Cape Breton Post

SONGS IN THE LITTLE CHURCH

Cape Breton’s Isabella Sampson opens at Òrain ‘s an Eaglais Bheag (Songs in the Little Church), one of the Celtic Colours concerts on Thanksgiving Monday. It was a packed house at St. Matthew-Wesley United Church in Leitches Creek with around 150...

TAKING THE STAGE

From left, multi-instrumentalist Patricia Richard, violinist/fiddler Marie Andrée Gaudet, Lennie Gallant and keyboardist Julien Robichaud perform during a Thanksgivin’er (19+) concert in Membertou as part of the Celtic Colours International Festival.

‘FLOODSGIVING’ ANNIVERSARY

An aerial view of Sydney’s south end on Thanksgiving Day in 2016, when a record rainfall caused major flooding in the neighbourhood. Even a decade after the so-called “Floodsgiving,” massive rainstorms have kept Cape Bretoners on high alert.

ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY

Nestled on the Bras d’Or Lake in the village of Whycocomagh, Keltic Quay Bayfront Lodge and Cottages offers guests a unique, year-round lodging experience. Across the bay from the lodge, visitors can see We’koqma’q L’nue’kati – the new owners of...

NIGHTTIME PARADES STILL A NO-GO

Turns out it will be another silent night for Cape Breton Regional Municipality residents hoping for the return of nighttime Christmas parades – this despite a council vote from three years ago to reverse a 2019 ban on parades being held in the evening...

FROM LANDLINES TO AI

A Cape Breton company that employs hundreds is celebrating 25 years in Glace Bay. Over that time, Concentrix on Union Street has seen many changes since opening in October 2001. From technology to contracts, the U.S.-based Concentrix has evolved with...

ACCESS DENIED

Marie and Charlie Cash want to be able to go back to living in their third-floor apartment in Sydney. But the lone elevator at Moxham Court Apartments remains unrepaired, weeks after smoke was reported coming from inside it — and after local...

WHEN IS IT OK FOR LEADERS TO SHED TEARS IN PUBLIC?

To cry, or not to cry? In the realm of politics, that is the question. And the answer, says one University of Toronto expert, largely depends on your sex. “If you’re a woman in the public sphere, you cannot win in terms of the expression of emotion,”...

TEST RUN

Erik Hinze, Canadian Gypsum Company plant manager in Little Narrows, stands near the vessel being used to transport gypsum rock from the Little Narrows quarry to ports in Eastern Canada and the Eastern Seaboard last week. The vessel was docked for a...

DAY OF REFLECTION

Hundreds of people walk in honour of the victims and survivors of residential schools and their families during a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation ceremony in Membertou on Wednesday. In addition to the walk, the event featured drummers,...

‘NONE OF US ARE HAPPY ABOUT IT’

Churchgoers of the Anglican faith will be saying farewell this weekend to a beloved place of worship in Sydney’s Whitney Pier neighbourhood. St. Alban’s Anglican Church, on the corner of Victoria Road and St. Albans Avenue, will be closing permanently...

ALL THAT JAZZ

One of Canada’s premier jazz tenor saxophone players. An East Coast Music Award-winning pianist, vocalist and songwriter who’s been part of Canadian music scape for more than 50 years. And an ECMA-nominated Cuban-Canadian singer, songwriter and...

ROUGH RIDE

It’s no bull — the Cape Breton Pro Rodeo provided action-packed entertainment at Centre 200 in Sydney over the weekend. The inaugural event drew thousands over four days. The opening night of competition was highlighted by a stellar performance by...

GREAT LAKES BIND U.S.-CANADA TRADE IMPERILLED BY TRUMP TARIFFS

The American Century often draws a crowd when the ship pulls into the Port of Duluth-Superior to load Minnesota iron ore. Kids cheer when the captain blasts the fog horn. A voice on the loudspeaker retells the story of how the 305-metre-long bulk...

RODEO RHYTHM

Mary Frances Leahy, left, performs alongside her brother, Michael Leahy, during the Kitchen Party kickoff concert for the Cape Breton Rodeo at Centre 200 in Sydney on Thursday evening. Leahy, the daughter of Natalie Macmaster, was the opening act of...

‘YOU NEED TO LOVE IT’

A Cape Breton western wear line is ready for its biggest event to date: the Cape Breton Pro Rodeo. Taking place at Centre 200 in Sydney, the vendor village will be open from Friday to Sunday with Legit Western Wear being one of 50 businesses selling...

