The Féile Seamus Creagh festival is spreading its wings again this year and changing some of its venues with two shows set for the Southern Shore this weekend.
On Friday night, the festival will hold an opening concert at the O’Brien’s Tours Stage Head in Bay Bulls. It will feature Jim Payne and Fergus O'Byrne, Oisin McAuley and Caoimhin O Fearghail of Ireland, Cara Butler of the United States, Jimmy Crowley of Ireland, Graham Wells, Benny McCarthy and Conor Moriarty, the latter two also from Ireland.
On Sunday, September 13, the festival moves to the Folk Arts Council building in Ferryland where John Curran and Greg Walsh of the Masterless Men will take the stage along with the Dunne Family from Ferryland as well as Irish performers Crowley, McCarthy, Oisin McAuley, Caoimhin O Ferghail and Butler, who is American but excels in the Irish step dance.
The festival is also staging shows in Carbonear and St. John’s. The Regina Mundi Centre in Renews was among the venues in previous years.
Keith Mooney of the Southern Shore Folk Arts Council said he expects to see a good night of entertainment in Ferryland given the large and diverse lineup. Tickets cost $20 in advance and $25 at the door. They are available in local stores and at the Folk Arts Council’s building.
The festival celebrates traditional music and songs from Newfoundland and Ireland. It’s named after the late Irish fiddle master Seamus Creagh, who played in Newfoundland some years ago. Creagh’s connection to Newfoundland is thanks to Graham Wells, whom he took under his wing when Wells went to Ireland to study music. The pair recorded an album of Newfoundland and Irish tunes in 2002. Wells is the founder of the festival named in Creagh’s honour.
“Graham started this event and it features a great combination of established musicians,” Mooney said. “For Celtic music followers it’s a great opportunity… I attended the shows in Renews and it’s fabulous entertainment. And in this case it’s going to be a well-rounded show because you have the instrumentals and the singing, and you have the step dance, so it’s pretty appealing to a wide range of Irish-Newfoundland music enthusiasts.”
Bay Bulls council set to meet for first time in nine weeks
It looks like Bay Bulls council will meet for the first time in nine weeks next week without having resolved any of the conflict of interest allegations levelled against three different councillors.
The public meeting scheduled for September 14, if it goes ahead, will mark the first time council has met since July 13, when unexpected allegations of conflict of interest came to light against councillors Jason Sullivan and Joan Luby.
Sullivan is accused of breaking conflict of interest rules by land developer Martina Aylward, who claims Sullivan voted on development applications even though he is a developer himself.
Sullivan, meanwhile, is the accuser in an earlier conflict of interest allegation levelled against Deputy Mayor Harold Mullowney. Sullivan claimed in a letter to council this past spring that Mullowney is a competing developer and should not have participated in a council discussion regarding Sullivan’s application to develop a 37 acre subdivision in Bay Bulls. Mullowney has denied the allegation and said Sullivan is misconstruing his application for a small parcel of Crown Land. Sullivan’s move against Mullowney was kept off the public agenda until this past summer when the Irish Loop Post learned of it and published details about it.
The allegation against councillor Luby, by a developer applying to build a subdivision in the town, contends she discussed a development application belonging to her sister-in-law. Luby, who was elected in a by-election earlier this year, maintains the incident happened during her first night on council and that she didn’t know who was behind the application when the discussion started. Luby pointed out that unlike the other councillors in attendance, she was not provided with a detailed agenda and briefing book until she was sworn in at the meeting and so she had no time to prepare for any of the discussions.
All three matters were expected to be addressed at the August 10 public meeting of council, but the meeting was cancelled at the last minute when councillors Sullivan, Rick Oxford and Gerard Mulcahy indicated they were unavailable to attend.
Mayor Patrick O’Driscoll did not respond to a request for an interview this week.
When contacted, Deputy Mayor Mullowney said no ‘Friendly Hearings’ have been held by council to discuss any of the allegations, as is required under the Municipalities Act when conflict of interest charges are made.
“All I’ve heard is that they’ve sent it all off to legal again and the lawyers were supposed to meet with council to give them some indication of what was on the go – that meeting was supposed to happen last month, however the lawyers went on holiday as far as I understand, and were supposed to be back around mid-August, but I haven’t heard anything regarding a meeting,” Mullowney said. “So I don’t exactly know where it is right now.”
If the Town has obtained a another legal opinion it will be the third one requested by the mayor and council in regard to the allegation against Mullowney. In the first opinion, the lawyer reportedly sided with Sullivan’s allegation against the Deputy Mayor, but after hearing from Mullowney himself, issued a second opinion opposite to his first finding. Mullowney has contended that Sullivan’s allegation is frivolous and that council is wasting money by hiring lawyers to entertain it.
Mullowney said he has since been contacted by a couple of councillors who are backpedalling and claiming their move against him was blown out of proportion. “I said nothing was blown out of proportion by me,” he noted.
Mullowney said he expects at some point he will be given a Friendly Hearing and despite any legal recommendation that he is not guilty, a majority of council can still vote to vacate his seat anyway. “If people want to, they can disregard the legal opinion,” he said. “So I’m waiting to see where that goes. I’ve been told by a number of individuals that they don’t see any conflict in my case and I don’t see it there, but at the end of the day it still comes down to a vote of council.”
The longest serving member of council added he is still working to fulfill his duties but he has a sense council itself is drifting. “There was no meeting last month and they didn’t set a date for a follow-up meeting, so I’m assuming now we’ll have one this month,” he said.
Mullowney acknowledged the Department of Municipal Affairs hasn’t done much to help the town resolve the situation. “Municipal Affairs generally wipes their hands of a lot of this saying there is a mechanism and procedure to be followed, but they don’t seem to really want to get involved too much,” he said. “But I agree there needs to be a greater role and presence (by the department). This situation is going to become more prevalent I think as development picks up in the Northeast Avalon and unless you have mechanisms to deal with it properly it is just going to continue to fester.”
If the regular public council meeting does go ahead next week, a number of items have been added to the agenda by councillor Luby that may generate their own share of debate. Luby confirmed Tuesday she intends to question why council adjourns so often in the middle of public meetings to hold unscheduled privileged sessions, as well as seek clarification on council’s policy regarding the use of cel phones and texting devices by councillors during public meetings. Luby said she has observed some members of council texting during debates, including occasions when one councillor is outside of the chamber because of a declared conflict of interest.
Local heritage groups get small grants
Admiralty House Museum in Mount Pearl served as the backdrop last month for an announcement of some $1.2 million in operational funding for 115 heritage groups throughout the province, incouding a number on the Irish Loop.
Some $9,770 of the money is being allocated to the Admiralty House Museum and Archives.
In this area, Cape Race – Portugal Cove South Heritage Inc. is getting $15,360, the Colony of Avalon, $89,300; Ferryland Historical Society $2,210; the Fisherman's Museum - St. Vincent's $1,000; the Petty Harbour Maddox Cove Heritage Museum Association $1,000; and the Witless Bay Heritage Committee $1,000.
Business and Tourism Minister Darrin King said the recipients of the funding are reviewed by a special Heritage Advisory Council struck in 2012 and composed of representatives of the department, the Museums Association of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Association of Newfoundland and Labrador Archives, and the Association of Heritage Industries.
Seven groups are getting funding to help with special projects, including the Newfoundland and Labrador Archeological Society which hopes to encourage owners of private collections to come forward so that their artefacts can be documented.
“We want to gain a better understanding of collections that may not be curated,” said the president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Archaeological Society, Tim Rast.
