Full steam ahead for closure of Beachburg’s Scotiabank · 5/27/2020 · CAO Annette Gilchrist...

The Eganville Leader - Wednesday, May 27, 2020 Postal Agreement # 40005333 Page A1

118th Year - No. 48 Wednesday, May 27, 2020 Eganville, Ontario ($1.90 plus 10 cents GST) $2

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Members from 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron and 450 Tactical Helicopter Squadron conducted a flypast along the Ottawa River last Tuesday night, May 20 with a special flypast at the Pembroke Regional Hospital and the Deep River and District Hospital. This flypast was Garrison Petawawa’s way of recognizing all that everyone have shared and endured as a community during these past few months. A heartfelt thank you goes to the incredible resilience displayed by Canadians and to the local medical staff, first responders, and essential workers.Photos: Master Corporal Steve Wilson photographing the Chinook Helicopter and Corporal Alex Heagle photographing the Griffon.

By Debbi ChristinckStaff Writer

Eganville – Summer student fund-ing is not what it once was for Bonnechere Valley, with the munici-pality only receiving funding for one student this year.

“We submitted for seven and got one, and that was for a swim instructor,” Recreation Manager Kevin McGrath told a committee of Bonnechere Valley council last Wednesday afternoon. “And that will not happen this year.”

Unfortunately, the swim program has been cancelled because of the challenges of physical distancing and COVID-19 when running a swim program.

Mayor Jennifer Murphy said coun-cil was already aware there would not be a swim program and had budgeted accordingly.

“We cut the revenue and the ex-pense of the swim program in the budget,” she said.

She questioned if the money for this summer student through the Canada Summer Jobs grant could be used for another area in the municipality.

CAO Annette Gilchrist said many municipalities are in the same predicament and asking the same question.

“They are funding less students and the majority are swim program which will not happen this year,” she said.

In speaking with other CAOs in the county, she said many municipalities applied for five or seven summer student positions. Usually they would each receive funding for two or three students.

“This year they only got one,” she said.

This funding program is 100 per cent funding for the student, so it is a good program, she said. Unfortu-nately, the funding was allotted to be used for swim instructors in the various municipalities.

“So, we are not alone,” she said. “About five other municipalities are in the same place.”

She suggested sending a letter to Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke MP Cheryl Gallant asking if she could intercede so the municipality could use the funding for another summer student position.

Mayor Murphy said it was a good idea to approach Mrs. Gallant on this.

“Cheryl will go to bat for us,” she said. “She always does.”

By Marie ZettlerLocal Journalism Initiative Reporter

Beachburg -- In a response to an inquiry by the Leader, Scotiabank has confirmed its plan to close the Beach-burg Scotiabank branch is proceeding. The Leader had addressed a May 8, email to Mike Brydges, District Vice President for Scotiabank, asking if the COVID-19 restrictions had any impact on the plans.

The reply, headed “Comments From Scotiabank” and signed by Daniela Da Silva, Manager, Canadian Bank-ing Communications, read:

“On Thursday, June 4, 2020, Sco-

tiabank will relocate services from our branch at 1765 Beachburg Road in Beachburg to our branch at 53 Main Street in Cobden. We have not made changes to these plans as a result of COVID-19.

“During this transition both our Beachburg and Cobden branches remain open and our teams continue to work with our customers to ensure a smooth transition, including helping customers with our telephone and dig-ital banking options. We also remain committed to providing additional computers to the Beachburg Public Library for use by the community.”

Joey Trimm, chairperson of the Beachburg Save Our Scotiabank (SOS) Committee, never received a reply to his April 9, letter to Mr. Brydges, in which he requested the closing be delayed.

“It came as no surprise that banking has been deemed an essential service to be maintained during restrictions imposed to control the pandemic,” he stated. “Maintaining this essential service in Beachburg has been the point of our efforts all along but now more so than ever. In light of the federal recommendations and the provincial restrictions requiring citi-

zens to shelter in place and to restrict travel unless absolutely necessary, our committee is respectively requesting that Scotiabank delay the closure of the Beachburg branch at least until this crisis is over. This accommoda-tion would give our community one less thing to worry about at a time when there are many other things to worry about.”

Mr. Trimm said “it would have been nice” if Mr. Brydges would have responded to the committee, given that he was the person who commu-nicated the plans to the Beachburg community.

“COVID-19 has just made it easier for them to proceed,” he said. “They didn’t have to worry about more nega-tive publicity, such as demonstrations or protests. A rally on Parliament Hill or a farmers’ tractor procession would have been harder to ignore. But we haven’t even been able to meet, and our hands are tied. ”

Before the lockdown, the SOS Com-mittee had planned a May 5 demon-stration on Parliament Hill to draw attention not only to Beachburg’s situation but to that of other rural communities losing banking services.

Residents have expressed concerns

about the help being offered to miti-gate the impact of the closing of the branch. Beachburg and area is still notorious for spotty cellphone and internet service. Also, internet access through the library would be limited to 14 hours per week. Beachburg library’s regular open hours (when not suspended due to COVID-19) are Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Thursdays from 6 to 9 p.m., and Sat-urdays from 9 a.m. to 12 noon.

The bank has committed to leaving one full-service ATM in the commu-nity and is considering a second one, which was not part of the original plan.

Full steam ahead for closure of Beachburg’s Scotiabank

Student funding drops in BV

Eganville – The Bonnechere Val-ley Township municipal office in Eganville will be re-opening to the public on Monday, June 8 but there will be changes to how the public will enter and exit the building.

Only two people will be allowed in the building at a time while another two people will be asked to wait outside for their turn. Others will need to wait in their vehicles. For anyone seeking building permits and marriage licences they will be issued by appointment only.

Effective June 1, charges for depos-it material at the Sno-Drifter’s Waste Site will be reinstated. Residents can either utilize their free voucher or pay the per load fee. The voucher in-cludes up to 550 kg’s for free. Loads weighing over this amount will be charged for the difference. The site accepts only the following methods for payment: cash, cheque or the freeVoucher. Hours of operation at the Sno-Drifters site are Monday to Thursday 8 a.m. to noon and Satur-day from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Beginning July 1, residents will be required to purchase garbage tags for curbside pickup and the green (dump) cards if visiting any of the sites. The Household Hazardous Waste Depot will also re-open at Sand Road, and penalty/interest will be applied to all taxes, utilities and late payments after this date.

BV has a Recreational Vehicle Pumping Station available for the convenience of residents and visitors to the municipality and it will be available immediately. There is no charge for this service and the RV Station is located at 126 John Street.

Due to dry conditions, the township remains under a Level Fire 1 Ban, meaning no permits will be issued for open air burning. Campfires are still allowed, however the fire department is stressing the impor-tance of ensuring flames are fully extinguished and a campfire is never left unattended.

Curbside services at the Bonnechere Union Public Library are also avail-able. Check the library’s website for more information. All beaches in Ontario and in Bonnechere Valley are currently closed under the prov-ince’s Declaration of Emergency.

BV office will be reopening Monday

A tribute to patience and endurance

Renfrew County

Confirmed cases – 20

Deaths – 1

Resolved Cases - 15

Total Tests – 3,033

Negative Tests – 2,882

Ontario

Cases – 26,191

Recovered – 19,958

Deaths – 2,123

Quebec

Cases -- 47,984

Deaths --4,069

Canada

Cases – 85,998

Recovered – 44,898

Deaths – 6,566

United States

Cases – 1,702,196

Deaths – 99,624

Worldwide

Cases – 5.5 million

Deaths – 346,000

Statistics as of Tuesday afternoon at 2:30


By Terry FleurieStaff Writer

Eganville – For the first time in 10 weeks, parishioners at Salem Evangelical Missionary Church in Augsburg gathered to worship on Sunday, but it was in a slightly differ-ent manner than they were normally accustomed to.

Like other churches across the county and province, Salem hosted its first-ever drive-in service after On-tario Premier Doug Ford announced last week these services could be held with protocols in place.

It was welcome news for all church-es and despite having possibly one of the smaller congregations in the Eganville-area, the pastor, Rev. James Wall and directors decided to give it a try and by all accounts the results were positive. Thirty-nine people at-tended in 21 vehicles.

Keith Krieger, chair of the board, said the response from his fellow

board members was very positive.“Their response was 100 per cent,”

he said.Mr. Krieger was also responsible

for contacting the parishioners and during that conversation, he outlined they would be required to park certain distances apart and they could not exit their vehicles during the service.(Five people were allowed outside to conduct the service but they had to employ physical distancing.)