READY FOR PRO CHALLENGE

Cape Breton’s first pro rodeo has one competing rider who was born and bred on the island. Stevi Jardine is one of nine Nova Scotians competing in the four-day Cape Breton Pro Rodeo, which opens on Thursday, with rodeo performances scheduled from...

PAYING FATHER’S GOODWILL FORWARD

When Kris Campbell was headed into his last year of university, he was faced with a predicament. His application for a student loan was rejected. He wouldn’t have the money to pay for his tuition. When DEVCO closed the coal mines in Cape Breton in...

‘IT’S JUST POOR MAINTENANCE’

The heavy rain that fell in Richmond County just over a week ago was nothing compared to the storm that hit Cape Breton on Sept. 5-6. But it flooded the culvert near Bradley MacDonald’s home in Dundee, on Black River Road, washing out gravel put in...

TRUMP BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP LAW COSTS CANADIANS CHANCE FOR BABY

Renee and her husband had endured a decade of exhausting efforts to start a family, including multiple fruitless treatments and medical issues that seemed to make pregnancy impossible. Then this April the Toronto couple’s ordeal seemed finally to be...

STONE’S THROW AWAY?

An artist’s rendering of the front side of a modernized Centre 200 in Sydney that shows the potential location of a new Sydney Curling Club facility, located to the left of the main arena. Kirk Durning, the Cape Breton Regional Municipality’s director...

OVERWHELMING SUPPORT

A Nova Scotia woman wants Newfoundlanders to know just how grateful her family is for the outpouring of care and support they’ve received following an unimaginable tragedy. On Sept. 11, 43-year-old Charlie Morrison of Sydney, N.S., died in a...

‘IT’S JUST A NIGHTMARE’

The ongoing bedbug problem that is plaguing Sydney seniors living in provincial housing is happening at more than one apartment complex. Nova Scotia Provincial Housing confirmed they are dealing with bedbug infestations at the highrise seniors...

DETERRING GUN AND GANG VIOLENCE

The federal government wants to ensure residents in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality have some supports and initiatives available to help protect them from any potential gun and gang violence that may occur. Such supports, however, require...

PLANS PUT ‘ON PAUSE’

Two MLAs and a former Nova Scotia Health employee, all from Cape Breton, are upset that plans for a new health centre and long-term care facility for New Waterford, as well as expanding the Glace Bay Hospital, have been put on hold and may be facing a...

ONE PROPERTY, THREE BODIES

Up until last October, a mother, father and two children lived at 572 Kelly-Jordan Rd., near Smiths Falls, Ont. Then arrests were made. In the months since, a police search has unearthed three sets of human remains on the site, all related to a series...

BIG REPAIRS UNDERWAY

Nova Scotia Minister of Public Works Fred Tilley, left, speaks with Brad Harrison, area manager of public works, earlier this week at a washed-out area of West Bay Road in Richmond County. Behind Tilley is one of many large culverts that were washed...

‘WE ARE IN A SAFE COMMUNITY’

Despite recent calls for a greater police presence in New Waterford in the wake of a town hall meeting held last month and more patrols in rural communities, the head of the Cape Breton Regional Police Service maintains that the municipality is still...

COLLABORATIVE APPROACH

The municipal councillor representing New Waterford hopes to get more provincial and even federal officials on board to help further address the Cape Breton community’s growing concerns over problems with drugs and crime. District 11 Coun. Darren...

‘NOT UP FOR DEBATE’

The Indigenous Liberal Caucus released an official statement condemning the rise of residential school denialism in Canada on Thursday. The message comes at the beginning of the month that involves Orange Shirt Day – the National Day of Truth and...

‘SCARY AND UNNERVING’

Wendy Owens Abbott had initially planned to venture into St. Peter’s to attend a Saturday wedding hosted by her place of business, the Bras d’Or Lakes Inn. Then she saw the weather forecast cautioning of an “orange” warning — which signals severe,...

FLOWER POWER

A fifth-generation farmer in Marion Bridge, who is studying landscape architecture at university, is able to use what she describes as a “science/artsy” mind to help grow and sell flowers at her family farm. Morgan Cashin is seen with this fall’s crop...

‘WE NEED THIS HERE’

Accessible addiction recovery support is the goal of Nova Scotia Health’s 12 Recovery Support Centres. The centres are a hub for supports for people looking for health care for substance use and gambling disorders, commonly called addictions. They...

How to eat like a vegetarian and save some cash

With the rising cost of groceries, people are looking for cheaper ways to feed their families, and one such way is to cut out or reduce the amount of meat you consume. Although good in practice, it can sometimes be difficult to come up with some...