King complimented groups such as Rast’s for the invaluable work they do in preserving the province’s heritage.
“As the summer winds down, this announcement is a reminder of the valuable role these organizations play in our communities,” King said. “Summer time is a very important time for museum and heritage organizations across Newfoundland and Labrador. Employees and volunteers work hard to showcase our history, our culture and our heritage to Newfoundland and Labrador families on vacation, to children in summer day camps, to those who have long summer days to themselves and free time, and to tourists who come to our province to experience for themselves this very special place that we call home.”
Mount Pearl North MHA and Health Minister Steve Kent welcomed all the press conference guests to Mount Pearl. He noted he has a special connection to Admiralty House, having worked with a number of community organizations when the museum re-opened in 1997 and having supported it later as mayor. “This has been an important part of community life for me and thousands of citizens over the last number of years,” he added. “I’ve been involved in touring many youth groups through this facility, many celebrations have happened here at Admiralty House and the beautiful grounds that surround Admiralty House. I’ve attended many arts events at this facility and cultural events. I’ve performed wedding ceremonies (as mayor) out on the grounds.”
Kent said the heritage funding announced by King helps heritage facilities and organizations to operate.
Later this month, Admiralty House Museum, which is mostly funded by the City of Mount Pearl, will celebrate a milestone of its own as it marks its 100th anniversary. The facility was built as a secret naval wireless station for the British navy during the first world war. It is the oldest structure in Mount Pearl.
Museum chairman John Riche said the actual anniversary is September 16. On that day the staff and board will hold a small event at the site. The main celebration will come on Saturday, September 19. “It will be a big event,” said Riche. “The CLB band will be playing, we’ll have their Honours the Lieutenant Governor Frank Fagan and Patricia Fagan, Senator Elizabeth Marshall is bringing greetings from Ottawa, Mayor Randy Simms will be there and the provincial government will be bringing somebody.”
The event will be hosted in the back garden. “Our grounds are spectacular in the early fall,” Riche said.
Meanwhile, the museum’s board and staff will soon start working on a funding application to prepare for the centenary of the sinking of the S.S. Florizel in 2018. Admiralty House has an extensive display and collection of artefacts related to the famous sealing and passenger vessel, which sank off Cappahayden in a snow storm on February 25, 1918 with a loss of 138 people.
Municipal Affairs minister moves to finalize Witless Bay's Town Plan
With the Witless Bay council hamstrung because it doesn’t have enough councillors who are not in a conflict of interest to adopt a new Town Plan, the process is finally being handed over to residents to decide.
Residents will be given a chance this week to review two versions of the Town Plan and to vote by plebiscite sometime next week as to which one to accept.
The Department of Municipal Affairs will hold public meetings at the Southern Shore Arena for residents to review the two plans though it’s unclear how much guidance they will receive as to what is in them. Both plans are fairly complicated and while similar in many respects, weigh in at over 200 pages each, plus supporting maps that outline the various zones for housing, recreation, commercial and other uses in the town.
Municipal Affairs Minister Keith Hutchings said he has ordered the plebiscite because council is unable to deal with the plan. He mailed a letter to all households in Witless Bay on Friday, but with the main Post Office closed on Monday because of Labour day and no effort to advertise the hearings in local media, it’s unclear whether residents are being given enough notice of the three dates at which they can review the two plans before voting next week.
Mayor Sébastien Després did not respond to a request for an interview. But he did note at Tuesday’s council meeting that all the dates outlined in Hutchings’ letter for reviewing the two plans have been changed and that a new letter is going to be issued.
“This is an action of Municipal Affairs,” Després said. “It does come from the Town.”
The new letter is necessary because of mistakes in the original one. Hutchings referred to the Town Plan submitted in 2013 as having been submitted in May 2014.
That incarnation of the plan, known as Version A for the purpose of the plebiscite, is the document that was submitted by the previous council, reviewed by Municipal Affairs and sent back to the Town for ratification. It essentially allows development of many family-owned lands in the town under the regulations and guidelines that have been in use for years.
Version B of the plan, which the current council submitted in December 2014 after taking back the original submission and making substantial changes to parts of it, prohibits development of privately-owned and Crown land in a number of areas, including near The Tolt and the area between Mullowney’s Lane and Ragged Beach by zoning the areas Recreational.
In his letter to residents, Hutchings said that if they vote for Version A, registration of it will proceed faster than if they vote for Version B, because public hearings were held on the first plan, as required under the Urban and Rural Planning Act, but weren’t held on the rejigged version. However, he has since changed his stance on that too. Whichever plan is chosen by residents, a hearing by a Commissioner will be necessary, he said Tuesday.
Hutchings said he is reluctantly intervening in the process, which has dragged on now for about three years.
“I called them (the councillor) in on August 31 and said, ‘We’ve gone through an extensive process in the past year, since last October when some issues arose as a result of a conflict,’” Hutchings said Tuesday. “I’ve tried to work with officials and the Town to expedite this and get it to a point where we can get a plan adopted for the Town, unfortunately through our efforts we haven’t been able to get there.”
With two councillors having had their seats vacated because of conflict of interest allegations, a third facing a Friendly Hearing on a similar charge and a fourth councillor voluntarily declaring a conflict of interest, only three members of council are left to vote. That’s not enough for a quorum. Hutchings said council asked for permission to vote on the plan without quorum, but he rejected that request.
It makes better sense, he said, to let the residents choose “democratically” which of the two plans they prefer. “I’ll take that plan then and move it forward, adopt it for the Town and then on a go forward basis that plan will be a working document for the Town,” said Hutchings. “In the future it could be amended in accordance with the regional Urban and Rural Planning Act and we’ll proceed from there. But it seems right now we’ve gotten to a point where we don’t see a way forward to getting a Town Plan for Witless Bay.”
Hutchings said he has heard from many residents on the issue.
“For this reason I am taking the steps as outlined above,” he said in his letter. “I know that you, as residents, are invested in the future of your town and this plebiscite provides you with the opportunity to move your town forward.”
Both versions of the plan are based on the assumption that the town will grow by about 250 new houses over the next 10 years. The purpose of each proposed plan is to guide how that development takes place. In version A, lot sizes in residential zones have been set at just under a half acre and at three quarters of an acre in areas zoned Residential Rural. In Version B, lot sizes remain at just under a half acre in Residential zones, but have been increased to a full acre in Residential Rural zones.
Witless Bay council imbroglio heads to court
A Supreme Court Justice refused last week to consider an application from two former members of Witless Bay council who asked the court to order the Town to cover the costs of their effort to gain their seats back.
Wife and husband pair Dena Wiseman and Ralph Carey are seeking $500 to defray the legal costs of their appeal of council’s decision to vacate their seats over conflict of interest allegations. But Mr. Justice David Hurley wouldn’t consider the application because the Town had not been served notice of it. He set the matter over until such time as the Town has been notified of the application by Wiseman’s and Carey’s lawyer and has a chance to consider a response.
In an interview after the print edition of the Irish Loop Post went to press yesterday, the lawyer for Wiseman and Carey, Annette Conway of Curtis Dawe, explained the Town was not notified of the Interlocutory Application because it isn’t clear in the Municipalities Act that such notice is necessary.
“The Act requires that you make an application to the court for an order with respect to the costs of the Appeal and to have it set down,” Conway said, explaining why the two former councillors requested coverage of their legal costs before the Appeal itself was heard.
Meanwhile, Wiseman’s and Carey’s Notice of Appeal challenging their firing was registered with the court on August 3. To date, there has been no official response or Statement of Defence filed by the Town. When contacted by e-mail on Monday, Mayor Sébastien Després said council would meet on the matter this week. “Until then, I am unable to comment, since this is a matter before the courts,” he said.
