The "Keep The Spirit Alive Contest" was only introduced to the community during the month of June, and already it is picking up momentum as residents not only like the idea of winning valuable prizes, but they also are thrilled about the fact that they can do their small part to help improve the overall community spirit in Valley East.

   Three community-minded local businessmen have teamed up to begin a “Keep The Spirit Alive Campaign” and they are inviting all residents to help them spread the message that Valley East is a great place in which to live!

   From left to right in the photo: Mike Lemieux, owner of Hanmer Home Hardware, Robert Kirwan, Publisher of the Valley East Today Community Web Site and Online Weekly News Magazine, and Ken Desjardins of Desjardins’ Food Basics announced the launch of the campaign during a press conference which was held at the Hanmer Valley Shopping Centre.

   In explaining the purpose of the initiative, Kirwan explained, “We want to let everyone know that Valley East is a town where you can still find that “old style community spirit” mixed with a modern lifestyle that fits right in with the 21^st Century. There are a lot of good things happening in Valley East and it is about time that the rest of the people in the City of Greater Sudbury knew about it too! Furthermore, it is also time to let the rest of the province know that if anyone is looking for a place to live and raise a family, or a place to retire within the City of Greater Sudbury , they need look no further than Valley East .”
  
   In order to help get this message out to the rest of the “world” the people of Valley East are being asked to take part in a massive communication strategy using the power of the internet. 

   Everyone participating in this campaign will have a chance to win a “Grand Prize” consisting of 100 Lotto 649 tickets for the New Year’s Eve Draw on December 31, 2006 . What a way to celebrate the New Year by winning the big prize with one of those tickets!

   Runners up will receive other valuable prizes, including “two” mountain bikes donated by Hanmer Home Hardware, $300 in groceries from Desjardins’ Food Basics, More prizes from other local merchants may be announced in the coming weeks before the contest ends. 

   In order to qualify for these prizes, all you have to do is register to receive the Valley East Today Weekly Online News Magazine. Every month from July until the end of December, ten names will be drawn at random from all of the people registered to receive the publication. Those ten people will qualify for our final draw which will be held on Christmas Eve. The winners will be announced in the December 26 issue of Valley East Today!

When it comes to people who are new to the community, there are two business owners who tend to meet them all. Of course we are referring to Mike Lemieux, who along with his brother, Mag Lemieux, own Hanmer Home Hardware, and Ken Desjardins, owner of Desjardins' Food Basics.

"Everyone moving in to a new home or apartment has a need for cleaning and repair supplies as well as start-up groceries," explained Mike Lemieux. "So Ken and I decided that we would put together a basket of 'goodies' to give as a gift to all newcomers to Valley East as our way of saying 'Thank You for choosing our town' and to give them a hand with settling in."

Ken Desjardins owns and operates one of the busiest grocery stores in the entire City of Greater Sudbury, so he has definitely noticed the impact of new home owners in the community. "When it comes to stocking up the shelves after moving into a new home, we know it is expensive. We also know that those first few days are days when you are constantly discovering additional items for your shopping list. The Hanmer Valley Shopping Centre is a great place to come to pick up just about everything you need to make your move complete, so we wanted to say thank you for your support."

Anyone who has moved into a new home; purchased an older home; or moved into an apartment in the Towns of Valley East or Capreol since July 1, 2006, is encouraged to drop in to see Mike Lemieux at Hanmer Home Hardware in the Hanmer Valley Shopping Centre. He will answer any questions you may have about the community and make sure you receive your gift basket. Several other mall merchants will be adding to the gift basket with items of their own, including Dixie Lee Restaurant which will be providing you with a $25 gift certificate so that you can eat out after your move in.

Ross is better known as the host of the Big Breakfast on Big Daddy with his co-host, Carrie-Ann.

"When the opportunity to move back to came knocking, my husband and I jumped on it," she explained. " I never envisioned myself living anywhere else but Azilda. As we started house shopping we couldn’t find what we were looking for in Rayside Balfour. We decided to expand our search for houses. Little did we know how amazing the Valley was."

What impressed both Miryam and Eric was the fact that there were so many beautiful houses from which to choose and so many quiet neighbourhoods. 

"Even though the neighbourhoods are so quiet, everything is at your finger tips," she stated. " Sudbury all the time is so wonderful."

She continued, "We decided to buy our first home in Val Thérèse. The people here are just amazing. They are welcoming and ready to lend a hand if needed. I love the way every neighbour looks out for each other. I feel safe in my home in the valley. My boys always enjoy going to the park or the recreation centre. There are always things to do. My family and I are francophone. I find it very pleasant to go do my groceries and daily errands and always have someone around that speaks French.  Now with the new Canadian Tire being built, there is honestly no reason  to  ever leave the Valley. We never envisioned living here, but now  that we are here we can’t see ourselves living any place else but  Valley East."

