SPOKEMonday, January 12, 2015 Conestoga College, KitChener, ont. www.sPoKeonline.CoM 46th year — no. 1

two extramural hockey teams off to great start.Page 11

Condors soaring

a l e a r n i n g n e w s r o o M f o r J o u r n a l i s M s t u d e n t s

Pounds get packed on over the holidays.Page 5

A weightyissue

BY JUSTIN FORD

Bill 15 – aimed at lowering auto insurance rates – was passed by the Ontario legisla-ture on Nov. 20, 2014. The bill aims to lower auto insurance by an average of 15 per cent by August 2015.

“We want to make sure peo-ple with clean records get the benefit of the cost reductions that are going to be imposed now by this piece of legisla-tion,” said Finance Minister Charles Sousa at a Queen’s Park press conference.

Though the bill has just passed, insurance companies have been taking action to meet the 15 per cent decrease over the last year. By August 2014, the goal was to have auto insurance in Ontario drop by eight per cent, then the other seven per cent by August 2015. However, the current average decrease across Ontario is only 5.4 per cent.

“They (insurance companies) were allowed to increase their rates based on their finan-cial data,” said Kitchener’s Advocate Insurance Group sales representative Scott Heaman. “Some companies didn’t even have to follow it (the decrease).”

This bill sounds like a def-inite win for people who pay auto insurance, but only in certain areas of Ontario.

“The decrease is an average,” Heaman said. “They (insur-ance companies) can (poten-tially) increase Toronto’s rates by five per cent, and drop Ottawa’s by 20 per cent.”

Even though this bill

sounds like wonderful news for all who own a vehicle, it really isn’t. In some cases, some Ontarians might even pay more when everything is said and done. Companies that lower their car insurance rates substantially will also be looking to make up for that

loss elsewhere. “They will be taking a hit

financially and they will be attempting to reallocate it to home and commercial insur-ance,” Heaman said. “In the end, companies will try to make it up and tighten their guidelines on home insurance

because it’s not regulated by the government.”

So with the insurance com-panies trying to make up for their losses, homeowners may want to keep a watchful eye on their premiums.

“I’m not worried very much, unless the profit margins on

house insurance are much larger than that on car insur-ance,” said multiple home and property owner Devon Sampson, a Woodstock resi-dent.

“It would be counterproduc-tive for an insurance company to raise their rates too much.”

Auto insurance bill has pros, cons

PHOTO BY JUSTIN FORD Casey Miller, a first-year business management student, didn’t know about the passing of Bill 15, but was delighted to hear the news.

BY NATHAN BROwN

Conestoga students had the chance to grab a cup of coffee and have their voice heard at the same time, thanks to Conestoga Students Inc.’s recent Coffee Date in the Sanctuary.

CSI provided coffee and doughnuts for those who attended the first meeting, which they hoped would become a regular event. However, only three students showed up. Two of CSI’s board of directors were on hand to talk with students.

“We want to hear and know the students’ concerns,” said Colin Gaudet, one of CSI’s board of directors.

Students raised quite a few concerns, including questions about Conestoga’s rec centre.

One interesting question came from Conestoga’s DJ Club president Paul Kelly.

“I wanted to know if the club would be able to perform for any events CSI hosts,” Kelly said. “We want to get some exposure and I want to know if CSI can help.”

Students’ concerns received

positive feedback from the CSI members, prompting dis-cussion from other students.

An issue brought up by more than a few students was one regarding longer pub days and possibly bringing a pub to the upstairs gaming area above the Sanctuary.

“The problem regarding that is that we can’t license the stairwells,” said Katie Turriff, another member of CSI’s board of directors. “It’d be great to have the extra space (where alcohol could be served).”

“The gaming room is already

licensed,” Turriff said. “It all comes back to the stairwells getting licensed.”

Currently the CSI-hosted Pub Days are only held in the main Sanctuary area. The maximum capacity for the room is 273 people, making it hard for Conestoga’s roughly 10,000-plus full-time students to all get a drink.

Another question asked was if the pub also included the gaming room, where would the expensive gaming con-soles and TVs be moved?

“There are places where they

can be put away and locked up,” said Jeff Black, a busi-ness administration manage-ment student at the college who takes advantage of all the gaming room has to offer.

Having the gaming room accessible on pub days would enable roughly another 170 students to take part in the Pub Days.