Council voted to dismiss Wiseman and Carey at a special public meeting on June 23. The decision was ratified at the following regular public council meeting on July 14. It marked the apparent culmination of a nearly year-long controversy during which the Department of Municipal Affairs instructed council, on at least three different occasions, to deal quickly with allegations of conflict of interest involving the pair. However, council, led by Dépres and Wiseman, delayed for months the holding of a by-election which was required in order to have a quorum to deal with the allegations. It was only after two new councillors were elected, and after much wrangling between them, the mayor and Wiseman and Carey, that the matter was finally decided with the latter pair being evicted for allegedly contravening the conflict of interest provisions of the Municipalities Act by discussing snow clearing on a private road abutting their property.
In their appeal, Wiseman and Carey admit they did participate in a discussion involving snow clearing on Pond Path, but they maintain it was not during a formal council meeting. “The discussion was informal and took place with the intention of wording the snow clearing contract before presenting it in a public meeting,” said their lawyer, Annette Conway in the filing with the court.
Conway is claiming Wiseman and Carey were performing in their capacities as councillors representing the interests of all citizens during the discussion and not their own interests.
The pair is blaming the rest of council for failing to raise the issue of conflict of interest at the time, though Mayor Dépres did have the Town Clerk notify the Department of Municipal Affairs about his concerns the day after the September 16, 2014 meeting. “Had the issue been raised, the Appellants would have excused themselves from any discussion in relation to the issue,” Conway wrote.
Despite that, Wiseman and Carey are denying they broke the conflict of interest rules and are also claiming unfair treatment by the rest of council. They maintain they were given no documentation “explicitly setting out” the details of the allegations against them, and that they were not given enough notice to adequately prepare a defence for a Friendly Hearing on the charges held on April 21 this year.
Wiseman and Carey claim the “conduct of the Town council has been arbitrary, high-handed and capricious,” and that the matter “has been unduly delayed and subject to severe mishandling.” They also maintain some councillors have shown “antagonistic behaviour” towards them.
There is no mention in the Notice of the other conflict of interest allegation that has been levelled at Wiseman and Carey by developers and land owners in Witless Bay, that they voted on the proposed Town Plan which would rezone their property on Pond Path to allow for residential subdivision development while also moving to limit development in other parts of the town.
Another Petty Harbour softball player nabs national notice
Next week, Mitch Stack of Petty Harbour will head to Memorial University for first year studies with a plan to gain entrance into the engineering faculty. The move will follow a summer full of learning, but in a different venue.
The 18-year-old shortstop is one of 24 young softball players from across Canada invited to participate in national training camps leading up the selection of Canada’s entry in the world softball championships next summer. With exposure to high level competitors and coaching, this past month’s camp in Fredericton, New Brunswick was ripe with learning opportunities, Stack confirmed.
The camp followed the national softball championships where Stack played for Newfoundland’s Under 18 team as did his younger brother Mark, who flew back from the Under 16 nationals in Saskatchewan to bolster Newfoundland’s lineup in Fredericton. Ferryland’s Shane Kavanagh was also on the Under 18 provincial squad.
“We gave it a good run and made it to the playoffs,” said the elder Stack, who was voted as the All Star shortstop of the tournament.
Stack greatly enjoyed the training camp for the national team. The 24 invitees roomed together at a University of New Brunswick dormitory and were bused back and forth to the playing grounds every day.
“There was a lot of team building and team bonding stuff,” said Stack.
The camp also featured training and instruction on defensive play, batting practice, technical instruction and games against a local senior men’s team.
“The coaches were a great group of guys,” said Stack, citing each of the three senior hands drawn from across Nova Scotia, Quebec and Saskatchewan who will prepare Canada’s team for the world tournament next summer.
“They really know a lot about the game,” said Stack, who noted his game in the local intermediate and senior leagues, where he plays against fellows much older than himself, will likely improve as a result of the camp. “They give you different (game) situations and scenarios that really help you when you come home. And playing at that calibre with guys from Quebec and Ontario and Saskatchewan, who are all real good ball players, you feel more confident when you come home,” he said.
Stack and the 23 other hopefuls will gather in Kitchener, Ontario next June for another camp which will lead up to the final team selection about a month before the world championships in Michigan.
Stack tries to be a team leader when he is at the diamond, supporting each player’s efforts and keeping their spirits up. He also has enough maturity to be aware of areas of his own game that he would like to work on. “I’d like to improve on my mechanics of playing shortstop, learning a few more things to make me quicker on my feet and move faster and get more outs,” he said. The national training camps are helping with that, he acknowledged.
The start of school in September won’t mean the end of Stack’s softball training. He said he is fortunate enough to participate in winter training with well-known local softball stars Ryan and Shane Boland, Sean Cleary and others from Newfoundland’s senior men’s team. Just listening to those guys talk about aspects of the game is also an education, he said.
Cape Broyle Sea Products lands research money
Cape Broyle Sea Products Ltd. is receiving $30,157 through the provincial government’s Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program to help achieve efficiencies and long-term viability of its sea cucumber operation.
“Cape Broyle Sea Productsis committed to advancing the sea cucumber business in the province and we greatly appreciate the provincial government's support,” said senior manager Edgar Coffey. “We believe this project will help us further develop our product line and improve efficiencies as we move forward.”
The funding will allow the company to hire consultants to analyze current technologies and processes. The work will include a market analysis to determine detailed customer product specifications, physiological research and investigation of alternative sea cucumber processing methods to remove the tentacles; productivity evaluation to determine ways to streamline operations; and an investigation of new processing technologies in other jurisdictions.
“Our seafood industry is valued at approximately $1 billion per year and investments we make in improving processing operations for emerging species, such as sea cucumber, help to optimize return on investment for processors and create additional opportunities for harvesters,” said Fisheries Minister Vaughn Granter."
“Sea cucumber is a species that holds tremendous opportunity for our seafood industry on both the harvesting and processing sides,” added Ferryland MHA Keith Hutchings, a former minister of fisheries who now serves as Minister of Municipal Affairs. “This funding will help Cape Broyle Sea Products Ltd. improve their operations and productivity and help them to better identify and meet the demands of the market.”
Improvements to processing technology resulting from this project are expected to be beneficial to all processing operations in the province using the same technology to process sea cucumber, he added.
Business award a shining accomplishment for young car detailer
He’s only 17 but Matthew Howlett of Petty Harbour – Maddox Cove already has nearly four years of experience as an entrepreneur. This past summer, he received an Outstanding Venture Award from the province’s Youth Ventures programs, which helps young people start their own businesses.
“Matthew runs a car detailing business from his home in Petty Harbour,” said Celtic CBDC executive director Loretta Ryan. “CBDC Celtic is proud to support Mathew’s entrepreneurship though our lending program (Kick$tart loans) and our Youth Ventures Program.”
Howlett too is pleased, if a little surprised, with the award. He started his company after attending car shows with his Dad, cleaning up the engine blocks and interiors of classic automobiles owned by eagle-eyed collectors. The business continues to grow. Howlett reckons he spends three or four days a week during the summer detailing cars. He also works at McDonald’s Home Hardware in the Goulds.
Howlett is a big advocate of self-employment for young people. “It’s a great experience,” he said. “It helps you get involved with your community more and helps you learn about financials and how to grow a business using your money properly.”
It also helps with developing people skills, he added.
The CBDC helped him a lot, not only with a grant, but particularly with advertising, Howlett said.
