GUELPH – The River Run Centre was abuzz with excitement on Jan. 18, with hundreds of people dressed in their formal best to support a student-run fundraiser for the Children’s Foundation of Guelph and Wellington, the Make Your Mark Foundation and the Beyond Borders program.

The Grade 12 students blew their goal of $132,000 out of the water, raising an estimated $176,000 at the Redefine Charity Gala.

The 55 students who organized the gala are part of the Upper Grand District School Board’s Beyond Borders program, a board-wide, single-semester experiential learning program that focuses on business leadership and community engagement. The program is taught by Mike Parsons, Cynthia McQueen and Matthew Mulhern.

Since the program’s inception in 2012, Beyond Borders students have raised over $1 million with the annual charity galas.

• Beyond Borders gala set for Jan 18, students aim to raise over $132,000
• Grade 12 students raised $133,000 at Beyond Borders gala
• Inspire Charity Gala to fundraise for Guelph hospital, Doctors Without Borders
• High school students raise $121,000 at Imagine Charity Gala

Parsons said the gala “gives students the opportunity to showcase what they have learned and set the standard that they are capable of reaching all of their goals.”

“As a team, they have exceeded each and every expectation I have set for them,” Parsons said. “I wish everyone could have witnessed the changes I have seen in the students this semester.”

The gala included a silent auction with dozens of donations and some individual bids exceeding $2,000, a 50/50 draw that raised $3,200, appetizers and desserts from local businesses, and an evening of live entertainment.

An estimated 800 people attended the Beyond Borders Redefine Charity Gala at the River Run Centre in Guelph on Jan. 18.

Students shared speeches and videos about how the Beyond Borders program has impacted their lives, with reoccurring themes of transformation, renewed confidence, a sense of belonging, unbreakable bonds and experiences that have prepared them for their futures.

The emcees for the evening were Adaline Speers and Noelle Corbett.

Speers, who attended Centre Wellington District High School before joining Beyond Borders, said she didn’t know a single person when she joined the program in September, but now she “can say, with confidence, that I have found my people.”

Corbett said the program restored her love for learning.

Anna Iwanowski said her goal in the program was to do something special to make her parents proud and full of hope – her mother, who she said “is like the spark in the fire that never goes out,” and her father, who died of cancer when she was young. 

She said the Beyond Borders program empowered her to do that, and to feel for the first time that she was making a difference in the world, particularly though a project supporting Habitat for Humanity.

“Tomorrow isn’t promised,” Iwanowski said. “Be the change you want to see because the impact you make could be the legacy you leave.”

Anna Iwanowski, left, and Olivia Dewbury told gala attendees about the significant impact the Beyond Borders program made on their lives.

Olivia Dewbury said her teachers and classmates “quickly became a support system and family,” and motivated her to wake up every morning with a drive to learn, particularly because of how the teachers treated her. 

“The moment a teacher shows that they care about you is something unforgettable,” she said.

Isabella Proud said the program went beyond teaching her to succeed, also teaching her to believe in herself and believe in her team and what they are capable of when they work together.

Arife Sadiku described how the teachers “created a safe environment and culture for us every day” and helped students understand that “mistakes are growth and failure is okay.”

“This program helped me believe in myself in a way I had never before,” Sadiku said. 

“I created change within myself that I did not know was possible.”

Lily Dowhan said the Beyond Borders program helped her to feel like she had a purpose and her actions have meaning.

Dowhan held Grace Peet-Winkfield’s hand as Peet-Winkfield cried, describing how the Beyond Borders teachers helped her overcome debilitating anxiety.

“If a once-shy girl like me can find her voice in front of 800 people, imagine what you can do if you step beyond borders,” Peet-Winkfield said.

Fergus-born Shane Philips was one of the performers during the Beyond Borders Redefine Charity Gala on Jan. 18.

The musicians performing throughout the evening included Fergus-born Shane Philips of Band of People, who sang original songs Hey Revolution and Love Will Make Us One, and Elora jazz artist Lauren Roy, who said she was inspired by the dedication, resilience, generosity and support on display throughout the evening.

Centennial Collegiate Vocational Institute (CCVI) principal Joe Burns performed two Tragically Hip songs with the Grand River Band, which includes his dad Steve Burns on lead guitar, Jim McEachern on bass and Doug Inglis on drums.

CCVI’s dance team shared an acrobatic performance to Never Enough from The Greatest Showman, with dancers flying across the stage doing aerials (no handed cartwheels).

Local folk artist and songwriter Drew McIvor performed with drummer Adam Bowman and got the audience singing and clapping along to Moneybox.

Award winning country artist Alexa Goldie, who was born in Kingston, but now lives in Nashville, Tennessee, performed When You Say Nothing At All and her original song He Would, a special request from a Beyond Borders teacher.

Guelph musician C.J. Cooper has performed at the charity gala a few times before, but noted this year felt special as one of the foundations was particularly close to her heart.

The Make Your Mark Foundation was launched in memory of Cooper’s neighbour, Kalya Chadwick, who died of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) at 10 years old.

Kayla Chadwick’s brother, Tyler Chadwick, is one of the students in the Beyond Borders program this year, and spoke about his sister and the foundation during the gala.

“Kayla wasn’t just my little sister. She was my best friend and biggest supporter,” said Tyler.

When Kayla died in 2019, even in the depths of their grief, Tyler said he and his family knew they wanted to do something to ensure her legacy continued to shine. 

So they launched the Make Your Mark Foundation to support funding and research for SUDEP.

Dancers from the Performance Dance Academy danced in honour of Kayla Chadwick, who used to dance with them. Chadwick died in 2019 and is the inspiration behind the Make Your Mark Foundation.

