Thanks to the Memorial Hospital Foundation-Bowmanville, who donated $1.35-million for the centre’s redevelopment, the hospital was able to improve its facility and add a long-requested digital machine.

According to Lakeridge Health’s doctors, the new digital mammography machine gives them amazingly clear and accurate images, which are available to them at a rate much faster than that of the normal film machine. Furthermore, the machine has the ability to zoom in and out on an area, with operators able to adjust the viewing settings to give physicians a better look at the examined tissue.

For the patients, this means a lot less waiting as well as fewer re-examinations. The new machine is also very accessible to those sitting in wheelchairs and lying down in gurneys. However, one thing that won’t change is the pain an exam can bring. This is because the new machine still works like the usual mammogram, albeit with faster and much more accurate results.

Just think of it this way; the temporary pain of a mammogram is far better than the pain caused by breast cancer.

The Bowmanville Rotary Club, the organizers of Ribfest, sought help from council and asked if they could somehow borrow a big portable generator for use during the event. According to Kevin Anyan, a representative from the Bowmanville Rotary Club, the organization needs a very large generator for the event, which requires a lot of power to accommodate those who are expected to attend.

At first, the group considered renting a generator, but they found out that the cost of renting one that would have to run for 24 hours a day could be as high as $9,000 – that’s triple the regular renting cost of $3,000.  If the group chose to rent a generator, they’d end up putting Ribfest at risk for lack of funds.

This dilemma led them to approach council and ask if they could borrow the municipal building’s extra backup generator. Council was willing to lend the generator for a significantly lower renting cost which still has to be ironed out.

Ribfest is a fundraising event that plays host to ribbers, vendors, and entertainers dishing out fun for the whole family. The 3^rd annual Ribfest takes place on the 13^th of June.

The Day of Pink campaign first began when a Nova Scotia student was bullied when he wore a pink shirt to school. Fortunately, his classmates took a stand for him, leading hundreds of students to wear pink to school to stop the bullying and discrimination.
That single united act has inspired thousands of kids all over the world, and thus, the International Day of Pink was born. The celebration is marked by various activities and workshops about how to stop bullying and get over our society’s negative stereotypes.

Harold Longworth’s student council put together an awareness campaign to promote the Day of Pink at the school. Students placed posters speaking against bullying all over the school, and made announcements on why bullying needs to be stopped. According to school Vice Principal Stephen Fisher, he’s proud of the students for doing such an amazing job.

We can’t help but agree.

Originally meant to be a part of the hospital’s $10-million redevelopment project, hospital officials decided to go ahead and build the critical care unit portion of the project in advance, due to its urgency. According to Dr. Benj Fuller, an E.R. doctor at the Bowmanville hospital, the redevelopment project would’ve included new emergency room facilities, but it became clear to doctors and healthcare personnel working at the hospital that a CCU was much more important.

The new critical care unit, which will cost around $1.3 million to develop, will be funded by the Memorial Hospital Foundation-Bowmanville.

A new CCU should be what specialists need to get work done at the hospital, this according to Lakeridge CEO Kevin Empey. The lack of a proper CCU he said, has impeded the recruitment of new specialists to practice in Bowmanville.

The future of Bowmanville’s hospital was discussed in 2009, when doctors shared their worries on the imminent shortage of specialists and internists that might affect the medical institution’s services and quality of patient care.

This month’s trip camp kicks off at the Bowmanville Indoor Soccer Centre, and is open to all kids aged 8 to 14. The trip camp includes field trips to famous places and tourist spots such as the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto’s Hockey Hall of Fame, the Ontario Science Museum, and many more.

For younger kids aged 7 to 12, the sports camp is where the action is at. This year’s camp runs out of the Bowmanville Indoor Soccer Centre, and will feature numerous activities of just about any sport known to man today.

The project is a part of Clarington’s goal of creating recreational opportunities for its residents and promoting healthy lifestyles in the region. For details and information about this year’s March camps in Bowmanville, Clarington, you can logon to www.clarington.net/htdocs/recreation.html.

So what’re you waiting for? Sign your kids up to the program and let them have a blast this March.

Big Brothers and Sisters of Clarington announced this week that they’ll be kicking off the annual “Bowl for Kid’s Sake,” a fundraising event to take place at Liberty Bowl in Bowmanville. The annual event raises funds for children’s programs under their foundation.

Another fundraising event took place last Saturday and proved to be very successful in spite of the bitter weather. The Polar Chili Golf Classic, a unique game of golf in the snow, drew in over 120 golfers to the makeshift links behind Bowmanville High School. The annual event raises funds for The Clarington Project.

The Memorial Hospital Foundation-Bowmanville was pleased to announce that their 2009 Smile Cookie Campaign was a smashing success, amassing a record-number of donations in the Durham region. Furthermore, coffee giant Tim Horton’s wrote the foundation a check worth $96,040.

Moving on to more serious matters, officials said that they can’t put a timeline as of yet on the move to construct more nuclear reactors near the Darlington Nuclear Station. They’re still deliberating the matter as of now.

The coffee and donut giant recently gave $96,040 to the non-profit group. The foundation will be using the money to acquire a new transport defibrillator and cardiac monitor. Part of the donation will also be used to pay for a treatment room as part of the Lakeridge Health Bowmanville’s emergency room redevelopment project.

The foundation was able to raise the money from their Smile Cookie Campaign in 2009, a fundraiser that collected an astounding amount of money in the Durham Region.

Gerry Johnston, head of the foundation’s board, commented that he and his team of workers and volunteers have been all smiles since they heard the news. It’s not just about the large donation for Tim Hortons he said, but also about how the Durham community came together for their cause. He added that the money will really go a long way in helping the foundation’s mission.

The Smile Cookie program first started in 1996 in Hamilton. Every year since then, the fundraiser has collected money for Hamilton’s Children’s Hospital.

A few days ago, reports surfaced about Ontario Power Generation’s plan to keep the Pickering nuclear plant up and running for another ten years and spruce up the Darlington plant, effectively making it safe and capable of operating efficiently for another 40 years or so. Miniser Duguid pointed out that the matter is currently awaiting the approval of Ontario Power Generation’s board of directors.

Duguid however, didn’t disclose the effects of such a plan on the decision to put up new nuclear reactors at Darlington. He said that he’s only waiting to have recommendations on his desk. Only then can he discuss the impact of the proposed plan.

The construction of new nuclear reactors required environmental, which was immediately done thereafter. But in June of last year, bidding for the project hit a snag with the provincial government. According to Minister Duguid, building new nuclear reactors is a very serious matter, something that needs to be considered slowly and carefully.