This fall, Howlett is hoping to enter a two year nursing program, but intends to keep the car detailing business going on the side.
The award, which was presented during a ceremony held at the Sheraton Hotel in St. John’s earlier this month, was a surprise, he admitted. “I wasn’t really expecting it,” he said. “It was all worth it in the end.”
Local softballers show how to 'Crush' it
The Southern Shore Crush Under 12 team finished second out of 12 teams to capture the silver medal in a provincial Slo-pitch tournament held recently. The Crush lost to Carbonear in the final. The team consists of Tanner Hawkins, Owen Brothers, Ian O,Driscoll, Adam Whelan, Kyle Goodridge, Ty Power, Jordan Harvey, Owen Coady, Ronan Houlihan, Griffen Crane, Ashton Harvey, Ryan Frizzell and coaches Dean Houlihan, Clyde Harvey, Robin Harvey and Jerome Whelan.
St. Bernard's to get more modular classrooms
The Eastern School District has received approval to attach a set of modular classrooms to the side of St. Bernard’s Primary in Witless Bay.
Approval for the application was given at this past month’s public council meeting.
“Are these going to permanent?” asked councillor Ken Brinston, drawing laughter from some of the people in the chamber.
“I’d rather not answer that question,” said Mayor Sébastien Després.
“They tend to last much longer than anticipated,” allowed councillor René Estrada.
The last time the school board applied to install a “temporary” classroom at the Kindergarten to Grade six school, the town placed a three year time limit on the unit to be followed at that time by a review, said Després.
“If we don’t put a deadline, they become permanent,” he said.
Council also stipulated that the next time the school board plans to add a modular classroom, it consult with the town first.
That didn’t happen this time around. “No consultation was carried out,” Després noted.
“We’ve got to have it,” councillor Albert Murphy said of the extension to the school, “unless we put them up in the Church.”
Després suggested the motion on the books calling for public consultation be amended to say the town will inform residents about the project.
“To me it makes sense to approve for a period of three years with room for renewal,” Després added.
The two new units will take up space currently used as a playground.
The enrollment at St. Bernard’s is expected to increase by several students in September to a projected count of 349 children. It’s one of the few schools in the province to see its teacher allocation increase, by one full teaching unit.
Ferryland MHA Keith Hutchings recently announced the region will get a new middle school, but no details were furnished. They are expected to come this fall as part of the PC Party’s re-election campaign.
Two Goulds karate clubs clean up at big tourneys
Two different martial arts schools in the Goulds cleaned up in the medal count at separate international tournaments recently.
Fourteen students from Alex Foley’s Academy of Martial Arts participated in the ISKA World Championships in Orlando, Florida, the second largest martial arts tournaments in the world. The students ranged in ages from 6-16 years, with belt colours from yellow to red.
Representatives from some 38 countries participated in the tournament.
The other group of 25 competitors, from Rick Windsor’s Cabot Taekwon-do Club based in the Goulds Rec Centre, won 33 medals in London, Ontario.
Member Rhonda Johnson, a teacher and mother of four girls who also practice Taekwon-do, was part of the 43 member crew from the Goulds club who went on that trip.
“It was excellent,” Johnson said.
This year’s event actually built on a trip the club made last year to Oakville, Ontario to participate in a major tournament. “Last year we had 15 go, including parents,” Johnson explained.
The experience was so positive, a parent committee got together and initiated a big fundraising drive so more children and parents could attend the tournament this year, which included athletes from all over Canada and the United States.
Johnson herself won a medal at this year’s tournament. The club won a trophy for being the Most Supportive School.
“Although not everyone received a medal, every single student worked very hard and represented our school extremely well,” said Johnson.
A contingent of about 45 people, including athletes and parents, represented Foley’s kenpo karate club in Disney for the Orlando tournament.
“It was my first time organizing something like that,” said Foley. “We were fundraising for it all year and the kids did a lot of work. We got down there and their minds were blown… The whole goal for me was to get them down there and get them the experience. So now they’re back and they’re motivated and they know what they have to do for the next one. So I think that part was accomplished… So it was a pretty huge experience for them.”
Foley’s athletes trained three to four times a week before the tournament. At the event itself, the team members cheered wildly whenever one of them was in a competition, he noted. A number of the participants got hurt during the tournament. “But it was just small stuff, like a hurt ankle or shin, or bruised ribs,” said Foley. “Nothing got broken.”
Foley himself was supposed to compete, but had to bow out because of an injury involving his sciatic nerve.
Next year, Foley is hoping to take a team to the Irish Open in Ireland, also one of the biggest karate tournaments in the world.
The medal winners and finalists among Foley’s team included: Zack Connolly, 1st place advanced clash sparring, 3rd place advanced point sparring; Ryan Bennett, 1st place intermediate clash sparring; Evan Parrot, 3rd place intermediate clash sparring; Isabella Lee, 3rd place intermediate point sparring; Landen Lee, 3rd place novice point sparring; Thomas Power, 2nd place advanced clash sparring; Hailey Vickers, 2nd place intermediate point sparring, 3rd place intermediate clash sparring; Aaron Peddle, 3rd in 7 years boys novice point sparring; Gabrielle Williams, 1st place in intermediate clash sparring; Emily Peddle: finalist in intermediate point fighting and clash sparring; Liam Janes, finalist in novice point and clash sparring; Isaac Slaney, finalist in beginner point and clash sparring; Amber Williams, finalist in beginner point sparring; and Faith Patey, finalist in intermediate continuous and point sparring.
The Cabot Taekwon-do medal winners included Jeff Butt, Patterns Gold, Sparring Gold; Aaliyah Churchill, Sparring Gold; Colleen Churchill, Sparring Gold; Mary Clarke, Patterns Bronze; William Bidgood and Michael Deir, Patterns Gold, Sparring Bronze; Thomas Deir, Patterns Gold, Sparring Bronze; Dylan Elliott, Sparring Gold; Kelly Elliott and Mikayla Fennelly, Sparring Gold; Alex Johnson, Patterns Silver, Sparring Silver; Elizabeth Johnson, Sparring Bronze; Rhonda Johnson, Patterns Silver, Sparring Gold; Alyssa Little, Sparring Silver; Arielle Little, Patterns Bronze, Sparring Gold; Kenny Matchett and Kathy Ricketts, Patterns Bronze, Sparring Silver; Lauren Pennell, Patterns Gold, Sparring Gold; Colleen Stack, Patterns Silver, Sparring Gold; Jacob Stack, Sparring Silver; Connor Stack, Sparring Silver; Olivia Wilson and Riley Wilson, Sparring Silver; Jamie Whitten, Patterns Silver, Sparring Silver; Benjamin Winsor, Patterns Bronze, Sparring Gold.
Cape Broyle student wins McCain scholarship
An 18 year old graduate of Baltimore High has won one of the most coveted scholarships in Atlantic Canada.
Olivia Carew of Cape Broyle was accorded the $16,000 Harrison McCain scholarship based on her academic performance in her final year of studies as well as other requirements, including leadership ability and a demonstrated willingness to work to fund one’s own education.
The scholarship was named for one of the most powerful businessmen in the region, the former co-owner of McCain Foods, who passed away in 2004.
Showing the entrepreneurial and hard work attributes that McCain characterized, Carew has been working summers since she was 14 as a waitress at the Riverside Restaurant. She was nominated for the scholarship by her school. Applicants have to attain at least an 80 per cent average in their studies. Carew had an average of about 86 per cent this past school year.
“She’s a hard little worker,” said her mom Susan Carew, who understandably, is pretty proud of her daughter, who tutors other students and is also a talented singer. “She’s a well-rounded girl… She’s marvellous.”
