The Annex and Harbord Village considered for expansion

By Jessica Lemieux

It’s early on a Tuesday but already the hot sun is casting long shadows from the greenhouse over the field. The earlier in the day the better and the more tender the herbs will be. That way they will look and smell great to our customers.

The Calendula and Borage flowers are just starting to open as the bees from the nearby hives lazily jump from flower to flower. The hum of traffic from Sheppard and Keele just reach our ears as Caitlin Langlois Greenham and I harvest a multitude of herbs for selling, drying and processing. This morning is one of the many beautiful days at Sage Rising Herb Farm in Downsview Park.

Caitlin and I are urban organic herb farmers, growing for the Fresh City Farms food box and for local markets and stores. Neither of us have a strong background in traditional farming but rather, we have a love for growing and being close to the earth. The name of our farm reflects our desire for knowledge of recognition of the wisdom of growers in the past. Sage was the first herb we sold from our plot but also symbolizes wisdom that we are gaining (hence rising) through our business.

A bee lands on a Calendula flower at the Sage Rising Herb Farm in Downsview Park. PHOTO BY JANET DAVIS

What started as a dream has turned into a reality. I happened to have 3000 sq. ft. through Fresh City Farms to grow in but wasn’t sure what to grow yet. Caitlin casually commented one evening, while working on another project together, about a day dream she had of sitting in an herb farm soaking up the smell of lavender and thyme. From there we grew a small business and a fantastic partnership and friendship.

This coming season has new and exciting challenges including a new baby and job opportunities. We still love the business and want to continue to grow so we are reaching out to the Annex and Harbord Village communities for backyards in which to grow our herbs. Through conversations with the homeowner we will find a partnership agreement that allows us to continue growing closer to home (and still in partnership with Fresh City Farms) and build our business. Many of the herbs are perennial – so when we leave, the homeowner has the option of holding on to those herbs for their own use.

If you are interested in joining us on this journey as a homeowner with land please e-mail us at sagerisingherbs@gmail.com and check out our facebook page under Sage Rising Herbs.

First Huron Artisans Fair took place on Nov. 17

By Jacqueline Schifano

The event, organized by Leigh Chestnuthall and members of St. Thomas’ Anglican Church spent a beautiful Saturday appreciating and acquiring some of the great work by the artists within the Huron Street community.

“I’ve been wanting to do this for years,” said Chestnuthall, “because we do live in a community of artisans and some of them don’t even know each other and so it would be wonderful to have them all together and have the whole community come and see what they do.”

The event included works by local painters, a potter, a jewelry maker, fabric and print artists and more.

Patrons were also treated to live musical performances throughout the event.

Despite the apparent success of the event, Chestnuthall said this fair will likely be the only one.

“A lot of our artists are not producing anymore or retired. Two of our artists are just showing today, and not selling,” she said.

Despite the uncertain future of a second Huron Artisans Fair, the event was a great way to get in a little early holiday shopping and spend a Saturday afternoon.

A portion of the proceeds from the event went to support St. Thomas’ church’s Out of the Cold program.

The Royal Ontario Museum opens new textile showcase

By Katie O’Connor

When the Royal Ontario Museum commissioned a haute-couture dress from fashion house Christian Dior, they had little idea how big its significance would become.

One month after the deep red dramatic coat dress was revealed to the world, its Dior designer John Galliano, was arrested and subsequently fired for making anti-Semitic remarks.

The dress, which is not only big in scandal, but in price ($100,000) and time (it took 500 hours to make), is the centrepiece of the ROM’s newest exhibit “BIG”.

Located on the fourth floor in the Patricia Harris Gallery of Textiles and Costume, the display features textiles from across the world that are in some way or another, big – big in size, big names, big ideas, big historical significance, even big in price.

“‘BIG’ is not just about size, “ said Dr. Alexandra Palmer, senior curator of textiles and costume. “Even the smallest textile can have big personal, social and cultural value that shift according to context.”

The exhibit features 40 items and draws from the ROM’s collection of nearly 50,000 costumes and textiles.

The centrepiece of the BIG exhibit, a dress by John Galliano for Christian Dior.
PHOTO BY KATIE O’CONNOR

In addition to the Christian Dior dress, items on display included a centuries old Peruvian macaw feather tunic preserved in coastal Peru for over 600 years, Chinese shoes for bound feet, 7.5 cm long from around 1910 to 1915, American fibreglass textiles, and evening gowns designed by Alexander McQueen, Tom Ford and Vivienne Tam.

