Category: S

Honoured by their children.

Thank you for honouring your parents with a Leaf of Inspiration and for supporting your Community Waterfront Park project. Story to follow.

Honoured by their family.

Mom and Dad met in the summer of 1957, just outside of Huntsville at the Tally-Ho Inn, where Dad was vacationing and Mom was working for the summer. Mom was from Bradford, ON, while Dad grew up in Toronto. They attended different universities but still dated for five years before getting married June 23, 1962. They then moved to Vancouver where Dad completed his Ophthalmology training, so they lived out there for four years. They wanted to come back to Ontario because they felt strongly that their children should grow up close to their grandparents.

It was in 1966 that they moved to North Bay where Dad set up his practice. Dad always wanted to be close to the outdoors, a passion that they passed on to us. We were always going to the Nordic Ski Club, Laurentian Ski Hill, golf course, lake or hiking trails. We were lucky that they felt strongly about getting outside and exploring.

This year, 2012, they celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. This is why we would like to dedicate pergola leaf #623 to them for the month and day they were married 50 years ago. We want to thank them for their love, the experiences they’ve given us and for being great role models.

We love you Mom and Dad (Nanna and Grandpa)!

Andrew, Barbara (Casey), Stephen, Micheline (Chenier), Sam, Myriam and Jennifer.’

Honoured by Nancy Sayer.

Wilfred was born in North Bay in 1915, the son of Rose and Bert Sayer. Jean, the daughter of Hubert and Maryanne Dube, was born in 1913 and raised on the shores of Trout Lake.

Jean and Wilf met and courted in North Bay and were married in 1937 in Kirkland Lake, ON, where Wilf was employed as a bus driver.

In 1939, Wilf accepted a position as firefighter with the North Bay Fire Department and they returned to live their lives in North Bay. In 1941, following in his father’s footsteps, Wilfred was hired as a fireman with the Canadian Pacific Railway and was later promoted to a locomotive engineer. Wilf’s second career, while still working for the railway, was working part time at Martyn’s Funeral Home. After retiring from the railway in 1975, Wilf’s part time employment at Martyn’s turned into a full time job.

Jean was a professional stay-at-home mother, raising four boys and four girls.
Wilf and Jean were well known for their hospitality, always welcoming family and friends to their home on Fifth Ave. or to their cottage on Lake Nosbonsing. Jean was well known for her excellent culinary skills but was best known for her “World Famous Jean’s Beans” that were enjoyed by anyone who had the pleasure of tasting them.

After a lengthy illness, Wilfred passed in 1985 and Jean joined him in 1998.

Honoured by their children – Christine, Michael & Marc Saini

Our parents: Anthony (Tony) & Claire Saini

Anthony Joseph was born September 24, 1940 in North Bay, ON, the second of seven children born to Michael and Amelia Saini.

Dad grew up in the East end of the city and attended St Joseph’s School and then Scollard Hall. He entered the Seminary after high school but soon realized that the call to the priesthood was not meant for him, he returned home to North Bay and began working in the Parks and Recreation department with the City of North Bay as a carpenter where he devoted 33 years of his life until his retirement in 2000.

Dad was quite the sportsman, playing hockey but his true love was football. Not only did he play for Scollard, but went on to play for the North Bay Ticats for many years. He won the Lou Valenti Trophy in 1968 & 1975 as the outstanding offensive lineman; in 1971, he won the Don Ryan Memorial Trophy as the most sportsmanlike player and was a unanimous selection as left guard on the NFC all-star team. He founded and co-chaired the Winter Fur Carnival Snowshoe Football Bowl in 1976. Even after he stopped playing, he remained involved in the game as a coach, team trainer, equipment manager and would paint the lines on the fields for all the home games. He was recognized with the Mike Mitchell / Larry Avery Memorial Award in 2006 for his contribution to football throughout the years.

It was during his football years that he met mom on a bus heading to Kirkland Lake. He was heading there to play football; she was with a friend going home to visit family. Dad asked her to come watch his game, and the rest was history.

Claire Laura was born September 3, 1947 in Haileybury, ON, the eldest of six children born to Jean-Claude and Beatrice Vannier. Mom first came to North Bay to attend St Joseph’s College for Grade 12 and 13. She then attended St Joseph’s Nursing School, graduating in 1968 with her RN, and then began working at St Joseph’s Hospital on the Pediatric ward where she became a valued co-worker and friend to many. Over the years, Claire’s interest and enthusiasm in her work encouraged and inspired her fellow-workers to always do better. She was one of the main forces in implementing primary nursing on the Pediatric unit and then continued as chairperson after its inception.

Tony and Claire married on May 17, 1969 at Holy Name of Jesus Church here in North Bay and settled down to raise their family. Christine was born in 1970, Michael in 1972 and Marc in 1976.

