Two of Canada’s top flying aces in WWI had strong ties to South Etobicoke and the Curtiss Flying School near Marie Curtis Park almost 100 years ago.

Top shooters and fighter pilots Afred Clayburn Atkey and Raymond ‘Collie’ Collishaw it is said honed their aerial fighting skills while practicing at the Long Branch Aerodrome, which was part of the Curtiss Flying School, located just west of Marie Curtis Park. The school operated from 1915 to 1919.

Collishaw, 82, who had 60 aerial victories, was a distinguished Canadian fighter pilot, squadron leader, and commanding officer who served in the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) and later the Royal Air Force.

He was the highest scoring RNAS flying ace and the second highest scoring Canadian pilot during WWI.

Collishaw in retirement researched First World War aerial history and corresponded widely with former pilots, historians and enthusiasts

His memoir Air Command, A Fighter Pilot’s Story was published in 1973.

Collishaw died in September 1976 in West Vancouver at the age of 82.

He was widely noted as a very competent and charismatic leader, in all his various capacities. He emphasized camaraderie amongst his men, socializing, and humour.

The Royal Canadian Air Cadets 205 Collishaw squadron, was named after him in his hometown of Nanaimo, and the 204 Black Maria Squadron, was named after his aircraft.

He became a commissioned officer in the Royal Air Force (RAF), seeing action against the Bolsheviks in 1919-20, and subsequently commanding various Air Service detachments. During WWII he commanded No. 204 Group, which later became the Desert Air Force in North Africa, achieving great success against the technologically superior Italian Air Force. He retired in 1943.

A terminal at Nanaimo Airport was named the Nanaimo-Collishaw Air Terminal in his honour in October 1999.

Atkey, 77, of Toronto, was a Canadian First World War flying ace, who was credited with 38 aerial victories, making him the fifth highest scoring ace.

“All those above him flew in single-seat fighters,” whereas Atkey gained his victors in heavier two-seat aircraft, becoming the highest scoring two-seater pilot of the war,” according to military records.

The pilot at one time was a reporter for the Toronto Evening Telegram newspaper.

Atkey died in Toronto in 1971 and is buried in Springcreek Cemetery, Mississauga.

He enlisted in the British Army and commissioned as a Second Lieutenant on the Royal Flying Corps. He took part in many aerial fights and with gunny-observer Lt. Chargles George Gass took part in a historic dogfight known as the “Two Against Twenty,” when they battled 20 German enemy scout aircraft

Atkey was awarded the Military Cross and a Bar to the award.

Garfield Ingram, of The Great War Flying Museum, said both pilots are believed to have had links to South Etobicoke and were among the best in the country.

Some replica WW1 aircraft can be seen on the museum’s website at www.greatwarflyingmuseum.org

The Great War Flying Museum, operated by the Ontario Aviation Historical Society, is a not-for-profit volunteer member organization that is based at the Brampton Caledon Airport. They can be reached at 905-838-1400.

 

 

Members of the Tibetan community have been in Canada for many years and a majority have resettled in Toronto, with many ending up in the Mimico area.

The community is active and has been very involved in helping to feed busy emergency and front-line workers as they fight the COVID-19 virus.

The Tibetan Canadian Cultural Centre (TCCC) has teamed up with Little Tibet and Zomsa Café restaurants in Parkdale to feed frontline staff.

Tibetan Canadians are proud to be part of the diverse communities of Ontario and Canada. Tibetans were some of the earliest government-sponsored non-European refugees to settle in Canada.

In the last weeks we have delivered 250 meals to frontline workers in Parkdale, said Tsering Wangyal, president of the TCCC.

Wangyal said the community also wrapped up celebrations of the Year of Gratitude to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, which started in July last year.

The Dalai Lama turned 86 years old on July 6, an occasion that was marked by millions worldwide.

Wangyal said July also marked Tibetan Heritage Month in Ontario, which was decreed by the Ontario government.

“We have a large community of Tibetans now living in the Mimico area,”’ he said.

He said last year the TCCC distributed more than 10,000 hot meals during the peak of covid-19. And to mark the birthday of His Holiness they deliver meals to 250 healthcare workers every Tuesday.

The community have been busy. They have also delivered 150 hot meals to the Cloverdale Mall City-run COVID-19 clinic staff, in addition to 80 meals to Lakeshore Lodge, a long term care centre, at Lake Shore Blvd. W., and Kipling Ave.

