24 Hours in Bloor West

The Bloor West Villager did an extra photo pull-out section last week, which was fun to shoot for. The idea was to get photos of life in the neighbourhood around the clock. These are a few of mine. Copyright Mary Gaudet/Metroland-Toronto Community News

Kristianne Monsivais gets ready to board a train at Keele Station, on her way to work at a travel agency downtown.

Students in Grade 1 at Swansea Public School, including from left Tomaz, Trevor, Jack and Sage, figure out what bullying is during a special class dedicated to recognizing and resolving conflicts before they escalate.

Ms. Cher Mark gathers her Grade 1 students, including from left Emilia, Vivian, Saige, and Alexandra, for the start of class at Swansea Public School.

Tony Pereira carries a wild Pacific halibut at Snapper's Seafood, 263 Durie St. Co-owner of Snappers for the past 12 years, Pereira has been selling a wide variety of fish to the people of Bloor West for many more.


Michele Gare, left, watches as Ash Yoon prepares to place another needle to help treat her migraines at the Toronto Acupuncture Studio, 961 Bloor St. Founded by Yoon, the clinic operates on a sliding scale to make acupuncture more accessible to people who need it regardless of income.

Marcel Skura, scaling the wall in Boulderz Climbing Centre at 1444 Dupont, has been climbing indoors and out for three years. The space is open every day, and includes a youth climbing team that has competed nationally and internationally.


Firefighter Bill Hicks slides down the fire pole at the Junction Fire Station #423, late in a 24-hour shift that included fighting flames in an apartment, tackling a brush fire in High Park, and a call to an industrial accident.

Toronto Police Staff Sargent Bruce Morrison scans a screen showing all the prisoners in lock-up for the night at the 11 Division Station on Davenport Road. Police officers working the overnight shift are inspected and receive orders for the night at 11pm, then head out on patrol until 7am. Officers work overnight one week of every five.

Toronto Police Sargent Sal Granata gives officers their instructions for the night, warning them of possible problems.

Toronto Police Constable Yev Kravchenko readies his shotgun for the overnight shift before leaving the 11 Division parking lot on Davenport Road.

Magnetic Resonant Imagining (MRI) technologist Nancy Chmelik gives Jackie Gushue a call button in preparation for a knee scan late on a Friday night at St. Joseph's Hospital. Patients are scheduled 24 hours a day in the MRI, which aligns water molecules in the body with magnets to produce 3D images of organs, vessels, and other soft tissue.

I got to hang out with a couple of Sicilian-born barber brothers this week. Joe Maccagnano, centre, trims long-time customer Siegfried Grundler's hair while his younger brother Gino attends to another customer at their shop at 319 Burnhamthorpe Rd. The men are retiring on Dec. 31, after working together in Etobicoke for more than 50 years. (Dec. 13, 2011)

Picking up my weekly pay package

Just a regular payday for a regular photojournalist.
Joking! This is a police display of some of the contraband snagged during Operation Marvel, the largest joint-force take down of organized crime in Canadian history. They also showed us handguns and rifles, picked up as they made 6o arrests across the county. (Copyright Mary Gaudet/Toronto Community News. Dec. 14, 2011)

This was a strange one. I was taking photos of an angry guy beeping his horn and getting really worked up about the striking workers at Humber College. He clearly didn't want to be photographed. But when I told him I was shooting for the paper and asked his name, he gave it to me. What?! This isn't the shot we ran.

TORONTO - Harvir Singh loses his patience while trying to pick up a friend at Humber College's northern campus, while striking Humber College employment advisor Jennifer Ahmed tries to explain their demands. College support staff with the Ontario Public Service Employees Union College across Ontario are striking for wages, benefits, and job security, with an information picket snarling traffic and causing delays of over an hour on the first day back to class. (Mary Gaudet/Metroland TCN)

TORONTO - Comedian Ali Hassan takes a break from his busy schedule, which includes two films screening at TIFF and a week old baby. A recent transplant from Montreal, Hassan has roles in the upcoming Breakaway, Goon, and French Immersion, opening in theatres on the Thanksgiving weekend. (Mary Gaudet/Metroland TCN)

City councillor Doug Ford said he would be willing to shut the Northern Elms branch of the Toronto Public Library in Rexdale to cut costs. Cousins Samantha Salter, 6, and Jacob Hurley, 4, tested the "stickiness" of water at the branch through the Mad Science program. (Mary Gaudet/Metroland TCN)

Synchronized swimmer Caroline Marshall, left, describes a move to Clare McGovern and Claire Caskey at the Etobicoke Olympium pool, during the last practice for the 13 to 15 year-old national team before competing in Italy. The Toronto trio are among 10 girls from across the country to make the cut. (Mary Gaudet/Metroland TCN)

Courage Canada

Mark DeMontis, founder of Courage Canada, prepares for his fundraising skate from Halifax to Toronto on the Lakeshore Trail Wednesday. Blinded at 17, DeMontis continues to pursue his passion for hockey, and through his charity helps other adults and youth with visual impairments get skating. (Mary Gaudet/Metroland TCN)

I've been getting quite a bit of work through Metroland, which publishes community newspapers across Toronto and insidetoronto.com. Here are a few photos I shot on assignment, some that ran and some not.

Milltown FC's Brian Alcantara stretches to get the ball away from Portugal FC's Francesco Capone, in white, during a scrappy game that ended in a 2-2 tie, enough to advance Portugal to the semi-final round of the Canadian Soccer League playoffs.

Mason Perry, left, Tom Rogers, and Mark Argentino buy and sell currency at the Scarborough Coin Club's annual sale.

Vintage Vinyl sale at the Gladstone Hotel.

Second World War veteran Jack Newman at Prospect Cemetery during a sunrise ceremony for Remembrance Day. Newman joined the army in 1941, served overseas, and joined the Toronto Fire Service after the war when he returned to Canada with his Scottish bride.

Watching the horses in the ring below at the 88th Royal Agricultural Winter Fair.

Three-legged-man Peter Jarvis meets five-year-old twins Keith and Keshawn Dennis on Yonge St.

Selvaranee Nadaraja dances at Harmony Hall in Scarborough during Diwali celebrations by Tamil-speaking seniors.

The Mill Street Pub in the Distillery District of Toronto, with lovely light.

Sept. 30, 2010 - Police arrive at Central Technical School in Toronto after shots were fired in a stairwell. Parents and students wait for word on students held inside during a lock down, but no one was injured. Police are searching for a third suspect, a 17-year-old they describe as "armed and dangerous." (Photo by Mary Gaudet/Toronto Community News)

TORONTO - At a retirement party for Case Ootes, right, former premier Mike Harris, left, is admonished by former mayor Mel Lastman for his decision to amalgamate the city. Ootes has been a city councillor in East York since 1988, and served as deputy mayor to Lastman after amalgamation in 1997. The party was a ticketed event at the York Reception Centre on Monday night, with half the $40 entrance fee going to the East York General Hospital fund. (Sept. 27, 2010)