Local bookworms have a chance to give back to the Thunder Bay Public Library during Library Giving Day on Wednesday.
Thanks to local business sponsors, all Library Giving Day donations will be doubled (up to $4,500).
“The generosity of businesses like Lowerys, Jones Insurance and Thunder Bay Truck Centre makes it possible for us to keep doing what we do best,” said Richard Togman, CEO of Thunder Bay Public Library. “On April 1, your donation gets doubled. That’s a pretty good deal.”
Library Giving Day is an international campaign launched in 2019. It has raised over $16,000 since its adoption in Thunder Bay in 2024. This year’s goal is $10,000. Funds will help the library introduce new free programs and collections, from innovative children’s programming to research services.
The library received glowing praise from the initiative’s business sponsors:
“Thunder Bay Public Library is a resource that touches every corner of this city, and we’re glad to help make Library Giving Day a success.” — Dave Mack, President and General Manager of Thunder Bay Truck Centre.
“The Library serves everyone, and that’s exactly the kind of institution we want to support.” — Shawn Christie, Vice President of Lowerys Office Supplies.
“Thunder Bay Public Library is a place where community comes together. It supports learning, sparks curiosity, and creates access to opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds.” — Jeff Jones, President of Jones Insurance.
A police investigation into a violent assault has led to two arrests.
Thunder Bay Police Service officers responded to a call at Huron Avenue Saturday and found an injured man. He was transported to a hospital for treatment.
As a result of an investigation, a 25-year old Thunder Bay man and a 28-year old Thunder Bay woman were arrested and face the following charges:
• Assault with a weapon (two counts) • Forcible confinement (two counts)
The man has also been charged with failure to comply with an undertaking and failure to comply with a release order.
Both of the accused were remanded into custody after their first court appearance.
Carlito’s Cafe is hosting the first-ever CarlitoCon at the Superior Inn Hotel on April 18, an all-day tabletop gaming convention.
Events and games are planned from 9 am to 6 pm. Beginners and advanced players alike are welcome.
“There’s going to be something for everyone,” said Carlito’s CEO Chris Talarico. “We have cosplay, we have vendors. The big events people can expect would be our live-action role-playing experiences […] but we have a lot of very casual events as well, like drop-in events for Pokémon players, Magic: the Gathering players, and we have an open board game library.”
One of the main events is called Depths of Silford Cove, a Dungeons and Dragons variant with extra immersion via live actors and costumes. It will be running all day.
For competitive gamers, there are regional tournament qualifiers for Magic: The Gathering and Star Wars Unlimited. Winners and top performers will be invited to larger events out of town.
Only 10 Star Wars Unlimited regional tournament qualifiers are officially recognized each year across Canada.
“I had to send a number of emails to scoop that one up, but I sweet talked them into giving it to me,” Talarico said.
According to Talarico, the idea for the convention has been bouncing around his head since September.
“There is room for things like this,” Talarico said. “The feedback from the community has been incredibly positive. We have lots of people travelling from out of town to play in these events.”
Click here for a full schedule. Tickets are available for purchase here.
“If you want to get out for an afternoon and learn some new games, have some fun, see the incredible vendors we have, and check out what people from our community and beyond have been working on, I think you’ll get a lot out of it,” Talarico said.
As of Wednesday, Thunder Bay is one of only three Canadian cities with a Hyatt House hotel.
The city’s newest hotel is set up on Oliver Road near Golf Links. An official opening ceremony is planned later in the season once the snow melts.
Regional Manager Brian Lubbers says the hotel has generated a good amount of buzz in the city.
“You can hear the excitement in the community, whether they’re going to be staying here or not,” Lubbers said. “You mention the new hotel and they say ‘I’ve been waiting for that to open!’, I think it’s just something new and nice for the city. When there’s only three Hyatt Houses in Canada and Thunder Bay is one of them, it’s exciting.”
