You don’t need the name on the cover to identify a book by Barbara Reid. It isn’t just that the children’s author and illustrator has such a distinctively vibrant visual style; it’s also the wonderfully unusual medium she uses: plasticine. A competition Reid entered in the late 1970s, while she […]
Author: Ontario Community Newspapers Association
Celebrating stories of Ontarians: Adeena Niazi, Member of the Order of Ontario
Nine years after she had moved to Canada as a refugee, Adeena Niazi had herself smuggled back into Afghanistan. It was 1997, and the Taliban had banned girls’ education; the former lecturer at Kabul University was determined to help. She set up underground home-based schools for girls, funding them with […]
Celebrating stories of Ontarians: Dwayne De Rosario, Member of the Order of Ontario
For some, the decision of what path to take in life comes easy. It requires life-changing moments of realization for others: That was certainly the case for Dwayne de Rosario. For the teenager living in Scarborough in the mid-90s, the near-death experience of being shot in the eye with a […]
Celebrating Stories of Ontarians: Alis B. Kennedy
Celebrating stories of Ontarians: Alis B. Kennedy, Member of the Order of Ontario If there is one theme running through the life and remarkably varied cv of Order of Ontario member Alis B. Kennedy, it is that of discovery. “I love adventure,” says the Montréal native, who now lives in Woodbridge. […]
Celebrating stories of Ontarians: Maryka Omatsu, Member of the Order of Ontario
The Lieutenant Governor and Maryka Omatsu at the Order of Ontario Investiture Ceremony, February 2015 This month is Canada’s 20th annual Asian Heritage Month—an occasion to celebrate the culture and contributions of the Asian-Canadian community, and also to reflect. As Judge Maryka Omatsu reminds us, this year there is a special […]
Celebrating Stories of Ontarians: Roberta Bondar and Art McDonald, Members of the Order of Ontario
The theme of this year’s Earth Day, on April 22, is “Restore Our Earth.” It’s a call for action to bring our environment back to health. We will accomplish this only with innovative thinking and new perspectives, driven by science and by the urgent need for climate action. These are […]
Celebrating Stories of Ontarians: Ursula Franklin, Member of the Order of Ontario
For over a century, in countries around the world, people have gathered at rallies, marches, and celebrations every March to mark International Women’s Day. This year, the pandemic has stopped us from meeting in person, but we continue to connect in solidarity to share stories of challenges and success in […]
Celebrating stories of Ontarians: Oscar Peterson
A still from Historica Canada’s newly released Heritage Minute celebrating renowned jazz musician Oscar Peterson. When Oscar Peterson quit high school in the early 1940s to be a full-time jazz pianist, his father gave his blessing on one condition: that his son would “be the best.” Peterson rose to this […]