichuk 

says. The hydro bills customers 

receive in Ontario look different 

than the simple two line ones received 

in other provinces, such as 

Quebec and Manitoba. 

In Ontario our hydro bills consist 

of an energy charge, line loss 

charge, basic monthly charge, 

regulatory charge, delivery charge, 

and meter charge. 

Even though Quebec and Manitoba 

have a different structured bill 

than Ontario, there are still three 

sections that make it up. 

The first section is the cost to 

produce the electricity. 

The second part of the bill is 

the cost of distributing it, getting 

it from the plant to the consumer. 

Ratepayers in rural areas pay more 

in this part of the bill because in 

a rural area it may take 50 hydro 

poles to get to one residence. However, 

in urban areas, 500 people 

might all be getting their energy 

from the same pole, so the price of 

distribution for them will be significantly 

cheaper. 

The third part of the bill is the 

previously mentioned “global adjustment” 

fee. 

A month’s use of electricity in 

a rural residential home amounts 

to about 1,000 Kilowatts per hour 

(kWh) of electricity. Ontarians 

pay a whopping $239.23 for every 

1,000 kWh which is almost three 

times as much as what people pay 

There is a fine balance between 

making sure we have enough 

power and not too much. 

in Quebec where it is only costs 

$89.62 per 1000 KwH. 

Quebec pays so much less on 

their electricity bill compared to 

Ontario because they get most of 

their energy from hydro which is at 

record lows, only costing 2 cents a 

kWh. Whereas Ontario gets most 

of its energy from nuclear plants, 

costing almost 7 cents a kWh. 

Part of the increasing cost of our 

hydro bills comes from smart meters. 

Smart meters charge consumers 

more money to use electricity 

during peak hours to avoid overloading 

the system. 

If all Ontarians did their laundry 

at the exact same time, we would 

see a power outage. Smart meters 

were created to avoid this problem 

by charging consumers less when 

they use energy during off-peak 

hours. 

“The reason that structure exists 

is to incentivise people to use power 

at different times of the day. Which 

means that were not putting such a 

strain on the system and we don’t 

have to build more capacity because 

of it,” Nekolaichuk says. 

A provincial decision that is 

costing the government hundreds 

of millions in the long run is the 

privatization of Hydro One. Hydro 

One is already over 40 per cent 

sold to the private sector and is set 

to reach 60 per cent by the end of 

Wynne’s term in 2018. 

In 2015, Hydro One reported 

$1.22-billion in regulated earnings 

before financing charges and income 

tax. Since privatization, the 

government loses 40 per cent of 

the earnings that otherwise would 

have gone to them. This amounts 

to almost $500-million in earnings 

that once went to the government, 

now goes to private sector. 

Premier Kathleen Wynne stands 

by her choice to sell off a total of 

60 per cent of Hydro One to the 

private sector. “The reality is that 

we have to invest in infrastructure,” 

she said during a visit to Durham 

College in February. 

Wynne says they needed money 

to fund public transit projects and 

build new infrastructure. “The 

broadening of the ownership of 

Hydro One was to give us access 

to 4, 5-billion dollars to pay off 

debt in the electricity sector and 

that 4-billion dollars we can invest 

in transit,” said Wynne. 

According to the premier, the 

one-time cash payout was more 

valuable than the hundreds of 

Photograph by Sam Odrowski 

millions of dollars that used to be 

generated by Hydro One. 

Oversupplying power, overpaying 

for green energy, and privatizing 

hydro are some of the reasons 

ratepayer’s bills are consistently 

increasing. 

Nekolaichuk says, “It’s not that 

we’re really more expensive compared 

to anyone else, it’s because 

we’re more expensive than we used 

to be. But those prices were kept 

artificially low by rate freezes and 

other policies that previous governments 

had engaged in, as well as a 

lack of investment in the system.” 

Prices will continue to climb 

until the summertime when Ontarians 

will see a 17 per cent on 

average drop in their hydro bill on 

top of the 8 per cent rebate that 

went into effect in January. There 

has also been a 50 per cent increase 

in rebate programs for low income 

households which was recently 

announced by the provincial government. 

The rebates should save 

low income households about $35 

to $60 a month, costing taxpayers 

$2.5-billion over the next three 

years. 

Rebate programs are good for 

helping families in the short-term 

but to fix Ontario’s skyrocketing 

electricity bills long-term, the provincial 

government needs to address 

the root of the problem. 

To lower hydro bills long term, 

the Liberals must renegotiate contracts, 

freeze the privatization of 

Hydro One, and adjust the costs 

that are absorbed by ratepayers 

through the global adjustment fee. 

Until the government begins 

to work on these issues, skyrocketing 

electricity bills for Ontarians 

should come as no shock.


No more hiding the weed 

Erin Williams 

The Chronicle 

It started with muscles, then bones, 

then chronic back pain. He didn’t 

want to get out of bed or do anything 

physical at all. Brian Arsenault 

had appointments with many 

doctors and specialists who referred 

him to physio therapy sessions. He 

was taking three different types of 

painkillers. Eventually, the pills 

weren’t working anymore and his 

doctor prescribed morphine. Every 

day was a painful fog. Arsenault 

could no longer work and had to 

walk away from his job after 20 

plus years. 

Arsenault lives in a Hampton, 

north of Durham Region. He was 

tired of taking medication after 

medication and wanted to try 

something more natural to help. He 

went to herbal and vitamin shops, 

desperate for anything that might 

help take away his pain. 

Finally, Arsenault went to a place 

called Canadian Cannabis Clinic 

in Whitby. There, he met with the 

customer service representatives 

who walked him through the procedure 

of applying for a card from 

the government that would allow 

him to smoke marijuana legally to 

help take away his pain. 

“I was hooked on pain pills. 

Nothing took the pain away. The 

more I took, the more I needed to 

take,” said Arsenault. “I was ready 

to try anything and I couldn’t believe 

how fast and how incredible 

cannabis took away the pain and 

allowed me to function better than 

I have in a long long time.” 

The representatives at the cannabis 

clinic spoke with Arsenault’s 

doctor, filling out paperwork, and 

discussing the intensity and levels 

of his pain. After only a few visits, 

phone calls and signatures, Arsenault 

received a legal medicinal 

card. 

According to Dr. Barry Waisglass 

from the Canadian Cannabis 

Clinic, obtaining a medicinal 

card may not work the same as 

Arsenault’s case. 

“For medical cannabis there 

are two requirements; a condition 

exists for it to be reasonable for a 

doctor to prescribe medical cannabis, 

and that allopathic treatments 

have been exhausted before using 

medical cannabis as per Health 

Canada’s regulations,” said Dr. 

Waisglass. 

Marjiuana is already being approved 

for medical uses in Canada. 

So what happens when the government 

approves the legislation for 

recreational use in Canada? 

In 2015, Prime Minister Justin 

Trudeau presented the legalization 

of marijuana in his campaign and 

within the Liberal Party platform. 

The Liberal website explains 

how the party will remove marijuana 

consumption and possession 

from the Criminal Code and they 

will add new, stronger laws concerning 

distribution to minors and 

driving under the influence. 

According to their website, The 

Liberals want to “legalize, regulate, 

and restrict access to marijuana.” 

According to the Government 

of Canada, the expected date isn’t 

until late 2018 or early 2019 to open 

up the market for recreational marijuana 

use, and will allow everyone 

in Canada over the age of 18 

to purchase pot from a variety of 

producers and retails. 

Not only does this have some 

parents concerned, but also Detective 

Constable Leon Miklos of the 

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). 

Miklos worked in the organized 

crime department for over five 

years and has seen first-hand how 

marijuana can affect our youth. 

“Girl’s brains develop faster at a 

young age over males. Males who 

start to smoke between the ages of 

13 to 15, can experience long-time, 

life-long effects from smoking. At 

that age, their brains are developing 

and it is proven to be a problem,” 

said Miklos. 

Detective Miklos understands 

the concerns of parents when it 

comes to the subject of legalization. 

“Same thing with prescription 

medication. They aren’t getting it 

off the streets, they are getting it 

from their medicine cabinets and 

friend’s cabinets. Same can be true 

with marijuana. 

Marijuana, illegal now, is still 

easy to access so, even more so 

when legalized,” said Miklos. 

Regulating legal marijuana appears 

to be the biggest issue, keeping 

it away from those who are 

under age while also regulating 

the laws when it comes to driving 

under the influence (DUI). 

Criminal lawyer, Jason Baxter 

of XCopper thinks we need a 

more developed device to properly 

measure the intake and amount of 

cannabis or level of tetrahydrocannainol 

(THC) in a person’s blood. 

“I think part of the reason it 

hasn’t been legalized yet is because 

there is no device that can accurately 

measure how much is in your 

system or to properly measure for 

a DUI,” says Baxter. “The government 

is working on it, they have 

ideas, but nothing set in stone or 

proven to be affective. No one processes 

THC the same so it becomes 

hard to measure.” 

Until this device is approved and 

can accurately measure marijuana 

in the bloodstream, medicinal card 

holders like Brian Arsenault, are 

the only people who can legally 

smoke pot in Canada. 

Arsenault can now do household 

chores and work outside. He 

is still attending his physio therapy, 

hoping it will help him return to 

work one day. 

“I am still working on my degenerative 

disc disorder in my back but 

the amount of pain I am in now 

compared to before, is out of this 

world. 

I finally have some relief, which 

has improved my life drastically,” 

said Arsenault. 

Though marijuana is proven to 

help medically, it is also proven to 

affect brain development in young 

teens. Marijuana is around, whether 

legal or illegal. For now, we are 

dealing with the good and the bad 

as it comes. 

The real reason behind migraines 

Devarsh Oza 

The Chronicle 

“Imagine a pain hits your head. It 

is like someone is beating the skin 

in your head with a stick. It’s terrible, 

I don’t even want to imagine,” 

says Trishala Amin as she describes 

migraine pain in her own words. 

Amin is an international student 

from Gujarat, India. Amin says she 

gets migraines frequently, sometimes 

twice a week. 

Amin is not the only person who 

suffers with migraine. According to 

the Ontario Migraine Clinic, an 

award-winning clinic from Toronto, 

one in four households in Canada 

are affected from migraine. 

That is more than three million 

households. Migraine also costs the 

Canadian work force seven million 

workdays each year. According to 

Migraine Research Foundation, a 

non-profit organization, migraine 

is the third most prevalent illness 

around the world. 

According to National Migraine 

Centre, a non-profit migraine association, 

migraine is a neurological 

disorder linked with dilation and 

constriction of blood vessels in the 

head. Some researchers also believe 

that migraine is a genealogical 

problem. Many people cannot 

recognize the difference between 

migraine headaches and other 

headaches. Teresa Engelage, a 

nurse at the Campus Health Centre 

at Durham College, says migraine 

headaches are different than other 

headaches in many ways. 

“Migraine often comes with 

aura, where you have sensitivity 

with lights and in your vision. Migraines 

will be accompanied with 

nausea and vomiting, a normal 

Photograph by Devarsh Oza 

Vijay Pandya is the pharmacist manager at Lovell Drugs on 

campus. 

headache will not have them,” says 

Engelage. Aura is one of the most 

common symptoms of migraines, 

but in many cases migraine comes 

without any indications. According 

to the Migraine Trust, a UK based 

migraine research centre, migraine 

headaches can be divided into two 

different sections based on the 

symptoms they show. 

Migraine with aura often shows 

zigzag patterns in vision. It also 

comes with certain hearing and 

smelling sensitivities. Migraine 

without aura does not indicate any 

symptom prior to the headaches. 

According to the Migraine Trust, 

most people get migraine without 

aura, so they do not feel any symptom 

before the migraine headache. 

Many people do not take migraine 

very seriously, as the belief is that 

migraines are very common. Dr. 

Pierre Côté, a migraine and headache 

expert from the University of 

Ontario Institute of Technology, 

says it can be a big mistake not to 

take migraines seriously. Côté says 

migraine can cause a person to develop 

certain disabilities. In fact, 

according to Migraine Research 

Foundation, migraine is the sixth 

most disabling illness in the world. 

“People with migraine cannot 

really function at their work or 

school, enjoy with their friends or 

their family. Migraine causes disabilities 

to participating into the 

daily routine,” says Dr. Côté. But 

taking migraines seriously does not 

always mean visiting a doctor. 

According to Teresa Engelage, 

it is not always a necessity to see a 

doctor for every migraine attack, 

but if migraines occur very often, 

then it is better to see a doctor. 

“If migraines are occurring very 

often then you should immediately 

see your doctor, as you could have 

a problem in your brain. In cases 

of frequent migraines, your family 

doctor can send you to a neurologist 

for some tests such as Cat Scan 

or MRI,” says Engelage. 

Medication for migraine is available 

in the drug store. Many people 

take painkillers such as Advil and 

Tylenol when they get migraines. 

But Dr. Pierre Côté says those painkillers 

do not cure migraines. 

The drugs used to prevent 

migraines are anticonvulsants, 

antidepressants, antihistamines, 

beta-blockers, botulinum toxins, 

calcium channel blockers and histamines. 

But, those medicine also have 

side effects. The side effects could 

include acidity and other digestive 

problems as well as fatigue. In 

some cases, migraine could lead 

to several heart problems, such as 

increased or decreased heartbeats. 

Many people, including Trishala 

Amin, are switching their pharmaceutical 

medication to other 

alternatives such as Ayurveda, 

Acupuncture and other herbal 

medications. 

Amin visits an Ayurvedic clinic 

in Mississauga for her migraines. 

Ayurveda is ancient Indian herbal 

medication, which is older than 

Greek and Roman civilizations. 

According to Mattwinder Singh 

Phull, an Ayurvedic doctor from 

Ontario Ayurvedic Centre in Mississauga, 

Ayurveda treats the patients, 

based on three doshas. Doshas 

are the roots of every illness. 

“There are three doshas, Vata 

related to gastric problems, Kapha 

related to problems such as 

cold and fevers, and Pitta related 

to problems such as acidity and 

migraines,” says Dr. Phull. 

Phull also says migraine attacks 

could be caused by smoking or consuming 

alcohol, hormonal changes, 

stress, over-consumptions of meat 

and spicy food. Some of the basic 

treatments include herbal pastes 

called Shirolepa, herbal liquids 

called Shiro Dhara, herbal oils 

called Taila Dharaa. Ayurvedic 

doctors also use Indian herbs such 

as Yastimadhu, Sariva, Hareetaki, 

Amala, Mallika and Aloe Vera. 

The patients also have to follow 

certain restrictions. For example, 

fasting, consuming potatoes, garlic, 

onion, egg, fish, meat and alcohol 

are strictly restricted during the 

medication. 

According to Dr. Phull, Ayurveda 

can permanently cure the 

disease, without any side effects. 

“We treat all condition of migraine 

in Ayurveda. Our success 

rate is also very good. More than 90 

per cent people have good results,” 

says Phull. According to Health 

Canada, 71 per cent of Canadians 

are taking natural medication, and 

12 per cent people said they had 

unwanted side effects. 

