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Quiet heroes inspire change through a personal tragedy

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If we didn’t use the word “extraordinary” at every turn, it would be a perfect word to describe the actions of both Anita Cenerini and Audrey Parker.

Cenerini, 56, of Winnipeg, lost her soldier son to suicide in 2004. Parker, 57, from Halifax, lost her life to metastatic breast cancer in a widely publicized medically assisted death last week.

Anita Cenerini and Audrey Parker, in acting bravely and publicly, have changed the national conversation around a pivotal and painful social issue, writes Judith Timson.
Anita Cenerini and Audrey Parker, in acting bravely and publicly, have changed the national conversation around a pivotal and painful social issue, writes Judith Timson.  (The Canadian Press file photos)

It’s doubtful either woman would have made it into our public consciousness if it weren’t for these personal tragedies that befell them.

Yet it wasn’t simply their tragedies that made them newsworthy. It’s how, as ordinary citizens, they reacted to them.

Each of them, in acting bravely and publicly, have changed the national conversation around a pivotal and painful social issue. How many of us can claim that kind of impact?

For one year, Cenerini will represent all mothers who have lost a son or daughter to military service. What makes her honour significant is that she will be the first mother of a soldier who died by suicide to hold the title.

Her son, Private Thomas Welch trained as an infantryman, served in Afghanistan in 2003, and less than three months after returning to Canada, hanged himself at the army base at Petawawa, Ontario. Thomas was 22 when he died.

Cenerini, after researching symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) fought for years to have her son’s death reclassified as a military death. It finally was reclassified in 2017. An investigation in the Globe and Mail revealed he was the first soldier to die by suicide after serving in Afghanistan.

Private Thomas Welch was an infantryman and member of the 3rd Battalion based in Petawawa, Ont., who committed suicide less than three months after returning from Afghanistan. His mother, Anita Cenerini, will place a wreath at the National War Memorial in Ottawa on Remembrance Day, November 11.
Private Thomas Welch was an infantryman and member of the 3rd Battalion based in Petawawa, Ont., who committed suicide less than three months after returning from Afghanistan. His mother, Anita Cenerini, will place a wreath at the National War Memorial in Ottawa on Remembrance Day, November 11.  (THE CANADIAN PRESS/The Royal Canadian Legion Dominion Command)

Cenerini made public painful details of the changes in her son’s mood and demeanour after his tour of duty. Once quiet and cheerful on the job, Welch became agitated, angry and withdrawn after his stint in Afghanistan. He was never diagnosed or treated.

After being named Silver Cross Mother, Cenerini issued a statement: “The emotional, psychological and spiritual injuries our soldiers endure in service to their country may be injuries we have difficulty understanding or accepting … but we can no longer allow fear and ignorance to deny these soldiers the honour they deserve in their deaths, and the dignity and respect for the families left to mourn.”

You can bet she will use her year long position to reinforce that point. Bravo to the Legion for giving her the opportunity to do so.

In Halifax, on the same day Cenerini was announced as a Silver Cross Mother, Audrey Parker, 57, was getting ready to die.

She had been diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer in 2016, which had now spread to her bones and she had already been approved for a medically assisted death.

There was just one problem. Parker would have liked to hang on at least until Christmas but she was worried that because the cancer had begun to invade the lining of her brain, she might not at a future point be able to give the legally required late stage consent.

And so she went public with her decision to end her life before she was quite ready to do so, hoping it would spur the policy-makers to change the requirement for late stage consent in her category.

Like many others who saw her being interviewed, I was struck by how cheerful and even glowing Parker looked. It unnerved me. This woman can’t be ready to die, I thought.

Yet die she did, surrounded by loved ones and leaving a poignant Facebook post saying “I died a beautiful death.”

She also made the point that if it weren’t for a rigorous legal stipulation that she, who had a right to live and die as she wished, had to give that final late stage consent right before a lethal injection (in place no doubt to protect the vulnerable) she’d still be with us, no doubt wearing her cluster of bracelets and paying fastidious attention to all the details that made her who she was.

