Cody was known for always having a smile on his face, his positive attitude and the kindness he showed to everyone around him. He was a valued member of the Gravenhurst Sobeys team for more than two years, where he made a lasting impression on both staff and shoppers alike.

Most importantly, Cody was a proud father. His 2.5 year old son was his entire world, and that is what pushed him to work harder. 

In response to this tragedy, Sobeys Gravenhurst is collecting monetary donations at all checkouts throughout this week until Sunday May 31 (no obligation). 

“Our community is heartbroken after Cody’s life was tragically taken by an impaired driver in Bracebridge. No family should have to endure a loss like this. To help support the little boy Cody loved so deeply, donations can be made at any till. 100% of the funds collected will go directly toward supporting Cody’s son and family.”

Store owner Jesse Grimes had the following to say about Cody:

“Everything about him was very positive. He loved his little son and we always spoke about him being his everything. He always had a smile and one of the greatest laughs. You could hear his laugh from the other side of the store.”

Any contribution, no matter the amount, is sincerely appreciated. 

“Thank you for helping us honour Cody’s memory and support the family he loved most.”

If you are unable to make it to Sobeys in Gravenhurst this week but would still like to make a donation, a GoFundMe has been set up. All proceeds will go towards funeral costs, as well as the upbringing and future needs of Cody’s son.

You can donate to the GoFundMe here: https://gofund.me/dfed632fe 

The post Community Coming Together To Support Family Of Man Killed By Impaired Driver appeared first on Muskoka411.

An email sent out to parents on March 31 explained that the initiative is aimed at getting 75 per cent of students to attend school 90 per cent of the time. According to the school, weekly attendance has been hovering between 68 per cent and 71 per cent throughout the current school year.

“The principal has initiated a school-wide challenge as an effort to elevate school spirit and bring awareness to the benefits of regularly attending school,” said Carolynne Bull, Manager of Communications Services for Trillium Lakelands District School Board. “This challenge is intended to be a fun-filled way for everyone to get involved.”

According to Bull, the school board has been sharing information directly with families about the positive impact regularly attending school has on student well-being over the last two years. She said that an initiative like this is not uncommon, and schools can choose whether or not they will do something similar to what Macaulay has established.

Based on a survey of the other public schools in the area, Macaulay Public School is the only one that has initiated an attendance-based challenge for this school year. 

Brytnie Minns, whose children attend Macaulay, said that she and other parents are concerned that the program doesn’t tackle the real reason why children are not attending school regularly.

“Perfect attendance programs overall promote unhealthy, rigid standards, often resulting in burnout rather than providing true motivation, meaning the programs actually become demotivating.” said Minns.

“Encouraging attendance regardless of what may be going on outside of school, or when experiencing mental or physical health concerns, can have further negative mental or physical well-being impacts. This can lead to higher levels of burnout or disengagement.”

When asked about whether or not the attendance program will account for explained absences, Bull said that it will.

“The challenge has been designed with averages of all classes combined, and points given for various ranges of attendance,” Bull explained. “It is understood, school-wide, that students may be ill, have appointments, and/or need to miss school for other reasons which will not affect the challenge.”

It’s not just student well-being that parents are worried about, but also bullying and harassment that children may be facing at school. Minns said that parents are already keeping their children home from school due to these concerns, and this program will only cause them to grow.

“Attendance is an individual issue, not a group goal,” Minns said. “Group rewards can cause peer resentment towards individuals who are absent, which can lead to increased bullying and harassment.” 

When asked about the concern that students may not be going to school for more serious reasons, such as bullying, Bull said that principals and teachers will support students where needed.

“TLDSB principals work hard to understand the root cause(s) of why a student does not attend school. If bullying is a factor in regularly attending school, parents/guardians and/or the student are encouraged to contact their teacher or school principal, if they haven’t already done so, to support this student.”

Minns said that while she and other parents understand the thought behind attendance initiatives, it doesn’t change the concerns they have when it comes to the negative effects that come with them. 

“We understand attendance is a problem across Ontario, and that funding is directly related to attendance, but we’ve done research and firmly believe rewarding ‘perfect attendance’ doesn’t address the root cause, is setting our children up for failure, and may actually cause more harm than good.”