Apart from Ayurveda, Acupuncture 

and Acupressure are also alternative 

treatments. 

They both were invented in 

China, and are based on yin and 

yang therapy. According to Chinese 

traditions, yin and yang are 

two halves of the complete wholeness. 

Any imbalance of yin and 

yang inside the body can lead to 

several problems. 

Acupuncture therapy balances 

yin and yang with the help of needles. 

The needles are injected into different 

parts of the feet and hands to 

cure different diseases by balancing 

the yin and yang.



Caring for someone who has 

Alzheimer's in Durham Region 

Jenn Amaro 

The Chronicle 

Cheryl Mina recalls when she first 

noticed her mother’s disease. It 

started with nightly phone calls. 

Mina’s mother started repeating 

herself quite frequently. “She would 

tell me over and over again about 

her trip to the grocery store that 

afternoon,” says Mina. 

Initially, Mina convinced herself 

her mother was merely getting old, 

and there was no reason to concern 

herself over a little repetition. 

But the problem continued. 

Her mother was diagnosed with 

Alzheimer’s in 2011. At the time, 

she lived with her husband in Toronto, 

and she was well taken care 

of. She and her husband went grocery 

shopping together, attended 

church every Sunday, and kept to a 

fairly regular routine. Her disease 

progressed slowly, but she relied on 

her husband’s aid. 

In December of 2011, her husband 

was diagnosed with Pulmonary 

Fibrosis. Two months later he 

died – and everything changed. 

During his hospital stay, Mina’s 

sister, Karen Deschenes, moved 

in with her mother in Toronto. “I 

knew she had been diagnosed with 

Alzheimer’s but I didn’t think it affected 

her that much until I was her 

sole caregiver,” says Deschenes. 

Deschenes says her mother 

wouldn’t remember to take her 

medication unless it was handed 

to her directly. 

If they went out to the grocery 

store, a familiar routine, she 

wouldn’t be able to find her way 

home on her own. 

They knew as a family she could 

not live by herself. “I was so afraid 

of her thinking of going for a walk, 

and getting lost,” says Mina. “None 

of us lived close by.” 

It was time to make a decision. 

Mina’s lifestyle was the only 

one that could accommodate this 

change. With a spare bedroom and 

flexible work hours, the decision 

was made to bring her mother into 

her home and care for her herself. 

The last five years of living with 

someone with Alzheimer’s has put 

much strain on the family, but options 

are limited for these circumstances. 

According to Statistics Canada, 

almost 400,000 Canadians are 

living with Alzheimer’s. It is the 

most common neurodegenerative 

disorder, and the number of diagnoses 

go up every year. Families 

have to decide how to care for a 

loved one who is living with Alzheimer’s. 

The decline in mental 

function affects the way people 

with the disease do daily tasks. It 

affects their memory, their ability 

to focus, social behaviour and communication 

skills. 

When the disease progresses, 

and those living with Alzheimer’s 

can no longer care for themselves. 

There are three options with how 

to deal with it. 

There is formal assistance, where 

Mary Doiron, the mother of Cheryl Mina and Karen Deschenes, sits in her room at Cheryl's home. 

trained staff come to the patients’ 

home as regularly as needed to 

provide services, such as prepare 

meals, give medication and bathe 

the patients. 

There is informal assistance 

where a spouse, child, grandchild 

etc. becomes the caregiver. 

Finally, there is long-term facility 

care where patients live full-time in 

a care facility with 24-hour staff 

and programs. 

In Durham Region, there are 

19 care facilities, with over 2,700 

beds, and according to officials at 

each location, every facility has a 

waitlist. 

This waitlist and the progression 

of the disease make it difficult for 

families to plan. 

According to Dr. Judes Poirier, 

a molecular neurobiologist at the 

Douglas Mental Health University, 

long-term care facilities offer 

the best support for people with 

Alzheimer’s. They have properly 

trained staff to stimulate the patients’ 

brain and the patients are 

properly cared for and have 24- 

hour care. 

While long-term care facilities 

are the best option for the patients, 

they are not always available when 

needed. 

According to Rhonda Thompson, 

a Family Support Coordinator 

for the Alzheimer’s Society of Durham 

Region, anyone living with 

Alzheimer’s needs to have doctor’s 

referral to live in a facility, and if 

someone applied to one without a 

doctor’s requisition, full-time care 

is difficult. 

Thompson says without a crisis 

or requisition the wait can be upwards 

to eight years before securing 

a place in a long-term facility. 

She also says retirement homes are 

an option for early stages, but are 

not best-suited for Alzheimer’s or 

dementia. 

When the disease progresses to 

a more severe state, a long-term 

facility is much more appropriate. 

If there is a crisis in the family, 

Thompson says the person living 

with Alzheimer’s will make it to 

the top of the waitlist, however, 

the family will not have a choice 

where in the province their lovedone 

will be placed. They will be 

placed wherever there is space until 

a place opens locally. It is nearly 

impossible to determine when that 

will happen. 

Long-term care facilities accept 

their patients based on need, not 

when they applied. 

It comes down to a wait and see 

for how the disease progresses. 

Therefore, in-home care or family 

caregivers is a common step during 

the progression of Alzheimer’s. 

This is usually done between the 

diagnosis and when there is an 

available bed in long-term care, 

says Thompson. 

Mina says there are times when 

the need to be home is wearing on 

her. Because of her mother’s progression, 

she hasn’t spent a night 

out of her house in a couple years. 

Her mother would get too confused 

if she stayed at someone else’s home 

for a night. 

“She gets lost in her own home. 

She can’t always find the bathroom, 

she doesn’t know where her 

bedroom is at night,” says Mina. “I 

have to get her changed every day, 

make her breakfast, lunch and dinner, 

shower her, comb her hair. She 

developed habits in the house, her 

most recent activity is emptying her 

dresser drawers onto the floor. I 

come home every day to her entire 

wardrobe spread out, I put them 

back into her drawers, and ten minutes 

later she’s got them back out 

again – she’s a full-time job.” 

Some families are fortunate 

enough to have someone able to 

dedicate this amount of time to a 

family member. But not all. 

Some families choose formal 

assistance. Deschenes considered 

this option when they knew it was 

time for their mother to move 

somewhere. Deschenes thought 

she could continue her daily activities 

and have someone care for her 

mother during the day. However, 

when they looked into the cost of 

formal assistance, and the idea of 

someone being inside her home every 

day while she wasn’t there, the 

idea became uncomfortable. 

Deschenes appreciates all her 

sister has sacrificed to take care 

of their mother. Unfortunately, 

the sisters live hours apart, and 

Deschenes doesn’t get to see her 

mother as often as she would 

like. “I don’t drive, and only get 

to see my mom once every couple 

months. Each time I see her, I see 

the progression of her disease. It’s 

disheartening.” 

Mina, however, notices the overall 

decline of her mother’s mental 

state, but doesn’t see the drastic 

changes because she is with her all 

the time. 

The Alzheimer’s Society of Durham 

Region offers support programs 

for people in Mina’s situation. 

Thompson says programs run 

throughout the year, and benefit 

both the one living with Alzheimer’s 

and the caregivers. There are 

numerous educational services, as 

well as support groups where anyone 

can discuss what they are going 

through, and how they cope with a 

loved-one with Alzheimer’s. 

The programs discuss strategies 

on how to deal with new development 

and what is to be expected 

while caring for someone living 

with Azheimer’s. 

Photograph by Jenn Amaro 

Dr. Poirier says violence comes 

with the later stages of Alzheimer’s. 

This is one of Mina’s fears. “I’m 

okay with being a full-time caregiver 

right now, but eventually it will 

be out of my control. Long-term 

care facilities are a good option, but 

you just never know when there’s 

going to be an opening.” 

Their plan right now is to get 

their mother registered with a longterm 

care facility in Durham Region, 

and start the waiting game. 

This is the struggle of the waitlist. 

The progression of the disease 

is unpredictable, according to Dr. 

Poirier. Everyone progresses at 

their own rate. Mina says, according 

to her mother’s doctors, 

her mother has progressed quickly. 

Due to so much change in her life, 

her mind was not able to process it, 

and it sped the deterioration of her 

mental capability. 

Deschenes says every time she 

visits her mom, she tries to get as 

much out of the visit as she can. 

There are good visits when her 

mom knows what she is talking 

about and other visits when Deschenes 

says her mother is in a different 

world staring, off into space. 

“It’s hard to watch the deterioration, 

but I’m taking everything one 

step at a time,” she says. 

Deschenes and Mina have grown 

closer since the diagnoses. They 

both attend support groups, and 

online chats make them feel they’re 

not alone. 

The sisters rely on each other for 

support and know that between the 

two of them, they are doing all they 

can for their mother. 

Mina says, “You just never know 

when things are going to get worse, 

but for now, my mom is my mom, 

I love her and she tucked me in at 

night when I was child, and I’ll do 

it for her as long as she needs.”

20 The Chronicle March 21 - 27, 2017 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca Campus 

Speaking tour brings Aboriginal military mentor to DC 

Matthew Pellerin 

The Chronicle 

Durham College recently played 

host to a Canadian role model. 

Warrant Officer Sheldon Quinn 

stopped by to speak to guests at 

Suswaaning Endaajig, DC’s Aboriginal 

Centre. 

The event left the formality of 

military life at the door, with Quinn 

and the event guests positioned in a 

traditional Aboriginal speaking circle. 

The circle represents equality 

and respect for everyone gathered. 

Peace and harmony is something 

Quinn doesn’t take for granted. He 

has served in both Afghanistan and 

the former Yugoslavia. During the 

latter, Quinn found himself in an 

encounter where a Croatian soldier 

pointed an gun at the vehicle he 

was riding in, which had guns of its 

own pointed back, all during what 

should have been a routine stop. 

“It was the epitome of a Mexican 

standoff,” says Quinn. 

In Afghanistan Quinn was made 

a section commander – a combat 

role which put 10 other soldiers 

under his command. He takes pride 

and solace in the fact he brought all 

of those soldiers home alive. 

Quinn is now a member of the 

Defence Aboriginal Advisory 

Group. The DAAG advises the 

Canadian Armed Forces on all 

matters pertaining to Indigenous 

affairs. According to a recent report 

released by the DAAG, aboriginal 

troops face racism in the 

Armed Forces. The report alleged 

harassment, derogatory name-calling 

and higher-ups not allowing soldiers 

to attend sacred ceremonies. 

“[The Armed Forces] does mirror 

Canadian society,” says Quinn. 

“It is a systemic problem that we 

have to deal with, and the sooner 

that we start dealing with it, the 

better it will be.” 

With the backing of the Armed 

Forces, Quinn started his one-man 

speaking tour, to address issues 

such as racism. 

His outreach doesn’t end there. 

He was previously involved as an 

instructor in the Bold Eagle Program, 

which provides indigenous 

youth with a taste of military life. 

The paid annual program takes 

place in Alberta and even provides 

participants with secondary school 

credits. About 60 percent of the 

men and women who complete the 

Bold Eagle program eventually join 

either the reserves or regular forces. 

The program doesn’t simply act as 

a drill camp, but rather includes 

mentoring and counseling from 

elders as well as character building. 

“[After Bold Eagle] they become 

pillars of their communities and 

that’s awesome to see,” says Quinn. 

After 27 years of service, Quinn 

says duty keeps him in the Forces. 

“Pride and duty,” he says. “It’s not 

that I’m a warmonger, it’s the pride 

that I came back with [after military 

tours.]”



Krishnanan Thanpremkumar, VP of the Indian Student Association, posing 

after finishing his matches during the first day of the ISA's cricket tournament.


chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 23


Equality needed in politics 

Euvilla Thomas 

The Chronicle 

The death of councillor and former 

mayor of Oshawa, Nancy Diamond, 

was met with sadness. She 

was a philanthropist, an activist 

and instrumental in her community. 

“To understand Nancy’s passing, 

you need to understand how 

she lived, and her passion for her 

community and family,” says the 

current mayor of Oshawa, John 

Henry, who describes her as a passionate 

woman. 

Diamond was one of few women 

able to stand the test of time in the 

political field, not only in Durham 

Region but across Canada. She was 

the longest serving mayor in Oshawa, 

and was in politics for about 

two decades. 

But she is not alone. Durham Region 

has seen a number of women 

in political roles, including Amy 

McQuaid-England, Christine Elliott, 

Celina Caesar-Chavannes 

and Jennifer French. But they are 

not representative of women in politics 

in general. 

Over the years, Canada has seen 

more female politicians, but that 

number has not increased by a 

wide margin. In the 2010 municipal 

election in Toronto, 15 females 

won seats out of the 45 available. 

Today, in 2017, women still only 

make 25 per cent of the political 

arena in Durham Region. 

That’s partly because female 

politicians are often treated more 

harshly than their male counterparts, 

says Alyson King, a political 

science professor at UOIT. King 

says things need to change. 

Photograph courtesy of DurhamRegion.com 

The late former mayor of Oshawa Nancy Diamond. 

Homeless problem 

bigger than you think 

“Women are being attacked, so 

whether you are a Liberal, a Conservative 

or NDP, women seem to 

be under attack for being outspoken 

and stating their political views, 

and the attacks are different from 

what men experience,” she says. 

According to King, men are attacked 

on what they say and do, 

but women are criticized personally, 

and the type of violence that’s 

threatened against them is often 

sexual in nature. This kind of 

things has been going on for years 

and it is a much more virulent attack, 

says King. 

Looking back on the history of 

female politicians, Agnes MacPhail 

from Ontario was the first woman 

to be elected to the House of Commons 

in 1919. In 1921, Mary Ellen 

Smith was elected as the first female 

cabinet minister in the province 

of British Columbia. 

From 1919 to now, we have seen 

more female politicians, but not 

much has changed says King, even 

though it might be better than 50 

years ago. 

“You would think that women 

would have broken that glass ceiling. 

Even in Canada, where life is 

pretty good, we are still fighting 

that fight for real equality for women,” 

she says. 

According to King, women too 

often have to take on the male persona 

to make it in politics. 

“For women to survive in that 

kind of environment, they have to 

become like men in a way, and we 

have a history of this, if you think 

back to when Margaret Thatcher 

was prime minister of Britain,” she 

says. Thatcher was known to have 

ruled as a ‘man’ would. 

King says she is saddened and 

Toritse Ikomi is the VP of equity in the SA’s office. 

Photograph by Euvilla Thomas 

disappointed that women are still 

fighting the same fight in 2017. She 

says until changes are made, some 

women are not going to want to 

become part of this field. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 

is the first prime minster to have 

a gender balanced cabinet. King 

hopes to see Canada elect its own 

female prime minister one day. 

Mayor John Henry also hopes 

for a better future for women so his 

daughters can have equal opportunities 

as men would when it comes 

to politics. 

“I have two daughters so I hope 

the world have changed. I hope the 

days of old where people weren’t 

given equal opportunities are gone, 

especially in this country, Canada,” 

he says. 

