Reconciliation in Uxbridge
Nikita Mohile
Uxbridge resident Nikita Mohile (a Port Perry High School student) has prepared a series of articles that look specifically at Uxbridge’s Indigenous history, and how the township is faring in the quest for Truth and Reconcilation with Canada’s Indigenous people. This is the first article in that series.
Becoming one of Uxbridge’s most influential Indigenous leaders after a childhood in a Mennonite home is an unpredictable path, but it is the life story of Mim Harder.
“I was in my 20s, I was living in Kansas and most people there are Mexican American. People would always ask me, “Where are you from in Mexico?” Back then, I didn’t know my background, so I started looking into it and asking questions,” she says.
After moving to Uxbridge with her children, Harder says she was determined to discern more about her Indigenous background. The Richmond Hill Library was a source of immense information for Harder, especially books by Aboriginal author Arthur Solomon.
“When I read that, it really hit home because it was a lot of what I felt and it just changed my path. I felt like it was part of who I am and I really needed to find out more about it,” says Harder.
After a few years, she started to receive invitations to lead engagement sessions and speak at meetings. Along with collaborating with the Township of Uxbridge, Harder has also worked with many churches in southern Ontario, the York Catholic School Board, and multiple Indigenous communities.
One exercise that she frequently leads is called a blanket exercise. Blanket exercises are interactive for participants to understand the comprehensive history of Indigenous peoples in Canada and how today’s communities were formed. Each person stands on a piece of fabric, representing their land, and gets to experience getting their land taken away and shifting. At the end of the session, many participants may have “died,” and the floor looks vastly different from when the session started.
“We cover basically 500 years of history in less than an hour,” explains Harder. “I’ve done it for governments, the attorney general’s office in Toronto, churches, businesses, banks, and universities.”
Additionally, Harder has been involved with the local Maamawai Collective, which is a group of self-defined “settler volunteers” dedicated to Truth and Reconciliation. After attending a KAIROS Blanket Exercise (KAIROS is a movement that promotes social justice, peace and environmental justice for high school youth), then Collective coordinator Barbara Blower felt deeply inspired to take action on the cultural gap between settler and Indigenous communities in Uxbridge. The birth of the Maamawi Collective led to various events, like Orange Shirt Day marches and Red Dress walks for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls movement.
Harder’s extensive work in the reconciliation of communities, education of Indigenous history and residential schools, and support of Indigenous culture earned her the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers in 2019.
“You don’t know what you don’t know,” she says, “but when you know, it’s your responsibility to do something with it.”
Despite the community’s strides toward reconciliation in recent years, Harder believes Canadians, and Uxbridgians, can still go further. She mentions that a vital aspect is incorporating Indigenous perspectives in education. Understanding the complete history of Indigenous peoples makes it possible to move forward together. Already, the DDSB has implemented a new mandatory course, Contemporary Aboriginal Voices, for grade 11 students. Harder says it’s to “get those conversations going. Once you get them going, often they’ll continue and people will want to learn more.”
Beyond awareness and education, there is still a significant cultural gap that must be bridged. Through events like art shows, book nights, and other functions to promote Indigenous culture, Harder says we can all help to advance reconciliation.
“You can do things online, at events, even do a land acknowledgment. Just create a space for Indigenous people to come in and share.”
Skateboarder suffers serious injuries
Roger Varley
A teenage girl was transported to a Toronto hospital on Friday after suffering serious injuries at the Uxbridge skate park.
Durham Regional Police say witnesses told them the 16-year-old was riding a skateboard on the skate park parking lot, located on Main Street North, while holding on to the side of a silver pickup truck near the rear wheel. Police said the girl lost her balance, fell, and was run over by the truck.
She was taken to a local hospital in critical condition and later transferred to Toronto, where she was said to be in “life-threatening condition.”
No further information was available at press time.
Police ask anyone with information on the incident to call D/Cst. Dalgetty at 905-579-1520 ext. 5217.
UPDATE: The Cosmos learned on Thursday that Durham Regional Policed had disclosed the the 16-year-old female had succumbed to her injuries.
