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8 Independent & Free Press, Tuesday,February 9, 2010 Student earns Firkin nice prize By LISA TALLYN Staff Writer Natalie Marinucci's student debt load recently got a little lighter thanks to a contest offered by the Firkin Group of Pubs. Marinucci, 20, of Georgetown, a third year University of Western Ontario student, was a winner in the company's F.U.2 Student Debt contest and was recently awarded $5,000 to be applied to her student debt at Churchmouse and Firkin in Toronto. The contest was open to university and college students in Ontario with at least $5,000 in student debt. Contestants had to submit a short video explaining why they deserve to win. Then the public had a chance to view and vote online for the videos (applicants were encouraged to get their friends and families to vote for them). The 25 applicants with the most votes moved on to the final round of judging by Firkin judges, and five were chosen to win $5,000 each toward their student debt. Marinucci's video begins with her lying on the couch in her therapist's office. She's telling the doctor that something's after her, it's everywhere she goes and it haunts her. The "it" she is describing is her $30,000 in student debt. Marinucci said the video describes how she feels about the debt. She had three friends help her with the video. After she uploaded it to YouTube she launched a Facebook group page where she invited everyone to vote for her video. Friends, New anti-smoking bylaw takes effect on Family Day Second-hand smoke has over 4,000 chemicals and at least 50 of those are known to cause cancer. Each year, 1,000 Canadians die due to exposure to second-hand smoke. Leukemia, lymphoma, heart disease and lung cancer are all related to second-hand smoke and cause a great toll not only on the person, but their families as well as our health care system. This is part of the reason why protecting the health of Halton residents has always been a top priority and on February 15, bylaw No 24-09 will be another example of that commitment. Bylaw No 24-09 is a regionwide bylaw which bans smoking from within nine metres of any entrance or exit of all buildings owned or leased by the Regional Municipality of Halton or its local municipalities (including Halton Hills). Municipally owned or leased buildings include: municipal offices, community centres, libraries, indoor swimming pools, arenas, museums, art galleries, public Gary Carr washrooms, recreational centres, police stations, fire halls, and ambulance stations. During the first three months of the bylaw, a phasedin enforcement approach will be used by enforcement staff. This will involve educating violators and promoting awareness of the bylaw. Following the initial three-month period, those who break the bylaw could be issued a Provincial Offence Summons to appear in court. For more information about tobacco, please dial 311 or call Halton Region at 905825-6000, toll free 1-866-4425866, or TTY 905-827-9833 or visit our webpage. --Gary Carr is the chair of Halton Region Georgetown student Natalie Marinucci receives a cheque for $5,000 from Firkin Group of Pubs' Director of Marketing Larry Isaacs after winning a video contest designed to help students reduce their student debt. Submitted photo family, her mom's co-workers and "a lot of people from Georgetown really helped," said Marinucci. She was surprised and excited to be named a winner. "I was really hoping to win," she said, adding she had some stiff competition with some of the other videos. "I'm very grateful for the help Firkin Pubs has given me. I encourage other students to enter into the contest next year," said Marinucci, who is studying Media Information Technoculture. To view Marinucci's video visit http://www. firkinuniversity.com/Content/main.aspx and click on her name. OPENS THURSDAY