CSI officials emphasized that even if some concerns were not heard during the Coffee Date that students can write proposals anytime to CSI and have their concerns heard.

students have their voices heard at Csi ‘Coffee date’

Page 2 s SPOKE Monday, January 12, 2015NEWs

Now deep thoughts... with Conestoga College

Random questions answered by random studentsIf you could be any Pokemon,

which one would you be?

“I would be Squirtle.”

Majdi Alali,third-year

accounting, audit and information technology

“Kingler!”

Dylan schaffer,first-yearradio broadcast

“I want to be Mew!”

Candice Robodycz,first-year

pre-health

“I think I would be Squirtle.”

Alex Andrijevic,first-yearparamedic

“Bulbasour.”

Emily Dentinger,first-yearpre-health

“Definitely Magikarp.”

stephen Williams,first-year

paramedic

Smile Conestoga, you could be our next respondent!

Beer pong Increases antI-bullyIng awareness

PHOTO BY MATT HOWEllParticipants test their accuracy in beer pong during an anti-bullying event that took place in the sanctuary on nov. 26. For story, see video at www.spokeonline.com.

exhiBition proposes

that we can exert our InFluence over Forces beyond our

control

the Idea exchange in cambridge featured the gal-lery exhibit, Cold Comfort, which had sculptures by lauren nurse, an artist working in printmaking, sculpture and installation. her exhibit ran at the Queen’s square branch until Jan. 11. next up at the gallery is dorothy caldwell’s Silence Ice/Deep Patience exhibit which will run from Jan. 16 until March 1.

PHOTO BY NiCOlE NEMETH

Monday, January 12, 2015 SPOKE s Page 3NEWs

Delayed bursary causes outrageBY ALEX RIEsE

The student access guaran-tee issued by the Government of Ontario helps about 1,000 Conestoga students with the strenuous financial demands of everyday life. Unfortunately, that relief may be delayed this school year.

The guarantee, gener-ally issued at the end of November, still hadn’t been released to students, as of Spoke’s December press time.

In addition, before this year the guarantee had always been distributed directly to students. This school year, however, it’s being applied directly to tuition. Patrick Bennett, the financial aid manager at Conestoga College, said the guarantee has always been intended for paying tuition.

“The student access guaran-tee is for students in high cost programs whose tuition costs and book costs are above what OSAP provides,” he said. “We essentially make up the dif-ference.”

Bennett also said applying the money directly to tuition saved Student Financial Services a lot of time.

“Because students don’t apply for the guarantee, they aren’t expecting the grant money. We used to email the students to let them know that the cheque was available, and we used to have to do a lot of

chasing,” he said. “Even after that, we’d only have about 15 to 20 cheques distributed by the end of the semester.”

First-year journalism stu-dent Zoey Ross is outraged by the withholding of the guaran-tee. Many students like Ross

already made arrangements for the payment of tuition.

“I already have a tuition plan set up, so I don’t need it to go to that,” he said. “Previously they would just cut you a cheque.”

According to the Student

Financial Services office, stu-dents who already have a pay-ment plan set up can get a cheque cut, but only after full payment of tuition has been proven.

Conestoga Students Inc. president Jeff Scherer has

begun an investigation into the matter.

“I have started the conver-sation with Student Financial Services, and the student body will know about any informa-tion as soon as it’s known,” he said.

PHOTO BY ALEX RIEsEZoey Ross, a first-year journalism student, is one of about 1,000 students who are affected by a change and delay in administering stu-dent access guarantees. Here, he stands outside Conestoga’s Student/Client Services Building, where he went to seek answers.

PHOTO BY KALI CAuDLEConestoga Students Inc. held its first-ever Winter Clothing Drive at the Doon campus recently. Above, Lisa Steele, CSI leadership development co-ordinator, promotes the event. For video, see www.spokeonline.com.

PHOTO BY mARYssA mCfADDENWinter is a dangerous time for driving if you don’t have the right tires. Above, Dave Decker, a mechan-ic, checks the tread depth of his winter tires with a toonie. For video, see www.spokeonline.com.

Mechanic gIveS WInteR DRIvIng tIpS stay warM tHIS WInteR

Page 4 s SPOKE Monday, January 12, 2015COMMENTARY

As of Jan. 1 there will be a new smoking ban in Ontario that will prevent smokers from smoking on bar/restau-rant patios, playgrounds, sports fields and ice rinks. Failure to comply with this law will result in the smoker receiving a $250 fine.

