Sunday’s game vs. Minnesota also 1st all-woman coaching matchup in Premier Hockey Federation final history Toronto Six players celebrate a goal during Game 3 of their semifinal victory over the Connecticut Whale. The Six will meet the Minnesota Whitecaps in the Isobel Cup final on Sunday. (Lori Bolliger/Premier Hockey Federation) 29 comments Although Sunday’s championship final will be the last game of the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) season, it may be more notable as a game of firsts. For the first time, a Canadian team — the Toronto Six — will contend for theRead more

Aims to increase first language speakers by teaching them from birth Iethiiehiá:rons means ‘we raise them’ in Kanien’kéha (Mohawk language) and is the name of a project that supports parents raising their children with Kanien’kéha as their first language. Four families just completed the first year of the pilot program. Taiawentón:ti Chelsea Sunday, who is from Akwesasne, on the Ontario-Quebec-New York state border, is also co-founder of Ionkwahronkha’onhátie’ (We’re becoming fluent), an adult language program. She and her co-founders Karonhiióstha Shea Sky and Kaienkwinehtha Ransom wanted to create a space for language learners to continue their language journey outside of Kanien’kéhaRead more

‘Bartering is an amazing way to offset the costs in your life,’ says a Toronto financial planner After a customer paid for a haircut with beef and potatoes, a family-run barber shop in southwestern Ontario began accepting other food offers in exchange for a fresh cut — which may not be that unusual given the high cost of things these days. In fact, Toronto-based financial planner Shannon Lee Simmons says there’s a growing interest in bartering, driven by a tough economy. “Bartering is an amazing way to offset the costs in your life,”Read more

‘We are running out of space, particularly in the Lower Mainland’: cemetery designer Bill Pechet A little more than 25 years ago, John Douglas Carnahan bought the rights to two burial plots in the northeast corner of a hilly cemetery in a dense area of Burnaby, B.C. Back then, they cost $750 each. As years passed and space grew scarce, the cost of a single plot in the same cemetery surged to more than $10,000. After Carnahan’s death at 91, his widow decided not to use the plots. Her battle for the right to sellRead more

Île-à-la-Crosse school operated for more than 100 years, survivors not included in previous settlements Hundreds of boarding school survivors are in Saskatoon this weekend. It’s the first time so many people who were forced to go to the Île-à-la-Crosse boarding school in northern Saskatchewan are together. Organizers of the event, which is running until Sunday at TCU Place, are calling it a “survivors’ gathering.” They say it’s a chance to share stories and push for recognition for physical, sexual and emotional abuse they endured at the school. Survivors drove from allRead more

Canada willing to accept 15,000 migrants through legal channels, but 40,000 crossed in 2022 Quebec immigration experts say closing Roxham Road to asylum seekers may go against Canada’s international obligations and could result in more deaths at the border, after an already deadly year. Two men died attempting to cross the Canadian border within two months of each other. The first, 43-year-old Fritznel Richard, was trying to reach his family in Florida in time for the holidays. His body was found in early January. The second, Jose Leos Cervantes, 45, was alsoRead more

Rate previously slowed to 5.9 per cent in January Canada’s inflation rate cooled to 5.2 per cent in February, the largest deceleration since April 2020, according to Statistics Canada. The agency said its consumer price index had a year-over-year deceleration from February 2022, when the inflation rate was 5.7 per cent. The reading compared with an annual inflation rate of 5.9 per cent in January and was the lowest reading since January 2022, when it was 5.1 per cent. Canada’s inflation rate slowed to 5.9% in January, but food costs continue to riseRead more

Criticized for crime, it’s also been a safe haven for those on Ottawa’s streets Outside the Rideau Street McDonald’s, Frederick Renaud and Kimberley Sipes stand together, asking passersby to spare any change — something they say they’ve done every day for the last six months. The duo were surprised Sunday afternoon to see hundreds of people marching in their direction, some dressed as Ronald McDonald or boxes of french fries, carrying banners that read “Rideau McDonald’s Farewell March.” Wide-eyed, Sipes turned to Renaud and half-whispered, “The McDonald’s is closing.” The two stood in silence forRead more

Deputy mayor compares them to little chemical bombs harmful to nature The municipality of Mont-Tremblant in the Laurentians is preparing to ban all fireworks on its territory, making it among the first in Quebec to do so according to the Union des municipalités du Québec. A motion to ban all fireworks was introduced at city council on Monday, toughening up the existing bylaw which requires people to obtain a permit before setting off fireworks. The motion is expected to be adopted on April 10 and will likely be implemented two weeksRead more

Their vulnerable presence up on that stage highlighted the power that comes from within When I was growing up, I didn’t see Indigenous performers or dancers in our local venues. I didn’t see stories of them sharing our culture in the media. I didn’t see them included in celebratory ceremonies. I didn’t see myself represented. In fact, I didn’t see any signs of our culture displayed anywhere. So when my children were asked to participate in the 2023 Canada Winter Games opening ceremony on P.E.I., we saw it as an opportunity notRead more