Last September I had the chance to attend the Toronto International Film Festival. Yes, this was my first film festival! I had no idea what to expect.
Ten Things That We Love (and Really Miss Right Now) in Downtown London
Many of our favourite moments have happened in downtown London. Lovely nights at local restaurants. Discovering new shops. Random experiences at festivals and events. Thought-provoking and inspiring shows at galleries, concert halls, and theatres. We have really had a great time in the City! More than anything right now, though, we miss the people that we have met along the way, the familiar faces in the restaurants, cafés, and shops.
The Impact of COVID-19 on High School Students
The past few weeks have been very confusing for students. One of the hardest parts of the COVID-19 outbreak has been the overwhelming sense of uncertainty. There are many questions: Will we be returning to school this year? Will we be starting online classes? For high school seniors, the biggest question is obvious: will we be graduating this year? If not, what happens to our post-secondary plans? We have been given no answers, and that is scary.
High School Derailed
March 2020 was supposed to be a fun month for me. Starting off with celebrating my 18th birthday, I would follow that with a week-long vacation in Cozumel, a Billie Eilish concert in Detroit, and the chance to see a production of Hamilton: An American Musicalat the Ed Mirvish Theatre in Toronto. All of those plans were quickly derailed within a few days. Postponed family celebrations, shortened trips and cancelled performances became my new reality.
Street Art & Murals in Ontario’s Southwest
Some downtowns feel lifeless while others have a real pulse. I have experienced both in our travels around Ontario’s Southwest. The cool thing is how more communities seem to be investing in downtown spaces.
What We've Learned About Downtown Simcoe & Norfolk County
Every downtown feels open or closed. This may be an abstract statement, but listen to the people who frequent the area or live nearby – the way that individuals talk about a downtown space will tell you right away whether the area is considered open or closed. In this context, we use ‘open’ to mean welcoming, inviting, surprising, attractive and distinctive; by contrast, the word ‘closed’ is short-hand for detached, cold, boring, run-down and unexceptional.
How We Spent Our Summer in Ontario’s Southwest
Just like driving to a concert and feeling excited for the show, our team at young & free press has developed a way to travel to a community and imagine the whole setting as the performance. We call this life-art … the experience may contain music, paintings, theatre, sculptures, books, virtual reality, sports, businesses, video games, natural environments, culinary experiences, and roadside attractions, but we like to imagine the total picture.
Polaris Music Prize 2019: Which Albums Stand Out?
The 2019 Polaris Music Prize short-list features ten artists, all unique, and many I had not heard of before writing this article. My first thought when I saw the list: “Who are these people?”
Homeless in St. Thomas
Recently Andrew Gunn and I met with Sandy Westaway, who runs the Inn Out of the Cold shelter in St. Thomas. Needless to say, I learned a lot about the homeless people in our small town and the details shocked me.
New Street Art Projects Coming to St. Thomas
Feeling the need for a jolt of energy to renew the landscape of downtown St. Thomas, multiple organizations and individuals have come together with the aim of making the city one of the true ‘street art capitals’ of Canada!
Exploring Ontario's Southwest
One thing that our young & free press team has learned since we started-up the business is that there are remarkable things happening every day in our communities … we just have to jump in and explore! Well, we now have the opportunity to take this spirit to a whole new level: beginning this spring, we will be collaborating with the Southwest Ontario Tourism Corporation to present some fun new content on our Instagram page!
GROW Time!
Our team at young & free press loves to collaborate with community partners on fun, innovative projects. What’s next? Well, we are excited to help establish new ‘pop-up shops’ around southwestern Ontario, beginning with the first site in our home-base of St. Thomas!
Ten Songs to Check Out by JUNO-Nominated Artists
With the JUNO Awards coming to Budweiser Gardens in London on Sunday, March 17th, our team at young & free press have been busy listening to albums and songs by the artists nominated this year. We have a unique dynamic, of course, as our owner & editor Andrew Gunn is 40 years old, and all our journalists are teenagers!
Top Ten Ways to Re-imagine Downtown Simcoe
Norfolk County feels a bit unsettled ever since the transformational municipal election back in the fall --- and we think that this is a great thing! New leaders are in place, conversations are happening, and there is a healthy sense of optimism (and skepticism) in the air.
Concert Announcement: Hawksley Workman
Our team at young & free press is excited to announce that we are partnering with the Elgin Theatre Guild to present Hawksley Workman at the Princess Ave Playhouse in St. Thomas on Monday, May 20th – the perfect way to finish off the May long weekend!
'Little Free Libraries' Coming to St. Thomas!
Hayhoe Homes, the St. Thomas / Elgin Regional Campus of Fanshawe College, and the team at young & free press have come together on a special project to build 'little free library' boxes for the whole community!
Interview: Matt Mays
On February 8th, our young journalists Jenn Klassen and Emily Stage had a chance to chat with Matt Mays, well-known across Canada and beyond for his distinctive voice and lyrics, thunderous live shows and string of rock radio hits.
Social Media and Teens
Adults don’t look at social media from the same perspective as teenagers. Sometimes adults don’t fully understand the apps. Teenagers use social media differently than most might think. They are more than aware of every picture they post and how those images will be received by
Top Ten Ways to Make St. Thomas Awesome
Well St. Thomas, set your expectations high! We have a new Mayor and Council at City Hall, our community is growing, and there is a hint of cultural transformation in the air. In our view, we think that St. Thomas can become the next great destination in southwestern Ontario for twenty-something entrepreneurs, tradespeople and makers, young families, and active retirees. Seriously, why not?