Zephyr development could drain hamlet
Roger Varley
About 30 Zephyr residents crowded into Uxbridge council chambers Monday night to voice their opposition to a proposed development in the hamlet.
At a public planning hearing into the application by China Canada Jing Bei Xin Min International Co. Ltd., several residents addressed council with a litany of complaints, but the overriding concern appeared to be their water supply.
The developer wants to build a subdivision on 100 acres on the former Hidden Ridge golf course, just a stone’s throw from the hamlet’s main intersection. Monday’s meeting was about the development’s Phase Two, which would see 17 homes added to the seven homes proposed in Phase One. The company is seeking to change the zoning from “Recreational Open Space Exception No. 3 (OS-3)” to “Hamlet Residential Exception No. 53 (HR-53).” Mayor Dave Barton pointed out the smallest lot in the development would be three-quarter of an acre in size.
Given the topography of the area, several residents whose properties are adjacent to the proposed development expressed concern about drainage from the site. Beverly Saunders of Ecovue Consulting Services, the developer’s planning consultant, showed a slide which indicated all runoff would move away from neighbouring homes, but the residents were skeptical. One resident said she already has water pooling on her property and wanted pre- and post-construction examinations to make sure her property is not adversely affected by the development.
More residents said they were worried about what would happen to their wells. All the homes in the proposed subdivision would obtain water from wells, and residents said that could seriously affect the water table and their own water supply. Addressing the consultant’s claim that well monitoring has been done, resident Colleen McBroom said results could vary depending on when the monitoring was done. Monitoring in the Spring could show vastly different results than tests done in the Fall, she said.
Resident Josee MacPherson said the development could have “catastrophic consequences” on the water supply. MacPherson asked why it would be up to the residents to prove the development was the cause if their wells run dry.
“This hamlet has a finite amount of water and there is no way of knowing what that level is,” she said. “Given the increasingly dry weather and the growing demand for water, this means the (water) table could be drying up faster than anticipated. My question to council is when, not if, the water runs dry, what then?”
Councillor Gord Shreeve also wanted to know what the applicant would do to compensate residents if their wells dry up. However, there were few other questions from members of council.
But residents were not so reticent. Marlene Riddle, claiming that the township did not give the public enough advance notice of the meeting and that the public notice signs in the area were incorrectly situated, asked if that was enough to end the meeting. The answer was no.
However, a variety of other concerns were brought up: Residents noted that Zephyr has only one store, few services and only two public amenities: the library and the community hall/park. It was noted that the subdivision would have only one point of access/egress and that would be directly across the road from the entrance to the Zephyr park. Others pointed to the hamlet’s lack of sidewalks, poor road conditions and heavy traffic, as well as the need to protect provincially significant wetlands that border the property as well as local threatened or endangered wildlife.
“How will this development benefit Zephyr?” one resident asked.
Several said the development should be offering “affordable” homes.
“Why isn’t council going for houses our children can afford,” asked McBroom.
In reply to a question, township planning consultant Elizabeth Howson said that if council rejects the development proposal, the applicant can appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal. If council approves the plan, residents would have to appeal to the OLT.
No one hurt in explosion, fire
Roger Varley
Uxbridge firefighters responded to an explosion and fire on Planks Lane on Friday night.
Fire chief Mike MacDonald said it isn’t clear if the explosion caused the fire or whether a component of an electric car exploded. He said firefighters arrived to find an attached garage in flames but were able to prevent the fire from spreading to nearby buildings.
MacDonald said no one in the house, including two cats, was injured in the incident and the house itself suffered only minimal damage as a result of firefighters cutting into drywall to make sure there was no fire in the walls.
The chief said a sizaeble crowd had gathered at the site to watch.
Following the bouncing by-law ball
Roger Varley
One could, perhaps, excuse members of council if they occasionally become confused, given the labyrinthine complexities of some by-laws.
