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We would like to recognize Kayla Horton, of Carleton Place, who was recognized as Rona’s new EcoLeader this past fall. She and her colleagues have a goal of eliminating waste in their workplace this year.

Horton will take initiatives to help the store and the community reduce pollution. There are six members in the committee along side Horton. Horton said that by 2011, (Rona has) a goal of zero waste altogether. Since the goal was set, Horton said, Rona has began with a number of changes, including recycling plastic, having a cardboard bailer, installing motion-censored lights, offering scrap wood to the community for firewood at no cost, recycling paint and more.

The store also accepts used blades, router bits, drill bits, hole saws and all alkaline batteries customers wish to dispose of at no charge. Horton is in charge of coming up with new ideas and putting them in practice with the help of the 6 member committee. During Horton’s free time, she works with children with special needs.

This year’s Carleton Place Citizen of the Year award goes to husband and wife team Wayne Drummond and Lorna Walsh Drummond! This award is given as the highest honour in Carleton Place Ontario.

The pair, who is known for running the Carleton Place Christmas Basket Fund, were pleased to take the opportunity to share about the local charity. While Carleton Place has always been a generous community that ensures people who need help don’t go without, Wayne said he hopes the people won’t stop giving when they can, as the program does not receive funding from any other sources.

The Drummonds have been married for 45 years. “We were high school sweethearts,” said Lorna.

Volunteering is a large part of the award, however attitude and being an ambassador for the town are extremely important. Once a person is named citizen of the year, they automatically join the committee, helping to recognize future recipients for their hard work in the community.

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The race for the mayor’s seat here in Carleton Place is shaping up to be a close one, and with less than two weeks to go before everyone casts their votes, things are getting more exciting as the days go by. In fact, the mayoralty race here in town is considered as one of the contests people should pay attention to in Lanark County and all of eastern Ontario.

Seeking his third straight term as head of Carleton Place is incumbent Mayor Paul Dulmage, who’s facing a tough challenger in Councillor Wendy LeBlanc, who has gained an increase in popularity over the course of the campaign period. With a community of around 10,000 people, every vote counts, and both candidates know it.

LeBlanc was the first to announce her candidacy, kicking off her campaign on the 24^th of June, giving her a good head start against Mayor Dulmage, who announced his candidacy for the post less than 24 hours before the closing of nominations on the 10^th of September.

While LeBlanc has been campaigning aggressively since June, Dulmage has kept a low profile, only turning things up during these past 2 weeks.

The race is still tight, so keep an eye on updates to know the latest developments.

As the 1^st Carleton Place-Comrie ‘Sister Cities Student Exchange’ continues for another 2 weeks, the first contingent of students, teachers and chaperones from Scotland are now making their way to Canada, and are set to arrive this afternoon at Ottawa airport.

The Student Exchange program’s opening ceremonies, which were held this August in Scotland, was undoubtedly a success. With the Scottish students arriving today, local students and residents are excited to welcome the contingent from Carleton Place’s twin community, Comrie. The exchange students will be staying in town until the 21^st, and will be given a tour of some of the sights and sounds here in the region.

According to Jeff Maguire, Chairman of the Carleton Place Sister City Committee, they’re keen to play host to their friends from Comrie. When the contingent from Carleton Place went to Scotland in August, Jeff and his wife, Kathleen, were part of the 5 adults who went along as chaperones.

He adds that they got to know the students and teachers from Scotland very well, so it’s exciting to be able to spend more time with them once more.

Carleton Place and Comrie, a quaint village located in the Scottish Highlands, have been recognized as twin communities since 1992. This year marks the 15^th anniversary of the twins, with celebrations and ceremonies taking place in both communities to mark the occasion.

EMC News – The Carleton Place and District Memorial Hospital (CPDMH) Foundation has received a gift of $160 from Ana and Dean Antonakos. The sister and brother team, with the help of their parents, Louis and Melanie Antonakos, operated a lemonade stand during the Bridge Street Bazaar and decided to donate the proceed of their sales to the Foundation.

Ana and Dean Antonakos know firsthand what the saying, ‘When life gives you lemons, make lemonade,’ means. The siblings however, took it even a notch higher.

The brother and sister duo, along with some help from their parents, Louis and Melanie Antonakos, opened up a lemonade stand during the Bridge Street Bazaar, where they earned quite a bit of money—$160 in fact.

But instead of buying something with their earnings, the siblings opted instead to donate the $160 to the Carleton Place and District Memorial Hospital Foundation.

According to Ana Antonakos, when their grandfather Papou was confined at the hospital for lengthy period of time, every at CPDMH took great care of him. She and her brother though it would be a great idea to donate their earnings at the bazaar as a way of thanking the hospital’s staff for their superb services.

She adds that coming up with the $160 amount wasn’t as tough as they had originally thought—in fact the folks at the bazaar were very friendly.

CPDMH CEO Toni Surko was happy to express the hospital’s gratitude at the touching gesture of the brother and sister team. He adds that the Antonakos family’s generosity is a fine example of community spirit.

With election day just around the corner, the race for the Mayor’s seat here in Carleton Place is heating up, and things got even hotter and spicier over the weekend.

