Manley pays visit to Thunder Bay

Silver medalist figure skater Elizabeth Manley is helping honour the Alzheimer Society.  Manley was their guest speaker at the local chapter's fundraiser.  Manley says she personally wants to say thank you to the organization.  The Olympic skater lost her father to the disease in October.  The fundraiser also marked the 25th anniversary of the local Alzheimer's Chapter.

Pressure nothing new for Eric Staal

It will be an intense weekend for Eric Staal and his Carolina Hurricanes. They have two games remaining and hold their destiny in their own hands.  Two wins and they're in.  Staal tells our newsroom he lives for this kind of pressure. He says the team appears to be handing it well and haven't buckled yet. The Canes take on Atlanta Friday and Tampa to close out the regular season.  They were helped out by the Thrashers Thursday night when they beat the New York Rangers 3-0.

MNR and Grassy Narrows sign agreement

The Province and Grassy Narrows First Nation are working towards allowing logging activity in the Whiskey Jack Forest near Kenora.  Chief Simon Fobister says they're not against environmentally friendly logging practices; they're against clear cutting.  Fobister notes they will not dismantle their blockade; but the agreement with the province is a step towards that.

Marathon man facing child porn charges

A 71 year old Marathon man is facing Child Pornography charges. OPP say following an on-line undercover investigation they searched a home in that community and 3 computers were seized which they say contained movies of child sexual abuse. Charged is Reginald Begin. He appears for a bail hearing in Thunder Bay Friday.

NDP MP's launch Northern platform

Northern Ontario's NDP members are hoping to get your vote with their election platform.  Thunder Bay Superior North MP Bruce Hyer says if his party is elected they'll make FEDNOR a stand alone agency.  The Northern platform also suggests providing more funding for seniors homes and strengthening the Canada Pension Plan.  The NDP are proposing increases in funding for seniors homes and 700 million dollars towards eliminating senior poverty.

LU prof follows candidate tweets

A Lakehead University professor is counting the tweets. Livio DiMateo says he is checking out which of the local candidates in the federal election are on Twitter and seeing what kind of following they have.  He says he was interested in knowing how the candidates were making use of the new social media.  He began tracking the number of Twitter followers on his blog March 30th.  DiMateo says at the end of the election he will try to see if the number of followers a candidate has matches the vote count.  A link to his blog can be found here

Hearings controversy won't go away

The McGuinty government is being called out of touch, arrogant and uncaring about the north. NDP leader Andrea Horwath is still hounding the government over its refusal to hold forest tenure committee hearings outside of Toronto. Horwath predicts however, the government won't change it's mind about the issue

A New Vision for Ontario's Optometrists

Optometrists across Ontario are now allowed to prescribe eye medications to patients for serious diseases. This enables people with serious eye conditions as well as minor eye infections to receive medication from their own optometrist. Thunder Bay Optometrist William Ulakovic says they can now take a greater role in managing patients individually. He says this will serve as a positive for patients living in North Western Ontario.

Election day for Fort William First Nation

There is no shortage of choices for voters in today's Fort William First Nation band elections.  Electoral Officer Kimberly Pelletier says there is almost 70 people running for Councillor and 8 for Chief and residents can come to the Community Centre to vote.  Polls will close at 8 tonight with results expected tomorrow morning.

LU official to retire

Lakehead University is looking for a new Director of Communications.  President Brian Stevenson says that Eleanor Abaya has decided to retire.  Her last day will be June 17th. 

Manley speaking in Thunder Bay

The Alzheimer's Society is bringing in a Silver medal figure skater. Elizabeth Manley will be speaking at their fundraiser on Thursday night at the Valhalla Inn.

Mailing changes on the way

Shuniah and Oliver Paipoonge residents will soon bid farewell to the Rural Route mailing system.  Canada Post is scrapping site numbers and will use street names.  Spokesperson Tom Creech says the changes will take effect in October.  Pass Lake is also impacted by the changes.

Blank paper draws more attention to story

Lakehead University's newspaper isn't taking their censorship lying down. The Student Union pulled a story from the paper that was about the alleged rigging of their elections.  Argus Editor Ian Kaufman says before this happened they didn't know LUSU could have final say over their stories.  The paper has written an amendment to LUSU's laws that if passed will guarantee them editorial autonomy.  Kaufman says the blank page on their current newspaper has actually garnered the story more attention.

Counselling Centre receives cash

The Ontario Trillium Foundation is giving a local counselling centre 98 thousand dollars.  The Thunder Bay Counselling Centre will use the money to hire a co-ordinator and develop online counselling services.

Irwin named to Team Canada

Thunder Bay's Haley Irwin will be pulling on the team Canada sweater again. She's been named to the roster for the upcoming World Championships. Irwin helped Canada win a silver medal at the last World Championships, where she chipped in with 2 goals and 3 assists. Irwin was also part of last year's Gold Medal winning team at the Vancouver Olympics.

Recruit recovering from gunshot wound

A Thunder Bay Police recruit is still recovering after an shooting accident in February. Jason Firth was hurt when his gun went off unintentionally at the Ontario Police College in Aylmer. Deputy Chief J-P Levesque says Firth's injury was quite serious and says the road to recovery will be lengthy. Levesque says once Firth heals, he will continue his training.

Foundation grants money for cancer care

Almost 900 thousand donor dollars are being used for cancer care in Thunder Bay and the region. Regional Health Sciences Foundation CEO Glenn Craig says some of the money is being used for a new breast MRI program which he says is huge help for patients.   As well, half a million dollars will help support cancer research at the hospital. 

Boshcoff takes leave

It's official, City Councillor Ken Boshcoff is taking a leave of absence from council.  The Liberal candidate for Thunder Bay Rainy River will miss one meeting while campaigning in the Federal election.  Boshcoff's leave takes effect Tuesday, April 12th.

Combined Guns and Gang unit arrests 3

The Regional Combined forces guns and gangs unit has 3 people in custody in Sioux Lookout.  Officers made the arrest Monday after finding a military grade rifle and another prohibited device for the gun.  The 3 are facing a number of charges including guns trafficking.

70-thousand dollars in Marijuana seized

The Combined Forces Crime unit has seized over 70 thousand dollars in marijuana after searching a Hester Street home.  A 23 year old man is charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking, and proceeds of crime.