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John McDonald
John began life as a journalist through the Other Press, the independent student newspaper for Douglas College in New Westminster. The fluid nature of student journalism meant he was soon running the place, learning on the fly how to publish a newspaper.
It wasn’t until he moved to Kelowna he broke into the mainstream media, working for Okanagan Sunday, then the Kelowna Daily Courier and Okanagan Saturday doing news graphics and page layout. He carried on with the Kelowna Capital News, covering health and education while also working on special projects, including the design and launch of a mass market daily newspaper. After 12 years there, John rejoined the Kelowna Daily Courier as editor of the Westside Weekly, directing news coverage as the Westside became West Kelowna.
But digital media beckoned and John joined Kelowna.com as assistant editor and reporter, riding the start-up as it at first soared then went down in flames. Now John is turning dirt as city hall reporter for iNFOnews.ca where he brings his long experience to bear on the civic issues of the day.
If you have a story you think people should know about, email John at jmcdonald@infonews.ca
We Are The City teases with new song and video
KELOWNA - We Are The City has released a new song and video. Keep on Dancing was released in early September and the video was released Sept. 22. We Are The City was formed in Kelowna in 2008 and released its first album In A Quiet World in 2009. The band followed up with a...
Cities aim for the 21st century with Internet advertising law
KELOWNA - Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran is leading the charge to drag the way municipal governments communicate with citizens into the 21st century. Kelowna is sponsoring a resolution at the annual Union of B.C. Municipalities convention underway in Vancouver, which would allow so-called statutory notifications - information cities are currently required by law to publish in...
ELECTION 2015: UBC Okanagan students get a chance to grill local candidates
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - Candidates from both local ridings delivered a youth-oriented message to a couple of hundred UBC Okanagan students during the first all candidates forum in Kelowna. And while voter apathy amongst youth is a long-standing issue, you would be hard pressed to find a more engaged group of young people than the crowd...
Solving Brains and Brawn puzzle means teamwork
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - Grey matter and lean muscle mass — you need some of both to succeed in this world. That’s the message behind Brains and Brawn, a new event at the University of British Columbia Okanagan campus which pits teams of two against a puzzle that leans on your muscles and your mind. “People...
Food bank fall harvest begins in Central Okanagan
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - Local farmers and orchardists are in the middle of harvest and so is the Central Okanagan Community Food Bank. “From now until Christmas is our harvest time, the time when we have to stock up until spring,” spokeswoman Ami Catriona says. "We go through 1.4 million pounds of donations a year and...
RCMP auxilliaries crush grapes for Hospice House
KELOWNA - Local RCMP auxillary constables are cleaning their feet and counting the money after raising more than $12,000 during a grape stomp last week. The auxillary constable program will present a cheque for $12,203 to the Central Okanagan Hospice House, RCMP spokesman Cpl. Joe Duncan says in a press release. “This event was so...
Culture Days brings out the wild and wonderful in Kelowna
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - With more than 40 events planned for this weekend in Kelowna, culture is definitely what you make of it during the sixth annual Culture Days. More than 40 events are planned for various venues around the city Friday, Sept. 25, through Sunday, Sept. 27, and will include a wild mix of everything...
ELECTION 2015: Where you can hear from the Kelowna-Lake Country candidates
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - Local candidates in the federal election will be trading barbs at five different all-candidates forums in the riding of Kelowna Lake Country over the next several weeks. Students at the Okanagan campus of the University of British Columbia will be first to hear from the Conservative, Liberal and NDP candidates at a student...
Making a living foraging the forests of the Okanagan
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - When local forager Scott Moran talks about his work you can't help but think of how romantic and daring it is — the ability to live off the bounty of the land and be self-sufficient — but the reailty is he puts a lot of hard work into creating this charming life....
Kelowna’s underground water source showing signs of stress
KELOWNA - A UBC Okanagan hydrogeologist says the huge Rutland aquifer running under Kelowna, which is the water source for thousands of residents, is showing signs of stress. And that means it’s time for a well-designed technical management plan of both ground and surface water sources in the Central Okanagan, Dr. Craig Nichol says, pointing...
