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South Boston groom applying for new passport today in time for Italian wedding

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

Strike the wedding bells!A South Boston couple’s romantic Italian ceremony appears to be back on track as planned next week, and the groom will be in attendance.Donato Frattaroli is heading to the Boston Passport Agency for an appointment today, the North End native told the Herald this morning. He is set to pick up a new passport (hopefully) here in the Hub, just days after his Golden Retriever puppy, Chickie, destroyed his old one.U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch’s Office confirmed with the Herald that it had been handling the case ever since Frattaroli’s fiancee Magda Mazri reached out for help from the congressman. A spokesperson said the office secured the appointment for the couple.Frattaroli had previously told the Herald that he also had been in contact with U.S. Sen. Ed Markey. Local dog lover — PR guru George Regan — also assisted in the process. The story, first reported by the Herald on Friday, went national, with Frattaroli and Mazri appearing in a Monday segment on ...

Quebec community mourns four family members killed in home construction accident.

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

MONTREAL — A rural community in Quebec’s Bas-St-Laurent region is in mourning after four family members died in a home construction accident over the weekend.Investigators said two men and two women were atop a scissor lift on Saturday in St-Léandre, Que., when the device toppled for an unknown reason.Sixty-year-old Marco Roy and 53-year-old Jocelyne Bouchard were killed, as were 27-year-old Émerik Chenard and 24-year-old Kim Blouin. Police say the older two victims came from Rivière-du-Loup, 200 kilometres northeast of Quebec City, and that the younger two were from St-Léandre, a town of less than 400 people, about 400 kilometres northeast of the provincial capital.The mayor of St-Léandre said on Facebook that the entire town is in shock and is mourning the victims of the accident.Parti Québécois legislature member Pascal Berubé has expressed his condolences to the Maridel dairy farm, which has been owned by the Blouin family for several generations.This report by The Canadia...

Quebec teachers unions call for better working conditions to address staff shortages

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

MONTREAL — Unions representing Quebec teachers are calling on the provincial government to address staff shortages by improving working conditions.Josée Scalabrini, president of a federation of 34 Quebec teachers unions, told a news conference today that teachers’ workloads have become untenable.She says teachers need more resources to manage the number of students who have learning difficulties.Scalabrini cited a survey of thousands of teachers that she said showed 100 per cent of respondents reported lacking resources and that 48 per cent of students experience difficulty learning.Teachers unions are in the process of renegotiating with the government a collective agreement that expired at the end of March.Scalabrini says negotiations should focus on encouraging teachers to stay in the profession after what she says have been two decades of neglect by Quebec governments.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 21, 2023.The Canadian Press

Ontario expands ‘strong mayor’ powers to more cities, creates $1.2B housing incentive fund

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

Ontario Premier Doug Ford is giving ‘strong mayor’ powers to 21 more municipalities and announcing $1.2 billion in incentives for cities and towns to meet housing targets.In a speech Monday at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario’s conference in London, Ont., Ford said the moves are to help communities build at least 1.5 million homes by 2031 in order to meet the needs of the province’s fast-growing population.“This new fund [Building Faster Fund] is an incentive program that supports municipalities to build more homes … that will reward municipalities for reaching annual housing targets. These targets will be ambitious, but realistic,” Ford said at the conference.Strong mayor powers include allowing mayors to propose housing-related bylaws and pass them with the support of one-third of councillors, as well as override council approval of certain bylaws and prepare their city’s budget, instead of council.The expansion involves ...

Toronto man broke into east end home, sexually assaulted woman: Police

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

A Toronto man is facing charges after he allegedly broke into a home and sexually assaulted a woman in the city’s east end.Officers responded to reports of a sexual assault near of Main Street and Danforth Avenue around 3 a.m. on Aug. 20.Police allege a suspect broke into a residential unit in the area and sexually assaulted a woman.Toronto resident Dominic Mark Eustache, 49, was arrested and is facing two charges for breaking and entering and sexual assault. The accused appeared in a Toronto courtroom on Sunday morning.Investigators have released an image of the suspect and believe there may be additional victims. Anyone with information is being asked to contact police.

