PTBOCanada Makes East City Their New Home With a Studio

It is home sweet home for PTBOCanada as they officially opened their new studio space and office in East City on Friday.

(left to right) David Bui (Editor), Kirtus Evoy (Owner), Angela O’Grady (Journalist) in PTBOCanadas new studio space. Photo by Pete Dalliday.

PTBOCanada owner Kirtus Evoy says the location is perfect for the new studio and is grateful to Ashburnham Realty for providing him with the space.

“We are super excited to bring a modern spin to local media and are looking forward to bringing a new dynamic of digital marketing and journalism to the area,” he said.

The Hunter Street building will provide office space for the journalists as well as a studio to host guests for interviews.

“I think this studio is going to open up a world of opportunities for PTBOCanada,” said David Bui, PTBOCanada editor. “ With the studio in East City, we’re going to be right in the heart of the city and really be integrated as part of the community.”

Love the new @Ptbo_Canada digs in East City. Their team is moving in there this week. Congrats to owner/publisher @EvoyKirtus & Editor @DavidTuanBui44 (pictured). pic.twitter.com/qm9N34OU9I

— Neil Morton (@neilmorton) September 7, 2021

The studio is decorated with a giant mural that celebrates Peterborough’s timeline by local artist Jason Wilkins of Art of Wilkins.

The paintings timeline features the Peterborough Petes, Centennial Fountain, the Lift Lock, Trent University, Fleming College, The Quaker Factory and The Fred Anderson Stage at Del Crary Park.

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PTBOCanada Adds Angela O'Grady to the Team as New Writer

Humber College graduate Angela O’Grady joins the PTBOCanada expanding team as their newest writer on Monday.

O’Grady’s hobbies include camping, music and eating at local restaurants. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

O’Grady earned her Bachelor’s Degree in journalism in April and was born in Peterborough. She graduated from St. Peter’s Secondary School in 2016 and grew up in Douro.

“I’ve always loved everything local and very excited to be able to report on the place I grew up in,” said O’Grady.

“I’ve had the pleasure of working with Angela back when we did our internships together,” said David Tuan Bui, PTBOCanada Editor. “We had a great rapport then and I know we’ll have fantastic chemistry working for PTBOCanada moving forward.”

O’Grady has been an athlete her whole life playing sports such as hockey, baseball and field hockey. Photo Courtesy of Angela O’Grady.

O’Grady went into journalism since she enjoys writing. The career choice always had something to write about which made it a good fit she tells PTBOCanada.

You can reach out to O’Grady with her email at angela@ptbocanada.com.

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PTBOCanada Donates Sign Wars Funds to Children's Foundation

The Kawartha-Haliburton Children’s Foundation (KHCF) received a cheque of $6,360 from PTBOCanada on Thursday morning.

Deb Aben (left) recieves the cheque of $6,360 from PTBOCanada owner Kirtus Evoy (middle) and Pete Dalliday (right). Photo by David Tuan Bui

The funds came from the Peterborough Sign Wars campaign PTBOCanada ran in late April, selling “Meet me in Aisle 15” t-shirts.

The PTBOCanada team including owner Kirtus Evoy, Fresh Radio 100.5’s Pete Dalliday and editor David Tuan Bui arrived at the charity to donate the proceeds.

Fresh Radio and The Wolf were one of several businesses that were highly active in the #PTBOSignWars. File Photo.

Deb Aben, Executive Producer of KHCF was there to accept the money on behalf of the charity and could not be happier to receive the donation.

“When the call came through was just so thrilled that it’s going towards helping kids who are in need of our community,” said “It’s going to make a huge difference this summer.”

“It was amazing to see the community come together over a quick period handing out thousands of smiles through the sign wars and raise money for a great cause,” said Evoy. “I’m proud to be part of an amazing community.”

KHCF sends kinds either for one or two weeks of summer camp every year with the exception of last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The money will go towards sending kids to summer camp and their “Soaking Up Summer” program. Developed last year, the program purchased athletic equipment, toys or anything designed for kids to play outside and be active. The campaign was created as an alternative to sending kids to day camp due to the pandemic.

“I felt I’d won the lottery,” said Aben. “How lucky these kids are to be the beneficiaries of something that engaged the community and made us smile, laugh and made us feel like a kid again.”

