19680 VOLUME 45 / NO 11, MARCH 20, 2019 Soap …...2019/03/20 · Cont'd on page 12 Gilles GagnéJeanie LeLacheurPhoto: J. LeLacheur VOLUME 45 / NO 11, MARCH 20, 2019 19680 ESTABLISHED

Cont'd on page 12

Gilles Gagné

Jeanie LeLacheur

Photo: J. LeLacheur

VOLUME 45 / NO 11, MARCH 20, 2019Contract 400119680$1.50 (Tax included)ESTABLISHED • MAY 1975

Soap nuts - Mother Nature’s detergent

GASPÉ: - Approximately 8.3billion metric tons (9.1 billionUS tons) of plastic has beenproduced since plastic was in-troduced in the 1950s.

Virtually every piece ofplastic that was ever made stillexists in some shape or form(with the exception of thesmall amount that has been in-cinerated).

91% of plastic waste is notrecycled. 500 million plasticstraws are bought everyminute around the world. Lessthan half wind up beingrecycled.

One millionplastic bottlesare boughtevery minutearound theworld. Lessthan half windup being recy-cled.

There is moremicro plastic in the oceanthan there are stars in theMilky Way and if plastic pro-duction isn’t curbed plasticpollution will outweigh fishpound for pound by 2020.(Earth Day Network)

At a time when the earth isbeing impacted by humans inunimaginable ways and asmany try to live minimallyand shrink their environmentalfoot prints, we dutifully fillup the blue bins and some-

times wonder if it’s re-ally helping our planet or justmaking us feel like we’re ac-tually doing something to helpMother Earth as she sinks toher knees to mourn not onlythe losses including her polli-nators but also the 60% de-cline of all wildlife populationsin just 40 years.

That being said, localteacher Ben Baird, (originallyfrom Prince Edward Island),has moved away from com-

mercial laundry detergentsand instead is using all natu-ral soap nuts for his family’slaundry needs.

Soap nuts are actually fruittaken from the soapberry treeSapindus mukorrosi and areused the world over as clean-ing agents. Harvested in Indiaand Nepal they have been inuse in Southeast Asia for cen-turies and in Europe fordecades. More recently inNorth America it has been rec-

ognized as a natural powerfulcleaning alternative to theharsh chemicals found in de-tergents and other householdcleaners.

The chemical compoundSaponin is what makes soapnuts sudsy and it is a legitimategreen alternative to commer-cial detergents.

Ben has only good things tosay about soap nuts, theircleaning ability, the money hisfamily saves, and their low

impact on the environment.They are biodegradable so theydon’t negatively impact plants,animals, or eco systems in gen-eral and since they are anti-microbial they actually helpbreak down grey water in sep-tic systems. There is no needfor a rinse cycle so many gal-lons of water are saved peryear and the fact that evenused nuts can be returned tothe earth as compost.

Another environmentallyconscious decision for Benwas to switch from disposablediapers (babies on average usemore than 5000 from birth topotty trained) to cloth takinginto account the gentle clean-ing and non irritating factorsfor his children.

Ben usually orders hissoap nuts online from Amazonand then mixes up a big batchwhich can be frozen and useda little at a time. He also saysit’s not unlike commercialbrands of laundry soap. Some-times tough stains must betreated before washing. Soapnut and hydrogen peroxidewill get out most tough stainsand lemon juice or hydrogenperoxide will also helpbrighten white clothes and forthose who would like to have ascent he suggests adding a nat-ural essence.

So soap nuts come highlyrecommended by Ben and hisfamily, and it may just be aneconomical way to help the

Rachel Fournier, Ben Baird and Louise Misson show lots of enthusiasm for theenvironmentally friendly soap nuts!

Federal government funding supports seven Bay of Chaleur organizations and businesses

PASPEBIAC and GESGAPE-GIAG: – A federal govern-ment body, Canada EconomicDevelopment for Quebec re-gions, announces $695,000for seven Bay of Chaleur proj-ects, spearheaded by threebusinesses and four organiza-tions. Four contributions aregrants while the other threeare loans.

