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Need another reason to beef up your background checks and pay attention to red flags when hiring someone? Check out this Village Media piece about a disbarred lawyer teaching law students.

Top Shelf

• Local media captures essence of Remembrance Day
• North Bay’s tool box’ is missing ‘The Wrench’
• ‘Cosmic choreography’ brings it all together
• New cartoon feature draws on therapeutic talent

Today’s Thought Provoker

North Bay was part of a national day of action this past Sunday calling on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to “demand” that Israel call a ceasefire in Gaza. More than 50 people participated in a peaceful rally in front of the Main Street West office of Nipissing-Timiskaming MP Anthony Rota, organized by the North Bay Peace Alliance and North Bay and District Labour Council. See the coverage by BayToday HERE. If you’re looking for an in-depth perspective on the Israel/Palestine quagmire of violence, check out Justin Ling’s Substack which features several entries on the topic.

Essentials

Local media captures
essence of Remembrance Day

It was encouraging to see local media make a heartfelt effort to cover Remembrance Day, including some of the events held days before.

East Ferris, for example, holds its ceremony at Memorial Park on the day before the official recognition of the First World War Armistice and now honours  those who gave their lives for our freedom, as well as those who served and were prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice. See BayToday’s story and photo gallery. Also on Friday, the West Ferris Intermediate and Secondary School’s annual ceremony was documented with a video story by Stu Campaigne.

On Saturday, Local Journalism Initiative reporter David Briggs, working for Village Media, doubled-down with another feature with photos of the Callander Legion Br. 445 march down Veteran’s Way and service at the Cenotaph Park. Small Town Times posted a video story. BayToday freelancer Linda Holmes covered a touching ceremony at the West Ferris Legion Br. 599, the first Remembrance Day for their new monument unveiled recently. And the Nugget’s Jennifer Hamilton-McCharles produced a well-rounded story and photo gallery of North Bay RCL Br. 23’s ceremony at Memorial Gardens.

Interesting to note, one of the best rounds of applause during the wreath-laying ceremony was for Nipissing-Timiskaming MP Anthony Rota, who was forced to resign as Speaker of the House in September over a controversy surrounding one of his guests. Rota had introduced a former Second World War Ukrainian soldier as a ‘hero’ following a speech to Parliament by the President of Ukraine, but it turned out the North Bay resident had actually fought for a Nazi division.

Col. Richard Jolette, 22 Wing Commander at Canadian Forces Base North Bay, was among the speakers and noted how good it is that Canadians and Americans can celebrate their alliance together with more than 1,500 in attendance:

“Every year on Nov. 11, we don bright red poppies with pride to publicly express our admiration and thanks to those who serve and those who continue to do so, especially our injured and fallen … It was our soldiers who pushed past their fears and gave up their life for the amazing life we have today,” he said.

Echo’s premier podcast, To North Bay With Love, featured Jolette in a special episode released Saturday morning: Remembering the Sacrifices of the Ones Who Protect Us.

North Bay’s tool box
missing ‘The Wrench’

George Maroosis, North Bay council’s longest serving member with 34 years of service under his belt, passed away Friday in his 78th year. The owner of a downtown business, KBros Art Centre, Maroosis  was first elected to the 1982 council and served for 24 straight years before taking a break in 2006 and returning in 2010 for another eight years. He didn’t make the cut in 2018 but was called back into the council chamber in 2020 for another two years to fill the vacancy left when long-time councillor Mike Anthony passed away.

He announced his retirement from politics more than a year ago to focus on family.

Maroosis was nicknamed ‘The Wrench’ for his ability to toss an essential fact, vital consideration or historical note into the deliberations at the last minute, thereby breaking down the municipal machinations and often forcing a motion back to committee for more discussion.

“We have lost a great ambassador for the City of North Bay,” City Councillor Tanya Vrebosch said in a media statement Sunday afternoon.  “He always had an open door policy and would welcome anyone into his art shop on Main Street.”

More tribute stories and features are expected this week. Send your thoughts to the [email protected] for inclusion in future coverage.