KHCF supports children in activities that are not government funded, provides money for families newly caring for extended family members, post-secondary bursaries and gift cards for youth transitioning to independent living who were formerly in youth care.

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PTBOCanada Celebrates Its 11th Anniversary With New Studio Plans

To celebrate the 11th anniversary of PTBOCanada on Thursday, owner Kirtus Evoy has announced that the company will have a new studio and office on Hunter Street on August 1.

PTBOCanada has over 74,000 social fans spread across several social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. (rendering of New Space)

The property is owned by Ashburnham Realty and will be in the heart of East City. The PTBOCanada staff are excited and eager to move into the new office.

“The space will allow us the digital growth of our team and our product offerings. We wanted to do it in a vibrant area such as East City. We have some more big plans over the summer and we’re looking forward to growing with Peterborough.”

“The new office is going to open up a world of opportunities and creative outlets for PTBOCanada moving forward,” said David Tuan Bui, PTBOCanada editor. “We can have guests in the studio for interviews, we’ll have a wonderful atmosphere and we’re basically right in the heart of Peterborough doing it all.”

Former owner and co-founder Neil Morton expressed his congratulations for the company’s milestone after owning the business for over a decade back in 2010 in a Facebook post.

Since the new ownership, Evoy retained brand strategy director, Aaron Elliott and finance assistant, Kim Wilson. His new additions included Bui, 100.5 Fresh Radio’s Pete Dalliday and cameraman David Koski.

“I couldn’t be more proud of the PTBOCanada brand and team celebrating our 11th anniversary,” said Evoy. “Neil (Morton) and his team did an amazing job to get things rolling and we are super excited to keep growing with Peterborough and open up our new studio and offices.”

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#PtboSignWars T-Shirts Now Available For Order (And You Don't Have To Go To Aisle 15 To Get Them)

It has been quite the week in Peterborough, Ontario as #PtboSignWars dominated the local social media scene and won over the hearts of the community at the same time. 

The “Meet me in Aisle 15” T-shirt is a reference made by Merrett’s Home Hardware that the product sold in that aisle could ambiguously be things that could be at a party. Photo by PTBOCanada.

PTBOCanada got the ball rolling last week after posting a sign war inspired from a town in Virginia. From there, they challenged a few local businesses to fire their signs up and get the #PtboSignWars started. 

Anden Kitchen & Bath, Merrett Home Hardware Building Centre and Friendly Fires were the first three Peterborough businesses to exchange shots. Five days and hundreds of fantastic witty signs later, #PtboSignWars was making headlines across the country on social media and has motivated other cities in Canada to do the same.

Pete Dalliday of Fresh Radio played a big role in the campaign, encouraging Peterborough to participate in #ptbosignwars and helping the “Kids For Lids” fundraiser that benefitted Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Peterborough.

“After 14 months of pandemic life this was exactly what the community needed,'' he said. “Reading the signs made me laugh out loud but reading the thousands of comments from viewers and listeners was perhaps my favourite part.” 

As always, PTBOCanada is always looking to give back to the community. Following a very successful PTBOCanada “Lids For Kids” campaign, Kirtus Evoy, owner and Publisher of PTBOCanada, is pleased to announce that even more money will be raised for Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Peterborough. 

Based on one of the most popular and shared sign exchanges this past week between Anden and Merrett’s, PTBOCanada is launching a limited edition #PTBOSignWars “Meet Me In Aisle 15” T-shirt. 

$10 from every T-shirt sold will go directly to Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Peterborough as they will benefit from all the proceeds. Anden, Merrett and Friendly Fires have already committed to buying T-shirts for their staff and customers while Kori Malakos and Matt D’Agostini from Ricart Promotions have quickly made this idea a reality. We thank all of them for their support to kick this campaign off. 

T-Shirts can be ordered by going to ptbocanada.com/shop. Shirts can be purchased until Wednesday, May 5th at 9:00 a.m. where pickups can be done in roughly two weeks.

For more information, contact Kirtus Evoy at kirtus@ptbocanada.com.

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Lids for Kids Will Match More Children With More Mentors, Making PTBOCanada Proud

PTBOCanada’s new line of funky ballcaps is topping up a new fundraiser for a children’s charity that serves kids across Peterborough.

Alex Ouimet (left) and Thomas Jenkins (right) met through the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Peterborough program where the two went to a Toronto Blue Jays baseball game as their first outing in 2018. Photo Courtesy of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Peterborough.