“The people were all excited. We had one member stop by today (Mon-day) and she was just thrilled to the nth degree.

“And everybody else I talked to said the same thing,” he added.

He noted that feeling was very evi-dent early on Sunday as the people arrived and had the opportunity to see friends they had not seen in over two months. When he mentioned how nice it was to meet again in his opening remarks, the horns honked in unison

in agreement.“Just seeing the people ... it was

obvious they had missed being in church,” he said.

Mr. Krieger expressed his gratitude to Rev. Wall for calling each of the parishioners every Sunday when they were not gathering.

“He has been really impressed with the people’s response and feels he is really getting to know the people better through it.”

As chair of the board, he felt “abso-lutely wonderful” on Sunday that the response was so good.

“The turnout was almost 100 per cent of our congregation,” he stated. “Everybody that wasn’t away, was here.”

He said the drive-in services will continue as the new normal until the province allows indoor services to resume.

Rev. Wall, who lives near Renfrew, said he too was delighted when the

premier announced the drive-in ser-vices would be allowed.

“I was very thrilled with Premier Ford’s declaration that we could have our religious service outside. I totally respect the rules of social distancing.

“I was thrilled with the opportunity to meet again with the people,” he added. “Even though we’re a small, country church, it was wonderful to see all the smiling faces again.”

He admitted to being unsure just how many people might attend Sun-day’s service, adding he was very pleased with the response.

“The people were very much into what we were doing with the service. There seemed to be a real sense of unity and a desire to be a part of what was happening there.”

Rev. Wall agreed it was something he will remember for years to come.

“It’s an unprecedented situation that we find ourselves in with COVID-19 and the affects that it has had on the church, and yet in the midst of it, it just seems that it’s pulling people to-gether even more so than in the past.

“And I’m thrilled with what’s hap-pening there,” he added.

He has enjoyed making the weekly calls to both the regular attendees and other members in the absence of meeting.

“I have found that they have opened up just a little bit more and I feel like I’ve almost made friends with so many others within the church. It was definitely personal and I found I could speak to their situation and is-sues a little clearer because of it and I think it’s sparking something that

will hopefully play out to better things in the future,” he added. “All things work together for good.”

The church has a portable sound system it uses for its annual cemetery service. It was set up at the rear entry to the church for Sunday’s service. Rev. Wall conducted the service from the platform. His wife, Janette, led the

singing, and Elaine Krieger and her grandson, Noah Fleurie, provided the accompaniment on keyboard and gui-tar, respectively. Rev. Wall noted he now has a line on an FM transmitter which would allow those participating to listen to the service through their car radios instead of having to have the windows open.

Salem hosts one of area’s first drive-in services

Rev. James Wall, pastor at Salem, conducted the service from the rear steps of the church on Sunday morning.

Elaine Krieger and grandson, Noah Fleurie provided the musical accompaniment for Sunday’s drive-in service. Hope Fleurie and her dad, Jordan, joined in the singing of hymns from his vehicle at the drive-in service.

Salem Evangelical Missionary Church in Eganville hosted its first -ever drive-in service on Sunday with almost 100 per cent of the congregation in attendance. The little “tin church” as it is affectionately known to locals, was one of the first area churches to adopt the new drive-in format.

The Eganville Leader - Wednesday, May 27, 2020 Postal Agreement # 40005333 Page A2 The Eganville Leader - Wednesday, May 27, 2020 Postal Agreement # 40005333 Page A3

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Petawawa – Two families are homeless and a third sustained damage to their residence in a quick-spreading structure fire in Petawawa late last Tuesday afternoon.

Petawawa Fire Chief Steve Knott said the department was dispatched to a structure fire on Riverstone Trail, at the eastern end of the town, at 5:48 p.m.

“On arrival, one house was fully involved and fire had extended to two neighbouring homes, one on each side,” he explained. “Initial attack crews were able to stop the spread to one of the two neighbouring homes.

“All of the occupants safely self-evacuated their home and their pets,” he added. “Personnel were able to talk to the owners and their neighbours as soon as they arrived on scene and determined everybody was out of the homes.”

Chief Knott said due to the high winds and the limited separation of the homes, the house to the right of the residence where the fire origi-nated appears to be a write-off also, while the one to the left sustained minor damage to the vinyl siding.

Firefighters cordoned off the hous-es as best as they could and they also protected other exposures that may have been threatened. He noted be-fore crews arrived on scene someone had posted a picture and the second house had already ignited.

“The first one was fully involved and the second one had already caught fire,” he explained.

Chief Knott said two families were displaced and the third likely could return to their home.

He said there were garages attached to all structures and the owner of the home where the fire originated had managed to get his truck out before it was lost.

About 24 personnel from the

department responded with three pumpers and their utility vehicle. Members of the Garrison Petawawa Fire Department assisted with the shuttle and refilling of air bottles.

He said most of the crews left the scene between 8:30 and 9 p.m. and two personnel remained to deal with potential flare-ups. The depart-

ment was re-dispatched around 3:50 Wednesday when smoke was visible at the site.

“The cause of the fire is currently under investigation,” Chief Knott stated, adding it was not considered suspicious in nature.

He said the Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office was notified because of the

extent of the damage but it was not known if they would be conducting an investigation.

Police and paramedics were on scene. One person from another residence on the street who assisted in fighting the fire before crews ar-rived was transported to hospital by ambulance with smoke inhalation

and later released.Chief Knott said it is important

homeowners have working smoke alarms and a fire safety evacuation plan in place that everyone can fol-low in the case of an emergency.

“It would have been a lot worse if this happened in the middle of the night and it caught the neighbour’s house on fire,” he stated.

He believed there were four chil-dren in the home where the fire originated.

“The material in the homes these days burns so much faster. We don’t have the same time that we had in the past with the building materials these days,” he explained.

There was no shortage of water as firefighters had access to hydrants close to the scene.

Chief Knott credited his personnel for doing an awesome job in contain-ing the fire the way they did.

“These are tough times with the physical distancing and the sanitizing we have to do,” he said. “You have to commend the crews that are out there doing the best they can.”

He said while some protocols obvi-ously can’t be adhered to during the course of fighting the fire, they try to comply when firefighters do their rehab after two bottles of air.

“We also had to feed them, so back at the station, it was a little worri-some for us in terms of getting them in and getting them fed and back to the scene, rotating them through the rehabs. It’s a bit challenging but we’re certainly dealing with it the best that we can.”

Fire destroys two Petawawa homes, damages a third

Firefighters from the Town of Petawawa direct a stream of water on the residence where last Tuesday night’s fire originated. The blaze quickly spread to a neighbouring home on the right and damaged the siding, as seen, on the home to the left. Photos: Mike Yeas


Eganville – New playground equip-ment has been installed in Bonnechere Valley Township, but for now it will remain fenced off.

With all playgrounds closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic and provincial directives to physically distance and not gather in groups, the new structures will be a tantaliz-ing temptation for children, but as Mayor Jennifer Murphy noted, they will eventually be able to be used and enjoyed.

“They won’t go stale,” she said, last

Wednesday afternoon during a com-mittee meeting of council.

Recreation Director Kevin McGrath said the township was fortunate to have the play structures put in earlier than anticipated because the pan-demic has caused other larger centres to wait for some of their installations.

“The new play structure for Centen-nial Park and Opeongo Park will be installed this Friday,” he said. “We will put the sand in then.”

Mayor Murphy said the timing is unfortunate.

“It is kind of ironic since we can’t use it then,” she said.

He also told council he had received a quote to repair the shade structure at Opeongo Park. Council approved the $1,200 expenditure.

“It has to be fixed,” the mayor said. Mr. McGrath told council staff

has been busy doing maintenance at Centennial Park in preparation for the full opening of the park when that takes place.

As an update to the Leader, Mr. McGrath said the installation did not happen on Friday, but was scheduled for this week.

“It is too bad they can’t be used right now,” he added.

New playgrounds are installed in BV Twp.

The cause of the fire that destroyed two home and damaged a third on Riverstone Trail in Petawawa is under investigation. The quick response of fire crews prevented the fire from spreading to other nearby homes.

Garrison Petawawa firefighters assisted in the refilling and exchange of air bottles at the scene of last Tuesday’s house fires.


