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Miranda Cole is ready to put her troops to work and it is not going to be easy. Cole, who works at the Fitness Center at the Oil Heritage District Community Centre, has organized the second annual Tour of Duty, a 24- hour fitness event to raise money for families of people serving in the military. Five teams, including one

You have just a few more days to enter The Independent’s first photo contest. We’re asking you to Show Us Your Fall Colours by submitting your best fall pictures to our contest. Submit your photos in JPEG form to [email protected] by Nov. 11 at 11pm. Please indicate if you make money from your photography – those photos will be judged

  When Clint Smith hits the cross-country course at Humber College Saturday he’ll run the first six-kilometers with his legs and the last two with his heart. The Brigden native will be leading the Fanshawe College team at the Canadian Championship this weekend in Toronto. Smith and his team became the first program to win five consecutive men’s team titles

Mario Lafond rubs the tensor bandage on what used to be his foot. His eyes squint in pain as he rubs the already worn bandage. The pain isn’t just physical, it is also mental as he thinks about the future for his young family. On Oct. 9, LaFond arrived at his job at SofSurfaces in Petrolia for his 7 am

  A strike has been averted at Clean Harbours. The 72 workers at the hazardous waste site on Petrolia Line were set to walk off the job Tuesday but a   was reached to avoid the strike. UniFor Local 9-14 National Representative Glen Sonier says employees voted 82 percent of the deal Friday night. The main sticking point in the

The Wyoming firefighters are stepping up to help one of their own. They’re organizing a benefit for George Klazinga and his family for Nov. 30. Klazinga, a 22-year veteran of the volunteer department has been ill for about two years and has recently been diagnosed with two rare blood diseases which are affecting his immune system. He’s been in hospital

Victoria Playhouse Petrolia is going to be bursting with laughter and song in 2014. That’s the theme for the upcoming season according artistic directors David Rogers and David Hogan who introduced the season Oct. 30. “Five of six of the shows have music in them,” says Hogan. While there is a wide range of offerings this year, Hogan says there

Oil Springs resident Charles Fairbank is being recognized for preserving the history that defines us. Fairbank was presented with the Lieutenant Governor’s Award from the Heritage Canada Foundation for his work in heritage conservation. The lone medal was presented at the National Gallery in Ottawa over the weekend during an awards night hosted by Heritage Canada Foundation. Heritage advocate Ian

Your eyes are not deceiving you. The coach behind the bench of the Petrolia Midget Reps team is a hockey dad; but this is not any hockey dad. This is NHL veteran and owner/general manager of the London Knights, Mark Hunter. And right beside him, another former NHLer, Bobby Gould. Hunter, whose day job is managing the operation of London’s

The cast of Till Beth Do Us Part take to the VPP stage  Nov. 14   A German exchange student working with Petrolia Community Theatre on its upcoming production is impressed by the dedication and level of professionalism he’s seeing. Max Hirch is a Grade 11 student on exchange from Germany who is attending LCCVI. He began his acting career

Tom Eady has always had a heart for the men and women who serve in the military. But around Remembrance Day, the Petrolia man wears his heart on his sleeve placing memorials on the walls of the Lambtonian Apartments where he lives. Eady, a past member of the reserves, has close ties with the military. When he was just 15,

The Ministry of Labour is investigating after worker at a Petrolia manufacturing facility was injured on the job. The incident happened three weeks ago, but is only coming to light because The Independent questioned the ministry about the incident. William Lin, spokesperson for the Ministry of Labour says on Oct. 9 the ministry was “notified by the OPP of an