kids and Tim Hortons

Tim Hortons Camp Day

     So the Tim Hortons (Twitter name @TimHortons or for the french version they are @ChezTimHortons or in the USA @TimHortonsUs) camp day is on Wednesday June 4th 2014 this year. Every time you and people you know buy a coffee from Tim Hortons all the 100% proceeds of that coffee go to help children go to camp this year with Tim Hortons. Last year alone more than 17,000 disadvantaged children got to go to camp at 1 of 6 local camps in North America run and operated by THCF (on twitter as @thcf1974). You can also help buy texting the word “Camp” to 45678 and you will of donated $5 to this event and the $5 charge will show on your next invoice from your wireless carrier.

This year the target that Tim Hortons has set to send a kid to camp is 200,000  which is a hefty goal but the end result is a miracle not only to reach but also a miracle for the children that get to go to the camps as well. There are 2 recent videos I found online (Listed below). Last year alone Tim Hortons took in 11.8 Million in Donations for the camps and children.

THCF - "In Their Own Words": http://youtu.be/JuFWYIHmRVo
About camp day at Tim Horton Children's Foundation - Because of Camp: http://youtu.be/2A1edJ-aRPU

Tim Hortons just recently passed there 50th year in business starting with their first store in Brampton Ontario and when camp day first started 40 years ago they had coin collection boxes available at their cash registers for people to make donations but now you can also for some time also do what they call is Rent-A-Tent for $1 or Rent-A-Cabin for $2 in the stores as well. But now you can also have then server round your transaction up to the nearest dollar as well and that extra is donated to the Camp Day event as well.

Virtually all stores have a different way of celebrating camp day by decorating each store differently and or by the employee's dressing differently or by doing different events like selling hot dogs and hamburgers or other items or by doing draws for items like Tim Hortons cup's and such. By them doing this they are also taking these extra proceeds and putting them towards camp day as well. So if you have the chance to and you normally go to more Tim Hortons more than once a day try and go to a different one each visit on that day and see what the difference is between them, you may be thoroughly surprised by what you see there.

Also again this year Tim Hortons is holding another free open house at their Tatamagouche Nova Scotia camp site. It is on June 1st from 1pm to 5pm. They will be having games, face painting and boating and snacks as well
The Tim Horton Children's Camp in Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia opened in 1988. The camp is located on the shores of the Northumberland Strait where campers can experience Maritime living and heritage.  The Tim Horton Children's Camp hosts residential campers throughout the summer months and March Break. Schools.

• Tim Horton Children's Camp
• RR #3 (Sunrise Trail - Route 6)
• Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia
• Tel: 1-(902) 657-2359

Now you can also volunteer with the camps in many ways, but here are the 2 key selling points
Tim Horton Children's Foundation volunteers contribute thousands of hours helping economically disadvantaged children discover their best at camp. Whether you want to volunteer in the camp program, help get the site ready to welcome over 16,000 young people, or support the administration of the Foundation, the Tim Horton Children's Foundation has a wide variety of volunteer opportunities to match your passion, skills and schedule.
Apply to be a volunteer http://www.timhortons.com/ca/pdf/2014_Volunteer_Application_Form_EN.pdf with the Tim Horton Children's Foundation
Benefits of Volunteering: Volunteering is more than just sharing your time and passion, it's about the satisfaction of knowing you are helping people become stronger, giving back to your community and gaining valuable work experience that will enhance your career development.
You can also contact the Tim Horton Children's Foundation Home Office at 1-519-448-1248 to learn about volunteer opportunities in your area.


To wrap this up here is a listing of all the Tim Hortons camp sites with the recommendation to see what you can do to help in one way or another with the camp and or the children.

Tim Horton Onondaga Farms, St. George

Tim Horton Onondaga Farms opened in June 2002 on 400 acres of rolling hills and wetlands in St. George, Ontario (near Brantford) and is the Foundation's newest camp. Onondaga Farms hosts both residential campers and Youth Leadership Program participants throughout the summer months and March Break. Schools, youth groups and other community organizations that meet the Foundation's selection criteria can also benefit from year-round programming.