Community Support Servicesthroughout Renfrew County wantto reach out to seniors and adults

living with a disability during this difficult time

For details on services available (Meals on Wheels - hot &frozen, transportation, virtual/phone contact), you can callthe Community Support Service nearest you (Mon-Fri):

Renfrew: 613-432-7691Calabogie: 613-752-2828Pembroke: 613-732-9993Arnprior: 613-623- 7981For online access to Community Support Services near you, including Grocery Delivery, Essential Transportation, Meal Delivery and Telephone Assurance, visit:

communitysupport.covidresponse.ca

Deep River: 613-584-1900 Eganville: 613-628-2354Barry's Bay: 613-756-2772

communitysupport.covidresponse.ca/volunteer

Dial 211 to locate a broad range of services, if your needs extend beyond what Community Support Services have to offer.

If you are lonely and need to talk, "A Friendly Voice" is available from 8 am– midnight if you are feeling isolatedat this time: 1-855-892-9992.

If you are interested in volunteering during this time, visit:


Eganville -- This will be a Can-ada Day unlike any other in living memory, as Bonnechere Valley has joined other municipalities in Ren-frew County and across the country in cancelling the public celebrations.

“I know I am the one who said Can-ada Day is Canada Day, but maybe we can put on a party when this is over,” Mayor Jennifer Murphy said during a committee meeting of council last Wednesday afternoon.

It is another casualty of the COV-ID-19 pandemic which has decimated activities across Canada.

Last month, the mayor had still expressed some hope there could be Canada Day activities in the village of Eganville, but as the date loomed closer, it became apparent this would

not be possible. Originally council had kept options

open for doing a smaller Canada Day festivity, and there was still some hope there could be some activities for the children and possibly fireworks.

However, on Wednesday, Recrea-tion Director Kevin McGrath said the bouncy castle which would have been rented for Canada Day has been cancelled and would be rented for the 2021 event.

“All municipalities have cancelled Canada Day activities in Renfrew County,” CAO Annette Gilchrist noted.

Mayor Murphy said since Canada Day is only six weeks away, the time-line to be open for public activities like this is probably not going to hap-pen. She added there would be some celebrations in the village at some

time, hopefully later in the summer.“The fire department is going to

order some fireworks,” she said. “That may be a Labour Day activity.”

The mayor also questioned when McRae Park would be doing their planned festivities, which include a grand opening. Councillor Brent Patrick said there will be a grand opening, and it will also depend on when group activities are allowed to take place but is still being planned.

Other municipalities announced several months ago they would not be hosting their traditional Canada Day activities this year. The Govern-ment of Canada also announced the festivities on Parliament Hill would be held “virtually” this year. Details have yet to be announced on how that will happen. This year marks the 153rd anniversary of Confederation.


Eganville – Bonnechere Valley Township may be selling some surplus items from the equipment lending hub, but it won’t be done as “fire sale” in a rush.

Recreation Manager Kevin McGrath told a committee meeting of council last Wednesday afternoon the surplus equipment was being prepared to be sold, but he was unsure how much to charge for the items.

“Is it in half decent shape?” Councillor Merv Buckwald asked.

Mr. McGrath said the items were in good condition. Mayor Jennifer Murphy said there was no rush to get

rid of the items quickly. There had been a push to use the storage container for other items, but the COVID-19 pan-demic has changed a lot of things, including that urgency.

“We don’t need the seacan for the tables and chairs right now,” she said. “We can do this carefully over the summer.”

Councillor Jack Roesner said the items should be priced fairly if they are going to be sold.

“Don’t give it away,” he said. Having the lending hub operational would be a

challenge because of COVID-19, the mayor noted. “I can’t imagine how you would disinfect a kayak,” she

said. Just how soon the province will totally reopen remains to

be seen, she said. As well, if there is a spike in COVID-19 cases, there is the possibility the province would close some areas, she said.

“I don’t see this ending very quickly,” she said. The lending hub was part of the active living initiative

in which area municipalities received funding for lending hubs of sporting equipment. The idea was to encourage physical activity. Much like a library, the lending hub allowed people to borrow the items, try them out and return them.

Speaking to the Leader after the meeting, Mr. McGrath said the lending hub was extremely popular in the first year, but it decreased in popularity.

“At first we had 122 rentals and then last year we had 42 rentals,” he said. “I think people used them and then purchased their own.”

While the first year there was a dedicated student who ran the lending hub, the last years the recreation staff did the lending hub themselves.

Mr. McGrath said it appeared there was some “rethink-ing” of the idea of selling the lending hub surplus equip-ment, so he said it was premature to plan on having a sale now.

Lending Hub may sell items

Canada Day festivities cancelled in Bonnechere Valley Township

Pembroke – As businesses are moving to more work from home sce-narios, a large employer in Pembroke with the call centre on the west end of town is moving to a totally home-based workforce.

The move was made due partially to the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw half of the staff already work-ing from home to ensure physical distancing and the fact that the lease was completed in August. The build-ing is larger than what is needed for the current operations, according to Senior Vice President of Operations for North America Ross Duff, as reported in media outlets.

Hinduja Global Solutions (HGS) has operated in Pembroke for the last 15 years out of the old Eddy Match building. The building also housed the Pembroke Observer for several years. Last week HGS announced it will also soon be vacating the building and by the end of summer all the employees will be working from home.

Mr. Duff said although they are leav-ing this lease, they are transitioning to a hugely successful work-at-home program. He is very familiar with the Pembroke operation, since he began work at the location in 2005.

The call centre has 120 employees at the location and will offer all staff

the opportunity to continue to work from home.

Mr. Duff said more than half the staff in Pembroke are already working from home. He said they are looking to expand the workforce in the Pem-broke area and hire more people for the work-at-home customer service role. The company offers full-time positions with health and dental, loyalty programs and other incen-tives. In the new work-from-home environment, HGS will supply the equipment and training.

The company supports an essential services client from the Pembroke location, Mr. Duff said.

Call centre employees will work from home

Centreside Dairy closes

Renfrew -- A Renfrew business established in 1935 that became well known in the Valley and Eastern Ontario for its quality ice cream under the name of Tracey’s Ice Cream has closed operations as a result of difficult times which culminated with the COVID-19 virus. The Leader will provide more indepth details on the end of an era that began 85 years ago in a future edition.


Pembroke -- Thanks to the generosity of a private do-nor and the support of several community organizations, Renfrew County now has a safe and welcoming shelter for homeless individuals who are in need of supportive short-term housing.

Spearheaded by The Grind, Transition House is also benefiting from much needed funding provided by Mental Health Services of Renfrew County (MHSRC), an essential service within the local healthcare system. Administered by the Pembroke Regional Hospital (PRH), MHSRC offers a broad range of publicly available health services supporting wellness and recovery for Renfrew County residents 16 years and older, who are living with mental illness and addictions.

“The timing couldn’t have been better in having the ca-pacity to contribute funds towards establishing this much needed resource,” said Sabine Mersmann, Vice-President of Clinical and Supportive Services/Partnerships and In-tegration at the Pembroke Regional Hospital. “In return, we now have access to a second dedicated crisis bed, 365 days of the year, right here in Pembroke.”

Thanks to $1.1 million in new funding which MHSRC received in 2019, PRH was able to donate $100,000 in building materials to help restore the century-old home. This combined federal and provincial investment was specifically ear-marked for enhanced crisis response and mental health programming, including increased access to temporary crisis housing as part of Ontario’s Safe Beds program.

Safe Beds is a provincial initiative that offers an alterna-tive to hospitalization for those in a crisis situation. The goal is to provide a stabilizing and therapeutic environ-ment where individuals can stay — on a short-term basis — in order to work through a mental health or addiction crisis.

“When we looked at the various time-sensitive services we provide, emergency housing was a missing piece,” MHSRC Director Mireille Delorme said. “So we feel very fortunate to have had the means to collaborate with The Grind when it was needed most.”

Indeed, the timing couldn’t have been better. Through its work with the homeless, The Grind’s board of directors was keenly aware of the desperate need for more support-ive housing in Renfrew County to help those dealing with mental health and addiction issues who desire change.

Studies show that when supportive housing is in place, the at-risk and homeless can better focus on overcoming their issues, thereby greatly increasing their chances of success.

“Otherwise, they’re often at the mercy of conditions beyond their control,” David Studham, a dedicated vol-unteer with The Grind, remarked. “We see it every day. There’s a dire shortage of affordable housing locally, yet our clients want to be able to access safe and supportive living space near family and friends.”