Lids for Kids will see $10 from every hat sold go to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Peterborough, an agency that matches kids with mentors to help them better cope with the challenges of growing up. The hip hats sell for $29.99 via PTBOCanada’s site and can be picked up at Ricart’s Promotions on Lansdowne Street East.

This BIG partnership celebrates #PTBOCanada proud as city residents can show off their loyalty to the city while supporting children living here.

Big Brothers Big Sisters already has 47 Little Sisters and 25 Little Brothers matched with “Bigs”, mentors who meet with them weekly, plus 22 virtual mentoring matches. Yet, another 18 girls and 22 boys are still waiting to be paired up with adults of any age.

Funds from the Lids for Kids campaign will support weekly virtual programs to keep children on the waiting list connected to the agency. So far, the staff have been running weekly trivia games and craft nights, including painting pictures and decorating pots in which they plant seeds.

PTBOCanada has five different styles to choose from to support the fundraiser. Photo Courtesy of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Peterborough.

This has been a tough year for kids, who have been cut off from their friends and their school routines, on top of sports and other activities that keep them engaged and learning. For children in vulnerable families, the strain is even harder.

Big Brothers Big Sisters has been matching up mentors and children in Peterborough since 1964, one of the first 10 agencies in Canada to do so. Like PTBOCanada, it focuses on working with local partners to bring out the best in people in this community.

Jenkins and Ouimet often travel to parks, woods and other geographical places of interest as part of their Big Brother adventures. Photo by David Tuan Bui

Recently, has the Bigs’ Board of Directors developed a new strategic plan to revitalize the organization. The organization is infused with new energy and is looking to recruit new volunteers for its mentorship programs and its new committees for fundraising, volunteer management, building, and communications.

“We have an incredible executive director and two dedicated caseworkers who are focused on the core programs that support our Littles and their families,” said Tom Jenkins, who serves as chair of the board and a Big Brother for 18 years.

“Our staff and board are united in building a brighter future for the kids who need us most.  We thank everyone who helps our kids, including Kirtus at PTBOCanada,” Jenkins continues. “We are grateful for your support and look forward to working with you in the coming weeks and years as we have big plans in our future.”

­­Big Brothers Big Sisters offers traditional matches, mentorships in local schools, and tailored programs Go Girl! and Game On! to encourage healthy lifestyle choices. Volunteers are needed for all these programs, with an emphasis on traditional matches, where the need is greatest.

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Gone (Ice) Fishing For A Week

Hey all, we wanted to wish you all the best with your holidays and a terrific 2020!

PTBOCanada.com is turning 10 years old in 2020 and are excited to have become a part of the fabric of this wonderful community through storytelling about Peterborough and the Kawarthas on social media.

We are taking a break for a week or so from this here blog to get some much needed R & R, but will be doing some posting to our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram channels (combined reach: 60,000+ fans) so follow us there!

-> Follow us on Twitter.
-> Like us on Facebook.
-> Follow us on Instagram.

See you back here in early January!

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Watch: Take A Tour Of Alex Bierk's Art Studio On "PTBOCanada" Show

On Episode 36 of PTBOCanada, we take a tour of the Hunter Street studio of artist Alex Bierk.

Alex Bierk in his studio: February 6th, 2018

In the show, our Neil Morton speaks with Alex about creativity, culture, melding art and commerce, upcoming projects, the opiod crisis, addiction recovery and how his late father, renown artist David Bierk, was a huge inspiration to him and his siblings…

Watch the episode below…

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Watch Episode 32 Of PTBOCanada With Mayor-Elect Diane Therrien

On Episode 32, we talk to mayor-elect Diane Therrien about her backstory, how she came to Peterborough, her passion for community, and her vision for the city moving forward.

Watch the episode below…

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Watch: Christian Harvey On The Warming Room & One City Program In Downtown Peterborough

In Episode 19 of "PTBOCanada", Warming Room Community Ministries Executive Director Christian Harvey talks about his passion for helping the homeless (the Warming Room is well beyond capacity) and the potential of the new One City program to change people's perceptions about the marginalized and downtown.

Watch the episode below about how we can all work together to break down barriers...

To learn about the Volunteer program at The Warming Room, click here.

Watch other past episodes of "PTBOCanada" here.

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