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The pair were no strangers to this tournament, having made it to the quarterfinals of the B Flight at OFSAA for the last three years. After going undefeated for the fourth year in a row at both the MPS and GBSSA tournaments, Bird and Patel finally found themselves in the final of the A flight at OFSAA.

“MPS and GBSSA, I would say, was kind of expected,” Patel said. “But going to OFSAA and winning every game, it was like ‘oh my goodness, maybe we can win this.’” 

Patel said that being able to represent the Gyphons had been an honour, and to go undefeated made the end even more special.

“It probably means more to the school than it means to us,” Patel said. “It’s a great thing that our school finally won a gold, albeit badminton.”

For Bird, finally winning OFSAA with his long-time badminton partner was special.

“It felt good, especially being able to do it with Om as we’ve been playing together for almost 10 years. We’ve gotten to know each other pretty well and we’ve got some good chemistry on the court, so it’s been a long time coming.” 

While the pair ended up winning in the end, their season was in jeopardy before it had even begun when Bird suffered a broken ankle which saw him in a cast and out of action for three months. 

“It definitely took a lot of physiotherapy and ice after games,” Bird said. “To be honest, I just credit the ankle brace.”

This win marked a historic moment for GHS as Bird and Patel are the first badminton team to win an OFSAA A Flight gold medal. Only two others have earned gold for GHS; the 1993 Boys Basketball team and wrestler Dan Wilson in 1982. 

GHS Badminton Coach Corry Ziörjen says that being able to end her 27 year teaching/coaching career with a win was extremely exciting.

“I feel so privileged to have been on this journey with Om and Cam for the past 3 years. I always appreciated the maturity of conversations we had, the golf, the basketball playoff discussions and the willingness to try new foods and saw new grit and determination from them this season. The boys really made sure that we all finished on top and I appreciate them for that.”

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Steve Johnson, who was one of the four founding faculty members, said that this celebration will be the first time in 20 years that there has been a gathering of all alumni and staff from the past.

“It’s been a long time,” said Johnson. “I think we were planning a 25th anniversary, but COVID hit and we had to lay off on that for a few years.” 

Johnson said that it has been incredible to see the growth of the school from day one to the present. 

“It’s been pretty amazing to watch, particularly back in the first few years where we started with just grade 9. We had 63 students for the first year, and then we added another 50 or 60 in the second year.”

By the fourth year, when grades 9 through 12 started attending the school, St. Dominic boasted a roster of almost 300 students. Johnson said that the immense increase in size over those years meant they were ready for a new location.

“We were bursting at the seams over in the old industrial mall at the south end of Bracebridge. In 1999, the school board decided to build an actual full-blown school for us to accommodate that growth, and then over time they added a full-sized gymnasium and other aspects of a full school that we have today.”

Despite the rapid growth, St. Dominic remained a close-knit community. Johnson said that he, along with his wife Kristan and close friends Mike and Josée King who made up the rest of the teaching staff, knew every one of the students that walked through the doors each day.

“It was really exciting to be part of that with our first year students because they knew they were part of something special. We knew all the students and they knew all of us well, and it was a great time being part of that early on in the history of St. Dominic.” 

Current enrollment for St. Dominic sits around 160, allowing for very small class sizes and for teachers and students to better connect with one another over the four years that they’re in high school.

Anybody who wishes to attend the celebrations can stop by St. Dominic CSS anytime between 5 and 7 p.m. on May 15. Johnson said that even though it’s a short period of time, people are welcome to bring any mementos they may have.

“Most of the time we’ll spend simply talking with each other, but if people have things that trigger memories, bring them along and we’d be happy to take a look and converse over anything that’s brought up. If we can’t contain those memories in the two hours, we’ll just let it spill later into the evening.”

The post St. Dominic CSS Celebrating 30th Anniversary This Month appeared first on Muskoka411.

Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) is a motor speech disorder where people struggle to form words despite knowing what they want to say. Though CAS is specific to children, apraxia can affect people of all ages, and it’s not something that kids outgrow. People with apraxia often work with speech-language pathologists and other professionals to improve the clarity of their speech.

