Latest news with #Osler
Winnipeg Free Press
27-04-2025
- General
- Winnipeg Free Press
‘Greatest honour' representing Manitoba
Manitoba Sen. Gigi Osler was moved to tears as she described attending the funeral of Pope Francis, who was laid to rest in Vatican City on Saturday at a ceremony attended by hundreds of thousands from across the world. 'It was a very bittersweet, but solemn and beautiful day. He was so deeply loved,' Osler said by phone Sunday, speaking slowly and, at times, overwhelmed with emotion. 'It was truly the greatest honour to be able to represent Manitobans and Canada at the funeral of such an impactful pope who really embodied humility, compassion and love for all of us.' SUPPLIED Manitoba Métis Federation president David Chartrand waits in line at the Vatican to pay his final respects to the pope. Osler was among a delegation of Canadian officials and Indigenous leaders who travelled to pay their final respects to the late pontiff, who died of a stroke and heart failure Aug. 21 at age 88. Osler returned to Canada on Sunday, and said she was 'still processing' the experience when she spoke with the Free Press. Several notable Manitobans were among the mourners, including Manitoba Métis Federation president David Chartrand, Assembly of First Nations Grand Chief Cindy Woodhouse and Phil Fontaine, who is a former head of both the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs and AFN. Senate speaker Raymonde Gagné, who is also from Manitoba, made the trip, as did Gov. Gen. Mary Simon, Osler said. Osler, who did not have an opportunity to meet Pope Francis before his death, said the roughly 90-minute ceremony reflected the humility that was a trademark of his 12-year papacy. He was buried in a plain wooden casket, and with simplified funeral rights, she said. According to Vatican estimates, some 250,000 people attended the funeral in St. Peter's Square while 150,000 others lined the motorcade route that stretched about six kilometres through downtown Rome. Osler said the pontiff will be remembered for his dedication to building bridges and extending compassion to vulnerable and marginalized people. 'I think Manitobans loved Pope Francis, and not just Catholics,' Osler said, referencing the pope's 2022 visit to Canada, during which he apologized for harms the Catholic Church inflicted through the residential school system. SUPPLIED MMF president David Chartrand met Pope Francis as part of an Indigenous delegation at the Vatican in 2022. About 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend residential schools, more than 60 per cent of which were run by the Catholic Church. Francis met with Indigenous people who survived the schools and listened to their stories. 'His recognition of the ongoing trauma was powerful, not just for First Nations, Indigenous and Métis people who experienced abuse. I think, as Manitobans, we need to offer all of our deepest condolences and (recognize) his impact,' Osler said. Chartrand was part of a 50-person Indigenous delegation that went to the Vatican in 2022 and encouraged the pope to come to Canada. Francis demonstrated respect to the group, shaking each person's hand despite concerns over the then-ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Some of the delegation were moved to tears by the gesture, Chartrand said. When the pope later arrived in Canada, Chartrand remembered feeling 'the healing will truly progress and begin now with his personal attendance,' he said. The Métis president waited in line for more than three hours Friday to view the pope's body and pay his final respects. He attended the funeral service the following day. During Elections Get campaign news, insight, analysis and commentary delivered to your inbox during Canada's 2025 election. 'To me, it was such an honour to be here and to show respect back to him, as he showed to us,' Chartrand said by phone from Rome on Sunday. X Manitoba Sen. Gigi Osler (far right) with a group of Canadian dignitaries and Catholic officials who made the trip to the Vatican for the funeral of Pope Francis. 'I saw people cry, I saw people hug, I saw young and old with their families… To me, he was the pope of hope.' Chartrand carried a rosary in honour of his late mother — a devout Catholic — with him as he walked several kilometres through the press of bodies that formed the crowd, he said. 'Just to be there was priceless. Nobody can replace that. It's something I will cherish forever,' he said. Tyler SearleReporter Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press's city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic's creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022. Read more about Tyler. Every piece of reporting Tyler produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Yahoo
Teen driver arrested on manslaughter, DUI charges in I-91 crash that killed high school senior
