Year in Review – July

River search operation ends well
A search operation on the Ottawa River for an individual who was thought to be missing was launched on June 30 after a woman’s belongings were found on a dock in Campbell’s Bay.
After a two-and-a-half-hour search, which involved the local Sûreté du Québec (SQ), and the fire departments of Mansfield-et-Pontefract and Bristol, the woman was found safe in her home, according to Kevin Kluke, fire chief of both Bristol and Campbell’s Bay.

Quebec Solidaire names Mike Owen Sabagenzi as their candidate for Pontiac
On June 16, Mike Owen Sabagenzi was officially chosen to represent the Quebec Solidaire party in the upcoming provincial elections.
Sabagenzi was born in Burundi, but his family moved to the Municipality of Pontiac when he was young to escape the civil war. He attended CEGEP de l’Outaouais and is currently completing his bachelor’s degree in Political Science at University de Sherbrooke.
Sabagenzi explained that Quebec Solidaire is based on a philosophy of environmentalism, social justice, feminism, and redistribution of resources. He continued by saying “it’s about equity, and building a society that leaves no one behind. So we were rooted in a deep, progressive action.”

Sand Bay resident recognized by community
Jim Jones, long time Sand Bay resident, was honoured for his contributions to his community on July 2.
At the unveiling of the new backstop at the Sand Bay ballpark, Jones was honoured with a plaque thanking him for his many years contributing to the community.
Jones, along with Randy Carson, Brian Hoffman, Darren Hickey, and Ted McFarland, helped build and install the new backstop, after the old one needed to be replaced for safety reasons.

Toller talks about position on raves
In a scrum with the media after the special meeting of the Council of Mayors, Toller spoke on the recent controversy stirred up after she made a Facebook post announcing that she was planning on starting a petition to ban “raves” from the Pontiac following the Groove and Bass EDM (electronic dance music) festival held outside of Bryson last week.
After receiving over 200 comments, most of which disagreed with banning the festival, Toller stated she now hoped to introduce a noise bylaw to reduce the impact on permanent residences of the area.
“I’ve had experience with raves in the city of Toronto, and my concern was that anything goes in the Pontiac right now. We have no noise bylaws,” said Toller. “We have no protection for neighbours who are unable to sleep because they hear noise.”

Nearly $20,000 appropriated for undisclosed HR issue at the MRC Pontiac
A special sitting of the Council of Mayors of the MRC Pontiac was called to vote on a single issue, listed as a human resource file, on July 7.
Prior to the public vote at 7 p.m. there was a long in-camera portion of the meeting closed to the public and the media.
The language of the resolution stated: “It is resolved to commit $19,525 plus taxes and expenses for human resources training.”
The issue or individual(s) the human resources training is meant to address remains undisclosed.
Warden of the MRC Pontiac Jane Toller said the issue is confidential.

Conservative Party of Quebec announces Pontiac candidate, and makes a play for anglophone voters
The Conservative Party of Quebec (CPQ) announced that Terrence Watters will represent their party in the Pontiac during the 2022 provincial election in a press conference in Gatineau on July 13.
Watters, who lives in Aylmer, is a real estate broker and former casino manager.
Watters’ candidacy was announced by CPQ leader Éric Duhaime along with other CPQ candidates in the Outaouais. Currently the CPQ holds one seat in the national assembly, though polls suggest it has received a spike in popularity in the lead up to the election.
“The Pontiac is the area where I raised my family, that’s where I live, that’s where we bought our cottage and that’s where I want to see my kids grow up,” said Watters about why he’s running.

Together, Thank you, Tribute Event
Cletus Ferrigan former mayor of Campbell’s Bay for many years and a community man is being honoured on July 22 and 23 at a jamboree called the “Get-together, Thank you, Tribute Event - Cletus’ Final Project.”

During covid, Cletus found comfort in listening to musicians playing traditional country music. He joined a Facebook page titled Isolation 2020 Country Jamboree, where different musicians from around the world kept people entertained for free. Impressed by all the participants, Cletus started planning a concert to celebrate what these musicians did during the pandemic.
When Ferrigan passed away on April 14, the community response and support are what led his children Tim and Grant Ferrigan to decide to carry on and continue to plan the concert as Cletus would have. Cletus’ loss was felt across the Pontiac as he was a friend, a neighbour, a leader, a husband, a father and a grandfather.

Green Party candidate hopes to bring cooperation to the Pontiac
The Green Party of Quebec (GPQ) announced their candidate for the Pontiac, Pierre Cyr, in early June. Cyr, 58, has two sons and has lived in Fort-Coulonge for about three years.
Cyr said he’s always wanted to get involved in politics and believes that he’s always been good at finding solutions to problems.
“I want to change the mindset of people and get rid of this rigid thinking that we cannot change anything. That’s not true. If we need to change something, we need to act right now,” he said.