This Sunday marks Father’s Day. It was not until 1910 that the day was celebrated in North America. Then Sonora Smart Dodd marked the third Sunday in June to recognize fathers. Historically the celebration of fathers began in the Middle Ages and was marked by Saint Joseph Day in the […]
Jim Cumming – From the Publisher Emeritus’ Pen
Jim is the former publisher of the Fort Frances Times Ltd. He writes a weekly column and can be contacted at jcumming@fortfrances.com
I asked a group of people of different ages on Monday whether they would continue to wear masks once they had been fully vaccinated and the government had declared the pandemic over. Almost everyone agreed that they would continue to wear masks when shopping throughout the community. It is a […]
The last federal election occurred on October 19, 2019. Canada formed a minority government with no party having the majority of seats in the House of Commons. Speculation soon expected that the government would be hard pressed to last a year. The leader of the opposition Andrew Scheer, resigned in […]
Many decades ago, the Town of Fort Frances acquired property adjoining Riverview Cemetery, from a citizen named Roscoe Richardson. Mr. Richardson had planned a tree plantation on that property and took great pride in having every tree and shrub species found in the district planted there. It was an impressive […]
Our household watches the daily number of new Covid cases across each of the western provinces and the rest of Canada. We monitor the number of doses of vaccines arriving in Canada and are excited to see that by the end of June there will be a total of 38 […]
My two sons work from home. Prior to the pandemic, they would commute to their offices and work from there. Both have saved thousands in commuting costs and business clothing. In Canadian cities and towns across Canada many are now working from home attending to the lockdown orders from provincial […]
What a difference four days make. Rain Thursday night, a little more on Friday and then lots of heat Saturday and Sunday and my lawn has become a dark green mass of growth. My flowering crabs are bursting forth with lots of deep red buds ready to transform into a […]
Sometimes this year feels like the movie “Ground Hog Day”. We are in a lockdown restricted to staying in our homes except for essential needs. Just like last year, my wife and I shop enough once every two weeks for groceries. Just like last year, we can’t invite friends or […]
Fifty-one years ago, U.S. President Richard Nixon signed an order recognizing April 22 as Earth Day and that announcement became an international rallying point. In most years, the newspaper will have photos of our youth picking up the refuse that has blown across their fields or in their immediate neighbourhood. […]
Spring Fever would traditionally take place in Emo this weekend. This traditional spring festival was the sounding joy that winter was over. This weekend would attract people from Rainy River to Atikokan and north to Sioux Narrows and Kenora. But again, for the second year, this festival celebrating the joys […]
One year ago, we were in a lockdown, but optimistic that life would return to normal in a few months. Covid-19 deaths were declining, and infections were declining through August. We could see the end of the tunnel and felt life would return to normal soon. Then we watched through […]
When my father passed away over 25 years ago, the thing that I always remember is walking into the newspaper office on the Monday morning and a staff member coming over and giving me a huge hug and feeling good about it. That week is a blur, but throughout the […]