In September, Olivia plans to take the first year university courses at Memorial University that are necessary to enter the School of Pharmacy. That shouldn’t be too difficult. Her best subjects are many students’ most difficult ones – math and chemistry. “I’d rather that stuff than the study subjects,” she said, laughing.
For a long time, Carew was thinking she would study engineering, but changed her mind. “I really want to help people, more than anything,” she explained. “Engineering is a good job, but it doesn’t give you a chance to help out people, if you know what I mean.”
Carew said she has a cousin who is a pharmacist and that has influenced her choice too.
Along with the $4,000 a year from the McCain Foundation, Carew will get tuition vouchers for her hours spent helping other students with math and science through the Tutoring for Tuition program.
Along with performing in school concerts – she likes to sing country songs – Carew has also been a perennial member of Baltimore’s basketball and softball teams.
She admits to being a bit nervous about moving to St. John’s this fall to attend Memorial University. “It’s going to be a big change, going from 300 students to however many thousand are out there,” she said.
But Carew is excited and said she is thankful to her school for nominating her for the scholarship.
Road work, speed bumps, finances on busy council agenda
Once council got past its arguments earlier this month over how to resolve conflict of interest matters when it comes to revoting on the town plan, it managed to clear away a sizable agenda full of business.
Topping the list was a decision to hire a consultant to compile a topographical survey and develop a conceptual design for a proposed redevelopment of its recreational grounds off Southside Track.
The work, valued at some $6,060, is necessary for the town, along with the Bay Bulls to Bauline Athletic Association, to apply for a federal grant to redevelop the park.
The town and the BBBAA are proposing to contribute $50,000 each towards the project and will ask Ottawa to chip in the other one third of the funds for the $150,000 redevelopment.
Council approved a motion at this past month’s public council meeting to hire the consultant. “The first step in doing this is to make an application and a necessary part of the application is to have a conceptual design drawn up and a topographical survey done,” said Mayor Sébastien Després. “In order to apply for funding we need much more detail, plus schematics and once they’re done we’ll always have them. Right now we don’t even have a drawing of where our pool is, we don’t even have a survey.”
In fact, the town doesn’t own the land where the nearby community centre, christened the Puffin Centre last summer, is located. The town tore down the old Rec Centre two years ago and built a bigger one in its place, but has yet to receive an occupancy permit. For a while, the approval was delayed because of issues with the septic field. Then it emerged the town had never obtained a Crown Land grant for the site where the centre is located. The town and provincial government are waiting on a survey as part of the next step in the process of transferring ownership of the land.
New worker
Council is finally getting around to hiring an additional maintenance worker for the summer. Money for the position was earmarked in this year’s budget.
Mayor Després said a job description will be drawn up by council’s public works committee and the finance committee will be empowered to establish the pay.
Councillors Albert Murphy and Ken Brinston, who were elected to council in late February, after the budget was prepared, asked how long the person will be employed.
Després wasn’t sure.
“There is lots of work for him,” said Murphy, who seconded the motion to approve the position.
In the black
Council has had a meeting with its accountant, said finance committee chairman René Estrada, and has some $365,000 in reserve to cover expenses for the rest of the fiscal year.
“It was a very interesting meeting and we can see where, if we have to, we can cut corners here or there,” Estrada said.
He noted council has decided to start preparing its annual budget a little earlier than usual, with discussions on the 2016 financial blueprint set to begin in October. By law, municipalities in the province have to submit their budgets to the provincial government for approval by the end of the previous year.
The big variable in the budget every year, Estrada pointed out, is the cost of snow clearing. “Once we get into November we start hitting the snow season,” he said. “And of course that takes a big chunk, as it has this year. However, we’ll have to see how the weather is shaping up at that time.”
Legal bill
One of the items in this month’s payables register was a $5,400 legal bill from law firm Stewart McKelvey for advice given to the town during its recent deliberations concerning allegations of conflict of interest against three councillors.
“It’s obvious that it has to be paid,” said councillor Brinston, who made the motion to pay the bill.
Cemetery cleanup
A group of senior citizens in the town are cleaning up the old cemetery behind the Town Hall and planning to take imprints of the information contained on some of the oldest stones.
But they’ve also encountered a bit of a mystery. Councillor Kevin Smart, who is a part of the town’s heritage committee, said the cemetery doesn’t seem to have a name.
“That’s surprising, but it’s true, I’ve never heard a name for it,” said Mayor Després.
Smart said the committee has consulted old church papers to find a record of people who have been buried there, “but it’s very difficult to find it.”
Speed bumps
Speeders in Witless Bay had better beware: council is about to try out some speed bumps.
The move comes at the urging of councillor Brinston.
“I was sitting on my brother’s front deck the other day and a vehicle was coming down the road and I can guarantee you it was doing at least 100 or 110 kph,” said Brinston. “It was flying. I know we’ve had this discussion in the past. I think we should really, really take a look at some of the trouble spots we have here in the community and see what we can do.”
Brinston suggested the town look at using temporary speed bumps, such as the ones located around Stavanager Drive in St. John’s that are removed before winter snow clearing operations begin.
“It’s only a matter of time before someone gets hit and killed,” Brinston said, adding the turn near the mayor’s house on Harbour Drive is also a dangerous spot where some people navigate it like they’re driving in the Indy 500.
“It’s a blind hill in front of my house and I’ve seen cars going 140,” Després agreed.
“How good are they?” asked councillor Smart, referring to the temporary speed bumps.
“They’re fantastic,” said the mayor. “They’re just expensive. But it is worth looking into.”
Brinston agreed. “What is the cost of somebody’s life?” he argued.
Mayor Després suggested council investigate the prices of the speed bumps and that the public works committee draw up a list of specific places where they should be installed. “I’ll warn you that once you install five, you’re going to get requests for 50,” he added.
“My big concern right now would be up around the playground,” said councillor Murphy. “I’ve met cars and trucks up there flying.”
Fishermen’s Road is also bad Brinston said, as is Gully Pond Road. “Dean’s Road is another one,” he noted. “People walk these roads … and it’s a ticking time bomb as far as I’m concerned… We’ve got to take care of the residents, we’ve got to take care of the community.”
Murphy argued council should install the first two speed bumps near the playground on Southside Track and then look at other problem spots.
“That’s a good idea,” Després said. “Install one, see how it works, not spend much money, and if it works, install more.”
Murphy then put forward the mayor’s idea as a motion, which was seconded by councillor Smart. Put to a vote, it passed unanimously.
Ferryland's old stone Church in for upgrade
By Annette Mooney
for the Irish Loop Post
This year marks the 150th year anniversary of Holy Trinity Church in Ferryland.
When it was consecrated in September of 1865, it marked the last of the five stone churches built under Bishop John Thomas Mullock. The other four were constructed in Torbay, Kilbride, Blackhead and St. Kyran's.
The original name of the Ferryland Church was Holy Family, and it had taken two years to complete. The cornerstone was laid on May 31, 1863, and for the next two years, the people of Ferryland rowed back and forth from Stone Island in Calvert gathering the stone needed to build the church. This was no small undertaking for men who had families to support, let alone building a stone church. It was beautifully decorated with stained glass windows over the altar and statues on either side.
Fr. James Murphy, the parish priest at the time, who was instrumental in having the church built, was indeed a proud man on the day of the consecration.
What a day Sept. 10th, 1865 was! According to an account dated Sept. 14, 1865, in The Newfoundlander, a prominent newspaper of the period, a large group from the Catholic Institute in St. John's travelled up to Ferryland on The Diamond, a vessel similar to a steamboat.
