Another large company is gone from the community as National Silicates shut its doors last month after 92-years in business.

About 100 employees at the 429 Kipling, at Horner Avenue, plant will be out of jobs with the closure. In its heyday, it had i68 manufacturing facilities in 19 countries and five continents.

The company goes back to 1815, with Joseph Crosfield and Sons in Warrington, England; and 1831, with Joseph Elkinton and Sons in Philadelphia, started with the manufacture of candles and soaps, beginning a two-century story of innovation.

The firm grew to more than 1,500 employees and generated over $800 million in revenue.

National Silicates has been serving customers in Canada since 1931, and was the first non-U.S. subsidiary of The PQ Corporation.

Lynda Ryder, president of the Rotary Club Etobicoke, worked at the company for 47 years and said it is sad to see another large company leave the community.

“I describe the people that I worked with as friends and confidantes,” said Ryder, a former board member with the firm. “It’s been very sad for everyone.”

She cited companies like Canadian General Tower, Goodyear Rubber, Campbell’s Soup, Gilbey’s Distilleries and many others which have left the community, or shut down, over the years.

“Most of those presidents were also Rotarians who gave back to our community,” she said. “Strong personal ties have remained at the core of National Silicate’s culture and this close-knit team has made it a great place to work.”

Ryder said the company, which won awards for business excellence, encouraged employees to volunteer in their communities, and was a supporter of the Santa Claus Parade, Tree Planting in Marie Curtis Park, LAMP, Dorothy Ley Hospice, Women’s Habitat and the Jean Tweed Centre.

“As we close our doors for the last time, we leave behind an amazing community,” she said. “We are friends and most of us are, in reality family.”

National Silicates was headquartered in Toronto and had production and distribution facilities in Valleyfield, Quebec; Toronto, Fort Frances, Whitecourt, Alberta; Surrey and Parksville, B.C.

The company’s Global Centre for Pulp and Paper Excellence was in Etobicoke and staffed by highly trained scientists who conducted research and development, as well as technical service.

Its principal product is sodium silicate used in the bleaching of wood pulp for paper manufacture and water treatment, among its many uses.

The PQ Corporation and its affiliates was the world’s largest producer of sodium and potassium silicates, according to the company’s website.

A family has been hospitalized and is suffering after being struck by a car in New Toronto.

A man and a woman and two children aged between eight and 14 –years-old were bloodied and crying when taken by paramedics as they went flying after being hit.

Police said the woman and children suffered serious injuries after being hit by a vehicle on Lake Shore Blvd., near Thirteenth Street, just before 6:30 p.m. on October 11.

The man was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Police said the four were struck by a vehicle at the same time.

The driver remained at the scene, police said.

It is not known if any charges were laid.

Westbound Lake Shore Boulevard was closed between Twelfth and Fourteenth Streets during the investigation.

Witness said the driver of the vehicle complained he could not see what was in front of him due to the bright evening sun.

Dozens of well-wishers took to social media to offer prayers to the family and a speedy recovery.

Area resident Mallory Leigh said the victims included a mom and her children.

“The mother took the brunt end of it and flew off the wind shield, she was lying on the road,” Leigh wrote. “The kids were off to the side crying and bleeding it was a very scary sight.”

She said the family was walking across the street and the driver of the vehicle told bystanders that he couldn’t see due to the sun.

“People nearby went to the aid of the children and the mom until the paramedics arrived and directed traffic,” she said.

Construction worker Anthony Crocker said he was on his way home from work and watched it happen.

“There was people still trying to go straight through and I had to tell them and redirect them to go down the side roads,” Crocker related. “My thoughts and prayers to whoever the person is that got hit.”

Angelz said the windshield of the vehicle was cracked.

“It just doesn’t make sense cause the pedestrian walk was probably on,” she wrote. “Praying for the whole family and everyone involved.”

Others said the mom was bleeding from her head and the children were crying, with one saying they ‘didn’t want to die.”

 

Toronto Police have stepped up patrols around South Etobicoke temples and mosques following concerns from community leaders in the wake of the Hamas attack in Israel.