A Hamden teen faces DUI and manslaughter charges in connection with a crash on Interstate 91 in New Haven last April when a 17-year-old passenger in the SUV he was driving was ejected from the vehicle as it rolled over following a collision with a flatbed truck. The teen driver, who has not been identified because of his age, turned himself in last Thursday in connection with a warrant charging him in a crash on April 10, 2024, that led to the death of high school senior Isabela Jane Osler of Branford, according to Connecticut State Police. The driver was 17 years old at the time of the crash and was allegedly found to have marijuana in his system, according to the arrest warrant affidavit. He has since turned 18 and has been charged as a juvenile, state police said. He faces charges of second-degree manslaughter, operating under the influence of alcohol or drugs, operating a motor vehicle without a license, failure to wear a safety seat belt, reckless driving and failure to drive in the proper lane. According to the warrant affidavit, the crash was reported just after 10 p.m. on I-91 South in the area of Exit 7 near an active construction zone. The Hamden teen, driving a 1993 Jeep Cherokee with Osler as a passenger, was in the right lane just north of Exit 7 when he approached a state Department of Transportation milling project that had the right lane tapered into the right center lane with construction cones. State police said they believe the teen 'encroached into the right center lane' and collided with a flatbed trailer, sending the Jeep into a spin before it rolled over. The driver of the flatbed, a 24-year-old New York man, did not report any injuries. He told police that as he was approaching the construction zone he was in the right center lane on the four-lane highway and could see a white Cherokee behind him, the warrant affidavit said. The man alleged that the Cherokee driver was going fast and was passing the trailer portion of his truck using the right lane, which was closed for construction, before he suddenly swerved to the left and collided with the trailer, according to the warrant affidavit. The flatbed driver said he could see the Cherokee roll over before he stopped and checked on the occupants. The Cherokee had ended up on its roof. The man said he found that several bystanders were administering CPR to Osler. Osler was taken to a hospital where she was pronounced dead at 10:51 p.m., the warrant affidavit said. An autopsy found that she died of a blunt impact injury to her torso, state police wrote. Her death was ruled an accident. The driver of the Cherokee was seriously injured and was taken to Yale New Haven Hospital. One witness to the crash alleged that the Cherokee driver was going between 70 and 75 mph prior to the collision, the warrant affidavit said. Another guessed that the vehicle was going at least 80 mph when the driver hit multiple traffic cones in the right lane and lost control of the SUV, according to the warrant affidavit. Friends of the teens in the Cherokee reportedly said they had stopped at a liquor store prior to the crash but said the driver had not been drinking, the warrant affidavit said. Two of them alleged that the driver was high and had smoked marijuana about two hours beforehand, state police wrote. The friends, traveling in a black BMW, followed the teens in the Cherokee and witnessed the crash, the warrant affidavit said. One of them said they were going about 65 mph and alleged that the Cherokee was going over 85 mph, state police wrote. State police investigators obtained a search warrant for the blood that was drawn from the teenage driver when he was treated at the hospital. The results reportedly showed that he had THC in his system, the warrant affidavit said. An analysis of the crash conducted by the state police's Collision, Analysis and Reconstruction Squad reportedly found that the Cherokee was being driven at 'a minimum' of 49 mph during the crash, according to the warrant affidavit. The flatbed trailer, which was equipped with a GPS device, was reportedly found to be going 46 mph. The analysis found that as the Cherokee moved from the right center lane to the right lane it went about two feet into the shoulder before it was steered to the left, as the teen was 'overcorrecting,' the warrant affidavit said. The teen then lost control and the Cherokee began fishtailing on the highway. The vehicle collided twice with the flatbed and rolled over multiple times. Osler, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected from the Jeep, the warrant affidavit said. State police noted that the driver was not old enough to consume marijuana and did not have a driver's license, according to the warrant affidavit. The teen has been released on a promise to appear and is scheduled to appear at New Haven Juvenile Court on Thursday. According to an obituary, Osler was a 'vibrant and spirited young woman' who was a senior at Branford High School, where she 'excelled academically and was admired by her peers and teachers alike for her kindness, intelligence, creativity and cleverness beyond measure.' She had a passion for art, child care and writing and was 'always mixing it up, dying her hair and being her most authentic self,' the obituary said. 'As an assistant teacher at the Duck Pond Learning Center, Bela treasured the staff and children she worked with,' the obituary said. 'Above all, Bela was known for her infectious laughter, compassionate heart and funky charisma. She touched many lives with her warmth and empathy, always ready to lend a helping hand or a listening ear to those in need. Her presence and smile brightened every room she entered.'
