Jordan was a wonderful little boy. He was a son, a grandson, a great grandson, a nephew, a cousin, a friend.
Jordan loved cars, especially fast yellow ones. His favourite colour was purple. Jordan loved to ride his tricycle and his 4 wheeler. He was excited to start school. He would have started kindergarten.
Jordan was taken too soon, after being struck by a reversing truck while on vacation in North Bay at the age of 4. We all miss him terribly.
Our Buddy, our little man, our Pumpkin, our Jordan.
We miss you too much!
March 24, 1997- August 5, 2001. Jordan Ray Wayne Kopas
Alma and Dean McCubbin are like spies with alter egos. They have gone under the assumed names Dopey, Babe, Cuddles, The Sillies, and Sweetums, to name just a few. There are even those who would rank them as superheroes or, more affectionately, the Super Gs. To their loved ones, they are the “Hot Rocks,” the solid foundation upon which a great family was built. The McCubbin household has always been a place of tremendous joy for anyone who has had the chance to attend the famed Sunday lunches, the pool gatherings, the Canada Day celebrations, and any other festive occasion that gives the McCubbins a chance to party, with or without costumes or Brandy Alexanders. Legends abound of crackers and cheese and superior soup, the battle for buttertarts, the tournament of toast tossing, and the food fight with pink pudding that required repainting a room.
Alma and Dean have always given back to others through their involvement with the Roman Catholic Church, most notably as part of the Catholic Women’s League and the Knights of Columbus. They have practiced what they preached in their service to the Girl Guides of Canada, the Canadian Red Cross, the Kinsmen Club, the Kiwanis Club, T.V. Ontario, North Bay Tourism, and the North Bay Heritage Gardeners. And they even found time to “take the garbage out on Tuesday night.”
Dean, known as Mr. Canadore to his fans, was awarded the Order of Canada in 1980. He could not have achieved all he did without his faithful companion, Alma, by his side. Together, they imparted a spirit of generosity to their family and to all with whom they came in contact. Theirs is truly an inspirational legacy of kindness and compassion.
Ruby McLeod was born in Jamaica and trained as a nurse in Scotland prior to moving to North Bay where she nursed many years in paediatrics in St. Joseph’s Hospital She is well known for her nursing activities and also for being an exceptional gardener. For many years in the North Bay Horticulture Society, she was responsible for civic beautification. This involved organizing,, planning and planting many flower beds around the City.
When Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip visited North Bay and were scheduled to have lunch at the university, Ruby was asked to plant and care for the flower beds so they would be at their best.
Other flower beds were at the Waterfront, City Hall, and other locations around the City. At one time, wild flowers were planted beside the highway at the request of the highway department. One other notable bed on a sloping area at the Waterfront was in the design of a CanadianFlag.
After marrying Norman McLeod, they together purchased and developed a three- quarter acre property on Kadi Court, which is much in demand for garden tours and for wedding pictures. It was a scrub property, cleaned up and a new house built on it. Three hundred and fifty trees have been planted, along with 7,000 daffodil bulbs and 1,500 lily bulbs with masses of other flowers including wildflowers and water plants. More than 100 feet of a clear flowing stream flows through the property.
In addition to her gardening activities, Ruby, after retirement, enrolled in the Canadore chef program and after three years graduated as a chef but did not actively pursue it as a career.
Her talents have been a great benefit to North Bay and people from across Canada have seen and know of her gardens. They have been published in a text book of unique private gardens, featured in an Ontario gardening magazine, in the North Bay Nugget and in a Montreal newspaper.
It was January 28, 1953 and the sun rays glistened on the snow filled fields as Margaret looked out from her car window in anticipation of what would soon be taking place. Dr. Elsie Crawford stated “What a Peewee” as she delivered the six pound blond, blue-eyed darling, who was named Ellen Jessie Engstrom.
In a few short days Mom and Ellen were on their way home from Sudbury General Hospital to the Kipling area to join her dad, Joseph, and her sister Shirley. Her home was a log cabin, without running water or electricity, which overlooked fields of hay and oats that her parents farmed. During Ellen’s childhood years, her blond braids were always a part of her, and she loved to be her dad’s sidekick, wherever he was.
Joe and Margaret along with the girls attended Kipling Baptist Church, which is located at the northern end of Deer Lake. The church building overlooks the lake as if it is keeping watch over the community. Kipling Baptist Church was where Ellen accepted Jesus Christ as her personal Saviour and later as a young adult on July 1978 was baptized in those same waters at Camp Norland.
