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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2010

Printed in Canada Volume 117 Number 25

New pharmacy being built by First Nations

By Duane Hicks Staff writer

INSIDE

Area First Nation residents will get comprehensive pharmaceutical dispensing and counselling a little closer to home when the Rainy Lake First Nations Pharmacy opens its doors later this year. A partnership between the Rainy Lake Tribal Development Corp. and pharmacist Edwin Bruyere, the new business is being built at the Gizhewaadiziwin Health Access Centre on Couchiching. Tony Marinaro, economic devel-

opment advisor for Pwi-Di-GooZing Ne-Yaa-Zhing Advisory Services, said yesterday that the Rainy Lake Tribal Development Corp.s leadership, particularly Couchiching Chief Chuck McPherson, saw a need to make the health access centre a place for one-stop shopping. The venture also helps diversify the corporations investments while addressing some of the concerns raised by a 2007 economic impact study which indicated the Rainy Lake First Nations should try to retain some funds within the com-

munity instead of just being consumers, noted Marinaro. Heres an opportunity to take a role in recovering some of the dollars that are expended in the district, and recirculating the dollars, he explained. We also get to hire one of our band members from Couchiching, who is a pharmacist, and its a opportunity for youth to have a good role model and see theres opportunities out there, Marinaro added. Its a good service all around. Bruyere, who recently left the

Fort Frances Clinic Dispensary to pursue the new venture, said he felt the pharmacy is a good fit at the health access centre. Ive always been under the assertion a medical clinic should try to offer as many services as [it] can, he remarked. The clinic in Fort Frances, for example, has prescribers, it has a pharmacy, and this clinic has had prescribers but its never had a pharmacy, Bruyere noted. I am in a unique position where I can provide that service if it was a service they wanted, and so we

took it from there. I am from the community, I am able to do the job, Bruyere stressed. If everything comes together, then go with it. Thats where it started. Marinaro said Rainy Lake First Nations Pharmacy has not happened overnight. Weve been working on this for almost two years nowin one form or anotherfrom the initial concept of discussing it over a cup of coffee to Where do we go from Please see First, A6

211 in effect across district

District residents can now dial 2-1-1 to access information on social, community, health, and government services available to them. As of Monday, all district residents falling under the DSSAB will be able to get answers and referrals to just about any question that a citizen can think of asking.

Town to purchase Huffman property

By Duane Hicks Staff writer The former F.H. Huffman School closed its doors in June, but the building and its surrounding property may not go unused for long after the Town of Fort Frances agreed to buy it for $155,000. Weve been looking at it for the last while, weve purchased it, and theres many things that were considering that can be done with that area, Mayor Roy Avis noted last week. He added the property could have recreational possibilities, as the east end skating rink is already there, or maybe it could be turned into building lots since the infrastructure already is in place. All these things are being put on the table and discussed, the mayor said. When the opportunity came along, council felt it would be in their best interest to put a bid in on the school and hope that we can develop it in the future, he added. Mayor Avis stressed the town is going to walk before we run with regards to the property, and carefully consider its future use. We felt its a key location in the community, he explained. If you look at where the new library is, we took away some of the field there. We used to have tennis courts there, we used to have a ball diamond there. Its always nice to have green space, he reasoned. There could be consideration for a subdivision, the mayor continued. Theres many things it could be used for. Everythings on the table, and were going to be walking through it, probably with our economic development committee, and seeing what we can do with that. Fort Frances CAO Mark McCaig said the town hasnt had too good of luck with schools that become derelict, adding that having the property gives the town some control of what happens to it. Plus, theres maybe an opportunity to develop some nice residential lots there, he noted. The building is in pretty good condition, and maybe somebody would be interested in leasing it, who knows, should the council decide to do that. McCaig said deciding what to do with the property will bear some consideration. In the meantime, the town will maintain the property and make sure the grass is cut. Were going to have to spend some real serious time taking a look at it and strategizing what the best future use is, he stressed. Were going to go through that. But when you see a piece of Please see Town, A6

See story on A2

Quarter-century of saving lives

The Riverside Breast Health Program last week celebrated 25 years of fighting breast cancer across the district. I cant believe its 25 years. This is so exciting, Eva Thornton, one of the programs founders and first nurse examiners.

