Pandemic-related challenges, shutdowns, and setbacks dominated the news cycle in 2021, but so did stories of resiliency and people overcoming the odds.
Here’s a look at some of the top stories that appeared in the Valley Journal-Advertiser from January to June 2021.
JANUARY
• COVID-19 forced the organizers to cancel the popular Long Pond Hockey Heritage Classic — a fundraiser for the Windsor Hockey Hertiage Society that brings retired NHL legends to Hants County to play old-fashioned outdoor hockey.
• Registered nurse Robin Maclean, of Waterville, was the first person in Western Nova Scotia’s health zone to receive a COVID-19 vaccine when the province's vaccination program first rolled out.
• Hantsport firefighters were pleased to hear West Hants councillors announcing their desire to see a new station constructed that would be built “for the future; not just for today.”
• The community rallied to help a Martock family who lost everything when their bungalow caught fire. Windsor West Hants Caremongers provided everything from clothing donations to food and gift cards.
• Town of Kentville staff proposed creating a warming hut for the Harvest Moon Trail. The hut, which would be free to use, would include interpretive panels celebrating the area’s Black history, particularly Black Loyalist history.
FEBRUARY
• On Feb. 1, the Province of Nova Scotia sold a nine-hectare lot of land in Windsor to Dykeland Lodge for the relocation of the aging, long-term care home plus the development of affordable housing and assisted living arrangements.
• Kings-Hants MP Kody Blois announced his intention to reoffer as the Liberal candidate in the next federal election.
• The RCMP announced it was investigating the Dec. 6 demolition of Avonport’s historic Reid House — a designated heritage property. The home, built around 1760, received official provincial heritage property status in 1993.
• Marilyn Cameron, a Kings County farmer and woodlot owner, added her voice to the growing number of people calling for a moratorium on clearcutting on Crown land.
• A Hants County volunteer firefighter was calling for national training standards for service dogs. Doug Pynch, who was paired with a PTSD service dog in 2018, said the dog arrived partially-trained, resulting in much more stress. She eventually became more like a family pet than a working dog.
• The provincial government announced they would be rolling out retired volunteer firefighter and ground search and rescue licence plates as a way to thank those who gave back to their communities. It was something long-time firefighter Bob DeMont and Hants West MLA Chuck Porter had been lobbying for. Retired members with at least 15 years of service can receive the specialty plate free of charge.
• Dr. Jennie Rand, a researcher and associate professor at Acadia University’s Ivan Curry School of Engineering in Wolfville, and her student research assistants were participating in a broader study on the presence of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) in wastewater systems. It was believed the infection could be detected in wastewater up to a week before symptoms would appear in an infected person.
• The Hants West Food Action Council, formed in 2018 to tackle different food security issues, launched a community soup initiative. Set up at the Station Food Hub in Newport Station, volunteers gathered on alternating Sundays to prepare ingredients and make soup, which is then distributed to various organizations and people in need.
• An equine-assisted learning program, located at Serenity Acres Family Ranch in Ardoise, was helping youth and adults deal with emotional responses and recover from trauma. West Hants Education Centre students participated in the program, with the principal noting the 12-week course “taps into a lot of social and emotional learning, but it also builds confidence,” which in turn, translates to more success at school.
• West Hants Regional Municipality announced its intention to pull out of the Valley Regional Enterprise Network, effective March 31, 2022, due to the costs outweighing the benefit of membership. The Valley REN, incorporated in 2014, aims to support and promote the local economic development of Glooscap First Nation, the Municipality of the County of Kings, West Hants Regional Municipality, and the towns of Berwick, Kentville and Middleton. Funding comes from the municipal units and is matched by the provincial government.
• The provincial government announced a replacement facility for Grand View Manor in South Berwick. The hope was to open the new long-term care home in 2023.
• Kentville’s Portal Youth Outreach Association was expanding its reach, focusing on more at-risk young people spanning from Hants County to Kings County. The goal was to ultimately end youth homelessness by developing housing in key communities.
MARCH
• Two Nova Scotia-based nursing homes — Northwood in HRM and Windsor Elms Village in Falmouth — signed up to participate in an 18-month research study to determine if ultraviolet light can help reduce illness. Scientists were looking to see if UV light could cut down the transmission of airborne influenza-like illnesses.
• Parsons Green Developments’ Miners Landing was a success in Kentville. The company discovered there was no shortage of demand for quality rental units in the area. As such, a third multi-unit apartment complex was under construction in early 2021. It was noted that the first two apartment buildings built as part of Miners Landing, each containing 47 units, were completely occupied within a month after opening in 2020.
• Throughout the pandemic, people living in large, congested cities began looking at where they lived. There was an influx of people moving to Nova Scotia, many relocating to the Annapolis Valley. A Toronto chef was among them. Noah Bedard moved to Windsor and joined the staff at Schoolhouse Brewery.
• A Cheverie man awoke from a nap only to discover his home was on fire. He escaped by jumping through a window. Firefighters worked hard to extinguish the blaze, but the two-storey home couldn’t be salvaged.