MHSRC Supervisor Cheryl Summers agreed. “Typically, if a client needs help in a crisis situation,

we send them to Ottawa or North Bay because of a lack of safe shelter in Renfrew County. But they often return almost overnight, because they want to be in their home community.”

For those fortunate to get a room at Transition House,

it means a warm bed and safe shelter in a shared environ-ment, for periods of one night to three months. While there, each resident is partnered with a MHSRC case worker and linked to various community based support networks, with a goal to stabilize their situation and map a road to recovery.

Hope for the HomelessThe Grind was bequeathed the home in 2018 by the es-

tate of Aleida Sluyter, a long-time resident of Pembroke. While the structure was sound, the Victorian-era home required a major renovation to meet the needs of its new residents.

“We started with nothing, and took a leap of faith,” Mr. Studham said. “There are a lot of kind hearts in our community.”

Thanks to the generosity of MHSRC, local contractors and volunteers, the reconstruction was completed in just over a year, and Transition House welcomed its first resi-dents on May 1st. In that time, countless volunteer hours were invested by so many.

Early on, students and teachers from Algonquin College stepped up to fundraise and invest free labour. Connie Poupore’s Office Administration Executive Program raised $12,000 to contribute to the cause under the banner of Hope for the Homeless.

When construction started, Professor Adam Johns and his students from Carpentry and Renovation Techniques spent two weeks onsite helping with demolition, insulation and drywall. They also assisted the volunteer plumbing and electrical crews.

“It was a great opportunity for our students to work on a real job site,” Mr. Johns said. “At the same time, we got to demonstrate the skills and training offered at Algonquin College Pembroke. It was a win-win.”

The three-story home in downtown Pembroke features three client bedrooms plus one crisis suite, as well as a full kitchen, plus dining and living areas. A second, larger suite is equipped with a kitchenette and washroom. The house has been totally renovated and is newly furnished.

According to The Grind’s Executive Director Jerry No-vack, several local businesses stepped up and contributed.

“We especially want to thank Sharon Godin and the team at Wade Construction, and Bob & Mark’s Custom Cabinetry for their generous donations of labour and materials,” he said.

Members of the community also supported the project by participating in The Coldest Night of the Year, a family-friendly walk that was held in Pembroke last February. Almost $40,000 was raised to help the hungry, homeless and hurting people of Renfrew County; half of those funds went to Transition House.

“At The Grind we like to say we sell hope,” Mr. Studham added. “Transition House is here so we can help our home-less break the cycle. Wellness is indeed within reach.”

Anyone seeking mental health and addictions support and information is asked to call Mental Health Services of Renfrew County or the Crisis Line, or visit their websites:

* 1-800-991-7711, extension 8006 or local (613) 732-8770, extension 8006;

* Crisis Line: 1-866-966-0991;* www.CRISISLINE.CA;* www.pembrokeregionalhospital.ca.

Transition House: A home built on hope for the homeless

The Grind’s Executive Director Jerry Novack and Board Chair Garth Marquardt recently hosted a tour of Transition House for members representatives of the Pembroke Regional Hospital. From left, Mental Health Services of Renfrew County Supervisor Cheryl Summers, PRH President and CEO Pierre Noel, MHSRC Director Delorme Mireille, PRH Vice-President of Clinical and Support Services/Partnerships and Integration Sabine Mersmann, The Grind’s Executive Director Jerry Novack, and The Grind’s Board Chair Garth Marquardt.

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Killaloe – Construction on a new fire hall for the Killaloe area of Killaloe, Hagarty and Richards Township could commence later this year after council decided recently to proceed with the project and seek funding assistance to cover the ex-penditure.

Council held a special meeting via ZOOM on May 12 and voted to pro-ceed with the project that has been in the preliminary design stages since earlier this year.

“We’ve been working on this for over a year now, so it was exciting,” said Mayor Janice Visneskie Moore. “I’m really glad that council has moved forward to go ahead.”

The group had previously awarded the contract for the design and super-vision of the project to Greenview Environmental in Bancroft. Council, staff, and department heads, along with Fire Chief Bob Gareau, provided input into the design and regular re-ports were received from Greenview for review and further input.

“We’ve been having quite a few tel-econferences, maybe once a week or sometimes twice, just working through the details with staff and making sure the design suits, first of all, all of the firefighters and to provide a good service and that the logistics of it all are in place,” the mayor explained. “I sat in on many of those calls and just the thoroughness of the staff and of Greenview is really remarkable.

“They have come up with a really beautiful plan for a beautiful building that will provide the services that the firefighters and the taxpayers of KHR will appreciate,” she added.

During the meeting, council au-thorized facility/asset Manager Dale Thompson to advise Greenview to begin preparing the tenders for the project, which Mayor Visneskie Moore noted is estimated at between $1.8 and $2.2 million, including the purchase of the land and the contract to Greenview.

During the meeting, council also authorized CAO Sue Sheridan to proceed with an application to In-frastructure Ontario, a provincial agency, for the required funding as no funding has yet been been secured for the project.

“The interest rates are really low right now and it’s always a good pro-gram through Infrastructure Ontario,” she explained. “But right now, be-cause of COVID, the interest rates are really low, so it’s really great to take

advantage of that for the taxpayers.“So, we’re looking at a 15-year pay-

back and the interest rates are below two per cent,” she added. “That’s a really good deal to be able to get that money, get that building up and be able to pay it back in 15 years at a good interest rate.”

Mayor Visneskie Moore praised Mrs. Sheridan and the municipality’s accountant, Will Barr, for present-ing a detailed report of the different payment options available through Infrastructure Ontario for council to review.

“Those are huge decisions that council will have to make and they need to have the kind of information that Will and Sue provided us so that we’re making a good, wise decision based on facts and the ability to pay those payments. They did a really good job. I’m very proud of them.

“Council could look right at it and say, in our estimations, this is the best deal to be able to pay it back,” she added. “We can’t make decisions just based on maybe and heresay, and the kind of detail that they provided us, we have a picture and we know exactly where we’re going with it.”

Never Borrowed BeforeMayor Visneskie Moore was aware

that Infrastructure Ontario was a funding source that was available to the municipality and during a confer-ence in Toronto several years ago, she and then CAO, the late Lorna Hudder, visited a booth promoting the program and were so impressed, they invited a representative to come and address council about the program.

“Killaloe, Hagarty and Richards has never debentured any money, we’ve never done that,” she stated. “Which is very fortunate, throughout all those years, we’ve never had to borrow money, so it was good to talk to them and see the services they provide.”

“This will be the first for us,” she said of the new application.

Mayor Visneskie Moore said it’s great the program does exist rather than having to go to some other finan-cial institution where the interest rates would likely be considerably higher.

She said Mrs. Sheridan has been in discussion with Infrastructure Ontar-io, and they have been encouraging in that the application will be successful.

“We’re hoping, if all goes well, and we’ll continue to do the teleconfer-ences with Greenview, that we’ll have the proposal (tenders) ready to ship out the first of July and we’re hoping late summer we’ll have something well started.”

KHR continuing with new Killaloe fire hall project

Eganville – The 2020 budget de-liberations for Bonnechere Valley went very well, according to Mayor Jennifer Murphy, with a full presenta-tion scheduled for early June on the budget.

Speaking at the recent committee meeting of council last Wednesday afternoon, she said she was quite pleased with the budget workshop.

“I want to thank all department heads and council,” she said. “I think the deliberation was good.” The budget came in at under a two per cent levy increase, she said.

“And we can still give our $84,000 for the bridge,” she said, referring to the municipal portion of the three-quarter million dollar bridge project which was recently approved.

The mayor said council was keenly aware of the pressures felt by ratepay-ers right now.

“It is a difficult year with revenue losses from COVID-19,” she said. “We did the best we can for our residents.”

A full report on the budget will ap-pear in an upcoming edition of the Leader.

BV 2020 budget coming soon

Eganville -- There will be no blood donor clinic at the Eagles Nest, Recreation Manager Kevin McGrath told Bonnechere Valley council last Wednesday afternoon.

“It was cancelled,” he said. “The chair lift capacity is not there.”

Mayor Jennifer Murphy said this has been an issue before and the municipality should look into an accessibility grant for a different lift system. This was also an issue when Stone Fence Theatre was using the Eagles Nest, she pointed out.

