Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are some stories to start your day.
What is a mural of Alex Trebek on Sudbury Secondary School?
Running this year from August 20 to 22, the Up Here Urban Art and Music Festival is honouring one of Sudbury’s favourite sons with a mural, gracing his former alma mater, Sudbury Secondary School, then known as Sudbury High School. Former Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek, who grew up in Sudbury, died at the age of 80 in November 2020. The three-story mural now in progress on the brick wall of the school was begun on August 11 with Canadian artist Kevin Ledo designing and painting. Check out the full story here.
Vaccine to be mandatory for federal employees, travellers on commercial airlines, interprovincial trains, cruise ships
Ottawa will require federal employees, workers in federally regulated industries and many travellers to be vaccinated against COVID-19, marking an "evolution" in the government's position on vaccine mandates. Dominic LeBlanc, president of the Privy Council, said the move is necessary to protect against more dangerous variants of COVID-19. "This is an evolution of the government's posture in protecting the health and safety of Canadians since the beginning of the pandemic," LeBlanc said. "We have scientific data but also real-world evidence on how remarkably effective are the vaccines that have been approved for use by Health Canada." It's not yet clear when the mandate will come into effect for public servants, though LeBlanc said the government is developing the policy as quickly as possible. Read more here.
Laurentian seeking approval of severance deal for former employees
Laurentian University goes before the courts again Aug. 17 as it seeks approval for a proposed framework for calculating payouts for former employees affected by its recent restructuring. The university has been negotiating with unions to determine a formula that will dictate how much money these former Laurentian workers will receive. Court documents submitted by lawyers representing the university say the proposed methodology “represents a fair, efficient, and reasonable process for notification and determination of compensation claims against the applicant.” Read more here.
How is your generation faring in Sudbury for COVID vaccine coverage? PHSD releases age stats
New statistics released by Public Health Sudbury and Districts show that older residents in the area are among those with the highest percentage of being fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The numbers were revealed in an infographic presented on social media this week under a banner message urging Sudbury residents to compare vaccination rates among different generations. The stats for the Silent Generation (ages 76 to 93) showed 92 per cent of those residents having first and second-dose vaccinations. The number of individuals in that group with just their first dose was slightly higher at 94 per cent. Check out our story here.
Young Sudburian Preslee Brown aims for Junior Miss Galaxy crown
Young Sudburian Preslee Brown is asking for her hometown’s support as she takes part in the Junior Miss Galaxy pageant Aug. 21. The Canadian Galaxy pageant will be held over the weekend of Aug. 21-23. Over the three day period, contestants will have rehearsals, interviews, a PJ party and a final competition. The events will take place in Toronto, where the winner will also be announced. The 11-year-old is a student, a dancer, a charity campaigner and last year’s Miss Preteen Greater Sudbury. If you’d like to support young Preslee visit the Facebook voting polls for the contestants here. In order to access the polls, you must request to join the group before voting. Learn more here.
Saturday weather:
Saturday will be mainly cloudy. Wind northwest 20 km/h becoming light near noon. High 22. Saturday night will be clear with a low of 11 C. Sunday will be sunny with a high of 24 C. Sunday night will be clear with a low of 14 C.
