EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is a look at some of the top stories from 2017 that happened in or impacted Pictou County in a significant way.
January 3 – Murder-suicide in Upper Big Tracadie
2017 started off with some tragic news. On Jan. 3, 2017, retired corporal Lionel Desmond shot his wife Shanna, 31, their 10-year-daughter Aaliyah and his 52-year-old mother Brenda, before turning the gun on himself. Desmond had been diagnosed with PTSD and post-concussion disorder after completing two difficult tours in Afghanistan in 2007.
Almost a year later, the province has announced that there will be an inquiry into the deaths.
Dr. Matthew Bowes, the province's chief medical examiner, recommended the fatality inquiry calling the deaths in Upper Big Tracadie, N.S., an "unimaginable tragedy."
January 20 – Work to rule ends
The province and the Nova Scotia Teachers Union (NSTU), representing public school teachers, reached a tentative agreement for about 9,300 public school teachers in Nova Scotia.
Late in the day Jan. 20, the NSTU announced the current work-to-rule strike action would be "suspended and phased out beginning Jan. 23."
The NSTU soon altered that, and went back to work to rule fro several weeks.
This is the third time a tentative agreement has been reached between the province and the union on a new contract; two previous deals were voted down by members.
In a strike vote in October, the 96 per cent of the union’s membership voted to take strike action.
Following the announcement of work-to-rule action, the province closed schools for one day.
April 26 – Highway twinning commitment for 104
The province committed to twinning the 38 kilometres of highway between Sutherlands River and Antigonish, but not by tolls.
The province announced that it will invest $390 million over and above what it normally puts out for highway construction to build 78 km of twinned highway in the province, one section that is well known to Pictou County residents because of the number of lives it has claimed.
“We did not hear overwhelming support from Nova Scotians about paying a toll for twinned highways, but they were clear we should act now to improve our roads,” said Geoff MacLellan, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal at the time. “We will do that with an emphasis on safety and, at the same time, we will create economic opportunities for Nova Scotians.”
May 9 – 25th Anniversary of Westray remembered
The 25th anniversary of the explosion that killed 26 men in the Westray Mine was remembered.
“A lot of guys knew they were in danger and knew the mine was dangerous but they had families to feed, cars and houses to pay for,” Hughie MacArthur said. “These guys were there to do their job and it was a good-paying job so it was hard to turn down. We tried to talk some of them into quitting but we were turned down. They had families to feed.”
MacArthur was one of a many speakers who participated in student-attended events at the Museum of Industry marking the 25th anniversary of Westray.
May 19 – Tragedy at Park Falls
The community was left in mourning after the tragic drowning at Park Falls of 19-year-old Kale Mason who was well known in the community as a hockey player. He had played for the North Nova Gryphons and the Pictou County Scotians.
In the weeks that followed Mason’s passing, North Nova Education Centre, the high school he graduated from in 2016, created the “88 Award,” which will now be presented annually to two students – a male and a female – who played sports at the school but who demonstrated kindness and friendship.
The Pictou County Junior Scotians retired Mason’s #27 jersey this past weekend, along with Noah Russell’s #25. Former board member Bill Roddick was also honoured by the Nova Scotia Junior Hockey League team in a pre-game ceremony.
May 30 – Conservative MLAs re-elected in Pictou County
All three Progressive Conservative MLAs were re-elected in Pictou County in a race that saw the Stephen McNeil Liberals hold onto power.
Pat Dunn won his seat in Pictou Centre, Tim Houston in Pictou East and Karla MacFarlane in Pictou West.
Since the election, PC leader Jamie Baillie has stepped down and Houston has announced his intentions to run for the leadership with the backing of his fellow Pictou County MLAs.
June 26 – Chapter ends for Pictou Academy
Students spent the day packing up items at the existing Pictou Academy school after a decision by the school board to close the building.
The building, which had its cornerstone laid in 1939 and opened in 1940 after the previous PA building burned down was the fourth to house Pictou Academy.
The closure was the result of a Chignecto-Central Regional School Board school review process, prompted by the end of the lease for the P3-built Pictou Elementary school. But while the building is closing, the institution of Pictou Academy will remain, moving next door to what has been the town’s middle school.
August – Plans to replace Boat Harbour Treatment Facility
Northern Pulp announced it is moving forward with plans to replace the Boat Harbour Treatment facility. Kathy Cloutier, communications director for Northern Pulp, said the new system would be different from the old although using a similar method of having micro-organisms break down the effluent.
“The current system is an ASB system. ASB is an aerated stabilization basin process which has lagoons while AST (activated sludge treatment) process involves conversion of soluble organic matter into solid biomass, separated from the liquid stream,” she said. “The AST process involves two stages – an aeration stage and a clarification and recycle stage. Both systems use micro-organisms in a similar fashion.”
Once treated, effluent would be discharged into the Northumberland Strait.
The new system – like the current system – will not be in an enclosed building, Cloutier said.
Construction needs to be completed by January 2020 when the Boat Harbour facility closes, but no exact date has been set for starting the project.
The plans drew the ire of fishermen who are concerned about the impact the effluent could have on their industry.
November 22 – Community mourns loss of Jubilee musical director
Carlton Munroe, one-time radio broadcaster and the musical director of the Riverfront Jubilee, died Wednesday after battling cancer for more than a year.
“We all knew what the reality was with Carlton’s diagnosis,” said Michelle Ferris, a close friend of Munroe and his wife Taryn.
“We knew what was coming, but it doesn’t, in any way, take away the shock.”
Munroe announced in the fall of 2016 that he was fighting glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer that claimed the life of The Tragically Hip singer Gord Downie last month.
Downie was a huge musical hero of Munroe’s, who learned of his own diagnosis just weeks after Downie played his final concert with the Hip in the summer of 2016 (according to East Coast FM office manager Lynn MacDonald, when Munroe was a student at Dalhousie University, he worked at the campus radio station there and interviewed Downie early in the Hip’s career).
Dec. 21 – Christopher Garnier found guilty of second-degree murder in death of Catherine Campbell
The trial of Christopher Garnier came to an emotional end Dec. 21 as he was found guilty of the second-degree murder of Catherine Campbell and interfering with her dead body in September 2015.
As the jury announced their verdict Garnier's girlfriend Brittany Francis and his family broke down in tears at the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia in Halifax.
Campbell's family remained mostly silent in the courtroom, but afterwards they too wept as they embraced prosecutors Carla Ball and Christine Driscoll outside the courtroom.
"All I want to say is that for almost two-and-a-half years we've sought justice for Catherine," said her mother Susan after the verdict was reached.
The verdict was reached on Thursday afternoon, shortly before 2 p.m. It took the jury four-and-a-half hours to reach their decision.
The punishment for second-degree murder is life in prison for a minimum non-parole period of 10 years, including any time spent in pre-trial detention. The jury can make a recommendation for how many years Garnier must serve, but they cannot pass sentence.
Catherine Campbell, who grew up in Stellarton and worked as a police officer in Truro, was found dead in September 2015.