Chief Myron Demkiw said he’s increased patrols around places of worship in Toronto and set up two command posts in the Bathurst Street and Steeles Ave. W. area.

Demkiw said police were aware of “global online threats” circulating on October 11 about “events that may occur on October 13.”

“The Service is advising residents that there are currently no credible threats to Jewish communities in our city,” the Chief warned.

Investigators say that in the wake of the attack, police beefed up patrols in Jewish communities as well as cultural centres, synagogues, mosques and other places of worship across the city.

“People can expect to see a continued, increased police presence,” Demkiw said, adding that his officers are working with federal and provincial law enforcement agencies to coordinate and share information.

He said the beefed up police presence began following concerns from community leaders that the war between Israel and Hamas is causing fear in the city.

Officers from other areas have been moved from their regular duties to patrol the areas and work at the command posts.

There are a number of temples, mosques and synagogues in South Etobicoke in which police presence are escalated.

“We are continuing to monitor the situation here in Toronto and will deploy our officers to ensure residents feel a sense of safety and security,” police said.

Demkiw will be meeting in person with some of the community leaders to find out about their concerns and fears.

“We will not tolerate hate or hate speech in this city,” he said. “We are committed to monitoring the safety of citizens in our city.”

Police are investigating a number of incidents involving hateful graffiti sprayed on bus stops and walls in the Toronto area. There were also two cases of hateful graffiti in York Region, and other cities in Canada.

A 21-year-old woman has died in hospital after being struck by a vehicle while crossing busy Brown’s Line.

The woman was hit on October 6 as she crossing midway across the bustling road at Jellicoe Avenue.

Residents have been calling for a traffic light to be installed on that stretch due to the busy traffic.

A light is now being installed there to hopefully curb future pedestrians from being hit.

Police said the woman was crossing the road midblock around 3:45 p.m. when she was struck by a 2018 Volkswagen Passat travelling north on Brown’s Line.

She was rushed to hospital via emergency run in critical condition but doctors couldn’t save her life. She died five days later.

“The Volkswagen made contact with the pedestrian,” officers from Traffic Services said in a release. “The pedestrian was transported to hospital with life-threatening injuries.”

A 36-year-old female driver of the Volkswagen remained at the scene.

Emergency crews arrived to find one person suffering from critical injuries, police said.

Brown’s Line was closed for several hours as police investigated.

Traffic Services are asking local residents, business or drivers, who have security or dash camera footage of the area or incident to contact investigators.

There is no word if charges will be laid.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-1900, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), or at www.222tips.com.

 

 

Two police service dogs (PSD) are being credited for rounding up two alleged thieves who tried to steal from area homeowners.

Police said one daring PSD jumped out of a second floor window after a suspect who tried to escape after an attempted break and enter.

The most recent case involved PSD Zee, and his handler Const. Lydia Cesar, who responded to a possible car thief in the Bloor Street W., and Royal York Road last week.

The alleged thief crashed into a police vehicle as he tried to flee.

“A suspect fled on foot and was tracked by the PSD Zee into a backyard where he was found hiding on the roof of a house,” according to police.

They said the Emergency Task Force and Fire Department were called and the suspect was eventually taken into custody without incident.

Cesar is a 15-year veteran of the force and previously served in various front-line and investigative positions.

Her partner Zee is an 18-month-old Belgian Malinois, who was named in honour of Const. John Zivcic who died on duty in 2013 following a collision. Cesar and Zivcic were long-time friends.

Later, Const. Rabie Kazzouh and PSD Rookie attended a call to a house in the Bathurst Street and St Clair Avenue W. area after someone tried to break and enter a home.

“When PSD Rookie was sent in to search the house he immediately located the suspect who decided to jump out a second floor window in an attempt to escape,” police said.

“Rookie was determined to get the suspect and went right out the window after him, arresting the suspect in a nearby wooded area,” according to his handler.

The PSD did not suffer any injuries.