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
'We're seriously outgunned' in trade war, warns former Bank of Canada governor
Former Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz says we are 'seriously outgunned' by the Americans in a trade war, arguing Canada will still need the United States down the road. 'When the dust settles, we will need our U.S. partnership, just as much as we need it today,' said Poloz, now special adviser to Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, during a webinar recorded on Monday. 'We need to keep our eye on that long-term. This is not the Hatfields and the McCoys. We have to think long-term and make the best of a bad hand at this stage, knowing that there will be another hand in due course sometime in the future.' U.S. President Donald Trump is set to announce reciprocal tariffs on all countries on April 2, and it isn't clear if goods covered by the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) will remain exempted from tariffs beyond that date. The Bank of Canada estimates a protracted trade war with the U.S. would cause Canada's GDP to decline by three per cent over the next two years. Desjardins Group economists predict Canada's economy will head into a contraction as soon as the second quarter of this year. Poloz said while the forecasts for the Canadian economy are 'grim' he does not believe them to be 'existential.' He said he is optimistic that Canada can find a practical solution. 'People forget that trade doesn't happen between countries, it happens between people,' he said. 'And those people still like each other, still respect each other, still want to do business together.' The trade war with the U.S. is set to dominate the federal election, which kicked off on Sunday, with Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre and Liberal Party leader Mark Carney both promising income tax cuts to Canada's lowest earners. Poloz said the trade war will require a fiscal response, though he does not think it will require one at the same scale seen during the pandemic. 'My hope is it will lean on promoting investment, more than we have in other slowdowns, as opposed to just household spending,' he said. Last week, the federal and provincial governments announced their plans to remove internal trade barriers, and have free trade within the country by July 1. Poloz said the gains will be significant for the Canadian economy. Trump says auto tariff coming, teases reciprocal duty breaks Why this is shaping up to be the trade war election How Trump's 'liberation day' could work in Canada's favour Moving forward, Poloz also had a number of suggestions to make Canada's economy more competitive. These include declaring energy and resource projects within the national interest, leaning into technological innovation, creating a better tax system for the manufacturing sector and using revenue from retaliatory tariffs to fund tax cuts. 'We're on the cusp of a major technological revolution. The world is going to change in so many different ways, more of the trade will be in services, not in goods,' said Poloz. 'There are just so many other things changing in a positive way. What we need to do is get ourselves in a position to take advantage of it all, and we can.' • Email: jgowling@ Sign in to access your portfolio
Associated Press
26-03-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
VertexOne Announces Andrew Osler to Join Board of Directors
VertexOne, a leading provider of cloud software designed to revolutionize the customer experience within the energy and utility industry, announced today the appointment of Andrew Osler to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Osler brings to the VertexOne board nearly four decades of global investment experience in the energy industry, with the majority of his career spent as an investment professional for Oaktree Capital Management's GFI Energy Group, which invests equity capital in leading businesses serving the power, utility and energy sectors. Mr. Osler currently serves as a Senior Advisor to the GFI Energy Group and brings a wealth of board-level experience through serving on numerous GFI Energy and Oaktree portfolio company boards throughout his career. 'The addition of Andrew to our board injects added vitality and invaluable market and industry insight as we focus on driving greater financial and operational performance to capture an ever-increasing market share,' VertexOne CEO, Andrew Jornod, said. 'His deep expertise in scaling businesses will be instrumental as we move to leverage our recent strategic acquisition and upcoming innovations to deliver unparalleled value and transformative solutions to our customers.' 'I have followed VertexOne's progress for many years and am excited to join the Board of Directors at such a pivotal time for the company,' Mr. Osler said. 'VertexOne has established itself as a leading provider of customer engagement solutions and I look forward to contributing my experience and insights to help drive the company's continued growth and success.' The announcement follows a series of recent developments at VertexOne, including a financing commitment from Runway Growth Capital and BC Partners Credit made in January, and the strategic acquisition of Accelerated Innovations and its MyMeter technology back in December of 2024, which has positioned VertexOne to further enhance its offerings and drive innovation in customer engagement for electric, gas, and water utilities and energy retail providers. About VertexOne VertexOne is the leading provider of cloud-based SaaS solutions, powering the next generation of customer experience for utilities, energy retailers and energy transition providers. With more than 30 years of experience and 400 customers in the cloud, we capitalize on our deep expertise to provide a wide range of innovative solutions for digital transformation, revenue optimization and data-driven efficiency operations surrounding the customer. We empower our clients to deliver a compelling customer experience, reduce costs to serve, increase operational efficiency and improve customer satisfaction. For more information on how VertexOne allows you to enhance the digital customer experience, improve revenue management and leverage data analytics, visit
