High Liner Boss to chair National Fisheries Institute

Henry Demone

A little bit of history made for the top dog at High Liner Foods. The president and CEO of the Lunenburg-based business, Henry Demone, has become the first ever Canadian to chair the National Fisheries Institute. The Institute is the largest seafood trade association in the U.S. Demone says the association can help draw resources from top performers inside multiple companies. He says becoming chair is a chance for the entire seafood industry to come together and evolve as a group.

Adult High School offered in Chester

An Adult High School course is once again being offered in Chester. South Shore SchoolsPlus are offering a free English course to people over 19-years-old and trying to earn their high school graduation certificate. The facilitator for SchoolsPlus, Shirley Burris, says the course offers a fairly flexible schedule.

"I think the beauty of this program is we gear it to the schedules of people who may be parents and so, the course begins after elementary schools go in, after their children may be in school, they're finished by noon time and so that allows them not to have to take family time away."

The course is offered at no charge and the first class will be held February 7 at Chester District Elementary School. If people are interested in being a part of the class, you can contact Shirley at (902)521-6360 or email her at sburris@ssrsb.ca .

Mustangs look to clinch third against Dartmouth

A huge game with playoff implications Saturday night for the South Shore Canadian Tire Mustangs. The local major midget club can wrap up third place with a win against Dartmouth. A victory would secure a first round playoff match up against either Cape Breton West or Valley. A loss Saturday night would mean they would have to win against Cole Harbour Sunday in order to finish third. Puck drop at 7:30 at the Dartmouth Sportsplex.

Awards For Local Architects & Their Designs



Two Hulls


A pair of South Shore homes and their architects have won some prestigious, international acclaim. Two Hulls, built on the rocky shoreline in Port Mouton and Shobac Campus, a collection of several buildings in Upper Kingsburg, have been recognized for their excellence in design.
Two Hulls has picked up a North American citation for innovative wood design and a Canadian Architect Award of Excellence.
Shobac Campus has been given the North American Wood Design Program's Ron Thom Award for outstanding creative talent and design.
It has also received the American Institute of Architects Honor Award for building design. Both projects are the creations of architects Brian MacKay-Lyons and Talbot Sweetapple who say they were designed to meet the challenges of their coastal surroundings.

Liberal Leader Calls For More Daycare Space In Schools

As changes are made to education, some people fear education budgets will be cut again and schools closed. In a CKBW News (Hank-fm News) interview, Liberal leader Stephen McNeil says the growing amount of space in schools still operating and those facilities that close should be used for daycare.
He says: "On the South Shore, we've talked an awful lot about school closures. They're happening in many rural areas. There's a wonderful opportunity inside of that debate to ask .. can we create a public daycare space, not making it a part of the education system, but allowing that public space to be used by community and daycare operators."
Meanwhile, Conservative leader Jamie Baillie says the government is saying one day its going to phase out day care subsidies and the next day, its telling parents not to worry, subsidies won't be cut.
He says the mixed messages surrounding whats an essential service for many South Shore parents is becoming very upsetting for them.
Baillie is calling on the Premier to reaffirm support for working parents.

Low Turnout at 1688 Lobster Meeting in Liverpool

Only a small turnout took-in a meeting to learn more about a new fisherman's group along the South Shore. Roughly 15 people attended the "1688 Professional Lobster Fishermen Association" gathering in Liverpool Thursday. The group's chair, James Mood, says they have signed up approximately 650 members since establishing over three weeks ago. He says they haven't lost momentum, despite low numbers at their recent meetings.

"Fisherman are waiting to see what this Association can do for them. I don't blame them. Some people joined up instantly, some people want to wait and see if this Association is going to stay and we are going to stay and keep the course."

Mood is hoping to see at least 80 percent of lobster fishermen in LFA's 33 and 34 district join the association. He expects meetings to be scheduled in Sambro and Lockeport in the next few weeks.

LCLC Tender Process extended until February 9

The tender process for the Lunenburg County Lifestyle Centre has been extended until February 9. The deadline was supposed to be February 2. But, the chair of the Lunenburg County Multipurpose Centre Corporation, Paul Belliveau, says changes to the tender have pushed the deadline to next Thursday.

"Contractors review the tender documents and if they come up with questions about changes or suggest changes or difference of materials and things like that within the tender documents then it will cause an addendum if the design team feels appropriate to make those changes. So, it's the time that's required to make those changes and inform all the contractors that the changes have been made."