This is being implemented in January, a winter month, so smokers have a chance to get used to the idea of not smoking in these places before the warmer months arrive.

This is a smart move if this has to be done. Many young people who smoke when they are out to dinner or drink-ing at a bar enjoy being able to just go to the patio for a quick smoke without hav-ing to leave the property completely. I think starting it in January, a time when smokers don’t generally like staying outdoors too long anyhow, will help make the transition easier, but I do believe that it’s unfair to smokers.

Everyone has the right to do what they want with their own life and choose how they want to live.

Smokers are already seen as outcasts and dirty. Being a smoker I’ve been yelled at for having a cigarette on a public bench which gets under my skin.

If it’s public property, oth-ers don’t really have a say if I choose to smoke there. At least, they didn’t use to.

I don’t smoke where I’m not supposed to and most of the time I will not smoke near children or crowded areas out of respect. If someone doesn’t like that I’m smok-ing near them, they have the choice to walk away and not be around me.

I do understand that in this day and age there are a lot of people who are very health conscious. I also believe that they should not feel trapped when they are on a restau-rant patio surrounded by smokers, but I think we had

it right a while ago. We had designated areas on patios for smokers.

Especially when it comes to bar patios, when smok-ers are drinking, they want to smoke a lot more than usual. If they are no longer able to do it on the patio I think bars will lose money as these customers will stop going there.

It almost feels like smokers are being shunned by society. It can be compared to the toxic fumes coming from cars or the plumes of toxic chemi-cals being pumped out of factories, but all that is still OK. Why not just ban every-thing that puts out any form of toxin? Exhaust from cars is still OK but smoking isn’t?

Smokers shouldn’t be shunned from public places or from patios just because they choose to smoke. I think we have the right to do what we please and not be criti-cized for it.

If other people don’t like it, like I said before, they can remove themselves from that situation or ask a smoker politely to blow the other way.

New smoking ban stinks

2014 a year of struggles, survival

BY JACK PARKINSON

When historians look back at 2014 they will find a year of hardship and almost unimaginable human loss. But they will also find a year of endurance.

There is no mincing words: a lot of bad things hap-pened in 2014. As early as February, the Ebola out-break was rearing its head, and the crisis in Ukraine was starting. Although in its infancy, the deep-seated divide in the European country culminated in the annexation of the Crimean peninsula by Russia.

Moving into March, the situation only worsened as Russia was suspended from the G8 for its actions, and Malaysia Airlines flight 370 disappeared over the Indian ocean on a routine flight and likely crashed, never to be found. Another flight overseen by that com-pany was shot down over Ukraine. Hundreds of lives were lost between the two flights.

In April, approximately 276 girls were abducted from a school in Nigeria and are still being held hostage, and the Korean ferry MV Sewol capsized after cargo shifted during transit, killing more than 290 people.

In May the World Health Organization announced the spread of polio in at least 10 countries, June saw ISIS begin their campaign in northern Iraq, and in July Israel launched numerous missile strikes on the Gaza Strip.

The world stage was mostly quiet from August until November, although the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released the final part of its fifth assess-ment report, warning everyone that the world faces “severe, pervasive and irreversible” damage from climate change.

But in the midst of all this negative news there were rays of hope. One of them was the spacecraft Philae landing on a comet nucleus this November, more than 10 years after its initial launch – the first time in his-tory such an event has occurred.

Looking at the months that preceded that scientific breakthrough, you might feel inclined to write it off. But in trying times like 2014 every speck of optimism and progress should be cherished. We can look at the success of the Philae mission not only as a success in its own right, but as a success for the human race.

We will survive. We will always shoot for the stars.

The views herein represent the position of the newspa-per, not necessarily the author.

Cassie Tulecki Opinion

Spoke welcomes letters to the editor. Letters should be signed and include the name and telephone number of the writer. Writers will be contact-ed for verification.No unsigned letters will be published.Letters should be no longer

than 500 words.Spoke reserves the right to edit

any letter for publication.Address correspondence to: The Editor, Spoke, 299

Doon Valley Dr., Room 1C30, Kitchener, Ont., N2G 4M4

Letters are welcome

SPOKEi S P u b L i S h E D A N D P R O D u C E D W E E K L y b y T h E J O u R N A L i S M S T u D E N T S O f C O N E S T O G A C O L L E G E

The views and opinions expressed in this newspaper do not necessarily reflect the views of Conestoga College. Spoke shall not be liable for any damages arising out of errors in advertising beyond the amount paid for the space. Letters to the editor are subject to acceptance or rejection and should be clearly written or typed; a MS Word file would be helpful. Letters must not contain any libellous statements.

