Blood Donor Clinic Starts This Afternoon

Canadian Blood Service says its looking for more donor's for this week's blood donor clinic in Kenora.

Right now there are 49 appointment times still available tonight and tomorrow morning.

Harvey Heather from Canadian Blood Services says the need starts to pick at this time of year.

The Blood Donor Clinic will run from 4:30 until 9:00 tonight at St. Thomas Aquinas, and then again tomorrow from 9:30 to 12:30.

Thistles to Face the Real McCoys For the Renwick Cup

The Kenora Senior Thistles now know who they'll face in the Renwick Cup.

The Thistles will travel to Dundas next weekend to take on the Real McCoys in a best-of-three series.

The winner will move on to the Allan Cup.

Dundas won the southern Ontario title last night with a sudden death 5-4 overtime victory over Whitby in seventh and deciding game of their series.

The Thistles were supposed to play Fort Frances for the right to play the southern Ontario champs, but the Thunderhawks folded their team before the end of the season due to a lack of players.

Ontario Worst Roads Back

It's time once again to cast your vote in the Ontario Worst Roads campaign.

Pelican Falls Road in Sioux Lookout was voted the worst road in Ontario in 2010.

Spokesperson Korey Kennedy says this is the perfect time to select a road that you are fed up with.

Kennedy says since 2003, more than 90-percent of the roadways nominated have been repaired or are scheduled to be repaired.

Health Care changes in the Region Applauded

The Kenora Chiefs Advisory is embracing a new blueprint for health care in northwestern Ontario.

Joe Barnes is the executive director and says for too long, heath care groups have been working on their own.

Earlier this week, the Northwest Local Health Integration Network came out with a new health strategy for the region, creating five seperate Districts which will develop and implement their own plans.

Kenora Catholic District School Board to receive more Funding next year

The Kenora Catholic District School Board is expecting a boost in its education grant from the province next year.

The separate school system will see an increase in funding next year of about 75 thousand dollars.

Their budget will go up to just over 20 million dollars starting in the fall.

Most of the increase is being attributed to higher enrolments.

Public School Board facing big budget cuts

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board is looking at a million dollar hit to its budget next year.

Last week, the provincial government outlined exactly much much each school board would be getting for the 2012/2013 school year.

Superintendant of Business Dean Carrie says its going to be a challenge to balance their budget this year.

If there is a bright spot, its in the all-day everyday kindergarten program.

The public school board will be getting an extra 800 thousand dollars next year to expand the all day JK and SK programs in the region.

Tourism Officials Concerned about Ontario Tourism Bureau closures

Local Tourism officials aren't sure what impact the closure of the Ontario Tourism office on at the Manitoba Border will have on their operations.

Last week, the province announced it was permanently closing three tourist bureaus in northwestern Ontario.

Kenora's Tourism Development Officer Heather Paterson says the closure presents some challenges and some opportunities for them.

Fort Frances and Rainy River will also see their Tourism Ontario offices closed down this year.

City starts branding itself

We have the brand, now we have to find a way to use it.

That's the challenge for the Brand Leadership Team now that Kenora is being promoted as North America's Premier Boating Destination.

Randy Nickle is chair of the city's tourism committee and says he's excited by the possibilities.

Nickle says the brand leadership team has a to do list of some 80 items to get the city ready to begin using its new marketing image.

OFAH Concerned about Cuts at the MNR

The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters wasn't surprised the Provincial Government decided to overhaul the MNR.

A 3 year transformation plan is included in the Provincial budget and OFAH Spokesperson Greg Ferrant says they'll be meeting with Minister Gravelle about it.

The plan calls for some staff and offices to be reduced and will be implemented if the budget is passed.

Kids for Cancer Tournament sets a new Record

The week long Kids for Cancer three on three hockey tournament proved to be an unqualified success.

At the end of play yesterday, 52 thousand dolars had been raised, more than doubling last year's tally.

Proceeds from the tournament will be split between the Canadian Cancer Society and the Lake of the Woods Hospital Foundation.

Midget Thistles winless at Telus Western Championships

A tough weekend for the Kenora Triple "a" midget Thistles at the Telus Western Championships.

The Thistles failed to win a game in their three game round robin.

