The Waterloo region may be known to have a population with some of the lowest blood pressure rates in the country, but when it comes to fitness, exercising, and eating the right foods, there’s not much to be proud of really.

Recent statistics from the Canadian Community Health Survey indicate that from 2008, cities and towns in the Region of Waterloo—Cambridge being one of them—ranked second best in all of Ontario for good blood pressure rates, with only 12 percent in the whole region suffering from hypertension.

However, the Waterloo region also scored low in other areas of importance. 36 health units in the region were surveyed, and the health experts found out that:

• Waterloo ranked 11^th for daily and occasional smoking, with 21.7% saying they are heavy smokers.
• Waterloo also ranked 17^th in the whole province for obesity and overweight rates, with a whopping 55% of the entire population belonging to the category.
• Out of all the regions in the province, Waterloo ranked 33^rd for physical activity, with 55.1% of the population in the region saying they hardly exercised at all.

Armed with this data, health officials in the region are encouraging the local governments to encourage their constituents to live healthy and active lifestyles.

One Cambridge convenience store in the Hespeler area had a close call with theft, as one unknown man tried to rob the establishment. Fortunately, one of the store’s employees thwarted his attempt when he entered the store through the back door, catching the thief off-guard who then ran off immediately.

According to the reports, the thief went inside the store located at Queen Street East, at around 8 in the evening. After pretending to browse through the items, he approached the clerk working the cash register and demanded to have the money handed over. Apparently, the man said he had a weapon, though the clerk reported that none was seen.

The store’s employees couldn’t get a clear look at the suspect because the man’s facial profile was hidden due to his tightly drawn hoodie. Police authorities think that when the other employee came through the back door, the thief probably sensed things were about to get complicated, and was forced to run off.

The suspect was last seen getting inside a silver-colored SUV. Fortunately, nobody was hurt and no money was taken.

Police authorities in Cambridge are currently investigating the case. If you have any information on the suspect, or similar theft cases, please call the Waterloo Regional Police Detectives office at 519-653-7700.

In an effort to raise awareness on the rising problem of homeless people in the City of Cambridge, one local youth church group will be camping outside in the cold on Friday. This time however, their camping experience will be a bit more serious, with no hot chocolate, campfire songs, roasted marshmallows, and the like.

There won’t even be any tents for this group of teenagers; they’re camping out in a totally different way.

Kicking off at 6 in the evening on Friday, youths from around Cambridge will be putting up cardboard boxes right outside the Maranatha Christian Reformed Church. From 6 p.m. to 6 in the morning the next day, those cardboard boxes will be their home throughout the night. What’s more, these kids won’t have any heaters to make them feel more comfortable. All they will have are sleeping bags and the shirts on their backs.

Though it may be a bit extreme for some teenagers, the youth group thinks it’s the best way to spread awareness on the issue of homelessness. Experiencing how it would feel firsthand will also make them feel more appreciative of the blessings they have, one youth said.

Dina Zomer, the church youth group’s director, said it’ll be safe. She and a group of other church members will be watching over the kids and for those who might want to go home.

Those looking to undergo elective surgery in the Cambridge Memorial Hospital might have to be put on a waiting list, that is, until the hospital contains the spread of a highly contagious virus.

According to Ann Bartlett, head of patient surgeries at Cambridge Memorial, she and her staff are doing all they can to keep that from happening.

Due to a recent outbreak of the Norovirus, formerly called the Norwalk virus, Cambridge Memorial’s officials and staff have been forced to use stringent measures in keeping the hospital clean and sanitary. If the virus isn’t contained, then elective surgeries will have to be sent other hospitals in Cambridge.

Although seldom fatal, the virus, which affects the intestinal area, causes severe diarrhea and vomiting. If unattended, dehydration could set in, leading to death. The problem with the Norovirus is that catching it is too easy. Symptoms of the disease are extremely quick to manifest as well.

Treatment is relatively easy, with patients being isolated in disinfected rooms. The hospital’s staffs are also dressed in completely sterile gowns, masks, and gloves to avoid transmission of the virus.

Hardly any visitors are allowed inside the isolation wards, which has caused some complaints among the community’s residents. According to doctors, the best thing they can do is to stop the spread of the virus as much as they can and wait until it dies out.

In a move to breathe life into the downtown Galt area, officials from Cambridge are planning to rehabilitate the city’s Main Street.

In a meeting that took place this week on Wednesday, the Downtown Cambridge Business Improvement Association or BIA discussed plans of streetscaping the city’s Main Street to invite investors

The city’s planning commissioner, Janet Babcock, revealed that Cambridge had already forwarded a funding application for $750,000 to the Southern Ontario Development Agency (SODA). The agency has been allotted over $1 billions over the past five years from FedDev Ontario as part of Canada’s economic stimulus package to battle the effects of the recession.

If things go according to plan and SODA approves the city’s request, the project is expected to kick off immediately, to be finished before the spring of 2011. The federal and city government will each be shouldering 50% each of the proposed budget.

One development firm in Cambridge even purchased a number of buildings along Main Street in anticipation of the project. He hopes to renovate the structures in the future.