A New Year’s resolution is something that goes in one year and out the other!

Editor: beth CrouseAssignment Editors: Alex Riese, Maryssa McfaddenAdvertising Managers: Jack Parkinson, Jordan JohnstoneSpoke Online Editors: Carson Deshevy-Renouf,

Cody Mudge, ian McbrideProduction Managers: Cassie Tulecki, Carmen PoncianoPhoto Editors (print): Nathan brown, Kali Caudle, Justin fordPhoto Editors (online): Josh Kennedy, Nicole

Nemeth, heather StanleySocial Media Editor: Nataleigh McCallum, Matt howellCirculation Manager: Rachel RoyFaculty Supervisor and Adviser: Christina Jonas

Spoke’s address is 299 Doon Valley Dr., Room 1C30, Kitchener, Ontario, N2G 4M4. Phone: 519-748-5220, ext. 3691, 3692, 3693, 3694fax: 519-748-3534Email: spoke@conestogac.on.caWebsite: www.spokeonline.com

Monday, January 12, 2015 SPOKE s Page 5NEWS

Time to shed those holiday poundsBy HEATHER STANLEy

The month-long parade of holiday festivities is over. It’s 2015 and with every new year, Canadians create reso-lutions for themselves and try to achieve them. The most popular resolution is losing weight, which is why it is fit-ting that January is Weight Loss Awareness Month.

This month educates people about the risks associated with obesity and improving one’s health. According to Statistics Canada, approxi-mately 6.3 million people, or one in four adult Canadians, were obese in 2012. This is 17.5 per cent higher than the rate in 2003. Obesity is mea-sured as a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher.

It is evident that Canadians are less healthy. The two biggest factors are a lack of physical activity and improp-er eating. Processed foods are extremely popular because of hectic work and school sched-ules. Students are warned about the Freshman 15, where students gain up to 15 pounds during their first year. Although the real num-ber is only about three to seven pounds, students are still gaining weight.

To try to combat their weight gain from the Christmas sea-son, many go to the gym to exercise. Johnathan Abbott, head trainer of World Gym Kitchener, says an efficient training session is an hour. “If you’re only doing 20 minutes, basically your body is just starting to get into working out,” he said. “Your blood is

flowing and your muscles are just starting to fatigue and then you stop. So you’re not getting the full benefits of an hour.” He suggests that 45 minutes is a good work-out and a person should also have a cool-down and warm-up period of about five min-utes each.

Although many exercise to get fit, many also exercise to help lower their risk of potential health problems. Common health issues asso-ciated with being overweight are depression and high blood pressure and choles-terol. The Heart and Stroke Foundation website states that there are two types of cholesterol: low-density lipo-protein (LDL) and high-den-sity lipoprotein (HDL). LDL cholesterol is often called the bad cholesterol because high levels in the blood promotes the buildup of plaque in the artery walls. HDLs on the other hand, are the good type of cholesterol.

Cholesterol is found in ani-mal products, which includes meats, eggs and dairy prod-ucts. LDLs are usually found in processed foods. If a person has too much cholesterol it can lead to serious problems such as heart disease.

Changing your eating hab-its and exercising can help lower your risk of health issues. Abbott suggests eat-ing smaller portions and maintaining a certain num-ber of calories.

“Try not to go between three to four hours without a meal, because then your body’s metabolism starts

to lower,” Abbott said. “Keeping the metabolism up is basically the key to losing weight as quick as possible and gaining lean muscle.”

Another way to help change a person’s diet is to cook a bunch of meals all at once and pack the food away. That way a person is not pressed to cook food later and it helps them to stay away from restaurants and food with high calories

that cause big weight gain. “All you really need to do is

focus on your nutrition and make things consistent in the gym,” Abbott said. “All of the results come outside the gym but you want to be consistent-ly coming to the gym too. You want to have a plan and you want to have structure. So all that stuff, skinny wraps and stuff, they’re all gimmicks.”

To help children and ado-

lescents get more physical activity, the Ontario govern-ment announced a partner-ship with Active at School six weeks ago. The goal of the partnership is to increase the amount of physical activ-ity per day at schools for each child to an hour of fit-ness by 2018. The amount of physical activity required each day is currently only 20 minutes.