“Amazing teamwork by all officers and dispatched involved in these two events,” according to a police release.

Etobicoke native, six time Stanley Cup winning goalie and bestselling author Ken Dryden has released his latest book which  is getting great reviews.

The book, called The Class: a Memoir of a Place, a Time and Us, deals with him tracking down former classmates of Class 9G as a student at Etobicoke Collegiate Institute.

The 35 students of what was known as a Selected Class stayed together through high school and would spend more than 200 days a year together, according to a foreword in the book.

“Few had known each other before,” the book stated. “Few have been in other than accidental contact in all the decades since.”

Dryden was one the students, who all came from working class backgrounds. Other students of the 1,600 student school included Olympic gold medalist rower Marney McBean, famous musician Jeff Healy and Harold Ship, founder of the former Ship Centre.

”In his varied, improbable life, he had wondered often how he had gotten from there to here,” the foreword asked.  “He decided to try and find his classmates, to see how they are, what they are doing, how life has been for them.”

The former president of the Toronto Maple Leafs said they (he and former classmates) talked for long hours and ‘most were married, some divorced, most had kids and many grandkids.’

Dryden, now 66, was a goalie for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1970s, during which time the team won six Stanley Cups. He also played for Team Canada in the 1972 Summit Series.

He displayed skill from a young age and was drafted in 1964 by the Montreal Canadiens. Focused on getting an education, he attended Cornell University in 1965.

After he graduated, he made his NHL debut with the Canadiens in 1970, playing in six winning games, which secured him a spot as a goalie for the playoffs.

He has been inducted as an officer of the Order of Canada, the Hockey Hall of Fame and the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame and was a former Member of Parliament and Cabinet Minister. He is the author of a number of best-selling books, including The Game, Home Game (with Roy MacGregor), Game Change, and The Series.

Dryden retired in 1979 after winning six Stanley Cups to pursue a law degree. He turned his attention to writing and his most famous work The Game,  which was released in 1983, is based on his career with the Canadiens became a hockey classic.

He and his wife, Lynda, live in Toronto and have two children and four grandchildren.

‘It (The Class) is a book which asks us to consider, when almost anything seems within reach, what do we reach for?” according to promotional materials.

“Ken has analyzed the period of time and has now put it in writing,” Roger wrote in a review. “I look forward to reading it.”

“Very true, and we of that era had respect for our elders and for each other,” said Miguel. “Well said Ken, Looking forward to reading the book. Wish you long life.”

“Prosperity is good, but people always look for a deeper meaning in life usually politics or religion,” wrote Halina.

“Sounds like Ken was a golden spoon in those golden times,” echoed Dean.

At 488 pages, The Class can be obtained at Amazon.ca or Kindle.

The newest mural that is part of a City mural and street art program has beautified a strip of Mimico and residents love it.

The mural by artist Kayla Buium is getting good reviews from area residents after being completed at the side of Oak Learners Lakeshore Campus, at 394 Royal York Road.

“Our Mimico BIA’S (Business Improvement Association) has been working with Kayla for a few years now,” the BIA said. “You’ve probably seen some of the sidewalk decals that we’ve installed, or the Mimico map on display at our Mimico markets.”

The digital mural of two swans was unveiled on October 28.

Buium said she struggles with executive dysfunction on a daily basis and ’it has been a huge challenge for me my entire life.’

“The two swans represent different parts of me, the side that struggled with dysfunction and the side that manages it, they co-exist in a complicated way but they work,” she said on social media.

She did not want her artwork to be negative saying ‘this mural is about having all the competing thoughts and trying to balance it all.’

”This mural is about accepting everything that we are and choosing to live positively with it, and it may look weird, my accommodations may seem odd, but I’m embracing it,” the artist wrote.

She describes herself as a Montreal-based muralist and illustrator who creates surreal narratives about femmehood.

“My work focuses on exploring themes of identity, sexuality, mental health and self-love while featuring animals and nature,” according to her website.

The mural was made possible with funds from the City of Toronto Mural and Street Art Program, Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA)  and Mimico BIA.