Those ventures will lead orhave led to total investmentsof $2 million. Hôtel Le Fran-cis, Cime Aventures and the

Château Blanc hotel inBonaventure are the privatebusinesses receiving loans.The organizations receivingfunding are the Micmacs ofGesgapegiag, the Banc-de-Paspébiac historic site, theCommittee for AnglophoneSocial Action (CASA) and theGaspesian Bluegrass MusicAssociation.

The Francis Hotel wasawarded a $250,000 loan foran $800,000 upgrading proj-ect. The money was to reno-vate the lodging units and theconference rooms.

CASA will receive a grantof $155,616 out of a total in-vestment of $258,463. Theproject will implement the2018–2023 Regional tourismaction plan for the English-speaking community of theGaspé Coast and the Mag-dalen Islands. It will encour-age greater economicintegration of anglo-Gaspe-sians in tourism. The contri-bution will cover the twocoordinators’ salaries, includ-ing mandatory employer-re-lated costs and expensespertaining to concept develop-

ment for the marketing pro-gram.

CASA director generalCathy Brown thanked minis-ter Diane Lebouthillier “forthe continued support of thegovernment for tourism devel-opment.”

The Gaspesian BluegrassMusic Association, which or-ganizes the annual BluegrassFestival in New Richmond,receives a grant of $66,600out of a total investment of$293,900. It involves market-ing activities targeting out-of-province tourists. The

contribution will cover projectexpenses specific to the out-of-province marketing strat-egy.

Festival president MikeGeraghty points out that theevent “attracts 50% of its at-tendees from outside Quebecand from as far as North Car-olina. The festival was sup-posed to last one year or twoand we have now been therefor 15 years.”

The Micmacs of Gesgape-giag Band will receive a grant

Page 2, March 20, 2019 - Spec

Newsbriefs

Photo: OPQ

Nelson Sergerie

Thierry Haroun

GASPÉ PENINSULA: - It cantake up to a year or longer forGaspesians to have access to apsychologist. Solutions doexist. It’s simply a question ofreorganizing health depart-ments, says l'Ordre des psy-chologues du Québec (OPQ).

The journal La Presse re-cently published an articleproving that at least 477 pa-tients are on a waiting list inMontreal East to see a psy-chologist.

The OPQ reacted to that ar-ticle denouncing the fact thatthe problem is not the lack ofpsychologists in the province,it’s a question of organization.The province of Quebec has8,700 psychologists which rep-resents half of the psycholo-gists working in Canada. TheOPQ added that Quebec hasthe highest ratio per capita inNorth America.

Spec reached the presidentof the OPQ, Christine Grou, toverify if such a problem doesexist in our region. “Yes, itdoes. In your region, the wait-ing list is between three and 18

months,” she confirmed overthe phone.

The problem, she states,concerns specifically the pub-lic sector: “In the private sec-tor, if a patient wants to see apsychologist, there’s no prob-lem, but there’s a cost to that.The patient could pay up to$140 an hour for a consulta-tion. The problem is in thepublic sector. It’s very impor-tant to say that since 2012 thelaw allows a patient to see apsychologist without having tosee a family physician in the

first place and that stands forthe private and the public sec-tor, but it doesn’t seem to beapplied in the public sector.”

When asked why, shereplied, “It’s just a question oforganization. That’s why we’regoing public to sensitize thegovernment and health sectorgoverning boards to considerchanging the way things areorganized within departmentsand to take stock of the lawthat was passed in 2012. If so,it would be for the bettermentof the patients because thereare consequences. The govern-ment has all the tools to act.”

Concerning the conse-quences of a waiting list toconsult a specialist, Ms. Grouhad this to say: “Mental healthproblems are invisible. When aperson is on a waiting list, thepatient’s problem can worsenand it could eventually be dra-matic for his or her life andfamily. Did you know thatmental health problems are thefirst cause of work absen-teeism and the first cause ofhospitalization for youth?Something has to be done,”she concluded.

