CHEERS: To Roma at Three Rivers for organizing a heritage chocolate festival at the National Historic Site on Friday and Saturday (Aug. 2-3) and for inviting Peace by Chocolate founder Tareq Hadhad to be a guest speaker on Saturday. The Hadhad family ran a thriving chocolate company in Damascus but lost everything during the war in Syria. After three years in a refugee camp in Lebanon, the family was invited to come to Canada to start a new life in Antigonish, N.S. Inspired by the kindness of Canadians, he looks for ways to give back.
JEERS: To all those drivers who still don’t seem to understand the concept of crosswalks. It doesn’t seem to matter the age of the drivers, where they are from or what kind of car they are driving — too many still drive right across those white strips while pedestrians are clearly waiting to cross and wisely choosing not to do so and take their lives into their own hands. Charlottetown’s streets are straight and have good sight lines. Many of these crosswalks are now painted on fresh, black asphalt. It’s hard to miss them. Pay attention, slow down and let pedestrians safely cross in front of you!
CHEERS: To the municipal police forces in Charlottetown, Summerside and Kensington for signing a partnership agreement this past week with the MedicAlert Foundation of Canada. This agreement is designed to assist police in responding to issues with those living with autism, Alzheimer’s, dementia, fetal alcohol spectrum, mental health-related issues and cognitive brain injuries. This agreement will provide police with access to a national database of information that could be vital in cases where someone has wandered away, for example. It will assist police in not only responding to situations but in dealing with people the right way when they get there.
CHEERS: To former UPEI Panthers hockey player Dave Shellington, who will have his No. 22 retired during alumni night in 2020. Shellington, 54, played five seasons (1985-1990) with the Panthers. The Burford, Ont., native is the Panthers’ all-time leading scorer with 232 points (including 96 goals). Shellington’s university hockey career included playing on two AUAA championship teams.
JEERS: To the two drivers who were fined last week for stunting. According to the RCMP, a routine patrol on Route 1 in Mt. Mellick spotted the two vehicles last Monday at around 1 p.m. speeding, moving in and out of traffic and then passing several vehicles. The officer’s radar registered a speeding high of 164 km/h. The two vehicles were impounded and the drivers fined $700 each. We certainly don’t need to add this sort of reckless and childish behaviour to P.E.I.’s already dangerous highways.
