‘Canoe for Every Child’ paddlers close completing journey
A pair of Northern Ontario women are well on their way in their canoe journey from Sault Ste. Marie to Spanish. Paige Simon and Lue Mahaffey set out in their orange canoe last Friday as they launched their "Canoe For Every Child" campaign, with a goal of raising money for First Nations water issues as well as raising awareness of residential schools.
The pair began their journey near the former Shingwauk Residential School in the Soo, and they're paddling along the shores of Lake Huron to the former residential school in Spanish. Recent stormy weather and choppy waters forced the pair to take an unscheduled break near Serpent River.
"A few nights ago when were coming out of Thessalon First Nation, it was pretty bad," says Simon. "It was very wavy, and we had to, like, make an emergency landing on an island and stay there for the night."
"Today was the first day that it just wasn't safe to even go on the water," adds Mahaffey. "Thunderstorms coming in. We've got a tarp over our tent just to try to keep us a little bit extra dry. But we're kind of camping out until it clears a little."
Until this latest setback, Simon says the weather has been very cooperative.
"The weather has been in our favour for sure," she says. "We're actually way ahead of schedule and we're getting to our destination way sooner than we expected to be."
The pair says they have reached the halfway point of their $75,000 fundraising goal, which they will donate to "Water First," - an organization working to address drinking water challenges on First Nations.
Simon and Mahaffey are updating their "Canoe For Every Child" campaign regularly on their Facebook page, where information on how to donate to the cause can also be found.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'He's in our hearts': Family and friends still seek answers one year after Nathan Wise’s disappearance
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
'My family doctor just fired me': Ontario patients frustrated with de-rostering
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Canada Post cracks down on Nunavut loophole to get free Amazon Prime shipping
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.
Wildfire near Fort McMurray more than triples overnight, several evacuation alerts remain in place
The fire burning near Fort McMurray grew from 25 hectares to 5,500 hectares over the weekend.
Putin replaces Russian defence minister in rare cabinet shakeup
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defence minister as he begins his fifth term in office.
Man fatally 'slashed in the neck' in downtown Toronto, suspect outstanding
Police are searching for a male suspect after a man was “slashed in neck” on Sunday morning in downtown Toronto and died.
WATCH Dashcam video shows terrifying near-miss on two-lane northern Ontario highway
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
Edibles, armchairs and adapters: Here are the recalls for this week
Health Canada announced various product recalls this week, including electric adapters, armchairs, cannabis edibles and vehicle components.