MENTAL HEALTH:

Tough to find a psychologist

Dr. Christine Grou

2018 was another great year for Fall Festival Press releaseCASCAPEDIA-ST-JULES: - The Fall Festival committee is veryhappy to announce that once again the festival was a huge success.The profits for 2018 were $16,115.94 with 14,033 of this amountdonated to non-profit groups. Among those receiving financial as-sistance were: Eagles Club $1,500; Royal Canadian Legion DartClub $1,500; Fifty Plus Club $1,500; Volunteer Fire Dept $1,500;Royal Canadian Sea Cadets New Richmond $300; New RichmondFigure Skating Club $300; and the Youth Centre for the purchaseof flooring $7,433. Each of these groups contributed to the FallFestival by volunteering at a certain event. The Fifty Plus groupwas responsible for the car show; the Eagles Club took care ofthe admissions; the Dart Club was responsible for the WasherGames, Dart Tournament and the 50/50 draw; the Volunteer FireDepartment provided security at the Go-Cart Races; the RoyalCanadian Sea Cadets had presentations during the festival, and theSkating Club provided bar tenders during the weekend. The Ro-tary Club had a beautiful breakfast on Sunday morning and theGrand Cascapedia Women’s Institute hosted a traditional turkeydinner. These groups made a reasonable profit from their eventsto assist their groups.

The Cascapedia-St-Jules Fall Festival is very proud to announcethat between 2005 and 2018 the Festival Committee has been ableto donate over $145,923.00 to the community.

EI Program: unfair for womenThierry HarounGASPÉ PENINSULA: - The MASSE, an organization that defendsthe rights of the unemployed, is asking for equality for women, giventhat only 35.2% of women are eligible to the Employment-Insur-ance Program compared to 52.5% for men. It’s in that context thatMASSE presented an online petition with more than 2000 signa-tures to the Canadian Parliament asking the Liberal Government toadapt the program to women’s reality. “The problem, discriminatingwomen, goes back as far as 1996 when the government of Canadachanged the qualifying criteria from weeks to hours. That changedeverything for women who for the most part work part-time, there-fore, it’s more difficult to qualify. This has to change,” mentions Syl-vain Lafrenière, coordinator of the MASSE. “The other problemfor women is when they have to leave for maternity. When theycome back, they have to start all over again to qualify. There’s muchinjustice for women and we intend to make sure that the governmentgets the message,” he added. Another petition, a paper version, isavailable in women’s organizations which will be presented to Min-ister Jean-Yves Duclos in Ottawa on May 23.

Priest commits to resumingSaint Jules church services “soon”Gilles GagnéSAINT JULES: – Saint Jules Catholic Priest Pierre Édayé assures thathe and his pastoral group are taking the appropriate measures topromptly restore church services in that parish.

Those services were suspended on March 2 for an undeterminedamount of time, due to financial matters and organizational issues.The parishioners were asked to use the churches of Gesgapegiag orNew Richmond for the masses, baptisms and funerals in the meantime.

Priest Édayé isn’t providing many details about the reasons behindthat suspension of services, talking, mostly in general terms.

“I called a meeting for the church wardens. We will talk about thenew structures that must be put in place. We have problems to solveand once those problems will be solved, the services will resume. (…)It will be solved soon,” explains Father Édayé.

Although he has mentioned publicly that a sum of approximately$25,000 is apparently missing in the account of the Saint Jules parish,Father Édayé preferred not divulging any amount this time around oridentifying a period during which some money started to disappearfrom the account of the parish or when deposits started to get smaller.

“It is not only a matter of money that led me to stop church serv-ices. There are pastoral and administrative issues to solve. I am work-ing diligently at finding solutions,” he added.

Northern shrimp removed from Smarter Seafood list

S A I N T E - A N N E - D E S -MONTS: - Smarter Seafood, aprogram run by FourchetteBleue, has removed the north-ern shrimp from its 2019 list, adecision that crustacean fisher-men find hard to understand.The decision was made by theExploramer Museum inSainte-Anne-des-Monts who,since 2009, has promoted aSmarter Seafood programgeared towards the soundmanagement of the St.Lawrence marine resourcesproviding consumers with in-formation regarding sustain-able development andbiodiversity.