PHOTO By HEATHER STANLEyMembers of World Gym in Kitchener are shown lifting and spotting weights. Exercise is important in preventing weight gain.

Try walking a mile in salespeople’s shoesThe old adage, “before you

judge someone you must walk a mile in their shoes” may seem dated and old-fashioned, but in today’s society, consumers should remember this before enter-ing stores.

When working in retail, you come to expect cer-tain things: crying chil-dren, indifferent parents and ignorant customers, but nothing prepares an employee for the onslaught of abuse given by people.

Consumer culture has cre-ated a beast so terrifying that many employees gath-er around the water cooler and share stories of these sightings.

These people come into stores prepared for a fight, armed with their attitudes and arrogance.

They are the mothers who wait until mere hours before

their two children have two separate parties to attend, and demand a poor, unaware employee who made the mistake of asking them how their day was to magically make the most popular toy of the season appear, despite being sold out for weeks.

They are the fathers who come with computer printouts and flyers from competing stores in hand, and demand a toy be price adjusted because some store on the other side of the coun-

try is offering it for two cents cheaper.

They are the students who wait until the last minute to remember that they need an obscure book written by an unknown author for their class the following morning.

No matter what an under-paid retail employee does, nothing will please these monster-customers short of cutting off their own arm or offering up their first-born child. Nothing satisfies these people, except the sight of tears welling up in the eyes of the salesperson.

A long-standing joke in the retail world is that every single member of society should at some point be forced to work in retail for one calendar year. Then, and only then, would customers remember that the person behind the cash register, the person ask-ing if there was something they could help them with, the person who commented on how lovely a day it is, is just that, a person too.

Screaming, yelling and throwing a temper tantrum like an unruly toddler won’t make the most popular toy of the year appear, won’t lower the price of an item and won’t make a book material-ize. Treating the employees like verbal punching bags won’t help remedy the situa-tion either.

The only thing that should rule in these cases is common

sense. Don’t wait until the last minute to begin shop-ping for a pressing event. Don’t blame the lowest level of staff in stores for deci-sions made at head office. Don’t blame your faults on someone who is working as hard as she possibly can to help you. Take responsibility and place the blame where it belongs.

Employees are people too, so before you corner a 16-year-old girl and berate her for something completely out of her control, remember that these people are paid minimum wage. They don’t make the decisions about what amount of product to stock or the prices on things. Most of them are told to go out of their way to make cus-tomers happy. So treat them with respect, which is exactly how you would expect to be treated.

Beth Crouse Opinion

“Treating employees like verbal punching bags

won’t help remedy the situation.”

Page 6 s SPOKE Monday, January 12, 2015

Monday, January 12 , 2015 SPOKE s Page 7

NEWsPage 8 s SPOKE Monday, January 12, 2015

seasonal sadness prevalentBy NicolE NEmEth

During the winter months it’s not uncommon for people to feel a little gloomy, especially after the holiday season is over.

However, some people are more vulnerable to a deeper sadness, a type of depression that follows a seasonal pat-tern. This condition is called Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD, as it is more com-monly known.

According to Dr. Robert Levitan, a senior scientist who works in the mood and anxiety disorders program at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, two to five per cent of Canadians suffer a severe chronic form of seasonal depression, 10 to 15 per cent will have a milder form and about 25 to 35 per cent will have the “winter blues.”

Although SAD can affect anyone, adults are at a high-er risk than children, and women are up to 80 per cent more likely to report having SAD than men. Also, people who live in northern coun-tries, like Canada, are more likely to experience the dis-order because the amount of daylight received changes in the winter months.

“I was never officially diag-nosed with SAD, but I was

diagnosed with depression during the winter when I was 17 years old. I came to the realization that it was season-al once summer came,” said Victoria (a pseudonym), 20.

People who suffer from SAD often experience similar emotions related to clinical depression.

“What my depression feels like is a persistent sense of hopelessness; I am complete-ly stuck living a terrible life. When the winter is especially long, just as it seems the snow will never melt, it feels like I’ll be sad forever,” Victoria said.

These emotions often include feelings of hopelessness, fatigue, change in appetite, loss of interests and hobbies, withdrawal from friends and family, trouble concentrating, thoughts of suicide and crying or feeling like crying.