But for now he just misses his 

friend, Nancy Diamond. 

“Every time I see a reddish convertible 

going down the road, I will 

think about Nancy,” he says. 

Euvilla Thomas and 


The Chronicle 

Four walls, a warm bed, and food 

on the table. This might be the 

norm for many, but for June Maillet 

this luxury was almost unattainable 

in 1990. 

At 14, she was homeless, kicked 

out of the house and on her own. 

“It’s a little scary,” says Maillet. 

“My typical day would just be wandering. 

To be honest, I did a lot of 

walking, trying to find where my 

next meal was going to be.” 

Now 41, she has moved on. She’s 

now a to being a mom to three kids 

but will never forget some of the 

low points of her life. Though her 

experience might be sad and tragic, 

especially for a young woman, 

Maillet is not unique. She is one 

of hundreds of young people who 

have been homeless in Durham 

Region – then and now. 

The Homeless Hub, a website 

that shares data and research on 

homelessness, shows there are 

more than 700 people dealing with 

homelessness in the area right now. 

There is a desperate need for beds 

and emergency shelters locally. 

According to a report by the Region 

of Durham, there has been an 

increase in the use of emergency 

shelters in recent years. The length 

of stay has increased from 20 days 

in 2012 to 35 days in 2013. There 

are three emergency shelters in the 

Durham Region, and combined 

they make up to about 93 beds in 

total. 

More beds may help get more 

young people off the streets, a 

situation which would have helped 

Maillet a great deal. 

“I was sleeping in a park one 

night and got picked up by two 

men and they were like ‘We can’t 

just leave you here,’ so they took 

me back to their place and that 

wasn’t too safe for me but I didn’t 

know what else to do, I was young,” 

says Maillet, thinking back to those 

days when she was out on the 

streets with not even a bed to lay 

her head on. 

But some emergency shelters, 

such as Cornerstone says the number 

of beds available now has risen 

significantly from when it opened 

50 years ago. 

“We started with a house of six 

beds, right now we are at 40 beds,” 

says managing director of Cornerstone, 

Robert Brglez. 

The Cornerstone Community 

Association Durham is an emergency 

shelter in Oshawa that serves 

men for a period of time. Brglez 

said the shelter is not a place to stay 

but a place to transition with help 

toward a better opportunity. People 

get help finding new job opportunities 

and affordable housing. 

“Shelters need to lead to something 

else,” he says. 

He said the homeless situation is 

different in Oshawa than Toronto. 

Here the homeless people are most 

often not on the streets, a problem 

which Brglez has coined the “hidden 

homeless.” 

According to a report by Human 

Resources and Social Development 

Canada, households are spending 

more than half of their income on 

rent. 

At the same time, another report 

from the region shows the 

unemployment rate in the Durham 

Region at about 7.8 percent. On 

top of this, homeless people often 

also face mental health issues. 

“Mental health is a contributing 

factor to homelessness,” says 

Sarah Johnson, shelter manager at 

Cornerstone. She says 50 to 60 per 

cent of the people using homeless 

services have self-disclosed mental 

health issues. 

And Maillet is no exception. 

“I’ve been told I have come a long 

Photograph by Laura Metcalfe 

Cornerstone Community Association Durham shelter director Robert Brglez and manager 

Sarah Johnson pose in front of their mission statement. 

way. I’m bipolar,” she says. She says 

she was also a drug addict but this 

is not a part of her life anymore. 

There are many others like her 

out there waiting for that lifechanging 

moment. Maillet says she 

didn’t have any parental guidance 

at the time but she’s now at a more 

stable period in her life. 

She is a peer support worker at 

the Canadian Mental Health Association 

and living at home with 

her husband and family. 

Today, she is optimistic of the 

future. 

“I’m working at getting myself 

on my feet and growing as person,” 

she says.


Mental illness is not forever 

(Editor’s Note: The individual profiled in 

this story initially agreed to give her full 

name to The Chronicle but just prior to 

publication asked if we could protect her 

anonymity. The Chronicle has agreed to 

do that and is now referring to the individual 

as Jennifer.) 

Rebecca Calzavara 

The Chronicle 

Jennifer’s biological father was abusive. 

Her mother separated from 

her father when she was 7 so that 

she and her sister didn’t grow up 

to hate him. 

When Jennifer was 16, she was 

rebellious towards her mother and 

her stepfather. She felt her mother 

gave his kids more attention. She 

felt neglected. 

It came to a point when Jennifer 

gained so much anger and aggression 

towards men in her life that she 

hit her stepfather and ran away. She 

moved in with her father at 16. He 

convinced her he had changed… 

but he was worse. She felt like a 

prisoner in his home. 

According to the Durham Region 

Health Department, there are 

certain times in our lives when our 

mental health may be more vulnerable. 

These times are known 

as “transitions” or a “life event.” 

Transitions include graduating 

school, moving out or even getting 

pregnant. 

Life events include experiencing 

loss, death of a loved one or experiencing/witnessing 

abuse. 

Mental illness is defined as a 

wide range of mental health conditions 

that affect your mood, thinking 

and behaviour. According to 

DepressionHurt.ca, about 1 in 10 

Canadians will experience an episode 

of major depressive disorder 

during their life time. Depression 

is a widespread medical condition. 

According to the Canadian Mental 

Health Association, anxiety 

disorder affects about 12 per cent 

of Canadians. 

There is a wide range of mental 

illnesses. Adults are susceptible to 

some and children are susceptible 

to others. For adults, some illnesses 

include but are not limited to anxiety 

disorder, depression, eating disorder, 

bipolar disorder and panic 

disorder. For children, some illnesses 

include autism, reading disorder, 

stuttering and many more. 

After moving back, Jennifer developed 

panic attacks because of 

her father. She would hyperventilate. 

Her body would go instantly 

numb and tingly. She would go 

unconscious and wake up on her 

bedroom floor with the door locked 

and no way out. 

Jennifer needed help but didn’t 

know where to turn. 

Megan Van Massenhoven is the 

Outreach Coordinator for Good- 

2Talk, which is a help line for post 

secondary students. 

The 24/7 helpline also accepts 

calls from anyone who calls with 

a problem. 

Van Massenhoven says Thursdays 

and Fridays between 8 p.m. 

and 12 a.m. are the most common 

times for people to call for some 

guidance or help. 

“We offer professional counselling 

on the line, it is completely 

Chronicle cartoonist Toby VanWeston depicts the emotions surrounding anxiety and depression. 

anonymous,” Van Massenhoven 

explains. 

Good2Talk was created in 2013 

in response to a ‘mental health 

crisis’ on campuses. According to 

MacLean’s, in 2012 Ryerson University 

in Toronto saw a 200 per 

cent increase in demand from students 

in crisis situations. 

Good2Talk was created to help 

any student in a crisis situation on 

campus. Since it started four years 

ago, they have had a total of 60,000 

calls to-date. 

Good2Talk would have helped 

Jennifer. 

“Really I was suffering and 

rotting on the inside and nobody 

understood. Nobody listened to my 

cry for help. It was affecting my 

health. I was scared and so alone,” 

Jennifer explains. 

Last year, a Canadian Reference 

Group study was done on 

students to see what factors affected 

post-secondary students: 42.2 per 

cent of students said stress affects 

their studies, 32.5 per cent of students 

said it is anxiety and 20.9 per 

cent of students said depression. 

There are many ways to help 

with anxiety, depression and stress. 

Margaret Wehrenberg’s book 

The 10 Best-Ever Anxiety Management 

Techniques, describes 10 

techniques to help with anxiety. 

The number one technique is 

to change your intake. Your body 

has to process whatever you take in. 

Changing intake includes stopping 

alcohol, caffeine, tobacco, sugar 

and sweeteners. 

“Taking charge of the things that 

make your body anxious is not always 

easy, but it is always productive,” 

Wehrenberg writes. 

Other techniques are as simple 

as breathing, practicing mindfulness 

and relaxing or as hard as 

containing your worries, talking 

yourself into changing behaviour 

and stopping anxious thoughts. 

Taking charge of your body can be 

difficult, according to Wehrenberg. 

Some people choose avoidance and 

some flee, like Jennifer. 

After living with her father for a 

couple of years, Jennifer ran away. 

But this time, to live with a boyfriend. 

His name was Trevor. His family 

took her in and loved her like one 

of their own. It was exactly what 

she wanted. 

Trevor found a job on an oil rig 

making really good money. They 

were well-off. Until he got laid off. 

He went off the deep end, became 

an alcoholic and took whatever 

pill he could get his hands on. 

Months later he hit rock bottom. 

He drove his brand new car off a 

cliff, drinking and driving. 

“My first instinct was to run, so 

I did. That’s what I do when ever 

things get dark…I run,” Jennifer 

says. 

Wendy Stanyon, Faculty of 

Heath Sciences at the University 

of Ontario Institute of Technology 

(UOIT), gives insight into how 

someone can cope with a mental 

illness. She explains anxiety and 

depression are like the chicken and 

the egg; anxiety turns into depression 

at some point. 

Jennifer, now 18, is at the airport 

with $100 in her pocket with 

her whole life jam packed in one 

suit case. She is on her way to Alberta. 

It is December 24th. Another 

Christmas alone. 

“I moved here because no one 

could hurt me in a place where no 

one knew me,” Jennifer says. 

But Jennifer didn’t need isolation. 

She needed help. 

Stanyon explains you don’t need 

to be an expert to be able to help 

someone with anxiety or depression. 

“Can you just listen? Not with 

the intent of responding. Just to listen 

to hear the message,” Stanyon 

says. 

That’s what Jennifer needed. But 

she felt she wasn’t good enough. 

“I know it sounds like a pity 

party,” Jennifer explains, “…my 

self esteem was taken from me because 

of my father.” 

Jennifer got a job in Alberta and 

made a lot of friends but at the end 

of the day she would cry herself to 

sleep because she still felt like she 

was in a dark cold place. 

She felt unwanted. Ugly. That no 

one truly cared about her. 

Jennifer started to develop depression. 

Started getting suicidal 

thoughts. As soon as those thoughts 

happened, her depression got a million 

times worse. 

Stanyon says when she started 

at UOIT in 2003, no one would 

talk about mental illness, but now 

people are much more open. Stanyon 

is trying to raise awareness 

about mental illness with mindfulness 

strategies. 

“Mindfulness is what could eventually 

save the world as we move 

forward,” Stanyon explains. 

Jennifer did not use mindfulness. 

She confined herself in her room 

and looked at four walls for days. 

She searched on the Internet for 

“the quickest way to die”. 

“This mental illness is like having 

a monster in your brain that 

makes you think life isn’t worth it 

and that you’re just simply worthless,” 

Jennifer says. 

One night, Jennifer drank two 

bottles of wine. She started to get 

flashbacks of what happened to 

her. She started to blame herself 

for everything. Started telling herself 

that it was her fault. She hated 

herself so much that night that… 

she overdosed. 

She was on life support for two 

weeks. Despite the new friends she 

Cartoon by Toby VanWeston 

had made, no one came to visit. 

Stanyon says our thoughts get the 

better of us. 

“Some days are going to be bad 

days. It doesn’t have to mean it’s 

going to go on forever and ever. 

Just take care of yourself that day,” 

Stanyon explains. 

Sometimes that can be hard. 

“I just wanted to scream.” Jennifer 

says. “I was so mad that I 

woke up to the same emptiness 

and sadness in my heart. It felt 

like I needed to vomit but I didn’t 

have a mouth. My heart was in my 

throat.” 

Those two weeks in the hospital 

were lonely. Jennifer almost passed 

away twice because of heart failure. 

“It made me realize that there 

was no good in living in the past,” 

Jennifer explains. 

Walking out of that hospital, Jennifer 

felt reborn again. 

Today, Jennifer is grateful she defeated 

the great darkness and horror 

of depression. She now understands 

and notices cries for help. 

“We need to help people to know 

how to manage the messiness of 

life,” Stanyon explains. 

Mental illness isn’t forever. There 

are so many ways to find help. 

“I know the agonizing isolation 

feeling, the feeling of being chained 

under water and having the key, 

but keeping it in my pocket. The 

feeling of never seeing sunshine 

and accepting to live in the rain. 

Learning to live in hell because you 

can’t get out of it. The feeling of 

being embarrassed with myself and 

having so much self hate. The feeling 

of not being able to sleep and 

having to live with myself longer 

instead of being in a dream where 

reality doesn’t exist,” Jennifer says. 

“People should never have the feeling 

of guilt for being born into this 

world. We all matter. Listen for 

someone’s cry for help.”


Feeding Durham's hungry 

one mouth at a time 

Alex Debets 

and Nicole O’Brien 

The Chronicle 

Here’s some food for thought: one 

out of 10 families in the Durham 

Region is food insecure. 

People such as Oshawa 

residents Peter and Gloria, who, 

though may never go hungry, 

regularly use food banks and visit 

soup kitchens on a daily basis. 

They have a tough time making 

ends meet because they live on social 

assistance from the province. 

“I’ve been coming here for 

about ten years,” says Peter. “We 

like it here.” 

According to the Durham Region 

Health, food insecurity is 

defined as “not having access to 

enough safe and nutritious food 

due to lack of money.” Families 

are often worried about running 

out of food, so settle for lower 

quality foods, and eat less to save 

money. 

These aren’t just people who 

visit food banks and soup kitchens. 

Food insecurity can happen 

to anyone. 

According to the health region, 

those most affected by food insecurity 

are single parents with children 

under age 18, people on Ontario 

Works, people on Ontario 

Disability Support program, seniors 

living on old age pension, and 

college and university students. 

Don Macleod, president and 

chair of Back Door Mission, says 

food insecurity is a big problem in 

the area. 

“On a typical day, we have 

about 10 to 15 people looking for 

small parcels of food,” says Macleod. 

Backdoor Mission in Oshawa 

works to relieve the stresses of 

poverty within economically deprived 

pockets of the city. 

Along with serving food three 

times a week, the mission gives 

out food tickets for St. Vincent’s 

Kitchen, located in Oshawa, twice 

a week. 

Macleod says the meal tickets 

are great, but a lack of transportation 

is a major problem. 

“I have a number of people asking 

me for bus tickets,” he says. “A 

lot of them walk everywhere.” 

Other causes of food insecurity 

include low income, low education 

and lack of food skills. 

Macleod says understanding 

what is and what isn’t nutritious 

food is a whole other issue on its 

own. 

“The thing that concerns me is 

not so much that people are lacking 

food to eat, though there are 

certainly people that are hungry,” 

Macleod says. “It’s what they are 

eating.” 

Healthy eating and food insecurity 

are dependent on being able 

to find and purchase healthy food. 

But healthy foods, such as fruits 

and vegetables, cost significantly 

more than unhealthy foods such 

as canned goods and Kraft dinner. 

For example, at Walmart, a 

small bag of baby carrots can cost 

around $1.67. Compare that to 

a box of Kraft dinner for $1.27, 

which is a basically a meal in a 

box. 

