Tag Archives: Mike Williscraft

FROM THE PUBLISHER (PREVIOUS EDITIONS)

From the Publisher March/April 2015

ClubWest(To view our March/April 2015 issue of ClubWEST online, click here.)

“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.”
– Benjamin Franklin

Front Page Mar Apr 2015

I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Rick Manners a long time. He was one of the first people I met via his work with the Kinsmen Club of Grimsby back in 1995 when I helped start the super successful Greater Grimsby Open, as it was called back in the day: the Kinsmen’s mini-putt fundraiser which sells out every year.

He was also there when the Kinsmen helped me start the Grimsby Home Show – a tireless worker, a phenomenal artist and a man blessed with a motor that just does not quit.

He has not been well for a long time. He reluctantly speaks about his affliction and one thing is for certain, he does not dwell on it. When he was speaking about how he deals with his medical visits, I could not help but think of my father. My mom used to joke that his tombstone would read, “I can’t stay here. I have too much to do”.

This, too, is Rick, but for different reasons.

I can see doing another feature on him in a year’s time because I felt so bad leaving out so much. The man is an army of one and we could use a dozen more in our community just like him. Thanks very much for the time last week, Rick. It is much appreciated, as always.

And, yes, this is the March-April edition, but it is not too early to start thinking about gardening and landscaping. I said thinking, not digging through three feet of snow to plant bulbs.

We have some extremely knowledgable and friendly greenhouse folk right here in our midst and you will find some commentary in this edition from them. They are excellent sources of information, the people at Vineland Nurseries, so stop in and fire your questions at them.

ClubWEST also welcomes chef Jan-Willem Stulp to our list of contributors. Jan has some great ideas of themes he will cover in the coming months to entertain and challenge those who are culinary inclined. He has a wealth of experience and is excited at the challenge. We’re glad to have him.

Looking ahead, May will be another first for Niagara West.

ClubWEST is the area’s first lifestyle magazine and in May, as laid out in our inaugural edition last summer, we will be publishing the area’s first “destination” publication.

Our whole theme – ClubWEST is a great place to work, live and play – will go to high-end homes around the Golden Horseshoe from Niagara-on-The-Lake to Mississauga, a total of 100,000 homes. We’re already working on our content for that edition. It will be our chance to tell everyone just how great we have it here, and that is pretty darn good! So watch for that the first week of May.

We deliver on time, every time, no month-long delays here.

Publisher, ClubWEST Magazine
Mike Williscraft

FROM THE PUBLISHER (PREVIOUS EDITIONS)

From the Publisher January/February 2015

ClubWest(To view our January/February 2015 issue of ClubWEST online, click here.)

“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.”
– Benjamin Franklin

Front Page Jan Feb 2015

In life’s travels, it is always a positive thought to treat everyone nicely, professionally and fairly. One just never knows who might circle back and work their way into our life for a second time, or even on a permanent basis. It was a long time ago, 18 years to be exact, the first time I met Andrew Best and Jason Ginsburg.

They were Grimsby Secondary School Grade 10 keeners.

I was just about a year into my gig at The Grimsby Independent when the duo dropped in to bounce an idea off me. Having been around long enough to know there are no bad ideas, I listened to the boys’ vision for a new column for the paper. To give you a little a perspective good reader, this was before internet. Their idea was a column filled with brain teasers, number riddles and the like.

In nearly three decades in the publishing game, I would guess I have had hundreds of such proposals offered in my direction. This was the most innovative and took a lot of thought because these young lads had created everything they offered. It was not a situation of today where they could Google “riddles” and pages would appear.

Fast forward to this past summer. I received an email from Andrew letting me know he was living in Shanghai and would be returning home to continue development of a new company. It was a company he, along with his brother Addison and Jason could have launched from any place since its initial focus is online. The trio believe it is important to give back to the community from which one receives so, as it grows, their operation will be Grimsby based. You can read all about it right here in ClubWEST.

Speaking of new things…here we are in a shiny new 2015. That can mean only one thing: new years resolutions geared to fitness. Enter Katherine Preston. This is another lady I have known for a long time, another ball of energy and a class act. She is not just about exercise, rather, the whole ball of wax. Diet and lifestyle choices are also integral. Be sure to check out her information in this edition.

You may want to commit that information to memory before reading about all the tasty treats Beth Ashton of August Restaurant is cooking up. August has only been around six years, but has almost instantly earned a spot on everyone’s must-visit list. August is another example of “it’s nice to see good things happen to good people” because Beth and partner Clayton Gillie are top drawer folk. This edition’s chef feature covers some delectable comfort foods Beth has offered at their King Street eatery. If I was you, good reader, I would skip right to the slider page (Page 21).

Publisher, ClubWEST Magazine
Mike Williscraft

FROM THE PUBLISHER (PREVIOUS EDITIONS)

From the Publisher November/December 2014

ClubWest(To view our November/December 2014 issue of ClubWEST online, click here.)

“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.”
– Benjamin Franklin

Front Page Nov Dec 2014One of the first things taught in any self-respecting journalism school is that everyone has a story to tell. A good reporter should be able to hang out at a gas station for 10 minutes and extract a half-dozen story leads just by listening to customers.

Over the near-20 years I have been covering all things Niagara West, I have spoken to Debbie Zimmerman countless times: in formal interviews, at public events, or over a coffee to catch up on things. Just when you think you know a person…

My goal, as always when I speak with someone I know well, is to find out things I don’t know about them because if I don’t know, chances are the general public would not either. I learned a lot in our chats for my feature in this edition of ClubWEST. As a kid, Debbie sounds like she was a bit of a
punk. And in the nicest way, she still is.

She is an intensely informed and motivated punk, ideal to have for political representation. She knows what the community needs (because she listens) and she has no problem dropping the mitts and fighting for it. She says she is taking a self-imposed break to cool her jets and recharge. Good for her! Niagara West communities have been blessed with some talented, hard-working representatives over the years but none
better.

And speaking of none better, two of Beamsville’s main street shops represented in this edition are certainly at the top of their respective fields. Klaas Salverda, now with his son Ben, at Beamsville Bakery have crafted a reputation for excellence over four decades of serving its clientele. Meanwhile, Nik Halkias at County Cycle serves as a model of what those who nibble the pastries from across the street should be doing to burn off the “donut effect”, namely cycling anywhere and everywhere. This summer he went on an extreme bike adventure in Portugal. He can scratch that from his bucket list.

Smithville resident Jennifer McCready combines her passion for photography and empowering women to create classic 1950s style pin-up photos – including this month’s cover shot which used NewsNow’s general manager Catherine Bratton as a subject, along with a Beamsville Bakery Black Forest Cake.

There are so many people in our midst that are doing cool things every day. They are living the ClubWEST mantra of “Passions, Pursuits & Passtimes”. Our goal is to unearth these gems and serve them up to you, our devoted readers. Our other goals, like being on time with deliveries, are more mundane, but very important to running a credible organization.

Enjoy your read!

Publisher, ClubWEST Magazine
Mike Williscraft