Community cleanup initiatives continue following Barrie tornado
Dozens continue to turn out in Barrie's south-end to help restore the neighbourhoods, ravaged by a tornado earlier this month, to their former state.
On Sunday approximately 30 people gathered at Majesty Boulevard and Sun King Crescent, working towards picking up debris including lost shingles and nails.
"Our community needs help…that's what it boils down to," says Sher Braun, the organizer of Sunday's cleanup effort. "We just want to help and make it safe again so the kids can go outside and not have to worry or have their parents worry about children landing on glass or nails or anything like that."
Braun is part of Clean Up Barrie, a Facebook group that is an initiative of Barrie Families Unite. The group has been working towards beautifying Barrie for over a year, but in recent weeks has shifted its attention to the tornado.
"We just want to bring the community-feel back and let the neighbourhood, even though physically it won't look the same right now, that maybe it will have that same feel for the grass and just going for a walk and not seeing the shingles everywhere, pieces of glass to remind everybody," says Braun.
People came from other municipalities as well, wanting to do their part to help, including Laurie Thomas from Aurora.
"I'm human and I hope that the people of Barrie, if something happened in Aurora they would actually come and help as well," says Thomas. "These poor people are out of their homes, a lot of them and I couldn't imagine what that would be like. So I have the time to help so why not?"
Braun says they will continue to help as long as its needed. For details on the group, you can click here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.