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Weekly News Recap: April 15, 2022

Vincent Duckworth

Weekly News Recap: April 15, 2022

Joan Snyder, a driving force behind women's hockey and the treatment of chronic disease, has died at age 90. (Postmedia)

A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for. -- John A Shedd

SOME GOOD NEWS

  • All hail! The Calgary Stampede just crowned their 2022 First Nations Princess (Curiocity) CALGARY STORY Congratulations! "It’s been a long, competitive month of public speaking, private interviews, and dance, but it’s that time again! Exhibiting grace, knowledge, and beauty – we finally have our First Nations Princess for the 2022 Calgary Stampede! A traditional dancer and emerging artist from the Siksika Nation, 26-year-old Sikapinakii Low Horn is currently attending the University of Calgary for Fine Arts and was formally crowned this year’s winner at an emotional ceremony over the weekend."

  • She had an unexpected visitor — on her roof. And it was … a polar bear?! Yep, a polar bear (CBC) NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOUR STORY Eek! "Bobbi Stevens of St. Anthony, N.L., says she was completely unaware of the polar bear sitting on the roof of her Northern Peninsula home Sunday evening. It was probably for the best. [...] Stevens said she got quite the scare from the bear, who climbed onto and off her roof using a tall snow bank, seen in security video from her neighbour's house. Stevens said she's thankful the bear didn't damage her roof."

  • She quit university due to an alcohol problem. Now sober, she landed a $35K scholarship (CBC) HALIFAX STORY Thank you for being vulnerable enough to share this important story. "Laura Eamon was a few months into her first semester at Carleton University in 2011 when she was taken from a residence party to hospital by paramedics. [...] It wasn't the only time Eamon, originally from Hammonds Plains, N.S., went to hospital because of excessive drinking. [...] Sober for more than eight years, the 28-year-old just landed a prestigious Frank H. Sobey scholarship worth $35,000, one of nine given out annually to undergraduate business students in Atlantic Canada. She has a year left in her studies."

  • 'He's the gold standard': Vancouver server retires after half century working in restaurants (CBC) VANCOUVER STORY I worked in service for almost ten years. This is such a great story. "Jaier Vlessing is considered something of a 'unicorn' among restaurant workers. The 62-year-old server at Vancouver's Gotham Steakhouse has been hailed as a role model, not only for putting his customers first, but for the empathy he shows colleagues and the extra effort he puts into the job. 'I don't know if I'm ever going to get to work with another person like this,' Gotham general manager Benjamin MacMaster said in an interview. Vlessing plans to hang up his server's jacket for good later this month, after two decades at Gotham and nearly five decades in the hospitality industry. He is one of the original members of the Gotham team, serving at the high-end restaurant since it opened in 1999."

  • 'Fancy ducks' of B.C. get top billing in new short film (CBC) BRITISH COLUMBIA STORY I love ducks. Especially fancy ducks! "British Columbia is home to some majestic beasts — cougars, grizzly bears, killer whales — but a couple of avid birders based on Vancouver Island say one of the province's most attractive yet underrated creatures is the duck. Connel Bradwell and Ryan Wilkes from Victoria have teamed up to create the new short film Fancy Ducks that showcases four different species of ducks that can be spotted in the province that the duo have deemed, well, fancy. Their criteria for fancy does not follow a scientific formula, but more of a superficial one: if the duck makes you do a double take because it is exceptionally eye-catching, then, according to the duo, it makes the cut."

  • A CT mechanic found hundreds of pieces of art in a dumpster. They’re worth 'millions.' (CT Insider) This is wild. "In September of 2017, as a barn in Watertown was being cleared to be sold, the contractor found large canvases with car parts painted on them. The space and its contents had been deemed 'abandoned,' so he called his friend Jared Whipple, a car mechanic from Waterbury, because he thought he might like them. The next day, Whipple went to the dumpster where he said retrieved the hundreds of art pieces wrapped in plastic and covered in dirt. He later discovered the art was created by Francis Hines, a Washington, D.C.-born artist that resided in Connecticut and New York. According to an art curator, the pieces are collectively worth 'millions' of dollars."

  • Rejuvenation of woman's skin could tackle diseases of ageing (BBC) #ThankYouDolly "Researchers have rejuvenated a 53-year-old woman's skin cells so they are the equivalent of a 23-year-old's. The scientists in Cambridge believe that they can do the same thing with other tissues in the body. The eventual aim is to develop treatments for age-related diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and neurological disorders. The technology is built on the techniques used to create Dolly the cloned sheep more than 25 years ago."

  • Toddler’s friendship with Publix grocer goes viral, inspires charity (Good Morning America) This is beautiful. #WhoIsYourHighFive "After one little girl's adorable friendship first went viral in the aisles of a Publix Super Market, her mom was inspired to share their story to encourage others to embrace and amplify life's positive moments and influences."

