The owner of the Donald chemical building is rebutting claims of poor conduct and said his goal is still to keep the building in public use.

A co-op formerly partnered with Jim O’Connor accused him of failing to live up to his side of an agreement made to restore the historic building. The groups comprising the co-op invested more than $90,000 of funding, including grants, toward stabilizing the building between 2010-2013. Co-op member Leora Berman, who has managed the initiative on behalf of the co-op, said she is considering legal action in the matter.

But in a statement to The Highlander, O’Connor said Berman has not lived up to her timeline to restore the building by 20122013. He also indicated the two sides failed to reach a new agreement over the timeline to complete the restoration.

“Agreement on a new MOU (memorandum of understanding) failed due to the inability of Ms. Berman to provide a timeline for the completion of the original commitments,” O’Connor said.

O’Connor initially signed an MOU with the groups in 2010 to lease the building. The agreement indicated after the co-op was more formally created, they would be given a new “life-team lease” for the building by 2015. But after that occurred, the two sides never came to a new agreement by the time the MOU expired.

O’Connor noted donations and grants to restore the building were handled by Berman. He added any money raised from a storage business he runs from the building “has been used solely for the preservation of the Donald building.”

“The building in Donald is and has always been slated for public use,” O’Connor said. “That goal has not changed.”

O’Connor declined an interview and did not respond to further requests for comment on what the public use would be.

Berman responded that the co-op had targeted 2013 to secure the building, which they did. At the time, she said engineers indicated no further restorative work should be undertaken until the building’s original blueprints could be found. But they have not been located.

“He was notified from day one this would be a long process,” Berman said. “Did I hope it would finish, it would be fully restored now? Of course, I did, but this was none of his business or concern.”

Berman said she has also been working with engineers from the University of Toronto to find alternative options to do a proper restoration. But the ongoing dispute has halted progress.

She also claimed O’Connor seriously damaged the building when he improperly renovated it for a storage business in 2017.

O’Connor did not respond to questions on this claim but said he continues to work to maintain the building.

“Any current action is for the safety, maintenance and preservation of the Donald building,” he said.

Berman said O’Connor was supposed to give control of the building to the co-op to oversee its continued use and restoration. She further said the preservation of the historic structure is the most important thing.

“Restoring heritage buildings, according to all the experts, takes a long time,” Berman said. “There are so many considerations.”

The newly rebranded Haliburton County Wellness Fair is returning with new management and a focus on the seven dimensions of wellness July 10.

The fourth annual event, previously known as the Haliburton Highlands Health and Wellness Expo, takes place at Head Lake Park.

The fair invites attendees to learn from an array of health and wellness practitioners, including the Abbey Retreat Centre, the Kawartha Sexual Assault Centre and K.O. Martial Arts.

Nancy Gosse took over running the fair last September. Gosse said she wants to help people understand what wellness means.

“Wellness is not one-dimensional, it’s multi-faceted,” Gosse said. “Wellness is not just about eating right, it’s not just about whether you go to yoga classes or go to the gym. There are many different aspects of wellness.”

To that end, the fair will feature an emphasis on the seven dimensions of wellness, including physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual, occupational, social and environmental.

Gosse said there is a broad enough scope of topics being offered to cover those dimensions. People will also be challenged to participate in activities relating to them.

“When you think about wellness as a whole picture, it can fit many different aspects in the community,” Gosse said.

Spectrum Healing Naturopathic’s Eileen Eng will be presenting about holistic medicine at the fair. She said it is a chance to help boost her profile in the community.

She added it is important to address the underlying root causes of illness symptoms and to take an approach to health that keeps in mind a person’s entire wellbeing.

“It is about becoming whole again. Mind and body and spirit,” Eng said. “The key thing is how do you raise the vital force so this person has the highest outcome of health?”

Gosse said she wanted to help the event carry on because of the platform it offers to community members.

“Having a platform like a wellness fair for them to come and reach the community is really helpful for people who may not have the resources at home to make those connections,” Gosse said. “Make in-roads in bringing wellness to the community.”

The fair is a good chance to experience something new and engage in new conversations, Gosse said.

“Being open enough and curious enough to come and check it out, I think people would be pleasantly surprised.”

The event takes place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

During his commencement speech June 27, Haliburton Highlands Secondary School class of 2019 valedictorian Nick Toth reflected on how four years had changed his classmates. Before an auditorium filled with hundreds of school staff, families and community members,

Toth spoke about how teachers and school experiences shaped them. But the graduates also shaped each other.

“Appreciate each other,” Toth said. “Every day in the halls and at parties, school clubs and in sports, our
interactions with one another shaped us.”

Toth was joined by 98 classmates in graduating, officially marking the end of their high school years. The class was celebrated by teachers and the principal, with dozens of awards handed out.