Their last game on Saturday was a 4-0 defeat at the hands of the Saskatoon Contacts.

The Contacts went on to win the Western Final, beating the host team, the Southwest Cougars 5-1 yesterday afternoon.

They now advance to the national midget championships later this month.

Three Arrested in Death of Pikangikum Youth

Three youth from Pikangikum have been charged with murder in connection to the death of a 17 year old boy in the remote northwestern Ontario community.

The OPP say they charged a 17 year old youth on Wednesday with murder in connection in the death of Calvin Quill.

His body was found behind a home in Pikangikum late Tuesday night.

Yesterday, police laid charges against two other people, a 16 year old boy and a 17 year old male.

All three all due to appear in Kenora Court today.

New Marketing Brand Adopted for Kenora

Call it Brand Aid.

A new tourism marketing concept has been developed for the city of Kenora.

Tourism Guru Roger Brooks has been helping a local group and says he likes

the idea of marketing Kenora as North America's Premier Boating Destination.

A branding committee has spent the past two months going through a number of ideas for a marketing concept, and spent the past three days in an intensive process to select the one idea while will now be used to advertise the city locally, nationally and internationally.

NOACC Approves of Federal Budget

The Northwestern Ontario Associated Chambers of Commerce is giving the Federal budget two thumbs up.

Harold Wilson is the Chief Operating Officer of NOACC and says he's especially pleased that a mining investment incentive has been left untouched for now.

 Wilson says he's also happy that the environmental assessment process is being streamlined

Three Northwestern Ontario Tourism Bureaus Closing

The full impact of the provincial budget is just starting to be felt.

The province has announced that its closing the Tourist Bureau on Highway 17 west at the Ontario/Manitoba border.

That's one of three tourism centers being closed across the region.

The Tourist Information Center in Fort Frances at the Canada/U.S. border is being shut down along with the one in Rainy River.

The Ontario Tourism Marketing Partnership is blaming low visitor numbers for the decision to close the centers.

MNR Restructuring

The Ministry of Natural Resources is looking to transform itself.

The Provincial Government included a 3 year plan in the budget that would look at cutting staff and offices.

Minister Michael Gravelle says it was bound to happen since the MNR is running a defecit.

The plan will be implemented if the Provincial budget is passed.

Campbell Angry with God's Lake Payout

Kenora-Rainy River M.P.P. Sarah Campbell is accusing the provincial government of throwing away taxpayers money.

Campbell is angry Minister of Northern Development and Mines Rick Bartolucci has agreed to pay God's Lake Resources 3.5 million dollars for its mining claims in the Big Trout Lake area.

Campbell suggests the government could have avoided the expensive pay-out if it had convened a joint panel, as promised back in 2009 to resolve outstanding issues between the community and God's Lake.

She says Ontario has to be the only province in Canada where a mining company can make a substantial profit without having to break ground.

OPP investigate Fatality in Pikangikum

The body of a 17-year-old boy has been found in the remote Northern community of Pikangikum.

Provincial Police say Calvin Quill was reported missing on Tuesday afternoon.

His body was found behind a home late that night.

Police are treating his death as suspicious.

A post mortem examination is pending.

Ice Anglers Reflect on Their Adventure on Lake of the Woods

A group of American ice anglers rescued off a giant ice floe on Lake of the Woods celebrated the adventure by frying up its catch of the day and kicking back with beers.

Tracy Sobush, one of the 13 men from Wisconsin, says they didn't factor in the wind would loosen a piece of the ice near Birch Point on the Manitoba side of Lake of the Woods.

More than a dozen rescue workers and firefighters were called out and a special airboat was brought in. to help rescue the men.

Thistles lose to the Cougars in Virden

Not the start the Kenora Triple "a" midget Thistles wanted at the Telus Western Regional Championships in Virden.

The Thistles were blanked 4-0 last night by the host Southwest Cougars.

The Thistles managed just 14 shots on net in a losing cause.

The tournament doesn't get any easier today, as the Kenora Midgets face the top team in the Manitoba Midget Hockey League today.

The Thistles will face the Winnipeg Wild at 5:00.

The Wild played to a 3-3 tie with the Saskatoon contacts yesterrday afternoon.