Eagles Nest not set up to host blood donor clinic


Week Ten: I see that Ontario and Quebec are re-opening while infection rates remain high. The impatience is understandable as millions of jobs and billions of dollars are at stake. It’s become a calculated gamble to see if an increase in commerce translates into a correspond-ing increase in coffins. Death vs. debt?

Spain is reopening carefully and regionally, based on infection statis-tics and also on health care capacity. Despite large public protests, Madrid and Barcelona, the economic drivers of the Spanish economy, remained shuttered because their infection rates were deemed dangerously high. It’s an unpopular policy that will probably cost some politicians their jobs. But Spain has vivid images of bodies piled in morgues and has held firm.

On the Costa del Sol, we have gone to phase one of reopening. Here, small cafes have re-opened their outdoor ter-races with widely-spaced tables and waiters in masks and gloves. Sit for a while and observe how public activities are fraught with possibilities of virus transmission. Clerks hand a credit card machine to one shopper after another. A waiter wipes a table, gets distracted and forgets to wipe the arms of the chairs. Dishes, cutlery, merchandise in stores are all touched by various people. If the virus transmits as easily from surfaces as we have heard (although recent data

suggests it is low risk), then every time we go out in public, we subject ourselves to possible spread.

Once we leave the predictable safety of our homes, we are at the mercy of hu-man error, human negligence or human arrogance. It is the law here that we must have a mask in the event that we can’t keep a safe two-metre distance. We wear them in the shops and grocery stores, put them on if the street gets busy, wear them inside the lobbies of buildings, in taxis and on buses. All waiters, clerks, store staff, policemen and bus drivers

are masked. I feel safer and others feel safer around me.

Many in North America seem to be-lieve that wearing a mask is an infringe-ment of their God-given freedoms and human rights. Do you wear a hard hat on the job site? A seat belt in your car? A mouth guard and a helmet during your hockey game? Safety pants when you run your chain saw? Most of those regu-lations are designed to protect the user, more than the general public. Masks give you two benefits for the price of one. You protect yourself and you protect those around you just in case you are the unwitting spreader of coronavirus.

With care, perhaps Ontario can begin a cautious return to normalcy without a corresponding rise in infections. Wear a mask, stay distanced. Stay out of busy public spaces unless absolutely neces-sary. Plenty of workers don’t have that option so your masks and your distanc-ing give them the safety and space they need. Just as public co-operation flat-tened the curve, now public co-operation is necessary to maintain it. We might as well get used to the ‘new normal’. The alternative is a return to lockdown.

If you won’t do it for yourself, then for God’s sake do it for the elderly, frail and immuno-compromised who have gone months in isolation. Let’s not increase the danger just as we might think about partially releasing our grandparents from solitary confinement!

Founded in 1902Published by The Eganville Leader Publishing Ltd. at 150 John Street, Eganville, Ontario

Gerald Tracey, PublisherEditorial PageThe Eganville Leader

Letter

Proceed with caution!

A newspaper column can serve different purposes, one of which is to report news, bad news as well as good. This one is being started on the last day of April when the death toll in the USA from the coronavirus has reached more than 63,000.

Mr. Trump is reading deliberately prepared lies, then passing the micro-phone to some of his trained stooges to praise him for all the wonderful deeds he claims to have done. If some prominent Democrat dares to tell those damaging dangerous lies he would be charged with mass murder and transported to a state that still uses the death penalty.

It would appear that Trump’s con-science won’t let him sleep so he spends his nights tweeting lies, giving some jovial person a novel idea. The song, The Lion Sleeps Tonight, has now been changed to The Lions Tweets All Night. It also has a fitting chorus: Vote Vote Him Away. For about 86 per cent of Americans and 100 per cent of bereaved families, November can’t come soon enough.

There are events that bring back memories and make us feel that our world is getting smaller. I have only visited the province of New Scotland twice since the name has been changed to Nova Scotia, but the heart-breaking tragedy of several weeks ago has done both of the above. On June 20, 1929 the first nurse to hold me was the wife of Dr. Walter Aloysius Brown, the former Eulalia Gaye from Truro, Nova Scotia. Then there are my Scarboro Missions friends, Father Bill and Father Mike Cox from Glace Bay, and Father Rod McNeil who I believe was an uncle to Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil, and who couldn’t sing nearly as well as his famous cousin, Rita. How can I forget the famous St. FX University where our daughter Maureen studied from 1983 to 1986, where Cathy McCann fell in

love with Murray Kyte, and another Scarboro friend, Father Howard Shea taught Philosophy, while his brother, Father Claude, was serving as Chaplain at CFB Petawawa.

What makes my world seem to be get-ting smaller is having family members, cousins, friends or former co-workers living in all 10 provinces, the U.S., Mexico and as far away as Australia. For somebody born in the horse and buggy days that is quite a change. My darling wife is thankful for the Stay At Home order in case I might decide to go visit them.

Somebody just turned on that Bad News TV again. Due to Mr. Trump’s inability to tell his people the truth the virus has now claimed more American lives than were lost in the combined Vietnam and Korean wars. If, dear readers, you can stand more bad news, I have some, and every word of it is due to the greed of the oil barons and the manufacturers of powerful gas and diesel guzzling engines. Last week the temperature in Anchorage, Alaska was

warmer than in Florida. I hate to disturb your sleep, but my conscience won’t let me sleep if I am too chicken to warn you about what can and will happen if world leaders refuse to smarten up.

To celebrate our 50th wedding anni-versary our generous children and their spouses took us on an Alaskan cruise. One of the highlights was watching the Hubbard Glacier calving, icebergs breaking off at the edge of the rocks and splashing into the ocean. Not long ago I watched a documentary on glaciers, how they form over millions of years from wet snow freezing and forming millions of layers of ice on top of rocky ground. They could be hundreds of miles long and God only knows how deep.

We will never know the size of the iceberg that sank the mighty Titanic 108 years ago. What we do know is that it was part of a huge glacier, probably the size of the one recently discovered in the Antarctic. It is described by the explorers to be the size of Prince Edward Island and is making its way towards the Arctic Ocean. Their warning is that our climate keeps warming the dark coloured rocks underneath; the glacier absorbs the heat and loosens the ice on top of them. Their reasoning is that heat attracts while cold dispels. This is where our beloved Planet Earth could be changed forever. The Antarctic is not the only place where glaciers can be found. If they keep on calving, ocean travel will be in serious danger, the levels will increase by a few metres, the overflow will destroy the beautiful beaches, but worst of all millions of hectares of our best food growing land will be under salt water where we can’t even grow rice.

One final comment: Mr. Trump claims that he knows exactly what happened to Kim Mon Jung, but is keeping it a deep dark secret. Wouldn’t it be wonderful news for the American people to find out that he applied for the dictator’s job in North Korea and got it?

The greatest tragedy on earth

Ever so slowly, every so cautiously, the province has begun the reopening and we face it with a mixture of delight and trepidation. When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit the Ottawa Valley

we were frightened, unsure, and having the attitude of “we are in this together” with people waving on the roads, smiling at each other and just trying to make the best of things with stay at home orders. Fast forward a good two months and people are testy, frustrated, unsure, frightened and getting snippy. It has been wearing thin. This is the atmosphere in which the province is reopening. It is one thing for us to all say “we are all in this together” but it is another thing to actively do it. From waiting in the line to go to a bank, to being angry at

a business now being open, to being slighted by someone walking too close by you at the grocery store, to being upset when reminded there are limitations on how many people from a family can shop at an establishment at a time, we are short tempered right now. So, let’s step back and practice a bit of kindness toward each other. Kindness toward the sin-gle mom shopping with her child who is going nuts being at home without the companionship of others. Kindness toward the bank clerk reminding us to practice physical distancing. Kindness to the co-worker who wants to make sure people are shopping safely. It is a tough time and it has been a terribly tough time for

businesses dealing with shuttered doors. Many were working on slim margins to begin with and have seen their revenues decimated by the lack of traffic due to COVID-19. Now they are open, but the grumpiness, frustration and anger is being felt in their corridors. We have all gone a bit stir crazy at home and when the big joy of the week is shopping for a new toilet plunger, we know we are in uncharted waters. The province has reopened cautiously, slowly (too slowly for

some and too fast for others) and following medical advice. The fact is we know there will be a second wave. The fact is we know Renfrew County will see an increase in numbers as travellers converge on our area, whether they are seasonal residents or the tourists we usually welcome with open arms. These are the facts, so let us prepare for it.Continue to practice physical distancing or wear a mask

if that is not possible. Limit the number of family members going shopping to only those necessary for the excursion. Wash your hands. Stay home if unwell. We know the drill. Let’s practice it. But, let’s add a dose of kindness, patience, self-control to that and be nice to each other. We are all doing the best we can in these strange days of COVID-19.