Pushing wall
Demolition of the old Fort Frances High School continues at an increasing pacewith more and more of the structure being torn down and hauled away each day. Part of a wall was being pushed over this morning and at this rate, this section could be down by the end of today. Staff photo

Hospital auxiliary fulfills $500,000 pledge

By Peggy Revell Staff writer The La Verendrye Hospital Auxiliary fulfilled a 10-year promise on Saturday afternoon when they presented the Riverside Foundation for Health Care with the final cheques to complete its $500,000 pledge to the Care Close to Home fundraising campaign. The cheques totalling $25,000 were presented at the auxiliarys annual tea at the New Beginnings Fellowship church. Accepting the cheques on behalf of the Foundation was Deane Cunningham, who thanked the auxiliary for the tremendous job they have doneand continue to do in raising funds for local health care and La Verendrye Hospital. For a group of volunteers to put their hand up to raising $500,000 for the community is absolutely tremendous, and everyone whos been involved with that should just thank themselves for the tremendous job theyve done for the community, he lauded, asking auxiliary members to stand for a round of applause. Cunningham also brought out the auxiliarys original letter of intentdated Feb. 15, 2000which then was stamped as paid in front of the crowd. It is entirely appropriate that our annual tea is being held at the same time as the 25th anniversary Some of us here today remember being asked to spearhead the fundraising for a mammography machine to benefit the women of the district, at a cost of over $100,000, she recalled, noting the auxiliary did not deal in numbers that large at that time, instead focusing on providing small equipment items and services for patients. But we were solidly behind the breast health program and we took it on. And with the help of district organizations, as well as our own community, we raised the money, Robertson said. I remember receiving a cheque from the Emo Legion Ladies Auxiliary for $1,000 and thinking, Oh, this is easyall we need is 99 more people with a cheque, she chuckled. Next came the commitment of $400,000 as part of the auxiliarys pledge to supply electric beds for the new St. Andrews Ward with the remodelling of La Verendrye Hospitalsoon followed by its pledge to contribute another $500,000 for the Care Close to Home campaign being run by the newly-formed Riverside Foundation. If my math is correct, that adds up to over $1 million since we first began serious fundraising, Robertson said to a round of applause Please see Auxiliary, A6

See story on A5

Lakers take two of three

After playing seven of their first nine games on home ice, the Fort Frances Lakers went on their first road trip of the 2010-11 season this past week. And the Lakers (7-5) performed well, earning a 5-2 win over Dryden last Tuesday and a 4-2 victory over Duluth on Sunday around a 7-3 loss to Fort William on Saturday.

Teresa Hazel, left, the outgoing director for the Riverside Foundation for Health Care, and La Verendrye Hospital Auxiliary president Noreen Robertson proudly showed off the letter of intent the auxiliary originally wrote 10 years ago pledging to donate $500,000 for the Care Close to Home campaign. Peggy Revell photo
of the breast health program at La Verendrye Hospital because it was that program which propelled the auxiliary into the world of high finance, auxiliary president Noreen Robertson, noted in her speech.

See story on B1

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Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Town to purchase Huffman property

More from A1 property like that, right in the heart of a residential section, its got a lot of potential benefits to the town from a lot of perspectives, McCaig reasoned. Weve really got to examine those. McCaig said the town officially was notified the property was up for sale on June 29, after which time the town had the property appraised and thoroughly investigated it prior to agreeing to purchase it. The deal is expected to close by the end of November. At its Oct. 12 meeting, council received the letter of acceptance, dated Oct. 6, from the Rainy River District School Board regarding the towns offer of purchase respecting F.H. Huffman School and agreed that an appropriate bylaw be prepared. I think its positive for any community to make sure the space in their community is used effectively, and I am feeling really positive about the decision of the board to accept the offer from the Town of Fort Frances, said Heather Campbell, director of education for the Rainy River District School Board. She added the fact the town is keenly interested in the property is a really positive sign that our community is being further developed.