I loved her self written obituary, talking about her childhood, her education, her love of dancing (she was an “underage disco queen”) and chronicling her years as a businesswoman and fundraiser who never dreamed that with her dire medical diagnosis she would turn into an advocate for changes in the laws around medical assistance in dying.

Dying With Dignity Canada will submit “Audrey’s Law” to the federal government, asking for an amendment that will abolish late stage consent for those like Parker already approved for a medically assisted death.

This Friday Audrey Parker will be celebrated at a memorial service in Halifax. Before she died, she invited everyone to come, and even better, petition their member of parliament for changes to the law.

Two days later, Silver Cross Mother Anita Cenerini will lay her wreath in Ottawa and be honoured at a luncheon.

In an era in which politicians suck up so much oxygen loudly proclaiming to be doing what they’re doing — good, bad or unspeakable — on behalf of “ordinary people”, it’s worth saluting these two women. For their quiet heroism, and their grace and persistence in using their personal tragedies as an opportunity to change lives.

Not so ordinary after all.

Judith Timson is a Toronto-based writer and a freelance contributing columnist for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @judithtimson

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Nostalgia and much more with Starburst XXXtreme

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Get a taste of adventure with Starburst XXXtreme based on the legendary NetEnt Game. The nostalgic themes are sure to capture fans of the classic version as they get treated to higher intensity, better visuals, and features. The most significant element of the game is its volatility. Patience will not be an essential virtue considering the insane gameplay, and there is a lot of win potential involved. It retains the original makeup of the previous game while adding a healthy dose of adrenaline. 

Starburst Visuals and Symbols

The game is definitely more conspicuous than before. The setting happens over a 5-reel, 3-row game grid with nine fixed win lines, which function if a succession from the left to the right reel is present. Only those players that that attain the highest win per bet line are paid. From a visual standpoint, the Starburst XXXtreme slots illustrates lightning effects behind the reels, which is not surprising as it is inherited from the original version. Available themes include Classic, Jewels, and Space. The game is also available in both desktop and mobile versions, which is advantageous for players considering the global pandemic. According to Techguide, American gamers are increasingly having more engaging gaming experiences to socialize to fill the gap of in-person interaction. Starburst XXXtreme allows them to fill the social void at a time when there is so much time to be had indoors. 

Starburst XXXTreme Features

Players get to alternate on three features which are Starburst Wilds, XXXtreme Spins, and Random Wilds. The first appears on reels 2,3, or 4. When these land, they expand to cover all positions while also calculating the wins. They are also locked for a respin. If a new one hits, it also becomes locked while awarding another respin. Starburst XXXtreme offers a choice between two scenarios for a higher stake. In one scenario with a ten times stake, the Starburst Wild is set on random on reels 2,3, or 4, and a multiplier starts the respin. The second scenario, which has a 95 times stake, starts with two guaranteed starburst wilds on reels 2,3, or 4. it also plays out using respin game sequence and features. The game also increases the potential with the Random Wilds feature to add Starburst Wilds to a vacant reel at the end of a spin. Every Starburst Wild gives a random multiplier with potential wins of x2, x3, x5, x10, x25, x50, x100, or even x150.

The new feature is sure to be a big hit with the gaming market as online gambling has shown significant growth during the lockdown. AdAge indicates the current casino customer base is an estimated one in five Americans, so Starburst XXXtreme’s additional features will achieve considerable popularity. 

What We Think About The Game

The gambling market has continued to diversify post-pandemic, so it is one of the most opportune times to release an online casino-based game. Thankfully Starburst XXXtreme features eye-catching visuals, including the jewels and space themes. These attract audience participation and make the gameplay inviting. The game also has a nostalgic edge. The previous NetEnt iteration featured similar visuals and gameplay, so the audience has some familiarity with it. The producers have revamped this version by tweaking the features to improve the volatility and engagement. 

That is characterized by the potential win cap of 200,000 times the bet. Starburst XXXtreme does not just give betting alternatives for players that want to go big. The increase of multipliers also provides a great experience. If the respins in the previous version were great, knowing that multipliers can go hundreds of times overtakes the game to a new level. 