‘Cosmic choreography’
connects the dots

Tomorrow’s episode of To North Bay With Love celebrates how interconnected destiny can be as host Lisa Boivin and veteran Toronto broadcaster Dave Trafford talk about his Great Great Grandmother, who was the oldest person on the planet while living at Nipissing Manor in Corbeil just 25 years ago.

There were six generations of his family alive in 1998, Trafford says about the year Marie-Louise Meilleur passed away at 117 years old.

“She had 85 grandchildren, 80 great grandchildren, 57 great, great grandchildren and four great, great, great grandchildren.”

Less than eight years later, Trafford’s daughter, Erin, who was one of four of Meilleur’s great-great-great grandchildren, joined the launch of the Moose radio station (now Jet FM) and worked in North Bay for two years.

The local connections, however, don’t end there. Scott Clark, of Clark Communications, was researching the podcast business last winter when he came across the Trafford’s Story Studio Network. It’s a branded podcast business they started two years ago, building on top of her own podcasting experience and award-winning broadcast news foundations in Halifax. As fate would have it, Trafford’s SSN became a major partner in the Echo Community Podcast Network, launched Sept. 14, and they have been instrumental in developing Lisa’s show (which will have 20 episodes by the end of this week).

Trafford says these are the kind of things that prove “there’s this cosmic choreography that just somehow connects all of us.”

New cartoon feature
draws on therapeutic talent

Echo Essentials wants to brighten your day with a little more humour, so we reached out to Allan Hirsh, a recently retired therapist in North Bay who counselled clients for more than 50 years. You’ll enjoy a selection of his work in the coming weeks. And we’re looking for more if you know somebody who has a gift for making people smile … and think a little too. Email [email protected]

Today’s Zen Suggestion: Sometimes global conflict feels like a world away, until you think about how, in less than six degrees of separation, you are too close for comfort.

Echo Network

The Frontline:

The North Bay Mitsubishi After Action Report starts live immediately following the final whistle of each Battalion home game. Check it out after Thursday’s match against the visiting Peterborough Petes. There’s also Powassan Voodoos podcast interviews, like Wednesday’s chat with Ryan Patrick and Alex Case. The pair discuss finding their way to Powassan, goals for the season, the Canada/US rivalry and culture shocks for Ryan coming to the Great White North. After, Ben & Kortney take a deep dive into the Voodoos and Battalion recent games including a look at the NOJHL standings and the perplexing OHL power rankings.

Backroads Bill:

Bill and his road trip partner Brian Emblin share their quest to find the official centre of Ontario in last week’s Backroads Bill episode. This Wednesday, the pair talk about finding the four corners of the province by visiting the furthest points north, south, east and west.

Previous podcasts include: Labyrinths, Wolverine Heritage Canoe company in Wawa The ‘Art’ of Wildlife Photography, The Man Buried in Two Places, Bill Takes a Trip to Red Lake, The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, Bashin’ Bill Barilko and The Legacy of Terry Fox.

Events Echo

Wednesday, Nov. 15

• Francophone session: Diversity at Work Nipissing Summit 2023: Think Big, Dream Bigger Event by Yes Employment Services at the Best Western on Lakeshore Drive from 9 to 11 a.m.
• Diversity at Work Nipissing (DAWN) Summit 2023: Main Event from 1 to 3 p.m. at Best Western on Lakeshore. The theme is Bridging Communities and features Zarqa Nawaz – creator of Little Mosque on the Prairie, film and TV producer, author, public speaker, journalist, and former broadcaster will be our keynote speaker.
• The World’s Greatest Tribute to the Traveling Wilburys benefitting One Kid’s Place at the Capitol Centre and presented by BenefitShow.net (Tickets $42.94).

Thursday, Nov. 16

• North Bay Battalion host the Peterborough Petes at Memorial Gardens, game time 7 p.m.

(For more events further out on the calendar, check Tourism North Bay’s comprehensive events listing guide. On Facebook, check out Creative Industries North Bay.)

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If you have something to add to the discussion or an idea for one of Echo’s podcasters or affiliates, email Content Director Dave Dale at [email protected].