8-year old Maci Robinson and Kayla Baggalay may be very young, but that tender age isn’t stopping them from pitching in to help those in Haiti.

The best friends, who live in the Town of Port Hope, are working together with town officials to host the event ‘Northumberland Helps Haiti Family Dance’, which will be held at the Town Park Recreation Centre, on Friday, February 12, from 6 to 9 in the evening.

Among the night’s activities include dancing, games & prizes, food & drinks, and a whole lot more. Admission for the dance—which is open to people of all ages—is pegged at only $2 per head. Those below 12-years old will have to be accompanied by an adult.

Maci, a 3^rd grade student at Beatrice Strong Public School in Port Hope, was inspired to continue the strong turnout at the school’s recent bake sale, which was also aimed at helping victims in Haiti. After seeing the effects of the earthquake that struck the Caribbean country, she then went to her mother with the idea of holding a dance.

Her best friend Kayla also wanted to help in her own way, and is excited to have the opportunity of helping those in need.

Proceeds of the event will be donated to the Canadian Red Cross for the country’s nationwide relief effort for Haiti.

With the crazy flooding that hit some parts of town, it’s no wonder that some of Port Hope’s residents are looking for a much-needed break. If you’re one of those looking for a place or event to de-stress with your partner or friends, then here’s something you should definitely check out.

Happening on the 2^nd of February at the Port Hope Public Library located along 31 Queen Street, is a classic movie film showing, kicking off at 2 in the afternoon. The special screening will feature the classic horror/Sci-Fi film, The Invisible Man, based on the book of the same name by H.G. Wells.

The screening is aimed at giving Port Hope residents the opportunity to enjoy the film in the best way possible – on the Big Screen.

The movie, starring Claude Rains and Gloria Stewart, and directed by James White, was widely regarded as one of the 30’s best movies, and went on to be selected for preservation in the National Film Registry of America by the United States Library of Congress, as one of the most culturally and aesthetically significant movies of all time.

The best part? Admission is free, but seats are limited, so coming in early would be a wise move.

In an effort to raise awareness on renewable energy methods, and more importantly, which one to use someday in Port Hope, Renewable Energy Management Inc. recently held an open house at the Port Hope Capitol Theater. The event was a success, with dozens of residents flocking to the venue to learn more about the planned waste-to-energy facility proposed by the company.

According to officials from REM, the company is looking at one day building a low-temperature energy-from-waste conversion plant on the 23-acre site situated at Wesleyville Road. If things go according to their plans (approval from the Environment Ministry included), then groundbreaking should take place around the spring of 2011, this according to REM’s chief operating officer, Ed Niewinski.

Of course, a facility that sounds like one that incinerates waste on extremely large amounts is likely to cause concern, and the potential pollution and ash the plant might release into the air was what residents in attendance were worried about. But Niewinski calmed fears by explaining that the plant won’t be an incinerator, but rather, will be one that utilizes a low-temperature gasification process – a system that is slow, with multiple stops that keep the facility from producing large amounts of air pollution.

Port Hope officials will be presented with proposal over the next few weeks to come.

In a move to feature the municipality of Port Hope on the monopoly game board, Port Hope Mayor Linda Thompson is urging the community’s residents to pitch in by voting and spreading the word.

At a committee of the whole meeting that took place last week on January 19, the mayor mentioned an online contest that asked online web surfers to name the different Monopoly property space for the soon-to-be-released Canadian version of the popular board game.

Game and toy manufacturer Hasbro is encouraging Canadians to select which cities and towns will make up the board game’s property spaces via online voting. 20 Canadian cities and 2 wildcard municipalities will be chosen once voting ends.

 And as a way of getting Port Hope a wildcard spot, Mayor Thompson is urging everyone in the community to vote for Port Hope.

The online competition is already underway. If you want to vote for the municipality of Port Hope, then logon to www.monopolyvote.ca. The great news is that you can vote more than once, so drop by the site everyday and help our town make a mark on game history. Voting will be until February 7, 2010, so act now!

In a move to make Port Hope’s police force perform better on mobile operations, the town’s interim police chief recently sent a proposal for special funding from government worth $95,000 to have a “multi-purpose micro-station” at their disposal.

Though it may sound like a building or some sort of fixed structure, this multi-purpose micro-station that Chief Emory Gilbert is referring to is actually a special van with an elevated roof that allows people to stand on it – perfect for police officers looking to have a great vantage point for surveillance duty and the like.

These specially equipped vans are manufactured by auto-giant Mercedes, Gilbert said. He made his recommendation to members of the Port Hope Police Services Board at their most recent meeting.

If Chief Gilbert’s request is approved, then the cost of the van would be taken from the Proceeds of Crime fund. According to the Chief, the vans would be fully operational for at least 5 years, and would cost around $4000 a year to maintain.

The special van would be used as a mobile command center during large outdoor events, and would give officers a good elevated view to observe crowds.

Gilbert said he’s crossing his fingers for the request to be approved. He expects a final decision to be made around the time summer begins.

