Fasken’s Health Group invites you to a webinar featuring Ross Gascho, Leader of Fasken’s Pensions and Benefits Group, and Laurie Turner, Co-Leader of Fasken’s Health Law Group (as moderator).
In this session, Ross will discuss Health sector retirement plans. They are more than just HOOPP! Several new plans allow employers and employees to participate on a fixed-cost basis in a defined benefit or defined contribution plan without the employer having the burden of running the plan. Whether you are administering an existing plan, thinking about a plan for your employees, or are a private physician, this webinar is for you.
Agenda
12:00 – 1:00 pm ET live webinar with live Q&A
Type
This event is only available via webinar
1Hours
Available Via Webinar
* Note: This programme contains 1 hour of Substantive content for the purposes of the Law Society of Ontario’s annual Continuing Professional Development (CPD) requirements.
For CPD/CLE in other jurisdictions, please contact your local Law Society
Planning for future extreme heat emergencies includes short-term planning and long-term preparation in Oak Bay. Fire Chief Frank Macdonald outlined the district’s approach to council during its July 11 meeting.
More than 700 people in B.C. died last year due to extreme heat events, according to the provincial health authority, with 21 of them on southern Vancouver Island.
In response to those events, Oak Bay Emergency Services staff has been preparing for extreme summer heat events, working to reduce risks to the health and safety of residents.
Over the one-week heat wave, temperatures rose to a peak of over 40 C in many parts of the province. But different regions were impacted disproportionately, Macdonald told council. Island Health and BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) in the Capital Region didn’t report the impact other areas saw. For example, Oak Bay Fire Department was not overwhelmed by medical calls to help BCEHS like their counterparts in Vancouver. There the fire department was, at one point, fully tied up in medical calls amid significant ambulance delays, leaving no resources available for fire response.
While the impacts were less severe, Macdonald noted weather scientists predict hotter summers and extreme heat events should be expected.
Heat events are classified as top-down events, meaning local emergency programs follow the lead of the province. Under the BC Heat Alert and Response System launched in June, a dedicated provincial heat committee will issue either warnings or emergency alerts, depending on different temperature thresholds. If a region is expected to see two or more consecutive days with daytime highs and nighttime lows above what is considered normal, a warning will be issued. If temperatures are expected to continue to increase day over day for three or more days, an extreme heat emergency will be declared and Alert Ready may be used. That emergency alert system should be familiar to residents as Amber Alerts and tsunami warnings on television, radio and cellphones.
Local protocols created by the Oak Bay Emergency Program include education, partnerships, communication, block watch, the Greater Victoria Public Library, Oak Bay Volunteers Services and other local governments. The partnerships focus on education, checking in on vulnerable residents during an event, and providing a place to cool for those who need.
In the event of an extreme heat event the air-conditioned common areas of Oak Bay Recreation Centre, Monterey centre and the Oak Bay branch of the Greater Victoria Public Library, serve as unmanned cooling centres. Neighbouring municipalities confirm their cooling centres will be open to Oak Bay residents living in the area.
OBEP plans to share information through a new preparedness guide, presentations at Monterey centre, displays during the monthly night market and both traditional and social media.
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Envision Bend is staging the launch week for the Bend Vision Project, after a quieter phase of interviewing many around the community about the future, so now it’s time for the public to get involved.
Four people spoke at Tuesday evening’s kickoff of that next phase.
Envision Bend has completed the “quiet phase,” having interviewed community leaders and “connectors,” recruiting project partners and researching trends — global, national, and local.
The Bend Vision Project is an effort to envision a better future for Bend and what the community wants Bend to look like the upcoming years. In the launch week, there will be events, workshops, and prize giveaways.
