Latest news with #Lavoie
New York Post
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Couple hounded with calls after their number is listed on t-shirt decorated with missing cat poster
What a purr-fect cat-astrophe. A Canadian couple is being hounded with calls about their missing cat — and all because their number was splashed across a t-shirt decorated with a poster of a lost cat by a brand 3,000 miles away on Long Island. Jonathan McCurrach and Natasha Lavoie's phone has been on fire with strangers calling to tell them they've found their feline, Torbo. However, the British Columbian couple doesn't even have a cat named Torbo. Their furry friend is Mauser, and he's happily chilling at home. 'Sometimes, like six times a day, I'm getting these really random phone calls and people leaving me voicemails saying that they found my cat and they want money for my cat,' Lavoie told CBC News. The contemporary clothing company, Wisdumb, based in Smithtown, NY, made the missing cat t-shirt. CBC News 'I'm like, 'My cat's at home in the air conditioning.'' At first, the pair first thought the calls, which mainly came from the U.S., were scams. 'When we started actually picking up the calls or responding to the voicemails, I thought it was some attempt at a scam. You hear about scams all the time about missing pets,' McCurrach told the outlet. 'Half the time, they just cut you off and go like, 'No, I've got your cat. I want the money for the cat.' And I'm like, 'No, there's no money, there's no cat.' And they usually hang up.' After months of their phone ringing off the hook, McCurrach finally asked a caller how they got their number. The caller explained their digits were printed on the t-shirt, made by the contemporary clothing company Wisdumb, based in Smithtown, NY. CBC News reached out the business, which reported the shirt was no longer available for purchase online, and said in an email that 'the use of a real number within the art created was not intentional.' The couple also contacted the company, which offered them a similar answer, but no 'real apology.' Natasha Lavoie and Jonathan McCurrach didn't receive a 'real apology' from the company. CBC News Lavoie said she's not ready to change her number because it has a 604 area code, British Columbia's first, which is now difficult to get. 'I've had my number for 20 years,' she told the outlet firmly. 'I don't want to change it. I'll just keep not answering.' Lavoie thinks purr-haps she deserves compensation for the aggravation the clothing has caused. 'I feel like I deserve a T-shirt after this,' she added. 'I think we both do.'
Hamilton Spectator
18-07-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
Hamilton police speak directly in video to teen fugitive wanted in Jackson Square shooting
Hamilton police spoke directly to fugitive Mackale Lavoie in a video shared on social media Thursday afternoon, calling on the 17-year-old alleged shooter to turn himself in. 'Mackale, we are urging you to seek legal counsel and turn yourself in,' said Det. Sgt. John Obrovac of the homicide unit. 'We've executed multiple search warrants, and we will not stop until you are in custody.' Lavoie is wanted for second-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder in connection with a shooting around 5:30 p.m. last Friday, July 11, outside Jackson Square. Innocent bystander Belinda Sarkodie, 26, was killed when she was shot waiting for a bus at King and James streets. Another man in his 20s, who was among a group of three young men targeted in the shooting, was shot but survived. Police have been searching for Lavoie, who fled the busy area on foot, since, including searches at residences on Wellington Street Sunday night and at a different residence on Mary Street early Thursday. Police warn the community not to approach Lavoie, but to call 911. Hamilton Police continue to search for 17-year-old Mackale LAVOIE, wanted in connection with a fatal July 11 shooting near King & James. Mackale—seek legal counsel and turn yourself in. Anyone helping him evade arrest may face charges. Call 905-546-4925 or 9-1-1. Tips:… 'Help us bring justice to Belinda and her family,' Obrovac said in the video. Police sought a temporary order under the Youth Criminal Justice Act to name Lavoie that expires at midnight. Belinda Sarkodie, 26, was fatally shot in downtown Hamilton on Friday, July 11. Sarkodie was born in Konongo, Ghana, and came from a close-knit family of five. Last year she moved to Hamilton, where she was working and hoped to continue her studies in environmental sciences. 'Belinda was an affable person, known for her warmth, kindness, and gentle spirit,' her family said in a statement. A GoFundMe organized by the Ghanaian Canadian Association of Ontario is raising money to cover funeral and other expenses for her family, most of whom remain in Ghana, save for her brother in Manitoba. A vigil is planned for Friday from 5 to 6 p.m. at the location where she was killed, King and James streets. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Toronto Sun
