Sentinel-Review (Woodstock)
`WE CANNOT ABSORB 25%': SOUTHWESTERN ONTARIO FARM SECTOR BRACES FOR TARIFFS
Farm machinery manufacturers and sellers in Southwestern Ontario are bracing for higher costs and weaker sales as the Canada-U.S. trade war reaches the agricultural sector. Canada's counter-tariffs on some U.S.-made farm equipment and parts could reach...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
EARLY MORNING BLAZE
A house fire at the corner of Broadway Street and Concession Street East in Tillsonburg early Monday morning had police and firefighters at the scene through much of the day. Firefighters found smoke and flames shooting from a second-storey window upon...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
PIERRE POILIEVRE ON JACKED-UP TARIFFS: `WE HAVE WHAT THE AMERICANS NEED'
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre swung through Southwestern Ontario on Saturday, telling supporters here that Canada should continue fighting for tariff-free trade as the U.S. imposed new ones on Canadian goods. Poilievre spoke at a public event...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
HARVARD ASSOCIATION PLANNING TO CREATE MEMORIAL GARDEN AT AIRPORT
The Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association is looking to create a veteran's memorial garden at the Tillsonburg Regional Airport. Members of the not-for-profit, which operates out of a hangar at the facility just north of Tillsonburg, met with council...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Woodstock set to tackle illegal dumping
Concerns about illegal dumping in Woodstock has prompted city officials to investigate six recommended strategies to improve public cleanliness and encourage “waste system compliance.” At city council's August meeting, staff presented six possible...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
TWO HOSPITALIZED AFTER VEHICLE STRIKES MTO TRUCK
Two drivers were taken to hospital after a vehicle struck a Ministry of Transportation crash truck on Highway 401 near Woodstock on Monday afternoon, prompting multiple lane closures. Oxford OPP officers, the fire department and medical services...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
WOODSTOCK SCULPTOR PUTS COLOURFUL SPIN ON ST. THOMAS'S RAILWAY ROOTS
The City of St. Thomas unveiled its newest public artwork Thursday, bringing a pop of colour to the developing Yarmouth Yards industrial park. Standing more than seven metres tall, Imagination Station depicts a wooden toy train arranged in a circular...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
ONTARIO MAKING `STEADY PROGRESS' ON WILDFIRES SAY MINISTERS
Ontario is making “steady progress” in dealing with one of the most severe wildfire seasons the province has ever seen, say the ministers in charge of the government's response to the fires. “While we are not in the clear yet here in Ontario, we are...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Ownership transfer could unlock funding to restore Port Burwell lighthouse
on taxpayers. He said giving up ownership of the lighthouse will allow the municipality to focus on other projects. “Municipalities for a long time have started to realize that you can't be all things to all people,” Ketchabaw said. “We have to get...
Read Full Story (Page 3)
SWIMMING INTO SUMMER
Lake Lisgar Waterpark in Tillsonburg opened for the summer late last month. With high temperatures, the facility has been packed in recent days with children - including siblings Hunter and Norah Klein of London who were there on Wednesday - and adults...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
PRIDE FLAG STOLEN, FLAGPOLE CUT DOWN IN INGERSOLL
Police are investigating after a flagpole was cut down and a Pride flag stolen at a public school in Ingersoll over the weekend. Around 9:55 p.m. Saturday, four unknown people attended a public school on Innes Street, Oxford OPP said Monday. The...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FORMER WOODSTOCK MAYOR SENTENCED IN FINAL SEXUAL ASSAULT CASE
Former Woodstock mayor Trevor Birtch's final court appearance to end his four-year odyssey through the criminal justice system for sexually assaulting women in his life was made quietly from a federal prison. Birtch, 51, appeared in a London courtroom...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
`IT GIVES ME HOPE': COMMUNITY MARCHES IN SUPPORT OF PRIDE
As vandalism incidents involving the Pride flag escalate in Norwich Township, so too has support for the 2SLGBTQI+ community. In the wake of flags being stolen, burned and even poles being cut down at multiple area schools, churches, and businesses,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
$250K GIFT EXPANDS PEDIATRIC EMERGENCY TRAINING ATAREA HOSPITALS
A $250,000 donation to London's Children's Health Foundation will be used to expand the reach of a program that delivers simulated pediatric emergency training to community hospitals across Ontario, officials say. The foundation, the fundraising arm...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Community partnerships lead to new Woodstock affordable housing project
For the third time this year, Oxford County and the City of Woodstock were celebrating another “housing-for-all” project. On the heels of opening a building with affordable units at 785 Southwood Way and the purchase of the former YMCA Building for a...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police were among potential employers represented at the French post-secondary fair at Woodstock's École secondaire catholique Notre-Dame. Organized by guidance counsellors Cristina Pezzutto and Melissa Hiscocks, the event...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
