FUNDING FOR LOCAL PARAMEDICS PAGE
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FERNE'S 105TH BIRTHDAY PAGE
STRATFORD VOLUME 4 • ISSUE 3
10 FREE
SEPTEMBER 6, 2024
Jennifer Anderson
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Jamie Gerber
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Police will review two protocols after Bradshaw Drive shooting: Chief Skinner
Stratford Police Service Chief Gregory Skinner said that he was shocked when he first heard of the Bradshaw Drive shooting on Aug. 1, which left two people dead and two others severely injured. “Stratford hasn't had that kind of violence in the recent past,” Skinner said. “You look at big cities and the news coverage and you hear about it all the time – and yes, we've heard about it in Woodstock and St. Thomas, but we luckily have been a little bit immune from that level of violence. And now, all of a sudden, it is in our community as well. “Stratford is a very safe city,” he went on to say. “Our city has changed, but it is still a very safe city … I totally understand parents being extra vigilant with respect to looking out after their kids and on their streets and being out on the streets, particularly after dark. And I think there's going to be a period of time where people are going to have to regain trust in their neighbourhoods to be able to feel safe and secure … That's totally reasonable, and it's going to take time.” On the evening of Aug. 1, police say Bradshaw Drive resident Ricky Bilcke opened fire on neighbour Jonathan Bennett after an ongoing dispute. He proceeded to shoot David Tokley, another neighbour, and Stephanie Irvine before turning the gun on himself. Bilcke was found by police dead on the scene and Bennett was pronounced dead in hospital. Tokley and Irvine were transported to Victoria Hospital in London by ORNGE Air Ambulance for further recovery. CONTINUED TO PAGE 2
BEANBAG FUN
(CONNOR LUCZKA PHOTO)
Nicole and Rylie Carter toss a few beanbags at the CJCS Centennial celebration in Market Square on Aug. 24. The local radio station celebrated 100 years of broadcasting to Stratford and area this year, celebrating with a host of different events that culminated with the huge celebration at the end of August. See more photos on page 13.
Stratford Festival announces 2025 season
STRATFORD TIMES STAFF stratfordtimes@gmail.com
The Stratford Festival has announced its 2025 season playbill, a collection of classic and new texts celebrating harmony and the forces that enhance it or work against it. Antoni Cimolino, artistic director of the Stratford Festival, said in a media release that The Winter’s Tale was one play in particular that caught his attention when conceptualizing the season. The Greek god Apollo is central to the resolution of the story, helping to bring harmony to a family in conflict. “Apollo is the god of healing, of music and the arts, of
truth and the protection of the young,” Cimolino stated. “What a wonderful figure to have at the centre of the season, I thought: a god of harmony, a state we yearn for in this world … But in its humblest form harmony can become dull … “And so two other gods took their place in my mind alongside Apollo, Venus and Mars, entwined in a never-ending cycle of destruction and creation. Together these three inspired what I hope audiences will find to be an entertaining and meaningful playbill, themed around Apollo, Venus, Mars: Reflections on Harmony, Love and War.” CONTINUED TO PAGE 7