Weekly News Recap: March 4, 2022

The $22.4 million Central Alberta Child Advocacy Centre will be built next to the Gary W.Harris Canada Games Centre at Red Deer Polytechnic. (Image contributed)

The biggest thing it affects is the mind. The ability to love and to trust are gifts, and they are stolen from people when abuse comes. It is so difficult to learn to love and trust and let people love me. That's the biggest struggle. -- Sheldon Kennedy

SOME GOOD NEWS

Surrey siblings using dance and comedy on TikTok to call out outdated cultural beliefs (CBC) SURREY STORY I love my country. "Two siblings from Surrey, B.C., are aiming to bring some joy to a pandemic-weary world and challenge outdated cultural beliefs — one TikTok video at a time. Amreen Gill and Swarndeep Gill have raked in over a million followers on various social media platforms and more than 10 million likes on TikTok alone with their dance and comedy videos. Under the name OGBhangralicious, the duo makes dance videos inspired by bhangra and Punjabi folk dance, along with witty satirical comedy videos that often make references to conservative views in their Punjabi culture."
What I learned when I moved in with my grandmother during the pandemic (CBC) CALGARY STORY #LuckyMan "People were told not to visit their grandparents during the pandemic but I moved in with mine. We might make for an odd pair of housemates but we have found our own form of comfort and peace during this turbulent time. The idea came in January 2020 when I found myself house sitting for my grandmother, Martha Joan Willis, as she recovered from a hip replacement in a temporary care home. At 92, with mild dementia and vertigo, she had reached the end of independent living."
Nunavut youths head to major film fest for premiere of Pangnirtung sci-fi movie (CBC) NUNAVUT STORY Scifi meets the North! Love it. "Ten-year-old Frankie Vincent-Wolfe sums up the prospect of making the trip from Iqaluit, Nunavut, to watch herself on screen at a major Texas film festival in a single phrase: 'It's going to be weird — but good.' You could even say it'll be out of this world. After all, Frankie and her sister Alexis play two of the characters in Slash/Back — a film about girls battling an alien invasion in Pangnirtung, a hamlet on Baffin Island."
Canadian telecoms waive fees for long-distance calls, texts to Ukraine amid Russian invasion (CBC) CANADIAN STORY #ThankYou "Canadian phone companies are waiving long-distance and text charges for calls to Ukraine amid Russia's assault on the country. Bell Canada, Rogers Communications Inc., Telus Corp. and Shaw Communications Inc. have all announced customers will not be charged to help connect with loved ones in the embattled region. Rogers and its mobile subsidiary Fido Solutions say long-distance and text charges will be set aside, as will roaming fees for clients in Ukraine until the end of March. Telus and provincially owned SaskTel are waiving all roaming charges for calls, text, and data overages for customers in that country, and long distance and SMS fees for those in Canada reaching out to friends and family there."
Scientists create cube robots that can shapeshift in space (engadget) CALGARY STORY Coolio. "Scientists from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) and the University of Calgary have developed a modular robot system that can morph into different shapes. ElectroVoxels don't have any motors or moving parts. Instead, they use electromagnets to shift around each other. Each edge of an ElectroVoxel cube is an electromagnetic ferrite core wrapped with copper wire. The length of each ElectroVoxel side is around 60 millimeters. The total cost is just 60 cents."
How a pet tarantula inspired a 10-year-old Sask. boy to write a children's book (CBC) SASKATCHEWAN STORY #Ha! "An unusual pet sparked a 10-year-old-Saskatchewan boy's imagination and inspired him to write a children's book — with the help of his grandma. About a year ago, Declan Bratkoski and his grandmother Pam Metz teamed up to write a book about the adventures of a boy's pet tarantula's after it gets loose in a school — something Metz actually experienced as a child. 'I was only in kindergarten and they announced over the intercom that some boy's [pet] tarantula got loose and everybody was supposed to watch for it because they were trying to find it,' Metz told CBC in an interview."