To accompany the exhibit, the ROM will also run a series of symposiums and lectures throughout the year, dealing with a variety of issues in fashion, from the John Galliano scandal, to fur and body size.

Dr. Sarah Fee, associate curator of Eastern Hemisphere Textiles and Costume, said they hope to use the exhibit to invite people to think about fashion on a larger scale, and to tackles its issues face on.

“That’s part of what informs what we do,” she said. “These things are a big part of the story, and need to be brought forward.”

BIG runs from Nov. 3, 2012 until Fall 2013. For more information visit rom.on.ca

From Christmas installations to increasing security at the Brunswick House

By: Kelly Gabel

The monthly Bloor Annex Business Improvement Area (BIA) meeting took place Oct. 16 at Kilgour’s Bar Meets Grill (509 Bloor Street W.) and was led by treasurer and secretary, Brian Burchell.

On the agenda was the approval of the 2013 budget plan. A total of $127,036 expenditures planned for the budget cost share amount during 2013. Last year the City Council approved $124,256.00 which included the 1.76% HST impact.

Also on the agenda was the proposal to hang Christmas decorations throughout the Annex by local artist Robin Donovan. Donovan said he plans to install two mistletoe ornaments decorated with tinsel and a vinyl sign underneath on the sidewalk reading “Kiss me here/ Under the Mistletoe/Bloor Annex BIA”.

“We’re creating a unique venue for romance and entertainment,” said Burchell. The plans are still underway and are expected to be up and running for the month of December.

The last order of business discussed during the meeting was the increase of security that is now taking place late on Saturday nights at the Brunswick House (481 Bloor Street W.).

“The Brunswick House is one of our members and over many years there’s been a consistently expressed concern from businesses and residences alike that the Brunswick House was a nebulous of a problem,” said Burchell.

“Vandalism, specifically around closing time and sometimes violence which results from the crowds leaving all at once, but can also result from being rejected from the house for misconduct or over-consumption. And that violence causes a reputation for the neighborhood that’s otherwise quite a peaceful and safe place,” he said adding, “some of our members experienced their windows being broken. The businesses with glass windows as a result had difficulty maintaining their insurance over that. So they’ve had to self-insure.”

The Brunswick House is now paying a constable along and three officers to be on duty between the hours of 11 p.m – 3 a.m. in hopes that patrons would feel the need to act more appropriately while attending or leaving the bar.

For more information on the Bloor Annex BIA visit bloorannexbia.com.

A look into the security measures at the TTC

By Samina Esha

After three Dupont station robberies between 2011 and February of this year, no arrests have been made. Security camera footage indicates that all robberies were carried out by the same masked person. On the third robbery, shots were fired at a TTC fare collector, hospitalizing him.

According to Danny Nicholson, the TTC’s supervisor of corporate communications, TTC stations are very safe.

“The safety and security of our customer is our number one priority,” said Nicholson, “We have surveillance cameras everywhere and the Dupont station shooting would be an example of how our surveillance cameras can help to catch criminals.”

[pullquote]“We are doing everything we can to take this person off the streets.” – Staff Inspector Mike Earl[/pullquote]

The victim was William Anderson, a fare collector and a father in his early 50s. He was shot twice in his upper chest and neck by a handgun-wielding bandit during an attempted robbery Feb. 26 at the Dupont station. In May, for the first time in its history, the TTC announced a $25,000 reward for any information about the shooting but despite the reward, the suspect is still at large.

“We did get a lot of tips and they are still coming in but we have nothing new at the moment,” said Staff Inspector Mike Earl.

He said  the TTC surveillance cameras were helpful as it captured the robber’s image. However, due to the black mask, the suspect could not be identified.

“This is the third time that this has happened and we believe it is the same person. We are doing everything we can to take this person off the streets. So, any information we can get from the public is helpful,” said Earl.

Toronto police is asking for the public assistance with the Dupont station shooting on Feb. 26. PHOTO BY SAMINA ESHA

All three robberies took place on weekends, late in the evening. Since the Dupont shooting there have been talks of installing bulletproof glass or switching to automated fare collection – but so far there have been no upgrades.

TTC spokesperson Milly Bernal said, “for security reasons”, the TTC cannot give out any details about its security measures.

“It can be scary at nights when it’s empty and you are the only one working. Mainly because they didn’t even catch the robber yet,” said a TTC employee working at the station, who wished to remain anonymous.

The employee said that while the cameras are helpful they cannot prevent a robbery.