CULTURE ON DISPLAY

Hundreds of people came to Glace Bay to celebrate one of the biggest festivals in Kerala, India, on Saturday. The fifth annual Onanilavu Festival, hosted by the Cape Breton Malayali Association, drew more than 630 people for the daytime events, which...

‘RESPECT AND GRATITUDE’

The colour and pageantry of a full dress military parade was on display Saturday morning in downtown Sydney when the Cape Breton Highlanders were once again granted the distinction of the Freedom of the City. Marching as one, the esteemed and fabled...

BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO

For decades, Canadian governments both Conservative and Liberal sought greater economic integration with the United States, the world’s spendiest buyer of imports, including Canadian energy, machinery, lumber and wheat. But now, as U.S. President...

REMEMBERING DOLLY

Dolly Parton gave her music to the world and the world’s music to her neck of the woods in the United States — the Appalachian Mountains — including Cape Breton Celtic. Cape Breton Celtic and traditional musicians were booked to play multiple years at...

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

A new hub to promote careers in the skilled trades and support construction training is one step closer to becoming a reality in Cape Breton. The Cape Breton Trades Exhibition Centre is expected to open a new facility in downtown Sydney at the former...

Food hub welcomes new executive director

The Cape Breton Food Hub’s new executive director has big plans. Susan Morrison has been a longtime summer resident of Cape Breton. A pastry chef and a marketing professional, she has plenty of new ideas to expand the Cape Breton Food Hub’s offerings,...

‘LOVE THE UNLOVED’

It’s not your typical cute and cuddly animal rescue – although some may have that exact opinion. A young lifelong animal lover took up an unusual crusade three years ago: they rescue snakes and reptiles. Add in a couple of rats, some ducks, frogs, a...

‘IT’S BECOME A TRADITION’

Judging by the size of the crowds, the 110th anniversary edition of the Cape Breton Exhibition was bigger and better than ever. The event, held annually in North Sydney, is a fair celebrating the island’s agricultural heritage and community. Michael...

ENCRYPTION REMAINS STICKING POINT TO BILL C-22

EDMONTON Canadian law enforcement leaders are worried Bill C-22 has been defanged, and civil rights advocates say it has gone too far, but the federal government’s bid for “lawful access” to Canadians’ data for crime solving got a big thumbs-up from...

GIVING THE GIFT OF TIME

A Cape Breton couple has given patients and health-care workers more of something money usually can’t buy: time. On Tuesday, the Cape Breton Regional Hospital Foundation announced a $1-million donation from MacLeod Lorway Insurance Group owners Stuart...

‘MAKE HATE UNCOMFORTABLE’

Allies of the 2SLGBTQI+ community were asked to speak up whenever they hear or see homophobia being expressed when Pride Week in Cape Breton began over the weekend. “Cape Breton has come a long way. We’re more visible, we have more support, and...

A WORLD ON FIRE

Toronto and New York choked under orange and white skies. Madrid and Bordeaux had flames licking at their doorsteps. Vast forests, rural communities and ranchlands full of livestock in Western Canada and the U.S. have burned — and all in the month of...

LOVE STORY

Coffee brought them together and now books are helping build their future while they provide a space where everyone is represented in the literature they sell. The owners of On the Same Page bookstore, Mads Grace and Kat (Katharine) Hubbert, first met...

TAKING A BIG SWING

Glace Bay McDonald’s Colonels’ Talum Burke, left, swings at a pitch as Sydney Major Sooners’ Bennett Morrow prepares for a catch during their Canadian Little League Championship game on Wednesday evening at Cameron Bowl in Glace Bay. The Colonels...

GREAT SEATS

Helen and Stephen Joseph of Sydney take advantage of the natural amphitheatre created by a neighbouring property for an elevated view of all the action during the second day of the Canadian Little League Championship at the Cameron Bowl in Glace Bay on...

NATIONALS IN FULL SWING

Sydney Major Sooners’ Adrean MacLeod, right, of Westmount ducks after attempting a bunt against the Calgary West Thunder on Monday afternoon at Cameron Bowl in Glace Bay. In Day 1 action, Ontario beat Quebec 8-7 to start the day, followed by the Sydney...

‘THEY BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER’

It’s powwow season in Mi’kma'ki and it was Membertou First Nation’s time to shine over the weekend. Hundreds of people showed up over the three-day event to reconnect with others, feast together, buy or trade traditional crafts and see the sights and...