On Monday, which proved a quieter than normal day at council, councillors were asked to approve the following by-law: “Being a by-law to repeal By-law 2023-101, being a by-law to amend By-law 2002-217, being a by-law to adopt a policy with respect to the Delegation of Powers and Duties with Council of the Corporation of the Township of Uxbridge (this by-law is being repealed to correct an administrative error.)
Newcomer leads Bruins to win
Roger Varley
Newly arrived Tanner Ryan, recently acquired from the London Nationals, led the Uxbridge Bruins to a 6-3 win over the Georgina Ice on Friday.
In a game marked by a couple of dust-ups and more than a few slashing and inciting penalties, Ryan, a Stouffville native, scored one goal and assisted on two others in his first appearance with the Bruins. Defenceman Jake Rigillo matched Ryan’s point total with three assists.
Playing at the Ice Palace in Keswick instead of their usual Friday night home game, the Bruins opened the scoring late in the first period on a powerplay, with Alex Hyde finding the net, assisted by Anthony Lamanna and Ryan. Georgina responded 20 seconds later, but Lucas Marshall quickly restored the one-goal lead, assisted by Luke El-Ayari.
Mark Sifri pulled the Bruins even farther ahead early in the second, assisted by Noah Button and Travis Winder, but the Ice came back with two quick goals to tie the score. However, Quinn Meek, assisted by Rigillo and Ryan, notched what proved to be the winning goal on a power play with less than a minute remaining in the period.
Ryan scored the insurance goal late in the third, assisted by Meek and Rigillo, and Josh Czalij put the game out of reach with the Bruins’ third power-play goal of the game, with assists going to Rigillo and Trent Underwood.
The win gave the Bruins a 1-1-0 record as they headed for a Tuesday night meeting in Lakefield against the Chiefs. They return to the arena tomorrow (Friday) night to face their arch rivals, the Port Perry LumberJacks, at 7:45 p.m.
North Durham transitional housing chooses service operator
A “transitional supportive housing” initiative that will support north Durham residents is one step closer to becoming a reality.
The Regional Municipality of Durham announced Monday that it has has selected Blue Door as the service operator for the Beaverton Transitional Supportive Housing residence. Through what the region called a “comprehensive Expression of Interest process,” Blue Door was chosen because of its 41 years of experience with having launched, operated, and scaled four transitional supportive housing programs. Blue Door is a registered charity that, according to the region, offers “more than 10 innovative and collaborative housing, employment and health programs aimed at addressing the root causes of homelessness.”
Stella Danos-Papaconstantinou, the commissioner of social services for the region, says “Now that Blue Door has been selected as the service provider, we are one step closer to move-in at the Beaverton Transitional Supportive Housing residence and helping people to get back on their feet. This project provides an opportunity to improve the life circumstances of a marginalized population in a healthy environment, and I look forward to the success stories that will come from it.”
The plan is for the Beaverton Transitional Supportive Housing to be a 47-unit modular housing development that will provide accommodation and access to wraparound services. Transitional supportive housing helps residents physically and mentally, providing the life skills necessary to successfully transition into permanent housing.
Move in is expected to begin later this year, with residents being phased in gradually over time. Priority access will be given to unsheltered residents and those at risk of homelessness in north Durham who require this level of support.
Additional information regarding Beaverton Transitional Supportive Housing is available at durham.ca/SupportiveHousing
Pregnancy support centre hopes community ‘walks alongside’ this weekend
Submitted by Amy Gohlich
Sunrise Pregnancy and Family Support Services (Sunrise, for short) is a grassroots charity that has walked alongside pregnant women and families in need of support in Uxbridge and surrounding areas for over 30 years. Over this time, their mandate has expanded from offering pregnancy support to young parents to include support for families at any point in their parenting journey.
Sunrise’s annual “Walk With Us” fundraiser this weekend offers a chance to literally walk alongside and help raise funds for much-needed support for families in our community.
If you’ve never heard of Sunrise before, that’s likely because they spend most of their time actively serving the community, and less time tooting their own horn.