TOP TEN STORIES OF THE WEEK

Province announces $3.4 million for Central Alberta Child Advocacy Centre (Red Deer Advocate) RED DEER STORY "Premier Jason Kenney announced $3.4 million to help build a centre to help young people who have been abused. The funding will go towards the proposed $22.4 million Central Alberta Child Advocacy Centre, which will be located next to Red Deer Polytechnic and will be closely connected with many of its programs from nursing and psychology to education and early learning and child care. [...] Advocacy Centre CEO Mark Jones said Blackfalds-area company Eagle Builders is expected to begin construction on the 66,000-square-foot building this summer for a fall 2023 completion date."
Former IWK Health Centre CEO Tracy Kitch found guilty of fraud (CBC) HALIFAX STORY "Former IWK Health Centre CEO Tracy Kitch has been found guilty of fraud over $5,000 after charging tens of thousands of dollars in personal expenses to a corporate credit card. In delivering his decision in Halifax provincial court on Monday, Judge Paul Scovil said Kitch breached the high ethical standard to which someone in her position is held and her actions 'cannot be seen as other than against the public good.'"
Canmore Nordic Centre to see substantial upgrades amid provincial cash infusion (CBC) CANMORE STORY "The province announced last week that the Nordic centre in Canmore, Alta., will be getting a multi-million dollar cash infusion, something its former manager says is much needed. It's been about two decades since the facility, which was built for the 1988 Calgary Winter Games, was last [upgraded.]"
How wearing a kokum scarf is supporting Ukraine (CBC) CANADIAN STORY This is a beautiful piece of history and community. "Some Indigenous people in northern Ontario are honouring Ukraine by wearing a traditional scarf. Heidi Manitowabi, an Anishinaabe woman living in Sudbury, Ont. is one of them. She's been wearing a kokum scarf. It's a piece of cloth used in powwows by jingle dancers 'as a method of prayer while they're dancing.' It can also be used as a fashion or statement piece. 'Women wear it on their heads or around their necks,' she said. 'The kokum scarf represents strength, empowerment and resilience among our people.'" RELATED: kokum scarf video.
‘Student dads are ghosts’: why fathers face long odds of graduating college (The Guardian) "While his wife was in labor in the hospital with their third child, Joshua Castillo was in the waiting room completing a computer science final and two quizzes. By then he was accustomed to juggling the demands of fatherhood with the unyielding deadlines and expectations of Northern Virginia Community College, where he is studying computer science while working full time and helping raise his kids – a responsibility for which he said he doesn’t get much faculty sympathy."
Keyano Huskies Indigenous Jersey Reveal (Keyano College) FORT MCMURRAY STORY Wow, what a jersey! "Emma Voyageur is a 20-year-old Denésoliné Indigenous artist from Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation in Fort Chipewyan, Alberta. Emma has recently relocated to Calgary, Alberta, to pursue art as a career. She plans to graduate with her Bachelor of Fine Arts In 2025 from Alberta University of the Arts. There are many influences when it comes to Emma's artwork. Her culture, teachings, and past experiences as an indigenous woman inspire her to create her pieces. Many of Emma's beliefs, values, and opinions are shown through different mediums and various styles. Her artwork reflects the stories and beauty of First Nations peoples in Alberta."
No matter the season, Albertans of all ages falling hook, line and sinker for the sport of fishing (CBC) ALBERTA STORY "The pandemic got Albertans hooked on fishing in record numbers. Even in the winter, their passion for the pastime keeps reeling them in. 'We saw a huge bump in the number of people that decided to get outdoors and go fishing,' according to Todd Zimmerling, president and CEO of the Alberta Conservation Association (ACA). Resident sport-fishing licence sales jumped by 30 per cent in 2020 over 2019, according to Alberta Environment & Parks."
$1.8 billion Red Deer hospital expansion announced (CBC) RED DEER STORY Well done GOA! "Calling it 'a historic day for Red Deer and central Alberta,' Premier Jason Kenney announced on Wednesday that $1.8 billion will be invested to redevelop and expand the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre. The capital project, which has been sought for more than a decade by physicians, and other health care workers and advocates, will be the largest in Alberta’s history — and the largest taxpayer investment in the history of central Alberta, said Kenney, who spoke in Red Deer at the Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre. Kenney said the eight-year expansion will start with a $193 million investment over the next three years and will ultimately involve the addition of 200 new in-patient beds, increasing the hospital’s capacity to 570 beds from the existing 370 — a 54 per cent adjustment."
PGSO returns to Vanier Hall for first time in two years (Prince George Citizen) PRINCE GEORGE STORY Glad to see you back! "The Prince George Symphony Orchestra [performed] at Vanier Hall on Saturday night, the first time the PGSO has played its regular venue since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Music Director Michael Hall will lead a welcoming program that features two musicians with ties to the Prince George. The evening will open with the premiere of PG resident composer and PGSO principal clarinetist Simon Cole’s newest work for orchestra, The Return. Written during the height of the pandemic, the piece reflects the complexity and heightened emotion of the past two years, always with the hope of a return to some normality."
Alberta government invests $63.5M for 11 new operating rooms at Calgary's Foothills hospital (CBC) ALBERTA STORY #Yes! "Calgary's Foothills Medical Centre will receive 11 new operating rooms and 17 additional recovery beds through a $63.5-million investment by the Alberta government. The province announced a commitment of $3.2 billion to expand health care capacity for Albertans in Budget 2022. Of that amount, $133 million is going toward the Alberta surgical initiative capital program in the next three years to increase surgical capacity in the province — $35 million of which is designated for the Foothills project. The 11 new operating rooms are in addition to the 32 existing operating rooms at the northwest Calgary hospital. They will allow up to 7,000 more surgeries each year."