In 1976, Ellen returned to Sudbury to attend Cambrian College and to obtain her registered nursing diploma. She supported herself through school by working at various nursing homes during after school hours and weekend.
It was in Sudbury where she met her husband Maurice (Moe) and became Ellen Jessie Dorie on October 7, 1978, at Kipling Baptist Church. Ellen and Moe lived in Sudbury, Chapleau, and North Bay and raised their two children, Erin and Matthew. Matthew married Emilie Brohart on September 4, 2004 and the family rejoiced for we gained a second daughter.
In April 1996, only eight months following the passing of her dad from cancer, Ellen discovered that she had stage 3 advanced breast cancer. Against high odds, surgery, double treatments of chemotherapy and radiation cured the cancer; however these lifesaving treatments resulted in ongoing severe clinical depression. The depression brought disabilities and limited her normal day-to-day activities. Ellen wrote in 2007 that she had faithfully worked her entire adult life, but her ordeal left her physically, emotionally and mentally weakened. For 14 years Ellen fought on in support of her family to honour and worship her Lord while displaying her kind character and smile that brought joy to all. On July 20, 2010, Ellen succumbed to the illness and passed into eternity, to forever be with her Saviour.
Ellen left a rich heritage of love and faith to her family. She drew strength from her favourite Bible verse, Psalm 46:10 “Be Still and Know that I am God”.
Be Still and Know,
In every change, He will remain,
Be Still and Know,
Change and tears shall pass, and we shall meet at last,
“You have to fly with the eagles to soar with the eagles. If you fly with the crows you will sit with the crows”
This was one our father’s favourite sayings. Ray Perreault was an eagle through and through. He learned very early on that hard work and determination are the only ways to get ahead in life. Both he and our mother worked valiantly to instill this belief in all three of their children. Our father was an extraordinary man and teacher as well as a respected musician who touched the hearts of many. Dad was also a passionate Harley rider and led us on many great adventures. He ended his journey, all too quickly, in November of 2009. His legacy will live on forever in the hearts of his wife and best friend; his children; much loved grandchildren; his students and colleagues as well as all who were lucky enough to have known him. As an avid visitor of the North Bay Waterfront, Dad would have been honoured to know that a part of it, even a part as small as a leaf hung on a pergola, has been named just for him.
Forever in our hearts; Suzanne, Lynn, Luc and Marc
North Bay Police Service Constable Fred Lefebvre made the ultimate sacrifice, giving his life in the line of duty on May 18th, 1923. He was trying to apprehend one of Northern Ontario’s most dangerous criminals ever, Leo Rogers, who shot him dead. The fugitive went on to kill another officer, Sgt. John URQUHART of the Cobalt OPP, during a two-week reign of terror like nothing else North Bay has ever seen. At the time, Lefebvre, was never suitably recognized. Today, we are righting that by holding this memorial service in his honour.
Fred Lefebvre was one of a family of 12 children born in 1877 in the little village of Alice near Pembroke. He grew up in that area and started his work career in the lumber business. At age 19, he moved to North Bay and took on his first policing duties. The following year, he married Matilda St. Michael, his teenage sweetheart from Pembroke. They lived in several different locations over the years, including Sault Ste. Marie, Cache Bay, Haileybury and Sturgeon Falls, before he returned to North Bay to become a Provincial Police Officer and then later joining the North Bay Police Service, living here with his wife and four children. At the time of his slaying, he headed the small force’s Criminal Investigations Unit.
Just prior to his 15th birthday, Leo Rogers was found guilty of a series of break and enters. The Judge sentenced him to seven years at one of the most feared facilities in the country, Kingston Penitentiary. There, he attacked guards on several occasions.
“I believe you are dealing with a criminal too dangerous to be at large,” one time Police Chief William Raynor, wrote in a letter to the Parole Board. Even as a teenager, “He was the worst man I ever had to deal with.” He returned to North Bay after seven years and was soon in custody for robbery. Rogers escaped from the North Bay Courthouse May 17th, 1923. Police suggested a loaded gun had somehow been slipped to him amid the lax security of a crowded 1920’s courtroom. That night, the fugitive himself phoned police and invited them down into an ambush near the waterfront in West Ferris. In the ensuing gun battle, one officer was shot in the thigh. By midnight, a posse of 20 men was formed to spend the night guarding the area and looking out for the fugitive.
Surprisingly, Rogers stood his ground, remaining motionless throughout the bug-infested night. As the next day dawned, he began firing again from his position behind a clump of trees. The posse rushed him, but he was able to run to the safety of a nearby barn. Within minutes, it was riddled with bullets, but Rogers escaped. Then he ran another 500 yards to the point where Mosquito Creek (now Parks Creek) meets Lake Nipissing. Members of the posse let him have it with all the firepower they had – 200 rounds of ammunition. Still, he managed to zigzag through the hail of bullets and was not hit.