Here is the schedule of Envision Bend events during Launch Week:
• Participation at Oregon Adaptive Sports’ Bike Night, 4 to 7 p.m., July 13, at Pine Nursery Park, 3750 N.E. Purcell Blvd., Bend • Bend Vision Project ‘Listen & Envision’ public virtual workshop, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., July 14, via Zoom (pre-register required https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/bend-vision-projects-listenenvision-workshops-752749) • Participation at the Central Oregon Latino Partnership Program’s Conexiones event, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., July 14, at The Environmental Center, 16 N.W. Kansas Ave., Bend • Participation at the Alpenglow Park grand opening with a pop-up tent, 4 to 8 p.m., July 15, the park is located at 61049 S.E. 15th St., Bend
NewsChannel 21’s Kelsey McGee attended the conference to hear from the speakers. Her report will be on NewsChannel 21 First at Ten on Fox.
Here’s a ‘snapshot report’ released Tuesday evening on the group’s findings so far:
LIV Golf teed off its first US event Thursday at Pumpkin Ridge near Portland, Oregon, after staging its debut in England in early June.
In addition to staging four more events than first envisioned, the Saudi-backed series will have 48 players contracted for all 14 events in 2023. Team captains will be able to recruit talent and make trades instead of the teams featuring a rotating cast as it has this season.
The idea would be for the 12 teams to each develop an identity with an eye toward a franchise model and selling of teams.
The quick expansion of 2023 plans is a product of signing several top US PGA players ahead of this week’s event, including Americans Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed, Brooks Koepka and Matthew Wolff and Mexico’s Abraham Ancer.
LIV Golf has settled on 10 venues for 2023, according to the report, and hopes to add more international venues while avoiding areas with US PGA Tour events.
The PGA Tour issued suspensions to 17 members and former members for playing at the LIV Golf event in England and handed down seven more for those who played the first round at Pumpkin Ridge, including Reed, Wolff, Koepka, DeChambeau, Ancer, Pat Perez and joint leader Carlos Ortiz.
Plans for the upcoming Trout Festival are moving full steam ahead – and if those plans hold true, it will look much different, with new events and several location changes.
Plans for the upcoming Trout Festival are moving full steam ahead – and if those plans hold true, it will look much different, with new events and several location changes.
Gone will be Main Street Days, along with the Fish Fry social being hosted in the Whitney Forum. Instead, this year’s event will see a shuffling of venues for some events, with several new entries.
The Fish Fry will move a few blocks over to the R.H. Channing Auditorium, with the Flin Flon Arts Council running point on the event – entertainment will be provided by several local bands. Many Main Street Days festivities will be moved to Creighton, including the carnival midway, which will be set up around the Creighton Sportex from June 30 to July 2. While Main Street will be the location of a farmer’s market and buskers event June 29, the street will remain open throughout the festival.
One Trout Festival event is already underway – the Trout Festival fishing derby, which runs until June 30 with winners announced July 8. Fish caught on any lake in either Manitoba or Saskatchewan between the 54th and 55th parallels are eligible to be entered into the contest.
The festival will include a new disc golf tournament June 25 around the Creekside Park course, a yoga in the park event June 26 at the Creighton Oval of Dreams and a skateboard demo held by Sk8 Skates from Winnipeg at the skatepark near Hapnot Collegiate. Events will take a two day pause June 27-28, but will continue June 29 with the Beat the Chief competition with the Flin Flon Fire Department, a community barbecue at Pioneer Square and the farmer’s market-busker event.
For June 30, events kick into high gear – a pool tournament at Rack’s Billiards, a second, smaller Fish Fry event at the Hooter in Creighton and a new event, the Ross Lake Regatta, in the evening – sponsors will provide kayaks and canoes and allow for boats to be launched onto Ross Lake to enjoy music, food and a front-row seat to the Canada Day fireworks display at midnight.
July 1 will see the Canada Day parade stretching from Green Street in Flin Flon all the way into Creighton, wrapping up at the Creighton ball diamond. Canada Day celebrations will continue on at Creighton and Denare Beach – 1 p.m.-4 p.m. in Creighton, 5 p.m.-midnight at the beach – along with a classic car show-and-shine will take place at Creighton Pizza. The festival will wrap up with the Flinty Golf Tournament at the Phantom Lake Golf Club July 2, along with a pig roast at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch No. 73.
The organizational structure for this year’s festival has been one of the biggest changes – instead of events being organized by a small group of volunteers as they’ve been in recent years, a selection of corporate sponsors and community groups have mainly taken the reins.
