'This is home': East Ferris community celebrates centennial milestone
A town near North Bay is celebrating its 100th anniversary this weekend.
With a population just over 4,800 people, residents of East Ferris love their township and are thrilled to join in the celebrations today.
“This is home for us. I’m a fourth generation here in East Ferris. I have very, very deep roots,” said resident Michel Champagne.
While the municipality’s official anniversary is Dec. 26, the township wanted to celebrate before the holidays began.
“The community is very close. Everybody knows everybody. It’s so nice to live out here,” explained resident Lucille Voyer.
As told through a video playing at the ceremony, the area carries a storied history.
From the First Nations to the first settlers and explorers, East Ferris has gone through many changes.In 1921, the Township of Ferris was split into the Township of East and West Ferris.
In 2010, the township was renamed to a municipality.
“East Ferris has a very special history. It is built on family and that is unique,” said Mayor Pauline Rochefort.
The municipality held a gathering and centennial celebration along with a lunch buffet and there will be fireworks in the evening.
“People care about you in this municipality and they are very much welcoming,” said resident of 17 years Doug Hay. “To East Ferris, happy birthday.”
Throughout the year, the town has been holding small celebrations. A new logo of a loon swimming behind a sunset, and slogan,“East Ferris Our Home” were shown off as well as the design of the new municipal building which is set to open sometime next year.
“Since 2006, the councils of East Ferris have been on a journey to build a new facility for the municipality. Our current premises is outdated and obsolete,” said Rochefort.
As part of the celebrations, group of actors performed a play called “Our Home” looking back from 1885-1921 at how the municipality came to be.
“It’s an opportunity to see how we grew back from the 1800s, how the logging started and how CN Rail got here,” said actor Rick Champagne.
While the municipality and its people celebrate the past and present, its residents look to the future of what it will look like in the years ahead.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.