Landing at Carter's wharf, they were given a rousing welcome with flags, streamers, volleys of gun shots and even a marching band. These Institute members were indeed on a mission, as the paper's account reads, "they were there to secure, as far as possible, a regular discharge of the duties of religion, and a strict observance of the laws of morality by the combined aid of religious practices, intellectual advancement, and social reunions."
Now, they had a job, didn't they? This account in The Newfoundlander is well worth the read, not only for historical documentation, but for its literary style which has long since fallen by the wayside. Other parts of the article talk about the large attendance by the people of Ferryland and neighbouring parishioners; many whom had given "handsome financial donations." These included two protestant gentlemen from Ferryland and the Messr. Cashin from Cape Broyle who gave 100 pounds; in addition to donating two of the three stained glass windows over the altar.
The decades following the consecration saw many other features added to Holy Trinity including a three-story tower which was not completed until 1898, and which was also built with stone from Stone Island.
According to an article in The Telegram dated Aug. 17, 1898, the tower could have been completed much earlier, but "Fr. Vereker, P.P. will have nothing done to any property, church or otherwise, unless he's got the money to plank down."
In 1927, the grand marble altar, purchased from Rome, Italy, had a tablet installed containing the names of the men from our area killed in World War 1. The inscription in Latin reads: Their bodies are buried in peace, but their names shall live from generation to generation (Eccl.XIV.14).
The Grotto, located next to the entrance of the church, holds statues from the wrecked vessel, the S.S. Torhamvan, which ran aground in Ferryland on Oct. 29, 1926. The people of Ferryland have always been cognizant of the role religion has played in their historic lineage. Lord Baltimore, who arrived in Ferryland on July 23, 1627, founded the first Catholic Colony in North America, and envisioned that Colony of Avalon as a great missionary outpost in the New World.
Over the past 70 years, Holy Trinity Church has seen numerous changes: some necessary; some mistakes. In 1995, a group of concerned residents founded the Holy Trinity Restoration Foundation with the hope of returning the church to its original state and preserving it for future generations. With funds from a weekly TV bingo, memoriam donations and government funding, the foundation has renovated the exterior, erected new stained glass windows, and completed landscape work on the grotto. The tower will be the last part to be restored.
On Sunday, August 16 at 11 o'clock, Fr. Ken Walsh, the present Parish Priest, will celebrate a special Mass to mark this milestone of 150 years. This will be followed by a social at the Southern Shore Folk Arts building. All are welcome.
Ottawa funding high speed internet upgrade in region
Improved high-speed Internet services are coming to an additional 13,500 homes across the province, including in this region, thanks to an investment this summer by the federal government.
The local communities that will get the service upgrades include Admirals Beach, Aquafort, Bay Bulls, Branch, Cape Broyle, Colinet, Fermeuse, Ferryland, Fox Harbour, Gaskiers – Point La Haye, Long Harbour – Mount Arlington Heights, Mount Carmel – Mitchells Brook – St. Catherine’s, Placentia, Portugal Cove South, Renews – Cappahayden, Riverhead, St. Joseph’s, St. Mary’s, St. Vincent’s – St. Stephen’s – Peter’s River, Trepassey and Witless Bay.
Everyday tasks that were once done in person, such as shopping, communicating, learning and banking, are now done online, noted Rob Moore, the Regional Minister for Newfoundland and Labrador and Minister of State for ACOA. “The Government of Canada is delivering on its commitment to rural Canadians to connect an additional 280,000 households in rural and remote regions of the country to high-speed Internet at minimum speeds of five megabits per second,” he added. “Much of this will be completed by the time Canada celebrates its 150th anniversary in 2017.”
Last summer, the government invited Canadians to provide feedback online to help better determine areas in need of high-speed Internet access, Moore said. Once information was received from individual Canadians and governments across the country, Industry Canada invited Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to submit proposals for funding to build wireless or wired infrastructure.
Witless Bay council sends another councillor to a 'Friendly Hearing'
Witless Bay council has voted to give a third councillor a ‘Friendly Hearing’ on a charge of conflict of interest as it serves formal notice to two other councillors that their seats have been vacated.
Councillor Kevin Smart is accused of having voted to adopt Witless Bay’s new Town Plan, which rezones land he owns within the community.
No date was set for the hearing, which is required under the Municipalities Act when a councillor is accused of failing to disclose a conflict of interest.
Husband and wife councillors Ralph Carey and Dena Wiseman were fired from council last month for failing to disclose they own land on Pond Path when they participated in a discussion last summer about the town providing snow clearing services on the private lane.
Like Smart, they were also accused by developers and land owners of breaking conflict of interest rules when they voted on the Town Plan, because it rezones their land off Pond Path to allow for housing development.
Tuesday’s meeting also saw council tussle over whether councillor Albert Murphy can vote on the Town Plan, which has been sent back from the province because of irregularities in the way it was handled by council.
Several meetings ago Mayor Sébastien Després moved preemptively to declare Murphy in a conflict of interest because Murphy’s brother-in-law, Ron Harte, applied several years ago to have land below Mullowney’s Lane rezoned to allow a building lot for his daughter. At the time, council rejected his application. Després, Wiseman, Carey and Smart also passed amendments to make all the Crown land around Harte, and another property owner, Gary Churchill, into a park or conservation zone to prevent any development in the area.
The Department of Municipal Affairs has since ruled that council didn’t follow proper procedure in making those and other amendments to the proposed Town Plan. Council has written Harte telling him his land will retain its old zoning. That led councillors René Estrada and Ken Brinston to argue last week that because Harte’s land is not being rezoned, Després had no grounds to rule Murphy was in a conflict of interest.
“I hate to say this, but you’re in the wrong there,” Estrada told Després.
The mayor disagreed, claiming it is a “classic” example of conflict of interest. He challenged Estrada to make a motion to overturn his ruling. Estrada complied. But with only four councillors left to vote on the motion, it tied 2-2.
“The motion fails,” said Després. “Councillor Murphy is in a conflict of interest.”
The decision means that unless council quickly fills the two vacant seats left by the departure of Carey and Wiseman, it will not have a quorum to vote on the Town Plan, because only Després, Estrada and Brinston are not in a conflict of interest. The town was under an order from the Department of Municipal Affairs to approve the Plan by July 15 or call a new public hearing on it.
“Where does this leave us?” asked councillor Brinston, who along with Murphy was elected in a by-election in late February and sworn into office in March.
“We’ve been in this situation before actually, councillor Estrada and I,” Després noted. He said the town can ask the Minister of Municipal Affairs for permission to allow three people to vote on the Town Plan. “But I would like to make it shown in the record that I am actually opposed to voting as a reduced quorum.”
That remark drew laughter since it was Després, when the accusations against Smart, Carey and Wiseman were made last fall, who claimed he had received permission from the Department to settle the accusations without a quorum. Correspondence between the town and the Department surfaced later showing the mayor’s request was denied. Instead, council had been directed to fill the two vacancies it had as soon as possible so it could have a quorum.
On Tuesday, Després reversed tack, seemingly taking up the department’s ruling of last fall and adopting it as his own. “The last two times we asked the minister he made it very clear there is a way for us to gain quorum,” said Després. “It’s by holding a by-election.”
Murphy cautioned that council should hold off calling a by-election until the period expires for Wiseman and Carey to appeal the vacating of their seats.
“They have appealed it,” Després said.
“We (the rest of council) weren’t aware that they appealed it,” Murphy said.