Belliveau says he estimates around eight contractors have submitted bids so far to build the LCLC. The project is expected to include an NHL sized ice surface, an aquatic centre and library and is scheduled to be complete by March 2013.

Mariners drop Lumberjacks at Queens Place-Emera Centre

Andrew Wigg haunted his old club in Queens County Thursday night. The former Lumberjack scored once and added two assists as the Yarmouth Mariners dumped the Jacks 6-2. Head Coach Terry Rhindress says his club gave Wigg too much respect early in the game. Shawn Boudreau and Michael Crawley scored for the Jacks while Billy Clarke stopped 24 shots in the loss. A crowd of 1,120 took in the game at the new Queens Place-Emera Centre in Liverpool. The Lumberjacks get back on the ice Friday night when they host the Amherst Ramblers at 7pm at the Bridgewater Memorial Arena.

Webber: Residents Often Unaware of Bylaw Changes

The Warden in Chester is hoping to close a communication gap between the municipality and its residents. Allen Webber says there seems to be a disconnect when changes are made to existing bylaws or new ones are developed. He says most times when bylaws are modified or new ones passed, residents are often unaware. "We end up with a bylaw that doesn't particularly in their view meet the communities needs, but yet, its been adopted and they didn't know anything about it. Now, we make our attempts - just like everybody else to inform them, but what's become clear to me and most of council is that no matter what we may think we're doing....it isn't working," Webber says council wants to give residents more opportunity to become engaged in the bylaw process. The municipality is currently reviewing its bylaw and that issue is something they want to address.

SPORTS: Lumberjacks battle Mariners in Liverpool

The CIBC Wood Gundy Lumberjacks and Yarmouth Mariners square off at the new Queens Place-Emera Centre Thursday night in Liverpool. The Lumberjacks come into the game riding a two game winning streak while the Mariners snapped a two game skid with a win Sunday. The two teams had an offensive flurry the last time they met, exploding for 16 goals in a 10-6 win for Yarmouth. Game time is 7:30 in Liverpool.

Municipality of Shelburne frustrated over Internet delay

It's been four years and the Municipality of Shelburne is still waiting for its high speed Internet. The provincial government awarded a contract to Eastlink in 2007 on the basis that rural areas of Shelburne and Queens County would have high speed at the end of the four year agreement. But, pockets of people continue to complain to the local government regarding the state of their Internet. CAO of the Municipality of Shelburne, Kirk Cox, says he doesn't blame them.

"Those people who don't have access to that service are still unfortunately left with just dial-up and that, I think, for most communities in Nova Scotia would be very obsolete technology."

Cox has sent a letter to Minister of Economic Development, Percy Paris, in hopes the government can intervene and ensure Eastlink's commitment is fulfilled. Meanwhile, Bell Aliant recently announced Bridgewater will be getting FibreOp Internet service sometime this month.  

Mustangs Captain breaks second team record

Brennan Bailey

South Shore Mustangs captain Brennan Bailey has broken another team record. Bailey's overtime goal Tuesday night gives him 14 on the season, surpassing Pete LeCain's previous mark of 13 by a defenseman set in 1997-98. Bailey says although he's in the hunt for a third team record, he's more worried about finishing strong with only two games left in the regular season. Bailey broke his first team record in December when the third-year Mustang became the teams all-time leading scoring defenseman. He's tied with Pete LeCain for most points in a season with 34 and has two games remaining this weekend to best that mark.

Local Businesses win awards in Halifax

A pair of local businesses have been awarded by the Halifax Chamber of Commerce. Schoolhouse Gluten-Free Gourmet in Mahone Bay took gold in the New Business of the Year award and Cedar Bay Grilling Company in Blandford also received gold for Small Business of the Year. A news  release says "the awards recognize those who are willing to take chances, push the boundaries and stretch the limits for success." The awards were handed out Thursday January 26.

1688 Lobster Association in Liverpool on Thursday

The 1688 Professional Lobster Fishermen's Association are taking their movement to Queens. The PLFA will host their second meeting within the South Shore this afternoon at the Liverpool Fire Department. President James Mood will lead the discussion. The meeting will focus on the recent formation of the association, price and industry related issues. Approximately 30 fishermen attended a similar event hosted in Chester last week. The meeting in Liverpool begins at 1:30PM.