• A single-vehicle rollover on Highway 101 near Hantsport claimed the life of the woman driver. It was the first of several highway fatalities in 2021.
• Lucas Wilson grew up hitting golf balls in Cambridge, so when the opportunity to take over the local golf course came up, he grabbed it. Wilson purchased the former Minas View Golf Links, renamed it Cambridge Cliffs Golf Club and set out to make some upgrades before the season started.
• Scotian Gold, the largest apple processor east of Quebec, was hard at work marketing its products on a national and international scale. The ability to provide quality products, in particular, Annapolis Valley apples, helped keep demand steady throughout the pandemic.
• Findings showed that rural Nova Scotians were seriously lagging regarding internet speeds and the targets set by the CRTC. It was hoped new CIRA grants might help increase internet speeds in the province.
• A new book focusing on the Flower Cart, entitled, Work With Purpose: 50 Years of Supported Training and Employment in the Annapolis Valley, and authored by Jim Prime, commemorated the New Minas-based organization’s 50-year history of inclusion.
APRIL
• The West Hants Historical Society launched a campaign to gather local Black history — stories, photos and mementos — to help better reflect Hants County’s population.
• After Windsor saw two fine dining eating establishments close during the first part of the pandemic, Rick and Debbie Dunham, of R&D Dunham Holdings, launched an Italian restaurant, Hole in the Wall, on Water Street.
• The Valley Drive-In, located in Cambridge and run by the Coldbrook and District Lions Club, recorded a profitable season in 2020 despite the pandemic challenges. The 2021 season was due to open April 30 and would feature more than just movies, offering visitors live-streamed concerts as well.
• After six decades of helping Hants County couples tie the knot, Lydia Crossley officially retired as a deputy issuer of marriage licenses.
• Acadia University’s Campaign for Acadia brought in $86.8 million to help the Wolfville-based educational facility thrive in the coming years.
• Hants West MLA Chuck Porter announced he would not be reoffering for his seat in the next provincial election. Porter planned to retire from politics after 15 years.
• West Hants Regional Municipality began looking to sell off some surplus property — including the former town hall in Hantsport. The building was up for sale for $240,000, and interested purchasers were asked to write a proposal for council to consider.
• Downtown Windsor was spruced up by the recently-rebranded merchants’ association. New, modernized signage and banners were installed, as well as lighting. Plans were also underway to add more wayfinding signage and beautification projects that would roll out as the year progressed.
• West Hants’ mayor, Abraham Zebian, and dairy farmer Brian Casey announced their intention to run for the Hants West nomination for the Nova Scotia Liberal Association. By the time the deadline to run rolled around, one other — Melanie Skelhorn — also sought the nomination.
• A Windsor man was arrested in relation to a rash of catalytic converter thefts that had been the source of hardship for many Hants County and HRM businesses and organizations. One such group was the Windsor Senior Citizen Bus Society, who discovered their Poppy Bus was damaged after the catalytic converter was removed in mid-March. The community rallied to help the bus service raise enough funds for repairs and improved parking lot security.
• Former Kentville resident Anita Anand, the minister of Public Services and Procurement Canada, was thrust into the spotlight with the arrival of COVID-19 in 2020. Anand played an integral role in procuring the supplies needed to protect Canadians from COVID-19, including ensuring an adequate vaccine supply. She participated in a virtual discussion with Kings-Hants MP Kody Blois on the subject in April.
• Kings County public works employees were citing increased flushed garbage and chemicals as being the primary reason for the sewage stench emanating throughout Hants Border.
Staff began investigating the strong odour in December 2020 and took several steps that would usually mitigate the problem. However, multiple contributing factors caused the problems at the sewage lagoons, including the flushing of condoms, sanitary pads, and disposable wipes, and staff were asking residents to be more mindful of what they flushed.
• Former prisoner of war Hormidas Fredette celebrated his 104th birthday in New Minas. The Second World War veteran credits stubbornness as the secret to living a long life.
MAY
• Nova Scotia’s first 100 per cent gluten-free food truck, known as Nana’s Gluten Free Take-out, was doing brisk business in Mount Uniacke. Alecia Dube launched the mobile canteen in 2020 amid the pandemic. By 2021, it was steadily growing its customer base, largely due to providing quality food for people with celiac disease (as they can’t consume products containing barley, rye, wheat, or malt, for example, without side effects).
• West Hants council agreed to upgrade the concrete walking track at the Windsor sports complex to synthetic flooring — and they opted to spend a little extra money in order to accommodate more users. That was news that sat well with the roller skating community.
• Neighbours were pitted against neighbours as the fate of the Avon River causeway took the spotlight. Even area politicians were frustrated by the lack of communication with Ottawa over a ministerial order, issued in March, that saw Lake Pisiquid, the artificial freshwater head pond in Windsor, drained. The order, from DFO minister Bernadette Jordan, was intended to regulate the flow of the Avon River to allow for improved fish passage.
The Pisiquid Canoe Club, a sport club that formed as a result of the creation of Lake Pisiquid when the 101 series highway — and the Avon River causeway — was opened beside Windsor in 1970, was in jeopardy of shutting down due to a lack of water in which to paddle.