JUMP START
Addison Syvret, 9, a student at Holy Family Catholic French Immersion school in Woodstock jumps during last week's long jump competition at the London District Catholic school board's elementary track and field meet at Alumni Stadium at Western...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
HAVING A BALL
Belen Carrion, a Grade 6 student at Holy Family Catholic French immersion school in Woodstock makes a toss during the ball throw competition at the London District Catholic school board elementary track and field meet at Alumni Stadium at Western...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
ONTARIO PASSES LAW TO REMOVE COUNCILLORS FOR SERIOUS MISCONDUCT
After five years of pressure, the Ford government has passed legislation allowing municipal councillors to be removed from office for serious code-of-conduct violations. On Tuesday, Ontario MPPs voted to pass Bill 9, the Municipal Accountability Act,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
SHOWING THEIR GRATITUDE
The residents and staff at Cedarview Retirement Living in Woodstock hosted a special celebration as part of First Responders Appreciation Month. Sixteen first responders from the community, including local police officers, firefighters and paramedics,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
IN THE RHYTHM
St. Mary's Catholic high school student Jewelle Mensah, blue, is closely followed by Amelia Weber, red, from St. Marys District Collegiate and Vocational Institute during the women 80-metre hurdles at the Western Ontario Secondary School Athletic...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
GOING FOR GOLD
Eva Wilson from College Avenue secondary school in Woodstock takes part in the senior girls' high jump competition on Thursday, May 21, at Western Alumni Stadium in London. Wilson finished this Western Ontario Secondary School Athletic Assocation...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
EX-WOODSTOCK MAYOR SENTENCED TO NEARLY FIVE YEARS FOR SEXUAL ASSAULTS
Trevor Birtch's prison sentence for violent sexual assaults on a former intimate partner marked the final act of what a judge called “a catastrophic fall from grace.” The former two-term Woodstock mayor, who had no criminal record, was led out of a...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
ON TRACK
Kirk Hallman of Lord Dorchester secondary school traded laps with Noah Cann of Ingersoll District Collegiate Institute until late in Friday's senior boys' 3,000-metre race at the second day of the Thames Valley Regional Athletics rrack and field meet....
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FIRST NATIONS PUSH BACK ON FAST-TRACKING POWER PROJECT
Ontario wants to see its newest nuclear power project in the province's southwest move ahead quickly, but two nearby Indigenous communities say the mega-project cannot be rushed. The Ford government is under pressure to find new long-term sources of...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
CANADA'S AUTO INDUSTRY COULD DISAPPEAR BY 2040, RBC WARNS
Canada's auto industry, based largely in Ontario, could disappear by 2040 unless the country regains duty-free access to the U.S. market or finds other ways to keep the sector afloat, one of Canada's biggest banks warns. At an industry conference in...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Ontario Uber drivers to help out during flooding and other emergencies
Uber drivers already drive Ontarians to airports, pick up groceries and deliver pizzas. Now, they'll also help deliver supplies and transport people to evacuation centres during emergencies. On Thursday, Uber Canada became the latest organization to...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
`VISIONARY' UNITED WAY OXFORD LEADER ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT
A decades-long champion of Oxford County has announced her retirement. Kelly Gilson, executive director of the United Way Oxford for 23 years, will retire at the end of September. Previously, she headed the Business Improvement Association for 17...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Oxford Warden Marcus Ryan won't seek re-election
Oxford County Warden Marcus Ryan has announced he will not be running for re-election as mayor of Zorra Township in the upcoming municipal election. Ryan, who has served as the Zorra's mayor since 2018 and warden since 2022, is also the current chair...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FROM WOODSTOCK TO SARNIA: MAYORS WEIGH NEXT MOVES AS NOMINATIONS OPEN
Although voters won't head to the polls until late October to cast ballots for municipal politicians, Friday marks the first day candidates can file paperwork to officially throw their hats in the ring. The Free Press' Brian Williams spoke with some of...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
UPPER THAMES CONSERVATION AREAS OPEN FOR CAMPING MAY 1
Southwestern Ontario campers who are eager to spend a night or two outdoors can start booking sites at three local conservation areas. Starting Friday, May 1, at 8 a.m., the Pittock, Wildwood and Fanshawe conservation areas are officially open for the...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Finger Eleven announced as Cowapolooza headliner
The band formerly known as the Rainbow Butt Monkeys will be headlining Woodstock's “favourite summer festival” when Cowapolooza returns to Southside Park in mid-August. City officials announced Tuesday that Finger Eleven, the Burlington-based rock...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Ontario limits access to some government records – does it matter?
