Stephen Weir articles, editorials and popular social media weir postings

Walk A Mile (or two) In My Shoes  Graduating student take a Walk of Excellence BY STEPHEN WEIR   On Thursday, the annual Walk of Excellence took place, marking a significant celebration for over 500 graduating high school students from the Jane Finch/Black Creek community. The event, organized by the Blackhurst Cultural Centre, local high schools, York-TD Community Engagement Centre , and the Toronto District School Board, aimed to honour the achievements of students from CW Jefferys, Westview, Emery, Downsview, and James Cardinal McGuigan High Schools. The festivities kicked off at CW Jefferys High School at 10am with a series of vibrant student presentations on the front lawn. Following this, the students, filled with excitement and pride, marched, danced, and walked north along Sentinel Road toward York University. Along their route, a small plane soared above, pulling a banner with words of encouragement for the graduates. This unexpected sight was a thrilling surprise for...

 No CNN or CBC, But the new Jane and Finch Grads Got a Parade and an Airplane to Mark Their Passage  BY STEPHEN WEIR On Thursday, the annual Walk of Excellence took place, marking a significant celebration for over 500 graduating high school students from the Jane Finch/Black Creek community. The event, organized by the Blackhurst Cultural Centre, local high schools, York-TD Community Engagement Centre , and the Toronto District School Board, aimed to honour the achievements of students from CW Jefferys, Westview, Emery, Downsview, and James Cardinal McGuigan High Schools. The festivities kicked off at CW Jefferys High School at 10am with a series of vibrant student presentations on the front lawn. Following this, the students, filled with excitement and pride, marched, danced, and walked north along Sentinel Road toward York University. Along their route, a small plane soared above, pulling a banner with words of encouragement for the graduates. This unexpected sight was a t...

 IT HAPPENS ON THURSDAY MORNING JUNE 6TH Now in its 11th year, the Walk with Excellence is an annual event that celebrates the achievements of graduating students from   high schools in Toronto’s Jane and Finch community. Signifying the beginning of their journey to post-secondary education, the event – taking place this year on Thursday, June 6 – will see over 500 graduating students walk from five local high schools onto York University’s Keele Campus. The students’ supportive teachers and administrators will be cheering them on along the way, and all York University community members are invited join in welcoming the students onto the Keele Campus in true York U style. “The Walk with Excellence signals new beginnings and a new season,” said Itah Sadu, founder of the Walk with Excellence and a York University honorary degree recipient. “Walking with the graduating students in this annual urban rite of passage is pure joy.” Organized by a coalition of community partners – inc...

Thursday’s Online Walk of Excellence for Jane and Finch. By Stephen Weir Mr JT on YouTube Last Thursday, North Toronto students got the online surprise of their lives while watching a live YouTube broadcast of the annual graduation Walk of Excellence.   Not only did community leaders, entertainers and family members take part in the 2-hour social media broadcast, so too did the Prime Minister of Canada and the Mayor of Toronto! In past years, Grade 12 students graduating from area high schools -- Emery, Downsview, Westview, CW Jeffreys and James Cardinal McGuigan have taken the Walk of Excellence from their schools to a grad party put on by York University.   In 2020, the year of the pandemic, the March was left to a small group of pan players while students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 took part on-line. The broadcast was a mix of live footage from musicians performing on Finch Avenue West and Jane, to taped messages and live student posts.   I...

                      7th Annual Walk of Excellence Pannist Will Perform at Jane/Finch This Thursday. Press Release What :  Jane & Finch graduates Walk With Excellence When  : June 18th., 2020, 10.00 am - 11.00 - Pannists play at designated spots throughout the community from Wilson/Keele to Shoreham and Jane. Earl LaPierre Jr. AfroPan Who  10.30 am - 11.00 am Earl LaPierre Jr. pannist travels from Westview Secondary home origins of Afro-Pan, Canada’s oldest steelband to the intersection of Jane & Finch. Where : 11.00 - 12.00 pm Pannists play at intersection York University Faculty Association gathers to symbolically mark the passage from high school to post secondary. 11.00 - 12.00 - Virtual Walk on Zoom, Facebook, Instagram, SnapChat, Youtube This year’s 7th annual Walk With Excellence parade, will be virtual with some physical elements. Steel Pannists will create a day...

Seventh Annual Walk of Excellence for Scarborough Grade 12 students  By Stephen Weir It happened Tuesday.   The young man pictured in this week’s Caribbean Camera holding a big blue globe says he had got the whole world in his hands.   And, on this day in Scarborough, so too did over 500 graduating Grade 12 students from Emery, Downsview, Westview, C.W Jeffreys and Father James McGuigan high schools. The weather was perfect for the students who took part in the Seventh Annual Walk of Excellence. The day started at the CW Jefferys high school near York University.   All of the students were in the high school auditorium before heading off on a 4km march up to the main entrance of York University. This year the Walk With Excellence had a fifth school involved in the parade - Father James McGuigan High School of the Toronto Catholic District School Board. "It is wonderful to have the public and Catholic students walking together as a community of yo...