They have also fed about 20 workers at Loft Community Services, in Parkdale. And they continue to serve the hot meals without being asked.

There are an estimated 100,000 Tibetans who live in the Toronto-area. Many have resettled in the South Etobicoke area, namely Mimico.

 

It has been 36 years since the disappearance of then eight-year-old Nicole Morin from her Etobicoke home, and the Toronto Police Service has not given up on their search for her.

Police have again made an appeal for information from the public on the anniversary of her disappearance to help locate the now 44 year old woman.
On Tuesday, July 30, 1985, at approximately 11 a.m., it is reported that Nicole left her apartment located on the top floor of 627 The West Mall Etobicoke and was never seen again, police said.

Nicole was described as white, 4’0″, 55 lbs., with straight shoulder-length brown hair, brown eyes, and had a birth mark on her right upper forehead.

In 2019, an updated artist’s rendition was released by Toronto Police to show what she could look like today in the hope someone recognized her.
Since that day, community members near and far, have reported numerous tips, yet police have been unable to bring this investigation to a conclusion and it is still unknown what exactly happened.

Detectives are asking the community to help them find out what happened to Nicole, and provide closure for her family and friends who continue to miss her.
The girl’s disappearance led to hundreds of people conducting unsuccessful searches in the west end for clues to solve the case.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-2205, email at FindNicole@TorontoPolice.on.ca, or contact the Toronto Police Service – Missing Person’s Unit at 416-808-7411.
People can also contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), online at www.222tips.com, online on our Facebook Leave a Tip page, or text TOR and your message to CRIMES (274637). Download the free Crime Stoppers Mobile App on iTunes, Google Play or Blackberry App World.

 

A 29-year-old man is the most recent of four men killed following a collision between a vehicle and a motorcycle in South Etobicoke.

Police were called to Jutland Road and Kipling Avenue just before 3:30 p.m. on July 29 but it was too late.

Paramedics attempted life-saving measures on the young motorcyclist. He was eventually pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver of the vehicle remained at the scene.

It is believed the deceased man worked in the area and had just finished work and was going home.

Kipling Avenue between Jutland Road and Norseman Street was closed in both directions as police investigated.

There has been at least three other fatal motorcycle accidents in the area over the years, police said.

A 61-year-old rider was killed on July 10 following reports of a vehicle hitting a pole and a tree near Lloyd Manor Road and Eglinton Avenue West, west of Kipling Avenue, around 9:45 p.m.

Paramedics said a man was taken to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries. Police said the victim died in hospital the next day.

The cause of the crash is unknown.

Then on June 20, a 35-year-old man was killed following a collision near Lake Shore Boulevard West and Forty Second Street in Long Branch around 10:15 p.m.

Police said the man was driving a 2018 Kawasaki motorcycle, which was travelling east on Lake Shore Boulevard West at a high rate of speed.

The motorcyclist then collided with the driver of the BMW, who was turning to the westbound lanes of Lake Shore Boulevard from Forty Second Street, police said.

The man sustained severe trauma, and despite life-saving efforts, he was pronounced dead at the scene.

And last July 2015, another 29-year-old was killed after the motorcycle he was riding collided with a car again on Kipling Avenue at Jutland Road, north of the Queensway, just after midnight.
Police said it’s not clear which directions either vehicle was going but the car turned in front of the bike, causing the motorcyclist to hit the car and burst into flames.
Two people in the car were taken to hospital with minor injuries.
Once again Kipling was closed in both directions from North Queen Street to Norseman Street for several hours.

 

Good news for deal-searching shoppers.

Liquidator Closeout King is moving into the former Zeller’s store at the Kipling Queensway Mall.

Workers have been carting in and laying out boxes of goods of items for sale at the 1255 The Queensway  store space, at Kipling Ave.

Lots of boxes in piles, mixed goods similar to Zellers could be seen inside the store, in addition to  furniture and household items, according to area resident Ian Robertson.

The store, which has three locations in the GTA, bills itself as ‘Canada’s largest closeout liquidator.’

The liquidator features many online deals and is getting some good reviews.

“Nice place to shopping for variety of items on wholesale prices,“ according to one reviewer online.

Another wrote “great bargains friendly staff lots of great deals“

“Great stuff,” another person said.

The liquidator fills a huge space that was one of Canada’s first Zeller stores, that was opened for decades.

You can see some of the deals on their website closeoutking.ca.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Etobicoke residents are cheering loud and proud for their young swimmers who are now competing in the Tokyo Olympics 2020.

