‘2 Broke Girls’ creator Whitney Cummings to host Montreal’s Just for Laughs gala

Empty desks: Advocates talk chronic school absenteeism

Concerned school and government leaders are downplaying the state of student absenteeism, as community organizers are strategizing to create urgency around who’s regularly missing class — and why — in Winnipeg.

The inaugural Youth at Risk in Winnipeg Symposium, held over the weekend at the Canadian Mennonite University, drew roughly 100 people to discuss barriers to attendance and brainstorm ways to remove them.

Nearly 20 years after he began calling attention to the issue, first as a volunteer with the Point Douglas Residents Committee, Sel Burrows gave an impassioned speech about the lack of political will to take meaningful action to help students from “dysfunctional homes.”

“I’ve dealt with nine cabinet ministers, Conservative and NDP, and five deputy ministers, and the issue has not gotten any better,” Burrows told teachers, reseachers and community support workers gathered Saturday on CMU’s Shaftesbury campus.

Waters remain murky in uncharted Hellebuyck trade request territory

ST. LOUIS — The thing about being in uncharted waters is that the answer to the next question isn’t always readily apparent either above or below the surface.

Winnipeg Jets head coach Scott Arniel has been doing his best to ensure the upcoming two-game road trip against Central Division opponents doesn’t include a three-ring circus. But with news coming over the weekend that the suspension for goalie Connor Hellebuyck is set to expire on Friday, the club has to prepare for the next step in that process.

The problem, as Arniel conceded during his session on Monday afternoon before the team departed for Missouri, is that some of the hypotheticals need to be eliminated from the equation before the proper response can be determined.

“When it comes to Helly’s scenario, honestly I don’t really have a lot of information,” said Arniel. “I know everybody knows (about) Friday. That’s all we know.”

Grifols plasma collection centre reopens after temporary shutdown

A Grifols plasma donation centre in south Winnipeg reopened Tuesday as part of the company’s phased return of operations, while a second location remains closed after its licence was suspended.

The Spain-based company has faced scrutiny after two people died following donations at Grifols’ sites on Taylor Avenue and Innovation Drive. The latter location is open again.

Health Canada suspended the Taylor location’s licence Sept. 23, saying the company failed to effectively implement corrective and preventive actions, and did not demonstrate that the centre has an effective quality management system.

Grifols voluntarily closed all of its clinics, including those in Winnipeg, in August. The Innovation Drive location’s licence was not suspended.

Whitney Cummings to host Just for Laughs gala

MONTREAL - It's no joke: Montreal's Just for Laughs festival has announced that caustic comedian Whitney Cummings will host the festival's gala finale.

Cummings, 30, will emcee what organizers are hailing as "the most uncensored, raw and unpredictable gala in years" on July 28 at the Place des arts.

Cummings is the creator of CBS's "2 Broke Girls" and is a former writer for MTV's "Punk'd" series.

She was also the creator and writer of the NBC sitcom "Whitney," which was cancelled in May after two seasons.

New twist in Hellebuyck saga, suspension ends Friday

Connor Hellebuyck has played the reverse Uno card. What we don’t know is if he has any intention of coming back to friendly Manitoba or if this is simply the latest attempt to put the Winnipeg Jets' feet to the flames in an effort to move him to an American market.