17-07-2025
- Toronto Sun
Hamilton Police continue to push for suspect's surrender in fatal shooting of innocent bystander
Hamilton Police say Mackale Lavoie, 17, is wanted for second-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder. Cops say they obtained an order permitting the publication of Lavoie's identity, who remains at large and whose identity would usually be protected by the Youth Criminal Justice Act. Photo by Hamilton Police Hamilton cops continue to urge a teen suspect to surrender in the deadly shooting of an innocent bystander last Friday. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account On July 11, Hamilton Police responded to a 'brazen daylight shooting' at about 5:25 p.m. near the Jackson Square shopping mall at the corner of King St. E. and James St. N., where a male suspect allegedly encountered three people who appear to have been the intended targets. Police said the male opened fire and struck one of the intended individuals, while also striking an innocent bystander — Belinda Sarkodie, 26 — who was 'simply going about her day' before being slain. Despite life-saving efforts from officers, police said Sarkodie was pronounced dead at the scene. The other victim, a male, was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Police said Mackale Lavoie, 17, is wanted for second-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder. Cops said they obtained an order permitting the publication of Lavoie's identity, who remains at large and whose identity would usually be protected by the Youth Criminal Justice Act. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Belinda Sarkodie, 26, who immigrated to Canada from Ghana last year, was at a Hamilton bus stop heading home after work when she was killed by a stray bullet on Friday, July 11, 2025. 'Mackale, we are urging you to seek legal counsel and turn yourself in,' Hamilton Police Det.-Sgt. John Obrovac said in a video statement on Thursday. 'We've executed multiple search warrants, and we will not stop until you are in custody.' Investigators have executed two search warrants at residences in Hamilton where Lavoie was believed to be. Despite these efforts, the accused remains at large. Police warned the public not to approach Lavoie and to contact police immediately by calling 911 or 905-546-4925. Police previously said that Sarkodie immigrated to Canada from Ghana last year and was living and working in Hamilton. Her brother lives in Manitoba and police have notified her family in Ghana. It was the second time in less than three months that an innocent young woman was fatally struck by a stray bullet while waiting at a Hamilton bus stop. Harsimrat Randhawa, a 21-year-old woman from India who was studying at Mohawk College, was shot dead April 17 on Hamilton Mountain while waiting for a bus at Upper James St. and South Bend Rd. — With files from Spiro Papuckoski. RECOMMENDED VIDEO Toronto & GTA Toronto & GTA Tennis MMA Editorials
Hamilton Spectator
17-07-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
Hamilton police speak directly to teen fugitive wanted for Jackson Square shooting in video
Hamilton police spoke directly to fugitive Mackale Lavoie in a video shared on social media Thursday afternoon, calling on the 17-year-old alleged shooter to turn himself in. 'Mackale, we are urging you to seek legal counsel and turn yourself in,' said Det. Sgt. John Obrovac of the homicide unit. 'We've executed multiple search warrants, and we will not stop until you are in custody.' Lavoie is wanted for second-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder in connection with a shooting around 5:30 p.m. last Friday, July 11, outside Jackson Square. Innocent bystander Belinda Sarkodie, 26, was killed when she was shot waiting for a bus at King and James streets. Another man in his 20s, who was among a group of three young men targeted in the shooting, was shot but survived. Police have been searching for Lavoie, who fled the busy area on foot, since, including searches at residences on Wellington Street Sunday night and at a different residence on Mary Street early Thursday. Police warn the community not to approach Lavoie, but to call 911. Hamilton Police continue to search for 17-year-old Mackale LAVOIE, wanted in connection with a fatal July 11 shooting near King & James. Mackale—seek legal counsel and turn yourself in. Anyone helping him evade arrest may face charges. Call 905-546-4925 or 9-1-1. Tips:… 'Help us bring justice to Belinda and her family,' Obrovac said in the video. Police sought a temporary order under the Youth Criminal Justice Act to name Lavoie that expires at midnight. Belinda Sarkodie, 26, was fatally shot in downtown Hamilton on Friday, July 11. Sarkodie was born in Konongo, Ghana, and came from a close-knit family of five. She moved to Hamilton last year, where she was working and hoped to continue her studies in environmental sciences. 'Belinda was an affable person, known for her warmth, kindness, and gentle spirit,' her family said in a statement. A GoFundMe organized by the Ghanaian Canadian Association of Ontario is raising money to cover funeral and other expenses for her family, most who remain in Ghana, save for her brother in Manitoba. A vigil is planned for Friday from 5 to 6 p.m. at the location where she was killed, King and James streets. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Newsweek
