Supporting the St. Thomas Elevated Park and Launching the New ‘Art, Trees & Trails’ Project

Supporting the St. Thomas Elevated Park and Launching the New ‘Art, Trees & Trails’ Project

Andrew Gunn
St Thomas, Elgin County, Ontario's Southwest

Andrew Gunn and Maddie King of young & free press are acting as consultants on the Estate of Donna Vera Evans Bushell. On Wednesday, June 10, we announced a donation of $100,000 to enhance the St. Thomas Elevated Park, as well as $115,000 to support the launch of the new ‘Art, Trees & Trails’ project in collaboration with the St. Thomas Elgin Public Art Centre. Another $100,000 has been given to the Elgin St. Thomas Community Foundation to establish the ‘Evans Tree Fund’, which will support tree-planting in the community for decades to come.

Announcing the New ‘Evans Tree Fund’ at the Elgin St. Thomas Community Foundation

Announcing the New ‘Evans Tree Fund’ at the Elgin St. Thomas Community Foundation

Andrew Gunn
St Thomas, Elgin County, Ontario's Southwest

Our team at young & free press is very excited to announce that the Estate of Donna Vera Evans Bushell is contributing $1.25M to the Elgin – St. Thomas Community Foundation to support a series of projects in the Elgin County and St. Thomas area. With $100,000, the Foundation will establish the ‘Evans Tree Fund’, which will be a permanent fund that supports tree-planting in the community. The rest of the funds will be allocated to launch a series of remarkable projects across Elgin County and St. Thomas. More announcements will follow soon.

Top Ten Trails to Check Out in Ontario's Southwest

Top Ten Trails to Check Out in Ontario's Southwest

Sophie Mutch
Ontario's Southwest

Spending time in nature has been proven to have many positive impacts on your mental and physical health. Exercising and getting outside is especially important right now because most of us are inside a lot more than usual, and might not have realized how much of a positive impact getting physical activity and being outside made on our lives until the pandemic. With that in mind, you might be looking for some fresh ideas to get outdoor exercise.

Our GROW Pop-Up Shop is Growing!

Our GROW Pop-Up Shop is Growing!

Andrew Gunn
St Thomas

On May 14, 2020, the St. Thomas Economic Development Corporation announced a new artist development program in conjunction with GROW, the Elgin/St. Thomas Small Business Enterprise Centre, and Railway City Tourism. GROW began in 2019 as a short-term pop-up retail space available to small businesses looking to test a brick and mortar model. Through feedback from users, the partnership is being redeveloped into a longer-term accelerator space that will open in the Caboose at the Jumbo Memorial as soon as it is feasible to do so in accordance with COVID-19 reopening phases. The GROW program is possible through a partnership with Fanshawe College. Financial support for the project has been generously provided by a private donor in collaboration with Andrew Gunn Consulting & our team at young & free press.

How Should We Design Parks for a Pandemic?

How Should We Design Parks for a Pandemic?

Madison Comfort
London

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, parks and green-spaces have provided people the opportunity to seek some fresh air and a change of scenery. Our daily routines have changed drastically. With little information on when the pandemic will end, our need for parks and green-spaces will continue to grow. This raises the question: how could parks be better-designed to be adaptable and sustainable, even during a pandemic?

Songs for the Pandemic

Songs for the Pandemic

Emily Stage
Ontario's Southwest

We need good music right now. During the pandemic, we will all feel angry, sad, anxious, excited, and occasionally happy, and listening to music will help us express all those feelings and get through. During this time of isolation especially, I have been enjoying music for hours on end.

The Teenage Perspective on Downtown Simcoe in the Time of COVID-19

The Teenage Perspective on Downtown Simcoe in the Time of COVID-19

Hayden Miller-Cluckie
Norfolk County

This is an extraordinary time to write about cities and towns. The COVID-19 pandemic is forcing everyone to reconsider how we use public spaces. There is so much uncertainty. Right now, the phrase ‘physical distancing’ has taken over, specifying the need to keep at least two metres away from others. For the immediate future, physical distancing is a necessity; if we are able to ‘flatten the curve’ of the pandemic, perhaps this will remain only as a guideline or recommendation. Life will be different, though. Post-pandemic, what will public spaces be like?

Ten Things That We Love (and Really Miss Right Now) in Downtown London

Ten Things That We Love (and Really Miss Right Now) in Downtown London

Andrew Gunn
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 Impact of COVID-19 on High School Students

Maddie King
St Thomas, London

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

High School Derailed

Isabelle Paradis
St Thomas, London

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.

What We've Learned About Downtown Simcoe & Norfolk County

What We've Learned About Downtown Simcoe & Norfolk County

Andrew Gunn
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. 

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