“My sleeping pattern becomes very inconsistent,” Victoria said. “I’m unable to fall asleep at night despite feeling exhausted. Then it’s incredibly difficult to wake up in the morning. It’s just constant fatigue. Consistently feeling tired, sore, cranky. I typically gain a lot of weight in the winter, I crave a lot of unhealthy foods. My self-esteem is a lot lower than it normally is and I develop a negative body image.”

There are ways for people who suffer from SAD to cope and treat their depression, light therapy and antidepres-sant medication being the most common. Of course, any-one who feels depressed dur-ing the winter months should let their family doctor know so they can begin to prescribe whichever treatment is neces-sary for that individual.

“I took Prozac but that didn’t help me at all. I’d like to explore more medication options if I can’t beat it on my own,” Victoria said.

Light therapy is the most often used treatment of SAD in milder cases. Some people feel that they can get a good amount of natural light to help treat their disorder on their own, but in the winter months it may not be possible due to the shorter amount of daylight.

“The most important coping method for me is consistently reminding myself that every-thing in life is temporary. Bad things come to an end, too. I try to focus on the amazing summer I just had and plan for the next one. Also, forcing myself to stay busy and active to keep my mind occupied. If I don’t want to leave my room I try to get out and do something, even if it’s run-ning errands,” Victoria said.

Since every person is differ-

ent their treatment will be, too; what works for one per-son may not work for another.

According to the Canadian Mental Health Association there are still things that any-one can do to help themselves feel better: regular exercise, a healthy diet, good sleep habits, staying connected to friends and family, balanced thinking techniques and man-aging stress. The Canadian Mental Health Association also recommends that if peo-ple are experiencing SAD they should try to spend more time outdoors during the day to get natural sunlight, maximize sunlight when indoors, keep lamps and lights on when it’s dark outside and if all else fails, take a vacation to a sun-nier climate.

“Eating healthy is very, very important, too,” said Victoria, “I can’t take care of my mind without taking care of my body. Finally, I remind myself that I am loved. I have an amazing partner and an incredibly sup-portive group of friends, but most of all I love myself and deserve to be happy.”

There is still a stigma against clinical depression, including SAD.

The results of a survey completed by the Canadian Medical Association in 2008 revealed that 46 per cent of

people believe that diagnosis of mental illness is an “excuse for poor behaviour and personal feelings,” 50 per cent of the people surveyed believe that depression is not a serious con-dition and 42 per cent would no longer socialize with a friend diagnosed with mental illness.

In more recent years, more people have begun to speak out against the stig-ma attached to mental ill-ness, including depression and SAD. Last year, Olympic champion Clara Hughes teamed up with Bell for the Bell Let’s Talk campaign to help build greater awareness and acceptance toward men-tal health and depression.

“I don’t necessarily adver-tise it, but I don’t have any qualms when it comes to talking about it,” Victoria said. “There’s such a stigma against mental health. I think it’s important to keep the conversation going and raise awareness. No one should be ashamed of having to deal with depression. If someone is physically sick they get sym-pathy and support, but soci-ety condemns the mentally ill. That needs to change.”

If you feel that you are suf-fering from depression or SAD don’t be afraid to seek help either through a trusted friend, family doctor or counsellor.

Brantford students get tour of Conestoga

Photo By justiN fordVicki noels-Cornish, a Conestoga College liaison officer, takes students from st. John’s College (Brantford) on a tour of Conestoga’s child-care and health-care facili-ties. the students were interested in these areas because they’re studying both as part of their curriculum.

new tech course in 2015

Photo By carsoN dEshEvy-rENoufa new two-year diploma program titled packaging engineering technician will begin in september 2015 at the Cambridge campus of Conestoga College. above, Luis garcia, the chair of the institute of food Processing technology, dis-plays one of the types of packaging that they hope to teach students to produce. for more, see video at www.spokeonline.com.

Monday, January 12, 2015 SPOKE s Page 9NEWS

BY RACHEL ROY

Whether you were looking for some pretty jewelry or you were craving some baked treats, Trinity Village deliv-ered.

Trinity Village is a non-profit retirement facility in Kitchener owned and oper-ated by Lutheran Homes.

Recently, Trinity Village held their annual craft show for the holidays.

The show had vendors sell-ing jewelry, knitted hats and gloves, scarves, baked goods and decorations.

They were also selling a lunch consisting of pulled pork sandwiches and soup.

In 2014 organizers had a specific project in mind for the proceeds.

Maria Menounos, the pro-gram director at Trinity Village, said funds from their many events have been going toward a new mobility bus, which will take residents on outings.