Miryâm suggested that even though there is so much good to be said about the Valley, she hopes that something is done to keep the parks a bit cleaner. In fact, Miryâm echoed the comments of many other parents with young children who have also expressed concerns about the condition of the parks. She stated, " There is often lots of garbage and broken glass, and most of the time it takes a few phone calls to the city to finally get it cleaned up."

Besides the park issue, when asked for other suggestions on how to improve the community to make it even more pleasant for people like the Giguère Family, all she could think of were the following, " My three year old son would like for me ask Mr. Desjardins of Desjardins' Food Basics to get small grocery baskets or baskets with three holes to fit both my boys so they can shop along with their mom. That would also make my shopping experience more enjoyable. I also think all signs in the mall and  everywhere in the Valley should be bilingual. Besides that there isn’t much else I would change about the Valley. I think everyone in Valley East is doing their part and doing a fine job of it, to make this the best place to live in the City of  Greater Sudbury."

Claude Chenier, owner of the Valley Plaza Barber Shop, is shown taking care of one of his clients while all other chairs in the establishment are filled. The Valley Plaza Barber Shop is one of the most popular hair care centres in Valley East, due in large part to the attention Claude, his wife Linda and their entire staff pay to customer service.

The Valley Plaza Barber Shop is always decorated according to the season, making this a welcome place to simply stop by and share some conversation with friends.

Check out the decorations next time you are in the Hanmer Valley Shopping Centre or call 969-4020 for an appointment.

The donations were accepted from patients during the week of December 11 to 14. 

The Star Reporters used the same scoring criteria that was used by Readers' Digest. They went into five of the busiest locations around the City of Greater Sudbury, including: Downtown Sudbury; the Hanmer Valley Shopping Centre; the New Sudbury Centre; Place Bonaventure Mall in Chelmsford; and the Rio Can's Power Centre. At each site the following situations were enacted and the reporters observed the actions of nearby shoppers:

1. They walked into the building behind people to see if they would hold the door open for them.

2. The bought small items from different stores and recorded whether the sales assistants said thank you.

3. They dropped a folder full of papers in different locations to see if anyone would help pick them up.

At each location, each of the above was performed four times. Each act of politeness was given a score of 1 with a 0 recorded if there was no act of courtesy shown. A perfect score was 12.

THE RESULTS

Downtown Sudbury came out in first place with a score of 11 out of 12.  The Hanmer Valley Shopping Centre was a close second.

Chad Salemink, 24, is an employee of Desjardins' Food Basics. Chad's job is to collect and return shopping carts from the large parking lot outside and bring them back into the store for use by the close to 20,000 customers who come through the doors of the popular grocery store every week.

In his role, Chad comes into contact with hundreds of visitors to the mall every shift. If you follow Chad around you will see that he never hesitates to hold open doors, say excuse me, or demonstrate courtesy to people of all ages. In addition, Chad is quick to acknowledge others with a smile and a wave. Doing these "little things" comes naturally for Chad, as it does with so many of the store clerks and merchants of the mall. And in the hectic world in which we now live, it is definitely the little things that count.

Chad was recently featured in a special article in The Sudbury Star on July 10, 2006 for his success in the Building Bridges Program which is offered by Cambrian College to help students with developmental disabilities learn to find their way on their own. 

When he was young, doctors told his mother Colette that his developmental disabilities would prevent him from ever learning to read, write or ride a bike. Chad's determination proved the doctors wrong and he can now read at the Grade 5 level in French, the Grade 6 level in English and can definitely ride a bike. He also used the internet and communicates via email just like the rest of us.

After high school, Chad qualified for the Bridges Program at Cambrian and with a lot of hard work and continued determination finished with a 4.0 grade point average. The one-year program brought out a sense of confidence and independence in Chad that is shown in everything he does.

"I really want to thank Ken and Sandra Desjardins' for giving me a chance to work at their store," Chad stated. "I love what I do and enjoy meeting so many nice shoppers. They have been really good to me and everyone is so nice around here."

"We have always been so grateful for the way we have been treated by the Hanmer Valley Shopping Centre," explained Dorice. "Val Mazzuca simply cannot do enough for us. Every time we want to set up a display, or put something on the bulletin board, all we have to do is ask. It makes it so much easier to help our clients when we have the support of such a leader in the community like Val Mazzuca."

According to the Wellness Team, "The place where you work and the work you do can affect your health. How you feel can affect how well you do your job."

The Workplace Wellness team provides opportunities for skill building, education and support or consultation. They also help employers create and implement workplace policies that reduce the risk of injury and promote the health of workers.

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