Former mayor looking for PC nomination in Placentia - St. Mary's
The PC Party will see a contested nomination in the district of Placentia-St. Mary’s with former Justice Minister Judy Manning and former Riverhead Mayor Colin Corcoran vying for the right to represent the party in the November 30 provincial election.
Manning, who had promised to seek the nomination in her district when she was appointed to cabinet, without having been elected, by Premier Paul Davis last fall, fulfilled that commitment last week. Corcoran, who was a volunteer on the campaigns of PC incumbent Felix Collins, declared his candidacy at a meeting in St. Mary’s on Sunday night.
“I can safely say I’ve spent the last 20 years volunteering my time in some capacity or the other,” said Corcoran, who is 26. “Over the years I’ve written grant applications, I’ve made phone calls, I’ve sat on committees, I did a stint for four years on council and then eventually mayor, I sit on the Holyrood Pond Development Committee. And every single time there is an issue or anything the community needs, what I end up doing at the end of the day is calling the MHA. So I can continue doing this for years and years to come… I can continue to spin my wheels, but I think the best use of my time now, for the people of Placentia-St. Mary’s, is that when someone calls, I’m the person on the other end of that line.”
As mayor of Riverhead, Corcoran generated controversy because he worked, and some said lived, in St. John’s, causing some members of council to question his residency qualifications for the office. The Chartered Professional Accountant still works in the city, but he and his wife Nanci recently purchased the former Harbourview Restaurant and Lounge in St. Mary’s, relaunching it as the Celtic Knot.
“We decided a long time ago that we wanted to reinvest in the community and when the opportunity arose to purchase a business in St. Mary’s, we jumped all over it,” he said.
Whoever wins the PC nomination will have a tough fight to hold onto the seat against a popular Liberal party and a resurgent NDP. In the 2011 election, the seat saw a fairly even three way split, with Collins managing to go up the middle on a few extra votes. Liberal hopeful Sherry Gambin-Walsh has been campaigning since last fall when she won her party’s nomination, which has been called again due to the redistribution of district boundaries and reduction of seats. She is in a nomination battle against musician Larry Foley of Placentia, who also ran last time, and teacher Gabe Ryan of Holyrood, who ran for the NDP in a different district in 2011. The NDP has yet to choose a candidate for the district, which has been made larger by redistribution to include a number of communities in Trinity Bay.
Corcoran acknowledged he has a big job ahead of him with the way the PCs are in the polls. “It is an uphill battle both ways,” he said, “one, in terms of the nomination, because you know who my contender is, and two, for the party in general. But I fundamentally believe the Progressive Conservative Party is the best option for Newfoundland and Labrador right now. It is the party that is coming up with more progressive policies.”
He pointed to Premier Davis’s promise to eventually start a trust fund for the province using oil royalties. “I think that is a really smart move,” said Corcoran. “And it is that forward thinking that will really bring the PCs through this next election and really make them shine.”
Corcoran said he plans to get to all parts of the new, bigger district during the short campaign window of the nomination period. Anyone living within the district can vote in the nomination. You don’t have to be a party member.
“I’ve been hemming and hawing about this for two years now and having serious conversations with people whom I respect and admire,” Corcoran said… “It’s been a quick decision, but a long time percolating that eventually I would run. And this election or the next election, it was inevitable that I would.”
Stella Maris honours world class alumnus
By Judy Brazil
One of the highlights of Stella Maris Academy’s 50th anniversary and reunion last week was a special tribute paid on opening night to former student Melvin Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald was born in Trepassey in 1953. At age two he was stricken with polio. He had little involvement in organized sports except for softball where he would bat the ball and someone would run to the bases for him. He did not begin his involvement in wheelchair sports until he moved to St. John’s in 1973 at the age of 20.
He began training in earnest with a rigorous weight-training and endurance conditioning program. He set up house at the YM-YWCA where he trained for hours daily, taking only Sundays off. To gain power in his arms, he did endurance work on a stationary bicycle, with resistance capacity, pedalling it with his arms.
The long hours of training and his determination paid off. He entered his first national competition in 1976 and in 1977 won his first medal, a bronze, in the national games for the physically disabled held in Edmonton, Alberta. In 1978, when the annual competition was held in St. John’s, he won five gold medals and a silver in wheelchair races and was chosen to represent Canada at the Pan-American Wheelchair Games in December 1978.
There, he set two new world records, won gold medals in the 800 metre and 1,500 metre events, silver medals in the 100 metre, and was a member of the Canadian relay team that won the silver medal. That same year he competed in the Tely 10 Road Race in St. John’s as the only wheelchair athlete, and finished in first place with a time of fifty-two minutes. As a representative of Canada at the Stoke Mandeville Games in England, he won gold medals in the 100 m and 500 m events and a bronze as part of the Canadian relay team. In August of 1979 he was a member of the Newfoundland team at the eleventh national games for the physically disabled in Vancouver. At the opening ceremonies, he was presented with the Gene Reimer Award as the best Canadian athlete in national and International competition during the previous year. He then went on to win gold medals in the 200 m, 400 m, 800 m, 1,500 m, 5,000 m, 15,000 m races.
Fitzgerald was named the outstanding athlete in his class, and was chosen to attend the 1979 International Super challenge held in Montreal, where he competed in the Pentathlon. He also represented Canada at the Olympiad for the physically disabled at Arnhem, Holland and led Canada to a fourth-place finish in competition against more than 100 countries, winning two gold medals, one silver and one bronze.
In September that year he was the only wheelchair athlete to compete in the National Marathon finishing the 42 km race in two hours thirty-five minutes. In 1979, Fitzgerald held seven Canadian records simultaneously and up to 1982 held all Newfoundland records in his class. In 1980, he was named the winner of the Tom “Dynamite” Dunne Memorial Award as the St. John’s Male Athlete of the year.
In 1981, Fitzgerald competed for Canada in the Rome, Italy Games for the Physically Disabled. One of the highlights of his visit to Rome was the honor of meeting and shaking hands with Pope John Paul II. This was after winning the Gold Medal in the 1,500 metre event and a bronze medal in the 100 metre course.
In January of that same year, he received the Canadian Amateur Sports Federation’s highest honour when he was named winner of the Norton M. Crow Memorial Award as Canada’s top male athlete of the year. In 1982, he was named to the Order of Canada. In 1982 he also set world records at the Pan American Wheelchair Games in Halifax in the 800 metre race with the world record time of ...two minutes 12.9 seconds.
In 1984 Fitzgerald competed in the Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles and in May of 1985, at the National Capital Marathon in Ottawa. In September that same year, he competed at the Toronto and Montreal marathons.
Fitzgerald is truly one of the best athletes to ever come from Stella Maris School in Trepassey.
To honour Fitzgerald’s accomplishments, former teacher Ted Winter unveiled a special plaque that will be erected on the outside the school by the top of the hill as you turn down toward Stella Maris.
Renews residents hoping to give local landmark a face lift
The members of a committee of Roman Catholic parishioners and residents in Renews are hoping an injection of energy from a Spirit of Newfoundland performance will rally enough contributions to save the deteriorating façade of Holy Apostles Church.
The registered heritage structure was built in the 1870s and is still used regularly for Mass. Perched on a hill overlooking a Grotto with its famous Mass Rock, the building is a community landmark as well as a place of worship. In past years, the steeple on the church was used as a landmark for hunters returning from the woods and fishermen heading home from the fishing grounds.
But with Church attendance down and no funds available from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese Corporation to keep it up, the responsibility of maintaining the building rests with local citizens.