Members of the Opposition heckled and chanted “F-O-I, F-O-I” as the Ford government passed its controversial changes to Ontario's Freedom of Information (FOI) rules on Thursday. From now on, it will be much harder to get a look inside the workings of...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
POTTER'S FIELD PROJECT HONOURED WITH LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR'S AWARD
A Western University project that identified nearly 400 individuals buried in unmarked graves in Ingersoll captured the Lieutenant Governor's Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation earlier this month. Led by Ingersoll resident and...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
New Oxford County affordable housing project unveiled
Oxford County Warden Marcus Ryan admits the county's aim of having every citizen living in stable housing is lofty. But regardless of the odds, he's still willing to chase that goal. “It's a lofty goal, but frankly it's the only acceptable one,” Ryan...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Norfolk, Brantford, Woodstock police join forces at Polar Plunge
Dozens of brave souls gathered on the beach at Turkey Point on Saturday to raise money for a good cause. Police officers from the Norfolk OPP and the Woodstock, and Brantford police services were joined by Special Olympics athletes to take part in the...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
HOMETOWN SCHOOL RALLIES BEHIND JEREMY HANSEN AS ARTEMIS II NEARS LAUNCH
Excitement is building at Ingersoll District Collegiate Institute, whose halls Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen once roamed as a student. If all goes to plan Wednesday evening, Hansen will become the first Canadian, alongside three Americans, to fly...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
UNITED WAY OXFORD CELEBRATES CAMPAIGN'S SUCCESS
The United Way Oxford marked the end of another successful fundraising campaign with a Thursday night celebration that focused on a theme of “community and belonging.” Of course, the highlight of this celebration was the announcement of $1,315,358 that...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
CALLS GROW FOR ONTARIO TO TAP BRAKES ON CONSERVATION AUTHORITY CHANGES
Calls are growing for the Ontario government to slow down its plan to overhaul the province's conservation authority system. On Wednesday, Halton Region council unanimously passed a resolution calling on the province to do more consultations before it...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Ford government defends OSAP changes as students weigh strikes
Ontario's Progressive Conservative government spent Tuesday defending changes to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP), as hundreds of students protested outside Queen's Park and raised the possibility of provincewide student strikes. “It is...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Woodstock `Goes for Soda': Kim Mitchell headlining Canada Day celebration
Woodstock officials have decided to do their “Rock N Roll Duty” when celebrating the city's 125th anniversary on Canada Day. Kim Mitchell, the Canadian rock legend and former Max Webster frontman, will be taking the stage in Southside Park on...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FACE-PAINTING FUN
The luck of the Irish was shining down on families attending the St. Patrick's Day event at the Delhi Hungarian House on March 17. The free event featured bouncy castles, face painting, a petting zoo and ice cream treats for youngsters. Pictured is...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
INGERSOLL FIRM LANDS $300M DEFENCE CONTRACT TO MAKE ARTILLERY SHELLS
INGERSOLL An industry here has landed a $300-million contract, creating more than 300 jobs, to make artillery shells for the Canadian Armed Forces, Canada's defence minister announced on Wednesday morning. IMT Precision, located on King Street, has...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
PROVINCIAL EDUCATION SHAKEUP WILL NOT DISTRACT CATHOLIC SCHOOL BOARD TRUSTEES
The chair of the London District Catholic school board says trustees heading into an election year aren't phased by the province's tightening grip on the education system. Trustees have until May 1 to file for the fall election, Gabe Pizzuti...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
BANDS BATTLE FOR RECORD STORE DAY SLOT AT THE RECORD WORKS
It's been nearly 20 years since Doug Marsh celebrated his very first Record Store Day. That first year, there was still some confusion over exactly what Record Store Day entailed, but Marsh made sure his store, the Record Works, was part of it. He...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Mount Elgin manufacturer celebrates $3.2M expansion
A Mount Elgin-based agri-business is getting nearly half-a-million dollars from a provincial development fund to help with a sizeable new expansion that will mean five new jobs. The Straw Boss, an Oxford County producer of clean, chopped straw and...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
GEMS & JAVA BLENDS FUN, INSPIRATION AND COMPASSION FOR ETHIOPIA
An afternoon of shopping, entertainment, delicious food and meaningful connection is planned for April 18 as Hearts for Ethiopia hosts its Gems & Java fundraiser. Organizers promise a joyful and moving experience -- an event that brings the local...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