Hyatt House Regional Manager Brian Lubbers (Jacob Henriksen-Willis/March 26 2026)
Thunder Bay was a top choice for expansion for Hyatt House’s parent company Genesis Hospitality.
“Thunder Bay is a fantastic market,” Lubbers said. “The northern Ontario market seems to be strong in general. For example, after COVID hit in 2020 Thunder Bay was actually the first market in all of Ontario to fully rebound in terms of occupancy.”
He pointed to Thunder Bay’s position off the Trans‑Canada Highway, along with its prosperous health care and mining sectors, as key drivers of the strong results.
“Average daily rates [in Thunder Bay] are great for anywhere in Ontario right now,” he said. “We could probably see average rates that are competing with the Greater Toronto area and even downtown Toronto specifically.”
According to Lubbers, the Hyatt House isn’t the biggest brand but it is focused on being the best in the market when it comes to cleanliness and guest experience.
The front lobby of the brand-new Hyatt House hotel (Jacob Henriksen-Willis/March 26 2026)
Earlier this week, the Central Taxi Association (CTA) called for a province-wide driver registry and mandatory in-vehicle cameras for all ride-hailing services (i.e. taxis, Uride, Uber, Lyft, etc).
“The recent explosion in the number of Vehicles for Hire (VFH) means municipalities are struggling or simply incapable of managing the system,” said CTA president Marc André Way. “Now is the time for Ontario to introduce a centralized information management system and a single transferrable license for drivers who are transporting passengers for money.”
Taxi and ridesharing companies may not always align, but Uride CEO Cody Ruberto says he’s in complete agreement with Way on the need for universal security cameras.
“I think it’s the right thing to do,” Ruberto said. “It’s something that helps protect riders and it also helps protect drivers. And when there’s a camera in the car, the odds of dangerous scenarios happening drop.”
Ruberto said Uride already encourages newly onboarded drivers to install a security camera for safety purposes.
The push follows an incident last year when police had difficulty contacting an Uber driver who unknowingly drove off with a child, raising concerns about passenger safety.
“Technologies already exist which can be used to ensure travelers’ safety and consumer protection. It is incumbent upon government and the ground transportation industry to work together and create a plan to do this,” said Way.
The CTA also suggested Vehicles for Hire picking up passengers along the new Northlander train route be provided with specific clear and highly visible “MTO pilot” magnet or sticker signage with QR code; that signage be posted in the stations; and that a customer feedback phone number or email address be provided to give passengers an easy opportunity to submit complaints or compliments on service levels.
The Fort William Rotary Club is celebrating another year of generosity after donating more than $580,000 to the community in 2025.
Representatives from charities across the city met Wednesday at the brand-new Regional Food Distribution Association (RFDA) gathering hall to recognize the Rotary’s contributions. The RFDA received $100,000 from the Rotary last year to assist in renovations.
Chair of the RFDA Board Jude Gaw at Wednesday’s celebration (Jacob Henriksen-Willis/March 25 2026)
“We have over 20 charities that we give to year over year,” said Rotary President Stephen Margarit. “It’s so great reading about the projects we helped to fund. We’re a small organization of just over 40 people, so to be able to make that huge impact in our community reflects the great work we do.”
The event doubled as a 40th anniversary celebration for the Rotary’s 50/50 House Lottery, one of the club’s largest fundraising initiatives.
Margarit wouldn’t give away exactly what’s in store, but the Rotary plans to announce “something special” in the coming weeks to honour 40 years of the lottery. Last year, the winner received a 1,360 sq. ft. home at Bruin Crescent. There are a total of $50,000 in Early Bird prizes up for grabs this year.
“The Fort William Rotary Club has a long history of giving back in our community, and it’s not just about those big cheques. Us Rotarians are out in the community, we’re volunteering at a lot of these organizations, and we see firsthand where a lot of the money goes,” Margarit said.
