Halifax Hoopers' inaugural season wraps up
Atlantic Watch
The Halifax Hoopers' inaugural season came to an end Tuesday night in Dartmouth, N.S.
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Globe and Mail
9 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
New Blue Jays book sheds light on attempted Ohtani signing
Toronto Blue Jays brass used all the bells and whistles when they tried to land two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani in the fall of 2023. The once-in-a-lifetime pursuit of the Japanese free agent, as author Keegan Matheson writes in his new book, 'The Franchise: Toronto Blue Jays,' included taking Ohtani, his agent and interpreter at the time on a tour of the team's renovated player development complex, complete with a few special touches. Three lockers in the clubhouse were set aside for Ohtani, along with jerseys, gear, hats, bags and accessories. It was all part of an elaborate effort to sell him on the team. An impressed Ohtani — whose camp wanted total secrecy throughout the process — walked out of the Dunedin, Fla., facility with bags of team gear and a Blue Jays hat on his head, Matheson writes. Ohtani stopped to take pictures with his interpreter, who was also sporting some Toronto kit. The superstar's dog, 'Decoy,' came running out to join them in a Canadian dog jacket the Blue Jays had bought for him. 'I think that the presentation they gave Ohtani was incredibly impressive and they were not the No. 2 team just to be strung along and used as the other person at the bargaining table,' said Matheson. 'They were No. 2 because they almost signed him.' The behind-the-scenes colour and details from Matheson's interviews and descriptions bring an intriguing, memorable and downright surreal chapter in the team's near half-century history to life. Ohtani would eventually sign a 10-year, US$700-million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. It was a big blow for Canada's lone big-league team and its countrywide contingent of supporters. The Blue Jays would eventually sign a big fish of their own, locking up star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to a 14-year extension last April worth a team record $500 million. The megadeal helped soothe any lingering pain from the Ohtani situation and also showed the franchise was willing to spend big in an effort to be a consistent contender. But that Ohtani off-season — from a bizarre Zoom call with general manager Ross Atkins to the erroneous report that Ohtani had chosen the Blue Jays and was on a plane to Toronto — was the 'strangest experience' Matheson expects to have as a reporter. 'The game that went into it was really fascinating,' Matheson said in a recent interview. 'Trying to operate in secrecy in a world where we want to know everything that's going on with your favourite team and with your favourite player. 'This was more of a TV drama and the amount of work that went into keeping it secret fascinates me.' The book also explores the team's early days, the playoff successes in the early 1990s, the near-misses in the previous decade, and many of the players — on and off the field — who made it all happen. The stories and anecdotes are not always the obvious ones. From players sipping chicken noodle soup at a frigid Exhibition Stadium, to amusing tales of manager-athlete dynamics, to the homecoming after a 670-day break between home games due to COVID-19, Matheson touches all the bases. 'Instead of asking a pitcher why he lost or asking someone why they struck out three times, this was an opportunity to ask someone, 'Hey, tell me about the best days of your life,'' said Matheson, who covers the team for 'Tell me about that memory that everyone always asks you about at the bar, at golf tournaments and coffee shops.' 'The Franchise: Toronto Blue Jays,' a 302-page book published by Triumph Books, is available now at a retail price of $38.
CTV News
17 minutes ago
- CTV News
‘It was a gut punch': Concerned parents fight for future of special needs school
The Toronto District School Board has cancelled grade nine enrolment at Heydon Park Secondary School for the upcoming school year. (CTV News Toronto) Since 1923, what is now Heydon Park Secondary School has been an important place for young women with special needs. 'I just loved this school,' graduate Jessica Rotolo told CTV News Toronto. 'It's amazing. I loved it when I was a student here because all of the teachers were very accepting.' What began as a vocational school has since grown into a secondary school and safe haven for female, transgender, and non-binary students with special education needs. The school accepts students from across the city, and offers specialized programming and courses meant to prepare these students for the future. But now the future of the school is being questioned, after a notice was posted on the Toronto District School Board's (TDSB) website advising that there would be no grade nine admissions for the upcoming school year. 'My biggest fear is that because they've eliminated grade nines coming in to the school... are they now going to close Heydon Park down?' That's the question Rotolo's mom, Dorlean, has been asking. 'This school's been around for a hundred years—they know what they're doing when it comes to educating young women with special needs,' she said. According to the TDSB, enrolment at Heydon Park has been declining over the years, due to the fact that neighbourhood schools are getting better at supporting a wider range of student needs. The board told CTV News that only nine students applied to be a part of the grade nine class in the upcoming school year. Those students will now be sent to alternative sites next fall. But, parents say the services offered at Heydon Park aren't found anywhere else and believe students with special needs won't get the same level of care and attention at other schools. Heydon Park Secondary School Heydon Park offers supports for female, transgender, and non-binary students with special education needs. (CTV News Toronto) From a small school environment to a protective atmosphere, there are specialized supports and staff to help students with exceptional needs. The school, which is located near Dundas Street West and Beverley Street, also has a number of community partnerships in the area. 'It was a gut punch,' said parent Nadine D'Aigle, of the news that no grade nine students would be entering the school next year. D'Aigle says the school has been 'life-changing' for her daughter, and questions whether the board is moving toward closing the specialized school. 'It just feels like there's already a plan in place and that this has been in motion to perhaps close Heydon Park despite the moratorium on school closures.' In a statement, the board said, 'No decision has been made at this time about the long-term plan for Heydon Park, and board staff will continue to monitor its enrolment TDSB's Long-Term Program and Accommodation Strategy has already identified a study to look at options for the future of Heydon Park.' A provincial moratorium on school closures remains in effect, something the TDSB acknowledges. But it's not easing the worries that parents of students who attend Heydon Park have. 'Why do our children with special needs get that taken away from them?,' questioned Rotolo. 'I am absolutely livid that this is happening to this school.' The co-chair of the Heydon Park parent council calls the move unfair. 'This is what they do to save money in TDSB?,' asked Kamala Kalsi. 'It's not fair, not fair at all.' The trustee for the area says she's asked for a meeting with board staff to examine options for the future of the school. 'Heydon Park for me is a very special place,' said Deborah Williams. 'I'd really like to see that program have an opportunity to grow.' Williams says the services offered at the school pre-date the amalgamation of the TDSB, but she believes the programs it offers are still needed. 'The value of the programming and the supports that it offers to those students... I think it's unique and it's still valuable.' Parents say they plan to fight any changes to the school or its programming. They've launched an online petition and are currently working on ways to get their message out to the broader community about a school that has changed the lives of countless young women.