According to a 2013 study by 

Harvard School of Public Health, 

a healthy diet can cost about $1.50 

more per day than an unhealthy 

one. 

This doesn’t seem like a lot 

at first glance, but that adds up 

to about $2,000 on the average 

family of four’s grocery bill. 

Those suffering from food 

insecurity may chose the lower 

quality food over the expensive 

healthy food because it still fills 

them up and costs less. 

Food insecurity is also linked to 

household income. When people 

make less, people do not have 

enough money to pay for rent, bills 

and food. 

Oshawa residents Edward and 

Barbara use the Back Door Mission 

weekly. They finally found a 

place to live after being shut down 

multiple times by landlords. 

“I’ve been turned down because 

I have children. I have been 

turned down because I am not 

working,” Eric said. “And trying 

to find a place to live is really hard, 

the prices are very very high.” 

Macelod says this adds even 

more challenges to already 

stretched families. 

“Part of the reason why housing 

is such a problem is that it’s kind of 

a base thing,” he says. “You need 

to have some place to live before 

you can work on other things like 

getting a job and eating well.” 

According to a 2016 Durham 

Region Health report, it costs 

$837 a month to feed a family of 

four in Durham. 

The average Ontario income 

in 2016 was about $7,448 per 

month. And the average rent rate 

is $1,203. So how much is left over 

at the end of the month? 

For the average family of four, 

this may not be an issue since it 

works out to about $5,408. 

Those on Ontario Works, more 

commonly known as welfare, 

aren’t so lucky. 

According to Durham Region 

Health, the average Ontario 

Works income is $1,227 per 

month. After paying rent and grocery 

bills, those on welfare are left 

with only $187. 

Not having financial access to 

a healthy diet can lead to a whole 

set of health problems. At any 

age, poor nutrition puts people at 

greater risk for chronic disease, infection 

and lowered immunity. According 

to Health Canada, those 

suffering from food insecurity 

report higher rates of depression, 

Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and 

hypertension. 

These problems can cost more 

money and more time for those already 

financially strained, according 

to the local health region. As a 

result, the cycle of food insecurity 

and poor health is a difficult one 

to break, resulting in expensive 

costs to the Ontario health care 

system. 

The healthcare system cost 

the province $2.9 billion in 2008, 

according to Durham Region 

Health. 

There are options available via 

the regional government to assist 

families and social service groups 

in promoting food security in Durham. 

These tools include lists of food 

resources in the region, such as 

food banks and breakfast clubs. 

Others can directly assist through 

donations to non-profits such as 

Feed the Need and Back Door 

Mission or volunteer their own 

time at a soup kitchen. 

Meanwhile, for Peter and Gloria, 

next week will be the same as 

this week: another trip to the food 

bank. 

(Note: We have changed the names 

of the families involved to protect their 

privacy.) 

Less meat and more veggies to live a healthy life 

Jared Williams 

The Chronicle 

Nathan Deschamps, 23, has been 

a vegan for 9 years. 

At 14-years-old, Deschamps 

decided he was done with eating 

meat. After watching a documentary 

which showed the poor conditions 

animals in factory farms 

were kept in influenced him to eat 

less meat. 

“I always had an idea of what 

was going on but actually seeing 

it [for myself],” says Deschamps, 

“is what inspired me to go vegan.” 

In recent years, nearly 33 per 

cent of Canadians have chosen 

veganism as a healthier alternative. 

And with today’s foods being 

loaded with preservatives, some 

of which found are in household 

products like sodium cyclamate 

and triacetin, although vegan 

dieting is gaining in popularity. 

This healthier way of eating can 

result in long-term benefits. 

In the first few months of his 

switch to veganism, Deschamps 

says he found it difficult figuring 

out the boundaries of a vegan diet. 

But as time went on, he became 

more aware of what nutrients are 

required for a healthy diet. 

Deschamps said he turned 

to online vegan communities to 

learn more about the best way to 

maintain a balanced diet. 

“When I started nine years 

ago, veganism was a lot less popular 

than it is now. It was a lot more 

difficult to find people who were 

interested in the same ideas. So it 

was mostly online for me,” Deschamps 

says. 

Nutritionist for the Durham 

College and UOIT Campus 

Health and Wellness Centre, 

Sylvia Emmorey, says to go from 

eating your typical diet to being 

vegan overnight is something she 

would never suggest. “That’s why 

I work with people one-on-one to 

help guide through that change 

slowly. That would be too dramatic 

of a change to vegan.” 

Some of the harms which can 

come from making an abrupt 

change to veganism can be a disproportion 

of meals with fillers 

such as bread, rice and potatoes 

leading to craving, increased 

appetite, mood imbalances and 

headaches. 

People get energy from carbohydrates. 

Sometimes when people 

choose to go vegan or even vegetarian, 

they’ll just cut out all proteins 

in their diet and increase 

the carbs. This major change can 

throw a person’s energy balance 

off. A although we gain a small 

amount of energy from proteins, 

their main purpose is to repair 

and rebuild the body. 

“Some of the things you may 

see with a person that is deficient 

If done properly, 

it can be really 

helpful. 

in protein can be fatigue, hair 

loss, and slow wound repair,” Emmorey 

says. 

The main potential deficiencies 

that can happen over time are 

vitamin and mineral deficiencies. 

Supplements like B12 vitamins 

and iron pills are recommended to 

all those new to the vegan diet. “If 

you’re strictly vegan, you probably 

have to supplement unless you’re 

getting enough beans, legumes, 

nuts and seeds. It [can be a challenge] 

– to [maintain] properly,” 

she says. 

According to Emmorey, we 

don’t need a ton of meat sources 

in our diets. 

In fact, we don’t actually require 

dairy in our diets. Inherited 

from generations before us is the 

idea we need milk and other dairy 

products as our leading source of 

calcium. 

“It’s been proven that we’re 

not actually utilizing the calcium 

properly from the forms of dairy 

that are available to us. We are 

one of the only countries that consumes 

milk [which can result in] 

such a high risk of osteoporosis,” 

says Emmorey. 

Going vegan may resemble 

traits of a fad. “It is popular 

and it is a little bit trendy [today],” 

Emmorey says. “It is a legitimate 

diet. If done properly it can be 

really helpful.” 

But becoming vegan isn’t just 

a matter of picking up a carton of 

soy milk and attending your local 

animal abuse rally. 

Photograph by Alex Debets 

Don Macleod, president and chair of the Back Door Mission 

and Lianne McDonald, program coordinator, serve food to 

many people everyday. 

Kimberly Dixon, 39, tried the 

vegan lifestyle out but eventually 

went back to eating red meat for 

a number of reasons. She found 

it tricky to maintain an iron-enriched 

diet. Also as a parent, Dixon 

couldn’t help but think about 

the added hormones in our meat 

products and the effect they could 

have on her children’s growing 

minds. 

“Maybe [eating meat] explains 

why so many intolerances are relevant…” 

Dixon says. “Where did 

they all come from? It used to be 

peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.” 

“Truth be told, I never [reached 

the point of] a true vegan. I didn’t 

cut out dairy or eggs,” Dixon says. 

But she did feel like it was a cleaner 

way of eating. 

In the long run, the vegan diet 

is more than a trendy lifestyle. 

There are a number of positive 

health benefits. Since becoming 

vegan at age 14, Deschamps has 

seen some benefits like experiencing 

more energy and maintaining 

a healthy body weight. 

The only advice Deschamps 

has for people interested in the 

vegan lifestyle is to make sure they 

eat as much variety as possible.


DC celebrating 50 years 

Photograph by Travis Fortnum 

Guitarists playing to celebrate Durham College's 50 amazing 

years. 

Fifty guitars 

to celebrate 

50 years 

Alex Debets 

The Chronicle 

Durham College has “been in town, 

for a half a century now,” as the 

lyrics of a new song written for the 

school’s 50th anniversary suggest. 

Fifty Durham College students, 

faculty, and alumni filled the Student 

Services Building to celebrate 

fifty years of the school, armed with 

acoustic guitars, and sheet music 

for “A Lesson Learned in Time”, 

by Justin Lant, and “Ahead by a 

Century” by The Tragically Hip. 

“I guess I was plunking away on 

my guitar and thought, you know 

what would be cool? To bring 

together fifty guitar players for fifty 

years,” says Lovisa. That’s how it 

began, but not how it finished. After 

pitching the idea to his staff, the 

call was sent out. An email went to 

all DCmail email addresses. “Don 

Lovisa wants YOU to join him,” 

was the opening line. 

Lovisa knew “A Lesson Learned 

in Time” would be a good fit for the 

50 guitars. 

“It’s a great song,” says Lovisa. 

“It takes of our value, and our mission 

and all that and puts it into a 

song.” 

Lovisa refers to lyrics such as “no 

bias here, equality we share,” and 

“no boundaries the rules are fair,” 

are what Lovisa is referring to. 

One of the guitar players, Ashley 

Paddenberg, says she was super excited 

to participate. 

There's so much community there 

that's so nice. 

The event was one of many being 

put on by the school to celebrate the 

anniversary but, there was something 

different this time with the 

song, “A Lesson Learned In Time.” 

Written by Justin Lant, an employee 

of the grounds department 

and member of 20 Amp Soundchild, 

the song goes into the school’s 

history and the values. 

Lant was inspired by the anniversary, 

and decided to write a song. 

“It was obviously inspired by the 

50th anniversary,” says Lant. “So 

we just went by the general vibe behind 

like the mentality of the half 

century.” 

Durham College president Don 

Lovisa, who came up with the fifty 

guitars idea, was there with guitar 

in hand and ready to play. 

“When they put out the posting 

online, I was really excited about 

the opportunity to play guitar,” says 

Paddenberg. “Student life can be 

very busy.” She is in the Operations 

bridge program, and says she has 

played guitar “badly” for 10 years. 

Paddenberg says this event built 

a sense of community, even though 

most people playing hadn’t met 

each other before. 

“There’s so much community 

there that’s so nice,” she says. “You 

know, sharing our tuners and things 

and talking about our guitars and 

participating with the school.” 

The school continues to host 50 

year events, including the Epic Mac 

‘n event at the Centre for Food in 

April and exam stress relief week 

in April.


Photograph by Kayano Waite 

Rob Nokes at work in the welding department at Durham College (centre), and in his office (bottom right). 

Piecing together a legacy at DC 

Rob Nokes 

teaches 

welding 

at Durham 

Kayano Waite 

The Chronicle 

Rob Nokes, mechanical technologist, 

is a Durham Region native. 

The husband and father of two has 

lived many years between Oshawa 

and Whitby. Through that time, he 

has seen many changes with how 

technology is used and taught at 

Durham College (DC). I was able 

to talk to him about his upbringing, 

as well as his thoughts on the state 

of welding at DC. 

Tell me about yourself. Where 

were you born? 

Well, I was born in Oshawa, I 

married in 1986. We bought a 

house in Oshawa. Oshawa, we 

lived there for about nine years. 

And then I moved back to Whitby. 

When did you get into welding? 

I started welding in high school. 

Took all trades in high school really. 

I won the Grade 12 Welding Award 

in 1981. I came to Durham College, 

took the welder fitter program. 

I didn’t get a job right out of the 

gate, but I eventually got a maintenance 

welding job. I worked in 

the trucking, maintenance side up 

until 2002 when I started working 

at the college. 

It would be easy to say this 

(tech) was something you 

knew could see yourself doing.? 

Yeah, I enjoy the welding aspect 

of making stuff, designing stuff. 

Have you seen a growth or decline 

in the amount of people 

wanting to learn about the 

trades, specifically welding? 

We definitely have had an increase 

of students wanting to take 

welding. We started the one-year 

techniques programs about three, 

four years ago. This year is the start 

of the two-year program. 

What’s different now, over years 

past, in high school when people 

took the trades, you would take it in 

Grade 12 and then you would come 

to college to learn the advance stuff. 

We’re now getting students that 

haven’t stepped into a shop during 

high school and are now realizing 

that trades can lead to a really good 

career path. But they’re coming 

here with no experience. 

What would you change with 

the school board in terms of 

making it more accessible for 

students to learn more about 

the trades? 

People have finally realized that 

computers are not going to control 

and do everything, we need people 

who can work with their hands. I 

know some schools are bringing 

trades back. The sooner you start 

into it at the high school level, the 

better for when you come to college. 

The OYAP (Ontario Youth Apprenticeship 

Program) which you 

can get into at high school is really 

good. That’s a great starting place. 

What are some misconceptions 

about working in the 

trades? 

I think people think it’s easy. It’s 

hot. It’s dirty sometimes. You’re 

gonna get scrapes. For some reason, 

some guidance counselors are 

telling people “you’re gonna make 

a fortune.” Not out of the gate. If 

you’re gonna make a lot of money, 

you’re gonna work hard. 

What’s the toughest challenge 

in your field? 

A lot of the times, in the real 

world, something we don’t stress is 

the time constraints. You’re pushed 

and pushed to get a job done faster 

and faster, because time is money. 

Sometimes at the college we don’t 

emphasize that enough. That’s the 

reality. 

What current projects are you 

working on? 

Right now, we finished just getting 

20 new welding machines in 

the shop, that was a big project we 

had running. 

That required making some kind 

of cart to hold them hold them all, 

figure out the wiring get them 

hooked up, get them tested. We got 

a third shop coming so definitely 

there’ll be some more projects we've 

got coming. 

What’s the most important 

thing in your field people 

should be aware of? 

(For the welding field) When you 

see someone who does good work, 

appreciate them. Don’t always go 

by someone telling you how good 

they are. You can tell by just watching 

them work and looking at their 

finished product. 

What’s your favourite thing 

about working at Durham 

College? 

Because I like to fabricate and 

design stuff, I get to design stuff 

for this entire building. I feel good 

when I walk around the school and 

I can look around the shop and see 

things that I’ve designed and built 

and installed in the shop. People 

talk about legacies. I walk around 

and I see my legacies already. 

This interview was edited for style, 

length and clarity.


Goodbye from the journalism students 

Photograph by Jim Ferr 

The second-year journalism students pose for a group photo with their professors. The students create and produce The Chronicle each week, along with The 

Chronicle website and Riot Radio show. Absent students are included in the top left of the photo. 

Thank you from the advertising reps 

Photograph by Jim Ferr 

Sales reps from the advertising program pose with their professor. The reps are in charge of finding advertisers and placing them in the paper each week.



New Saks store in Pickering 

Photograph by Nicole O'Brien 

Kim Howchin was the first to sign up for the new emails for 

Saks Off 5th store at Pickering Town Centre. 

Nicole O'Brien 

The Chronicle 

One year after entering the Canadian 

market, Saks Off 5th has 

opened a new store at the Pickering 

Town Centre. 

Customers lined up to see the unveiling 

of the new 30,000 square 

foot store on earlier this month. 

The store offers a mix of designer 

fashion, accessories and footwear 

for men, women and children. 

in Brampton opened on the same 

day as the Pickering store. 

“There hasn’t been many new 

stores in the PTC so I am happy to 

have another shopping option,” said 

Pickering resident Kaitlin Brown. 

