Get Ready to ‘Engage’ with London, St. Thomas & Port Stanley!

Get Ready to ‘Engage’ with London, St. Thomas & Port Stanley!

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

Our team at young & free press is very excited to help introduce a new augmented reality app designed specifically to engage residents and visitors in London, St. Thomas and Port Stanley. Developed by EXAR Studios in London, the app – called ‘Engage’ – will guide users on unique adventures through each community with stops along the way to experience attractions just by looking through the camera of a smart phone. Murals will come to life, billboards and other cultural objects will move, and local history will become a stimulating visual reality!

Introducing the New ‘STEAM Community Studio’ at the STEAM Centre in St. Thomas

Introducing the New ‘STEAM Community Studio’ at the STEAM Centre in St. Thomas

Andrew Gunn
St Thomas, Elgin County

Our team at young & free press is excited to announce that the Estate of Donna Vera Evans Bushell is contributing $225,000 to the STEAM Centre in St. Thomas to introduce the new ‘STEAM Community Studio’ … this is a ground-breaking new program that focusses on experiential learning and civic engagement to foster collaboration between students and key community stakeholders including academics, teachers, and political, community and business leaders. 

Grants Now Available for Emerging Filmmakers through the Forest City Film Festival

Grants Now Available for Emerging Filmmakers through the Forest City Film Festival

Andrew Gunn
London, St Thomas, Elgin County

Our team at young & free press is thrilled to announce that funding has been provided to the Forest City Film Festival to offer three grants of $8,000 each to emerging filmmakers in southwestern Ontario! Filmmakers have the chance to make short documentaries about three projects supported by the Estate of Donna Vera Evans Bushell in Elgin County & St. Thomas, including the construction of the new “Evans Sisters’ Stage” at Springwater Forest, the launch of the “Art, Trees & Trails” project by the St. Thomas Elgin Public Art Centre, and the development of the “Track to the Future” mural project through Railway City Tourism.

Five Ways to Attract Teenagers to Downtown London

Five Ways to Attract Teenagers to Downtown London

Madison Comfort
London

Downtown London has some great arts and culture venues and many captivating businesses, parks, and landmarks. There are excellent festivals, events and concerts that happen downtown, which help drive residents and visitors to support businesses in the area. Teenagers can help to influence this activity and the overall culture. With youth having such an impact on society, I wanted to share some ideas of how we can attract more teenagers to downtown London.

Emily and Ella Explore St. Thomas

Emily and Ella Explore St. Thomas

Emily Stage
St Thomas

Throughout this pandemic we have come to know the feeling of nearly losing our minds because we are unable to be around others. This has given us time to dream about creating places where we can gather. Quarantine is so boring, but gradually we will be able to return to public spaces. Looking at St. Thomas specifically, how can we really make our city a wonderful, welcoming place once we are finally set free? There are so many exciting possibilities!

Presenting the Westlake-Evans Civic Park and ‘Track to the Future’ Mural Project

Presenting the Westlake-Evans Civic Park and ‘Track to the Future’ Mural Project

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

On Thursday, June 11th, our team at young & free press announced an extraordinary donation of $750,000 from the Estate of Donna Vera Evans Bushell to the City of St. Thomas. This contribution includes $500,000 to support the establishment of the new Westlake-Evans Civic Park downtown, as well as $250,000 to boost the ‘Track to the Future’ mural project that will be coordinated through Railway City Tourism. We are very excited to help St. Thomas take another step toward becoming a major street art destination in Ontario.

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?

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