Weekly News Recap: January 6, 2023

Weekly News Recap: January 6, 2023

Scotty Simmons, right, and Jean-Yves Paquette tie a rope around the moose to help pull her out of Manitou Lake. (Submitted by Shawn Duquette)

Every creature is better alive than dead, men and moose and pine trees, and he who understands it right will rather preserve its life than destroy it. -- Henry David Thoreau

SOME GOOD NEWS

  • 4 friends jump into action to rescue a moose from icy lake in northeastern Ontario (CBC) OLDS STORY ONTARIO STORY #Bravo "Four friends from the West Nipissing region of northeastern Ontario had a memorable end to their year when they rescued a moose that had fallen through thin ice. Shawn Duquette, André Roberge, Scotty Simmons and Jean-Yves Paquette were hanging out at a camp near Manitou Lake, northeast of Greater Sudbury, on Thursday when they jumped into action. [...] They arrived to find a female moose almost fully submerged in the lake. Only her head was above water, through the broken ice. Duquette said they heard the moose had been in the freezing water for around 30 minutes by the time they'd arrived."

  • Striking photos of ice-encased chairlift at Big White warm hearts on social media (CBC) KELOWNA STORY #WeLiveInABeautifulWorld "An ice-encrusted chairlift at B.C.'s Big White Ski Resort became a sizzling hot social media sensation at the end of the Christmas and New Year holidays. On Monday, the resort — about 60 kilometres east of Kelowna, B.C. — posted several photos on Facebook that feature cables, chairs and the unloading area of the Falcon Chair lift completely encased in ice and snow."

  • Remembering Roberta Flack’s stunning live cover of Leonard Cohen’s classic ‘Suzanne’ (Far Out Magazine) CANADIAN CONTENT I miss Leonard Cohen and I love Roberta Flack. "Flack conveys that all fantastically with an elongated, awe-inspiring rendition. It’s not the first time the star declared her admiration for Cohen. She also recorded a cover of ‘Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye’ in 1969. While her take on the meaning of ‘Suzanne’ is open to interpretation, it is somewhat a moot point given the sincerity with which she serves it up. As she said herself, 'one of the primary qualities of a good performance is honesty.'"

  • How 100 Calgary women collected nearly $1M for local charities (CBC) CALGARY STORY #SuchAWonderfulMovement "It was at a downtown Calgary hotel in the fall of 2013 when 53 women came together, carrying chequebooks and a desire to boost the fortunes of local charities and non-profit organizations. Their focus was on helping Calgarians struggling with poverty, hunger, disabilities, sexual abuse and exploitation, teen pregnancies and mental health problems. The goal was to get at least 100 women to chip in $100 each, raising $10,000 at meetings held every three months. Non-profit organizations would enter a draw at those meetings where three would be chosen to make a pitch for the money. The entire group would then vote to determine which one would get the windfall."

  • How bannock doughnuts helped this Métis entrepreneur provide for her kids — and keep them humble (CBC) FORT MCMURRAY STORY "Ginger Auger kneads bannock dough on the kitchen counter in her home in Fort McMurray. Across from the Métis businesswoman is a photo of her parents. Covered in flour, Auger talks to the photo and prays to them because it brings her parents with her on a baking journey. 'I don't even know if they're proud of me,' Auger says. 'I guess they must be.'"

  • 'I enter the year with hope in my heart': GG delivers New Year's message (CBC) CANADIAN STORY I heart this. "In her annual New Year's message, Governor General Mary Simon says she hopes Canadians can build a more inclusive country in 2023, one where people 'can talk to each other, to better understand each other and respect our different views.'"

  • Friendship and philanthropy keeps 100-year-old ladies club alive in rural Alberta (CBC) ALBERTA STORY Beautiful. "A storied women's club in rural Alberta marked an important milestone this year. In 1922, rural women living near the young agricultural community of Warwick, located near Vegreville, Alta., about 110 kilometres east of Edmonton, formed a club. One hundred years later, the Warwick Ladies Club is still active, holding monthly meetings that usually take place in each others' homes. The club celebrated its centennial with a high tea event in October and members shared favourite memories at their annual Christmas party this month."