As part of the Hudson's Bay 

Company brand portfolio, Saks Off 

5th has 117 stores globally and an 

e-commerce division, saksoff5th. 

com. Since entering the Canadian 

retail market last March, locations 

are popping up around the country. 

Typically Saks Fifth Avenue is a 

higher end store. 

But it’s not your average store. 

With brands such as Calvin Klein, 

Ralph Lauren and BCBG, the average 

sweater can cost up to $500. 

Jeans can cost anywhere from 

$100 to $300, and a pair of high 

heel shoes can be a pretty penny, 

running anywhere from $20 to 

more than $300. Customers such 

as Louise Antle were buzzing in the 

grand opening line up, hoping to 

find something new. 

“Standing outside in the line, I 

was anticipating good deals,” said 

Antle. “But looking at the price 

tags, it is pricey.” 

Lorna Murphy, a Saks marketing 

director, is “thrilled” to welcome 

Saks Off 5th. 

"Shoppers can look forward to 

off-the-runway trends, exceptional 

service, and savings on more than 

800 of the biggest names in fashion,” 

she said in a statement. 

The store is one of two Saks Off 

5th locations to open in the Toronto 

area this year. The second location 

Pickering resident and frequent 

PTC shopper Kym Howchin attended 

the grand opening. She 

said she knew the Saks brand from 

numerous shopping trips to the U.S. 

“I was excited to see what they 

have. I’ve been to Saks Off 5th Ave 

at other locations so it was cool that 

it was coming to Pickering,” 

Howchin said. From Edmonton, 

Alta., to Vaughan, Ont., the retailer 

plans to operate up to 25 Canadian 

locations by the end of the decade. 

Howchin thinks the new addition 

to the Pickering Town Centre will 

benefit the mall and the city as a 

whole. 

“From looking around and seeing 

the prices, typically Saks Fifth Avenue 

is a higher end store, but this 

is sort of the outlet so the prices I 

think are pretty reasonable,” Howchin 

says. 

There are no plans for an Oshawa 

location, but stores are set to 

open next in Quebec City, Winnipeg, 

and Montreal by 2018.


Entertainment 

Karaoke event for U.S. trip 

Erin Williams 

The Chronicle 

PR student, Melanie Richard, organized the charity karaoke event. 

The Public Relations program at 

Durham College were getting their 

tune on by holding a charity karaoke 

event this month. 

Local residents and DC students 

got out and got up to sing their 

hearts out at Whiskey John’s Bar 

and Grill in Oshawa. 

Melanie Richard is a PR student 

and organized the event. She says 

karaoke is the best choice for all 

ages. 

“My group mates thought it 

would be great do karaoke. Because 

everybody loves to sing. It’s a kid 

friendly event,” says Richards. 

Melissa Neill and her daughter 

Becca, had no fear of getting 

up on stage at the event. 

“I like singing [songs from] Frozen 

and Katy Perry,” says Becca. 

“I also like being a back-up dancer 

when other people sing.” 

Her mother enjoyed singing 

some older rock songs from bands 

like Aerosmith and Heart. 

“It runs in the family, all 

of us love to sing. She is my 

little rockstar,” says McNeill. 

Michael Valenti was the karaoke 

DJ for the night. 

He worked approximately eight 

hours to support the event and play 

the requested songs. 

He says it was a long night but 

he was happy to do something different. 

“I get to play songs that I normally 

don’t get to. It’s also for charity 

and to support local Durham 

College students so, how could I 

not want to be a part of it?” says 

Valenti. 

Not only is this event for fun, but 

it’s also part of the Public Relations 

Photograph by Erin Williams 

program. 

The event raised money for a 

charity of a student’s choice, while 

also learning about fundraising 

hands-on. 

Students of the program learn 

about fundraising and campaigning, 

and needed to plan an event as 

part of their course. 

“In our careers later on, we 

do need to have experience and 

practice these skills,” says Richards. 

“We are expected to fundraise 

basically from the beginning right 

until the ends. Setting it up, getting 

sponsors, and then fundraising.” 

Richard hopes to raise more 

than enough money for charity 

and the class development trip to 

Chicago on March 30. 

“We are going there, have a blast 

for three days, and learn more 

about how the states do it different 

from Canada. The only thing we 

pay for is our flights. We are going 

to talk to their social media and 

their public relations teams.” 

Richard says social media aspect 

is a big part of fundraising now. 

She was glad to find a venue like 

Whiskey John’s to hold the event 

and shared the event on social media 

while fundraising in person at 

Durham College. 

Richard says the team will likely 

choose Sick Kids Hospital for their 

charity of choice, but it is a team 

decision and it hasn’t fully been 

decided yet. 

She also says they hit their goal 

by raising more than $1,600 and 

will continue to raise even more 

towards their trip to the United 

States. 

Bounce back with mix tunes 

Asim Pervez 

The Chronicle 

In December of 2016, Detroit rapper 

Big Sean announced via Twitter 

that he was releasing an album 

titled I Decided in February. 

This kept hip-hop fans anxiously 

waiting to see what he did this 

time around. Sean is known for his 

unique flows and his clever punch 

lines. And, of course, he delivered 

on his album. 

The album’s production is a mixture 

of new school bouncy trap records, 

as well as a soulful smooth 

sound. 

The album features Jeremih, 

fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, 

Jhene Aiko, The-Dream, Migos 

and more. 

The album starts off with a skit, 

a haunting voice of elderly man 

talking to God about all his regrets, 

underscored by atmospheric music. 

The skit spills perfectly into the 

first song, “Light” which features 

Jeremih. The song has an inspirational 

feeling to it as Sean touches 

on subject like racial discrimination. 

“Light” has a very smooth vibe, 

with no drums at all. It’s one of 

those songs where you can just lie 

in bed and stare at the ceiling, embrace 

the music and just listen. 

“Light” samples Eddie Kendrick’s 

“Intimate Friends”, which was also 

sampled in Alicia Keys’ “Unbreakable” 

and Snoop Dogg’s “Another’s 

Summer.” 

The second song on the album, 

“Bounce Back,” is the biggest hit. If 

you are an athlete, you have this 

song on your playlist for sure. The 

track is about bouncing back from 

a loss. The chorus goes, “Last night 

took an L but tonight I bounce 

back.” 

With production from star producer 

Metro Boomin and a sample 

from Sufjan Stevens, “All for Myself,” 

the song has a chill vibe with 

hard-hitting groovy drums and 

bouncy 808 basslines. 

This is definitely a song you 

would hear at a party, or a song 

you would listen to while driving 

around with your friends. 

The rest of the album includes a 

mixture of relaxed laid-back tracks 

as well as fast- paced hype tracks. 

Sean continued the tradition of 

making a song dedicated to a loved 

one. 

On his last album “Dark Sky Paradise”, 

he dedicated the song “One 

Man Can Change the World” to his 

grandmother. 

On this album, he dedicated 

track number 12 “Inspire Me” to 

his mother. 

In an interview with the Power 

105.1 FM, a radio station in New 

York City, Sean says when he 

played the song for his mother, it 

brought tears to her eyes. 

Sean is no stranger to music that 

touches people, as he grew up in a 

“Motown household.” Motown is 

associated with soulful music and 

the blues. 

Speaking of inspiration, most 

rappers may go back and say they 

were inspired by other rappers like 

Tupac, Biggie or Jay Z. 

But in an interview with Entertainment 

Weekly, Big Sean gave credit 

to classic Motown singers like 

Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder, 

as well as The Temptations. Sean’s 

goal with this album, to uplift and 

inspire people. 

“People who can be inspired by 

it. That’s who I am doing it for,” he 

said in Entertainment Weekly. 

Screenshot by Asim Pervez 

'Bounce Back' is the second song in the I Decided album, and a big 

hit.

Entertainment chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 33 

Photograph courtesy of Columbia Records/Sony Music 

The cover for Beyoncé's visual album Lemonade. 

Where is Bey's crown? 

During this year’s Grammys, a notso-expected 

record stole Album of 

the Year. Social media lit on fire. 

According to Twitter Data, 

Queen Bey, also known as Beyoncé, 

was the most tweeted about star 

of the night. Why you ask? 

Brandi 

Washington 

A black artist losing to a white 

artist, specifically for Album of the 

Year, seems to be a never-ending 

issue at the Grammys. For some 

reason, urban artists never seem 

to achieve this award. 

Beyoncé has respectively earned 

22 Grammys to date. But never Album 

of the Year. 

Just two years ago, Beyoncé’s selftitled 

visual album, lost to Beck’s 

Morning Phase. Kanye almost pulled 

a MTV Video Music Awards 

(VMAs) moment when he heard 

Beyoncé lost to Beck. 

For those who are unfamiliar, in 

2009 Beyoncé lost the Best Female 

Video award to Taylor Swift. West 

strolled on stage and said “Beyoncé 

had one of the best videos of all 

time!” 

Fast forward to the 2015 Grammys, 

West approached the stage but 

as he went for the mic, he jokingly 

walked back to his seat. This was 

to show he thought Beyoncé should 

have won, as opposed to Beck. 

That moment was epic and gave 

the audience a good laugh. But 

what isn’t funny is black artists’ 

work not being publicly recognized 

by The Recording Academy. 

In 2009, Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter 

III lost to Robert Plant & Alison 

Krauss’ Raising Sand. And in 2010, 

I Am... Sasha Fierce by Beyoncé lost 

to Taylor Swift’s Fearless. In 2016, 

Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly 

lost to Taylor Swift’s 1989. 

The list goes on. Even Adele 

begged the question at this year’s 

Grammy Awards. 

“What the f**k does she have 

to do to win Album of the Year?” 

Adele asked. 

It is an ongoing recurrence that 

the Grammy voters have not chosen 

a black artist over the past ten years 

to win this prestigious award. 

This year created the most uproar 

on social media, as Queen 

Bey’s triumphant album Lemonade 

lost to Adele’s 25. 

Before April 2016, lemonade 

was just a popular drink. Today, 

Lemonade is Beyoncé’s most popular 

album. On April 23, 2016 Beyoncé’s 

visual album was released after 

her three-year musical hiatus and 

left the Beyhive (Beyoncé’s fans) 

in absolute shock. It also created 

controversy. 

Beyoncé sings the line, “He 

only want me when I’m not there, 

he better call Becky with the 

good hair” in the song Sorry. This 

sparked allegations of troubles in 

her marriage to Jay-Z. 

Was Jay-Z unfaithful? Who was 

the other woman? When did this 

happen? 

A still from Beyoncé's Lemonade. 

The cheating scandal was never 

confirmed, but what it did do was 

create an impact. It made the record 

more relatable for woman and 

men who have been cheated on. 

Along with controversy, the album 

also had an empowering visual 

aspect, which brought racial 

injustice to light. 

Formation, the last track off Lemonade, 

displayed Beyoncé floating 

on a police car in the water. This 

was not an anti-police act. Beyoncé 

was trying to bring awareness 

to police violence and murders towards 

black Americans. 

Beyoncé brought the mothers of 

Mike Brown, Eric Garner, Oscar 

Grant and Travon Martin into the 

Lemonade visual. They hold photos 

of their sons who died – all victims 

of police brutality. Later that year, 

she brought all the mothers to the 

MTV VMA Awards white carpet. 

This made the bigger picture come 

full circle, showing Beyoncé’s appreciation 

towards these mothers. 

Queen Bey tells other stories 

throughout her album. She opens 

up to her fans, which she normally 

does not do. 

The album includes moments 

from her childhood, private moments 

with her daughter Blue Ivy 

Carter, Beyoncé’s pregnancy, her 

mother Tina Knowles and she and 

Photograph courtesy of Columbia Records/Sony Music 

Jay-Z getting matching tattoos. 

This album’s visual concepts 

showcased eleven emotional chapters, 

including intuition, denial, 

anger, apathy, emptiness, accountability, 

reformation, forgiveness, 

resurrection, hope and redemption. 

These eleven feelings tell the 

perfect story for Lemonade. Beyoncé 

took lemons and made a historical 

impact on pop culture.The journey 

of infidelity, the impact of injustice 

and the art of bittersweet moments 

all in one complete package go 

along with a triumphant record. 

Lemonade's lack of recognition 

means other loss for great quality 

art.


Entertainment chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 35 

Wrestling 

for a dream 

Former DC 

student 

chases job 

with WWE 

Tyler Hodgkinson 

The Chronicle 

“I was one of the Rosebuds,” Divya 

Chand says, as she remembers being 

an extra standing in front of 

more than 16,000 screaming fans 

on a WWE stage. “And it was all 

on my 20th birthday.” 

She was dressed in a fairy costume 

alongside others as part as 

a colourful entourage for wrestler 

Adam Rose. It wasn’t the first time 

she was in Montreal – in fact, she 

has been to the city to see wrestling 

events in the past - but it was the 

first time Chand was performing in 

front of millions watching at home. 

Chand’s opportunity to be part 

of the WWE production for one 

night was “one of the best experiences” 

of her life, because for the 

GTA-native, wrestling full-time in 

the big league is a childhood dream 

she will never stop chasing. 

According to a study in the academic 

journal Social Forces, only 

six per cent of adults achieve their 

childhood dream career. But for 

many who have accomplished 

their goals, the struggles and obstacles 

were all part of the journey. 

Through determination and unbridled 

passion, chasing a dream 

can lead to personal victories, advantageous 

relationships, once-ina-lifetime 

experiences, and opportunities 

to inspire others. 

In the past 20 years, many 

notable Ontario-based wrestlers 

have made a name for themselves 

worldwide. This list includes the 

WWE Hall of Famers Trish Stratus 

and Edge, his longtime tag-team 

partner Christian, and WWE title 

holder Anthony Carelli, known at 

the company as Santino Marella. 

It’s under Carelli’s guidance at 

Battle Arts Academy in Mississauga 

that Chand – or Aria “Wild” Sapphire 

in the ring - now currently 

Divya Chand (right) with trainer Yuki Ishikawa. 

trains. Her instructor teaches how 

to take body slams and piledrivers, 

but also encourages students to find 

the will within. 

“It is up to one’s self to ultimately 

become successful. You must adopt 

the ‘I can make it happen’ attitude, 

believe in yourself, and be willing 

to work harder than anyone else,” 

Carelli says. 

At only 21-years old, it’s already 

been a long journey for Chand, 

who’s love for wrestling began at 

an early age. Along with her brothers, 

the young girl from Markham, 

Ont. became fixated on WWF’s 

(now WWE) grungy, no-holdsbarred 

Attitude Era. Themes of 

violence, sex and drugs were fair 

game in the late 1990s, but Chand 

doesn’t think it affected her upbringing. 

“I loved wrestling, but I still had 

that girly side to me,” Chand says. 

“I liked Barbies, and tea parties 

with Hulk Hogan.” 

It was as a child her aspirations 

of being a wrestler were realized, 

but her parents were against her 

entering anything combat related. 

Instead, they agreed to acting classes. 

