The following information outlines the details of Captain Mike Hutchings Funeral Service.

Visitation-  Monday February 8th  - 14:00 to 16:00  and 19:00 to 21:00 hrs
Jardine Funeral Home, 8 Princess St, Fenelon Falls.

Service at -  Fenelon Falls United Church,  123 Colborne St, Fenelon Falls
Tuesday February 9th,  at 13:30 hrs.

Burial service at- Fenelon Falls Cemetery directly after the Church service

Reception-  Back at Fenelon Falls United Church

Muster at 80 Colborne St, Fenelon Falls United Church at 12:30 hrs.  Dress warm we will be marching to the burial site directly following the church ceremony.

All firefighters attending are requested to be in full dress uniform.
A-1 Firefighters that are able to acquire a duty exchange in order to attend, are asked to fill out a Duty Exchange request form as usual, it will not be counted as part of your regular allotment.

It is with great sadness that Whitby Fire and Emergency Services advises that Captain Michael (Mike) Hutchings passed away after a courageous battle with cancer on Friday,  February 5, 2010.   Mike joined WFES on May 22, 1980 as a Volunteer Firefighter and on October 1, 1984 Mike was hired as a Probationary Dispatcher.   Mike moved to Fire Suppression on March 16, 1987 and became a Captain on January 7, 2002, a position he held until his death.

 

Mike had an extreme passion for apparatus and equipment and much of the equipment we have in our Department today is a direct result of Mike's tireless research and efforts. For Mike, it was all about "getting the best for the Staff "! 

 

Mike is the first active member of our Department to have passed away, and I know this is a difficult situation for all of us. We all know that a firefighter has two homes. One is with his family and the other is with the  crew in which he/she works with.    We have lost a member of our family, and because of this we will all grieve.

 

Mike was just eleven (11) months away from retirement. It just doesn't seem fair.   Mike will be missed  but he will not be forgotten. We are all better off because of our association and friendship with him.

 

Mike is survived by his wife Leslie, and children Julie, Callie, Parker, Logan and Abigail.

 

God Speed, and peace be with you Mike.

WHITBY -- Whitby's firefighters are helping change the face of men's health by growing moustaches as part of a national campaign.

The Movember campaign was launched in Australia in 2003 in an effort to raise awareness about prostate cancer.

"Cancer has affected everyone in some way, whether it is a family member or a friend or themselves," said Ken Van Staveren from the Whitby Professional Firefighters Association.

"By becoming actively involved in the Movember initiative, Whitby firefighters are raising awareness of the prevalence of this disease."

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer that affects Canadian men with 25,000 diagnosed annually and at least one in every six Canadian men expected to develop prostate cancer in their lifetime.

All money raised will go directly to Prostate Cancer Canada for the development of programs related to awareness, public education, advocacy, support of those affected and research into the prevention, treatment and cure.

Donations can be made online through the official Movember website at www.movember.com. Click donate and select the team, Whitby Professional Firefighters.

A Whitby church that has been in the community for more than 140 years burned down Monday amid suspicion that the fire was deliberately set.

"If that was the case, then that would be an intentional act, and we can't imagine why anybody would want to do damage a building that's so important to us and, we believe, to the community as well," said the Rev. Ken Davis of All Saints' Anglican Church.

This isn't the first time the church has been targeted by vandals. In the past three months there have been reports of concrete blocks being thrown through the stained glass window and signs being vandalized.

Brian Winters, Whitby's archivist, said someone tried to burn the church down in 1927 too.

Whitby fire officials say it is too early to determine the cause of the current blaze.

Smoke could be seen pouring out of the church, located at 300 Dundas St., at around 5 a.m. By the time firefighters arrived on the scene, flames had overwhelmed the landmark causing heavy damage to the building's structure, according to Durham police.

Dozens of firefighters were at the scene to battle the blaze. By 8 a.m. crews were trying to put out stubborn spot fires on the roof of the building. Freezing temperatures caused some additional problems, turning excess water on the ground into ice.

Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, who represents the Whitby-Oshawa area as an MP, said he was heartbroken to see the devastaion.

Flaherty said he and his wife, MPP Christine Elliott, were married in the church. Elliott's family has been part of the congregation for decades, he said. "I'm pretty devastated. This has been my family's church since 1927," Elliott said, adding her parents were also married there.

"It's a great loss, because you can't replace a church of this vintage with a new building," Flaherty said.

The church office and hall buildings weren't harmed in the fire. The hall will be used for Christmas services.

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  TORONTO - The families of fallen fire fighters joined hundreds of fire fighters from across Ontario in solemn tribute on Sunday, October 4 during the annual Queen’s Park Fallen Fire Fighters Memorial ceremony in Toronto.
Twenty-eight fire fighters who made the ultimate sacrifice in the course of their duties were honoured by those assembled.
The addition of the names of 28 fallen fire fighters at this year’s ceremony brings the total number of fire fighters memorialized on the monument to 500, with some names dating back as far as 1848. Of the 28 deaths being recognized this year, nine occurred in the past 12 months and 19 were cancer deaths that occurred prior to that but were only accepted in the past year as being job-related.



Watch CTV coverage of the ceremony