Despite being a community with a steadily growing population, Port Hope is still a little inaccessible, causing problems to visitors and residents alike. In a move to solve this problem, the region’s Accessibility Advisory Committee, or AAC, is seeking help from council to make Port Hope a more accessible community, especially for those who live in the area.

There’s been some good news though.

AAC chairwoman Selena Forsyth spoke to council on Tuesday and said that the organization is very pleased with the current service buses used to provide access to the municipality in Ward 1. She congratulated council and noted that improvements would not have been possible without their cooperation.

However, the provincial government of Ontario recently passed legislation to make all communities in the province more accessible, especially to those with disabilites.
This means that Port Hope officials will have to add new measures to accommodate individuals with special needs. Special buses will have to be modified for those unable to use the regular ones.

Forsyth hopes that Port Hope understands this, and provides mobility for all its citizens, disabled and not.

Changes could be effective as early as 2011. With Port Hope’s track record, this development doesn’t seem to be a major problem for the municipality to solve.

Retired Port Hope residents Vince Parbery and Fred Saman have made a small tradition of standing watch on the Victoria St. Bridge over Highway 401 each time there is a repatriation of a Canadian soldier killed in action while serving in Afghanistan.

According to both of them, they started doing this around the time Canadians began to gather on bridges in 2002 to honor the dead by waving flags and watching the hearse pass by on the Highway of Heroes.

They say they became friends through regular meetings on the Victoria St. Bridge, fondly calling it their own bridge as the years went by. Parbery says it’s only right that they spend hours standing on that spot. That bit of waiting is nothing compared to what soldiers are doing in Afghanistan, he added.

Every time a soldier is repatriated, both Parbery and Saman set up four Canadian flags and a big banner with the words “Support Our Troops” written on it. 

And despite the large crowds gathering at the bridge on repatriations, not a sound can be heard when the hearse and following vehicles actually pass underneath, Parbery says.

Both Parbery and Saman feel that paying tribute is their way of thanking those who’ve fallen for the sacrifice they’ve made.

Residents in Port Hope are currently being encouraged to donate blood to Canada’s Red Cross to help save a life. Each year, thousands of Canadians need blood, and sometimes, there are shortages of rare blood types

It’s also worth noting that at one point in their lives, thousands of people in the country have needed a blood transfusion to stay alive. Indeed, setting aside a bit of your time just might save a life in the future.

This is something Stu Linton, a resident of Port Hope, understands by heart. For years, he has donated blood many times – in fact, he just “celebrated” his 144th blood donation this Monday, giving blood at the donation clinic set up at the Port Hope Lions’ Recreation Centre.

Linton said he started to donate blood as a way of honoring one of his nephews who was suffering from the blood condition, hemophilia. The first 100 donations are apparently for him, while the next 100 (he plans to go beyond 200) are for himself.

For those interested in helping out, it’s not too late! You can still donate blood and save lives by heading to the Port Hope Lions’ Recreation Centre on February 15, 2010. You can call the local Red Cross to set an appointment.

After what seemed like an eternity, the clean-up of Port Hope’s low-level radioactive waste will finally get off to a start this week.

Buildings situated at 192 and 196 Toronto will be demolished a bit earlier, instead of the scheduled spring date, this according to Bob Neufeld, manager of stakeholder relations with the Port Hope Area Initiative Management Office or PHAI MO.

He added that if the weather permits, work will begin by as early as this week.

The dilapidated buildings have become an eyesore and have shown signs of disrepair, prompting officials to do something about them. Neufeld said they will be taken down to make way for an access road connecting Toronto Road and a soon-to-rise low-level radioactive waste treatment facility, which will take the place of the existing Welcome Waste Management Plant.

The demolition will be carried out by JMX Contracting Inc. under the supervision of Public Works and Government Services Canada to ensure proper security and safety of the public.

Indeed, this development is a great step in the right direction. The problem of radioactive waste in Port Hope has been around for years, with officials seemingly unable to act on it until now.

Canadians are buzzing about the ABC TV series “Happy Town”, which has a good roster of Canadian actors. Even better, many of the series scenes from the pilot episode were shot in the picturesque town of Port Hope, Ontario, an area that’s presently covered in snow due to the winter season – perfect for the show, which is set in Haplin, a relatively small town in Minnesota. Other small communities in Canada also played host to the series’ cast and crew.

Although Happy Town’s biggest names include the likes of Sam Neill and Steven Weber, a good number of Canadian actors are also in the cast.

According to the show’s executive producer Josh Appelbaum, many TV shows are often shot in Vancouver, but due to undisclosed reasons, they chose to go to Toronto instead. But since the city is too urbanized for Happy Town’s setting, they had to explore the outer areas, eventually ending up in quaint town of Port Hope.

He adds it’s a great place to shoot in, especially since it’s rarely seen on United States television.

As for what the show is about, we’ll leave you to find out. The series premieres on ABC on March or April this year, so don’t forget to watch it.