Baden’s Me To We team delivers spice to St. John’s Kitchen

Surrounded by spices collected during a spice drive organized by Baden school’s Me To We team, Brittany Carey, Lydia Herrle and Rebecca Wheeler, were ready to deliver their collection to St. John’s Kitchen on Wednesday.

The school collected over 17 kilograms (38 pounds) of spices and herbs including almost 2 kg each of curry powder, chili powder, onion powder and over 4 kg of garlic powder. The second spice drive run by the school’s Me To We team will meet the needs at the Kitchener soup kitchen, which receives tons of food donations but usually has to purchase spices out of its annual budget.

St. John’s Kitchen has operated for 19 years and has 160 volunteers. Every year, the charity serves approximately 200,000 pounds of donated food to clients who can’t afford to feed themselves and often have physical and mental health issues.

New Hamburg figure skaters place well at Waterloo competition

New Hamburg skaters (from left to right): Marissa Melanson, Lily Bernier, Logan Morley (in back), Jennica Guerette, Michaila Melanson and Aiden Dotzert (in front).

Last weekend, the New Hamburg Skating Club sent several young skaters to compete in the Skate Canada Western Ontario Section STARSkate Championships held at the Albert McCormick arena in Waterloo.

Marissa Melanson placed seventh in Junior Bronze Free Skate.

Lily Bernier placed seventh in Introductory Interpretive, and Logan Morley placed fourth in the same category.

Jennica Guerette placed sixth in Pre-Preliminary Free Skate.

Michaila Melanson placed sixth in both Junior Silver FreeSkate and Gold Interpretive.

Finally, Aiden Dotzert received the bronze medal in Men’s Introductory Development Free Skate.

New Hamburg skaters have also been practicing for their upcoming carnival performance on March 31, called “An Amazing Alphabet Adventure” at the Wilmot Recreation Complex.

Heritage Wilmot celebrates Wilmot’s rich culinary past

Roy Berfelz, right, shows Willie and Annie Cober one of his mom’s recipe books as they take in Berfelz’s display of vintage kitchen implements and apple butter cauldrons during Saturday’s Heritage Day event at the St. Agatha Community Centre. Berfelz’s display was one of over 30 displays detailing every facet of the township’s culinary tastes and traditions, from ice harvesting to breweries. Heritage Wilmot’s Heritage Day: Recipes of our Past, welcomed hundreds despite the weather and raised close to $600 for Wilmot Family Resource Centre through a silent auction featuring items donated by local businesses.

Brad Schneller captured a few moments during Saturday’s events. Check out the slideshow if you missed it.

 

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Joseph Schneider Haus Museum curator Susan Burke speaks about Wilmot's culinary traditions during Saturday's Heritage Day event in St. Agatha.

Wilmot Aquatic Aces win 46 medals at Wilfrid Laurier swim meet

Wilmot’s swimmers who missed qualifying for the Regional B Championships competed at a one-day qualifying meet for the next long-course Regional Championships. The Aquatic Aces went to the meet at Wilfrid Laurier University on Feb. 11 and came home with 42 individual medals and four more gold medals from relay races.

The 10-and-under boys relay team of Devin Mechalko, Ethan Scheerer, Jacob Potts and Kyle Mackenzie won gold, as well as the 13-14 girls team of Katie Cameron, Yvette Coffey, Nicoletta Carangounis, and Emma Fielder.

The 13-14 boys team of Josh Cober, Jonah Noseworthy, Liam Scorgie, and Jacob Young also earned gold for Wilmot, as did the 15-and-over boys team of Caleb Isaac, Tyler Kinzie, Josh Cober, and Trevor Mains.

Individual medal winners were Katie Cameron with two gold and one bronze, Nicoletta Carangounis winning two silver, Josh Cober with a gold and silver, Yvette Coffey with gold, silver and bronze, Emma Fielder with a bronze, Margaret Heckman a gold, Tyler Kinzie’s gold, silver and bronze, Kyle MacKenzie’s bronze, Trevor Mains’s silver and two bronze, Devin Mechalko’s two gold and a silver, Jonah Noseworthy’s two golds, Jacob Potts’s gold, Ethan Scheerer’s gold, silver and bronze, Liam Scorgie’s gold and two bronze, Brayden Vandewynckel’s two gold and a bronze, Matthew Vandewynkel’s bronze, and Jacob Young’s silver and bronze.

