‘I hope it makes others feel more valued’: Diversity of faiths celebrated at Mount Allison chapel
Light amidst darkness is a theme among diverse faiths around the world at this time of year, something to keep in mind as people deal with the heavy realities of our time, such as war and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“To bring people together and to share who we truly are, and to reflect on what gives us hope, I think it’s a beautiful thing,” said Reverend Ellie Hummel, multi-faith chaplain and spiritual care coordinator at Mount Allison University
She made the comments as members of the university community gathered for a weekly craft-making session in the chapel on-campus.
“Today’s gathering is different, because it’s an opportunity to make holiday decorations, but we’re not just talking about Christmas, we’re talking about all the beautiful holidays that are happening this time of year.”
She spoke to CHMA about diversity, faith and hope for a better world:
‘I hope it makes others feel more valued’: Diversity of faiths celebrated at Mount Allison chapel
Listen to Tantramar Report for Thursday, December 22, 2022:
‘In our lifetime, I think we will see fusion reactors’: Mount A. subatomic physicist on U.S. Department of Energy breakthrough
Listen to Tantramar Report for Monday, December 19, 2022:
Province says ‘no concerns have been raised’ by school district about air quality at Tantramar High
An area resident is raising concerns about air quality in schools after her 14-year-old son caught COVID-19 and became gravely ill.
Laura Beazley has two sons, both of them at Tantramar High. The youngest, a Grade 9 student, has Type 1 diabetes.
That condition makes people more likely to have serious complications with COVID-19, according to the American Diabetes Association.
Sure enough, when he returned to school in September — with mask mandates no longer in effect — he became sick with COVID, and his condition quickly deteriorated.
Medical ordeal
“The time from testing positive to being in full blown diabetic ketoacidosis was so fast, it was 17 hours,” Beazley said, noting that his sickness coincided with the arrival of Hurricane Fiona. “And he was in critical condition.”
Diabetic ketoacidosis is a condition that can lead to a coma or death. He recovered after being hospitalized twice, but has suffered from other “mysterious illnesses” following his recovery.
Listen to the interview that aired on CHMA FM on Dec. 14, 2022:
Beazley, whose family is fully vaccinated and boosted, says his story shows the provincial government should step up and ensure schools have clean air.
But a spokesperson for the Department of Education says “no concerns have been raised” by the school district about conditions at Tantramar High.
The Anglophone East School District and Tantramar High didn’t respond to queries from CHMA.
Last month, school principal Susan Lafford told parents that about one-third of students were absent daily because of illness, and that many staff were off sick.… Continue
Housing Minister calls MLA Mitton’s comments ‘inflammatory’ as province limits debate on controversial bill
Controversial legislation affecting tenants and landlords is making its way through the Legislative Assembly, with opposition parties crying foul over time limits imposed on debate.
Discussions became heated Wednesday as Memramcook-Tantramar MLA Megan Mitton sparred with Jill Green, Minister of Service NB and Minister responsible for housing.
“The Minister of Housing has finally admitted that she won’t protect tenants by keeping the rent cap in place in the New Year,” Mitton said during Question Period on Wednesday. “Tenants are terrified of losing their housing if they haven’t already… how can the Minister of Housing justify denying renters the protection of a rent cap next year?”
Green, who took over the contentious housing portfolio in October, defended her government’s record and called Mitton’s remarks “inflammatory.”
“When I listen to the language that is used and the inflammatory way the question is asked, it doesn’t even make me want to answer her question,” Green said.
Mitton replied: “I do not appreciate the tone policing when I’m talking about people losing their housing.”
Last month, Green introduced Bill 25, An Act Respecting Residential Tenancies. Instead of extending rent control, the bill would create a “phase-in” mechanism for rent increases.