“Our old bus broke down so much that it was quite costly to keep it on the road,” said Judy McKnight, volunteer co-ordinator. “By having a new one and fundraising for the new one it’ll be better for everyone.”

Residents and their fami-lies are excited about the new bus and are looking forward to travelling around to local events.

“We’re very close to our goal,” Menounos said. “We are about $25,000 short but with donations coming in I think we are going to achieve our goal very soon.”

Although raising money is great and it’s exciting for the workers, volunteers and resi-dents to be getting a new bus, some people just enjoy going to the craft show.

Dianne Rath enjoys attend-ing these type of events with her mother and father because they give them the chance to do something together.

“I think they’re marvelous”

Rath said. “They bring in people from

the community and for me it is something I get to do with my mom when I come to visit.”

Craft show helps seniors stay mobile

PHOTO BY RACHEL ROYHeather Lockyer, an independent jeweller, was a vendor at the Trinity Village craft show.

everyoneLoVes free sTuff

Conestoga students Inc. staff Andrew Leaman (left to right), selina Mauro and Qasem Najem handed out free swag to students before exams, helping to relieve stress.

PHOTO BY NATHAN BROWN

Page 10 s SPOKE Monday, January 12, 2015fun & games

AriesMarch 21 -

April 19

AquariusJanuary 20 - February 18

TaurusApril 20 - May 20

LibraSeptember 23 -

October 22

GeminiMay 21 - June 21

ScorpioOctober 23 - November 21

CapricornDecember 22 -

January 19

SagittariusNovember 22 - December 21

CancerJune 22 - July 22

LeoJuly 23 -

August 22

VirgoAugust 23 -

September 22

PiscesFebruary 19 -

March 20

Your optimism surround-ing the new year is con-tagious! Make sure those around you don’t drag you down.

Happy birthday Capricorn! Good fortune is on the radar for you this week, so make sure to take advantage of it as it comes along.

Turn a new page this year, Aquarius. Stop being so serious and start bringing a little fun to the party.

After a time for spiritual reflection it’s important to get back to real-world routines this week, Pisces. Don’t delay!

Your indecisiveness will be detrimental this week, but hang in there, the decision will become clear.

A new year has you excited for new routines and oppor-tunities. Make sure you take them on, full steam!

The new year will bring monetary success. Keep your eyes peeled for a new job opportunity and financial gains.

Whispering Waters wishes you waves of fortune.

Horoscope Week of January 12, 2015

In 2015 your determina-tion will help you succeed in your studies. Your ambition will help you land a good job.

Taurus, your patience will be tried this month but be reassured, things will get easier in February.

Take control of the new semester, Scorpio. Lead group work, make your opin-ions known during discus-sions and pour yourself into projects.

Everything in moderation, Libra. After the holiday indulgences it’s time to get back into good habits.

Your hospitality over the hol-idays may have drained you, Cancer, but rest assured –the people around you appre-ciate your kindness.

Useless FactsOh Cliff!

Sudoku Puzzle

Word Search

Fill in the grid with digits in such a manner that every row, every column and every 3x3 box accommo-dates the digits 1-9, with-out repeating any.

Name:

Created with TheTeachersCorner.net Word Search Maker

Winter

BOOTS

MITTS

SNOWBLOWER

SNOWMAN

STORM

ICE

HOCKEY

FLURRIES

FLAKES

SALT

SCRAPER

PLOW

SCULPTURE

SKATING

SKIING

SLIDING

SHOVEL

MITTENS

SCARF

SLEDDING

N E D V U O M H E T K M M A V Y

A S D N S C R A P E R P K R E R

M M I T T E N S P G G H L K J S

W C N M M E S R B L Y E C F K L

O S N O W B L O W E R O O A O I

N B E L Q V E E S U H X T O M D

S G N I I K S C T Q S I S R P I

L Z M C R B A P C X N L O A B N

E H Z E W R L E K G E T W K U G

V C M F F U U A I D S B S A L T

O B N I C B W L D Z B H Z N U Y

H E K S T O M I F R V O Y L O I

S Q A B L T N Z U C Y G O X R E

A C J P Z G S E K A L F K T F X

Z S Q P C M Y M T A B Y S E S E

U R W V S S Y H U T F H E P D E

A lion in the wild usually makes no more than 20 kills a year.

There is no solid proof of who built the Taj Mahal.

“Lassie” was played by a group of male dogs; the main one was named Pal.