At 12-years old, Chand began 

to attend seminars about commercials, 

TV beauty segments, and 

runway work. 

Her adoration for the wrestling 

industry carried over into her high 

school years. However, a weight 

issue took a toll on the teenager 

not only physically, but mentally. 

“I gained a lot of weight and suffered 

from eating disorders and anemia,” 

she says. “I hated it because 

I wanted to wrestle, but I had this 

outer layer of me that I couldn’t get 

rid of.” 

Chand decided to get a personal 

trainer in her final year of school. 

From there, her wrestling career 

began when she signed up to train 

at Squared Circle in Toronto. The 

school was at Jane St. and Finch 

Ave. W, a Toronto area with a history 

of violence. Yet in this building, 

combat was a way of keeping out 

of trouble. 

In conjunction with her training, 

Chand also realized her love 

for helping others. For the then- 

19-year old, Durham College’s 

Photograph by Tyler Hodgkinson 

Divya Chand entering the ring before a match in Japan. 

Child and Youth Worker (CYW) 

program seemed like the perfect fit. 

But sacrifices needed to be made 

to achieve her childhood dream. 

Leaving the program was only the 

first step. 

“CYWs do extraordinary things 

for youth, are on call 24/7, and are 

always there for the children that 

need them. But I couldn’t be there, 

and I felt that it’s unfair for those 

kids,” Chand says. 

Chand will be returning to 

the school for something related 

to youth services in future, but is 

currently focused on her wrestling 

career and making it to the WWE. 

Deep in the grind at Battle Arts 

Academy, Chand also learns from a 

legendary Japanese trainer named 

Yuki Ishikawa. 

Academy owner Carelli was 

a student of Ishawaka while in 

Japan, and when an injury forced 

the wrestler to retire, he opened a 

training facility in his hometown 

of Mississauga. A job offer was extended 

to his former mentor, and 

was accepted. 

Together, the instructors teach 

two different styles. Carelli has a 

greater grasp on American style 

wrestling, while Ishikawa instills 

traditional Japanese form. For 

someone like Chand, the lessons 

she learns from her instructors are 

immeasurable. 

According to Carelli, Chand’s 

wrestling ability has improved 

since she arrived at the academy. 

He says she has a “much better 

understanding of the psychological 

aspects of professional wrestling – 

the storytelling component.” 

I liked Barbies, 

and tea parties 

with Hulk Hogan. 

He also believes that the way 

she presents herself in and out of 

the ring is impressive, saying “she’s 

very confident and not afraid to 

perform in front of large groups of 

people.” 

Ishikawa mirrors Carelli’s sentiment 

and believes Chand is a positive 

role model for others because of 

her ability to absorb information. 

“She understands my thinking 

and has a good personality. She 

can be a leader at Battle Arts,” 

Ishikawa declares. 

But kinds words don’t create success 

stories - personal effort does. 

Chand was sent to acquire new 

fighting styles in dojos in Japan 

where she stayed for three months, 

and when she was finished in Asia, 

Photograph courtesy of Divya Chand 

she migrated to England for five 

months to once again learn new 

techniques. 

Chand left behind most of her 

family and friends in Canada, all in 

the name of achieving her dream. 

She says the sacrifices were hard to 

make, but well worth it. 

In fact, her hard work and determination 

paid off when Carelli 

called her less than a month after 

her tours asking if she was interested 

in an on-screen extra role 

on WWE Raw. The answer was 

a quick yes. 

Chand’s moment had arrived. 

She was standing face-to-face with 

William Regal, a WWE legend and 

talent scout. After showing off her 

mic skills and physical attributes, 

Regal complimented her on her effort 

and suggested that if she continues 

on the path she is currently 

on, that she may have a future with 

company. 

Chand’s goal of being a professional 

wrestler in the WWE is twofold; 

she wants to fulfill a childhood 

dream, but also wants to inspire 

others – especially children – to be 

whatever they want. 

The young fighter has already 

encountered a variety of obstacles 

in her life, but wants people to 

know that if she can utilize her 

passion and achieve her success, 

so can they. 

“I want to teach people that 

everything will be OK. No matter 

how tough situations feel, you can 

overcome anything.”


Sports 

The NHL needs more soul 

Canada's 

biggest sport 

has always 

lacked racial 

diversity 

on the ice 

Kayano Waite 

The Chronicle 

Watching a hockey game, you may 

notice many things: crowds of devoted 

fans, colourful jerseys - and 

white faces. 

While hockey is seen by many 

as Canada’s sport, it still lacks diversity. 

There are currently 30 black 

hockey players in the NHL, only 

five percent of the league. 

Malik Johnson is one of few black 

players on the UOIT Ridgeback 

men’s hockey team. The first year 

Criminology and Legal Studies student 

plays left wing for the Ridgebacks. 

Growing up in Montreal, he 

shared a love for hockey with his 

father and brother, yet he and his 

family are Edmonton Oilers fans. 

He says he looked up to black 

hockey players such as Georges 

Laraque and Mike Grier. “My 

dad would give us those jerseys to 

make us not feel like an outsider in 

hockey,” says Johnson. 

He played in the Quebec Major 

Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), 

and in New Brunswick and Prince 

Edward Island. During his younger 

years though, He says he faced 

discrimination. 

“There would come to a lot of 

situations where there’s racial remarks,” 

said Johnson. “But I just 

fought through it and just put it 

aside.” 

Comments like this are not unheard 

of for black hockey players, 

especially in the NHL. 

Soul on Ice: Past, Present & Future 

is a documentary focused on 

the role of black Canadians in the 

NHL. 

Oshawa Public Library hosted a 

free showing of Soul on Ice in late 

February. 

The film is about the history 

of black Canadians and their influence 

on the game of hockey. 

Starting with the history of black 

Nova Scotians, to the startup of the 

NHL, to modern day initiatives 

such as Hockey is for Everyone, 

an initiative focused on inclusivity 

in the game. 

Damon Kwame Mason is the 

director of Soul on Ice. He was 

born in Toronto, and has been active 

in the entertainment industry 

since 1996, working between Ontario 

and Alberta, where he was 

an announcer for FLOW 93.5 and 

KISS 92.5. 

A lifelong fan of hockey, Mason 

got into contact with several professional 

hockey players in Edmonton 

during his time in Alberta. He 

questioned the lack of black hockey 

players in the league and wanted to 

look more into the lack of diversity. 

Mason felt it was his duty to tell 

this story, feeling the history behind 

Photograph by Kayano Waite 

Soul on Ice: Past, Present and Future director, Damon Kwame Mason , poses next to a poster for 

his film. 

the game needed to be preserved. 

“I took a leap of faith, sold my 

condo and invested all my money 

and time into this, and well, here 

we are.” 

It took more than three years to 

complete, yet Mason feels there are 

still many stories revolving around 

hockey, such as women’s history 

with the game. 

Mason often went to Bernice 

Carnegie for support during production. 

She has a deep connection 

to hockey. 

She is the co-founder and executive 

director of the Herbert H. 

Carnegie Future Aces Foundation, 

named after her father Herb. 

Herb Carnegie was one of many 

players interviewed for the film. 

He was born in 1919 in Toronto. 

Though never a member of the 

NHL, Carnegie made a name for 

himself as a member of the Black 

Aces, the first all-black line in hockey 

at the time. 

After retiring from hockey in 

1954, Herb created the Future Aces 

Hockey School in 1955, the first 

hockey school in Canada, according 

to his daughter. 

His last recorded interview was 

for this film. He died at the age 

of 92, nine days after being interviewed. 

“I’ve seen the film several times, 

and every time I break down,” says 

Bernice. 

She says while hockey is still seen 

a white man’s game, she believes 

the league is making inroads to be 

inclusive. 

And Bernice looks at Mason’s 

work ethic to produce his film as 

an example for younger people to 

achieve their goals. 

“If you have the heart and soul 

to want to do something,” she says. 

“You should carry it as far as you 

possibly can.” 

Bernice says finding financial or 

personal support may be difficult 

but having a passion for the sport 

is key to success. 

“That was the spirit my father 

had, that he never gave up on 

anything in his life, and as a result 

accomplished so much.” 

Johnson says the problems he has 

had with his race have decreased 

with age and time. 

Now, he is focused on the game 

itself and growing with the Ridgebacks. 

“With us evolving and the culture 

of our team, I would like to 

look at myself as one of these leaders 

for our team,” Johnson says. “In 

the next couple of years I’d hopefully 

like to bring this team to a 

championship.” 

Indian students host their own cricket tournament 

ISA took 

things into 

its own 

hands 

Dan Koehler 

The Chronicle 

Cheering and yelling filled the 

Campus Fieldhouse when the Indian 

Student Association (ISA) held 

its first ever student-run cricket 

tournament. 

Six teams took part in the competition 

March 8, and the top teams 

played their finals March 15. 

The tournament had to be run 

by the ISA after the Student Association 

(SA) cancelled intramurals 

after not enough teams signed up. 

But cancelling intramurals didn’t 

change the fact students still wanted 

to play. 

“I made an application for my 

SA (event application), and they 

said OK I can have one (tournament),” 

said Krishnanan Thanpremkumar, 

vice-president of the 

ISA and a second-year student in 

the protection, security, and investigation 

program at DC. “This is 

the first year we are doing a tournament 

by the students, not the 

school.” 

Each team paid $35 to enter the 

tournament, compared to the $20 

dollars per student that the SA 

charged for intramurals. 

Awards were given to the winning 

team, as well as trophies for 

best batsman, best bowler, and 

most valuable player. 

“We went out of our way and 

pitched our own money in for 

cups (trophies),” said Narmata 

Jeyachandran, a member of the 

ISA and scorekeeper for the tournament. 

“We give best bowler and 

best batsman $50 gift cards.” 

This game gives 

you life lessons. 

Jeyachandran, who will take 

over running the tournament next 

year for Thanpremkumar after he 

graduates, says cricket means the 

world to the players. 

“To some of these guys, cricket is 

their everything,” she said. “One 

of these guys had a mid-term and 

he skipped it just to play cricket.” 

Nitharsan Thajipkumar, a UOIT 

student who has played cricket for 

more than 10 years, says the game 

is very competitive and teamwork 

is crucial. 

“You need to coordinate with 

your team and be together with the 

team,” he said. “This game gives 

you life lessons.” 

Cricket shares similarities with 

baseball, but is still very different 

in its own unique way. It is a less 

forgiving game than other sports, 

says Thajipkumar. 

“If you play soccer you can lose 

a goal in the first half but make it 

back in the second half. Cricket is 

not like that,” Thajipkumar said. 

“From beginning to end, you need 

to play properly.” 

The ISA has become an important 

part of student life for its members. 

Thanpremkumar says most 

of the players in the tournament 

are international students, with the 

exception of two. 

“We started the ISA to make a 

change for Indian students, and 

that’s what we’re doing,” said Jeyachandran. 

Although the ISA has been 

around for a few years, this year 

they are trying to put themselves 

out there more, Jeyachandran 

said. On March 9 the ISA hosted 

Mother Language Day at the UA 

auditorium to celebrate the many 

languages of India. 

“There’s more than 50 states in 

India and every state has its own 

language,” said Camran Nazir, a 

player in the tournament and member 

of the ISA. 

Jeyachandran hopes to grow the 

ISA even more next year by hosting 

more events. 

“The ISA helps Indian students 

get their opportunity and get their 

values and beliefs out,” she said. 

“We want to show everyone, ‘hey, 

we’re here too’.”

Sports chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 37 

Changing concussion culture 

Christopher Jones 

The Chronicle 

Can you imagine being absolutely 

fine one moment, and then suddenly 

completely off the next? Can you 

imagine what it would be like to 

be an athlete on top of the world 

only for it to come crashing down 

around you? To be leading the 

American Hockey League (AHL) 

in goals one second, only to sometimes 

need help up the stairs the 

next? 

That’s what happened to former 

UOIT men’s hockey coach, Craig 

Fisher. He was the coach of the 

Ridgebacks from 2010-2012. 

On Nov. 12, 1999, Fisher suffered 

his third concussion when 

he took a knee to the head only to 

immediately fall again, hitting his 

head on the ice while playing for 

the Rochester Americans of the 

AHL. 

Since that incident, Fisher has 

also taken a puck to the head while 

coaching the Whitby Fury of the 

Ontario Junior Hockey League 

(OJHL). 

Fisher is still dealing with the 

symptoms to this day, which is 

why he felt the need to step aside 

as coach of the Ridgebacks. 

But what does Fisher have exactly? 

He has a Traumatic Brain Injury 

(TBI) that has had lingering 

effects for almost two decades. 

Fisher developed his TBI due to 

the three concussions he received 

throughout his hockey career. 

Today, Fisher isn’t coaching 

anymore, but he’s taken on an advisory 

role for the UOIT athletics 

program. 

“I have always been involved in 

counselling hockey players with 

TBI as it can really help to talk to 

someone who has lived through 

and is continuing to live through a 

brain injury,” says Fisher. “I continue 

to do this with both UOIT 

players and players from other 

leagues who contact me.” 

According to Fisher, the difference 

in the level of understanding 

of concussions is immense. 

“I was hurt in 1999 which was 

the very beginning of the new 

‘concussion era’ in hockey,” Fisher 

says. “Before then, players were not 

aware of this issue - it really still was 

the ‘got your bell rung and go back 

out there’ era.” 

Fisher isn’t the only one working 

with players who suffer from concussion 

symptoms. Jeff Watson, a 

strength and conditioning coach at 

UOIT says, “Virtually once they’re 

diagnosed with a concussion, the 

next thing to do is to wait until 

Athletic therapist, Saul Behrman, sits in his office. 

they’re symptom free for anything. 

So they have to be symptom free 

in just daily active living, and then 

once they can pass that test, then 

we put them through a little bit of 

a stress test.” 

Watson says the stress test is 

when they get the athletes heart 

rate up. If any symptoms come up, 

they have to restart and wait until 

the athlete is completely symptom 

free once again. 

Watson also says those in the athletic 

therapy department, such as 

Saul Behrman, would work closer 

with athletes. 

Behrman is one of the main 

athletic therapists at UOIT, and 

he says that there are a few parts to 

UOIT’s concussion protocol. The 

first is recognition. This simply 

means recognizing the symptoms 

in athletes while they are in practice 

or competing. 

“A lot of the studies are showing 

that the faster you recognize the 

concussions and get them into the 

protocol the better and faster their 

return to play is,” says Behrman. 

After recognizing the symptoms, 

the athlete is put through testing. 

The SCAT3 test is the standard 

concussion assessment tool. It tests 

things ranging from memory and 

balance to sensitivity to light. Ultimately, 

this is to determine if the 

athlete is experiencing something 

out of the ordinary. 

After the SCAT3 tests, Behrman 

and the rest of the Athletic Therapy 

department bring athletes into the 

clinic to use tools such as Impact, 

which, according to Behrman, 

helps test their reaction time and 

memory while comparing the results 

to how they were before the 

concussion. 