What to know about home insurance if you’re been displaced by B.C. or N.W.T. fires

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

The Insurance Bureau of Canada says all standard homeowner and tenant insurance policies cover damage caused by fires, and also provide coverage to help with the cost of mass evacuations. In a news release, the organization advises anyone forced to flee due to wildfires in the Northwest Territories and British Columbia to make a list of damaged or destroyed items and keep receipts for expenses they incurred.Devastating wildfires have forced thousands from their homes in the Northwest Territories and the B.C. Interior over the past week.A provincial state of emergency was enacted in B.C., with around 30,000 people under evacuation order as of Sunday. IBC says it’s too early to provide estimates of insured damages from the fires as they are still ongoing.Before these fires started their rampages, it was already a year of record-setting wildfires. More than one in four Canadians told a polling firm in June that they had been affected by fires during the spring. This report by The Canad...

USC’s Caleb Williams, Ohio State’s Harrison Jr. and Michigan’s Corum top AP preseason All-Americans

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams of USC, Ohio State receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and Michigan running back Blake Corum are among the returning first-team players who were selected to The Associated Press preseason All-America team announced Monday.Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt and Miami safety Kam Kinchens also followed up their stellar 2022 seasons by being named preseason All-Americans by voters in the AP Top 25.Two-time defending national champion and No. 1 Georgia had the most players on the first team with four, including tight end Brock Bowers, center Sedrick Van Pran and defensive backs Malaki Starks and Javon Bullard.No. 3 Ohio State was second with three. Harrison was joined by fellow receiver Emeka Egbuka and linebacker Tommy Eichenberg.Williams was named the AP Player of the Year before he won the Heisman last year, his first at USC after transferring from Oklahoma.Corum was a Heisman contender last year until a late-season injury and returns to lead the second-...

Happy 104th birthday, Sister Jean! See how you can celebrate the beloved Loyola chaplain

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

CHICAGO — It's a special day for a special person in the Loyola University and Rogers Park community in Chicago. Sister Jean Dolores-Schmidt BMV, or more commonly known as Sister Jean, is celebrating her 104th birthday on Monday. She was born on August 21, 1919 in San Francisco, California where she spent the first part of her life before moving to the Chicago area, where she's been for over 60 years. Sister Jean is currently the chaplain of the Loyola men's basketball team, a role she's had since 1994 and came to international fame during the Ramblers' NCAA Tournament runs in 2018 and 2021.She began her time in Chicago as a teacher at Mundelein College, an all-woman's catholic school in Rogers Park and Edgewater, in 1961. Sister Jean remained there until that institution merged with Loyola in 1991, eventually joining the men's basketball team as a chaplain three years later, a role she still holds today. Loyola is planning a few ways to pay tribute to Sister Jean on her 104th birth...

Investigation underway after 16 and 19-year-old killed in Glenview shooting, both ID'd

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

GLENVIEW, Ill. — Two teens have been identified after a Saturday night double-homicide in Glenview, according to multiple sources.The Cook County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) said the deadly shooting happened just after 9 p.m. in the 10400 block of Michael Todd Terrace in unincorporated Glenview. String of 7-11 robberies within 30 minutes on North Side Officers said when they first arrived on scene, they found two victims who had both been shot several times. One was pronounced dead on the scene, while the other victim was taken to the hospital, where they were later pronounced dead. Man, 38, killed in Austin hit-and-run ID’d The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office has identified one of the victims as 16-year-old Jose Guzman, and the other as 19-year-old Carlos Guzman, both from Glenview, IL.Currently, it is unclear what led to the shooting and police say an investigation is underway. Shooting in Chicago Heights leaves 18-year-old dead Anyone with information on the deadly shooti...

Major wildfires burn in Greece, Spain's Canary Island of Tenerife

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:13:52 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Major wildfires were burning in Greece and on one of Spain’s Canary Islands off the African coast Monday, with hot, dry and windy conditions hampering the efforts of hundreds of firefighters battling the blazes. Two of the fires have been burning for several days.European Union officials have blamed climate change for the increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires in Europe, noting that 2022 was the second-worst year for wildfire damage on record after 2017.In Greece, authorities said the body of a man was recovered from a sheep pen in an area in the central Viotia region under evacuation as a wildfire that broke out Monday morning approached. Local media reported the man apparently died of smoke inhalation while trying to save his livestock.Two villages in the Viotia region, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) northwest of Athens, were under evacuation orders, as were villages in three regions of northeastern Greece where several separate wildf...