“We have cameras but how would that help me when I am at gunpoint? As for security it’s still the same, didn’t see anything new.”

Nicholson said for security, the TTC offers different safety programs such as request stop on surface routes 9 p.m. – 5 a.m., designated waiting areas on subway and RT platforms with intercoms, and security cameras.

“We have security cameras in all of our buses, streetcars and subway and there is presence of Toronto Police, and transit patrol unit,” he said. “Over the years we have reunited hundreds of small children with their families.”

In addition, victims of assault have often found refuge on the TTC and have always been protected until the police arrived.

“Our employees are the eyes and ears of our system and they are always watching over things,” Nicholson said.

While violent attacks are rare at TTC, verbal assaults are common, and TTC employees are eager for a more immediate form of security.
Currently police are looking for a white, heavyset man between the age of 35 and 50 and between 5 feet 5 inches and 5 feet 9 inches in height, who they believe was involved in all three incidents connected to the Dupont station robbery.

If you or anyone you know has information that could help with this case, please contact 14 Division at (416) 808-1400.
The TTC is the third most heavily used transit system in North America and in 2011, the average daily ridership for the TTC was 2.59 million passengers.

MP and city councillors support proposition

By Andrew Schopp

A new home is needed to showcase Toronto’s history, and Casa Loma may be just the ticket.

“The reason why it is a very good venue is because Casa Loma is recognized as one of the top three tourists attractions in the city of Toronto,” said city councillor Joe Mihevc (Ward 21 St. Paul’s).

Mihevc said artifacts from Toronto’s aboriginal, colonial, and post confederation periods should be on display in a Toronto museum, rather than collecting dust in an Etobicoke warehouse.

Montreal and Vancouver both have museums celebrating their municipal history, but Canada’s largest city lacks such a venue.

Mihevc and MP Carolyn Bennett (St. Paul’s) agreed that Casa Loma serves as the perfect site for a Toronto museum.

“It is accessible by public transit, it is associated with Toronto and we have facilities there that would require some renovation, but could be used for his purpose,” he said.

Casa Loma sits just north of the border separating Bennett’s St. Paul’s riding and Trinity-Spadina and is just a few blocks from Dupont subway station.

“When you go to the archives and you see what’s there, I always think it’s very exciting but it is not a place that people go,” said Bennett adding, “to move some of those collections over to Casa Loma where people can see them, not only Torontonians but everybody who comes to our city, I think it would just be a huge success,” she said.

City councillor Joe Mihevc and MP Carolyn Bennett (St. Pauls) both agree, Casa Loma serves the perfect site for a Toronto museum.
PHOTO BY ANDREW SCHOPP

On Oct. 3,  “Future options for Casa Loma” was on council’s agenda. City councillor Josh Matlow (Ward 22 St. Paul’s) presented a motion stating that all respondents to the REOI (Requests For Expressions of Interest), “consider the feasibility of including the Museum of Toronto in their submission.”

The motion passed with only nine opposing votes, one of which was Toronto Mayor Rob Ford.

While the city is seeking a future operator for the historic site, Bennett said a Toronto museum in Casa Loma could generate enough revenue to prevent the sale of the castle, and protect the historic site from becoming a gaudy hotel or casino.

“I think that from school groups to tourism that in destination travel obviously people want to come and learn something and I think that it is not only the building but what’s inside and we have a tremendous opportunity,” she said.

After hearing responses to the REOI, council will move forward.

“Right now we are going to send out a request for expressions of interest saying yes this could be done, seeing what ideas have come out there. At the same time we are doing a request for proposals, which is a much more detailed document for people who want to use the main building for tourism and event promotion,” said Mihevc.

Genre festival makes it way back to the Annex

By Katie O’Connor

The Toronto After Dark Film Festival (TADFF) is back, and this year it’s bigger than ever.

The critically acclaimed genre film festival turns seven this year, and has expanded to nine nights of programming.

The festival showcases feature length science fiction, cult, horror, and action movies as well as short films from around the world, and is known for promoting independent filmmaking.

In that independent spirit, TADFF has added one more item to their roster for 2012 – videogames.

The ‘Toronto After Darkcade’ is a video game showcase featuring 18 independently created and produced games that fall into the horror, sci-fi and action genres.

Festival Director Adam Lopez said response to the Darkcade has been great.

“Well we had a lot of interest over the years from Toronto’s vibrant indie game community to get involved with our thrilling film festival so we decided why not? Let’s add it in.”