Behrman also says the Athletic 

Therapy department gives the 

athletes advice on how to deal with 

their symptoms. “Things like initially 

cognitive rest and not using 

their cell phone or their computers. 

There’s a lot of instruction that we 

give them on how to rest in the goal 

of decreasing their symptoms,” 

says Behrman, who starts athletes 

into their return to play protocol. 

“Basically there’s a number depending 

on how the patient presents. 

We may differ the types of 

treatment we do. There’s manual 

therapy in the clinic if some of their 

symptoms are related to neck problems. 

And there’s visual testing we 

can do, and there’s exercise based 

therapy that we can give to help 

with symptoms.” 

The return to learn protocol has 

athletes attend class and do some 

school work in order to make sure 

that cognitively no symptoms flare 

up. If all goes well, the athlete can 

be reintroduced into class. Athletic 

Therapists also work with the 

accommodations department at 

Durham or UOIT if the athlete 

needs any accommodations for 

their schoolwork. 

In order to get the athlete back 

onto the field, Behrman says, “We 

have a graded return to play. What 

we do is we take someone who’s 

returning from a concussion and 

once their scores have returned to 

baseline levels and their symptoms 

have decreased, we would start to 

introduce a graded return to play.” 

A graded return to play, according 

to Behrman, means starting at 

a lighter level of activity and seeing 

how the athlete responds to that. 

Photograph by Christopher Jones 

Former NHL player and Ridgebacks men's hockey coach, Craig Fisher, still works at UOIT as an Athletics Coordinator. 

Photograph by Christopher Jones 

This could mean something like 

a 20-minute bike ride. If they pass 

that, then the athlete has to do 

some more strenuous exercise and 

Behrman keeps track of their heart 

rate and blood pressure. 

From there, the athlete may be 

introduced into some sport specific 

drills. “If they’re a basketball player 

[that means] having them do some 

specific drills related to basketball,” 

says Behrman. 

Behrman also says between all 

of these phases, the athletic therapists 

are leaving 24 hours to continue 

monitoring the athlete. If 

the athlete continues to progress 

well, then the athlete is introduced 

into non-contact practice, then to 

a contact practice and then back 

into play, according to Behrman. 

“The difference [in concussion 

protocol] is immense as there is 

such a greater level of understanding 

about the long and short-term 

effects of traumatic brain issue,” 

said Fisher. 

Concussions protocol at UOIT 

gives athletes who suffer from a 

head injury a chance to one day 

play again, which is something 

many athletes, such as Fisher, did 

not used to have. 

After almost 20 years, Craig 

Fisher still has moments when his 

Traumatic Brain Injury affects 

him. He still sometimes has trouble 

getting up the stairs on his own. For 

Fisher, the room is still sometimes 

spinning. 

“All and all, the culture of 

[sports] has made real progress 

in raising awareness of this issue. 

Hopefully the next step will be better 

support and protection for all 

players,” says Fisher.

38 The Chronicle March 21 - 27, 2017 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca Sports 

Baseball stadiums worth 

The MLB 

has some 

of the best 

stadiums in 

the world 

Michael Welsh 

The Chronicle 

PNC Park in Pittburgh is widely regarded as one of the best stadiums in baseball. 

The fresh cut grass, the bleachers, 

a stadium dog, a cold beer and of 

course some great baseball. There’s 

nothing quite like a day at the ballpark. 

The Rogers Centre is a great 

venue for people living in the GTA 

to cheer on their hometown Blue 

Jays, but with 30 MLB teams, the 

league has so much more to offer. 

So this summer, why not pack up 

the car with a few friends and hit 

the road to one of the many gorgeous 

and historic ballparks within 

a day’s drive of Toronto. 

Baseball is the ultimate family 

game, with roots that go back almost 

200 years. Baseball historian 

and Canadian Baseball Hall of 

Fame inductee, William Humber, 

says the game’s deep, traditional 

roots are what make it attractive to 

so many different types of people. 

“People are able to trace their 

love of the game back many generations,” 

says Humber. “I have 

grandchildren now that are fourth 

generations fans of the game.” 

Humber is a published author 

who has written multiple books 

about sports in Canada, particularly 

baseball. He also teaches a 

course at Seneca College called 

Baseball Spring Training for Fans. 

He recommends his students visit 

other stadiums, besides the Rogers 

Centre. 

One of the problems with getting 

young people to visit baseball 

stadiums is that the game does not 

have the same appeal for young 

people as it used to. 

According to Geoff Baker of 

the Seattle Times, the MLB has 

the oldest fans of any major sport. 

Many people believe the slow pace 

of the game turns young people 

away, however Humber believes 

this isn’t true. 

“When the Blue Jays became a 

good team the past couple of seasons 

it was largely young people going 

out to the games and enjoying 

the full experience,” Humber says. 

“We like the speed it up tempo of 

other games but baseball has an 

endearing charm.” 

The Blue Jays’ success has been a 

lot of fun to watch, but it has come 

at a cost for fans wanting to see a 

game live. Toronto had an average 

attendance of 41,000 last season, 

which was tops in the AL. 

Tickets sold out weeks in advance 

for much of the summer. Fans 

wanting to catch a game either 

had to plan a long time before going 

or had to pay much more on 

the second-hand market. 

The narrative is likely to be the 

same this year should the Blue 

Jays enjoy similar success. Taking 

a drive to a foreign ballpark would 

give you a better chance at getting 

tickets for a reasonable price. 

The success has also been very 

beneficial to youth baseball in the 

GTA. 

According to Howard Birnie, 

president of the Leaside Baseball 

Association, enrollment was up 

over 25 per cent in the summer of 

2016 compared to 2015. Humber 

Photograph courtesy of Michael Welsh 

Baseball stadiums are an exciting experience for everyone. 

says it’s no surprise baseball interest 

has spiked in the GTA at the same 

time the Blue Jays have fielded their 

most competitive team for the in 

over two decades. 

“The Blue Jays are the benchmark 

for baseball in not just Toronto 

but all of Canada,” says Humber. 

“As the Jays improve, suddenly 

people are more aware of the game, 

particularly kids. They want to play 

it and watch.” 

Interest in baseball as a whole 

continues to grow. Attendance 

across the league has never been 

higher. Fans flock from all around 

to have a full entertainment experience 

at the state of the art stadiums 

baseball has to offer. Every ballpark 

has unique features and provides its 

own atmosphere. Whether it be the 

history, framework, or attractions 

within the stadium, each of these 

parks is worth paying a visit to this 

summer. 

PNC Park - Pittsburgh 

-Opened in 2001 

-575 km from DC/UOIT 

-Blue Jays do not play there this 

season 

PNC Park is home to the Pittsburgh 

Pirates and is widely regarded 

as one jewels in all of baseball. 

Built with a salute to classic 

stadiums like Fenway and Wrigley, 

it is a modern stadium that has a 

feel of an old-time ballpark. When 

PNC opened it was named the best 

stadium in the MLB by ESPN. 

The stadium is located along the 

Allegheny River with spectacular 

views of the downtown skyline from 

the outfield. 

The stadium is easily accessible 

from the downtown core. From 

the Roberto Clemente Bridge you 

can see the arches which make the 

concourse of PNC so recognizable. 

On game days, the bridge is closed 

off to cars and transformed into 

an interactive experience for fans. 

Photograph by Michael Welsh 

Fans can enjoy some food and a 

beer while listening to live music 

and playing games before entering 

the stadium. 

The 38,000-seat venue is the 

perfect mixture of old-time charm 

with all the modern amenities to 

create an exceptional fan experience. 

Comerica Park - Detroit 



-Blue Jays will be at Comerica 

July 14-16 

Comerica Park is a centerpiece 

of the revival of downtown Detroit. 

An area that was once avoided by 

many people has become an entertainment 

hub. 

Baseball has 

an endearing 

charm. 

The stadium is right beside Ford 

Field, home to the NFL’s Detroit 

Lions and right across the street 

from the soon-to-be-complete 

Little Caesar’s Arena, future home 

of the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings 

and the NBA’s Pistons. Detroit will 

be the only city in North America 

to have an MLB, NFL, NHL and 

NBA team in its downtown core. 

The area around the stadium is 

loaded with sports bars, including 

Cheli’s Bar, owned by former Red 

Wing Chris Chelios, located right 

across the street. The area is also 

full of sports stores and lots of parking 

for easy access to the stadium. 

The inside of the ballpark was 

designed with the whole family in 

mind. There is a ferris wheel and 

carousel for kids to enjoy, a giant 

water feature in centre field that 

celebrates Tigers’ homeruns and 

other moments in the game. For 

the adults, there is a beer garden 

on the main concourse and a brew 

house on the second deck. 

Fans can also check out the Walk 

of Fame. It has statues and plaques 

of Tigers’ legends going all the way 

back to the 1800’s. 

Wrigley Field - Chicago 

-Opened in 1914 


-Blue Jays will be at Wrigley 

August 18-20 

Wrigley Field is one of the most 

historic stadiums in all of sports. 

With over 100 years of history, a 

visit to Wrigley is an experience 

of its own, a baseball game is just 

the cherry on top. The home of the 

2016 World Series champion Cubs 

is known for its ivy outfield wall and 

scoreboard that is still operated by 

hand. 

Unlike most major league teams, 

the Cubs play most of their games 

during the daytime, even on weekdays. 

The only time they play at 

night is for nationally televised 

broadcasts. Wrigley Field didn’t 

even add lights on the field until 

1988. This is just another way the 

Cubs have stuck to the traditional 

roots of baseball. 

Given the age of Wrigley, many 

people have been calling for a new 

stadium for decades. This idea is 

not usually met with agreement 

from those who love the history 

and feel of this classic park. 

Wrigley is currently undergoing 

renovations of over $500 million to 

make the stadium more modern. 

The renovations go beyond just the 

park though. The Cubs are working 

with business owners to revitalize 

the neighbourhood around the 

park with new restaurants, hotels 

and stores. 

To get a truly unique experience 

unlike anywhere else, fans 

can watch the game from rooftop 

bleachers across the street. Since 

the 1980’s, building owners across 

the street from Wrigley have sold 

tickets that overlook the outfield 

wall and right into the stadium. 

This is truly a one a kind way to 

watch a baseball game. 

Fenway Park - Boston 



-Blue Jays will be at Fenway July 

17-20, September 4-6 and 25-27 

The only stadium in baseball that 

could challenge Wrigley for its rich 

history is Fenway Park. The home 

of the Boston Red Sox has been 

used as much more than a baseball 

stadium in its more than 100 years. 

The stadium is used to host special 

European soccer games, outdoor 

hockey games, NCAA football and 

is a popular concert venue. 


Sports chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - March 27, 2017 The Chronicle 39 

visiting this summer 


Wrigley Field is one of the most iconic and historic venues in all of sports. 

Continued from page 38 

Fenway has many unique features. 

The one red seat amongst 

the green outfield bleachers and 

“Pesky’s Pole” are a big part of 

Fenway’s history but no features at 

Fenway are more famous than the 

“Green Monster”. The 37-foot left 

field wall is unlike anything in all 

of baseball. It is a marvel for fans to 

look at, but a beast that outfielders 

must deal with every game. 

Balls that would be a fly-out 

in any other stadium become 

homeruns when hit to left field 

at Fenway. Games in Boston are 

unpredictable due to the unique 

dimensions of the field created by 

the “Green Monster” and the short 

wall in right field. 

Like Wrigley, the age of Fenway 

has been a constant topic 

amongst fans. Over the past two 

decades, there have been multiple 

attempts by city officials and Red 

Sox management to build a new 

stadium. 

Each time groups of fans who 

love the classic stadium manage 

to block the plans. Over the past 

ten years, Fenway has been under 

constant construction to ensure it 

remains structurally intact. 

Every home game during the 

middle of the eighth inning fans 

Photograph courtesy of Michael Welsh 

Blue Jays fans always travel when Toronto plays in Boston. 

sing the classic Neil Diamond song 

“Sweet Caroline.” No matter what 

the status of the game, the classic 

tradition is carried out and creates 

an atmosphere that can’t be 

matched. 

Coca-Cola Field - Buffalo 

(Humber’s recommendation) 



-Buffalo is Toronto’s minor 

league affiliate 

Coca-Cola Field is not home to 

a major league club. The Buffalo 

Bisons of Triple-A International 

League call it home. The Bisons 

are Toronto’s AAA team. This is a 

great trip fans could take in a day, 

for a reasonable price. The minor 

league stadium provides a much 

more intimate experience than a 

major league park. 

The stadium was built in 1988 on 

hopes Buffalo would land an MLB 

expansion club. Coca-Cola Field 

currently has a capacity of less than 

17,000 but has the potential to be 

expanded to over 40,000 by adding 

a second deck. 

The stadium itself is nothing special. 

It is the overall experience that 

makes a trip to Coca-Cola Field 

worthwhile. 

The most expensive ticket in the 

house is only $13.50 on a weekend 

game. For that price everybody 

has an opportunity to catch some 

great baseball in a great seat. Blue 

Jays fans may be extra interested 

in taking the trip while an injured 

big leaguer is doing their rehab 

assignment. Players exit the stadium 

through a back parking lot 

that is open to the public making is 

easy for fans to get autographs and 

photos with the players. 

This is a short drive for a good 

price. Fans can take this trip on a 

Saturday morning and be home for 

dinner. If you want to extend the 

trip, Cooperstown, NY is only a 

few hours away. Home to the Baseball 

Hall of Fame, Cooperstown is 

a trip all baseball fans have to take. 

There is nowhere on earth with 

more history and culture about 

the game. 

Going to a baseball game is 

no longer just about cheering for 

the home team or watching your 

favourite player hit a homerun. 

Fans pay for a full entertainment 

experience. Live music, interactive 

games and mascots racing around 

the field are all part of a day at the 

park. 

This summer take a trip that you 

and your friends will remember for 

a long time. Ballparks aren’t just 

for baseball fans anymore. They 

are for anyone who is looking for 

entertainment, good food and a 

cold beer in the sun. 


Coca-Cola Field delivers the charm of a minor league park.


Homophobia 

in hockey 

Putting discrimination 

in the penalty box 

Travis Fortnum 

The Chronicle 

Brock McGillis, former OHL 

player and professional goalie, lived 

the typical ‘hockey bro’ lifestyle for 

years. It was a lie. 

“I was the cocky hockey guy who 

was womanizing. I always had a 

different girlfriend,” McGillis says. 

“But I’d go home at night when I 

was 18 or 19 in the OHL and I 

would break down crying and want 

to kill myself. I would suppress it. 

I would say ‘no, no, no. You’re not 

gay,’ but the reality was that I am.” 

McGillis was never out as a player. 

He remained closeted throughout 

his pro-hockey career in the 

OHL, OUAA, UHL and while 

playing professionally in Holland. 

It wasn’t until last year he made 

headlines by coming out publicly. 

McGillis’ story is an anomaly. 

The stereotypical hockey player 

is usually hyper-masculine and as 

cold as the ice on which they spend 

so much time. 