With lots of best times and great results again at this race, the Aces are swimming fast.

Final week for local singers to enter Kitchener radio station’s “Shining Star” contest

The call for contestants in Faith FM’s Shining Star 2012 Christian Vocal Talent Search will end at midnight on Thursday March 1.

Faith 94.3 FM in Kitchener runs this event every two years. It;s an exciting opportunity for talented singers to advance their skills and potentially win the title of Shining Star 2012, the station said in a release.

Every person who enters will have a chance to perform at preliminary contests in front of an audience and experienced judges who will evaluate on a number of criteria. Some of those preliminaries could be held in Wilmot or Wellesley, if there are enough entrants from the townships, said Barbara Dowling, Account Manager at Faith FM.

The preliminaries, open to the public, are the evenings of March 23 to 25 and April 13 to 15. They will be held at various churches in our community. Semi-Finals run the weekend of April 13.

“I saw the Shining Star competition as an opportunity and I figured I had nothing to lose! It’s amazing how God has worked through this,” said Dana Marie Hoekstra, the Shining Star 2009 winner. Hoekstra has gone on to become a Canadian gospel recording artist and a 2011 GMA Canada Award Nominee.

The Shining Star finals will be held this year at Calvary Pentecostal Assembly in Cambridge on May 12.

This year, the grand prize package is valued at over $20,000 and consists of a professional recording session at Revelation Sound in Guelph for a full album with a completed CD, along with promotion and marketing expertise that includes professional photography, video, and the launching a website.

Tickets for the final will go on sale in April. The finals usually see an average attendance of 1,000 each year.

“A key component of our mission statement is to encourage, support and promote the development of Canadian Christian talent. We have a terrific opportunity to do that again this year with the amazing prize package!” says Dowling.

For more details contact Barbara Dowling at 519-575-9090 ext. 30, bdowling@faithfm.org, or visit http://www.faithfm.org

Wilmot Aquatic Aces hand out prizes at fundraising draw

Wilmot Mayor Les Armstrong helps pick winners last week for an Aquatic Aces fundraiser

The Wilmot Aquatic Aces swim club held a fundraising raffle draw last week, handing out various prizes provided by local and out-of-town businesses.

Winners were:

Matt & Andrea Bell, Wills/Power of Attorneys
Michelle Cressman, $50 Gift Certificate – East Side Mario’s
Margaret Hartman, Four tickets – Kitchener Rangers
Lorna Kennedy, $25 Gift Certificate – Dundee Diner
Melanie Nelder $25 Gift Certificate – Dundee Diner,
Gail Norcott, Hand-Crafted Quilt
Patric Poulin, Mid-Week Getaway – Mercer Hall Inn
David Schwartentruber, Two gold tickets – Toronto Maple Leafs
Tammy & Brian Simmons, Four tickets – Buffalo Sabres
Jennifer Smith, $35 Gift Certificate – New Dundee Emporium

Families find free fun in Wilmot and Wellesley Townships

The Wellesley arena held a free skate with Conservative MPP Michael Harris.

Dozens of families visited the Wellesley arena on Feb. 20 for a free Family Day skate with Michael Harris, the Conservative Member of Provincial Parliament for Kitchener-Conestoga.

Young and old skaters laced up to enjoy the holiday.

Michael Harris, second from right, hit the ice for a free skate in Wellesley on Feb. 20.

Meanwhile, another free family skate was offered at the Wilmot Recreation Complex the same day. Free swimming was also available in the recently-opened WRC pools.

New Hamburg’s new Neighbourhood Association also made its public debut at the recreation centre on Feb. 20. The association offered free games, crafts, and snacks for kids, and also ran a prize draw to raise money for the new community classes the association plans to offer. Prizes and supplies were donated by local businesses.

(From right) Vivian Simms, Emily Friendorf, and Hunter Meredith get crafty at a table offered by New Hamburg's Neighourhood association on Feb. 20.

Daniel Knight celebrates a goal while playing a game offered by the New Hamburg Neighbourhood Association at the Wilmot Rec Complex.

Chris Knight (left), his brother Daniel, and his mother Twyla pick lollipops to win a prize at the WRC on Family Day.

Waterloo-Oxford holds fundraiser for East African famine on Feb. 21

Waterloo-Oxford District Secondary School will host a fundraiser on Tuesday evening to combat the serious drought and famine gripping East Africa.