“The Church is in bad shape,” allowed Lois Berrigan, one of the members of the Holy Apostles Church Properties committee. “The front of it is woodpecker infested. For the first time ever we’ve seen that a lot of woodpeckers have eaten the front of the Church. Structurally it’s great, we’ve had it checked out, but it needs a lot of cosmetic work.”
The problem is finding the money to fix the problems. Due to declining populations and the limited availability of priests, parishes in the Archdiocese have been reorganized. There is only one parish now – and one priest -from Cape Broyle to Cappahayden. Proceeds from the collection plate circulated at the Masses held in the communities throughout the parish have to be shared throughout the parish. So when a particular church requires major renovations or repair, an outside injection of funds is needed. Hence the fundraiser set for Regina Mundi Cultural Centre on Lady Day, August 15, featuring Spirit of Newfoundland Productions.
Berrigan said the committee can qualify for a grant from the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland on a 70/30 basis. But the local committee has to come up with its 70 per cent first before the foundation will contribute its 30 per cent, up to a maximum of $50,000.
“We can also get new steps on the church through an Inclusion grant (from the provincial government), Berrigan pointed out. “So we’re applying for that.”
Berrigan said she would like to see $100,000 raised this year, but is doubtful the group can reach that figure. “But if we could raise probably $30,000 or $40,000 at least it’s a big start,” she said.
The money would be used to replace the clapboard and the corner boards, which appear to be rotted. “There’s a lot of rot,” Berrigan acknowledged. The steeple and roof also need attention.
Some people are sceptical about the notion of saving churches, because they aren’t used as much anymore, even for weddings and funerals, Berrigan admitted,. “But you don’t want to lose the church – it’s such a heart of your community, even the structure itself.”
The dinner show fundraiser is being organized by Natalie Brazil, who put together a similar event on Lady Day last year. This year’s entertainment features a performance by Spirit of Newfoundland Productions of their Beatles: Back in the NFLD show along with a three course meal for $65.
Bay Bulls council wracked by conflict of interest allegations
The largest crowd of spectators to attend in years was on hand last week as Bay Bulls council twisted itself into a tighter knot with three new allegations of conflict of interest coming to light.
Most of the crowd seemed to show up in support of Deputy Mayor Harold Mullowney, who is being accused by fellow councillor Jason Sullivan of being a competing land developer and therefore in a conflict of interest when he discussed Sullivan’s application this past March to acquire 37 acres of Crown land for a 50 lot subdivision.
Sullivan levelled that accusation after Mullowney pointed out in a public council meeting that much of the land in question is wetland and recommended the town get an opinion from the Department of Environment before it accede to Sullivan’s request to develop half acre lots in place of one acre lots.
Because Mullowney was applying for a small piece of Crown land across the highway from his development, Sullivan maintained the Deputy Mayor was a competing developer. Sullivan claimed the land was intended as an access to other property Mullowney has an interest in and intends to develop. Mullowney has denied the allegation.
The crowd in the gallery was clearly anxious for council to get to that matter and at times jawed Mayor Patrick O’Driscoll over his handling of the accusation. O’Driscoll shouted down the crowd and pounded his gavel onto his desk.
But the surprise of the night was when Mullowney insisted that a letter received by council the previous day be reinstated to the agenda for discussion. Mayor O’Driscoll had disallowed the item before the start of the public meeting. After heated debate, and loud complaints from the spectators, the mayor was outvoted.
“This is a democracy, not a dictatorship,” said one woman.
“This reflects back on the whole community,” added another woman. “Harold has been an excellent councillor for 26 years. Harold Mullowney has been an individual who has put himself forward on many occasions to do things that nobody else would. And he deserves the respect of this community.”
Another resident, Kevin O’Brien, suggested Mayor O’Driscoll was himself in a conflict because earlier in the meeting he had voted on a development application from his aunt. O’Driscoll said that wasn’t a conflict of interest under the Municipalities Act. “Don’t get up there and make accusations against me,” he told O’Brien.
As for the letter, it was written by Martina Aylward, who is a partner in a property development company with her brother Ernest Dunn. It accused councillor Sullivan of breaking conflict of interest rules on six or seven occasions. The first charge involved Sullivan allegedly voting on a council motion to pay Sea Gypsy Enterprises, which is owned by his father, almost $2,000 for work down for the Town.
The other allegations centre on Sullivan taking part in discussions and votes involving other development applications. Aylward contends that because Sullivan is a developer - his application for Crown land dates back to August 2013 and he was involved in housing construction before that - he should have excused himself from any decisions involving other subdivision developers.
Aylward and Dunn’s company has filed a legal action against the town over the way council handled its development application in June 2013 involving Crown Land that was also being sought by developer Fraser Paul and sod farmer Christa Luby. The land is about a kilometre or so away from the 37 acres being sought by Sullivan.
In a private meeting in June 2013, council approved Paul’s application in part, along with Luby’s. The decision on Aylward’s and Dunn’s application has never been made fully clear. Meanwhile, council has since rescinded its approval of Luby’s application.
Rather than discuss the allegations against Sullivan publicly, council moved the matter to a privileged session along with the two other allegations involving councillors that were revealed Tuesday night.
The first involves a conflict of interest allegation against councillor Joan Luby stemming to her first night on council.
Luby was elected by acclamation on April 1 and sworn in at the start of the public meeting on April 13. She had asked to be sworn in earlier so that she could get a copy of council’s agenda to prepare for the meeting, but was turned down. Partway through the meeting, Mayor O’Driscoll ordered the public out of the chamber so that council could meet in private. The nature of the discussion was not disclosed. But the Irish Loop Post has learned that it involved developer Fraser Paul’s subdivision application.
Luby said at the time she didn’t even know where Paul’s land was located.
“I said to (the mayor) Patrick, am I in conflict on all this?” Luby recalled. “No one said a thing… It was a decision just to go to a lawyer (for advice), that was all… I said, ‘What is it on? I didn’t know anything about this.’”
The next day, said Luby, Paul wrote the Town accusing her of having broken conflict of interest rules because a corner of the land had also been sought by her sister-in-law, Christa Luby.
“I never knew about that,” said the councillor, pointing out it was first night on council and she had not been given a chance to review any of the information in her councillor’s package before each item came to the table for a discussion and vote.
Luby said she is unsure how Paul found out about council’s discussion so quickly since it was a privileged session. Sullivan was absent from that night’s meeting and councillor Rick Oxford, who is Paul’s brother-in-law, did not participate in that part of the session.
The third new conflict allegation also involves Paul. He is contending, like councillor Sullivan, that Deputy Mayor Mullowney is a competing land developer and therefore should have abstained from any votes or discussion involving his subdivision application.
Near the end of the public meeting, Mayor O’Driscoll asked the public to clear the chamber so council could meet in private. Two hours later, the chamber doors reopened. Going through each matter one at a time, council agreed to refer each allegation to a lawyer for advice.
Earlier in the meeting, before council broke for the private session, the crowd urged Mullowney to give his side of the story.
“I think I was totally blindsided and set up here,” said Mullowney. “I am not a developer… And yet we have an individual sitting in this chamber, who has told everyone he is a developer, and continues to vote on development… I built my own house (years ago) with a great deal of help from my brothers. I have not built any houses for sale. I am not a developer.”
When councillor Sullivan, who took Mullowney’s remarks as being directed at him, contended he is not a developer either, the crowd groaned and hooted.
“I can’t wait for the next election,” said one of the spectators.
During the whole of the three hour meeting, two uniformed RCMP officers remained standing outside the back of the Town Hall. Mayor O’Driscoll would not say if he had asked the police to remain on standby for the council meeting.
