PICTOU – From hammering nails during construction to hanging the rigging, there’s nothing Bill Halliday hasn’t done on the ship Hector. It’s hard to imagine a time when it wasn’t a major part of his life.
On Tuesday, it all came falling down when it was announced that the Hector Heritage Quay would not be opening this spring as usual.
“It hasn’t sunk in yet,” he said. “It’s not good news, it’s not the news we were hoping for.”
Halliday has been with the Hector Heritage Quay since construction on the ship began in 1992. It’s ironic, he says, that the news the ship Hector was no more would come just months before the organization celebrated the 10th anniversary of the launch of the vessel and the 20th anniversary of the start of the project.
Halliday and 16 other seasonal workers were notified Tuesday that the town would not be funding the facility and efforts to get funding from the provincial and federal governments were unsuccessful.
It’s a blow for the workers, who Halliday says are all “still in shock.”
“We’re a very dedicated, small staff,” he said. “If we lose the people we lose the ability to put it together.”
Michelle Young, who was the site manager since 2006, says the workers have done everything they could over the years to bring the story of the Hector settlers to life for the thousands of tourists who visited the site each year.
“We have a lot of seasonal staff that have been there anywhere from seven to 17 years, and a lot have been with us right from the beginning,” she said.
