Year-in-review: 2013
January
Huron East Council was told that the renovation and expansion of the Brussels Library was approved for a Government of Canada grant of nearly $150,000. The grant was awarded through the Community Infrastructure Improvement Fund.
Hullett Central Public School announced that due to the closure of Blyth Public School, and a sudden infusion of Blyth-area students, it would hold its annual graduation ceremony at the Blyth and District Community Centre, not at the school as it had done in the past.
Former Huron MP Murray Cardiff was on hand in Seaforth to present the Huron 4-H award that bears his name, the Murray Cardiff Citizenship Award. The award was presented to Fraser Falconer.
Aaron Armstrong of the Wingham Ironmen joined just two other players in Western Junior C Hockey League in breaking the 100-point mark.
Huron County Council announced that it would be backing the Huron County Plowmen’s Association, both morally and financially, in its bid to host the 2017 International Plowing Match, which would be the 100th in history.
Council decided to pledge $100,000 to the campaign over the next four years.
Snowmobile trails were opened briefly, only to close again several days later due to a rise in temperature.
An early morning fire devastated Brussels-area business MDL Doors.
Firefighters from Brussels, Seaforth and North Huron were all on scene for hours battling the blaze, which would eventually completely destroy the building.
February
After a late January fire, MDL Doors announced that it was closing and would not rebuild.
“It’s a very emotional day for everyone,” said MDL’s Human Resources Manager Trevor Seip. “The decision affects everyone’s lives, including [owners] the Licthys. Whether the decision was right, wrong or indifferent, it’s been made.”
It would be announced later in February that MDL Doors had declared bankruptcy and that the company was millions of dollars in debt.
North Huron Reeve Neil Vincent received the prestigious Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for his years of dedicated service to the world of agriculture and to his community.
March
Huron County was selected as the host county for the 100th International Plowing Match, which was scheduled to be held in 2017.
Blyth Festival actors who would star in Beyond The Farm Show arrived in Huron County for their first round of interviews with local farmers and agricultural business owners.
The community welcomed six actors and the show’s director, Severn Thompson, for just over a week with a number of meetings set up for them.
The Blyth Festival announced it would be hiring Marion de Vries as its artistic director, replacing the interim artistic director Peter Smith.
Central Huron Council was found, by Ontario Ombudsman André Marin, to have held two illegal closed-to-the-public sessions in the previous 12 months.
Fourteen people were listed on Huron County’s “Sunshine List” of public employees making over $100,000 in 2012. Topping the list was Huron County Medical Officer of Health Nancy Cameron who made $307,466.
The Blyth Brussels Midget Rep hockey team was crowned Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) champions after defeating a team from Belmont in the finals.
Huron East Council announced that it would be raising its residents’ taxes by nine per cent.
April
Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne appeared at the Ontario Economic Summit for the Ontario agri-food sector, which was held at the Regional Equine and Agricultural Centre of Huron (REACH) in Clinton.
Wynne discussed the agri-food industry with those in attendance, while at the same time handling protests from anti-wind turbine groups in front of the building demonstrating and demanding answers from her government.
The Brussels Lions Club announced it would be starting a Leo Club, which would welcome members in their teens who wanted to do some good in their community.
A massive power outage left thousands of people across the province without power. Warming centres were set up in Belgrave, Wingham and Brussels to help residents who were without power for as long as three days.
Morris-Turnberry and North Huron ratified a fire suppression agreement that had been created by the two municipalities.
May
Margaret Trudeau spoke to a crowd of nearly 600 people at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre. Trudeau spoke to people about her life, her struggles and how she overcame many of the negatives in her life.
The Bluewater Kennel Club, which held an annual dog show in Blyth for over 30 years, suspended its show due to a number of issues, including falling attendance.
The Blyth Festival Art Gallery was honoured by the Huron Arts and Heritage Network as the county’s outstanding cultural event.
Huron East Councillor Bill Siemon resigned from his position due to health reasons as he faced a battle with cancer. Councillors accepted Siemon’s resignation with regret, wishing him only the best of health.
In the meantime, however, council announced it would hold a by-election to fill Siemon’s seat.
The ongoing process of crafting an animal control bylaw was continuing to wear on in Morris-Turnberry as it was delayed for another month.
June
For the second time in three years, the Blyth Festival had been nominated for a Premier’s Award as the province’s best arts organization, a prize that came alongside a $50,000 monetary reward.
An amalgamation between the Blyth and Brussels Minor Hockey Associations was approved after a two-year trial period. The vote was nearly unanimous as 47 of 47 Brussels voters were in favour and 21 of 24 Blyth voters also voted to proceed with amalgamation.
As a result of the amalgamation, it was also announced that the new joint teams would be renamed The Crusaders.