CBC
18 minutes ago
- CBC
Remembering Asger 'Red' Pedersen, former N.W.T. MLA and 'honourary Inuk'
Social Sharing The late Asger "Red" Pedersen had a number of feathers in his cap, as a twice-elected MLA, former cabinet minister and Speaker of the N.W.T. Legislative Assembly, former mayor of Kugluktuk, Nunavut, and as a member of both the Order of Nunavut and the Order of Canada. But according to his son, there was one title that meant more to Pedersen than any other: "honourary Inuk." "You know, those were his peers when he grew up here in the North. And he lived out on the land with many Inuit and worked with Inuit," said Fred Pedersen. "He thought that was a big honour." That title was bestowed upon Red Pedersen, who died on May 30 at the age of 89, by the Kitikmeot Inuit Association (KIA), which had also made him an honourary lifetime member. Flags at the KIA office in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, were flying at half-mast after his death, out of respect for an "incredible individual" who left a "permanent, positive mark on the North," according to a news release from KIA on Monday. Red Pedersen was born in Denmark and came to the Canadian North at the age of 17 to work for the Hudson's Bay Company. He then spent most of the rest of his life in the North, in different parts of the N.W.T. and Nunavut, and also moved south for periods of time to be closer to some of his children. But Fred Pedersen — who's now the executive director of the KIA — says his father would always return to Kugluktuk. "That was home for him, and that's where he felt most comfortable," Fred Pedersen said. "He first came up to the Arctic 72 years ago. So, you know, that was back in the [time of] dog teams and igloos and tents and things like that. So you know, when you're living in the Arctic back then, I think you have to be an outdoorsy person." Pedersen was first elected MLA for the Kitikmeot West riding in 1983, when Nunavut was still part of the N.W.T. He served two terms as MLA, also serving on the executive council and holding portfolios of culture and communications, renewable resources, and the status of women. He was named Speaker in 1987 and held that role until 1989. In a statement, the current N.W.T. Speaker, Shane Thompson, called Red Pedersen "a beacon of hope and strength." "Red's life was one of service, love, and humility. His passing leaves a tremendous void, but his legacy will continue in the lives he touched and the lessons he taught," Thompson said. Flags at the N.W.T. Legislative Assembly in Yellowknife were also lowered to half-mast to honour Pederson. His Speaker's portrait and robe were also displayed in the legislature building's Great Hall last week. In his statement, Thompson recalled first meeting Red Pederson in 1987, at a hockey rink in Kugluktuk. "It was clear from that first conversation that his passion was the people of the community—he truly considered them his family," Thompson said. James Eetoolook, a KIA board member and currently the acting president of the association, knew Pedersen for more than 70 years. He recalled being nine years old when he joined his father and Pedersen on a dog-team trip to Gjoa Haven. He said Pedersen was "just like another Inuk, to us." "He was good man. I liked him," said Eetoolook. "He'd rather be with the Kitikmeot people than people back home or whatever, in Denmark or whatever." Fred Pedersen described his father as someone who "was always ready and willing to help people." "You know, starting with his family, but other people as well, everybody in the community and people that he knew. You know, if someone needed a ride, he'd offer to give a ride or whatever," Fred said. Fred also recalled how, as an N.W.T. MLA in the 1980s, his father helped push for the creation of Nunavut. "He wanted to ensure that, you know, Inuit were able to control the territory," Fred said. More than anything, though, Red was a "family guy," his son recalled. Red had six children — two of them now deceased — and a total of 108 descendants, Fred said. "I've learned that from him that, you know, family's important. Work life is also important, but you need a balance and you need to ensure that, you know, you keep your family life number one," Fred said.