If a rent hike exceeded the Consumer Price Index, the Residential Tenancies Tribunal could choose to phase in the increase over the course of up to three years. … Continue
‘I do not appreciate the tone policing when I’m talking about people losing their housing’: Debate grows heated as MLAs vote on rent hike legislation
Listen to Tantramar Report for Thursday, Dec. 8, 2022:
Local residents build low-cost air purifiers amid surge in respiratory illnesses
Listen to Tantramar Report for Monday, December 5, 2022:
Higgs’ plan to abolish French immersion prompts Sackville parents to form grassroots group
The planned abolition of French immersion in New Brunswick has provoked the wrath of some local residents, and a grassroots organization appears to be taking shape in Sackville to oppose the change.
About two dozen people turned out for a public meeting Tuesday evening at the Sackville Commons Co-op.
Valmai Goggin, the parent of two young girls, lived away from New Brunswick for 15 years. Access to French immersion was among the factors attracting them back to the province.
“To be in a position now where the only bilingual province in the country is looking at having the worst French program nationwide, is mind-boggling and it cannot happen,” she said.
Listen to local residents who turned out for the meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2022, in Sackville:
The event featured two guest speakers: Memramcook-Tantramar MLA Megan Mitton and Chris Collins, executive director of Canadian Parents for French NB.
Collins, who was formerly a Liberal Party MLA who served as Minister of Local Government, encouraged parents to oppose the changes through a letter-writing campaign.
He said letters should target Progressive Conservative MLAs whose seats are vulnerable in the next election, notably in Moncton and Fredericton.… Continue
Mayoral candidate Bonnie Swift responds to criticism after far-right tweets vanish
Tantramar mayoral candidate Bonnie Swift has responded to criticism after a slew of controversial posts disappeared from her public Twitter account.
Listen to the report that aired on CHMA’s Tantramar Report on Thursday, November 24, 2002.
The social media posts suggested her politics are heavily influenced by the far-right on issues such as anti-racism, abortion and health-care privatization.
When local residents and journalists raised questions about her stated views this week, hundreds of tweets suddenly vanished. The first-time politician had previously campaigned on transparency in local government.
Swift says her tweets are being taken out of context, and that her husband deactivated the account without her knowledge because of online harassment.
Reached by phone on Wednesday, Swift told CHMA she “could care less” if residents decided not to vote for her over the deleted tweets.
“I’m not desperate to win this race… I’d be happy just leaving it, not talking to anybody,” she said. She added that she stands by a statement issued to local reporter Bruce Wark, who first reported about the missing tweets.
CHMA collected screengrabs of her Twitter feed before they disappeared. Some of her controversial takes included commentary on reproductive rights.
When one media organization reported that the U.S. Supreme Court was set to overturn Roe. v Wade, striking down abortion rights, she responded: ‘LOL.’ … Continue
Meet the candidates: Sahitya Pendurthi, running in Ward 3 (Central Sackville)
Sahitya Pendurthi is a project manager for an IT distribution company working remotely from Sackville. Pendurthi came to Canada from India as an international student ten years ago, chose to become a citizen, got married and settled in Sackville. Pendurthi says she fell in love with the town after her husband, an Amherst native, first brought her here.
Listen to CHMA’s Meet The Candidates interview with Sahitya Pendurthi, which took place at CHMA on November 9, 2022.
Pendurthi is running for Ward 3, where residents will elect four councillors from a pool of nine candidates, including Pendurthi, Josh Goguen, Alice Cotton, Virgil Hammock, Bruce Phinney, Michael Tower, Allison Butcher, Charles Harvey, and Sana Mohammed. All candidates have interviews on CHMA, except for Charles Harvey who declined our request, and Sana Mohammed, who has yet to respond.
CHMA is compiling all its election coverage in one place, for your convenience. For more candidate interviews and other local elections coverage, click here.
TRANSCRIPT Sahitya Pendurthi at CHMA, November 9, 2022
CHMA: Sahitya Pendurthi, thanks for joining us.
Sahitya Pendurthi: Thank you for having me here.
CHMA: So for those who may not already know, do you tell us a bit about yourself?
Sahitya Pendurthi: I am 37 years old. I was born and raised in India in a middle class family. My parents had to do two or three jobs to go up in their status to be able to afford to send their kid to Canada to study.… Continue