  • Roy O. Disney’s Grandson Pledges Large Donation for Human Rights Campaign After Child Comes Out as Transgender (WDW News Today) This is awesome. "Last week, Roy P. Disney (Walt’s Grand-nephew and grandson to Roy O. Disney) and his family announced they would match up to $500,000 in donations to the Human Rights Campaign. Their child, Charlee Cora, recently came out as Transgender. 'Equality matters deeply to us,' Roy wrote in an appeal, 'especially because our child, Charlee, is transgender and a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community.' Charlee, 30, is a high school biology and environmental science teacher. The family was frustrated by Disney’s response to Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill."

TOP TEN STORIES OF THE WEEK

  1. Nets Donate $50K ‘to Help Those Who Were Injured’ After Subway Shooting (Sports Illustrated) Nice move Nets! "The Brooklyn Nets held a moment of silence before their play-in game against Cleveland and said they were donating $50,000 to help those who were injured after at least 10 people were shot on a subway Tuesday. The shooting occurred at a station in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn that is the one closest to the Nets’ training center, where they held their morning shootaround Tuesday."

  2. For runners recovering from COVID-19, slow and steady wins the race (CBC) CANADIAN STORY #Scary. I am glad that this did not happen to me. I can still run after having COVID-19. "When Allyson Moore contracted COVID-19 earlier this month, her symptoms were unpleasant, but bearable. 'I just felt really crummy for about three days,' the Ottawa physiotherapist recalled, comparing the experience to having 'a bad cold.' It wasn't until Moore, 31, ventured out for her first walk that she noticed something else. 'I had to stop after 10 minutes and catch my breath, and I'm used to running 20 to 40 kilometres a week, so it really was a wake-up call,' said Moore, a triathlete who's also training for the Ottawa Race Weekend half marathon at the end of May."

  3. Fearful over sanctions amid Ukraine war, Chinese energy giant CNOOC may pull out of Canada (CBC) CANADIAN STORY CNOOC has over 3000 employees in Canada. #Ugh. "China's top offshore oil and gas producer CNOOC Ltd. is preparing to exit its operations in Britain, Canada and the United States, because of concerns in Beijing the assets could become subject to sanctions, industry sources told Reuters. Ties between China and the West have long been strained by trade and human rights issues and the tension has grown following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which China has refused to condemn. The United States said last week China could face consequences if it helped Russia evade sanctions that have included financial measures that restrict Russia's access to foreign currency and make it complicated to process international payments."

  4. High Level Bridge rehab could include multi-use path on upper deck (CBC) EDMONTON STORY Nice. One of my favourite bridges. "Edmonton's High Level Bridge is on course for a significant facelift in a few years after city council's executive committee agreed [...] to move ahead with the city's major rehabilitation project. The 110-year-old bridge needs work on the main deck, the steel trusses and the concrete piers, the city says. Councillors opted for the major rehabilitation job over two other options: short-term upgrades and replacing the bridge completely."

  5. Calgary painter and printmaker Harry Kiyooka dead at 94 (CBC) CALGARY STORY A giant. RIP Mr. Kiyooka. We will not see your like again. "Harry Kiyooka, famed for his role in the Calgary arts community, died last Friday at the age of 94. The board of directors for the Kiyooka Ohe Arts Centre (KOAC) confirmed his death, though the cause was not immediately known. Kiyooka and his wife, sculptor Katie Ohe, founded KOAC, a centre dedicated to contemporary arts. Kiyooka was known as a trailblazing abstract artist, a painter and printmaker as well as a curator, collector, mentor and educator."

  6. Women's hockey and chronic disease philanthropist Joan Snyder dead at 90 (CBC) CALGARY STORY RIP Ms. Snyder. We will not see your like again. "Joan Snyder, a driving force behind women's hockey and the treatment of chronic disease, has died at age 90. Snyder died April 7, the University of Calgary said in a statement on the school's website. The university's campus flag was lowered to half-mast Tuesday in honour of Snyder. She donated $9 million in 2008 to the university for the establishment of the Calvin, Phoebe and Joan Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases and continued to support chronic, infectious and inflammatory disease research. Snyder donated $500,000 to the university's women's hockey team in 2011 when current Hockey Hall of Famers Danielle Goyette coached the Dinos and Hayley Wickenheiser played for them."

  7. Calgary Celebrates New Poet Laureate (Calgary Arts Development) CALGARY STORY #SuperCool "In January 1999, Wakefield Brewster stepped onto his first stage as a poet and spoken word artist. Today, he is known as one of Canada’s most powerful professional performance poets. A Black man raised in Toronto by parents from Barbados, he has resided in Calgary since 2006, and it is in the new west where Brewster has been able to truly flourish as a poet and as a person."