COVID kindness

Dear Editor:It is with a mix of excitement, relief

and some trepidation that we, the Eganville Farmers’ Market vendors, are trying to plan our season.

We are excited to have the go-ahead from the province to open our market this summer but we are working with the health unit to make sure that we follow necessary guidelines in order to bring you our freshest and best product in a safe, yet expedient

manner.So, we are announcing we will be

open for business on Fridays this sum-mer. But we are still working out the details of the date we will open and what the hours will be like. We will keep you informed.

Despite everything that is happen-ing, we look forward to seeing old and new customers at the market this year.

Jo Pilverdier,Cobden

It’s simply too easy to slip out of wonder. There is so much to do on the land in this season. I find I can never quite keep up with responding adequately to all the amazing changes in nature.

One day there’s just a little sign of blossoms starting to show themselves on a Pear Tree, the next day the whole tree is in full bloom, and now a week later the wind has blown many earth-ward, white amongst the green grass. I’ve heard it said that one must stop and smell the roses; and stop and smell the pear blossoms.

Being a human who likes to pay attention to the changes in the trees, this is quite the season for allowing awe to emerge in me at all the changes that are happening. So much beauty in every direction. We are so blessed to live in a rural area, where there are way more trees and green plants than there are people.

After such a long cold winter, and then a long chilly early spring, I feel many of us have a hunger for all the beauty that spring brings with her. We’re so gifted with an overabun-dance of riches in the beauty depart-ment. Each blossom is unique. Each leaf is unique. A close look will reveal wonders. Even in a cluster of apple tree blossoms, each little flower is unique and different. And they all attract multitudes of different bees seeking their nectar and pollen.

The humm of busy bees is quite an uplifting sound, be it while standing under a blooming willow tree or a blooming apple tree. Watching each bee’s choice of which blossom to visit, and then which one is next is awesome. Words cannot go there.

What did we do to deserve this gift of beauty? Endure winter?

I can imagine some folks new to this area might be afraid of winter. It’s a worthy fear, one actually can die of extreme cold and exposure; especially on a remote farm. Many years ago, we were not afraid of winter, yet we learned to respect it and simply dealt with coming downstairs in the morn-ing and having to take the ice layer off the water bucket. It was part of life.

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” (President F.D. Roosevelt). We all know we will die someday. How do we each integrate that awareness into our lives? Is the main fear of COVID-19 that one might get sick, like many people have done most years with the annual flu? Or is it the fear that one might die?

Now there’s something to wonder about. Do birds, bees, flowers, trees, cows, dogs or chickens wonder about their own death? Do they fear their death, or simply live as best they can while they are alive, with gratitude for each breath?

May we all continue to walk in beau-ty, now and in the coming seasons.

* * * * * * *Robbie Anderman and his wife,

Christina, are back-to-the-landers who settled in the Wilno area 51 years ago. They reside at Morninglory Farm where they learned about surviving in harsh and sometimes adverse condi-tions in the Ottawa Valley.

It is a different world we are living in now and charities, churches and many not-for-profit organizations are feeling the pinch when it becomes all too easy to forget the impor-tance of giving to these worthy causes during these days of physical distancing. Giving in the era of COVID-19 is just as important as it was a

few months ago before the pandemic spread to Canada. How-ever, with churches closed following provincial directives, fundraisers cancelled following provincial directives and door-to-door campaigns, such as the annual May Canadian Cancer Society drive halted, it is all to easy for us to forget to dip into our wallets and give to causes and services dear to our hearts. The reminder to give, participate in a fundraiser or answer the call for support for a non-profit we believe in has fallen to the back-burner for many of us as we scurry from our limited activities back home, once again following provincial directives to stay at home unless it is absolutely necessary to go out. Our churches and many of our local non-profits, includ-

ing service clubs are feeling the loss. Remember to give to the organizations you care about. Their need has in no way diminished in this time of physical distancing.

Needs are still real

Market is in planning

Wonder and Beauty

Robbie Anderman


75 Years Ago - May 25, 1945

100 Years Ago - May 28, 1920



Mr. Paul Lamarche, after spending a week at the old home in Perrault, returned to Hearst on Thursday morn-ing. Mr. Lamarche is optimistic in regard to the future of the northlands of Ontario and has increased his hold-ings to 300 acres. The pulpwood is providing a big asset and as the for-est is cleared away a climatic change for better grain growing is observed. Mr. Lamarche was called to the home owing to the serious illness of his father, George Lamarche Sr., one of Grattan’s pioneers. We are pleased to learn that the venerable gentleman has rallied and is able to be about again.

* * * * * * New Butter Factory In OperationVictoria Day witnessed the first

churning at Eganville’s new butter factory, erected by Mr. D.G. Kilgour. It is equipped in a very complete manner with the latest De Laval machinery, including a pasteurizer. The churn is a large one capable of producing 3,000 and 4,000 pounds of butter per day.

The cream when received will be subjected to the Babcock test and the new method of weighing the samples instead of measuring will be adopted. This with pasteurizing is a guarantee to the farmers and dairymen who supply cream that a full value is ascertained and due credit is given.

In connection with the factory there

is a cold storage system with printing room and storeroom. Cement floor-ing and underground drainage make for clean and sanitary conditions. Steam power is used at present but it is understood that in the near future electric power will be introduced.

The manager is Mr. James Small, late of Prescott, a gentleman of over 30 years experience in this business.

He came to Eganville with the highest recommendations and he assisted and supervised the erection and installa-tion of machinery.

The enterprise of Mr. Kilgour in starting this manufactory in Eganville is to be commended and we feel he should receive every encouragement and support from the farmers of this district. We are sure he will deal justly and every generously with them.

His motor truck to collect cream, will traverse the different sections, thus saving farmers the time and ex-pense of conveying this product to the factory. All patrons will be supplied with cans. The townspeople wish Mr. Kilgour every success.

* * * * * *Eganville barbers have increased

the price of haircuts from 25 cents to 35 cents. Shaving remains 15 cents.

* * * * * *Having contributed to the building

of the Memorial Hall at Cobden, sev-eral of the municipalities are wonder-ing why they should be called upon to pay for court room accommodations within its walls.

* * * * * *In Renfrew police court during the

past week two Barry’s Bay men paid fines of $200 each with costs for a major violation of the Ontario Tem-perance Act. Inspector Connelly was prosecutor.

R.C. Miller Was A Veteran Editor of The Upper Ottawa

Pembroke, May 22 – Robert Cald-well Miller, former newspaper pub-lisher in Pembroke, and at one time assistant gold commissioner in the Yukon, died suddenly yesterday af-ternoon at his home at Fort William, Que. in his 97th year.

Mr. Miller, in earlier life, was a prominent resident of Pembroke, ac-tive in municipal and fraternal circles, and, despite his age, had been in good health. He was warden of Renfrew County in 1891 and was one of the oldest members of the Grand Lodge of Ontario, AF and AM, having been a member of Pembroke lodge about 60 years. He was a former district deputy grand master of both the Manitoba and British Columbia grand lodges.

Born in Ireland, Mr. Miller came to Ottawa as a boy with his parents. His first newspaper job was at Portage du Fort at the age of 14 and four years later he went to the Government Printing Bureau. Subsequently, he was for five years with the old Ottawa Daily News and came to Pembroke in 1872. Two years later he acquired the Pembroke Observer, which he conducted until 1898, when he went to the Yukon, remaining there until his retirement in 1918. He then lived for a few years in Pembroke before moving to Fort William.

Mr. Miller was a veteran of the Fenian Raids and he was a member of a battery that fired a salute to Con-federation in Ottawa on July 1st, 1867. He was a player on the first baseball team in Pembroke and for years was one of the most skillful curlers in the Ottawa Valley.

* * * * * *Killaloe

Married OverseasMr. and Mrs. Joseph Fleece received

word recently of the marriage of their son, Joseph, which took place overseas on April 25th. The bride is the former Evelyn Williams, R.N., of Swansea, Wales. Cfn. Fleece enlisted with the R.C.O.C. in London, Ont. in 1940 and in December of that year went overseas with the 2nd Canadian Division. Later he was transferred to the R.C.E.M.E., Taking a course in diesel and electrical engineering. He is the fourth son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Fleece, well-known farmers of Killaloe district.