Principal Chris Boulay said the school community was proud of all that the graduates had accomplished.

“They have overcome adversities and challenges,” Boulay said. “And they did it their way.”

Valibhavi Marathe earned the Governor General’s Academic Medal for the highest graduating average. She plans to attend McMaster University for life sciences and said HHSS guided her path forward.

“All the classes I took, all the teachers that influenced where I want to go,” Marathe said. “This place basically shaped my future.”

Toth said the years went by fast and came with a lot of change. But he stressed to graduates the importance of holding onto what they experienced in high school.

“Hold onto this beautiful insanity forever,” he said. “We have proved ourselves yesterday, we have proved ourselves today and I know, without a doubt, we will prove ourselves tomorrow.”

After years of planning and construction, the organic health and beauty product company Living Libations officially opened its new, state-of-the-art headquarters in Haliburton June 20.  

More than 50 people attended to celebrate the 22,000-square foot facility off Harburn Road. Builders designed it for low environmental impact and energy efficiency, meeting the Passive House Building Standard to consume only 10 per cent of the energy versus a conventional building of its size. 

 Founder Nadine Artemis said the Haliburton area enchanted her, causing her to move her business here 15 years ago.

She thanked the various people and builders involved in making the new headquarters happen.  

“It really takes a village to build a building,” Artemis said. “We are in deep appreciation to the countless co-operative components that brought us all together and accomplished this vision.”  

It took a years-long process to get here.

After a tragic fire burned down their home and business headquarters in 2013, they first came before Dysart et al council with their plans to construct the new headquarters in 2015.

The company also went through some controversy, earning Calico Road residents’ ire in 2017 due to increased traffic when they operated their business there temporarily.  

But now the business is finally settled into its permanent home.   

“A construction project of this size has intense moments, quick-decision making and thousands and thousands of microdetails,” Artemis said. “To have this process feel smooth and timely is a miracle.”  

The four-storey structure is “flooded with natural sunlight,” according to a company press release.

High-performance energy recovery ventilators cycle fresh air through the building without affecting indoor temperature.  The structure earned a newly-created award from Legalett Canada, who provided engineering, design and supply of the building’s foundation.

National sales manager Ken Williams presented the Construction Pioneer Award to Living Libations and project developer Greg West for the achievements in energy-efficient design. 

 “This project has, to say the least, been inspirational to us,” Williams said. 

Artemis said she was thankful to the local community for their continued support.  

“We are also in deep appreciation to the community of our clients and their love of libations. Your absolute adoration for our creations is really our continued inspiration,” she said.

Retiring Capt. Dan Collings gave his cadets a proud salute as he bid farewell after 24 years of leading the 1129 Haliburton Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps.  

Collings formally stepped down from the role after the corps 34th annual cadet review June 15 at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 129 Haliburton.

Organizations including the Army Cadet League of Canada gave him a series of service recognition certificates as he departed the 15-cadet unit.  

He leaves with his cadets on top, as Haliburton won the 2017-18 Lord Strathcona Award for the best small corps. He praised them for their effort over the year.  

“Without you folks, this couldn’t happen. Your dedication, your praise, your sense of teamwork and family is second to none,” Collings said.  

It was a good time for him to leave, he said. He plans to work with the Canadian Rangers in northern Indigenous communities before he retires in three years.  

“It’s time to go, pass the torch,” he said. “There’s great staff here that can take over and the corps is in a great place right now. We’re in the best place we’ve ever been.”  

Regional Cadet Support Unit Major Gary Burns also presented Collings with a certificate and said he is amongst the top officers he has encountered.  

“For these folks to be successful, there have to be adult leaders,” Burns said. “As the commanding officer, without him, there’s no direction. He is, in fact, the pinnacle of the organization here.”  

The cadets showcased their skills at the review, marching, parading and taking part in a series of program demonstrations.  

Master warrant officer Jakob Bull said it was a great year for the unit.  

“There have been so many opportunities. Honestly, I think the number of things this core can do is limitless,” he said.  But he added it was sad seeing Collings retire.  

“He was amazing, he had everything perfect to a tee. He was a super relatable guy, really humble.”  

Lt. Corina Hall is taking over as commanding officer for the unit. She said Collings has led the unit since she was a cadet and though there are big shoes to fill, she is excited to take on the position.  

“I’ve also been able to come up behind him and learn a lot from him,” Hall said. “I’m looking forward to taking my turn to lead the corps.”  

As Collings gave his corps one last salute, he talked about how he felt about them. 

 “You guys are like family, like my own kids. Some of you are children of some of the cadets who were here when I started, that’s just amazing,” Collings said. “I wish you all the best. Keep up the good work.”