HOSTS WITH THE MOST

The Glace Bay Mcdonald’s Colonels will host the Canadian Little League Championship for the fourth time since 1988 next week. Members of the team, from left, include Jaxon Reid, Liam Gracie, Jaxson Leblanc, Beckett Brown, Jacob Boutilier, Declan...

STAYING ON TARGET

With the start of training camp less than a month away, the Cape Breton Eagles have already started to evaluate their team, and that includes a player from last year’s roster. The Eagles have lent 19-year-old forward Rory Pilling of Glace Bay to the...

‘ONE THING, DONE RIGHT’

A new Sydney restaurant’s motto gets straight to the point: “One thing, done right.” And for Ahmed Barakat, that one thing will be falafels – deep-fried balls or patty-shaped fritters of Egyptian origin that’s a popular item in Middle Eastern cuisine....

‘WE CAN’T RISK THE ASSET’

The Cape Breton Regional Municipality says an issue with outfield grass is causing the delay in opening a newly renovated turf-grass field in Cape Breton. Kirk Durning, director of parks, recreation, buildings and facilities for the CBRM, told the...

‘IT WAS PHENOMENAL’

An orca swimming in the water near the Canso Causeway was the cause of a lot of excitement for people who saw it. Josephine Grover and her boyfriend, Tyler Grant, drove to Port Hawkesbury Thursday morning after seeing posts about it on Facebook...

CBSA PLANS REVIEW AFTER $13.2M COCAINE CASE TOSSED

Canada’s border agency says it is considering policy changes after a Windsor, Ont., judge dismissed a $13.2-million cocaine-smuggling case over what she called “egregious” violations of a truck driver’s Charter rights. The ruling found border officers...

HORSE WHISPERER

It’s not unusual to see Mary Macquarrie dressed in her harness racing silks and sitting in the sulky making her way through the back streets of Inverness on any given day for a training session. Why would it be? For Macquarrie, it’s been a normal...

CONSTRUCTION AHEAD

Nova Scotia’s Department of Public Works has a number of Cape Breton highway and road infrastructure projects they’re planning to start soon. As part of its weekly update on road projects, the department says it’s already well into replacement of the...

ON LOCATION

Editor’s note: As interest in the film industry grows, our Cape Breton Film series explores the past, present and future of the film industry on the island. In the mid-1900s, British real estate kingpin Harold Samuel became famous for using the phrase...

‘ENDLESSLY INSPIRING’

Editor’s note: As interest in the film industry grows, our Cape Breton Film series explores the past, present and future of the film industry on the island. My wife and I moved to Cape Breton during COVID-19 with a food truck and a loose plan. Work...

SAFETY FIRST

Organizers of this year’s Rotary Ribfest opted to shut down the remainder of its weekend run early Sunday afternoon because of rain and windy conditions. “In the interest of public safety, we felt it wise to shut down the site because of the inclement...

INTERNAL TRADE BARRIERS STILL COSTING CANADA: CFIB

A leading business group is giving some provinces and the federal government good grades for trying to break down Canada’s costly internal trade obstacles, even as those barriers continue to cost Canadians billions of dollars a year. In its annual...

SHAW-SOME CELEBRATION

NEVER A BAD DAY FOR GOLF IN CAPE BRETON

There’s never a bad day to be out on a golf course in Cape Breton. A golfer keeps a close eye on his ball on No. 4 at Cabot Links in Inverness on Tuesday afternoon. Several golfers were on the course at Cabot Cape Breton, taking in the breathtaking...

RACK ’EM UP! ROTARY RIBFEST RETURNS

The smell of barbecued ribs and chicken will be filling the air this weekend as Rotary Ribfest makes its return to Open Hearth Park in Sydney this weekend. Steven Rolls has been attending the annual feast since it first started in 2015. He said going...

SCREENING FOR INCENTIVES

Editor’s note: As interest in the film industry grows, our Cape Breton Film series explores the past, present and future of the film industry on the island. The recent success of the independent film Little Lorraine has helped push this question to...

Destination Cape Breton proposes summer takeover of visitor centre

The Port Hastings tourist information centre that closed earlier this year may get a new life, if the province approves a proposal from Destination Cape Breton. The destination marketing and management organization that helps promote all things Cape...

SPENDING NEEDED FOR ‘GROWTH,’ MINISTER SAYS

The federal government plans to pay for its recent big-ticket spending through a combination of economic growth and deficit increases, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne says. Prior to officially kicking off the government’s pre-budget...