Central Huron Council was in the midst of the Nuclear Waste Management Organization’s second step of approval, looking ahead to the third.
If approved Central Huron would become the site of the country’s first deep geological repository for spent nuclear fuel.
It was announced that Walton would be the host of the 2017 International Plowing Match which Huron County won the right to host earlier in the year.
July
Morris-Turnberry purchased the former Turnberry Central School building, but was unclear as to what council’s plans were going to be going forward.
Howick Reeve Art Versteeg announced he would be running for Huron County Warden in December for the 2014 term.
Former Huron East Councillor Bill Siemon, just weeks after announcing he would take a leave of absence, passed away after his battle with cancer.
Toronto Blue Jay great Kelly Gruber held his baseball camp in Clinton. The camp was a success, despite having to be moved inside due to inclement weather on the second day of the two-day camp.
A secretive announcement called 14/19 was scheduled to be made on July 28.
David Sparling was named chief of the Fire Department of North Huron. The move meant Sparling would have to leave his position at Sparling’s, but being a fire chief was always something he knew he wanted to do, he told The Citizen.
The 14/19 campaign was announced and it hoped to change the landscape of Blyth forever.
The three-phase project involved extensive renovations to Blyth Memorial Hall, the creation of an art school within the walls of the former Blyth Public School, including a 150-seat theatre in its former gymnasium and the creation of a sustainable fund that would run the school for years to come.
Blyth’s first annual Streetfest was a success despite rainy weather, according to organizer Lorna Fraser.
August
Kabrina Bishop was crowned Ambassador of the Brussels Fall Fair by the previous year’s Ambassador Meagan Dolmage.
Huron East Deputy-Mayor Joe Steffler announced that he too would vie for the position of Huron County Warden.
It was announced that a restaurant/gas station combination said to be affiliated with Tim Hortons would be coming to Blyth, with the owners of the numbered company looking at developing the site of the former Grandview Restaurant.
The annual Walton TransCan saw an increase in overall attendance during a great weekend for motocross.
September
North Huron Council announced that it would be supporting the ambitious 14/19 campaign, but only for its Memorial Hall renovation phase.
Maitland River Elementary School officially opened its doors to the public with a tour for future students and their parents.
Cranbrook’s Yvonne Knight was named Citizen of the Year for the Brussels area. Knight received six nominations for the award.
Cathy Goetz, an East Wawanosh native, began her time as the principal of Hullett Central Public School, taking over for Seaforth’s Shawn Allen.
The Wawanosh Golden Girls, a 4-H Go For The Gold club, had won local competitions to represent the region at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto to compete in November.
Two-time Blyth Festival Artistic Director Peter Smith was named project director for the 14/19 campaign as it continued to move forward.
Londesborough’s Barb Bosman was named Citizen of the Year for the Blyth area.
October
Don McNeil’s famed parade car hit a milestone as it was featured in Kitchener’s annual Oktoberfest parade, the second largest Oktoberfest parade in the world, second only to that of Munich.
Controversy began to swirl over Morris-Turnberry’s proposed animal control bylaw as residents protested it over the course of several meetings.
Wingham-area native and Central Huron resident Alice Munro won the Nobel Prize for Literature.
The Blyth Festival announced the plays that would comprise its 2014 season, leading with Kitchen Radio, a play written by the Festival’s new Artistic Director Marion de Vries.
The announcement also included the introduction of the Blyth Festival Memorial Series, which would, with one play per season, honour the lives of soldiers and their families.
November
All of Huron County lost a pillar of its community with the passing of former MP Murray Cardiff of RR1, Ethel.
Cardiff was in his 80th year. He had been an MP for Huron-Bruce for over a decade, was a charter member of the Brussels Optimist Club and a dedicated member of the Brussels Legion for 15 years.
Morris-Turnberry Council finally, after much debate, passed its controversial animal control bylaw.
Liz Sandals, Minister of Education, was in Wingham to tour the new Maitland River Elementary School.
When faced with a motion that would declare Huron County an “unwilling host” to wind turbine projects, Huron County councillors decided the issue was a lower-tier one and voted against the motion.
Over 100 came out for the Guelph-to-Goderich Rail Trail public meeting in Blyth. The meeting was held by the group spearheading the initiative to nurture the trail they felt could be a huge economic boon to all of Huron County.
December
The Avon Maitland District School Board announced it would be giving several of its Grade 7 and 8 students iPads to aid in their education on their way to secondary school.
Huron East Deputy-Mayor Joe Steffler was elected to the position of Huron County Warden.
An emotional Steffler said that becoming warden was one of his life’s goals and that he had finally achieved it.
The Blyth Festival posted a small deficit for the 2013 season.
Central Huron’s Lexi Aitken was named Athletics Canada’s Youth Athlete of the Year, an honour she shared with another young athlete from Mississauga.