SEVEN LIFE AND CAREER HACKS

The App That Made Me Love Taking Handwritten Notes Again (An Idea) There is really nothing better than handwritten notes, especially if you can digitally record them.
3 Simple Strategies to Ensure Meetings End on Time, Every Time (Better Humans) If we can hack meetings, we can hack the world. And, oh my, what a better world.
This is How to Run a Successful 15-Minute Meeting at Work (Change Your Mind) These are cool. I am going to try them with our team.
Rethinking Blood Pressure (Being Well) Do you take your blood pressure regularly. I do! Oh right, I am now old. All kidding aside, you should.
Best Hobbies to Start in Your 30s (Evgeny Kim) Dance and welding for me. What about you?
The 0% Method: A Radical Way to Declutter Your Life (Mind Cafe) A beautifully simple idea. Put it all away and then see if it matters (hint: it likely doesn't).
The 5 types of Questions (UX Design) Brilliant. Really. Read this. It will change your life.

TOP THREE GIFTS OF THE WEEK

Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively promise to match USD 1 million donations to support Ukranian refugees (Tech Story) "Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively are stepping up to encourage fans to aid Ukrainian refugees who have been forced to evacuate their homes as a result of the Russian invasion. The couple turned to social media to announce that they will match donations and invited supporters to give to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees throughout the crisis."
Japanese billionaire Hiroshi Mikitani donates ¥1 billion to Ukraine (Japan Times) "Japanese billionaire Hiroshi 'Mickey' Mikitani said Sunday he will donate ¥1 billion ($10 million CAD) to the government of Ukraine, calling Russia’s invasion 'a challenge to democracy.' The founder of e-commerce giant Rakuten Group Inc. said in a letter addressed to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that the donation of ¥1 billion ($8.7 million) will go toward 'humanitarian activities to help people in Ukraine who are victims of the violence.'"
$50 Million Donation Made to National 4-H Council (Southeast Agnet) This is mind-blowing. And to such a great cause. I <3 data-preserve-html-node="true" 4H. "The National 4-H Council this week announced it received a $50 million gift from writer and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. The gift from Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is the largest single donation ever to the National 4-H Council. Because of 4-H’s expansive reach into every U.S. county, the investment will support youth development for millions of kids and families."

LAST WEEK'S MOST POPULAR STORIES

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Vincent DuckworthMarch 4, 2022Comment