5 Friday, August 12, 2016 Brooklin Town Crier Semeniuk Pushes Through Heat at Worlds By Richard Bercuson photo by Tim Semeniuk Carleigh digs out a ball against Brazil in their first match. Brooke Kucab is on the right. Carleigh and Brooke take a needed water break during the match against the host team Cyrpus. Carleigh Semeniuk's first overseas trip wasn't for sightseeing. It was all business as she and her beach volleyball partner Brooke Kucab of Pickering competed in the World Beach Volleyball Champion- ships last month in Larnaka, Cyprus. As reported in this paper's July 15 edition, she knew that this initial foray into the world of international sport would be a challenge. And it was. She and Kucab finished third of four teams in Pool D. There were six pools of four teams apiece. The statistical summary showed they won one match and lost two, capturing a total of two sets while losing three. But here's the interesting point: Semeniuk and Kucab, both still high school students, were in the U19 Worlds against teams that, she says, had mostly competed internationally before. As well, they had to deal with a time zone change, differences in food, and overbearing heat. "The heat was the hardest thing," said Semeniuk. "Some games, it was 45 degrees. The courts were right on the water but there was nothing but a hot breeze. You could never get hydrated enough." To help adapt, she said they took shorter pre-match warmups, making just a few touches before ducking indoors to air conditioning to review game plans. She also took more naps between late morning and evening matches. The tournament even began on a difficult note with the first match against Brazil, which eventually finished fourth overall. Though Semeniuk and her partner lost 21-14 and 21-11, she said they learned much about themselves from that first outing. "It was the toughest match and was on the show court in peak heat time," she recalled. "I don't think we played badly but they made less errors. "These teams," she went on, "play each other all the time. "We also play indoors eight months of the year. They don't. But we learned a lot about ourselves there. Those girls are stronger physically. At the worlds, all the teams are good. We needed to be more aggressive. You just can't give them any easy plays. Anyway, I think we gained a lot of confidence from the experience." No rest though. Semeniuk returned in time to celebrate her 17th birthday then compete in the Ontario Volleyball Association provincial championship - in the adult division where they're the youngest team. "We wanted the challenge. Playing women in their 20s will push us." The team finished fifth at the provincials and now trains to compete in the nationals in Toronto and North Bay August 19-21. After that, it's back to Brooklin High School where heat is not a factor. Durham Region launches Age-Friendly Community Survey The Regional Municipality of Durham has launched its Age-Friendly Durham community survey as part of a number of consultation activities being undertaken to develop an age-friendly community strategy and action plan for Durham Region. When: The survey will be available to complete until Sept. 30. Where: Older adults (age 55 and up), community organizations and caregivers in Durham Region's eight local area municipalities are invited to participate in the online survey, available at www.durham.ca/Age-Friendly. Paper copies of the survey are also available by contacting AgeFriendly@durham.ca, or at various drop box locations throughout the region. Please visit the Age-Friendly Durham webpage for a full listing. Why: The Regional Municipality of Durham will gather feedback from the survey on key Regional services, within the context of the World Health Organization age-friendly planning framework. Other consultation activities include focus groups, a municipal roundtable discussion and a community forum at Deer Creek Golf & Banquet Facility on Sept. 30. Note: In June, 2015, The Regional Municipality of Durham received provincial funding through Ontario's Age-Friendly Community Planning Grant Program to support the development of a sustainable, collaborative long-term strategy to meet the needs of Durham's aging population. When to see Emily Batty in Rio Olympics Saturday, August 20 - beginning at 11:30 am on CBC See CBC's video about Emily and her husband/coach Adam Morka at: http://olympics.cbc.ca/video/vod/batty-and-morka-true-team-effort.html Locals Show Off Musical Chops at Music in the Park Photos by Richard Bercuson Myrtle Station's had its first ever public gig in mid July. Performing are(from left to right): Matt Argier, Ryan Shuck, Ben Czuczman, Tommy Hannan. Schuck and Czuczman are from Brooklin. Chantal Rouette, 24, performed her own original songs as well as covers. The Brooklin Queen's music grad began piano lessons at age 4 (her grandmother says she was her best student - naturally) and started guitar at age 15.