Courtney Druce Loses Battle With Cancer

Courtney Druce has lost her long and courageous battle with cancer.

Druce—daughter of former Peterborough Pete and NHLer John Druce—passed away Wednesday (April 27th) surrounded by family. She was 27.

Courtney fought this disease for the last 12 years—this was her 5th battle with cancer—and gave everything she had to conquer it with her positive attitude.

Courtney with her boyfriend, Bill Porter

Her Mom, Chantel, and Dad shared this letter...

"It is with our deepest sorrow that we inform you of the passing of our beloved Daughter, Courtney. Survived by her loving Mother, Chantel; Father, John and Sister, Natalie. Courtney passed away peacefully on April 27, 2016, at the age of 27, as a result of her fifth battle with cancer. Courtney was surrounded by loved ones and we now have our own personal angel to watch over us in the heavens above.

In lieu of flowers the family wishes donations to the following Charities.
pedalforhope.ca Pedal for hope Raising funds for paediatric cancer research.

 victoriousfoundation.org Alicia Rose Foundation. Raising funds for teenage cancer awareness.

We ask that everyone please respect our need for privacy and personal time.

The service to be held in Canada. Details of the service to follow."

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com.

An Amazing Family Created This Canine Obstacle Course For Peterborough Police Service Canine Unit

The Peterborough Police Service Canine Unit received a generous offer last year from a local citizen named Fred Comrie to use his property located outside the City as a Canine training facility.

Well that facility has now been set up, and the obstacle course on the Comrie property is an ideal spot to train Peterborough Police Service Canine units.

The obstacle course includes cement pads that vehicles are placed upon, catwalks, high fences and any other possible obstacles that the Canine Unit may encounter in a live situation.

Police say this of the Comrie family: "It is this type of community partnership that is the core of community policing and has contributed greatly to the success of the Canine Unit and the community it serves!"

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com

Proposal Put Forth To Build PTBO Monorail At Cost Of $150 Million

[UPDATE: Happy April Fools' Day! Thanks to Jason Wilkins for the awesome illustration!]

--------------

PTBOCanada has learned from an unnamed source that a team is putting together a proposal to build a monorail around Peterborough at a projected cost of $150 million.

The monorail, called "The PTBO Monorail", would be built to draw even more tourists to this beautiful area, and be the talk of Canada and beyond. The elevated track designed by the team of engineers would stop at tourist attractions like the Lift Lock, Armour Hill, The Canoe Museum, Millennium Park, Jackson Park, Riverview Park & Zoo, Little Lake, the downtown core, River Road bike trails and Lansdowne Place. It would make stops at local hotels to pick up passengers.

A rough conceptual drawing was provided to PTBOCanada....

The PTBO Monorail would include plush leather seats, ample leg room, free Wi-Fi and digital screens showing local attractions and entertainment, according to our unnamed source.

The PTBO Monorail would also be used by locals to commute to work and their various leisure activities, and would make stops at the campuses of Trent and Fleming, as well as possibly local high schools.

The city refuses to comment on the existence of the proposed monorail, but sources tells us due to the scale and scope of the project, it would take up to 15 years to complete with a proposed starting date of 2018.

The unnamed source (who sent us the rough drawing) told us this: "This is a city of innovators. We built the Lift Lock, we built Centennial Fountain. So for Pete's sake, why can't we build a monorail? I think we can."

Tell us what you think of this idea on our Facebook page.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com

Spring Forward: Daylight Savings Time Starts March 13th

A sure sign that Spring is in the air: It's Spring Forward this Sunday, March 13th!

So remember to turn your clocks ahead an hour on Saturday night before you go to bed. Sunrise and sunset will be about one hour later on March 13th.

Don't forget to change your smoke alarm batteries as well!

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com   

Two Teens Took An Ice Floe For A Joyride On The Otonabee River

You don't see this every day. Two teens decided to get on an ice floe on Thursday (January 28th) afternoon on the Otonabee River in Peterborough, and take it for a joyride.

The teens seem quite relaxed. Screengrab via Chex Newswatch

EMS were called, and a river rescue ensued south of Inverlea Park at Parkhill Road—though the two males didn't seem all that concerned about moving downstream at a quick rate in ice cold water from this footage CHEX Newswatch captured.

The pair even had a laptop computer and were using long sticks to steer their floe.

Screengrab via Chex Newswatch

Fire Services deployed an inflatable Rapid Deployment Craft at the London Street footbridge and two firefighters in immersion suits quickly rescued the males from the ice floe and brought them safely to the west shore.

The teens chill out as the rescue raft comes. Screengrab via Chex Newswatch

It appears this was an intentional act, according to police. The two males, both in their late teens and not from the Peterborough area, were spoken to by officers at the scene and warned regarding their dangerous actions. 

Watch the raw footage over at CHEX Newswatch's website.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com.

Maryam Monsef Announces Open House February 8th At Her Constituency Office

Maryam Monsef, Member of Parliament for Peterborough-Kawartha, is hosting an Open House on Monday, February 8th, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at her new constituency office located at Suite 4 (Ground Level), 417 Bethune Street.