Bracebridge resident Jody Hamilton is not stranger to CAS. Her son Nash, now 10 years old, was diagnosed with CAS at age two. He was non-verbal until the age of four, communicating only by sounds.

“When he was 18 months, he had five sounds. He then kind of started off talking with one word, and then two word sentences, then three word sentences, and now he’s can pretty much talk fluently,” Hamilton explained. 

Hamilton said that Nash is still in speech therapy once a week, but if he becomes upset, angry, mad, or even excited, he can have trouble pronouncing words properly.

But that doesn’t stop Nash from doing what even kid loves – play sports. 

“He plays basketball, he’s played soccer, he has done rock climbing, he is doing gymnastics right now, and he’s been bowling for about four or five years,” Hamilton said. “In his sports teams I’ll kind of let the coaches know that if Nash is having any difficulty, just to give him a little extra time.”

How to help those with CAS 

Those with CAS may not feel comfortable in situations where they are speaking a lot. Hamilton said that the best way to help is to give the person some extra time.

“One of the biggest things I’m really trying to advocate for Nash, and that Nash is starting to advocate for himself, is that when he needs more time to process and thing about what he wants to say, he tells someone.” 

Hamilton said that there are still times when Nash comes to her to ask for help saying hi to other children because he’s scared they won’t understand him. While she is more than happy to help him, Hamilton also reminds him that the best thing to do if they don’t understand is to take a deep breath and try again. 

“He’ll tell them that he needs more time, and they are all really good at respecting that. Most of the kids in his school are pretty welcoming.” 

Apraxia Day Recognition

On May 14, landmarks across Ontario, such as the CN Tower, Niagara Falls, and even the Bracebridge Falls will light up blue. 

“Nash’s school will wear blue,” Hamilton said. “I’m going into Nash’s class to read a story about Apraxia and explain what it is to the children. I’ll also answer any questions they may have.”

To help support those with Apraxia, Hamilton encourages everyone to wear blue tomorrow. 

To learn more about CAS, visit the Apraxia Kids website at https://www.apraxia-kids.org/

The post ‘Give The Person Some Extra Time’: Apraxia Awareness Day Coming Up On May 14 appeared first on Muskoka411.

The events will be hosted at The Lake Joseph Golf Club in Port Carling on May 25 and Muskoka Bay Resort in Gravenhurst on July 27. Registration for each qualifier closes 10 days in advance of the event, and there is a maximum number of teams per event.

The competition is open to teams of four eligible amateur golfers who all have an up-to-date Golf Canada handicap and are 19 years of age or older. 

The winners of each local qualifier are invited to participate in one of thirteen Regional Finals later this summer. From there, Regional Final winners will be awarded the chance to participate and win a National Championship at the prestigious Cabot Links Golf Course in Nova Scotia in the fall. There will also be two guaranteed spots at the National Final for all-female teams. 

Now in its 11th year, the PGA Scramble presented by BMW is the largest grassroots amateur golf program in Canada, taking place at over 185 locations. The program has steadily grown every year, with last year featuring over 12,000 participants from coast-to-coast. 

To register or see a full list of local qualifiers in the area, golfers can visit pgascramble.com/local-qualifiers/

The post Amateur Golf Competition Coming To Muskoka This Month appeared first on Muskoka411.

From April 27 until May 3, Smile Cookies will be available at both Gravenhurst locations for $2 each, with any number of cookies over four being tax free. 

The campaign to help local schools was started by former operator Ashley Hrinkanic in 2022, with owners Paul Stevenson and Tammy Jacklin opting to continue it when they took over in 2023. 

Gravenhurst Tim Hortons raised $22,202 for Muskoka Beechgrove, $19,806 for Gravenhurst Public School, $18,494 for KP Manson, and $18,051 for Glen Orchard. Kristina Brownlee, General Manager for the Gravenhurst locations, said that the last four years have raised way more than was expected for all of the local schools. 

“This is our final year for our local schools being the recipients of the Smile Cookie campaign, so we are looking forward to seeing how much the high school can raise this year!”

