Take a bow

The backbone of any community is its people—and that was perfectly demonstrated here last week when Rainy River District hosted the World Health Organization’s conference on safe communities.
Yes, there were some bumps, particularly on the Friday afternoon prior to the conference, as well as the disappointment of seeing a scheduled visit to Atikokan fall by the wayside, but when all was said and done, our district did an A-1 job welcoming the world.
And it was all due to the tireless, dedicated, and willing efforts of the volunteers—whether they were involved in the planning for months (and years) or just helping out during the actual three-day event.
Equally gratifying was to see so many local residents turn out for the opening and closing ceremonies, the Tuesday night dinner, the mini-Culturama on Wednesday, as well as the sessions in Emo and Rainy River.
As one delegate put it, “I’ve been to a lot of conferences but we’ve never had a couple hundred people gathering to watch us eat.”
In assessing the conference this week, Doug Anderson, chairman of the Rainy River Valley Safety Coalition, said he was proud to be living in Fort Frances. But really, it is Fort Frances and district that should be feeling very proud of the awesome people who live here.
Well done, and thank you.