Categories
newsletters

September 2021 Newsletter

Greetings from Neighbourhood Watch London!

September marks the beginning of fall, and we hope the new season brings you health, happiness, and peace of mind.

Ontario’s Vaccine Passport

Ontario’s new COVID vaccine passport plan was introduced this month. It requires residents to show proof they’ve been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to dine indoors at restaurants and go to gyms and theatres. Here are some highlights via CBC News Vaccine Passport. Meanwhile, the Middlesex London Health Unit has set up a new vaccination clinic at White Oaks Mall. The walk-in-clinic will operate from September 14th to September 25th. For information, go to the Health Unit’s website MLHU Vaccination Clinic

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

On September 30th, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation will be recognized as a federal statutory holiday for the first time. It will be a designated paid holiday for federally-regulated employees. It’s held to promote awareness of the residential school system and the impact on Indigenous communities.

Mark Your Calendars

On Thursday October 7th, 2021 the Neighbourhood Watch London Annual General Meeting will be available for download by visiting this link. Once again, we are holding our AGM as a virtual event due to COVID.

Money Mules and Phishing:  Strange “Animals” & Fraud Awareness

You’ve probably heard of phishing. For example, a scammer sends you an email from a recognizable company, in an attempt  to trick you into providing financial information. But you may not be familiar with money mules. According to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, there’s an increasing number of fraud networks that recruit unsuspecting victims to receive and transfer money from other victims. According to Money Mule Awareness this is often done using bank wire transfers, email money transfers, money services, businesses and virtual currencies. On Thursday September 30th, at 1 p.m. Neighbourhood Watch London presents the third in a series of fraud awareness for seniors. Join Tom Cheel of the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre on a Zoom call that will be focusing on internet fraud. You can join via Zoom here.

Back to School

September is, of course, back to school time. London police recommend parents talk to their children about safety precautions and consider the following safety tips.

  • Establish the safest route to school or the bus stop
  • Encourage children to stick to the route and avoid shortcuts
  • To always walk on the sidewalk or away from the roadway
  • Remind children not talk to people they don’t know

For children learning from home, police also have some safety tips for parents.

  • Have age appropriate conversations about digital use with children
  • Establish your household expectations about things like text messages, location information sharing, etc.
  • Explore parental controls to monitor what children can access through device management programs such as parental controls

Recognizing this can be a stressful time for families, the London District Catholic School Board has a feature on its website that offers advice on coping. For example, asking everyone to think about their level of calm and give it a score of one to ten. Finding Calm During Stressful Times

For more information visit: Back to School Safety Tips

Ideas in Action

Do you have a great idea for a community improvement project? The City of London is inviting residents to share their ideas through the Neighbourhood Decision Making program Neighbourhood Decision Making Individual programs are eligible for up to $30,000 in funding. The deadline for applications is September 21, 2021. For more information email neighbourhogood@london.ca or phone 519 661-5336. Project ideas can also be submitted online by clicking https://getinvolved.london.ca/NDM

The City of London is inviting residents to cast their ballots for the People’s Choice categories of the Urban Design Awards. By going online, you can help choose the winner from among 15 recent projects. Nominees include new residential high rises, rehabilitated heritage buildings and improved public spaces. Voting is open until the end of September. Urban Design Awards

A Shout-out to a Local Hero on Twitter