Breaking: Electric Co-op Extend Negotiations with Power Suppliers

The five municipal units involved in the province's electric co-op are still trying to hammer out a new energy deal for their customers. The municipal electric co-op formed in 1997 and its members include the town's of Mahone Bay, Lunenburg, Riverport, Berwick and Antigonish. The co-op has been involved in serious negotiations for the few past months with two unidentified energy suppliers. In a CKBW/HANK interview, Mahone Bay Mayor Joe Feeney says the parties involved are close to a deal and have agreed to extend negotiations until the end of this month. "We're being...I don't think overly cautious...but we're being very cautious, but if we can get the final few stumbling blocks sorted out here...I'm confident we're going to be able to make a pretty good deal here for our customers spanning the next 20 years,"  The municipal units operate their own electric utilities and buy their power in bulk from Nova Scotia Power. However, the co-op announced an MOU between two new power suppliers last month that will bring cleaner, cheaper energy to their customers.

South Canoe Wind Project: Public Consultation this Month

The three proponents behind the South Canoe Wind project will begin public consultations this month. Oxford Frozen Foods along with Minas Basin Pulp and Paper have partnered with Nova Scotia Power on the proposed wind farm. The South Canoe Wind Project would feature up to 50 wind turbines spread over 6,400 hectares between Chester and Windsor. President of Energy Development for Minas Basin John Woods says public meetings will be held in Vaughan and Chester. "We're coming to the end of the competitive process, so it's time to involve the public and engage in public consultations so we're on schedule and we hope to be successful in several months time," The Vaughan meeting goes on February 11th, while the meeting in Chester will be held on Feb 13th at the Legion. The successful bid will be announced in April or May.

VIDEO: Finance Minister speaks to Bridgewater Rotary Club

Nova Scotia Finance Minister Graham Steele was one of three guest speakers to talk with prospective andcurrent members of the Rotary Club of Bridgewater and District. Steele spoke about his involvement in Rotary and other topics during the clubs open house at the Bridgewater Days Inn Tuesday night.

South Shore Regional working on Safety Violations

South Shore Health is well on their way to becoming fully compliant with the province's fire inspectors. The fire marshal's office noted 59 violations at South Shore Shore Regional Hospital in its inspections last November. The communications director with South Shore Health, Barb Johnson, mentions some of the 59 recommendations that were made.

"Some of the issues were around recommendations of a different type of fire extinguisher, 23 of the recommendations were around clutter or storage, items that we had to move out of hallways or in some cases, for example, staff had items stored on top of lockers."

But, as of this week, only five deficiencies remain in the hospital including the need for fire doors in specific areas, changes to power sources for ovens, and the need for better storage. Johnson says the Fire Marshal returned a few weeks ago and was very pleased with the changes already made. She says they've ordered the necessary supplies and hope to have all issues sorted out by the end of February.

Bailey knots OT winner as Mustangs beat Valley

The South Shore Canadian Tire Mustangs earned a hard-fought 4-3 overtime win over the Valley Wildcats Tuesday night. The club battled back from an early 2-0 deficit, improving their position in the league standings to 3rd place with only two games remaining. Head Coach Tim Boyce says it was a big win for his club because it gave them some confidence after losing two straight over the weekend. Captain Brennan Bailey scored the overtime winner for the Stangs while Cole Skinner got the 'W' between the pipes. The Mustangs are back on the road Saturday and Sunday against Dartmouth and Cole Harbour to close out the regular season.

MLA Birdsall endorses Nash as next Federal NDP Leader

Pam Birdsall

The MLA for Lunenburg is throwing her support behind Peggy Nash as the future leader of the Federal NDP party. Pam Birdsall says she chose the Toronto MP because she believes she has all the qualities of a leader.

"She's one of those people, in my mind, who can bring people together, a real consensus builder and I think that's exactly like Jack (Layton) was. He was a man that worked with his team and any of us who knew Jack and knew the way he worked, that was what he was known for and Peggy is very much like that."

Birdsall says Nash would have no problems bucking heads with Prime Minister Stephen Harper because she's a former hard-nosed labour negotiator.

"She was the first female labour union negotiator in North America, you know I mean, that speaks volumes if you know what labour negotiation is all about. So, I mean this is someone who doesn't just say oh well, ok, whatever you say and I think that's a real quality of being able to be not easily provoked and calm under pressure."

Queens MLA Vicki Conrad also announced her endorsement of Nash. The party's leadership convention is slated for March 23-24 in Toronto.