Constituents are welcome to stop by the office and meet their MP at the Open House.

The new digs

The constituency office in Peterborough is currently open Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., for constituents. Constituents of Peterborough-Kawartha can now also contact the office by phone at 705.745.2108; Toll-Free at 1.800.567.8554 or via email here.
 

In order to provide greater access to constituents, MP Monsef will also open a rotating rural constituency office in each township in the County of Peterborough. A staff member will be available at the following locations on the noted days to provide services for constituents:

Douro-Dummer
Township Office, 894 South Street, Warsaw
First Tuesday of each month, starting February 2
9:30 AM – 4:30 PM
 
Selwyn
Lakefield Scout Ship, 13 Water Street North, Lakefield
Second Thursday of each month, starting February 11
9:30 AM – 4:30 PM
 
North Kawartha
Boardroom, North Kawartha Public Library, 175 Burleigh Street, Apsley
Third Thursday of each month, starting February 18
9:30 AM – 4:30 PM

Havelock-Belmont-Methuen
Township Office, 1 Ottawa Street East, Havelock
Fourth Wednesday of each month, starting February 24
9:30 AM – 4:30 PM
 
Trent Lakes
To be confirmed

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com.

UPDATED: Adam Scott Hoping To Resume Classes January 4th After Fire At School

UPDATE No. 2: January 5th -> KPR says Adam Scott is expected to re-open this Thursday, January 7th. In the meantime, teaching staff will continue to be available at PCVS, and online through Edsby to assist students.


**Special Note: Students are asked to drop-in and collect their locker contents Tuesday, January 5th between 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., in the Gymnasium, Rear Parking Lot. As part of necessary clean up throughout the school, locker contents had to be collected and individually bagged for each student.

-------------

UPDATE: December 30th -> The latest update from KPRDSB says that the school will not open for staff/students on January 4th as first hoped. The clean-up is continuing, and they are hoping to re-open the school later next week. Teaching staff will be available at PCVS starting Monday to help students with assignments and exam preparations. Further updates will come early next week. Click here for the full release.

-------------------

ORIGINAL POST

A fire causing extensive damage to Adam Scott High School broke out early the morning of Monday, December 28th. Damage to the school is estimated to be about $200,000.

Fire in early a.m. @ Adam Scott CVI Dec. 28, no injuries, cleanup started & classes expected to resume Mon, Jan 4. See kprschools.ca home pg

— KPRDSB (@kprschools) December 28, 2015

Here is the full release below from the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board regarding the fire, damage and cleanup...

"The purpose of this message is to let you know there was a fire at Adam Scott early the morning of Monday, December 28. Fortunately, no one was hurt, and we expect classes will resume, as scheduled, on Monday, January 4. We offer sincere thanks to Peterborough Fire Services, our security company, custodial staff and school board Facilities Services staff for their quick, professional response.

It appears the fire began in an electrical room on the main floor, near the main offices and staff room. There is extensive smoke damage to the office areas, staff room, and surrounding hallways on the main and second floors, above the site of the fire. We are working with the fire department and school board to assess the damage and to arrange for the school to be cleaned and restored over the coming week.

At this time, it appears that some student lockers in the area on the main and second floors were damaged by the smoke. We will need to open the lockers and put each locker's contents in a bag, labelled for each student. The bags will be given to the affected students when school returns. Given the extensive damage and clean-up required over the coming seven days, we will not be able to allow staff or students in the building before January 4.

We will keep Adam Scott families informed of our progress and any developments through recorded phone messages and updates on the home page of both the school and school board websites. We hope you enjoy the rest of your holidays, and encourage you to check the websites often for any news. The school board also will be sending out tweets, so you may wish to follow the Board on Twitter @kprsschools."

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com.

Your Clocks Go Back November 1st (And You Get An Extra Hour Sleep)

It's almost time to Fall Back, the day after Halloween actually. Make sure to turn your clocks back next weekend (November 1st at 2 a.m, if you want to be exact), and enjoy your extra hour of sleep.

Don't the that person who's like, Forward or Back?

And parents with young kids, we feel for ya...

Tip us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Follow us on Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram, and Like us on Facebook.

Whistle Stop Sustains Damage After Jeep Hits It

A two-vehicle collision occurred at the intersection of George and Charlotte St. last night, resulting in a jeep hitting the Whistle Stop Cafe.

Photo by owner Peggy Shaughnessy of the damage

Police say three people—two males and a female in their late teens and early 20s—were transported by EMS to PRHC, treated for minor/moderate injuries and released.

Charlotte St between George/ Water is blocked due to the collision, a Jeep has gone under the scaffolding #ptbonews pic.twitter.com/uWALZO3H6e

— Harrison Perkins (@HaPerkins) July 23, 2015

Jeep crashes into Whistle Stop @Ptbo_Canada @thewolfca pic.twitter.com/Tg0G4AaoLC

— Whistle Stop (@WhistleStopLife) July 23, 2015

Photo inside Whistle Stop by owner Peggy Shaughnessy

No poutine was injured.

Tip us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Follow us on Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram, and Like us on Facebook.