Submit your photos for riding calendar

This week, I would like to inform you about a contest my office is holding to help design the 2011-12 edition of our riding calendar and pay tribute to those rescued Chilean miners and Canadians who work in that dangerous industry. Each year, MPs across Canada send out a calendar to each household in their riding and, like last year, Im asking you to help design it. Last year, we asked school-aged children to submit their artwork that reflected something unique about our riding and Northwestern Ontario. This year, Id like to open it up to everyone, so I am asking for your photos from around our riding you think symbolize who we are and what Northwestern Ontario is all about. Is there something unique about your city or town that makes it different from other places in Canada? Are there any notable landmarks? Are there things that everyone locally can recognize and appreciate? Is there an event or place that you think is historically important to our region? This is your chance to show off your town and our region, and put your own mark on our calendar. As with any contest, there are a few rules, so here they are: Only digital or scanned photos will be eligible for the competition. With the help of my staff, I will select 12 or more winning photos to be included in the 2011 calendar. The contest is open to all residents of the riding of Thunder Bay-Rainy River. All photos must be submitted electronically to raffej8@parl.gc.ca in JPEG, TIF, PNG, or GIF formats. The higher the quality the picture, the better, but two megapixels must be the minimum acceptable size due to the need to print the photos on paper. Winning photos will be judged primarily on composition, but winning selections will come from all areas of the riding and extra consideration may be given to submissions from small or remote communities. All entries must be received at my parliamentary office e-mail (raffej8@parl.gc.ca) no later than

Pharmacist Edwin Bruyere, left, and Tony Marinaro, economic development advisor for Pwi-Di-Goo-Zing Ne-Yaa-Zhing Advisory Services, checked out the building progress on the future Rainy Lake First Nations Pharmacy, located at Gizhewaadiziwin Health Access Centre. The pharmacy is a joint-venture between Bruyere and the Rainy Lake Tribal DeDuane Hicks photo velopment Corp.

First Nations building new pharmacy

More from A1 here, and learning the ins and out of what it takes to develop a pharmacy as far as regulations and such, he recalled. Marinaro said the Rainy Lake Tribal Development Corp. was fortunate to find a First Nations pharmacist. Its like finding a needle in a haystack, to be honest with you, he admitted. As Chuck McPherson put it, its like finding a living dinosaur because theyre so far and few between. On that same note, Marinaro said the pharmacy could lead to mentorship opportunities for First Nations students wanting to get into medicine, to which Bruyere agreed. I didnt get here on my own. It takes a lot of support, it takes people, Bruyere stressed. Maybe this gives somebody an avenue to get into the field, not even just pharmacy but any medical field. If you dont have someone to ask, youre just not going to know, he reasoned. Bruyere felt the new pharmacy will be well-received once it opens its doors at the health access centre. Its hard to predict because you dont know until you start, he conceded. But I do know its always been something that not only I thought would be a good idea there, but other people, too. Its a clinic. There are a lot of people that go there, he added. A lot of people, I am hoping, will find it convenient but I am hoping I can provide a meaningful service to them, too. Youre not just going to go there because I am there. Bruyere said his job wont be any different from what any other pharmacist does, noting he will be dispensing medications, providing counselling, and giving advice to patients and prescribers. He explained the pharmacy has been designed to have a dedicated space to sit down with a patient and talk about their medication. Most pharmacies, at least the newer ones, have that kind of concept, he remarked. And thats the way I was taughtit wasnt so much facts as it was dealing with the people. We kind of made our area so that it would be easier for me to interact with people in a private setting. I think that way, the care will be better than I could provide if we designed it differently, he added. The Rainy Lake First Nations Pharmacy is being built as an expansion onto the health access centre. It will have an entrance connected to that building, as well as an separate one outside. The 800 sq. ft. business will consist of a security area, dispensing area, preparation area, and counselling office. The business is being built by local contractors True Line Construction and Trevor Strom Contracting. Theyre very easy to work with, Marinaro lauded. Gerald Wieringa [of True Line Construction] gets involved. He wants us involved in different aspects. He wants you to be happy with it. He takes pride in what he does, echoed Bruyere, adding theres rarely a day where he doesnt visit the site just so he can watch the new business take shape. Construction began two weeks ago, and is anticipated to be done in time for the pharmacy to open in December. Marinaro said the pharmacy could lead to further expansion into other service areas for the Rainy Lake Tribal Development Corp., whose other economic ventures include the Landmark Inn in Thunder Bay, Rainy Lake Tribal Contracting, Rainy Lake Logistics, and Rainy Lake First Peoples Insurance. Thats part of the belief of the development corporation to diversify our investments so that youre not dependent on a specific sector, be it the forest industry or mining industry, he reasoned. This is one more avenue for us to pursue, with, again, the main focus being partnering with professionals, the people that bring expertise, and Edwin does just that, Marinaro added. Its very beneficial we could find someone that has the same mindset that we have, in how we offer our services and conduct our business. Were looking forward to a fruitful and successful long-term sustainable relationship with Edwin and the customer base that we create, he enthused.