Since July of 2011, a lack of rain has caused severe food shortages in Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya. Roughly 9.5 million people are affected, and many have become refugees, abandoning their homes to survive.

Local students will offer African food, music, and performers. The fundraiser will also feature inspirational speakers and a silent auction.

The event is organized by Joanna Dowdell, who spent time in Kenya last summer and has first-hand knowledge of the impacted area.

The event starts at 7 p.m. on Feb. 21 and lasts until 9:30 p.m. Money raised will support famine relief in the Horn of Africa through the Free the Children organization.

In past years, similar events have raised several hundreds of dollars.

Grandview kids enjoy weekend snowfall

Local students were enjoying the beautiful Monday weather while it lasted. Grandview Public School students used their recess yesterday to enjoyed a winter day after about five centimetres of snow fell over the weekend.

Temperatures are expected to climb above normal again this week. The forecast calls for a high of 4C and a rain and snow mix for Thursday.

Waterloo-Oxford Crusaders triumph 48-41 over Cameron Heights in senior boys basketball

Crusader Chris Thomson takes a shot. Thomson led all scorers with 19 points.

Waterloo-Oxford’s senior boys basketball team won a close game on Feb. 9, 48-41 over Cameron Heights Collegiate Institute.

After a slow first half where both teams missed many shots, the game was tied 17-17 at halftime. The Crusaders picked up the pace and outscored the Golden Gaels the rest of the way.

Chris Thomson led all scorers with 19 points.

After 12 games, both Waterloo-Oxford and Cameron Heights have a 6-6 record, and sit in a four-way tie for eighth place in the league.

Tyler Bowman takes a shot as time for the first half expires.

Kyle Weber goes to the basket for a layup against Cameron Heights on Feb. 9.

New Dundee celebrates a decade of hosting the “Garden Explosions” flower show

Guest Speaker Paul Zammit observes some of the flowers on display at the 10th Annual Wilmot Horticultural Society Garden Explosions Flower Show.

New Dundee hosted its 10th annual Garden Explosions Flower Show for the Wilmot Horticultural Society on Feb. 4.

The event took place at the New Dundee Community Centre and included displays, auctions, and a presentation from Paul Zammit, an expert horticulturalist who came in from the Toronto Botanical Garden to offer his advice to the New Dundee audience.

Zumba dance-a-thon in New Hamburg raises $1,200 for local studio

The New Hamburg Community Centre hosted hours of dancing Sunday afternoon, during a fundraiser to support young dancers that raised $1,200.

The Innovative Dance studio organized its second annual Zumbathon o  Feb. 5 to help pay for its students’ competition fees. Those entry costs add up to over $10,000, said Carolyn McInally, the dance studio’s director.

The event featured prizes donated by local business, as well as two hours of non-stop dancing. The studio added black lights and disco lights this year. Students also prepared costumes and dance routines to perform.

“It was big success last year, so we’re making it bigger and better,” said McInally. “It’s just kind of fun to get out there and shake your thing.”

Zumba is a popular Latin-based cardio workout. Last year, the studio’s first Zumbathon attracted over 100 people and raised $1,100.

Old-fashioned trains roll into New Hamburg Library for special kids’ exhibit

Hollice Stock and John Wagner showed off their model train collections to children at the New Hamburg Public Library on Feb. 3.

The two Wilmot residents were there to talk about the hobby that they’ve loved for several decades. Kids also played with train toys and listened to train stories during Friday’s PD day.

A local model train club, the Doubleheaders, is holding its annual layout tour on March 31. The self-guided tour invites people to see dozens of collections across Waterloo Region, including Wilmot. More information is available at http://www.doubleheaders.org.

Tree of Light sends $5,287 to support Wellesley community groups

The Wellesley Lions Club used its annual Christmas “Tree of Lights” project to donate $5,287 to two local charities.

Tree of Light co-ordinator Marilyn Bisch (right) and Wellesley Lions president Peter Vandermaas (left) presented the cheques on Jan. 17 at the Schmidtsville Restaurant.

Sue Martin (second from right) received the donation for Community Action Program for Children, and Cathy Harrington accepted the money for Community Care Concepts to use with its Meals on Wheels program.

The Tree of Light splits the money raised between these two groups each year, and last year raised nearly $6,000.