Players should get excited about this offering. All of the features can be triggered within a single spin. Whether one plays the standard game or takes the XXXtreme spin route, it is possible to activate all of the features. Of course, the potential 200,000 times potential is a huge carrot. However, the bet size is probably going to be restricted and vary depending on the casino. It is also worth pointing out that a malfunction during the gameplay will void all of the payouts and progress. Overall, the game itself has been designed to provide a capped win of 200,000 times the original bet. 

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Anglais

‘We’re back’: Montreal festival promoters happy to return but looking to next year

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In downtown Montreal, it’s festival season.

In the city’s entertainment district, a musical act was conducting a sound check on stage Friday evening — the second day of the French-language version of the renowned Just For Laughs comedy festival. Tickets for many of the festival’s free outdoor shows — limited by COVID-19 regulations — were sold out.

Two blocks away, more than 100 people were watching an acoustic performance by the Isaac Neto Trio — part of the last weekend of the Festival International Nuits d’Afrique, a celebration of music from the African continent and the African diaspora.

With COVID-19 restrictions continuing to limit capacity, festival organizers say they’re glad to be back but looking forward to next year when they hope border restrictions and capacity limits won’t affect their plans.

Charles Décarie, Just For Laughs’ CEO and president, said this is a “transition year.”

“Even though we have major constraints from the public health group in Montreal, we’ve managed to design a festival that can navigate through those constraints,” Décarie said.

The French-language Juste pour rire festival began on July 15 and is followed by the English-language festival until July 31.

When planning began in February and March, Décarie said, organizers came up with a variety of scenarios for different crowd sizes, ranging from no spectators to 50 per cent of usual capacity.

“You’ve got to build scenarios,” he said. “You do have to plan a little bit more than usual because you have to have alternatives.”

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Anglais

MELS new major movie studio to be built in Montreal

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MONTREAL — MELS Studios will build a new film studio in Montreal, filling some of the gap in supply to meet the demand of Hollywood productions.

MELS president Martin Carrier said on Friday that MELS 4 studio construction will begin « as soon as possible », either in the fall or winter of next year. The studio could host productions as early as spring 2023.

The total investment for the project is $76 million, with the Quebec government contributing a $25 million loan. The project will create 110 jobs, according to the company.

The TVA Group subsidiary’s project will enable it to stand out « even more » internationally, according to Quebecor president and CEO Pierre Karl Péladeau. In the past, MELS Studios has hosted several major productions, including chapters of the X-Men franchise. The next Transformers movie is shooting this summer in Montreal.

Péladeau insisted that local cultural productions would also benefit from the new facility, adding that the studio ensures foreign revenues and to showcase talent and maintain an industry of Quebec producers.

STUDIO SHORTAGE

The film industry is cramped in Montreal.

According to a report published last May by the Bureau du cinéma et de la télévision du Québec (BCTQ), there is a shortage of nearly 400,000 square feet of studio space.

With the addition of MELS 4, which will be 160,000 square feet, the company is filling part of the gap.

Carrier admitted that he has had to turn down contracts because of the lack of space, representing missed opportunities of « tens of millions of dollars, not only for MELS, but also for the Quebec economy. »

« Montreal’s expertise is in high demand, » said Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante, who was present at the announcement.

She said she received great testimonials from « Netflix, Disney, HBO and company » during an economic mission to Los Angeles in 2019.

« What stands out is that they love Montreal because of its expertise, knowledge and beauty. We need more space, like MELS 4, » she said.

There is still not enough capacity in Quebec, acknowledged Minister of Finance, the Economy and Innovation Eric Girard.

« It is certain that the government is concerned about fairness and balance, so if other requests come in, we will study them with the same seriousness as we have studied this one, » he said.

Grandé Studios is the second-largest player in the industry. Last May, the company said it had expansion plans that should begin in 2022. Investissement Québec and Bell are minority shareholders in the company.

For its part, MELS will have 400,000 square feet of production space once MELS 4 is completed. The company employs 450 people in Quebec and offers a range of services including studio and equipment rentals, image and sound postproduction, visual effects and a virtual production platform.

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