Changes this year to 'Welcome to Timmins Night' will allow it to happen in-person
Organizers of the annual 'Welcome to Timmins Night' have found a way to host the event in-person this year. For 26 years, it was held in the McIntyre Curling Club and last year it was a virtual experience due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
With the Porcupine Health Unit's approval, the Welcome to Timmins Night committee said its event will take place earlier than usual and in the open air in downtown Timmins.
“There’ll be hand sanitizer everywhere and it’s up to people at some point to also observe their own physical safety and physical distancing, but we will have markers out to help people be safe," said Cindy Campbell, executive director for Downtown Timmins.
The information session will showcase approximately 40 booths representing a wide range of organizations and services. It's scheduled for Wednesday, Aug. 18, from 6-8 p.m.
Kirkland Lake Gold, a mining company, is pitching in for prizes.
“A lot of our employees live in Timmins and it’s important that we support initiatives in the communities where our people live and work," said Stephanie LaBelle, communications manager for Kirkland Lake Gold.
Organizers are inviting all new and long-time residents to attend the free session. Timmins Transit and Timmins police are just a couple of the groups that will be represented.
"So if they have any questions regarding their safety or what they can do or what they cannot do in the community, they can have a chat with them," said Shashanka Rangi, the coordinator of the Timmins Local Immigration Partnership with the Timmins and District Multicultural Centre.
"And post-secondary students and school boards will be here, too, so for families who move to Timmins, if they have any questions regarding enrolling their kids in the schools, they can have a chat about it, too."
Those who work with people who've immigrated to Timmins said in the past 18 months, dozens of new families from outside the country have made Timmins home.
“We have 90 people that currently have gone through the (Rural Northern Immigration Program), so that’s 90 people that have moved here and with their families, so that doesn’t include the numbers of the family (members)," said Noella Rinaldo, director of community economic development with the Timmins Economic Development Corporation.
A recent survey conducted by the Timmins and District Multicultural Centre found newcomers are feeling safe living in the city and overall said Timmins is a welcoming community.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Powerful tornado tears across Nebraska, weather service warns of 'catastrophic' damage
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States, injuring at least three people.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.