Tim Horton Onondaga Farms
RR #2, 264 Glen Morris Road East
St. George, Ontario
Tel: 1-(519) 448-1264

Tim Horton Children's Ranch, Kananaskis

The Tim Horton Children's Ranch, which opened in 1991, is nestled on 150 acres in beautiful Kananaskis Country, Alberta. Participants at "the Ranch" have the unique experience of living in the Canadian Rockies, and enjoying activities such as horseback riding, rock climbing and white water rafting as well as other traditional camp activities. Tim Horton Children's Ranch hosts residential campers throughout the summer months. Schools, youth groups and other community organizations that meet the Foundation's selection criteria can also benefit from year-round programming.

Tim Horton Children's Ranch
1 Tim Horton Drive & Hwy. # 40
P.O. Box 117
Kananaskis, Alberta
Tel: 1-(403) 673-2494

Tim Horton Camp Kentahten, Campbellsville

Opened in 2001, this is the first Tim Horton Children's Foundation camp in the United States. The camp occupies 50 acres of waterfront property on Green River Lake, in the heart of Kentucky.  Tim Horton Camp Kentahten hosts residential campers throughout the summer months and March Break. Schools, youth groups and other community organizations that meet the Foundation's selection criteria can also benefit from year-round programming.

Camp Kentahten
49 Kentahten Trail
Campbellsville, KY, 42718
1-(270) 465-9250

Tim Horton Children's Camp, Tatamagouche

The Tim Horton Children's Camp in Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia opened in 1988. The camp is located on the shores of the Northumberland Strait where campers can experience Maritime living and heritage.  The Tim Horton Children's Camp hosts residential campers throughout the summer months and March Break. Schools, youth groups and other community organizations that meet the Foundation's selection criteria can also benefit from year-round programming.

Tim Horton Children's Camp
RR #3 (Sunrise Trail - Route 6)
Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia
Tel: 1-(902) 657-2359

Camp Des Voyageurs Tim Horton, Quyon

The Foundation's fourth camp opened in Quyon, Quebec in 1994.  Set on Pontiac Bay of the Ottawa river guests at Camp des Voyageurs Tim Horton can enjoy learning about the rich Voyageur history in the area of the camp. Camp des Voyageurs Tim Horton hosts residential campers throughout the summer months and March Break. Schools, youth groups and other community organizations that meet the Foundation's selection criteria can also benefit from year-round programming.

Camp des Voyageurs Tim Horton
60, chemin du Canal
Quyon, Quebec
Tel: 1-(819) 458-3164

Tim Horton Memorial Camp, Parry Sound

The Tim Horton Memorial Camp is the Foundation's first camp, established in 1975 and is located on Lorimer Lake, north of Parry Sound, Ontario. Situated on 104 acres of land the camp offers many outdoor activities and facilities for all guests to enjoy, including 800 feet of sandy beach.  The Tim Horton Memorial Camp hosts both residential campers and Youth Leadership Program participants throughout the summer months and March Break. Schools, youth groups and other community organizations that meet the Foundation's selection criteria can also benefit from year-round programming.

Memorial Camp
RR #1, Lorimer Lake
Parry Sound, Ontario
Tel: 1-(705) 389-2773

This is a link to all the camp sites right from the main home page that I scoured to get all this info http://www.timhortons.com/ca/en/difference/the_camps.html

Sobeys Wyse Rd

     So today I finally broke down and went to the new Sobeys location that is at 210 Wyse Rd in Dartmouth; which surprisingly enough is open until 9pm on a Sunday, per their website but the front door decal at the store location states until 5pm. I think they need to get together and straighten the operational times out so there is no possible confusion.

     They have a large parking lot with ample parking of vehicles with a couple cart corrals as well. From the outside of the building the place looks quite large, however once inside it is larger than it appears to be.

