Bieber Fever: young heartthrob visits Lions Park, Elmira

Teen pop sensation Justin Bieber’s quest for an evening of small town life in Elmira set some pre-teen hearts aflutter, but left a bad taste in the mouths of a number of youths who are now former fans.

According to a number of witnesses, Bieber visited Elmira’s Lion’s Park on the evening of Aug. 23 to take in the soccer match between the Woolwich U16 girl’s team and his hometown of Stratford, but when …Read more

Local action helps with global problem

Crystal Jedrzejewski is taking a small-town approach to solving big problems half a world away.

She is organizing a pork-roast fundraiser at High Creek Farm in Walton to help raise funds for Salem Orphanage Home in Kisumu, Kenya. It’s an approach to fundraising that just seemed to fit best with the community …Read more

Woolwich adopts encroachment policy

Woolwich’s new get-tough approach to dealing with encroachments on public land now has a written policy. And a number of requests for exemptions.

Earlier this summer, the township identified more than 100 cases where homeowners had taken over use of abutting township property. In about 20 instances, that involved erecting structures such as fences, sheds and gazebos. Other violations included expansion of gardens and walkways …Read more

Maryhill resident launches bid to take Ward 3 seat in fall election

Woolwich will have at least one ward battle in the Oct. 25 municipal election, as Maryhill resident Bonnie Bryant has entered the fray to take on longtime incumbent Murray Martin in Ward 3.

A avid follower of political issues, she said it was time to “throw her hat in the ring” rather than just talking about the issues. Recent debates over gravel pits and grievances in Breslau, including water issues …Read more

Millions needed to bring Woolwich roads up to snuff

Woolwich should set aside millions of dollars to maintain its roads, according to a report released this week.

The road needs study calls for a big increase in preventative maintenance, arguing every dollar spent today saves four or five dollars years down the road. To follow the prescribed course, however, the township would have to commit multiples of what it now spends each year on roadwork …Read more

MCC makes appeal for funds to aid flood-ravaged Pakistan

Pakistan’s worst flooding in 80 years has killed approximately 1,500 people, displaced millions more, and left one-fifth of the country underwater. In response, the Mennonite Central Committee is calling for the public’s help with relief efforts.

In coalition with the Canadian Food Grains Bank, the Christian Reform World Relief Committee, and the …Read more

Arena users asked to swap

Blame it on the popularity of the new twin arenas. Demand for ice time has Woolwich scrambling to meet the needs of user groups. Officials think they have a possible solution in a swap meet of sorts.

Woolwich Minor Ringette requires some additional ice time at the Woolwich Memorial Centre, but the slots available – Saturday evening and early Sunday morning – don’t fit the organization’s schedule. Recreation …Read more

Elmira’s Rachel Clark is thrilled to be returning to Kenya

Elmira’s Rachel Clark is confident that she has one of the best jobs, ever. The 25-year-old works for a cruise line: singing, dancing and entertaining crowds of people while she hops between continents. And she gets paid to do it.  In the past year she has been aboard a ship that set sail in Japan, then travelled to Singapore, China, the Maldives, past Somalia, through the Red Sea, made stops in Jordan, Egypt, Greece, Croatia, Venice, Spain, Portugal, down coast of Africa, before continuing on to Argentina and Brazil, and up through the Caribbean before returning home …Read more

Calamari a good BBQ option

As we approach the midway point of our barbeque season it is nice to change up the menu a little bit.

Calamari is a relatively inexpensive, low fat, low sodium seafood that is high in lean protein. The low cost makes calamari the ideal seafood to experiment with, as you are not putting out a large sum of money in the event you do not cook it perfectly the first time …Read more

Hawkesville native pedals way to Ontario championship

Seven years ago, Steve Martin bought himself a bike as a personal reward for giving up smoking. This past weekend, he received another reward when he was named the Ontario Cup single-speed champion.

The Hawkesville native beat 20 other competitors to take the prize, and finished a mere three points behind 17-year-old Davis Ross for first in the overall standings. Competitors receive 25-points for a first place finish …Read more