Festival goers will have a chance each night after the film screenings to check out the games.

TADFF will also offer pub social nights at Paupers Pub (539 Bloor Street West), giving festival goers and filmmakers the chance to mingle and discuss the films they have just watched.

Filmmaker Chris Nash has screened his films at past festivals and said getting to talk about the films with the audience is the best part.

“I have walked out after a few After Dark screenings not really understanding what I’ve watched only to be given an incredibly insightful deconstruction and evaluation of the film by other audience members which have shed a new light and appreciation onto the work,” he said.
Top picks for 2012:

American Mary – Thursday October 18 @ 9:45 PM

An opening night film by the Canadian Soska sisters (also known as the Twisted Twins) about a medical student who becomes desperate as her mountain of debt begins to pile high. To make some money on the side, she is drawn into an underground world of surgical modifications, which she likes a little more than she thought she would…The film stars fan favourite Katherine Isabelle from Ginger Snaps.

Cockneys and Zombies – Saturday October 20 @ 9:45 PM

In an effort to save their grandfather Ray’s retirement home from being replaced by condos, brothers Andy and Terry rob a bank. Just as they are about to make their getaway with the money, they find their way blocked, not by police… but by hordes of the undead. Meanwhile, their grandfather Ray and the retirees are forced to fight off another zombie horde, hip replacements and all. It’s zombies, East End London style.

Universial Soldier – Day of Reckoning – Sunday October 21 @ 6:45 PM

In the latest chapter of the Univerial Soldier series, Scott Atkins (Expendables 2) plays a revenge seeking soldier on the hunt for Universial Soldier Luc Devereux (playing by Jean-Claude Van Damme) who has gone AWOL. Meanwhile, Van Damme teams up with a group of renegade soldiers (including Dolph Lundgren) who are bent on revolution.

By Susan Oppenheim

I am a freezer girl and a packrat gourmand. I love the “hunt and gather “ and I live with a 24 hours Sobeys up the lane at Shaw and Dupont, a Loblaws three  blocks away at Christie and Dupont and a Fiesta Farms about 20 doors from my house.This week alone I have taken advantage of their in store specials buying ½ price butter, 2 for 1 berry boxes and $4 off litres of maple syrup.

I use those saved yogurt and margarine containers to neatly stack my berries, fruits, herbs and veggies in my freezer for the long winter ahead. Here are some shopping tips I use to buy up great stuff at really good prices.

I can now easily spot those supermarket discounted pink or yellow stickers -pink is 50 per cent off and yellow is 30 per cent .This can apply  to poultry, fish , meats, packaged and prepared foods,  and baked goods. If it is meat, check the dates (give it at least two days before expiry date marked) and  the colour and condition of the meat-it should be pinkish. Get some good sealing baggies and portion your freezer items to suit your family. And never be shy  to open anything and have a good look or a sniff before paying!

Berries such as blueberries, raspberries and blackberries get put “as is” directly into my containers – except for strawberries that I halve and coat with a syrup of a few pureed strawberries as they have a natural pectin. Cherries I pit, halve and coat with a bit of lemon juice and sugar. Peaches, apricots, nectarines etc are dropped into boiling water for about 10 seconds removed quickly then peeled and  cut into wedges. These are tossed also with a bit of lemon juice, sugar and their natural juices and frozen.

Herbs – fresh basil, dill, and parsley are rolled up by hand into “golf balls” then wrapped in tin foil, and frozen. As you use them you slice or shave a bit off and use freely just as you would fresh. Veggies like corn (shaved from the cobs), green beans, broccoli, cauliflowers etc are portioned, placed into boiling water, and quickly drained and frozen. Blanched is the term used. The only two things I find do not freeze well at all are cooked potatoes and mushrooms.

Fiesta has a clearance produce rack and discounted ground beef every night at around 9 p.m. I once got exotic mushrooms and strung them up and dried them for future use in sauces and soups. There are usually ripe bananas for smoothies or baking and sweet peppers and tomatoes that I only have to pop into bags and store. This becomes the foundation of my spaghetti sauces through the winter.

Loblaws nightly clears out all baked goods: muffins, breads, croissants, buns and bagels 2 for 1 at 9 p.m. Many of their whole fancy cakes at the back often have a 50 per cent off pink sticker on them and easily freeze.The best real finds are on holiday long weekends.This is when a lot of the prepared foods also get cleared out. Try Sunday around 9 before the mandatory Monday closing. The meat person puts on the 50 per cent off stickers around 9 at night.The policy at both Sobeys and Loblaws is that if an item advertised on sale in the flyer is not available they must give you a printed rain check and if the cash register rings it up at a different price it is yours for free!