GHS guidance counselor Carol Kent said that this year’s campaign is significant because of the connection between GHS students and Tim Hortons.

“It means a lot, especially because a lot of our high school students work at Tim Hortons, whether it be after school jobs, summer jobs, or co-ops. Students will also be volunteering to decorate the Smile Cookies all week, which is really great because of the 40 hour community involvement requirement for graduation.” 

Kent said that because they are unsure of how much money will be raised, the school hasn’t narrowed down what the funds raised will go towards yet, but that they will go towards things that benefit students at GHS. 

“Some of the ideas that have come up are a set of bleachers for the field, the bursary fund, or supporting students who need access to different opportunities within the school that don’t have the funds to support it. Once we know how much money we’re working with, we will be able to determine what is the best use of those funds, because it really varies, but it will be towards supporting student life at GHS.”

According to Kent, GHS has already received pre-orders for more than 30 dozen Smile Cookies. She said the hope is that the same momentum continues into next week when sales officially begin.

“We hope that a lot of past students and past staff support. We’ve reached out to our feeder schools to support us as well because, although we are separate schools, we really do work together and they’re preparing the students to come to GHS, so hopefully they support us. We hope everyone goes out and purchases.” 

To support Gravenhurst High School through the Smile Cookie campaign, visit the Gravenhurst Tim Hortons locations at 150 Talisman Drive and 2329 Highway 11 South from April 27 to May 3.

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The team was considered underdogs going into the weekend – with the Royals being ranked lowest in their pool – but pushed their way through the round robin games in order to make it to the semi finals on Sunday. After a hard fought battle against the Dorchester Dragons, the Royals punched their ticket to the finals later that afternoon.

Having lost to Markham-Stouffville earlier in the tournament, the Royals were determined to get their revenge in the finals. 

The game was full of intense back and forth play and wild goalie saves, but at the end of regulation play, the score was tied at 5-5. This meant overtime, a challenge that the team was ready to face. 

After six long minutes, it was Muskoka who came out on top after a hat trick goal from forward Danica Scribner, with assists coming from fellow forward Ryley Reid and center Jolene Allair.

“Scoring that hat trick goal in overtime made me feel very proud of myself,” Scribner said. 

“Over the years I have always been super hard on myself while on the ice, thinking I wasn’t skating hard enough or messing up too many passes, so to look around and see everyone crying and celebrating made me realize I shouldn’t be so hard on myself after all.”

Scribner, who has played ringette for 10 years, said that the win also means so much to her because of all the negative comments she has heard about the sport over the years.

“I’ve heard things like ‘ringette isn’t a real sport’ or ‘ringette sucks,’ and have also had some hockey players make some negative comments to us while waiting to get on the ice, so to get this win is a big accomplishment and only makes me more determined to make it far in ringette.”

Scribner said that this win wouldn’t have been possible without the team’s head coach Brea Hodge, who has been with this group of players for over seven years. 

“Coach Hodge is so creative and always finds ways to bring our team together before going out on the ice. She knew exactly when to push me, but also when I needed some understanding. She’s been the best coach and has truly shaped me into the player that I’ve become today.”

For Hodge, this win meant more than just the gold medal, it was proof that all of the hard work over the years had finally paid off in what was the team’s last ever game together.

“It was every practice, every tear, every social hurdle, every win, every loss, every team cohesion activity, all rolled into one culminating moment of seeing their hard work pay off. It was the roar of the parents who couldn’t stop jumping up and down in the stands, tears of sheer joy from the players, bench staff and parents in the hallways after, and the parent chat that blew up on Monday morning with complaints of stiff joints and fatigue from the stress of winning!”

Hodge explained that the team had won several silver medals in previous years, but gold had always seemed to slip through their fingers. 

“No one expected them to make it to the finals, so they were able to play without pressure or expectations. When that final goal went in, the collective energy of that win was seen, felt, and heard by everyone there. Showing their coaches, their families and most of all each other that they could do this was one of the most touching displays of sportsmanship I have ever witnessed.”

The post Muskoka Royals Ringette Team Wins Gold At Championship Tournament appeared first on Muskoka411.