Former Okanagan Sun football player needs help after brain aneurysm
KELOWNA - A young Kelowna man is fighting to regain his old life after a brain aneurysm caused him to crash his motorbike and left him in hospital in a coma. Jesse Kendall, 23, was riding with friends when it happened, his wife Michelle Felty says. “They were doing one last ride before winter," she...
Kelowna could see first new high school in decades
KELOWNA – The Central Okanagan school board is making a pair of big ticket capital…
Kelowna mayor is about to take on irrigation districts on water quality
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran is bent on solving one of the city's greatest and longest problems — drinking water — and seems prepared to go to war with local irrigation districts to make it happen. Basran and the city announced this week the current plan to standardize water delivery across the city...
Kelowna golf clubs want to start serving liquor at 9 a.m.
KELOWNA - Golfers at Gallagher’s Canyon and the Okanagan Golf Club aren’t likely to be able to get a drink any earlier or later than they already do. City staff are recommending against an application from the owner of the two golf courses to add an extra hour of drinking time on either end of...
Hard Knox race to cause traffic disruptions in Kelowna this weekend
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - Drivers in Kelowna’s North End should be on the lookout this weekend for participants in the inaugural Hard Knox run. The 12-kilometre course starts at the base of Knox Mountain on Sunday morning, Sept. 20, and goes down Ellis Street before turning onto the Waterfront pathways, according to a City of Kelowna...
Highrise eyesores disappear as the economy improves
KELOWNA – It was a study in contrasts — million-dollar condos that looked out over…
ELECTION 2015: Kelowna votes together unless you’re in that area that looks a little like a…
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - They almost got it right when they re-drew the federal electoral boundaries — nearly all of Kelowna votes together in the Kelowna-Lake Country riding except for one little lump of electoral boundary confusion that pushes downtown Kelowna into a different riding. You've heard of Gracie's finger? We call this the Kelowna nipple....
Bear complaints overwhelming Okanagan conservation officers
KAMLOOPS NUMBERS SLOW DOWN AFTER EARLY SPIKE THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Conservation officers in the North and South Okanagan regions are being swamped with bear complaints as the large animals begin to prepare for hibernation. While fall always sees an uptick in bear activity, conservation officer Jim Beck says this year is worse than normal. “It’s crazy...
Fishing reopens on drought-affected Okanagan rivers
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Fishermen can again drop a line in streams and rivers that were closed to angling this summer because of drought in Southern B.C. The natural resource ministry announced in a press release the reopening of fishing on the Kettle, West Kettle and Similkameen Rivers and their tributaries, the Middle Shuswap River and the main...
Last day to book super cheap WestJet flights to London
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - WestJet has announced a super-low airfare to London, England with the cheeky slogan 'If that’s not cheap enough, you can always try mailing yourself.' Pricing for a non-stop flight from Vancouver to London’s Gatwick Airport starts at $299, one-way, with similar deals at select airports across Canada, including Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto and...
Kelowna nightclubs granted extra long opening hours for special occasions
KELOWNA - Night owls can soon look forward to a few extra extended bar nights in downtown Kelowna. Councili has endorsed a staff recommendation that allows certain nightclubs and bars three extra extended hours openings per year, on top of the three already allowed. The nightclubs will be responsible for extra policing costs on those...
ELECTION 2015: Cannan hopes marketing background will result in another election victory
KELOWNA - Ron Cannan has shown a flair for winning campaigns when he needs to, something he ties to his extensive background in marketing and sales. The three-term member of Parliament, who’s hoping to add a fourth term after the Oct. 19 election, first put his skills to the test in 1995 with a run...
ELECTION 2015: What happens when you mix green and red
IT'S NOT PRETTY
Locals winners named for Aboriginal Business Awards
THOMPSON-OKANGAN - Some local aboriginal entrepreneurs are coming away from the B.C. Aboriginal Business Awards with wins this week. Troy Fraser Chiropractic of Kamloops has won Business of the Year in the one to two person enterprise category. Skyride Bike and Board Inc. of Vernon has won an outstanding achievement award for companies with three...