“It’s a lot easier – there’s only six of us on the committee and that’s a lot of work for six people to do. It’s great when organizations are able to step up and take care of the events,” said Colleen Arnold, the City of Flin Flon’s representative on the board.
“I don’t know why we didn’t all work together before like this – we always advertised the events and everything, but we’re working a lot more closely.”
Alex Saunders loves doing drag storytime for kids and has no plans to stop, even after being the target of online hate.
Saunders, a Saint John drag king whose stage name is Justin Toodeep, has been a drag performer for 12 years.
They’ve also been a dedicated volunteer with the YMCA and the Salvation Army, as well as spending the past five years reading books and making crafts with kids through the public library with drag storytime.
“Doing drag is about first and foremost giving back to your community,” they said.
The past week, though, Saunders experienced something they say they’ve been through before.
Alex Saunders, also known as Justin Toodeep, helped host a drag storytime with the Saint John Free Public Library on June 5. This is a photo from the actual event. (Supplied by Alex Saunders)
They’ve been receiving hate messages, some even threatening their life, after Saint John People’s Party of Canada candidate Nicholas Pereira made an online post about a drag storytime event.
Saunders was part of that event last weekend through the Saint John Free Public Library in Market Square.
Pereira paired the event’s information with an unrelated image of a young person tipping a burlesque dancer by putting money in their underwear, spreading misinformation about what drag story time is all about.
He has since deleted the post, but not before it reached hundreds, causing both strangers and people Saunders knows to attack them online.
“I haven’t been letting it get me down too much,” Saunders said. “But it makes me feel very unsafe in my own community.”
No plans to stop
Although they fear for their personal safety, Saunders has no intention of stepping back from drag performances, including events for kids.
Support from the community has kept pace with the hatred they’ve been experiencing, they said, and they plan to keep going and perform at more Pride celebrations in Saint John in August.
“The outpouring of love from my own community, and from supporters and allies has been unreal, absolutely unreal.”
The library said it has hosted four drag storytime events, intended to celebrate diversity during Pride Month, and people have been “very supportive.”
“Activities such as this are a healthy part of a child’s development as they develop an understanding of and respect for differences, while feeling free to explore identities,” head librarian Laura Corscadden said in an email.
“Programs such as this have been offered successfully over the past several years in many other public libraries in other jurisdictions around North America.”
Saunders said they want to be part of events for kids because kids don’t have very many queer role models.
“They see me out there, being my weird self and living my best life. And, you know, they fall in love with that,” Saunders said.
Saunders said because they have a charisma kids are drawn toward, the least they can do for the community is read to children and show them there are different kinds of people in the world.
“People need to know that they’re not alone. And that’s what I like about drag story time. Plus, how cool is it to read stories to kids, make them happy and give them cookies?”
What happens at drag storytime?
Blair Richardson and her family moved to New Brunswick from Toronto a year and a half ago.
Richardson, who has a young daughter nicknamed Mouse, said her family was always connected with the queer community in Toronto, going to events like drag storytime and drag brunches.
“I think a lot of youth need to not only hear it if they are part of that community, or will eventually be, but also the kids that will just grow up to be straight,” said Richardson, a supporter of the drag storytime series in Saint John.
“It’s important that they hear the regularity of the stories that are presented here, the inclusion, the messages of love.”
While she’s noticed a difference in how many queer-friendly places are available in Saint John — there are no gay bars, for example — she said attending events like drag story time has helped her family find friends when they didn’t know anybody in the city.
She even worked with the library to expand storytime events beyond just Pride week in August.
Richardson said the drag storytime events themselves are always full of colour and costume — all outfits are appropriate for kids, she added.
Her daughter also loves books and reading.
“It really combines a lot of the passions that a five year old should have, which are, you know, stage and entertainment and literacy.”
Blair Richardson’s daughter, Mouse, plans to try out drag herself for the first time this summer — using the name ‘Mouse-tache’. (Supplied by Blair Richardson)
The stories the drag kings and drag queens read to kids usually focus on themes of acceptance and being yourself — Richardson pointed to a recent story by Michael Hall called Red: A Crayon’s Story about a blue crayon inside a red wrapper that goes on a journey to find its true colours.