In addition to northernshrimp, caplan and Greenlandhalibut have also been tem-porarily removed from the list.“For preventive purposes, allthree species were removed, astime will tell how the stocksreact. We know that there werestock declines this year. We arenot taking them away forever.For now this is a cautionarymeasure,” says the director ofthe Exploramer museum andthe person responsible for theSmarter Seafood program,

Sandra Gauthier. Smarter Seafood still en-

courages consumers to choosenorthern shrimp rather thanshellfish from Asia.

Incomprehensible

The shrimp fishermen aresurprised by this decision. The

Shrimp Fishermen's Office inthe Town of Gaspé respects thedecision made by Exploramer,saying that the Gulf is anecosystem dominated bygroundfish. The resurgence ofredfish in particular and theother species adds pressure oncrustacean stock as it is part oftheir larder.

“When you talk to Fish-eries and Oceans biologists,fishermen or others, there is noone who thinks the northernshrimp is threatened. Manage-ment is under the precaution-ary approach, so manage-ment is done very, very care-fully. There is no danger to thenorthern shrimp biomass in theGulf,” says the director of theboard, Patrice Element.

Species removed

Northern ShrimpMackerel

Greenland halibut (Turbot)

Species added

Atlantic RedfishMarlin Spike Grenadier

Egg wrack (algae) Black Whip Weed (algae)

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Police reportJordan Isaac, 38, from Listuguj was granted bail on March 15 byQuebec Court Judge Celestina Almeida. He is charged with as-sault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and assault. Thecase involves a January incident Isaac was indirectly involved in.The accused is suspected of having carried a weapon that wasused later by another person. Judge Almeida opted for his releasebecause he plans to go to therapy, has already made the initialsteps to obtain that help, and has agreed to live with his motherfor a while. Certain conditions have been imposed including acurfew.

He is also charged with assault causing bodily harm, assault with aweapon, uttering death threats, two counts of obstructing justiceand assault against police officers in connection to a case that oc-curred on February 17 in his Listuguj home, where his formergirlfriend was injured. Both cases will be heard at the NewCarlisle courthouse on April 8.

---The Federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) im-posed fines to 13 fishermen who failed to respect the FisheriesAct last year. The fines imposed to those Gaspé Peninula andSaint-Roch-de-l’Achigan fishermen total $20,510.

André-Albert Dupuis (Sainte-Anne-des-Monts), Richard Arrelle(Saint-Roch-de-l’Achigan), and André Sarrasin (Saint-Roch-de-l’Achigan) are each fined $870 for catching and possession ofmore than the allowable amount of cod in one day during therecreational groundfish fishery. Dany Daraîche (Cap-Chat) andJean-Paul Sohier (Marsoui) are fined $1,650 and $825 respectivelyfor the same offences. Richard Tanguay (Sainte-Anne-des-Monts)is fined $300 for shellfish harvesting in a closed area. Jean-GuyCassivi (Cap-aux-Os) is fined $1,600 and will receive a 2-day sus-pension of his fishing license for derogation from the conditionsof his lobster license by having ropes floating on the surface. Heis also fined $1,000 for failing to maintain his tag record. Twoother lobster fisherman, Serge Cloutier (Rose Bridge) and CharlesElement (Cap-des-Rosiers) are each fined $1,500 for derogationfrom the conditions of their lobster license by having ropes float-ing on the surface. Jeannot Denis (Rivière-au-Renard) is fined$2,525 for possession of snow crab under the legal size limit.Norbert Bond (Saint-Georges-de-Malbaie) and Dylan Leggo(Douglastown) are respectively fined $1,500 and $1,000 for havingfished snow crab in a closed area. Jacques Huet (Cloridorme) isfined $2,000 for derogation from the conditions of his shrimpfishing license by landing fish without the presence of a docksideobserver, $500 for failing to record bycatch in his logbook and$2,000 for having processed shrimp to such an extent that it isdifficult to determine the size.

