Sobering message delivered to students
By Greg Kielec Government officials in Cornwall and Akwesasne are lining up against a plan to locate in Cornwall a toll booth for a new low-level bridge to be completed in 2014. Cornwall Mayor Bob Kilger and the Mo- hawk Council of Akwesasne issued a press release Friday condemning the decision by the Seaway International Bridge Corpora- tion. The bridge corporation announced late last week that it will erect a toll booth in a new plaza at the north end of the yet to be completed low-level bridge connecting Cornwall to Cornwall Island. Kilger, in a press release from city hall, said he will ask the bridge corporation to re- consider its decision to collect tolls on the new low ‐ level. “I believe that there should be no toll at all on the new bridge connecting Cornwall to Akwesasne,” said Mayor Bob Kilger. “It is a position that I believe is widely held in the local business community and around the council table, and city council will be con- sidering a motion addressing this issue.” The Grand Chief Mike Kanetakeron Mitchell said, “not only is the Canadian Border Services Agency cutting off Akwe- sasne from Canada, we now have the SIBC doing the same. It will force Akwesasne to focus on our relationship with our U.S. neighbors and do more business with U.S.- based service providers.” Local leaders oppose bridge toll
By Greg Kielec
You could almost hear a pin drop as the young “accident victim” read a touching poem of her passing in front of 1,000 stu- dents at the Cornwall Civic Complex this morning. Just moments earlier, paramedics had been ordered by their base to abandon at- tempts to resuscitate the 17-year-old Holy Trinity student, mortally wounded in a crash caused by an impaired driver despite the fact she herself had not drank. Her recitation from a podium inside the darkened Ed Lumley Arena was a dramatic ending to what the students had just seen unfold before them – an extremely realistic re-enactment of the carnage and loss at the scene of an accident caused by impaired driving. Coralie Lupien, her face still smeared with make-up from the re-enactment, took on the role of the innocent victim to drive home the message of making smart choices during graduation this year. Her fellow students, when they head out to celebrate after their graduation cere- monies just weeks away, must stand strong against peer pressure. “Stand up for who you are and what’s right,” she said, just minutes after her heart-wrenching ending to the event. Cornwall Mayor Bob Kilger, in a speech before the presentation, encouraged gradu- ates not to get in any vehicle on grad night if they don’t feel comfortable. “Don’t let anything spoil what you’ve worked so hard for all of those years.” Myles Cassidy, head of emergency med- ical services for Cornwall and SDG, said the tragedy caused by drinking an driving also
Photo by Greg Kielec A student actor is arrested for drinking in driving during a simulated car crash during Safe Grad 2012 at the Ed Lumley Arena in Cornwall on Thursday.
SD&G, says it doesn’t get any easier. “It gets worse every year,” he said, his eyes dampened from the emotion of the event. “I hope it’s effective.” Follow @gkielec on Twitter. For breaking news, go to www.editionap.ca and click on The Journal. Email greg.kielec@eap.on.ca
affects paramedics who must respond to the scene. “These things stay with us for the rest of our lives too,” he said in his address before the mock exercise. The Safe Grad presentation has been held by local emergency services for almost 10 years. Myles Cassidy, the head of emer- gency medical services for Cornwall and
Fostering a youth is a very rewarding experience that canmake aworld of difference. Be a parent who inspires passion. Accueillir un jeune au sein de votre famille peut faire toute la différence. Soyez un parent qui éveille la passion. INSPIREZ UN JEUNE 'HYHQH]IDPLOOHGDFFXHLO INSPIRE A YOUTH %HFRPHD)RVWHU)DPLO\
613 933-2292 | 1 866 939-9915
Made with FlippingBook HTML5