As the morning sun began to rise in the east at 5:30 a.m., Rogers cut down to the lakefront where he faced a standoff with Lefebvre – the 45 year old plainclothes detective who had arrested him during a fierce struggle years before.
The two men were roughly 100 metres apart. Rogers, brandishing a Winchester Savage rifle, had the cover of a tree, while the officer, with just his revolver, was out in the open. Lefebvre was felled by a bullet in his abdomen as they fired simultaneously. Rogers ran off into the bush and police lost his trail. “I’m done for. Rogers got me at last,” Lefebvre said as he lay dying. “My poor children; kiss my children for me.” Fred Lefebvre had made the ultimate sacrifice.
Rogers remained at large. At midnight May 30th, Sgt. John URQUHART, of the Ontario Provincial Police, saw an unknown figure enter Rogers’ parents’ home on Worthington Street. With the home surrounded, he knocked at the door. Rogers fired at the door, hitting the officer square in the chest, killing him instantly. Though the house was surrounded, somehow Rogers escaped again.
After being on the loose for two weeks after Lefebvre’s shooting, Rogers made his last stand at what is now the site of the Waltonian Inn on the south side of Lake Nipissing. A posse surrounded him. When he noticed them and got up to reach for his weapon, he was shot down in a volley of bullets.
Today we honour Fred Lefebvre and remember all our brothers and sisters who have given their life in the protection of our communities and their citizens.
On the 1st of December 1973, at approximately 10:30 p.m., a Constable with the North Bay Police Service responded to a reported incident of a man with a gun in a downtown parking lot. In less than four minutes, Constable Leonard George Slater, a fellow officer and a shooting suspect all lay wounded. Moments later members learned that Constable Slater had succumbed to his wound and paid the supreme sacrifice.
On that night, a local resident, Camille Joseph Ethier, 24 years of age, had been drinking at a North Bay tavern. He became upset, when he observed his friend’s girlfriend with another man. Ethier left the tavern and walked across Oak Street to a municipal parking lot. He opened the trunk of his car, removed and started to load a single shot 12 gauge shotgun. A companion attempted to convince him to put the gun away. Ethier paid no heed to his companion.
Constable Gord McCourt was on duty that evening. He had parked a police van on Oak Street, adjacent to the parking lot. A citizen approached Constable McCourt and stated that he had seen a man with a shotgun in the parking lot.
Constable McCourt drove into the parking lot and observed Ethier standing with the shotgun laid across the door handles of a parked car. The second man fled at the sight of the officer. Constable McCourt notified the police dispatcher that he was going to check out a gunman and gave his location. Constable Len Slater, who was booking a prisoner at police headquarters only 2 ½ blocks away, was advised of the incident by the Duty Sergeant. Constable Slater immediately left the police station to assist Constable McCourt.
Meanwhile, Constable McCourt began to approach the gunman on foot. Ethier responded by pointing the shotgun at the officer. Constable McCourt took cover behind a parked vehicle and drew his service revolver. He ordered Ethier to drop the shotgun. Ethier replied by moving around the car and ordering McCourt to drop his gun. McCourt circled the car, keeping out of Ethier’s view and attempted to reach his patrol van. As he reached into his van to obtain the radio microphone, Ethier fired. Constable McCourt was struck in the left shoulder by a single shotgun blast. Notwithstanding Constable McCourt’s wound, he fired four shots, from his service revolver, as Ethier fled. Constable McCourt finally reached the radio microphone and advised the police dispatcher that he had been shot. Constable Norm Shillington, also on patrol, heard the radio transmission and immediately responded. Several other officers also responded from Police Headquarters. Constable Slater was the first officer to arrive at the scene. He stopped his vehicle on Oak Street, adjacent to the parking lot. Constable Slater called Constable McCourt on the police car radio asking for his location. Constable McCourt turned on the flashing roof lights of the police van.
Constable Slater, gun drawn, exited his police car, and walked towards Constable McCourt’s vehicle. Ethier who observed Slater approaching, hid behind a vehicle in the parking lot. As Constable Slater walked by the vehicle, Ethier fired a shot. The shotgun blast struck Constable Slater in the back of the head. Ethier then walked towards Constable McCourt’s location. At this time, the second back up police unit driven by Constable Shillington, entered the parking lot.