• Richard Murphy announced his immediate resignation from West Hants Regional Council, citing stress and the job not being a good fit for him. This decision came after councillors were inundated with calls and letters from area residents about the highly divisive Avon River causeway situation.
• Firefighters and Lands and Forestry personnel spent considerable time and resources trying to douse a stubborn woods fire in Upper Falmouth, near Bennett Lake.
• West Hants’ mayor won the contested Hants West Liberation nomination and vowed to fulfil his council duties ‘100 per cent’ until the provincial election was called.
• The Magic Winery Bus owner found a way to adjust to serving the public amid a pandemic with ever-changing public health restrictions. In 2020, instead of taking 150 visitors per day on tour, they were only able to offer the experience to 60. In 2021, he expanded to two tour experiences (one aboard the double-decker on Thursdays and Fridays, the other aboard the Tidal Bay Express on Saturdays and Sundays).
• The ongoing dispute among Annapolis County, Valley Waste, and various municipal partners were settled out of court, with Annapolis able to once again send waste to Valley Region Solid Waste-Resource Management Authority’s transfer station in Lawrencetown.
• The congregation attending the Weston Christian Fellowship Church in Berwick continued to hold faith gatherings in May despite a lockdown situation across Nova Scotia. The church and members were fined several thousand dollars and the RCMP began keeping an eye on the building to ensure more services were not held in violation of the Health Protection Act. By May 16, the church was facing a $23,245 fine and more than three dozen individuals were charged $2,422 each.
JUNE
• Windsor-based dentist Kevin Walsh embarked on the adventure of a lifetime earlier in the spring. The Falmouth resident summited Mount Everest — a feat he had been training years to accomplish. At the beginning of June, after successfully completing the challenge, he was in Nepal preparing to return to Nova Scotia. He’s hoping to complete the seven-summit challenge (having conquered four already) and has Vinson Massif on his radar for 2023. His story made national headlines.
• Hantsport firefighters were concerned that construction on a new fire station wouldn’t be underway until late summer, meaning it would be at least another year before they had a safe and appropriate hall in which to call home. The concerns were expressed after West Hants councillors approved building a new station at the existing Oak Street site, tenders were issued, but then councillors changed their minds and requested geotechnical work be conducted at two properties to see if the Oak Street site was indeed the ideal spot. After reviewing the findings in June, the $3.1 million contract was awarded.
• Windsor homeowners, business people and outdoor enthusiasts were frustrated with the dust storms that were swirling up due to the ministerial order that drained Lake Pisiquid earlier in the year. Seniors were concerned for their health as the dust storms coming off the exposed mudflats made it hard to breathe and see.
• The County of Kings and Town of Wolfville partnered to review fire services in Greenwich and Wolfville. It was noted that the RFP could result in a study recommending the amalgamation of Greenwich and Wolfville fire departments and a new location for the joint station.
• Kings North MLA John Lohr vowed to continue working despite finding out he had B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
• Mourning the loss of his mother, Hantsport’s Brett King found a way to take that pain and turn it into something that could help others. King decided to participate in the Breakaway Cycling Adventure for Kids with Cancer — a summertime cycling challenge that raises funds for cancer research.
• Darren Porter, an outspoken Hants County fisherman that wants to see the Avon River causeway opened up to allow free tidal flow, offered to purchase the Windsor waterfront from the West Hants Regional Municipality. Council deemed the waterfront not surplus, noting the multiple benefits of retaining the piece of property, and rejected his offer.
• A keto bakery set up shop in Hants County and the owner, Halifax’s Jane Goode, was quickly seeing results. The aim of Bliss Bakery, located inside the Station Food Hub, was to fill a void in the market — provide tasty keto treats for people who are on a keto diet, or who are simply looking for healthier choices. Within a few months, the business was already poised for expansion.
• A hockey player with Nova Scotia roots signed a three-year contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Twenty-one-year-old Alex Steeves grew up in the United States but spent summers with family at Lake Mockingee in Hants County. Steeves is a grandchild of Windsor residents Richard and Barbara Redden and great-grandchild of the late Mary and Dr. Fred Akin and the late Roy and Pauline Redden.
• Abraham Zebian announced his intention to remain West Hants’ mayor, withdrawing his decision to represent the Liberal Party in the upcoming provincial election. Brian Casey, who had run against Zebian for the nomination, was selected to represent Hants West in his place.
• Nova Scotia officials were investigating reports of blue-green algae being found near Windsor. Concerns were heightened over cyanobacteria blooms following a June 9 incident that left a woman hospitalized and saw two dogs die after coming into contact with Shubenacadie Grand Lake — a body of water that straddles the municipalities of Halifax and East Hants.
• A ‘Love the Lake’ rally was held in downtown Windsor, offering youth and adults the chance to peacefully demonstrate their opposition to Lake Pisiquid being drained and to voice their concerns in hopes that the ministerial order may be lifted.
• Hantsport firefighters moved into a temporary fire station as construction on their new home was poised to begin during the summertime.
• The Portal received $1.1 million in funding to help provide transitional houses for youth in Windsor, Kentville and Middleton.