Freezer find fruit cobbler – 375 degree oven for 1 hour

Pam or grease a deep baking dish. I like using pyrex myself but anything will work. Place your fruit into the dish – I used up a bag of three cups of frozen blueberries and added two raw apples – macintosh or spy – (peeled seeded and cut into chunks).You can just use all fresh or all frozen. Have fun with your combinations.

In a cuisinart or using a pastry knife cut or process one cup butter, one cup any flour and one cup brown sugar. Keep it crummy not smooth.You can add a tsp of cinnamon or ginger or allspice if you want. Toss together with one cup of granola or raw oats. Sprinkle evenly over the fruit and bake in the center of the oven for an hour. Serve warm with cream or ice cream.

Terri Chu

Halloween is just around the corner and the day after the candy is safely stowed in kids’ underwear drawers, stores will turn their displays to Christmas. If you’re like me, I cringe on the first garbage day after Christmas to see all the waste the festive season generates. However, with a little bit of effort, we can reduce what hits the Greenlane landfill and save a few trucks from making the 200 kilometre journey with our trash.

I learned an interesting thing this summer when a dear friend invited me over for dinner. Pressed for time, I couldn’t make the usual dessert I would normally bring over so on our way out the door we grabbed the plastic container from last night’s blueberries. We filled it to the brim with raspberries from our yard and brought that along with the obligatory bottle of red shiraz. At the dinner, another invitee also brought a bottle of wine, but his was home made! Yes, he grew the grapes, squished them, fermented them, and did whatever it is that magically produces a bottle of delicious red wine.

While our raspberries and this bottle of home made wine were gushed over, the bottle of store bought shiraz sat neglected and forgotten on the kitchen counter. The host graciously commented how much she appreciated the gift, but the reality is that personal effort was appreciated far more than token gifts from the store. There’s something about making something yourself that is so rare in this day and age that when it happens, it’s appreciated far more than any store bought trinket.

Around the same time my neighbour gave me a piece of homemade olive oil soap with an amazing fresh scent. It was so nice to be on the receiving end of a homemade gift. I treasured it, and used it sparingly until it was all gone.

Homemade gifts are not only eco-friendly, they’re precious (but not expensive). If you had a garden in the summer, preserves from the fall harvest would be appreciated by almost everyone. You could easily make your own preserves and gift them in reusable (preferable reused) jars. Lots of stores in the Annex sell tools for baking, preserving, or candle and soap making.

Rather than wrapping your gifts in single use gift wrap that inevitably ends up in the landfill, consider reusing a decorative gift bag. These bags are available in abundance at our new dollar store or Honest Ed’s if you have to buy them. This way the receiver can reuse these bags too! Remember, most recycling ends up in the landfill. Nothing beats stemming waste at the source.

In our fast paced society, I think it’s nice to take a bit of time to get in touch with our creative sides. Rather than the obligatory over packaged Rudolph mug this year for those gift exchanges, see how much better your homemade efforts are received. Go Green without envy.

Debate visits City Hall

By Josh Zeliger

Whether a casino is in the cards for downtown Toronto will be up in the air until next year, but that hasn’t deterred developers from posturing for public approval and pandering to City Councilors.

In the first concrete plan for a casino complex downtown, Oxford Properties Group recently unveiled a $3.1 billion proposal, covering 11 acres of land around the CN Tower.

The complex includes a large urban park, luxury hotel, three-floor shopping mall, 4,000 parking spaces, two sizable office towers, and a new convention centre all designed by renowned architectural firm, Foster + Partners.

Beyond the glitz and glam, Oxford is also promising the complex will be a boon to provincial government and City coffers. They say the property tax revenue from the casino and office towers will net $50 million annually. And Oxford, which is owned by OMERS, a massive pooled pension fund of civil servants in Ontario, isn’t done there; they are also promising to build a new convention centre, funded entirely with private money.

However, the deal hinges on whether City Council will rezone the area to allow for gambling. And many in City Hall are skeptical Torontonians want a casino. In 1997, when the city held a referendum on the issue, 72 per cent of citizens opposed opening a gambling establishment.

“Torontonians overwhelmingly voted against a casino and all recent polls have backed that up. So why would we go against the will of the people of Toronto?” said Mike Layton, City Councillor for ward 19, in a phone interview.