As Constable Shillington attempted to bring his police vehicle to a stop, Ethier aimed his shotgun at the officer and fired. Shotgun pellets struck the car window. Shillington jumped out of the right passenger door and took cover behind the right fender. He fired a shot from his service revolver at Ethier, striking him in the throat. Ethier fell to the ground but got up and ran, hiding behind a parked vehicle. Ethier exchanged shots with Constable Shillington. Constable Shillington approached the parked vehicle and located Ethier on the ground, face down. Within seconds, other back up officers were on the scene.
Officers immediately relayed Constable McCourt to hospital in a police vehicle. Constable Slater and Ethier were transported by ambulance. Shortly afterwards, the officers were notified that Constable Slater had succumbed to his injury. Constable McCourt and Ethier would survive their wounds. Constable McCourt would be partially disabled due to his shoulder injury.
On April 20, 1974, Camille Joseph Ethier was convicted of Non-Capital Murder in the slaying of Constable Leonard Slater. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. Charges of Attempted Murder, in relation to Constable Shillington were adjourned sine die (not proceeded with).
Constable Gord McCourt returned to his duties with the North Bay Police Service. He retired several years later and died in 1991 after a lengthy bout with cancer. His son, Wally McCourt, is a Detective Sergeant with the Metropolitan Toronto Police.
Constable Norm Shillington, is now Sergeant Shillington. He is still active with the North Bay Police Service. Many other involved officers have since retired. Constable Leonard Slater was born in 1941 and raised in Bracebridge, Ontario. He had a great love of the North. He moved to Toronto in 1960, and later joined the Ontario Provincial Police. He was posted to # 5 District Traffic from May 1964 until September 1968. Eager to return to the North, he joined the North Bay Police Service in October of that year. At the time of his death, Len was married and the father of a 12 year old son and two daughters aged 8 and 10. In his five years with the Service, Len obtained a reputation for being firm but fair and was well thought of by his fellow officers, and the members of the community.
A full police funeral, attended by officers from across Canada, and communal service were held as a tribute to Constable Slater.
This page is dedicated to Constable Leonard Slater, who paid the supreme sacrifice.
Born and raised in North Bay, leaving only long enough to obtain his Medical Doctor Degree in 1956, Dr. Robert Sinclair was definitely a northerner at heart.
Bob attended King George Public School and North Bay Collegiate Institute and Vocational School. In the early 1950’s, he left North Bay to attend medical school at the University of Toronto. This is where he met and fell in love with Stella, a beautiful nursing student. Coincidentally, Stella, his wife to be, had grown up 20 minutes away from him in Sturgeon Falls. After completing his internship at Toronto Western Hospital, the couple returned to North Bay in 1957. Bob joined his father’s medical practice and began his career in family medicine.
In July 1958 Bob and Stella gave birth to their first of four children. Bob was most happy being with his family. With his children at his side, he enjoyed teaching them about the world and exploring nature . Problems were seen as puzzles, that just needed to, and always could, be solved. The company of his children was a necessity as he fixed, puttered and explored his surroundings.
Bob was always willing to try new things and live new adventures. To the delight of his grandchildren he received a pie-in-the-face on his birthday, rode roller-coasters at Disney World, swam rapids, cheered loudly at hockey games, and tapped trees for maple sap. He enjoyed skiing, fishing, sailing, waterskiing and anything outdoors. Swimming in the cool, crisp, clean waters at the family cottage on the French River gave him great pleasure.
He had a great respect for nature and instilled that respect in his children. This meant saving dragonflies from certain death if their wings were injured or an intense feeling of remorse after shooting his first, and last, partridge. There was nothing Stella could do, despite her amazing culinary skills, to make that bird taste good. Julia Child would have failed. He never hunted again.
Bob was gifted on many levels and was very much a perfectionist. He had an uncanny memory and a “no nonsense approach”. He could be intimidating, especially if you were not trying your best. He was a constant teacher to his children, although they were unable to wholly absorb the vastness and diversity of his knowledge. His motto,” You break, I fix” was repeated often to his careless teenagers. Fortunately, as they grew older, his children appreciated the important lessons learned and passed them on to their own children.
He instilled Northern values in his family, especially at the family cottage on the French River. He was truly at home as he developed this retreat. His resourcefulness was notable as he invented and devised the many necessities of life his family required during their summer times on the river.
Bob lived his life as an empathetic, insightful and beloved family physician. He was a loyal husband, father, friend and real Northerner. He saw the value of our northern country and all it had to offer. The extraordinary efforts being made to improve the downtown and waterfront of North Bay, the city in which he lived and loved, are accomplishments that would make him proud.
