There are many events taking place this September, so be sure to have a glance at our events calendar.

Every second year in September, historically significant sites in Thunder Bay open their doors to the public free of charge allowing citizens the opportunity to explore community, culture and heritage through a variety of self-guided walking tours, guided historical tours, exhibits, photos, and stories illuminating some of the architectural and historical features of our City’s past.

Date: Saturday, September 11, 2010

Click Here to download the Doors Open 2010 Site Map.

It looks like Thunder Bay Hydro has finally gotten its feet wet in the fight against climate change.

The public utility company opened its Mapleward Renewable Generating Station on Tuesday, a facility that cost some $9.6 million to build. The station will be responsible for removing over 263 million cubic feet of methane gas from the surrounding environment, turning it into clean energy that’s enough to power 3000 homes in the City of Thunder Bay each year,

According to Thunder Bay Hydro President Rob Mace, the development effectively allows the city to hit two birds with one stone. On one hand, the project is socially responsible; on the other, it’s also an attractive venture for other potential investors.

Most of all, the facility is another revenue generating project for its shareholder, Thunder Bay. While estimates of the investment have been conservative, experts project that the facility could net the city over $15 million in the course of 20 years.

The 20-year contract has the potential of being extended at that point, seeing as how the facility is designed to run for up to 4 decades.

Right now though, the City of Thunder Bay can enjoy having a new source of clean energy.

The Naturopathic Medical Healing Centre is committed to determining the underlying cause of disease and then treating the root problem with nutrition and detoxification, herbal remedies, homeopathy and acupuncture. At our hands on healing centre we use only the highest quality professional lines of supplements, nutritional and herbal remedies. To complete your natural health care regimen, we also teach kundalini yoga and reiki classes. If conventional health care approaches have failed to solve your health concerns, please call us to arrange a naturopathic consultation and testing, or visit our clinic in person for real solutions that work.

Click Here for a detailed list of their services

According to a Finish resident, the redder you are when wearing a traditional Rautjarven costume, the better you look.

The Finlandia Club, which celebrated its 100^th anniversary in late March, finally had its chance to hold celebrations this summer. The festivities were kicked off on Friday, and ran over the weekend.

Hundreds of people crammed themselves outside the Finlandia Club in Thunder Bay on Saturday, with club members wearing traditional garb to commemorate the anniversary. Raija Tilus was one of those who came dressed in the Rautjarven costume, which was adorned with accessories in red, matched with extra-large brooches.

She comments that the redder your costume is, the higher up you are. She didn’t really explain the significance of the color, except to say that she thinks red is a hard color to make.

Perhaps red is significant because of the Rautjarven costume’s origins. The costume traces its roots to a region in Finland which was taken over by the Russians after World War II, Tilus points out.

Tilus was proud of the opportunity to celebrate and share their heritage and culture. The Finnish community, which is traditionally a reserved one, certainly let their inhibition go as they partied hard at the Finlandia Club.

The City of Thunder Bay, nicknamed the “City with a Heart,” is facing a challenge to defend its moniker, as one group is urging city officials to lend a helping hand to those suffering from an autoimmune diseases called lupus.

Paula Courtney, who was diagnosed with lupus in 1993, was forced to stop working as a hairdresser because of the disease’s debilitating effects. The doctors’ prognosis was grim: she only had around 10 years to live.

Fortunately, however, Courtney fought back, and 17 years after being first diagnosed, she is busy as a group leader for the local arm of Lupus Ontario. The local support group recently held a fundraising program at the Metro grocery store here in Thunder Bay.

The campaign, which aimed to raise $25,000 at the end of the month for research on lupus at Toronto’s SickKids Hospital, was unfortunately not quite as successful as Courtney might’ve hoped. After a month of hard work, the group only managed to raise $3,000 in donations.

Courtney is calling on the city’s residents to pitch in and defend the Thunder Bay’s “City with a Heart” nickname. She pointed out that if each of the city’s residents gave 25 cents, they would easily meet their $25,000 goal.

One couple in Thunder Bay believes their dog may have been infected with Lyme Disease after going for a stroll at the city’s Chapples Park.

Chance, who is owned by Thunder Bay resident Tracie Smith, was diagnosed with the tick-borne disease by a local veterinarian on Friday morning. According to Tracie, she and her husband observed that Chance seemed to be suffering from stiffness and a sore shoulder after their trip to the park. A few days later, that discomfort moved to his rear leg, which the animal then stopped using altogether after only a few days due to the pain.