During an evening Toronto and East York Community Council committee meeting on Oct. 10 to discuss rezoning parts of the downtown to allow for a gambling establishment, citizens largely opposed the casino – with the only supporters being lobbyists and unions primed to benefit from a development.

“This can be an iconic, game changing development creating 6,000 construction jobs, thousands of stable jobs and millions of tourist dollars,” said William Rutsey, the CEO of the Canadian Gaming Association — a member organization including the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) —  during the committee.“Casino gaming will only be about 10 per cent of the product,” he said.

Layton said he worries local businesses and families will lose out if City Council votes to rezone.

“A casino isn’t an economic development strategy for a community. Local businesses on Queen, College, Dundas and Bloor Streets will be hurt by it when people spend their entertainment dollars elsewhere,” he said.

Layton said he also fears the social impact for citizens who have gambling problems.

He said the big winners will be The House and the Provincial Government.

“The Province sees this as a silver bullet for their financial hardships,” said Layton.
Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan projects that by opening a new casino and shutting down other facilities (presumably the slots at Woodbine Racetrack); the province could recoup $1.3 billion.

The debate over whether a casino will be coming to town began in March, when the OLG announced it would open a new casino in the GTA. OLG President Paul Godfrey promised to create thousands of jobs and $3 billion of private investment – as Oxford has shown.

Godfrey also said a casino would not open in a municipality that does not want one, giving City Council the deciding vote.

Exhibition in the Annex shows what it means to be homeless

Visitors to the Beit Zatoun House view Your Life, Our Life, a new exhibition exploring what it means to be homeless. Photo by Kristin Eliason

By Kristin Eliason

In the heart of the Annex lives a place with a lot of the same.

The Beit Zatoun House (612 Markham Street), is a space where the social justice and human rights community gather for performance and art. It holds multiple events per month, ranging from workshops to concerts, talks and book launches.

Robert Massoud, its founder, describes the space as, “…the intersection of art, culture, politics and society, in a very grassroots kind of way.”

This philosophy made Beit Zatoun House an easy choice for co-creators Alexandra Gater and Hala Sayed when deciding on a location for their new show Your Life, Our Life.

Showing until Oct 7, Your Life, Our Life features photographs from youth at Touchstone Youth Centre (1076 Pape Avenue). Their photos centre around different aspects of what it means to be a homeless youth.

[pullquote]“I wanted people to see that everybody is different and our lives are just like theirs. You’re going to find people of every sort everywhere you go and we’re just the same.” – Samantha Crozier, photographer[/pullquote]

Working as summer outreach workers for the organization HEYY (Hearing Every Youth through Youth), both Gater and Sayed said they were inspired by conversations they had while giving a workshop at Touchstone.

They said the youth felt judged, misunderstood, and excluded from the community.

“My goal,” Gater explained, “was to give the youth a voice in a community that they didn’t feel a part of.”

Empowerment through art and freedom of expression is the path they chose towards their goal.

Youth were given disposable cameras and the theme of the show was left up to them. Their decision to take pictures that represented themselves and their lives led them to the title of their show.

The end result is an exhibition of photos ranging from youth working or at the centre, to others capturing images of homeless life and personal experience.

One photographer, Samantha Crozier, displayed a lone dandelion with the caption, ‘this is how I feel… how a lot of youth feel; alone and not helped.’

Many of her photos sold right away.

“I’m happy that people love my photos,” said Crozier, “I wanted people to see that everybody is different and our lives are just like theirs. You’re going to find people of every sort everywhere you go and we’re just the same.”

Sayed agrees. “I hope that [with this show] some of those stigmas will be reconsidered,” she said.

For more information on Beit Zatoun House, HEYY or Touchstone Youth Centre, please visit their websites at beitzatoun.org, heyy.net and touchstoneyc.org

By Samori Bryan

On the morning of Oct. 8, employees of the second-hand goods store Cash Converters (570 Bloor St. W.) found the glass door of their shop broken into and a quantity of electronic items stolen.

Fourteen division responded to an automated alarm around midnight at the store where officers discovered that a break and entry had occurred.

“Somebody broke into thee cash converters [during the night], and stole a quantity of electronic items,” said Const. J. Smith, the investigating officer.

Smith said the suspect climbed through the bottom window and did not steal any money but proceeded to shoplift a series of electronic equipment.

Smith said there are video surveillance cameras at the front of the store and inside. He also said the public is in no danger and that nothing substantial was stolen.

If you have any information regarding these break ins, please contact 14 Division at 416-808-1400.