A complete list of 2025 charity contributions made by the Fort William Rotary Club:
• 70th Thunder Bay Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron – $20,000 • Camp Quality Canada – $16,000 • Children’s Aid Society of the District of Thunder Bay – $8,000 • Conseil Scolaire de District Catholique des Aurores Boréales – $500 • Dayna Elizabeth Karle (DEK) Addiction Recovery Foundation – $7,600 • Easter Seals Canada – 5,000 • Evergreen: A United Neighbourhood – $2,500 • George Jeffrey Children’s Foundation – $53,400 • Hospice Northwest – $6,520 • Lakehead District School Board Scholarship Fund – $2,000 • Lakehead Festival of Music and the Arts – $12,500
• Northern Nishnawbe Education Council – $500 • Our Kids Count Thunder Bay Inc: – $50,000 • Regional Food Distribution Association of Northwestern Ontario – $100,000 • St. Joseph’s Foundation of Thunder Bay – $76,788 • The Salvation Army Thunder Bay – $10,000 • Thunder Bay Boys’ and Girls’ Club – $25,000 • Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board Awards Trust Fund – $1,000 • Thunder Bay Christmas Cheer Fund – $10,000 • Thunder Bay Emergency Shelter Inc. – $75,000 • Thunder Bay Regional Health Science Foundation – $134,180 • Wilderness Discovery Centre – $10,000
“I’m in awe of the amount of money that they’re giving to us,” said RFDA Board Chair June Gaw. “It’s helping us so much in our project, we couldn’t do it without them. Thank you so much, Rotary.”
In addition to their new gathering space, the RFDA also launched a community training kitchen to provide food banks across Thunder Bay with professional facilities for educational cooking classes, community meals and food rescue initiatives.
“The Fort William Rotary is just a group of individuals from all walks of life and all ages that get together to do community work,” said Rotary Chair of Community Service Nancy Patterson. “It’s good to know you’re making a small dent in the vast needs of our community.”
Wednesday’s event was also a good networking opportunity for the various charities partnering with the Rotary.
“This night is just for everyone to get to know each other and see what the other charities are doing, what the money is being used for that we’re giving to them, and just to celebrate partnerships. It’s just great to be a part of Rotary and to be able to help in any way that I can,” said Rotary member Laurie Etter.
Rotary Club members Nancy Patterson and Laurie Etter (Jacob Henriksen-Willis/March 25 2026)
Sexuality, identity, and human rights are being explored at Lakehead University’s inaugural student-led Sexual Activism and Politics exhibit.
The four-day exhibition is the culmination of a semester of study in the Gender and Women’s Studies program. Students have turned the university’s Agora into a space for dialogue, using artworks to spark creative engagement on topics that affect many communities in our society.
The artists behind the Sexual Activism and Politics exhibit (Jacob Henriksen-Willis/March 25 2026)
“Stories often lack dignified spaces where they can be told,” said Kyra Brimmell, exhibit co-curator and a student in the program. “I wanted to help create a dignified and aesthetic place where people could tell their stories.”
Brimmell said engaging in meaningful conversations and activism through the program was very fulfilling for her.
“We all just happened to sign up for the same class together, and now we’re all friends and we get to work together and share our stories,” she said. “Everybody was very passionate and it was infectious.”
Students say the exhibit aims to amplify marginalized voices and inspire viewers to take action.
“A big thing to me is acknowledging specifically women and queer individuals who were left out of history,” said student and co-curator Kaylea Conway. “I’m honoured to have people tell me so much about their lived experiences and then give me the chance to portray it in a respectful light. This is all very complex art that we’re working with.”
Course instructor Mohit Dudeja said the exhibit emerged through a democratic decision‑making process among students.
“We are so proud of it,” Dudeja said. “This aims to create awareness, to let people know about things that have happened throughout history but also the things that are happening now. People from the 2SLGBTQ+ community, women, gender and sexual minorities, they’re still oppressed in Canada. Even though it apparently has an image of being more open and friendly to minorities. We want to bring these issues to the forefront.”
Artworks on display at the inaugural Sexual Activism and Politics exhibit at Lakehead.