17-07-2025
- Business
- Newsweek
Why Culture Amp Launched an AI-Powered Coaching Tool
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Business leaders may know Culture Amp as the software for rolling out engagement surveys and understanding employee sentiment. The company is taking an interesting approach with its new, AI-powered agentic offering: a performance and career coach for employees and leaders called AI Coach. This offering will leverage the data behind years of employee surveys and culture measurement to give people and team leaders actionable ideas and automated outreach. "If we think about our mission of creating a better world of work, we see the power of coaching as being really critical to that," Amy Lavoie, VP of people science experience at Culture Amp, told Newsweek. "But also, coaching has historically been really kind of reserved for a few people in an extremely manual and expensive way." The new tool launches in Q3 2025, according to a company release, which also notes that AI Coach draws on insights collected from over 1.5 billion workplace data points and a large language model (LLM) "specifically trained using industrial and organizational psychology principles to deliver purpose-built workplace coaching that drives impactful behavior change." While Culture Amp has long provided leaders with datasets and survey tools, the purpose of AI Coach is to deliver real-time employee sentiment to leaders and offer takeaways from behavioral data so that managers don't have to parse through dense reports for actionable information. Culture Amp's AI Coach offers proactive advice to managers and employees around goal setting and performance. Culture Amp's AI Coach offers proactive advice to managers and employees around goal setting and performance. Culture Amp "AI Coach is not just about providing advice; it's about enabling managers to develop crucial skills, navigate difficult conversations, and inspire meaningful action within their teams," said Chris Mander, chief product officer at Culture Amp. Richard Taylor, senior vice president, people experience at Nasdaq, said AI Coach "democratizes access to personalized guidance, empowering managers to lead with confidence." The feedback that managers and employees receive from AI Coach will be customized for their department, level and other contextual information. One might think Culture Amp would deploy artificial intelligence (AI) and agentic capabilities to help people make more surveys faster. But Lavoie explains that the company and its product organization saw an opportunity to advance the platform's capabilities. "I don't think the answer is more data and insights, it's actually the story of the data," Lavoie said. "How do you, like, help me weave all these things together alongside the context of my organization, to serve it up in a sentence or two that helps, helps people remember it and want to do something with it." Overworked managers sometimes don't have time to review engagement survey data. Because the data is backward-looking and takes time to analyze, managers are reviewing information that is not as current as it could be. They don't always have strong data judgment to read through graphs and charts to glean the important takeaways for their teams. "Very often, if you just present [managers] with a ton of insights, they actually feel paralyzed, not motivated to work," Lavoie said. "It's that story, that narrative of the data in the context of my organization, that AI Coach can help them do without always needing [a] people scientist who can do that for them." Culture Amp AI Coach can help managers in real-time as they respond to employee questions and requests. Culture Amp AI Coach can help managers in real-time as they respond to employee questions and requests. Culture Amp Advancements in AI and machine learning have allowed for this advancement in Culture Amp's product and potentially the practice of management, if better assistance is available to employees at work. "We can know what the other managers who've done well, what did they do to improve their scores. In the past [...], you just have to go talk to hundreds of people," Lavoie said. "Identifying what are the behaviors that make the biggest difference on improving scores, if somebody is working on, decision making, then we can go look. We can go isolate the teams that have improved decision making and see specifically what they have done and what they've logged in the system, and then bring that perspective back."