The two candidates running for mayor, challenger Wendy LeBlanc and incumbent Mayor Paul Dulmage, participated in an all chili battle royale on Saturday, the 11^th of September, at the Carleton Place Farmer’s Market’s chili contest.

While the Carleton Place’s mayoralty race has been pretty friendly so far, it was obvious that things at the contest turned up a notch higher, mainly because of the spicy food served courtesy of Tijuana Tilly’s Mexican restaurant.

Earlier this month, Dulmage announced his plans to run for a third term 24 hours before the closing of nominations, this after receiving the blessings of his family and close friends. The incumbent mayor looks to continue his vision of growth and progress for the community.

Opponent Councillor Wendy LeBlanc on the other hand, formally kicked off her campaign for mayor on the 24^th of June.

Though the candidates certainly made their delicious choices of chili known, Carleton Place’s voters will have to wait until the 25^th of October to vote for who they want as mayor.

With the resounding success of the first phase of the Carleton Place-Comrie ‘Sister Cities Student Exchange,’ the contingent from Carleton Place is gearing up to play host to their Scottish counterparts when they come on over for a two-week stay next month.

Three female students from Carleton Place High School (CPHS), together with six female students from Notre Dame Catholic High School, were selected to be part of a contingent that got to enjoy a 10-day tour of Scotland. The students visited the country from the 20^th to the 30^th of August, and were joined by 5 adult members and guardians who made up the Carleton Place Sister City Committee.

These were committee chairman Jeff Maguire and his wife, councilor Wendy LeBlanc and husband Frank, and Debbie Burn. Together, these adults were in charge of being chaperones throughout the students’ Scotland visit.

The contingent had the opportunity to visit Comrie, a quaint village in the highlands of Scotlands, also recognized as Carleton Place’s twin community since 1992. The link between the two communities was made official in simultaneous ceremonies held in July 2007.

With the success of the trip, plans of sending another contingent for the 20^th anniversary of the “twins” in 2012 are already shaping up.

Ontario’s finest were pretty busy last Friday, but they weren’t chasing criminals. Instead, they were on a merry chase in Carleton Place, tracking down a black bear cub, and successfully sedating it thanks to the officers from Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.

The chase first began at 11 in the morning on that fateful day, on the streets situated near the northern bank of the Mississippi, and finally ending in an old neighborhood on the south side of town. The bear cub climbed up a tree in the residential area, allowing policemen to corner the animal and keep an eye on it while waiting for personnel from the MNR to arrive on the scene. According to Carleton Place Police Constable Sean Trahan, the incident finally ended on a relieving note at around mid-afternoon.

While the cub was hiding up the tree, residents in the area couldn’t help but be curious, but policemen were quick to warn them to stay inside their homes. Children were also advised to stay in school and keep away from the area.

When a wildlife officer finally shot the bear cub with a tranquilizer dart, it seemed like ages before the drugs took effect – at least that’s what some eyewitness report.

The bear then tumbled into a tarpaulin and was safely released back into the wilderness.

A young girl from Carleton Place, Eastern Ontario recently received a bravery award along with 47 other people. Kelsea Roy saved her mother’s life when she was still 8 years old. Her mother fell through the ice into the freezing water while she was having a winter getaway with her daughter, Kelsea. She yelled at Kelsea emphatically, telling her to leave, fearing that she might also fall into the water, but Kelsea instead slithered along the dangerously thin ice, pulled he mother out and saved her life.

Governor General Michaelle Jean was the one who gave Kelsea the bravery decoration last Thursday along with 47 other brave and heroic people — 3 of which were Regina men who yanked a woman out of a burning vehicle just seconds before it exploded.

The bravery awards are intended to recognize acts of selflessness and heroics that rescued lives and sometimes sacrificing the rescuers own. 46 of the awardees received Medals of Bravery whilst 1 U.S. Coast Guard officer received the Star of Courage.

Some of the awards were given to people who have already died. The recipients who attended the ceremony which was held at Rideau Hall in Ottawa were composed of police officers, electricians, elevator repairman, soldiers, volunteer firefighters, and even children.

Tom Bonhomme of Almonte, together with 5 other residents, has packed up his bags and left for to India on account of the Rotary Group Study Exchange Program.

The Rotary team is composed of Kemptvilles’ Anna Van Adrichem-Rochon as leader, Kingston’s Marie-Claude Vallee, and Jessica Brown and Lianne Kay of Ottawa. They left on January 29 in order to arrive at New Delhi on January 30. Their itinerary officially began on February 1. This trip, which will last for four weeks, is for the group to experience India’s customs and culture, discuss ideas and build personal and professional relationships, and see the landmarks. The group members shall meet with the Indians who took part of a Group Study Exchange Program last fall in Kemptville.

According to Van Adrichem-Rochon, the essential features of a GSE is for the visiting group to meet, talk, and dwell with the Rotarians and their respective families in the spirit of hospitality and friendship. She said that their team will act as the ambassadors of goodwill.

Van Andrichem-Rochon is the only Rotarian of the team. The others are not Rotary members, but only sponsored by the clubs in their respective districts. Bonhomme is sponsored by the Carleton Place and District Rotary Club. Nevertheless, the airline tickets are covered by the Rotary Foundation.

For more information, the team’s blog can be visited at http://gseindia2010.blogspot.com . The blog shall be updated throughout the extent of their trip.