Rally Gets Two Prize Bikes For Harley Draw

This year's Harley Draw will be double the excitement.

The Rally In The St. Croix Valley announcing they will have two 2014 Harley Davidson motorcycles for 1st and 2nd prize at the annual Harley Draw. 1st prize will be a 2014 HD Street Bob. 2nd prize will be a 2014 HD Sportster low. 3rd prize will be a HD leather jacket.

Spokesperson Bob Hamel tells Tide News having two bikes as prizes instead of one will not effect the draw itself. He says it will still be 1 draw, with 800 tickets available, at $50 a piece.

Hamel says the winners will also have a chance to upgrade, using their prize bike as a down-payment towards the bike of their choice at the dealershipin Saint John.

The Rally will take place July 4th-6th at the St. Stephen Legion.

Province Appoints Outside Mediator In Faculty Strike

Postsecondary, training and labour Minister Jody Carr announcing the appointment of a special outside mediator while directing both sides in the UNB faculty dispute back to the bargaining table.
 
Carr says Brian Keller will meet with both sides on Wednesday and Thursday.

Carr adds he has the endorsement of both sides and this move adds a new level of urgency to the process.

Carr says Keller is an expert in labour law practicing in the field since 1972 and has served as vice chair of the Canadian Labour Relations Board.

New Reading Program Launched By Sea Dogs

The aim is to get young children who are in kindergarten to grade 3 at St. John the Baptist-King Edward School reading books. 

The Sea Dogs, Canaport LNG and the Anglophone School District  have launched the program that will see those students who read three books be eligible for Sea Dog tickets. 

Sea Dogs President Wayne Long tells Tide News they want to make reading fun for the kids and he's hoping the program will be expanded to other schools from St Stephen to Sussex next year.
 
School District Superintendent Zoe Watson says it's essential children know how to read by grade 3, otherwise it becomes more of a challenge later on and can result in behaviour problems. 

It's estimated 60 per cent of people in the province 16 years of age and older have problems with literacy.

Liberals Calling For Health Plan

People in the province need to know what the future of healthcare is going to be. 

That, from Liberal healthcare critic Donald Arsenault who's calling on Health Minister Ted Flemming to come up with a health care plan in light of the latest layoffs in radiation and nuclear medicine at Horizon Health.
 
Arsenault claims the people who work in healthcare are uncertain about what the future holds and for the first time ever, no nurse practitioners have been hired and other provinces are coming in to approach these graduates.