Family, Faith and Perseverance are the cornerstones that our lives were built on. They were extremely important to both mom and dad, which in turn, got passed down to us. We always did things as a family growing up: whether it was going to church, our annual camping trips to Mikisew, going on vacation, going to hockey tournaments, attending each other’s functions or just spending time together. Mom and Dad took active roles in participating in our lives and activities. Dad’s love of sports carried over to his sons. He became involved with their hockey teams by either coaching (in the early years) then later becoming their team’s hockey trainer … something which he continued even after both boys had moved on. Mom’s love of music and crafts got passed on to her daughter. Mom was a strong believer that if you started something, you had to finish it. Quitting was not an option.
Thank you mom and dad, for being such a big and important part of our lives; we love you very much.

Honoured by their children Christine, Michael (Becky) and Marc (Serena) and their grandchildren Patrick, Leah Claire, Nicola and Luca

Honoured by Audrey Sayer.

Thank you for purchasing a Leaf of Inspiration for Bert and Rose Sayer and for supporting your Community Waterfront Park project. Story to follow.

Honoured by Stephen & June Schiavone.

Thank you for honouring Domenic and Marianna Schiavone with a Leaf of Inspiration and for supporting your Community Waterfront Park. Story to follow.

Honoured by Rod Johnston.

Thank you for honouring Gerd Schutz with a Leaf of Inpsiration. Story to follow.

Honoured by Rod Johnston.

Thank you for honouring Dick Smith with a Leaf of Inspiration. Story to follow.

Honoured by Rod Johnston

Expose of Sandra Smyth

Sandra was born and raised in Montreal; then in her 20s, she moved to Toronto and had an exciting career in theatre. A few years later, she moved north to Calvin Township, where she purchased Willow Farms and started a business called Fat Salad Enterprise. The farm started out with two horses and transitioned over the years to become a sheep farm with a flock of over 150.

Sandra maintained the farm of sheep for over 30 years, while being very active in local politics and charities in the North Bay area. During this time she also studied to achieve her Bachelor of Arts degree from Nipissing University and graduated with the rank of Distinction. She was the chairperson of the board of the Ecology Centre and aided in the whole project, from start to completion. Sandy was active on many other boards including FedNor., N.E.C.O., Forestry Committee and Agriculture.

She was a cancer survivor since 2002, and remained active socially and politically, until she lost her battle with cancer in the spring of 2011.

Her smile was always warm and welcoming to everyone she encountered daily. She is missed every day, and her legacy will continue long after her departure.

Honoured by Tim Saunders and Louise Sunstrum.

Both of our parents were products of the railway families. Mom, the daughter of Wilbert (Goldie) Peever who became the Superintendent of car services of the ONR, and Dad, the son of Frank (Sarah) Saunders a conductor on the CPR. It seems fitting that we honour them on the site of railway lines at the waterfront.

While Vern enlisted in the army during WWII, Helen worked in the offices of the ONR. They married in December 1946. Dad continued as a warrant officer at Chippewa Barracks until the 1960s. They had many a good night at Officers’ Mess festivities.

Mom took a few years off to raise Tim and Louise but she enjoyed working outside the home and soon started working for Imperial Oil on Birches Road. We often kidded her that we tested the first commercialized packaged food. They were part of the Fisher Street gang and built their first home themselves on Regina Street where we lived until moving to Pickering.

Both enjoyed local bowling leagues at the Empire and Four Seasons and got us kids involved in youth bowling leagues and Dad managed the Four Seasons Bowling Lanes.
They loved camping! We can remember packing up the tent and going to Algonquin Park. Later they later bought one of the first lots on Jocko Point and built a cottage – no electricity or plumbing — really roughing it. We would move out there at the end of each school year and they would commute to work each day and my brother and I would stay there swimming, boating and exploring the bush—a true northern experience.

They moved to Pickering in the late 1960’s for Dad’s job with the Ministry of Transportation and Mom at head office for Imperial Oil. They loved traveling to the Mediterranean and the Caribbean but eventually settled on Arizona as winter snowbirds.

Our parents instilled a sense of independence in their children. They didn’t interfere with our life choices but were there if we asked for help. That is a lesson we hope to emulate with our own children.

They both enjoyed Christmases and we still remember Christmas morning hilarity. You couldn’t get near the tree for the presents but it was always a humourous event. We all took the most enjoyment finding the perfect gag gift for everyone in the family. Needless to say laughter played a major part of our family’s dynamics. Another family favourite pastime was card playing, any variety, which taught us team playing, strategy and good sportsmanship, skills which carried us well through life and easy to learn when hidden in play.

Submitted by Tim Saunders and Louise Sunstrum