Auxiliary fulfills pledge

More from A1 from those on hand. Over that period of less than 25 years, we have had good years and bad, Robertson admitted, noting the original commitment was to have the $500,000 raised in five years, but this was extended to 10 years. We have seen the government of the day change lottery regulations so that our income from that source was drastically diminished, she noted. We have learned about new diseases like SARS and H1N1 that can result in closure of the hospital to visitors and reduce our gift shop receipts. Our members may have become a little older and a little less ambitious in fundraising projects, but the same members and the community have never let us down, she lauded. Besides the cheques that marked the final instalment of the Care Close to Home pledge, the funds presented to the Foundation on Saturday also went towards the auxiliarys commitment to the Just Imagine campaign for the CT Scanner at La Verendrye. Fundraising for this commitment still is ongoing through its Lobby Lottery.

Monday, Nov. 15. All entries will remain the property of the photographer but by submitting their photo(s), the photographer gives my office and I the right to use and distribute the photo externally, with photo credit being given to the owner. My staff and I look forward to seeing your submissions and putting together another memorable edition of our constituency calendar. The other item of business I wanted to deal with this week is to pay my respects to anyone who has the courage to work in a mine. Im sure many, if not everyone who is reading this, watched the compelling rescue of those trapped Chilean miners last week. It was a tremendous story of survival, solidarity among co-workers, and national pride for the people Chile. It was an emotional moment when the first and the final miners were pulled from the rescue capsule, but we have to remember that such danger also is faced every day by hard-working Canadian men and women in our mines, as well. The worst mining accident in Canadian history was the Hillcrest disaster that killed 130 men back in 1914. Thankfully, many of the largest Canadian mining disasters occurred in the somewhat distant past as the labour movement forced mining companies to adopt more effective safety measures in this country. But even with the benefit of those added safety measures, the Westray Mine disaster of 1992, which killed 26 miners in Plymouth, N.S., was a stark reminder of the dangers those men and women still face each day. Given these risks of their work, I continue to fully support the efforts of our miners to negotiate better safety provisions and rights as we move forward.

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Come & Go Tour of Units October 26th from 1:00 - 3:00 pm

Rainy River District School Board & Northwest Catholic District School Board

TRUSTEE ELECTIONS 2010 DID YOU RECEIVE 2 VOTE BY MAIL KITS?

If you received 2 Vote By Mail Kits for school board Trustee elections you are only eligible to vote once for the same of ce. Only complete the ballot for the municipality you reside in. If you received Vote By Mail Kit from the Town of Fort Frances and the Rainy River District School Board or Northwest Catholic District School Board, complete the Town of Fort Frances Vote By Mail Kit only. Duplication was caused by voter noti cation lists produced by MPAC. Dan Belluz Chair Heather Campbell Director of Education

Fall Cleanup
To assist Fort Frances Residents in their Fall clean-up efforts, we are providing one (1) Saturday when we will suspend collection of tipping fees at the land ll site for half-ton vehicles and utility trailers. This will include leaves, tree branches, grass clippings and garden waste ONLY. These items must be separate from regular waste when brought to the land ll. All material must be disposed of in compliance with the instructions from the land ll gate attendant. The fees are suspended for the following date and time:

Saturday, Nov. 6th, 2010 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Town of Fort Frances Operations and Facilities Division 807-274-9893

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