     As for the layout of the store it is very well layed out with ample space to move around even if someone is stopped in the middle of an aisle which is a definite plus.

     They also have a ample amount of windows near the top of the walls near the ceiling in which to let plenty of light in (Which I would hope means that the lights that were installed inside the building are either on sensors to control how bright they are or they are all on dimmers so as to reduce energy use).

     Now it does appear that most of the employee's if not all the employees of the Sobeys from the old location on Primrose St have been moved to the new location. However one of the employee's I had to try and interact with today at the Salad/Sandwich counter was either having a bad day or she is like this all the time, completely ignored me as well as another customer that were trying to get her attention. When we finally got her attention she resisted on interacting with us but she served the other customer that was there. Then came my turn, I had asked if she had any more salads or if 1 could be made (keep in mind this is almost 4 hours before closing time), she walked away then came back and said she only had what was on the shelf then promptly went back to what she was doing before we interrupted her. Definitely not the pinnacle of customer service to say the least from this employee.

     Now during my time in the store I walked around it a couple times to check everything out; and every time I walked past the cashiers they were always smiling and and greeting the customers. I even saw the security guard walking around the store and he even helped a customer locate a item that he was searching for in the store as well, This is definitely a plus because that normally does not happen very often if at all these days.

     So my over all experience in this new Sobeys location is quite excellent and will be going back there again and not because it is the closest grocery store to me.

You can find Sobeys on:

 

My Twitter Link

Nova Scotia's Winter School Closures......

Nova Scotia's winter School Closures......

     Why is it that when there is any amount of snow that is dropped from above and remains on the ground you can almost guarantee a closure of local schools in the HRM and or even the entire province of Nova Scotia these days.

     To clear this up and make it known I am originally from Kingston Ontario; So I have seen snow and rain and high winds and even very thick fog when I was in school. I came to Nova Scotia back in late 1998 and have been here since and love it because of the atmosphere and people and culture.

  When I was growing up and attending school both public and high school it was very rare to have a snow day or school closure for almost any reason. The worst that would happen is that the buses would be pulled off or possibly delayed from getting to the school for the people that had to take them, but yet we were always required to go.

     But in Nova Scotia I have seen more than my fair share of school closures and the shut down of the entire city itself. The first year that I was here there was 1 morning that I got up to go for a walk in Downtown Dartmouth to explore the area. I walked outside and proceeded down Windmill road towards the downtown core and thought nothing of the light snow (Less than 1/2 a foot of snow) and wind that was present. By the time I got downtown I had realized that as of yet I had not seen any buses or cars or anything on the road and all the stores and shops were closed.

     I had come to find out through the new on TV that the city was shut down because of the bad weather, I could not believe that they had shut the city down because of the weather. From that time on anytime there was any bad weather as they called

it the schools and or buses would shut down till it was all cleared up; I honestly think that the definition of a snow day/city closure like in this article HERE.

     I completely agree with local radio host Rick Howe from News 95.7 that the Nova Scotia’s snow day policy should be reviewed and updated to properly reflect how it is handled when schools (Companies) are closed and or opened due to the weather, for we the people no longer in school are not the only one's suffering but the child of the future due to them not getting the proper education that they are going to need to have the proper jobs and such.

     If something is not done about this issue soon then the future could possibly look a lot grimmer than it is now due to improper education of our future society.

The average hospital visit

The average hospital visit

Well it all started about 5:00 pm on February 09 2011 at work; I got excruciating pain in my right leg, I found it hard to stand let alone even walk on the leg.

So with all the pain I ended up going to the Dartmouth General Hospital, I got there at approximately 7:00pm. I went through the Triage nurse and then off to the registration desk and then proceeded to go to the waiting room. I did not have to wait all that long (Approximately 30 minutes) before I was called in.