Locker room banter includes talk 

of womanizing, partying and insulting 

each other, calling friends 

and opposing players "fags" and 

feminizing them to get under their 

skin. 

Examples include Dallas Stars’ 

captain Jamie Benn and forward 

Tyler Seguin attempting to joke 

about the Sedin twins on a Dallas 

radio station in 2015. 

“Who knows what else they do 

together,” said Benn. 

“Seriously,” Seguin added. 

Benn publicly apologized later 

that year. 

Another high-profile incident in 

2011 saw Wayne Simmonds toss a 

homophobic slur at Sean Avery. 

The language used in chirping 

and trash talk can be harmful to 

players like McGillis. 

Recently, players and officials 

within the NHL have made efforts 

to shut down offensive trash talks. 

As an organization, the NHL 

has taken steps towards LGBTQ 

inclusion not seen by most in the 

world of professional sports. 

February was officially dubbed 

Hockey is for Everyone Month. 

The NHL partnered with the You 

Can Play organization to host a 

number of ‘Pride Night’ games. 

This included logos for the NHL 

and its teams decked out in rainbow 

colours; as were players’ sticks, 

thanks to Pride Tape, a rainbow 

coloured hockey tape. 

Even Brad Marchand, an elite 

offensive talent on the Boston 

Bruins, has done his best to make 

everyone feel safe in hockey. 

On the ice, Marchand is one of 

the most controversial players in 

the game. Off the ice, he’s spent 

the last few months being vocal in 

support of the LGBTQ community. 

Last December, a hockey fan 

took to Twitter to send some trash 

talk Marchand’s way. 

Players will use 

anything to get 

under another 

player's skin. 

“Put Chara’s d**k back in your 

mouth you f***ing f*g,” they tweeted 

at him. 

Marchand responded by quoting 

the tweet for all to see. “This 

derogatory statement is offensive to 

so many people around the world 

[you’re] the kind of kid parents are 

ashamed of,” he said shutting down 

the hater. 

“I think it’s cool that Marchand 

did that,” says McGillis, who now 

delivers presentations as an advocate 

for LGBTQ equality. “I think 

we can always use as many allies as 

we can get.” 

In an interview with ESPN, Marchand 

says, “I want to stand up for 

what I believe in, and I don’t think 

it’s right when people say things or 

bash people because of their sexual 

orientation.” 

He went on to say NHL players 

would accept a gay teammate “no 

question”. 

But in the 100 years the NHL 

has been around, there has not 

been a single confirmed LGBTQ 

player from the nearly 6,000 to hit 

the ice. 

TSN stats expert Kevin Gibson 

says the trash talk might be to 

blame. 

“Players will use anything to 

Photograph by Brian Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images 

Screencap Tweeted by Brad Marchand 

Brad Marchand during warmups before the Bruins February 11 game against the Vancouver 

Canucks. Marchand is using a stick decked out with Pride Tape. 

Photograph by Darren Jackinsky / Blue Fish Studios 

get under another player’s skin,” 

Gibson says. “Mother jokes, sisters, 

wives. If there’s sexuality in question, 

I’m sure that type of language 

would be used.” 

And it has been used, time and 

time again. 

During the first round of the 

playoffs in April 2016, Andrew 

Shaw made headlines after angrily 

lashing out at an official using a 

homophobic slur. 

After public outrage, Shaw issued 

a standard apology and was suspended 

for one game. 

It’s not just members of the LG- 

BTQ community this language 

affects. NHL players, like professional 

athletes in most sports, are 

looked up to as role models. 

“You’re going to have a lot of 

kids going to games,” Gibson says, 

“they can hear what the players are 

saying on the ice. You don’t want 

the kids going to schools and using 

that language.” 

With every game being televised 

and an increase in the popularity of 

ice level mic feeds, players need to 

be more careful with their words. 

By partnering with You Can 

Play, the NHL has shown they are 

working to do just that. 

You Can Play is a non-profit organization 

working to ensure the 

safety and inclusion of all people 

in sports. 

“Our idea is that an athlete 

should be judged on their skill, 

their work ethic and their competitive 

spirit and not on their gender 

identity and/or sexual orientation,” 

says Chris Mosier, VP of Program 

Development and Community Relations. 

Essentially: if you can play, you 

can play. 

Mosier himself was the first out 

trans athlete to join a U.S. national 

team. 

He had the chance to take part in 

the Hockey is for Everyone Month 

festivities, shooting the puck during 

a sold-out Blackhawks game. 


Sports chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 41 

From page 40 

“It was great because it wasn’t 

just LGBTQ athletes and fans in 

the stadium,” Mosier says. “While 

it was targeted towards the inclusion 

of all people, it was not specifically 

only LGBTQ night.” 

Fans in attendance were just 

there to see a game. 

“It was great for regular fans to 

get this information and see that 

hockey really is for everyone,” 

Mosier says. 

“That the NHL is making a 

pointed effort to say ‘we appreciate 

our LGBTQ fans, and potentially 

athletes and coaches that might 

be out there, and you’re welcome 

here.’” 

Though progress is being made, 

McGillis thinks the problem needs 

a bigger fix than a month. 

“I think the NHL is trying to 

take some initiative, and organizations 

like You Can Play are working 

hard to change it,” he says. 

However, for McGillis the issue 

is still very real. He believes part 

of the problem is those involved in 

the game aren’t looking at the issue 

from a grassroots level. 

“We’re products of our environment. 

The language you hear in 

locker rooms starts at novice, 

tyke…” says McGillis. 

“No one really knows what it 

means at that age, but they’re using 

it and then they get older and it’s 

habit. I work with athletes every 

day. Triple A, junior, professional 

hockey players that know I’m gay 

and still say it and then go ‘oh’.” 

McGillis believes the players 

don’t always mean what they say 

in a malicious sense, but that it’s 

hard to break old habits. 

“They’re recognizing and I 

think that’s half the battle, to get 

people to recognize that they’re 

using those words,” he says. “It’s 

the same thing with racist comments 

or sexist comments.” 

McGillis says he’s known closeted 

players with a lot of potential 

who have left the game because of 

homophobic language. 

These are not isolated incidents. 

For players in this situation, 

You come into this world where nobody really cares 

if you're black, you're white, you're coloured, you're 

Muslim, you're Israeli, gay, straight or otherwise. 

leagues specifically geared towards 

members of the LGBTQ community 

exist. For instance, the Toronto 

Gay Hockey Association (TGHA) 

which has over 170 members, making 

up 11 teams. 

Advancements in inclusivity 

within the sport have begun to 

become apparent to those involved. 

“As the league gets older and 

Photograph from Brock McGillis' Instagram 

Brock McGillis (middle) works with players like Jake Burton (left) and Alex Rodrigue of the 

Sudbury Wolves, McGillis' former OHL team. 

older, you need new people to come 

in,” says Chris Murray, commissioner 

for the TGHA. “A lot of the 

younger crowd say my team that 

I’ve been playing with for 5-10 

years doesn’t care if I’m gay, so 

I’m just going to stay where I am.” 

Murray calls it a utopian evolution. 

“You come to this world 

where nobody really cares if 

you’re black, you’re white, you’re 

coloured, you’re Muslim, you’re Israeli, 

gay, straight or otherwise,” 

says Murray. 

“You’re just playing with the 

people you’ve always played with.” 

The progress made in the past 

few years alone has brought the 

hockey world closer to being a safe 

place for the LGBTQ community 

than ever before. 

Andrew Quinlan, a forward in 

the TGHA, says the league itself 

is more respectful than others he 

plays in. 

“There’s less trash talking,” 

Quinlan says, “it definitely still 

gets heated on the ice, like in any 

hockey league, but there’s less trash 

talking and never any fights.” 

While Quinlan himself has been 

fortunate enough to not face homophobia 

on the ice, he acknowledges 

the issue in the game today. 

“I would be surprised to learn if 

other leagues, at least in Toronto, 

have the same sense of community 

that our hockey league has built. It 

goes beyond hockey.” 

Homophobic trash talk players 

once used without a care is slowly 

becoming a rarity. 

“It’s not as big of an issue today,” 

McGillis says. “Is there full 

equality? No. Society has shifted. 

If sports don’t shift, then they’re 

falling behind, and they have.” 

Now, McGillis stays involved 

in the game with current players 

doing off-ice training, on-ice skill 

development and in-season mentoring. 

What advice would he offer to 

LGBTQ players? 

“They need to learn to accept 

themselves,” he says. 

“Before they start thinking about 

how it will affect their hockey or 

sports or life, they have to accept 

and love themselves and then from 

there, know that you’re strong. You 

can achieve greatness. You have it 

in you.” 

Photograph by Darren Jackinsky / Blue Fish Studios


The injury reserve 

Many 

athletes 

don't retire 

when they 

wish, they're 

forced to 

Joshua Nelson 

The Chronicle 

When Sarah Kentish’s gymnastics 

career ended, it wasn’t in front of 

a large crowd of screaming fans 

cheering her on. It wasn’t a largescale 

retirement speech that would 

be remembered by millions, nor 

was it included in a heartfelt biography. 

In fact, the only person who 

knew was Kentish herself. 

Kentish was stuck upside down 

on the balance beam. She couldn’t 

shift her sense of gravity to regain 

her balance and pull herself up. 

Her coach wondered if she was 

goofing off or messing around. 

This could not have been further 

from the truth. 

“It was the strangest feeling, I 

wasn’t even sure what happened, 

one minute I was tumbling, the 

next minute I was frozen in time,” 

says Kentish. 

Kentish suffers from what is 

known as a Kim Lesion, a progressive 

injury located in her shoulder, 

which tore on the beam. The injury 

involves a tear in the muscle located 

behind the shoulder socket. At 

anytime the shoulder can drop into 

a depression and simply dislocate 

resulting in pain and discomfort. 

Not realizing the extent of her injury, 

Kentish continued performing 

her routines, causing her shoulder 

to become progressively more damaged. 

With her body seemingly 

failing her, questions arose. Was 

she pushing herself too hard? Not 

getting enough rest? Performing 

her routines wrong? 

For many athletes like Kentish, 

the horrors of a career-ending injury 

can be unexpected and quick, 

forcing athletes to accept their fate 

and begin the road to recovery, 

even if that means never playing 

the sport they love ever again. 

For an athlete, this can be devastating 

often prompting questions of, 

what if? But the first question that 

appears is, what happened? 

Some injuries can be identified. 

Others lie deep within the body 

and require X-rays or even surgery. 

The second question is how 

did this happen? Many injuries 

can happen in an instant due to 

sudden stress on the body, like a 

broken bone or a concussion. Other 

injuries are ongoing and may affect 

someone for months or even years 

before the athlete takes notice. This 

was the case with Kentish. 

The final and most important 

question athletes have is, what can 

I do about this injury? This question 

differs for everyone, as many 

athletes have varying degrees of 

severity to their injury. 

Can we react to prevent injuries? 

Well, yes and no. Many injuries 

Sarah Kentish's gymnastics career ended when she developed a Kim Lesion. 

appear without warning and are 

usually due to stress of a play gone 

awry. Surgery is often required in 

these instances as athletes put more 

stress on their body than regular 

people. 

According to Dr. Slade Shantz, 

an orthopaedic surgeon specializing 

in shoulder injuries, the severity 

of an injury can be the deciding 

factor as to whether or not surgery 

may be needed. 

“The main thing for me is how 

peoples’ activities and daily living 

and how their quality of life is affected,” 

says Dr. Shantz, who works 

at The Shoulder Centre located at 

Rouge Valley Health System. 

For Kentish, her injury was too 

severe to continue her gymnastics. 

Her life altered forever. She would 

need constant physiotherapy to rehabilitate 

her injury. 

“It was quite devastating for me, 

I worked really hard to do what I 

did and this one injury took the end 

of my career,” says Kentish, who 

started gymnastics when she was 

just 16 months old. 

This experience for Kentish 

mirrors what a lot of athletes 

experience. 

After the realization sets in, the 

Photograph by Joshua Nelson 

question then becomes, what are 

the options for recovery? Although 

surgery is an option, to most, it is 

their last resort. 

“First I tried strengthening with 

a physiotherapist. That didn’t really 

work so I went to a surgeon who 

suggested I take cortisone shots and 

see if bringing the inflammation 

down would help heal my shoulder. 

We tried. It didn’t work so ultimately 

surgery was my [last option],” 

says Kentish, who had her surgery 

on August 23, 2016. 

Even if Kentish had the option to 

avoid surgery, simply working hard 

to regain what she once lost would 

be a daunting task. 

To get the mobility or strength 

back after an injury can be a huge 

undertaking and it may never 

fully heal. Lori Karikari, a registered 

physiotherapist and the Vice 

President of Complete Performance 

Centre in Ajax, believes following 

certain steps is a requirement for 

injuries to heal. 

“If it’s something really acute, 

often times there’s a lot of manual 

therapy and hands-on work initially, 

education about positions… as 

they move through the stages of 

healing… you get into the strengthening 

phase,” says Karikari, who 

has been a practicing physiotherapist 

since 2004. 

Limitations need to be placed on 

athletes who have injuries, as is the 

case with Kentish. 

“I was put immediately after 

surgery into a cast, which held my 

hand at a handshake position for 

eight weeks. I was then allowed to 

work with my arm but not anywhere 

past a 90 degree range, right 

now, months after surgery, I’m still 

not able to lift anything near five 

pounds using two hands,” says 

Kentish, who now goes for physiotherapy 

once a week. 

Limitations like the ones placed 

on Kentish can hold someone back 

from a quick recovery. But after an 

injury is assessed and the verdict is 

given, the next step is always rehabilitation, 

and if pursued, physiotherapy. 

Physiotherapy is not mandatory, 

but can be chosen to further 

improve and heal an injury. 

“Physiotherapy means going for 

a specific guided program by a 

physiotherapist and it can be really 

helpful, especially for motivation, 

and they have certain access to 

things like ultrasound and laser 

and electrical stimulation that patients 

just wouldn’t have at home,” 

says Dr. Shantz, who is interested in 

using technology to create a more 

patient oriented healthcare system. 

According to an article by Sports 

Medicine and Science Council of Saskatchewan, 

physiotherapy is different 

from athletic therapy. Athletic 

therapy is really only available for 

athletes while physiotherapy is 

available for everyone, even those 

who do not participate in sports. 

“As physios, we see patients who 

have unfortunately had an injury 

whether it be sport-related… or 

work-related, slip and falls, a variety 

of reasons,” says Karikari, who 

works with various professional 

athletes, including members of the 

Toronto Argonauts. 

Athletes can only be so aware 

of their own bodies; an injury can 

happen extremely fast or be the 

result of something long-term. It’s 

the risk they take to do the sport 

they love. 

“You have to take care of yourself 

first,” says Kentish, who had 

her surgery and subsequent rehabilitation 

in 2016. “You have to 

make sure you’re healthy or your 

sport will not progress, try to get 

yourself healed.”

chronicle.durhamcollege.ca March 21 - 27, 2017 The Chronicle 43

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