  • How a TikTok video catapulted this all-women choir from northern B.C. to worldwide fame (CBC) PRINCE GEORGE STORY Talk about going viral. #VeryCool "When Naomi Dugdale and her longtime friend Lauren Iwanciwski joined the Nove Voce Choral Society in Prince George four years ago, it was a local glee club known mostly by British Columbians. But a TikTok video they produced this September — featuring all choir members but one lip-syncing the '80s hit Don't Stop Believin' by the Californian band Journey — instantly catapulted the group of young singers, some as young as 15 years old, to international fame. The 27-second clip is part of a series on the choir's social media page challenging its audience to guess who is actually singing. It has been viewed more than 72 million times and the number is still growing. The post has also attracted more than 360,000 comments from around the world, including from American actor Rosie O'Donnell."

TOP TEN STORIES OF THE WEEK

  1. 7 Surprising Predictions for 2023 That Experts Made 100 Years Ago (Cheapism) CANADIAN CONTENT "If the pundits of yore were right about their predictions for 2023, we'd enjoy a four-hour workday, radio-powered flying vehicles, and a 300-year lifespan. That's all according to a series of newspaper clippings from 1923 that have gone viral on Twitter thanks to Paul Fairie, a researcher and instructor at the University of Calgary. In the viral thread, the political scientists shared more than a dozen 100-year-old clippings from experts who tried to peer into the future. While some predictions are way off the mark — I think we're all waiting for the four-hour workday — others were shockingly prescient."

  2. Half of Canadian workers will job hunt in 2023 for better pay and perks, according to poll (CBC) CANADIAN STORY It is going to be a very interesting employment market. "Half of Canadian workers plan to look for a new job in 2023, a nearly twofold increase from just a year ago, according to a new poll by recruitment firm Robert Half. The survey conducted in the fall found 50 per cent of respondents indicated they planned to search for a new job in the next six months. That number has risen steadily over the last year and a half, from about 21 per cent of employees on the hunt for a new job in June 2021 to 28 per cent a year ago and 31 per cent six months ago. The latest polling found the workers most likely to make a career move include employees who have been with a company for two to four years, Gen Z and millennials, tech workers and working parents."

  3. A pay-what-you-can thrift store is expanding. Their volunteers made it possible (CBC) CALGARY STORY I heart volunteers. "Good Neighbour Community Market is expanding, thanks in no small part to its team of volunteers. The pay-what-you-can thrift store is opening an upper level as a regular thrift store with marked prices, meant to supplement the store below that serves customers with lower incomes."

  4. The mystery of the missing Churchill portrait (CBC) OTTAWA STORY Having just read a biography of Churchill which includes a very interesting anecdote about this photo, I am very intrigued. "Art heist mystery still unsolved: Who stole Yousuf Karsh’s iconic portrait of Winston Churchill from the walls of the famous Château Laurier hotel and replaced it with a fake? CBC’s Paul Hunter examines the clues, including a surprising personal connection to the case."

  5. Céline Dion was left off Rolling Stone's greatest singers list and fans are furious (CBC) CANADIAN CONTENT I hope this gets fixed. I am not a huge fan of Ms. Dion's music but she definitely should be on this list. "Rolling Stone snubbed Céline Dion and it's all coming back to them now. To kick off 2023, the music magazine released an updated list ranking 'The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time' but Dion didn't make the cut, leaving her fans furious. Near, far, wherever they are, fans of the Quebec-born singer were quick to take to social media to express outrage over what some say is a 'crime against humanity.'"

  6. Ransomware group LockBit apologizes saying 'partner' was behind SickKids attack (CBC) TORONTO STORY #Ugh "A global ransomware operator has issued a rare apology after it claims one of its 'partners' was behind a cyberattack on Canada's largest pediatric medical centre. LockBit, a ransomware group the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation has called one of the most active and destructive in the world, posted a brief statement on what cybersecurity experts say is its data leak site claiming it has blocked its partner responsible for the attack on Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children and offering the code to restore the system. SickKids acknowledged Sunday it was aware of the statement and says it was consulting experts to 'validate and assess the use of the decryptor,' adding it has not made a ransom payment."

  7. Spock Actor's Memorial Statue Moving Forward After Major Donation (Screen Rant) #LiveLongAndProsper "Star Trek Spock actor Leonard Nimoy’s long-planned memorial is finally moving forward after a major donation. It's safe to say the voyages of Gene Roddenberry’s Starship Enterprise would never have been what they became without the presence of Nimoy as Vulcan science officer and supremely logical being Mr. Spock. Though Nimoy himself would have a complicated relationship with his most famous character, Star Trek fans would never cease to embrace Spock as the most potent symbol of Roddenberry’s Utopian ideas about the future."