Indeed a rehabilitation of the Cambridge’s Main Street is crucial to improving existing businesses as well as inviting new ones to the area.

Despite going through difficult and painful medical treatments for leukemia, 7-year old Ava Caron still managed to get excited when watching figure skaters on TV.

Ava was diagnosed with lymphoblastic leukemia, a type of cancer in the blood, in 2007. She spent most of her time undergoing treatment and staying at home watching TV. In the moments that she felt good enough, she said that it was always figure skating that boosted her spirits. She added that watching skaters dancing and seemingly soaring in the air had a calming effect on her, in a way helping her fight the cancer.

Ava’s mother Anne recalled spending nights dancing and twirling around the house, reenacting the figure skaters’ routine with her other daughters, Hannah, who was 5 at the time, and Ella, who was only 2.

Now that Ava’s medical treatment is complete and she’s officially cancer-free, one of her longtime wishes will be coming true this year.

Thanks to Canada’s Children’s Wish Foundation, Ava can take her love for figure skating to new heights – the organization will be sending this family from Cambridge to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, taking place on February.

Anne said Ava might not be able to grasp the magnitude of the event, but she knows her daughter will be happy to see figure skaters in the flesh.

Officials from the City of Cambridge as well as the Waterloo region recently met to discuss the capacity and status of the three wastewater treatment facilities in Cambridge.

According to Jim King, Cambridge’s chief administrative officer, city councilors and staff met up with region officials to clarify the available capacity at the Preston, Hespeler, and Galt wastewater treatment plants. Some of the topics covered included the issue of who should get the remaining available capacity, as well as expansion plans for the three facilities in the future. In addition, the new Boxwood industrial subdivision behind the local Toyota plant was also mentioned, with officials asking if the area has the needed sewer capacity.

He adds that he can’t disclose all of the details just yet, at least not until the all members of the Cambridge City Council hear about the full report. He did however, say that the meeting had good results and many questions were answered from both sides. Boxwood was also mentioned and looks to be in good shape, though the same can’t be said for Hespeler, he added.

Staffs from the Waterloo region are expected to make their report to the Cambridge City Council on the 8th of February (Monday), 2010.

The City of Cambridge’s economic development team are off to a great start this year, as council approved the city’s first industrial lot sale on Monday. Indeed, it’s a great achievement, considering that most Ontario cities usually pick up the pace when it comes to land sales at around March or April.

The Cambridge City Council approved the sale of the 2.1-acre industrial lot located at Vondrau Drive, which is in the Cambridge Business Park vicinity. Right now, the ball is in the purchaser’s hands. Should Grand River Foods Ltd take the deal and close it, they will purchase the lot which fronts their existing facility for an estimated amount of $444,570.

The Cambridge food company presently has a workforce of over 200 people who work in three shifts. If Grand River Foods Ltd continues with their plan to buy the land, it will be converted into additional parking space for their growing staff, as well as for their storage trailers. Some insiders say that a dry storage building might even rise on the lot soon. This would be advantageous for the city, as the project is guaranteed to generate jobs in the area.

The company is set to close the deal on March 26, 2010.

With Haiti totally devastated after Tuesday’s 7.0 magnitude earthquake, which killed over 50,000 people as of writing this article, Cambridge residents are doing what they can to lend a helping hand.

Among those who sought to take action were 71-year old Sam Davis, and his wife Elizabeth – both residents in the Cambridge vicinity. Upon hearing the news, they immediately made plans to head to the local Salvation Army branch. And that’s exactly what they did on Thursday, donating $200 to Canada’s massive relief effort for Haiti.

Davis hopes his fellow residents follow suit.

Even if both he and his wife were living off pensions, Davis didn’t think twice about pitching in, especially after he saw the ghastly scenes of destruction and death, he said. He adds that he know he’s old, and his money is better suited to help others.

And he’s not alone. According to Shannon Carriere, who works at the Cambridge branch of Canada’s Red Cross, the office has been receiving calls nonstop from people who want to help.

Already, they’re pooling together food items, clothes, and other necessities needed by those left without homes and belongings.

Like everyone else around the world, our prayers go out to those affected by this disaster.

Foodies in Cambridge have a new place to look forward to next year, as one developer’s plans of reopening a restaurant in the area are now in full swing.

Cambridge City Council has given the go ahead signal to Pearle Hospitality Inc. for the construction of a new of a new addition to the Cambridge Old Mill Restaurant, which used to be formerly the Mill Restaurant.

The City Council which came to an agreement on Monday this week, gave its seal of approval for the private developer to get the necessary paperwork—tax certificates, building permits and the like—done and prepared for the rehabilitation and reopening of the former stone mill located along Water Street and Park Hill Road.

For close to two years now, Pearl Hospitality Inc has been trying to acquire land and get the necessary approval from Cambridge to renovate what use to be the Riverbank Restaurant. The developer also owns and manages Ancaster’s Old Mill Restaurant and Burlington’s Spencer’s at the Waterfront.

After getting the green light to start their plans, construction for the project is slated to begin by winter this year. The restaurant is set to open around spring of 2011.