Tyler said Kayla would be proud of all of the Beyond Borders students for organizing the successful gala, “especially her big brother.”

He described Kayla’s infectious smile and how she loved to dance, and had a knack for convincing others, including her big brother, to get up and dance alongside her.

“She was a tiny girl who was 10 times bigger on stage,” Tyler said.

Kayla danced with the Performance Dance Academy, and some of her dearest friends, the girls she once danced with, came out on stage during the gala to perform a grief-filled dance in her honour. 

Silent tears were shed by audience members as well as a number of the dancers themselves throughout the heart-wrenching performance.

When the girls finished their dance, those in the front rows could hear their cries from back stage, and emcees Speers and Corbett came out with tears streaming down their cheeks.

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WELLINGTON-HALTON HILLS – Three individuals have tossed their name in the hat hoping to be the next Wellington-Halton Hills candidate for the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario.

Kyle Coffey, Ross McKenzie and Joseph Racinsky been all been approved by the party’s provincial nominations committee.

Longtime Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott, also Speaker of the Legislature, announced in October he will not run in the next election.

• Longtime Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott will not seek re-election

Coffey grew up on a farm north of Fergus, attended Centre Wellington District High School and went on to receive a degree in international business and administration from Wilfrid Laurier University.

He is currently an economic business development officer with the Town of Oakville.

McKenzie has lived in Inverhaugh for 28 years and worked for the ministries of agriculture and economic development for a combined 17 years. Ten of those years were at Queen’s Park.

Racinsky is a town councillor in Halton Hills.

He was first elected in 2022 at age 20, making him the youngest person to be elected to council in Halton Hills.

Bob Foster, a Fergus resident who served two terms on Centre Wellington council, was also approved by the nomination committee.

However, on Jan. 20 he announced he is withdrawing from the nomination process.

“After careful consideration, I have decided not to enter the race,” Foster stated in a brief email to the Advertiser.

He thanked Arnott for his service and offered “best wishes” to the other candidates for nomination.

The PC Party nominating meeting will take place on Feb. 15 at the Rockmosa Community Hall in Rockwood.

Doors open at noon and the candidates will have 10 minutes to make their pitches. Voting begins at 1pm and the result is expected by 5pm.

Only those who have signed up as members of the PC Party of Ontario by 5pm on Feb. 1 can participate in the vote.

*This article has been updated from a previous version that included Foster as one of four candidates running for the PC nomination.

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BRUCEDALE – People living on smaller lots in agriculture or rural residential zones in Guelph/Eramosa Township will soon be allowed to keep chickens.

At its first meeting of the new year on Jan. 13, council approved a zoning bylaw amendment to allow domestic poultry coops on lots as small as one acre, as well as a related bylaw to regulate the keeping of domestic poultry.

In a presentation to council on the proposed bylaw amendment, county planner Meagan Ferris explained the amendment was initiated by the township in order to address limitations in the current zoning bylaw.

Once changes are approved, she said, there will be an opportunity to see how the regulations impact the community and whether additional changes are needed.

“Once you make these changes, you really know how they’re affecting the community,” she said.

A public meeting on the proposed amendment was held in October, and four members of the public spoke, mainly expressing a desire for fewer restrictions, and asking that there be no minimum lot size.

• Township residents want fewer restrictions on backyard chickens

Despite this feedback, Ferris said she was still recommending a one-acre minimum lot size.

“This is providing more flexibility that currently exists in the bylaw,” she said.

The bylaw to be amended had allowed the housing of domestic poultry on lot sizes of two acres or more.

“We’re introducing something relatively new on a smaller acreage where there could potentially be more conflicts,” Ferris said.

The one-acre minimum provides a bit more flexibility within the bylaw, while at the same time helping to mitigate issues that might arise, she said.

Feedback was also sought from the Wellington Federation of Agriculture (WFA) and from Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health (WDGPH), but the feedback provided was more suited to include in the companion domestic poultry bylaw.

For example, WDGPH suggested establishing a registry for owners of backyard flocks, and WFA recommended the township conduct on-site inspections before allowing coops to be registered.

“These aren’t things that we can implement easily as zoning regulations,” said Ferris.

A report from township clerk Amanda Knight providing details on the domestic poultry bylaw acknowledged the comments received from public health and the WFA, but noted the township has limited staffing resources to facilitate implementing a registration process.

As an alternative solution, staff recommend creating a webpage on the township’s website that brings awareness to biosecurity matters and identifies steps that should be taken in the event of an outbreak of illness in a backyard coop, as well as creating a revised domestic poultry information sheet and creating a social media post to bring attention to the webpage and info sheet.

“That’s our intention to address the comments from both those agencies,” Knight told council.

According to her report, key elements of the bylaw include:

• specific limits on the number and type of domestic poultry that can be kept;
• requirements for enclosures and shelter structures to ensure humane and safe living conditions; and
• provisions to mitigate potential noise, odour and waste management concerns.

The bylaw allows owners of domestic poultry to keep a maximum of 10 birds, and they can be chickens, ducks, geese or turkeys, in any combination.

Coops, including manure storage and outdoor runs, cannot be located within 1.5 metres of any private sewage system, and they cannot be more than eight feet high.

Some other regulations of note include:

• domestic poultry must be kept in an enclosed run when not in their coop, and must be confined inside their coop between 9pm and 7am;
• home slaughter is prohibited;
• sales of eggs, manure and other products associated with keeping domestic poultry are not allowed; and
• keeping roosters or male ducks is prohibited.

Following Knight’s presentation, councillor Corey Woods made some suggestions for minor changes to the wording of the bylaw, which were noted by the clerk.

The bylaw, as amended, was subsequently approved by council, along with the zoning bylaw amendment.

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