Nepal is the only country that doesn’t have a rectangular flag.

In 1980, a Las Vegas hospital suspended workers for betting on when patients would die.

A group of toads is called a knot.

Monday, January 12, 2015 SPOKE s Page 11NEWS

Hockey teams get off to

a great start

Give your old clothes to people in need

PHOTO BY JOSH KENNEdYCourtney Marshall, a second-year executive office administration student, stands near one of the many donation bins for the Winter Clothing Drive that was held at Conestoga College.

PHOTOS PrOvidEd BY iiaNa rOmaNOWConestoga’s 2014-2015 extramural men’s hockey team celebrates after being crowned tournament champions after defeating Sheridan in a recent tournament.

Conestoga’s 2014-2015 extramural women’s hockey team fought hard but lost against Georgian College in a recent tournament’s championship game, held in Orillia.

BY JOSH KENNEdY

Many people are bundling up to protect themselves from the cold weather. But some people are not so lucky. They cannot afford to buy warm clothes. That is why clothing drives are held.

Conestoga Students Inc. got in on the action by holding their Winter Clothing Drive from Nov. 24 to 28. People brought in warm clothing and placed them in one of the donation bins that were in the hallway just outside the CSI office. All of the donations went to the Salvation Army.

The clothing drive was the idea of the CSI Leadership Ambassador Team, which consists of 20 students who hold a different charity event each month.

“This (clothing drive) was our last charity event this semes-ter and while brainstorming we learned that the Salvation Army was in need of clothing,” said Lisa Steele, leadership development co-ordinator for

CSI. “We held the clothing drive in hopes that we would get enough clothes donated by the end of the week.”

The Salvation Army was pleased when they heard about the drive. They even made the banner for the stu-dents to attach to the dona-tion table. In addition to the Salvation Army, Sun Life Financial, Jiffy Lube and radio stations 96.7 CHYM FM, 670News and Kix 106.7 were sponsors.

The drive turned out to be a success with people filling the donation bins to the very top with coats, wool hats, scarfs, mittens and snow pants.

“I personally think it’s really great that we got so many donations,” said Oliveah Friesen, a leadership ambas-sador with CSI, who helped monitor the display for the clothing drive. “Having warm clothes is one of the things we take for granted and it is important to remember that some people don’t have as many clothes as we do.”

These clothing drives are not just good for people who need warm clothes, but they are also a convenient way for people who have too many clothes to get rid of them. Statistics Canada states that Canadians spend four per cent of every dollar they earn on clothes, which they either eventually outgrow as time goes on or they sim-ply stop wearing. Instead of just throwing these clothes in the garbage, Canadians can donate them to someone who can still use them.

Clothing drives don’t only happen during the holiday season. Some are year-long. One example is Clothesline, a charity drive sponsored by the Canadian Diabetes Association, which places clothing drop boxes in many parking lots across Canada.

If you want to donate some-thing, go to www.diabetes.ca and then to the “Find a Clothesline Dropbox” under the “In Your Community” but-ton.

BY NaTalEiGH mccallum

There are three things Canadians cannot resist: beer, bacon and hockey.

And a free hockey game is even better.

The seasons of Conestoga College’s extramural men’s and women’s hockey teams are underway, and everyone is invited to watch them in action.

An extramural team is for students who want to play at a competitive level but don’t have the time to commit to a varsity team. The two hockey teams play in four, one-day tournaments a year and prac-tise once a week.

Both teams did well in their first tournaments.

The women’s team made it to the championship game, skated hard and gave it their all, but ended up losing 1-0 against Georgian College. The men’s team were crowned champions after winning 3-2 in overtime against Sheridan.

Both teams also played a tournament at Humber recently, with the men being defeated 4-2 by Trent in the semifinals and the women finishing third in their divi-sion.

With the recreation centre’s hockey rink being removed, home extramural games are being played at off-campus arenas.

“Students can come and watch,” said Ilana Romanow, the athletic technician and campus recreation co-ordina-tor at Conestoga. “It is an arena and we’ve rented out the ice so it doesn’t cost any-body anything to come in and watch the games.”

The men’s team will play next at Fanshawe on Jan. 23 and the women will play at Laurier in Brantford on Feb. 3.

The next home games are Feb. 6 at the Cambridge Ice Park Arena for the men and on March 6 at Sportsworld Arena for the women.

Page 12 s SPOKE Monday, January 12, 2015