* * * * * *Recommends County Forest

The Renfrew Agricultural Commit-tee, representatives to which were ap-pointed by all organized farm groups in the county, met in the Agriculture Office on Friday night and reviewed the farm labour situation as it affected Renfrew County.

It was reported that a number of men who had been on postponement to work on essential farms were in some cases leaving these farms following the announcement that compulsory military training had been suspended. The committee made the recommen-dation to the Selective Service that soldiers who had not volunteered for service in the Pacific area and who had farm experience, should as soon as possible, be granted leave to work on productive farms. This would help to alleviate the serious labour shortage.

Due to the fact that many areas in Renfrew County were now producing practically nothing, as the land was low in fertility, it was recommended that more consideration be given to reforestation and it was particularly recommended that Renfrew County council give consideration to the es-tablishment of a county forest.

* * * * * *

Of Local InterestMr. Cecil McTiernan has obtained

a position with the Co-operative Creamery in Arnprior and left on Saturday last to take over his new du-ties. Cecil has been a valued member of the Eganville Hockey Club for the past few seasons, doing very credit-able work in the centre ice position, and we feel sure that he will be called upon when the hockey season rolls around in Arnprior.

* * * * * *All the entries in the “big egg”

contest have come from Grattan thus far but it seems that the birds in Wilberforce are not letting the grass grow under their feet in this respect for Mrs. Charles Lett got an egg from her flock recently which measured 8 ½ inches by 6 ½ inches.

* * * * * *In a letter to his parents, Dr.

and Mrs. James Reeves, Dr. Bert Reeves, who is serving with the Canadian Army (medical) mentions meeting Max Dwyer of Golden Lake, a member of the Farrell household. He played hockey with the Killaloe team and has many acquaintances in the Killaloe and Eganville districts. He has been a prisoner of war for some time and the rigors and privation of the prison camp were apparent. He recognized Dr. Reeves immediately.

* * * * * *Madawaska

Mr. Leonard Aleck is a patient in Pembroke General Hospital as a result of an accident when the car he was driving was hit by a C.N.R. train at a crossing about a quarter of a mile west of the railway station here on Tuesday, May 15. Mr. Aleck suf-fered injury to five ribs and one lung along with severe shock. His car was completely demolished.

Quadeville Man Dies Three Days After Crash

A young Quadeville man who dreamed of joining the French For-eign Legion died Wednesday as a result of injuries suffered in a single car accident a week ago Sunday.

David Farrell, 26, was travelling west on Hwy. 515 during the early morning hours of May 14 when the accident occurred. He lost control of his 1983 Plymouth Tourismo less than one kilometre outside of Quadeville. Mr. Farrell was thrown from the car. He was discovered by passersby around 6:45 a.m.

David was adopted by Russell and Lola Farrell as a newborn baby from the Winchester Hospital. His foster parents separated when he was seven years old and Paul Latour became his legal guardian until he was 16 years old.

“He was staying with me for the last year,” said Mr. Latour, who noted that David had spent two years in France.

“He had his mind set on joining the French Foreign Legion. He planned on going back this fall.”

* * * * * *Fiddling, Stepdancing Week To

Be Revived In EganvilleThe Eastern Ontario Fiddling and

Stepdancing championships are being revived this summer.

Eganville used to host the contest, but fizzled out in 1982, said Rob Da-genais, who remembers competing there when he was younger and living in Pembroke.

He figures the competition was just never held again after it was cancelled due to the reconstruction at the arena.

The contest is scheduled for the Civic Day weekend.

* * * * * *Killaloe Celebrates

Opening of ParkPeople came in droves to witness

the grand opening of Station Park in Killaloe on Sunday.

With a lot of landscaping and careful

planning, what used to be the grounds of the old railway station and the railway-right-of-way in the village has become a beautiful green space, complete with trees and flowerbeds.

Reeve Emerson Lepine welcomed the crowd with a short speech.

“The previous council, the present council, the recreation department and the planning board all were in-volved in getting this off the ground; it was all volunteer work,” he said. “We hope you will enjoy this park for many years to come.”

The $141,868 project was financed with funding from the Canada-On-tario Infrastructure Works program. The village’s one-third share of the project was financed by the recreation committee.

Reeve Lepine was joined in the ribbon-cutting ceremony by Council-lors Kathy Lampi, Dr. Henry Tiedje, Carl Kuehl and Marilyn Kuehl, North Renfrew MPP Sean Conway and Renfrew County Warden Les Green.

Contract Announced For Eganville Sewage Works

Reeve E.E. Bimm and Paul J. Yakabuski, M.P.P. Renfrew South are pleased to announce that contracts for a new sewage system in the Village of Eganville have been awarded.

Contract 1 for the construction of two pumping stations complete with force-mains and a system of collector sewers has been awarded to Markus & Sons Limited of Pembroke. Contract 2 for the construction of a sewage treatment plant has been awarded to M. Sullivan & Son Limited of Arnprior.

Reeve Bimm and Mr. Yakabuski are pleased that these contracts have been let because when this work is completed, it will place the Village of Eganville in a much better position, insofar as attracting new industry and other enterprises is concerned. It will also provide some much-needed jobs for Eganville and area residents during the summer and fall of this year, which in itself, should relieve to some extent the unemployment situation that now exists because of the disastrous fires that struck this community in January of this year.

* * * * * *Foymount Man Dies In

Car AccidentLieut. Ed Klein of CFS Foymount

was killed instantly in a single car ac-cident near Barrie early last Saturday morning, May 23rd. Lieut. Klein. 23, had been the Civil Engineering Of-ficer since his arrival at Foymount last August. He was temporarily at CFS Borden attending an N.B.C.W. course when the accident occurred.

His body was returned to his par-ents, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Klein, Fran-cis, Sask., for funeral service and

burial on Wednesday, May 27.Captain Jim Robbins of Foymount attended the funeral in Francis as an expression of the grief and sense of loss experi-enced by the personnel of Foymount on the death of Ed Klein.

* * * * * *Fire Levels Killaloe Area Home

An elderly Hagarty Township cou-ple, Mr. and Mrs. James Coulas, were left homeless last Thursday when fire destroyed their farm home three miles west of Killaloe.

When the fire broke out, they were planting potatoes with two sons who lived with them in the 50-year-old log house.

Nearby buildings were saved by the Hagarty Township and Killaloe fire brigades, but the two-storey house burned to the ground.

Killaloe Fire Chief Earl Kuehl, who estimated the loss at $12,000, said only a stove and chair were saved.

Cause of the fire has not been de-termined.

* * * * * *New Golf Course A Barry’s Bay

AttractionThe Madawaska Golf and Recrea-

tion Centre Ltd., which is expected to develop into one of the most popular spots in the Barry’s Bay area, has opened for the season on the Barry’s Bay – Kazuby Road overlooking Lake Madawaska. The nine-hole golf course is available for occasional players and season memberships and for beginners as well as experts. There is a supply of rental clubs and two free lessons for those who want to take up the game seriously, and a snack bar is in operation.

President of the new enterprise is Pat Riccio, formerly of Toronto.

* * * * * *Opeongo Students Make

Successful Walk The “Walk to St. Vincent’s” project

of the students and staff of Opeongo High School held May 23rd, was a gratifying success. With the enthu-siasm and vitality possible only to youth, the students started out at 8 a.m. in canoes, on bicycles or reliable “shanks ponies”. Thirty-six of them paddled canoes from Opeongo High School along the Snake River to the Cobden wharf; 53 covered the road by bicycle from Osceola to Opeongo, Lake Dore, Killaloe, Brudenell, Foymount, Eganville and back to Opeongo; 120 hiked from Opeongo to Bulger’s Corner, Lake Dore, Mink Lake and back to the school. They were a tired, sunburned crowd but they made their objective $1,000 pledge to help build a secondary school for the students of St. Vincent Island – possibly they went a little over the top. The sum raised will not be definite until the students complete the collections from their sponsors.

* * * * * * Cormac Woman Injured In

Tractor AccidentMrs. Gerald Yackabeck, 25, of

Cormac is in Pembroke Civic Hos-pital suffering from a back injury sustained when a tractor slipped backwards on the mud and rolled on top of her last Saturday morn-ing. Mrs. Yackabeck was working in her garden alone at the time of the accident. When help arrived, the mud condition complicated efforts to remove the tractor. She was rushed to hospital by ambulance from CFS Foymount and her condition now is described as quite good.