“The kids worked hard and joyfully from 10 a.m. Friday to 10 p.m. Sunday after months of preparation,” said Bill Bagshaw, lead mentor for the Gryphtech team. 

“Of the 25 teams attending, we were very excited to be among the six to take home medals.”

Bagshaw said that the small team, consisting of only 5 students and 3 mentors, ran into many system failures and technical problems with their robot during the qualification matches at the event, but got back up and dusted themselves off each time on the way to the finals.

These robot troubles saw the team end up in 23rd going into the playoff alliance selection. The alliance selection is a process where the top eight teams select who they want to compete alongside during the playoff rounds. After many rounds of selection, Gryphtech found themselves on Alliance 1 with Team 610 – Crescent Coyotes from Toronto and Team 10015 – Bubbles from Aurora.

“Getting chosen to be the third team on the top alliance was such a shock,” explained Grade 12 student Gwen Smith. “It was more than we ever expected with our little team of five at a competition where most teams had well over 20 or 30 members.” 

Smith said that the team had been focusing on small wins and uplifting each other throughout the weekend, so getting to work with the teams in their alliance was enlightening. 

“We left North Bay with our minds and hearts full of information and appreciation.” 

For Grade 11 student Colton Courville, being an event finalist in North Bay was more than just a medal, it was proof that all the hard work since the beginning of the season had paid off. 

“We managed to build a working robot in less than three months, meeting only four and a half total hours a week,” Courville explained. 

“As a senior member on the team, I’m ecstatic that we are still able to be competitive, despite losing several extremely valuable team members over the two years since I joined.” 

Courville says that both the Gryphtech Robotics team and the FIRST Robotics organization as a whole have been an amazing addition to his life. 

“I love being part of this program. We get to have fun building and driving robots, while also building crucial life skills and making friends both within the school community and from across Ontario. This year is my first year as our team’s driver, and I love being behind the barrier looking right at the field knowing I’m directly influencing the outcome of the match.”

The Gryphtech team will be back in action on March 27-29 at the Georgian College District event in Barrie, where they will be working hard to ensure another successful competition weekend.

The post Gravenhurst High School Gryphtech Robotics Comes Second At North Bay Competition appeared first on Muskoka411.

“My first thought was ‘Where is my child going to go when I need to clock in for work?’,” said Hannah Tunget, a registered nurse who does private care work within the region. 

Tunget said that her and her husband – who works 12 hour days in the construction industry – were lucky to get a space for their son at Muskoka Lakeland last August despite the long waitlists for daycares across Muskoka.

“The waitlists for some daycares up here are over two years. My sister-in-law went on the waitlist for a daycare while still at the hospital after having her second child.” 

Tunget said that Muskoka Lakeland has been a huge part of her son’s life since he joined the daycare. 

“The daycare has been fantastic. My son has learned so much. He is always talking about his friends and the teachers, and he likes to sing the songs he’s learned. They were crucial in potty training as well. My heart is going to break when it’s his last day there.”

Michelle Priore, owner and director of Muskoka Lakeland Childcare, said that she was shocked to learn that the funding agreement with the District was coming to an end.

“I thought things were going really well, so when I received that letter I was in disbelief,” Priore said. 

“We’ve been working diligently with the District to meet deadlines and what not. We have had a stipulation for funding that we have a certain timeframe to respond and get reports in and we have exceeded their expectations thus far.” 

Priore said that her main concern right now is the effect that the closure of her daycare will have on the community.

“This will affect not only me, but my staff, the parents, and the entire community. In Gravenhurst, there is a real need for this funding. The $20-a-day daycare parents are having a hard time as is, so having the funding and having the subsidies for parents is extremely important.”

When asked about the reason for ending the funding agreement with Muskoka Lakeland Childcare, the District of Muskoka said that they are unable to give specific details at this time in order to respect the confidentiality of their service agreement.

“We acknowledge the decision has placed families in a difficult situation, and we are committed to assisting the families in finding alternate arrangements during the 30-day notice period given to the childcare provider,” the District said.

“Our focus remains on ensuring continuity of care and supporting the families through this transition.”

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