LOCAL HEADLINES

Smiles, cheers and plenty of encouragement filled Lions Park on Saturday as the Paris Youth Softball Association (PYSA) hosted its first-ever Challenger Baseball Try-It Day, introducing local families to an adaptive baseball program designed specifically for children and youth living with physical and cognitive disabilities.

After a six-year hiatus, a long-standing Paris tradition returned this spring, giving local students a behind-the-scenes look at the people and organizations that help keep their community running. The Paris Optimist Club's Youth Appreciation Day welcomed eight students from Paris District High School on May 25, providing them with opportunities to meet local leaders, first responders and

The blue-purple tinge to his beard was all the evidence needed to show how valuable the annual Niagara Farm Day event is for Rob Davidson.

It takes a village to grow a fruit.

The community garden located in the green space at the end of Franklin Drive will still be operating this year, despite being terminated by the City of Stratford just last week.

It was back in 1996 when the first-ever Smile Cookie campaign took place to raise funds in support of Hamilton Children’s Hospital.

Every year, starting on the last Sunday of May, is national AccessAbility Week, a week to celebrate and promote the contributions of people with disabilities, the work of accomplices in removing barriers and the ongoing efforts to become a barrier-free nation where all members of society can participate equally.

Focusing on compassion, resilience, mental health awareness and community support, the Mayor’s Luncheon was held at Knights of Columbus Hall in Goderich on May 21.

It will take some time, but staff at the Region of Waterloo will bring a report back to council on what a well-interference committee could look like.

The first version of the township’s new official plan was presented to councillors at a special meeting last week to mixed reaction.

The golf tournament may have been washed out on an extremely rainy day, but the mood inside the Tavistock Memorial Hall on Saturday evening wasn’t dampened in the least.

A 1980s track and field team that competed at the national level, a basketball player, three tennis players, a refereeing chief, and the man who is the town’s connection to the NHL were the latest inductees into the Tillsonburg Sports Hall of Fame.

Banfield Art Crawl returned this past weekend, braving torrential rain and bringing plenty of colour to an otherwise grey day. With 50 talented artists and creators showcasing and selling their work, the damp weather did little to dampen the spirits of guests, who arrived in raincoats with umbrellas to browse and shop. Organizers say visitors travelled from Toronto, Guelph, Niagara and London to take part in the fourth annual event.

Lee Griffi, Editor Some Woodstock residents have responded positively to the announcement of a future homeless shelter on Dundas Street in the city, but the opposition has been just as loud. For the owners of Mostly Flowers across the street from the former YMCA, who just purchased the business last August, it raises some flags. Jessica Patterson and Renee Farmer said they had no idea about the plan to purchase the building. Farmer added many homeless people she has met have

A Stratford production company is once again shining a spotlight on the people behind Waterloo Region’s agricultural industry with the third season of Farm to Fork.

For generations of readers, advertisers and residents across Wilmot Township and beyond, Sharon Leis was more than a newspaper sales representative.

The Anne Hathaway Public School Parent Council is excited to share its new Buddy Bench initiative in support of student well-being, mental health, friendship and belonging.

Antoni Cimolino and Geraint Wyn Davies are set to helm this year’s Stratford Festival production of The Tempest, continuing a decade-long trend of the two collaborating as director and actor, respectively.

Dave Horton acknowledges there has been a personal need in his desire to organize the local Simcoe-Norfolk MS Walk, although he admits it is time for him to step back as the lead. “My wife, Judy, has had MS (multiple sclerosis) for 47 years,” said Horton. “She has done remarkably well.

Tillsonburg’s 2026 Citizen of the Year Scott Gooding is carrying on a family tradition by volunteering.