Boston Globe
25-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Boston is bustling with romance book clubs — where happy endings aren't just possible, but required
The circle of eight readers nodded in agreement. Advertisement 'But I was like, 'I don't care.'' Everyone began to nod again. Discussion leader Hannah Barrett, who cofounded Read My Lips — a local curator that hosts pop-up book shops and events — agreed: 'It's nice to live in a fantasy.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Just a show of hands at the late February Romance Book Club hosted by Read My Lips Boston, a curator of inclusive romance stories. JOSH REYNOLDS FOR THE BOSTON GLOBE/Josh Reynolds for The Boston Globe While romance may be dead on planet Earth — succumbing to the blows of dating apps, red flags, and podcast bros — it's certainly alive and well in books. So, for some readers, 'book boyfriends' are a much better object for their affection. After all, why scroll through a dating app when you can engross yourself in an emotionally charged enemies-to-lovers epic with a guaranteed happy ending? While the genre has existed long before love became as rare as first editions, the rise of #BookTok redefined how readers talk about the genre. It provided a digital space where tropes, once considered cheesy or cringe, thrive, and intellectualism is met with a not-so-sexy Offline, the popularity-fueled discourse has translated to a rise in romance book clubs — groups dedicated to exclusively reading and unabashedly discussing the genre, organized by the likes of booksellers, cafés, libraries, and friends. There, everything from third-act breakups to 'open door' sex scenes can be safely discussed not only without judgment, but with enthusiasm. Greater Boston has its share of like-minded gatherings — like Advertisement Barrett started the Read My Lips book club with her twin sister Lily in September 2024. Like the book club trend itself, the Barrett twins had first built community online via an But even IRL, some essentially 'online' tasks must be settled. Before the readers began to discuss book's juicy details, they set upon the difficult, yet necessary task of ' Twin sisters Lily and Hannah Barrett lead the monthly meeting of the Read My Lips book club at The Speedway in Brighton. JOSH REYNOLDS FOR THE BOSTON GLOBE For Viggo, member Osler suggests, 'Ryan Gosling but with shaggy hair.' Dot Brown rebuts with 'the cartoon version of Osler joined after her own fateful meet-cute at Rite, home to a permanent Read My Lips bookshelf — where readers can browse and buy from their curated collection. There, she met shop owner Ren Wheeler who spotted Osler at the bookshelf and told her about the club's meetings. Advertisement 'The proverbial voice on my shoulder said, 'You know, I'm just gonna show up and see if I can meet more people outside my circle,'' Osler said. Now, Osler and Read My Lips have been going steady for months. Brown, on the other hand, was on the search for romance — that is, fellow romance lovers. 'I'm a big reader,' Brown says. 'Not a lot of my friends read romance. I don't have a space to [talk about it], like, I'll talk about the books, and they're like, 'What are you talking about?'' Before joining Read My Lips, she had tried several other reading groups throughout Greater Boston, including the Its focus is on discussing tropes (enemies-to-lovers), subtropes (forced proximity), and the historical accuracy of bodice-rippers, rather than a single, specific novel. Readers are told to arrive with topic-relevant romance books — and to then defend their honor. The only catch? Any books brought to the table must end happily ever after. An assortment of books displayed for the Read My Lips book club at The Speedway in Brighton. JOSH REYNOLDS FOR THE BOSTON GLOBE About a dozen members meet in a BPL conference room for tea and to participate in Wimbledon-worthy back-and-forth's about the meaning and enjoyability of the trope du jour — which is picked by club-creator, BPL staffer, and romance reader Veronica Matasy. 'It was a little experimental in the beginning,' says Matasy, 'Just thinking how many people are gonna show up, you know? Is this something that we can sustain?' Advertisement Matasy started the book club in September 2023 to provide a designated space for romance readers who wanted to discuss their theories and analysis, but feared skepticism because of the genre. 'Part of [the stigma] has to do with the fact that, historically, romance has been considered to be the province of women,' explains Matasy. Its next meeting — which takes place April 13 — features The club's topic-centered approach — much like dinner party conversation starters — may be unconventional, but can create a more dynamic space for discussion of literary value and authorial intent. And while not everyone will be on the same page, members could leave with a new perspective on a trope, or at least a few new titles to check out from the library's stacks. 'Giving readers a space to seriously discuss romance novels is destigmatizing and helpful,' says Matasy, 'and, at least I hope, makes the people who read romance novels feel that what they read is worth discussing.' Upcoming events Romance Book Club; Discussion: 'The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo' by Taylor Jenkins Reid April 7, 7 p.m, Trident Booksellers, 338 Newbury St., Boston, Read My Lips Book Club; Discussion: 'I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I'm Trapped in a Rom-Com' by Kimberly Lemming April 10, 6 p.m. The Annex at the Charles River Speedway, 525 Western Ave., Brighton, Happily-Ever-After Book Club ; Discussion: STEM Romances Advertisement April 13, 2:30 p.m. Boston Public Library, Central Library, 700 Boylston St., Boston, Marianna Orozco can be reached at