Those symptoms were compounded by a clear loss of appetite, prompting Tracie and her husband to look up the symptoms on the internet, which they later found fit the description of Lyme disease. While certainly not good news, the Smiths were still relieved, as the symptoms also matched those of a bone tumor, which would have been more disastrous for Chance.

The Smiths believe Chance picked up the disease in Chapples Park where they walked their two dogs a few weeks ago. After walking through a section of long grass, the couple found a tick on their Labrador, which has shorter hair, making it easier for ticks to be spotted.

Chance on the other hand, has long and thicker hair. The dog is currently being treated with antibiotics and pain meds for the discomfort.

Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne disease in the Northern Hemisphere, and is spread through tick bites on dogs and even humans.

The City of Thunder Bay is gearing up to enter the solar industry with a bang.

Thunder Bay’s city councilors will be making their final decision whether or not to give its approval to Thunder Bay Hydro, making it the sole solar photovoltaic developer to the city. The task of assessing buildings owned by the city has just been accomplished, with insiders saying that the investment could cost around $14 million.

With an alliance between Thunder Bay Hydro and the city shaping up, the Provincial Green Energy Act just might see the fruits of its labor, making Thunder Bay one of the first few regions to enjoy renewable energy investments. As of the moment, the utility company is going over plans to install solar panels on buildings owned by the city.

And yet while this development is certainly exciting, Thunder Bay residents are advised not to get their hopes up if they think the project will have a profound effect on the city’s energy savings. All the power the solar panels produce will go to the city’s main power grid, bolstering Thunder Bay’s supply of energy.

Officials say that it’s too early to come up with any financial figures that might come as a result of the project.

Authorities have found a juvenile bear with its head stuck in a large plastic jar, restricting its movements and making it impossible for the bear to eat and drink. The animal was spotted on an island near the City of Thunder Bay.

So far, the bear has eluded capture, with Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources having no luck in catching the animal since Tuesday night.

Rob Paterson, a resident of Lambert Island, got a picture of the bear as it visited his summer home on the island. He apparently tried to isolate the animal himself, but had no success. Patterson adds his fellow residents have expressed a desire to help the bear, but then they realized that that might not be such a good idea, thinking that the bear might be agitated and aggressive because of the jar stuck on his head.

But that hasn’t stopped them from trying to trap, corral, and tranquilize the bear. Unfortunately, the animal seems to be too elusive for them.

Authorities think that the bear might have had a case of curiosity when he spotted the jar, which they assume was left around carelessly by a resident who did a poor job of recycling it.

The Habitat for Humanity’s most recent fundraising campaign, the Shoes and Champagne Gala Evening auction and sale, looks to be a promising one, with celebrities and other famous figures pitching in and donating their footwear for the cause. Golfer Michael Weir and pop artist Jessica Simpson are among those who are pitching in.

Jordan Staal, who hails from Thunder Bay, also donated a pair of skating shoes, while Kim Kardashian was also confirmed to be lending a helping hand. Knowing the socialite’s love for fashion, organizers feel her help will definitely go a long way.

Diane Mitchell, Habitat for Humanity’s Thunder Bay CEO, hopes that these celebrity items will attract attention and raise awareness on the Habitat’s mission. The pairs of shoes will be auctioned off on the 6^th of October, with proceeds of the event to be used for the construction of homes for less fortunate families in the City of Thunder Bay.

Mitchell pointed out that the organization was fortunate to have an easy time getting shoes from celebrities. Apparently, Habitat for Humanity’s cause immediately piqued the attention of numerous famous figures.

Tickets for the auction are now on sale and are priced at $40.00 each.

Entrepreneurs and those who manage small businesses here in the City of Thunder Bay will get the opportunity to have a direct discussion with a Member of Parliament in an effort to help local businesses in the city.

The discussion, which will be held over breakfast on July 23, will be graced by the presence of Thunder Bay-Superior North MP Bruce Hyer, who is also a tourism & small business critic. Hyer will be on hand to help business owners figure out how to make their respective businesses thrive. Thunder Bay residents will surely learn a thing or two from Hyer because of his unique position as both a government official and someone who is deeply interested in seeing small businesses grow.

Hyer comments that as small business owner himself, not to mention being a Member of Parliament, he understands what it’s like for business owners to go through the paces of setting up their business and surviving the challenges they have to go through. And while small businesses are affected most by taxes, red tape, and high credit card fees for merchants, Hyer wants to make it clear to business owners and entrepreneurs that they are a crucial part of a healthy economy.