Hundreds of local residents turned out last Tuesday morning to show their support for keeping Osoyoos schools open. The rally at Osoyoos Secondary School was organized by Brenda Dorosz (with megaphone) and other members of her Save Our Schools (SOS) committee. Dorosz is urging people to show up tonight at the school. (Richard McGuire photo)
Tonight is the night when we’ll learn whether nearly three months of intense campaigning by the Osoyoos community has swayed trustees of School 53 away from their proposal to close an Osoyoos school.
The special board meeting is tonight at 7 p.m. at the Osoyoos Community Theatre at Osoyoos Secondary School, one of the two schools threatened with closure.
Sandwiched between a 30-minute “public forum” and a public “question period” is the only item of business: two motions to close each of the schools in Osoyoos. And, if one of those motions passes, administration’s recommendation is that the bylaw to implement closure be given all three readings that night.
Trustees won’t pass both motions — they are mutually exclusive. If the board opts to close Osoyoos Elementary School (OSE), OSS w0uld be converted into a K-9 school and grades 10-12 would be shipped to Oliver.
The seating capacity in the theatre is only 264 seats and two wheelchair spaces, but the Save Our Schools (SOS) committee hopes to get 1,000 people out — even if many have to sit outside. Come out and show your support for our students, schools and community.
Minor hockey parent brawl was extreme case
Yesterday we posted a news item about a brawl involving many parents at the Sun Bowl Arena on Saturday. One woman was sent to hospital with a broken nose after she was allegedly punched by a much larger man.
Police said alcohol consumption was a major factor.
The teams playing at the time were 10-year-old kids from the North/Central Okanagan and the Lower Mainland. We’ve heard nothing to suggest any Osoyoos parents were involved.
Judging from some of the comments on our Facebook page, this story struck a nerve for many. It was an extreme case, but bad behaviour by minor hockey parents is a problem sometimes.
Lighten up parents. It’s a game and it should be fun. Probably your kid won’t make the NHL, but hockey is still a fun sport.
Access online newspapers, magazines through ORL
Okanagan Regional Library has added a new service allowing members free access to online newspapers and magazines from around the world.
The digital resource “PressReader” has been added to the digital collection of the library system and it allows access to such publications as the Globe and Mail, the Washington Post and the Daily Mail.
“PressReader is very easy to use and comes jam-packed with features for getting the most out of your experience, such as keyword searching, article translation options for several languages, and options for listening to articles,” said Chantelle McGee, ORL’s virtual branch head in a news release.
The service can be accessed from home by signing in with your library card and pin, or by accessing it at a branch as a “hotspot,” which allows you to read on mobile devices (or library computer terminals) without entering a barcode.
For more information, visit the ORL website: www.orl.bc.ca/online-resources/help/press-reader
Sunny week ahead
Today’s forecast is mainly sunny with a high of 21 C. Environment Canada now says it will be mainly sunny or sunny for the next week with highs for the next seven days all above 20 C.
Enjoy!