Teenager Summer McIntosh, at 14 is the youngest member of the Canadian Olympic team.

The Grade 10 Student at Silverthorn Collegiate finished fourth and set a Canadian record in the women’s 400-metre freestyle in Tokyo last Sunday night.

McIntosh, along with Katrina Bellio and Ruslan Gasviev, are representing the Etobicoke Swim Club at the Olympics.

McIntosh finished the race with a time of 4:02.42, breaking the national record she set in the event on Saturday night, when she finished in 4:02.72. The previous record was held by Brittany MacLean, at 4:03:43, set at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

McIntosh is scheduled to race in the 800 heats on Thursday.

She is the daughter of Jill Horstead, who swam for Canada in the 1984 Olympic Games. McIntosh made a name for herself last June by edging Penny Oleksiak in the 200-metre freestyle final of the Olympic qualifier to earn a spot on the team.

The strong showing was Canada’s second impressive performance in aquatic events on the night, coming just on the heels of Maggie Mac Neil claiming the country’s first gold medal of the Games.

“It’s definitely just the beginning for me,” McIntosh told The Canadian Press in Tokyo. “It’s amazing that I can have this experience under my belt for the coming years.”

She had to deal with the death in June of her long-time coach Kevin Thorburn.

Katrina Bellio was the lone Canadian in the women’s 1,500, which is making its debut at the Olympics. She briefly held the Games record as the winner of Monday’s first heat in 16:24.37 to shatter her personal best by over five seconds.

However, the 16-year-old from Mississauga, didn’t advance to the final as Australia’s Kiah Melverton, the eighth and final qualifier, clocked a faster time.

“It’s a great feeling to be part of history,” Bellio told reporters. “To be swimming at the Olympics at such a young age is incredible.”

Bellio and McIntosh had been teammates for several years at Etobicoke Swim Club, one of the top teams in Canada, before McIntosh made the jump to the Toronto High Performance Centre.

Bellio won the 1,500 freestyle at the Canadian Olympic Trials, with a time of more than two seconds.

Etobicoke’s Ruslan Gasviev, 21, finished third in the 100-metre freestyle in the 2021 Canadian Olympic swimming trials that took him to Tokyo.

Etobicoke has placed 31 swimmers on Canadian Olympic Teams since 1956.

 

 

 

 

Music fans are calling for Yonge-Dundas Square to be renamed the Oscar Peterson Square in honour of the famous Canadian jazz musician.

Peterson, a former Mimico resident and global music icon, is being suggested by his fans to rename the popular downtown Square after Dundas is removed.

City council have said Dundas Street and other references to Dundas will  be removed due to his connections to the slave trade.

Plans are underway by City staff to rename all the references to Dundas, who had no connections to Canada.

Toronto city council voted in favour of renaming Dundas Street in a bid to promote inclusion of marginalized communities. After a lengthy debate on July 14, council voted 17-7 in favour of a motion to change the name of the street, a major artery running east-west through the city.

Council approved the renaming of Dundas Street due to its namesake’s connection to slavery. Council voted in favour of removing Henry Dundas’ name from the street as well as other civic assets such as Yonge-Dundas Square and Dundas subway station.

Councillor Michael Thompson said he will be the first to suggest that the Square be named after the world-famous jazz musician, who made Mississauga his home.

Thompson, in an interview, said the Square should be named after the Montreal-born musician.

The award-winning pianist lived in Amadeo Gardens in Mimico briefly in the 1980s and loved the area parks. He was honoured by the community in a portrait that hangs in a Lake Shore Village Wall of Legends, with others who helped to transform the area.

Peterson, who died in 2007 at the age of  82, was a Canadian jazz pianist, virtuoso and composer. Called the ‘King of inside swing,’ he released over 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, as well as a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy, and received numerous other awards and honours.

Born in the Caribbean, he is considered one of history’s great jazz pianists, who played thousands of concerts worldwide in a career lasting more than 60 years.

In 1997 he received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and an International Jazz Hall of Fame Award. His friend, politician and amateur pianist Bob Rae, said, “a one-handed Oscar was better than just about anyone with two hands.”

Yonge–Dundas Square is a one acre outdoor public and event space at the intersection of Yonge Street and Dundas Street.  The Square draws visitors from across the city and around the world, bringing a vibrant energy to the neighborhood.  The space has been host to thousands of events ranging from community festivals to product launches, international celebrations and more.