  8. Barbara Walters, trailblazing U.S. journalist and creator of The View, dead at 93 (CBC) RIP Ms. Walters. We will not see your like again. "Barbara Walters, the intrepid U.S. interviewer, anchor and program host who led the way as the first woman to become a TV news superstar during a network career remarkable for its duration and variety, has died. She was 93. ABC broke into its broadcast to announce Walters's death on air Friday night. 'She lived her life with no regrets. She was a trailblazer not only for female journalists, but for all women,' her publicist Cindi Berger said in a statement, adding Walters died peacefully at her New York home."

  9. Growing up Suzuki: Environmentalist’s daughters on carrying on his legacy (CBC) VANCOUVER STORY "From death threats to eating on camera, Severn Cullis-Suzuki and Sarika Cullis-Suzuki talk about what it was like growing up with their famous environmentalist father, David Suzuki (including some little-known facts about their dad)."

  10. Introducing the 2023 AFP Foundation for Philanthropy – Canada Board (AFP Global) CANADIAN STORY I am proud to be leading this board for the next two years. Along with my fellow board members, I look forward to helping to support Canadian fundraisers and professional fundraising in Canada. "The AFP Foundation for Philanthropy – Canada was created in 2000 as the philanthropic arm of AFP in Canada. Guided by the AFP in Canada Strategic Plan, the Foundation supports many programs including the National Scholarship Program, Research including 'What Canadian Donors Want' and the funding of new Canadian-based research, the Fellowship in Inclusion and Philanthropy program as part of our IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access) work, and mentoring."

SEVEN LIFE AND CAREER HACKS

  1. Four Thousand Weeks Is The Best Book I’ve Read On Productivity in 2022 (Slow Is Better) I have been fervidly reading this book ever since I saw a reference to it in late December. Adam Grant (WorkLife guru and all-around great human) says this is the most important book ever written about time management. I agree.

  2. You've Been Lied About Productivity All Along! (New Writers Welcome) "Productivity" and its systems come in many forms. Finding those that work for you is important but definitely not 'one-size-fits-all'.

  3. 5 life-lessons learnt from Chess (Varun Yadav) Chess is a great game and one that is truly full of many lessons.

  4. Live a Fuller Life by Doing Less, Not More (Better Humans) Less is more.

  5. 27 Ways To Manage Overthinking (Make Pure Thy Heart) Not your typical list and an excellent discipline for 'getting out of your own head'.

  6. The 5 Sentences You Should Write Each Day (Michael Thompson) Whether you journal or if you just want to run through these mentally, these are five great questions.

  7. How Regular Exercise Boosts Productivity: The Cognitive, Emotional, and Physical Benefits of Physical Activity (Carlos Lopez) This is self-evident but we can forget it when we are living a life of busyness. I am revisiting my relationship with exercise in 2023 and I expect it will yield great results.

TOP THREE GIFTS OF THE WEEK

  1. Babies at Kamloops hospital to benefit from local businessman's $1M donation (INFOnews.ca) KAMLOOPS STORY Lovely, thanks! "Royal Inland Hospital's newborn care unit is getting a $1 million boost from a local businessman and philanthropist. Guy Mercier made the donation for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit to commemorate his mother, [Rita C. Mercier.]"

  2. Carhartt heiress Gretchen Valade leaves lasting legacy with Detroit Jazz Festival philanthropy (Fox News) I love Carhartt and I love jazz. Nice legacy gift. "Gretchen Carhartt Valade passed away on December 30th at 97, and leaves a lasting legacy. 'You have to remember, to keep the Jazz Festival entirely free you’re talking about a heavy lift every single year,' said Chris Collins, president Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation. 'And when it started to fail, it was a fear in the community that the Detroit Jazz Festival was going to go away. But Valade stepped in. Gretchen Valade, we called her the 'Angel of Jazz' and I've been saying, our Angel of Jazz finally got her wings,' Collins said."

  3. Oil tycoon gives 'game-changing' $50 million donation to Roosevelt library (InFORum) "Billionaire businessman Harold Hamm has donated $50 million to the group behind the planned Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, a massive tourism project slated for Medora, North Dakota."

LAST WEEK'S MOST POPULAR STORIES

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