Other Contributors

St. Patrick’s CWL held their tea, bake sale, and bazaar on Saturday at the parish hall, with a supportive crowd on hand for the come-and-go event. The kitchen included Laura Armstrong, Frances Grant, Jose Balcewich, Heather Oltsher, and Loraine Bullied, while the servers were Mary Curtis, Chantelle Bragg, and Cartier […]

“George Armstrong is the luckiest man I know,” J.A. Mathieu told me one day. “He gets a contract to build a highway and finds a gold mine!” The old logger could be accused of expressing some jealousy here, having just lost a lawsuit that left Armstrong as sole owner of […]

There are times on this job where I catch myself thinking how generally nice the atmosphere in this town can be. Now I know what you’re thinking right off the bat. No, I’m not on the payroll of the Town of Fort Frances to provide a public service announcement, nor […]

Longtime Emo merchant Gordon Meyers suffered a heart attack earlier this month and he had to have double bypass surgery in Winnipeg on Tuesday. Fortunately, the operation was successful and Gordon is now recovering. His son, Grant, and daughter, Dr. Kim Pearce, have been with Gordon throughout the ordeal. The […]

Allan Cup memories of 1952 are still very strong for many of our fans like Les Helliar of Nestor Falls, who calls me the “editor of nostalgia” and sends in the following notes—along with his disbelief that 50 years have gone by so quickly! He writes: Those of us lucky […]

Although the 109th edition of the Stanley Cup playoffs begins tonight, my personal “Cup Craze” ended just as quickly as it began five days earlier. That’s when the Edmonton Oilers dropped a 2-0 decision to the Calgary Flames—eliminating them from the playoffs for the first time in six years. While […]

It’s around 80 years now since that celebrated Chicago businessman, Al Capone, allegedly was enhancing the fortunes of Nestor Falls. Others were pre-occupied with U.S. prohibition activities in and around Fort Frances—purely as good neighbours while promoting prosperity north of the border in the bargain. Incredibly good times had found […]

“Hi, my name’s Reuben. I’m from the Fort Frances Times.” That’s a common introduction I’ve used countless times here. But while covering the Borderland Thunder during the SIJHL final last week in Dryden, I learned there’s a lot about the rivalry between the two towns when it comes to hockey […]

A cleanup, painting, and odd repairs were completed at the Emo Arena this past Friday by employees Linda Carmody and Norm Cain. Arena manager Tony Bliss, still recovering from recent surgery, made an appearance to make sure all work has been completed. The ice was taken out March 25, with […]

In between the carnivals and circuses that used to arrive every summer, Fort Frances would welcome an assortment of “barnstormers,” as they were known elsewhere, so our New Atlantis never lacked for thrills and entertainment long before TV was born! These performers were regularly fall, winter, or early spring visitors […]

Emo Lions Club president Bob Dimit tells me their annual “walk-a-thon” will be held May 11, starting at 9 a.m. from the Emo curling club. The route once again with go from the curling club to Tom Judson’s gate, south to River Road, and then back. Refreshments to follow. Legion […]

I enjoy listening while our veteran citizens such as Otto Dallman, 88, and Enrico Perin, 89, share the bench just back of the Safeway cash registers. Other customers stream past, perhaps wondering whether they can still afford to ride home somehow on their own or maybe hitch a ride because […]