  8. Andrea Robertson and Wayne Chiu to be recognized at 30th Distinguished Business Leader Awards (UCalgary) CALGARY STORY Congrats to you both. So deserving. "Investing in civil society. Saving lives. These are no small ambitions for the 2022 Distinguished Business Leader Award recipients Wayne Chiu and Andrea Robertson. Both recipients exemplify a commitment to ethical community leadership — Chiu as the founder and CEO of Trico Group and founder of the Trico Charitable Foundation, and Robertson as the president and CEO of STARS. [...] Robertson and Chiu will be recognized on June 23 at an in-person gala co-presented by Haskayne and the Calgary Chamber, with support from gala partner Calgary Foundation. The 30th anniversary will be celebrated at the Hyatt Regency with previous recipients invited to join the festivities."

  9. Want a raise? Now is the perfect time to ask for it, career experts say (CBC) CANADIAN STORY "Leland Harper waited for the right moment to ask for a raise, a bold move considering that the small Michigan university where he works had frozen salaries before the pandemic. But when Harper asked for a 10 per cent salary hike in 2021, he got it — and job market watchers say that a labour shortage has given workers a real edge in negotiations. In fact, it's the perfect time to ask for a raise in many sectors, employment experts told CBC Radio, given the combination of rising inflation and a scarcity of workers. Inflation recently hit 5.7 per cent — its highest point in a generation — and is pushing up the cost of living at a time when employers have to compete for staff."

  10. Chat Bots Bypass ‘Communication Clutter’ to Help Students (Inside Higher Ed) #ItsANewAge #BuckleUp "A new study from Georgia State University found that community college students receiving targeted, personal text messages from an artificial intelligence chat bot were more likely to complete tasks critical to staying enrolled. The randomized controlled trial, conducted during the 2020–21 academic year, included about 11,000 students attending Perimeter College, a community college that is part of Georgia State University. Students received personalized text messages—complete with emojis—on their phones reminding them of important deadlines in their academic schedules, telling them how to pay outstanding balances or apply for financial aid, and directing them to campus services. The chat bot also responded to questions from students about campus services and supports, financial aid, and other topics, drawing on thousands of built-in answers to commonly asked questions."

SEVEN LIFE AND CAREER HACKS

  1. 3 Unexpected Reasons Why You Aren’t Losing Weight (Despite Doing Everything Right) (Better Humans) This is a very worthwhile read. I am looking to get my biome in order right now.

  2. 12 Tiny Tricks That’ll Build Huge Habits (According to World’s Smartest People) (Better Humans) All good but #9 is a real game-changer.

  3. 8 Ridiculously Simple Ways to Simplify Your Life Every Day (Jack Krier) I am all about 'reducing my carry'.

  4. 10 Quotes That’ll Make You Rethink Everything You’ve Known So Far (Raisul Islam) Some oldies but goodies and some newsies too.

  5. 40 Short Habits That Solve Life’s Most Common Problems (Personal Growth) #14 is harder than you think but more effective than you know.

  6. 5 Simple Tips to Travel Light and Look Stylish (Better Advice) I am pretty good at this. It is well worth learning.

  7. The One Rule for Optimising Sleep That Applies to Everyone (Charlotte Grysolle) I am afraid it is a simple as...

TOP THREE GIFTS OF THE WEEK

  1. STARS gets major donation (Alberta Farmer) ALBERTA STORY Yay! Nice work Birchcliff Energy. "STARS’ fleet renewal effort has received a donation of $1.5 million from Birchcliff Energy, which will go towards a new H145 helicopter to serve the Grande Prairie region. The Keep the Fight in Flight campaign launched in 2018 across Western Canada to renew STARS’ aging aircraft fleet of eight BK117s and three AW139s helicopters with new Airbus H145 helicopters."

  2. BC Search and Rescue receives largest-ever donation of $1 million from Rogers (Vancouver Island Free Daily) BRITISH COLUMBIA STORY Thanks Rogers! "A $1 million commitment to the BC Search and Rescue Association (BCSAR) by Rogers Communications aims to enhance search and rescue initiatives around B.C., in the wake of climate-related disasters that have plagued the province in recent years. An initial donation of $500,000 was announced on Wednesday (April 6) at Victoria’s Hotel Grand Pacific. Instalments of $100,000 will be given annually over the next five years, making the total donation the largest ever given to the organization."

  3. Salesforce com : Gives $11M to Restore Ecosystems and Advance Climate Justice (Market Screener) "Donations will go to 12 global nonprofits - including American Forests, the Ocean Foundation, and World Resources Institute - to enhance natural carbon sinks, protect biodiversity, and foster green job creation. At Net Zero Summit in Washington, D.C., Salesforce announced the first round of donations from its Ecosystem Restoration & Climate Justice Fund. Announced in late 2021, the global climate fund will invest a total of $100 million over 10 years toward key climate initiatives."

LAST WEEK'S MOST POPULAR STORIES

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