By R. Bruce McIntyreLocal Journalism Initiative Reporter

Renfrew – Shortly after Mayor Don Eady returned for his second consecutive term as mayor of Renfrew, he reviewed the roles and responsibilities as head of council and among them was his role as the official voice of the municipality if ever an emergency was declared.

He understood it was a serious role, and was an active participant in the annual training exercises as mandated by the province.

During the last few years, the Ottawa Valley has seen its share of natural disasters ranging from flooding to drought, and he was thankful the residents of Renfrew were spared from the damage inflicted on neighbouring communities. However, he never dreamed that during his tenure as mayor that the once-a-year emergency training would suddenly be-come an everyday priority that has left the mayor and council with far more questions than answers in terms of governance.

When asked to describe what it is like to be the mayor of a town of over 8,000 caught in the middle of a global pandemic, he was quick and to the point in his reply.

“Frustrating,” he said. “It is all the unknowns like when will the worst be behind us because from what I can see this is just the beginning and nobody knows where we are go-ing or what is going to happen. It is frustrating because as a municipal government, a lot of funding decisions are made at the federal and provincial level and we don’t have a lot of other options.”

He said the town’s Municipal Control Group (MCG) met the Friday before Premier Doug Ford declared a provincial State of Emergency on March 17, an order that included the mandatory closing of thousands of businesses deemed non-essential.

“Our Control Group, which up until then had met very infrequently, agreed drastic measures were likely going to be taken at the provincial level and we had to prepare all our resources for that event,” he said. “On March 16, one day before Premier Ford made his announcement I signed off on the shutdown of pretty much all our non-essential services and that decision was one that I did not take lightly.

“As the months have progressed, our group came to the realization there was no real end in sight and we took the next step and that included cancelling some pretty major events scheduled for our town.”

Cancelling key tourist events such as the annual weekend Bluegrass Festival held at Ma-te-way Park and the popular Frewfest, which has grown in numbers every year, were deci-sions Mayor Eady did not want to make, but knew with so many unanswered questions and no timetable set, something had to be done.

“One of the things this and the previous council has done is establish Renfrew as a popular tourist destination with these types of events,” he said. “They were really taking on a life of their own, but there is so much planning involved it is not fair to the organizers to leave them hanging out there with a chance of a last minute order to stop. I mentioned before the level of frustration of not knowing and not being able to plan events. This year was to be the launch of Junior A hockey this fall, but we don’t even know if the league will be up and running.”

He pointed out the MCG, which consists of the mayor and the town’s five department heads, has met 26 times since March 13 and he does not foresee any slowdown for the group or town staff.

“Even though it looks like our town has shut down, I can honestly say in all my time as mayor, I have never been busier,” he said. “Just last week, I received a phone call from a local business owner at 8:30 in the morning and from that first call I attended three meetings, chaired our virtual council meeting and met with some residents following the meeting and got home at 10:30 at night, and most days have been like that. The town has to keep functioning so all of us are still working.”

Credits Staff and Residents For Co-operationHe understands that as head of council, the mayor is

sometimes identified with an achievement, and the one who shoulders the blame when something negative occurs at the town level. However, Mayor Eady readily acknowledges the efforts of all residents during the lockdown for helping to make Renfrew County one of the lowest areas of infection in all of Ontario.

“I just can’t say enough about how incredible and respectful of the shutdown the people of Renfrew have been,” he said. “It is true we don’t have the density like major cities, but over the last two months, I made it a point to drive to certain areas we identified as potential hot spots where people might gather and I was both happy and proud to see the rules be-ing followed. To my knowledge the OPP have only had two

complaints and our town has been kept safe. But we are far from being out of the woods and I would just ask our resi-dents to keep respecting the guidelines to keep everyone safe.

“Our town staff continue to work, but in different areas outside of their regular duties and many are working from home,” he said. “Our staff have done split-shifts and one example is some of our staff power washed the entire ceiling at Mateway Park. Normally, we would contract that out but our staff did that job and that is one example of everyone pitching in to help reduce a tax burden on our ratepayers. The town has to stay open and our staff have done their part, and more, to keep us going.”

Fears Further Store ClosingsThere are some major construction projects such as the $3

million Stewart Street upgrades, funded primarily through the Connecting Links program, and others scheduled for major repairs. Mayor Eady said summer is almost here and that means construction and hopefully some type of return

to the pattern of downtown Renfrew being a major retail draw for residents and visitors. During his previous term as mayor, the downtown underwent a major transformation and he wants to once again see the streets filled with shoppers.

“The one thing I am really concerned about is the health of our small businesses that depend so much on people walk-ing into their stores and leaving with a purchase,” he said. “I have to tell you it absolutely broke my heart when Tracey’s Ice Cream announced their closure. I know of people who came from all parts of Canada to have a Tracey’s ice cream cone and those people would spend money in the town. We have seen a couple of businesses shut their doors for good and I know our merchants work 16-hour days and some are just hanging on. I really hope things turn around and our residents do their best to support them.”

It is not just store closures, but he is concerned about the health of local manufacturing plants and other commercial enterprises.

“These businesses are there because of the hard work of the owners and they employ local people and they are vital to keep our town healthy,” he said. “It is the big unknown that concerns me and all we can do is plan to the best of our ability and unfortunately, we like everyone else, have to wait for the province and federal government to set the policies and we follow them. So far, I think they have done a pretty good job.”

Moving ForwardHe said all department heads just completed and submitted

their first major review of services and their initial recommen-dations on how to move forward in this era of the unknown. The annual budget process still has to take place and when they sit down in October to begin that process, they will use the first reports and subsequent others to set a budget.

“I don’t know how it is going to look when we tackle the budget,” he said. “This pandemic has created brand new areas of concern we had never envisioned before. We have never had to shut down major areas of revenue like landfill tipping fees, recreation fees for programming and even the library has lost quite a bit of money. It is these questions that we just don’t have answers for right now, but what I can tell the people of Renfrew is that no matter what comes up, I have full confidence in this council, town staff and our residents to work together to make Renfrew a great place to live and do business.”

COVID-19 leaves more questions than answers for municipalities

Renfrew Mayor Don Eady


Eganville – Grist Mill Road in North Algona Wilberforce Town-ship has a new surface of tar and stone chip, restoring the road back to a hard-top surface. Work on the several km. long stretch of road that runs from Mill Street in Eganville to Hwy. 60, just east of Kelly’s Corner, was completed last Thursday.

The contract was awarded to Greenwood Paving of Pembroke which is carrying out similar work on several roads in the township

after being awarded a $1,150,000 contract.

Other roads scheduled for a new stone chip topping this summer include Island View Drive, part of Mink Lake Road, part of Black Creek Road and a section of Mc-Millan Road. In all about 15 kms of township roads are being resurfaced.

Township CAO Andrew Sprunt said the township is continuing work on Lett’s Cemetery Road from the boundary with the Village of

Eganville to Highway 41. The road was resurfaced with asphalt last year and the plan this year is to add a second lift of asphalt and include a bicycle lane.

Although the funding is in place for the project Mr. Sprunt said work was delayed to the COVID-19 pandemic which delayed surveying to accom-modate the bicycle lanes.

Mr. Sprunt said it was hoped sweeping several roads of winter sand would be carried out this week.

Road work underway in NAW

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Eganville – A woman who dedicated over 40 years of her life to the nursing profession is continuing to help others in retirement, donating money she received from masks she made to the Eganville and District Food Bank.

Katie Guibord knows all too well the seriousness of pandemics and she began pondering what she could pos-sibly do to help out.

“I’m a retired nurse and I’ve been through HIV, SARS, H1N1, and personally, this pandemic scares the hell out of me,” she said. “CBC was debating whether it was okay to have cough masks to wear, and I thought, ‘Why not?’

“The public can’t have access to the other masks and they shouldn’t because they should be for hospitals,” she added. “So, I thought ‘why not just make up a bunch’”

That “bunch” equated to a total of 406 masks she made at her Miller Road residence in Bonnechere Valley Township.

Ms. Guibord contacted Conway’s Pharmacy in Eganville to see if she could use the drug

Full steam ahead for closure of Beachburg’s Scotiabank · 5/27/2020 · CAO Annette Gilchrist...

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Transcript of Full steam ahead for closure of Beachburg’s Scotiabank · 5/27/2020 · CAO Annette Gilchrist...