On top of reading stories, kids get to do crafts and have a snack at drag story time.
“It’s just a really beautiful event for kids to be a part of,” Richardson said.
Her daughter, who looks forward to drag storytime “more so than anything else in life,” is even trying out drag for the first time later this summer.
“Mouse just wants to be just like Alex, in kind of every aspect of life, and really looks up to them.”
During the heat event last year, B.C.’s ambulance system was run off its feet responding to 9-1-1 calls. To limit wait times, Health Minister Adrian Dix says more paramedics and dispatchers have been hired and additional ambulances have been brought in.
“For instance, staff may be reassigned to support areas experiencing higher call volumes and we may take measures to reduce turnaround time at hospitals.”
For heat waves, fires, floods, train derailments or any other urgent emergency, Kamloops brought in the Voyent! Alert app, which Mayor Ken Christian says will allow the city to send immediate notifications out to users.
“I would encourage residents to download the Voyent! app if they haven’t already and we’re going to have a test of that system at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday (June 8),” adds Christian.
The app will be used in addition to other measures the City enacts each year during prolonged heat, such as opening cooling centres. Christian notes that there’s also a certain level of community thoughtfulness that needs to be part of the response.
“I think we learned a lesson last year. We lost six lives in Kamloops because of heat exposure and I think many of them were in un-air-conditioned apartment buildings and they just were left alone. And what we really need to focus on is wellness checks,” reiterates Christian. “Know your neighbour, know your family members, check on them during periods of extreme heat.”
Extreme heat emergencies such as the heat dome of 2021 are expected once or twice a decade, according to the province. But it’s anticipated heat warnings could be issued as often as two or three times each summer.
Mississauga has raised the Progress Pride Flag and is lighting the clock tower to recognize the 2SLGBTQ+ community and launch the beginning of Pride Month in the city.
Earlier today (June 1) the Progress Pride Flag was raised at City Hall and the clock will be lit in rainbow colours to mark the occasion.
“Pride Month acknowledges and focuses on the history and rights of the 2SLGBTQ+ community in Mississauga. Equality, freedom, tolerance and respect are foundation values that make Mississauga a safe and inviting place to call home,” said Mayor Bonnie Crombie. “The Pride Progress flag will fly proudly at City Hall for the month of June, and the City will also be changing its logo to the Pride colours, to acknowledge our commitment to diversity, equality and respect.”
The mayor also said she will bring a new motion to City council next week to reaffirm Mississauga’s commitment to support the 2SLGBTQ+ community and protect civil rights and the ability to “live openly, equally and without fear.”
Throughout June, the City and other community organizers are offering programs, activities and events in an effort to promote the values of diversity and inclusion for all, some of which include:
Library Author Talks – Wednesday, June 1, 7 to 8 p.m. Featuring writer, photographer and activist Samra Habib. As a journalist, Habib has covered topics ranging from fashion trends and Muslim dating apps to the rise of Islamophobia in the US. Their writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian and The Advocate and their photo project, “Just Me and Allah,” has been featured in Vice, The Washington Post and other media. They work with 2SLGBTQ+ organizations internationally, raising awareness of issues that impact queer Muslims around the world. We Have Always Been Here is their first book.
Peel Pride Book Club (Online) – Thursday, June 9, 7 to 8:30 p m. The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi This Pride Book Club is a collaboration between Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon Public Libraries. It is a way to meet readers from all three communities and talk about books you may not have discovered on your own.
All are welcome to join this virtual book club featuring titles written by 2SLGBTQ+ (2 spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer) authors. In this book club, diverse ideas can be communicated while following a collective responsibility to uphold safer spaces for all community members.
Mississauga Fire and Emergency Services – Pride Toronto Parade – Sunday, June 26 For the first time, Mississauga’s Fire and Emergency Services team will show their “Pride” and commitment to inclusivity and diversity within Mississauga’s Fire Services by participating in the Pride Toronto Parade and marching with a Pride coloured wrapped fire truck.
