Local youths receive township bursaries

MAPLETON – The township has awarded $250 bursaries for three local youth involved in elite-level athletics.

Council approved applications for the awards to synchronized skaters Melanie Giles and Kathryn Giles and softball player Tyler Franklin at the Feb. 22 council meeting.

Drayton residents Melanie and Kathryn Giles competed with Team Unity, under the direction of coach Tara Wilkins, which won the silver medal in the intermediate division at the 2022 Skate Canada Synchronized Skating Champion-ships held in Calgary, Alberta from Feb. 24 to 27.

Tavistock-based Team Unity also included another north Wellington skater, Samantha Lawrence of Minto.

Franklin, a Moorefield native currently attending Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, was part of the winning Napanee Express team which won the U19 Eastern Men’s Canadian Softball Championships in Fredricton, New Brunswick, held from Aug. 19 to 22, 2021.

Through the bursary program initiated in 2019, the Township of Mapleton encourages youth who reside in the township “to expand their life experiences through sport,” notes a staff report from CAO Manny Baron. “The athletic bursary is an opportunity for us to encourage youth to do their best in their respective sport and we are proud of the fact we could be part of helping them achieve their goals.”

Baron told council, “It’s nice to see that there are applications coming in, and it’s been it’s been a while, so it’s a great news story.”