Esther Veens, program coordinator, has been working with Sunrise for 11 years, after initially becoming involved volunteering for the agency in her youth. Today, her role involves a lot of the front line work, outreach support, connecting with families, and, to a lesser degree, administration and overseeing fundraising. Veens and her team offer a compassionate, non-judgmental, practical level of support, and their dedication is a big part of why Sunrise can continue to operate even on a shoestring budget.
unrise depends on local donations and fundraising efforts, which have been made more difficult in recent years. However, since they operate with no office and very minimal overhead, the funding that is received can be poured directly into programming and the practical needs of attending families, who are feeling the ever-increasing budget strain on necessities like food and diapers.
One of the most common misconceptions about Sunrise is that it solely serves pregnant women, but that’s not the case.
“We’re inclusive to anyone,” says Veens. “There are no restrictions by age or gender, or length of time being involved. You don’t have to be a new or young parent even – your kids can be grown! We do tend to support those who are most vulnerable – dealing with challenges to mental health, addiction, postpartum struggles, volatile relationships, housing. We’re not just for moms and babies. We work with a lot of families that are struggling in different ways and looking for peer and professional support. They might not feel as comfortable in other community groups and have found that they feel more at home, safe or understood in our group. We’re about creating relationships with the families we work with. It’s not just dropping in to get food vouchers and leaving; we work on building a holistic community with relational support and trust so families know they are not alone, and we’re here to walk alongside you wherever you’re at.”
Sunrise offers support in a number of practical ways. Some of their services include the weekly Parenting Support Program, home or community visits, transportation and accompaniment to appointments and meetings for support and advocacy, as well as access to a donations closet. They work closely with the local foodbank and other social service agencies in the community.
Like many non-profit organizations, Sunrise was significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The weekly in-person parenting support group, which had been thriving and offering a lifeline of support to families, had to be put on hold. “[The weekly support group] offers a chance for parents to make meals together, see guest speakers, get a little bit of parental connection time with free childcare and finish high school credit…it was a real focus of our program and was really thriving; we’re still building back to that,” explains Veens. “Because so many families were in crisis during this time, some with little to no family or friend support networks, we expanded our outreach services to continue to meet the needs. We are still supporting the same families, but many aren’t in a place to get out to the group anymore. We’re hoping to build the hub back up again.”
Fortunately, the Health Department recently resumed offering support to Sunrise following COVID, with a public health nurse available to do prenatal discussions with mothers, and the Family Community Action Program will have a team member on site at the weekly program twice monthly.
Government services are not able to meet the demand, either for funding or policy reasons, and Sunrise is trying to stand in the gaps for the families that are impacted.
“Services are doing the best they can,” says Veens. “There are a lot of places trying to help but it’s funding and policies, so workers’ hands are tied. But we see agencies trying their best.”
This experience appears to be all too common: Children’s Mental Health Ontario (CMHO) reports that the majority of parents and caregivers surveyed (71 per cent) report a lack of availability of programs and services to meet their needs. The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) notes that while mental illness accounts for roughly 10 per cent of the burden of disease in Ontario, it receives just 7 per cent of healthcare dollars. The gap works out to about $1.5 billion, which makes timely, appropriate assistance nearly impossible. Small, local groups with minimal overhead, like Sunrise, become all the more important because they are hyperlocal, faster to respond, and more easily able to adjust to families’ rapidly changing needs.
There are currently about 15-20 families using Sunrise’s services, but Veens says she feels as though the need in the community surpasses their current volume. The biggest hurdles are making sure that the families in need know Sunrise is available, and that Sunrise has the resources to continue to meet demand. While the assistance of volunteers with driving, childcare, and various other needs of the clients is significant and appreciated, Sunrise is continuously trying to do more with less to fill in the gaps in Ontario’s strained and struggling healthcare, mental health, and family services systems.
Their fundraiser on Saturday this week (Sept. 30) is their biggest annual fundraiser and will take place at the Herrema Fields soccer shelter at 9:30 a.m. There will be a complimentary lunch, a raffle draw, and a bake sale.
For those interested, it is possible to complete the walk in your own neighbourhood. For more information about the walk, or to grab your own pledge forms, check out their website: sunriseuxbridge.com