Education workers strike, A Better Tent City, Jizzy Jewelry: Most read stories of the week

Education workers and supporters hit the streets in Waterloo region

Hundred of schools across Ontario were closed Friday as thousands of education workers hit the picket lines, despite controversial legislation passed by the Ontario government making the job action illegal.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents 55,000 support workers such as custodians, administrative staff and educational support workers, said they are striking "until further notice."

READ MORE: Cambridge, Ont. father pleads for schools to reopen

CUPE workers and supporters have set up pickets near MPPs’ offices across Ontario, including in Waterloo, Kitchener and Cambridge. CUPE has said its workers, who make on average $39,000 a year, are generally the lowest paid in schools.

“There are a lot of students in need and there’s not a lot of staff to go around, and my biggest concern is that we are understaffed and undervalued,” educational assistant Darla Steffen said at a protest in front of Waterloo NDP MPP Catherine Fife's office.

Chinese international students on reading week trip killed in crash near Kitchener, Ont.

The two people who died in hospital after a crash on Highway 401 Monday were Chinese international students at King’s University College in London, Ont., the school says.

In a statement issued Tuesday, King’s University College said two other students, also from China, were injured in the collision between a minivan and a pickup truck near Kitchener, Ont. One remains in serious condition. The other has more minor injuries.

The school said it is not releasing the names of the dead at this time out of respect for the families. Both were first-year social science students.

The college president said the fatal crash happened on the first day of King’s University College reading week. He added that he believed the students were heading to Toronto to do some shopping.

'It has saved lives': Checking in with Kitchener's A Better Tent City one year after move

It’s been just over a year since A Better Tent City moved in beside the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) office on Ardelt Avenue in Kitchener, and in that time, residents and staff say the tiny home community of 50 has flourished.

 “It means a lot,” says Sarah, who lives at the site. “I don’t really have family support, so this is my family.”

After a desperate search to find a new location in 2021, WRDSB and the City of Kitchener stepped up to offer a sliver of land beside the board office on Ardelt Road.

Co-founder and site manager Nadine Green has lived at A Better Tent City since it began. In September a new kitchen and shared space opened at the site.

“We’re a family, a beautiful family,” Green says.

Nadine Green of A Better Tent City in Kitchener stands in front of her cabin on Nov. 1, 2022. (Jeff Pickel/CTV News)

'Jizzy Jewelry': Brantford, Ont. woman's jewelry business takes off

A Brantford, Ont. woman is getting attention for some creative jewelry pieces that some may find jarring. While many may question the creations, there's been enough interest that she's turned this into her full-time job.

"We are mainly known for working with sentimental materials. Things like ashes, breast milk, we've done umbilical cords, placenta capsules," said Amanda Booth, the owner of Trinkets by Amanda Booth.

And that's the tamer portion of the operation.

"Most recently, we've started incorporating semen and vaginal fluids into jewelry pieces and sculptures," said Booth.

Jizzy Jewelry offers memorial pieces using ashes or bodily-fluid focused creations. (Dan Lauckner/CTV News Kitchener)

Former owner of Wuddup Dog in Cambridge not giving up on serving food

The former owner of a well-known Cambridge diner was forced to choose between keeping his business or himself alive.

Todd Johns was the man behind Wuddup Dog, which he had to close because of his worsening health conditions. The hope was to sell it to someone who could keep the Cambridge staple going, but that never happened.

"I'm doing inpatient dialysis three days a week at Grand River Hospital," Johns explained. "They hooked me up and they filter and clean my blood for me because my kidneys aren't doing it.

He also has retinopathy in his right eye, which he describes explains is like looking through a sheet of wax paper. Near the end of summer, Johns said he finally reached his breaking point while working at Wuddup Dog.

But Johns isn't ready to give up on making food for the community. He is starting over by going back to his roots.

"I started as a hot dog cart in a parking lot out front of a bar and here I am with a trailer in front of a bar in a parking lot," Johns said.

Todd Johns stands in front of a trailer he is working on to repurpose as a food truck on Monday, Oct. 31, 2022. (Spencer Turcotte/CTV News)