“I am very proud to be a part of this year’s Pride celebrations with our wrapped fire truck which I hope will be a strong symbol for the importance of breaking down barriers and promoting equity. We are working hard as a Fire Service team to ensure everyone can be free to be themselves, feel safe and enjoy acceptance,” said Fire Chief and Director of Emergency Management, Deryn Rizzi.
Helping to further raise awareness regarding the journey to equity and inclusion by the 2SLGBTQ+ community, Mississauga has a rainbow ground mural located in Streetsville by artist Vivian Rosas and a Rainbow Pride Bench donated to the City by the Pride Committee of Peel and installed in downtown Mississauga’s Scholar’s Green Park in partnership with Sheridan College.
In addition, for the duration of June, the City’s social media channels will display the pride colours as a demonstration of its commitment to continued learning, awareness and creating an inclusive, equitable and safe city where all are welcome.
Mayor Crombie added, “To close off Mississauga’s Pride celebrations, I will be hosting a Pride Social on Wednesday, June 29 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Stonehooker Brewery in Port Credit. There will be live performances and refreshments. Watch my social media for invites and more details but I hope to see everyone there!”
The City will be using the hashtag #mississaugapride and tag @citymississauga during the month and encourages others to recognize and further the cause of inclusivity and diversity in Mississauga.
Calgary Roller Derby players are hoping to unite the derby community at their first home event in two years.
It’s a sport that leaves players battered and bruised, but that’s all part of the fun according to participants.
“Hitting people is first on my list. It’s an outlet for aggression,” Carla Walquist, AKA Scarla Maim and co-president of Calgary Roller Derby, said of her favourite aspects of the game.
“It’s very rough. It’s very intense. There’s tons of skill involved, tons of rules involved. Agility and speed and endurance.”
Roller derby is back on again in Calgary after COVID-19 shut the sport down for two years.
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“I was grateful we got our last scrimmage back in March of 2019, but it was kind of heartbreaking actually, to be honest,” Walquist said.
Members of the Calgary Roller Derby are thrilled to be back at their weekly practices in West Hillhurst.
“Nothing really beats the fitness that we do here and the intensity, the community — all of the stuff you just can’t find in a home gym,” Walquist said.
The sport involves two teams, with one jammer from each team, who can score points by passing opposing team members as many times as possible within two minutes. Blockers stop the opposing jammer by any legal means necessary while helping their jammer get through.
“It was amazing and it was nerve-racking,” said skater Jessica Hafeli, also known on the track as Jigz, about her return to practice.
“I have never not skated this long in my life in 10 years, so there were definitely a lot of nerves mixed with excitement.
“Not sure if I was ready but as soon as I put skates on in the first practice it was like ‘OK, cool, let’s go!’”
Hafeli said she appreciates the sense of community in the Calgary roller derby scene.
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“I enjoy the athleticism mixed with the empowerment. I really appreciate that this community is so diverse and very much supports the empowerment of women and the female-identified. It’s not like any other community or sports community that I’ve ever been a part of.”
She added there’s also a lot of strategy involved in the sport.
“The ability to have really good strategies that you’ve practiced and then go into a game and execute it perfectly is the best,” she said of the game. “When you’re working together and you’ve been working so hard at this one play and it comes out beautifully in a game — there’s nothing like it.”
It’s taken some time for skaters to come back and feel comfortable enough to be in close quarters to return to full-contact drills and scrimmages. As a result, the local association isn’t back to full strength just yet and the Calgary derby community is looking to recruit.
“The whole derby community worldwide is suffering. We are suffering for players, for games and events and fans,” Walquist said.
“We are just trying to build that back up and get it out there again so people know we are still at it and just get them excited about derby.
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“We just want to get people to come out and see it once and then I think they will be hooked and they will come again.”
Calgary Roller Derby is hosting a double-header women’s invitational on June 11 in Calgary at the Acadia Recreation Complex, called Roller Derby Revival-Smash Hits.
The games will be themed around music genres with punk vs rap and metal vs country. Both participants and audience members are encouraged to dress the part for the team they are playing or cheering for.