When I was taken in I was put in bed #4 where the very nice nurse that was on duty came in and introduced herself to me and then gave me a hospital gown to put and then checked over my leg quickly and asked me a couple of routine questions and then went to find the resident doctor on duty. Unfortunately all the doctors were busy with more important injuries.

When I finally got the chance to see the doctor it was 10:22pm thus putting me at that point almost 3.5 hours in to me being there; still not bad for being in a Emergency Room with lots of ambulances coming and going all night.

The doctor looked me over and asked me a couple of routine questions and looked my legs over, he then said that I mostly likely have an infection in my leg but could also have a blood clot as well, so he decided to put me on a blood thinner as well as antibiotics just to be safe and requested blood work to be done as well (blood work cam back as being normal), he then directed me to come back again in the morning for a Ultrasound of my bad leg. He then left and the nurse came back in again and provided me with some pills as well as the antibiotics.

She made sure that I was comfortable and that everything was setup properly for me and then started the intravenous (IV) and then left but came back every so often to make sure I was OK and not having a reaction to the intravenous I was getting. Once everything was done she asked if there was anyone she could call to come get me, I thanked her and politely said no.

I ended up getting the last bus home from the hospital, once I got home I set the alarm (Which I slept through) to get up to be back at the hospital again for 8:00am (February 10, 2011), Unfortunately I did not get back to the hospital as early as intended but I did get there (Thank you Denise) at about 9:00am. I went directly to the ultrasound room and I was done there within 30 minutes or so.

Once done with the ultrasound I then went back to the ER again and seen the triage nurse and re registered again, I was called in about 45 minutes later (10:15am); When I went in I was asked to sit and wait in another waiting room just up from the bed I was in only a matter of hours earlier.

As I am sitting there waiting I am watching patients come and go and some even left due to the length of time that they were there and not seen by anyone but the on duty nurse. Now I will say that sitting still and not moving my leg and then all of a sudden getting a twitch in it and my leg moving is very painful, this happened a couple of times so I got up and walked around a bit to try and relieve the pain but it did not help much.

As I am walking around I happen to come across a clock on the wall (And I only found that 1 clock during this visit); I then realized that it was almost 3:00pm; this puts me being there for almost 6 hours of which 5:15 worth of time I was left to sit in this waiting room in a very hard chair with no interaction from anyone other than the nurse occasionally to make sure that I am still there and have not left like some of the other patients did, mean while I keep seeing this one female doctor constantly on the go but seeing her help anyone within sight of me other than a elderly lady that came in after I did.

Now during this 5:15 of waiting in the other waiting room I had asked if I could go outside and get some fresh air to the nurse that had brought me in, she recommended that I not do that so I did not miss my turn; when she said that I was thinking to myself how is it I can miss my turn when no one that came in before me has been seen yet.

So I went outside anyways and came back in again in a couple minutes and I notified her that I was back. Approximately 40 minutes later (putting me at 6 hours of waiting now) this male doctor comes walking in (If I am correct this was the start of his shift and I think he was the one I saw come in with his bike) and walks right to the nurses station and I hear him say to the nurse “Where is this patient that has been here for 5 hours already”, he grab the chart and came over and introduced himself and then asked me some questions and looked my leg over and such; He then prescribed the antibiotics again for me as well as instructions to be off work for a couple days; Within 20 – 30 minutes of him coming over to me I was then discharged with my paperwork and the medications that I had been waiting for all day.

Now I will say that I do not hold the Doctors and or Nurses at fault for the delay in the waiting times to get seen but having to wait 5+ hours for something that only took 20 – 30 minutes to have done unsupervised while sitting in a chair is uncalled for. Something definitely should be done to eradicate these long wait times in our local hospitals throughout Canada and or any other country that this happens in; Now not only am I out of work for 2 – 3 days with a doctors note but I had to surrender a full 6+ hours of my day that I should of been at work and getting paid; Unfortunately not everyone can afford to lose a day of pay like I did while at the hospital for something that did not take long to do at all and was done by the nurse and not the doctor.