Nelson Sergerie

H & S Tax Return Services

Services d’Impôts H & SH & S Tax Return Services

As in most years, there are several changes to the tax laws.Revenue Quebec requires extra documents to continueto qualify for the Solidarity Tax Credit, such as the newRelevé 31 or your town tax bill.To make sure you obtain maximum tax savings, trust yourtax returns to H & S Tax Return Services.For fast, accurate service at competitive rates, rely on over35 years experience in tax preparation.Appointments can be made in the following ways:• Call Donna Harrison or Louis Sexton at any time in

Cascapedia-St-Jules at (418) 759-5790. • Call the Spec office on Tuesdays at (418) 752-5400

address: 208-B Gérard D. Levesque, New Carlisle (front west entrance) from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at (418) 752-5400.

• Email [email protected] look forward to serving you!

MAPAQ wants to leave the Rivière-au-Renard Industrial Park

RIVIÈRE-AU-RENARD: - Afile that is almost a quarter ofa century old is being re-launched, since once againthe Quebec government wantsto leave the Rivière-au-Re-nard Industrial Park by sellingit to the Town of Gaspé.

The facilities are owned bythe Quebec Ministry of Agri-culture, Fisheries and Food(MAPAQ). The department’sfirst attempts to transfer theproperty to the Town dateback to 1996. The latest dis-cussions between the govern-ment and the Town date backto 2014.

At that time, the Gaspé rid-ing Member of the NationalAssembly, Gaétan Lelièvre,was minister delegated to theRegions under PaulineMarois’s Parti Québécoisgovernment. A press confer-ence was held in Rivière-au-Renard to announce the

resumption of discussions.“We were almost at the pointof reaching an agreement butrequired an upgrade to all theinfrastructures. It was a basicrequest we had at the time.The work has never beendone,” said Mayor DanielCôté. This upgrade wouldhave required $4.3 million.

The

Conditions

The industrial park is man-aged by the Town. Quebechas been providing $50,000 ayear since 1996 for snow re-moval, maintenance of thepumping stations, etc. Thisamount has never been in-dexed and no longer reflectstoday’s costs. The mayor be-lieves the amount indexed to2019 could reach $75,000 or$100,000.

Quebec has been in defaultsince 2018 and currently owes$100,000. A clear message is

being issued to the ministry:“Before we start discussingmunicipalization, pay us whatyou owe us. We will not ac-cept municipalization at anyprice. When they have paid,we will discuss it,” adds Mr.Côté.

The mayor does not wantto take any risks: “betweenMAPAQ doing the work itselfor transferring money to theTown, we prefer MAPAQ todo the work.”

The saltwater pumpingstations, water mains andstreets belong to the MAPAQ.“MAPAQ is asked to upgradeengineering studies that es-tablish costs and we willbegin to discuss once this isdone.” The Rivière-au-Renardindustrial park includes threefish processing plants, a ship-yard, a wintering slip and amarina. Docks are also lo-cated there but are under thejurisdiction of the federalgovernment.

Page 4 - March 20, 2019 - Spec

Editorial page

Gilles Gagné

Commentary

If your telecommunications are expensive, then you

must be in CanadaBy stating that the company is not throwing in

the towel on the Gaspé Peninsula fibre optic file, theexecutives of Navigue.com showed a lot of guts onMarch 13 when a $1.2 million investment was an-nounced, because they are pitted against a giant,British Columbia based Telus, that is heavily subsi-dized to install the same equipment.

Heavily subsidized is an understatement. Telusis receiving $31 million in grants to connect 7,386households located in six regions of Quebec. TheQuebec government is providing $20.7 million toTelus while the Canadian government adds $10.3million to that pot. Telus kicks in $13.5 million of itsown funds, which amounts to 30.3% of the total in-vestment of $44.5 million.

Simply put, the grant of $31 million represents$4,197.13 of public money per household.

A company collaborating with Navigue.com,Télécommunications de l’est, had submitted a bidfor installing the fibre optic network in the threeeasternmost MRCs of the Lower Saint Lawrence for$1,560 of public money per household. The Nav-igue.com bid for the Gaspé Peninsula was alongthe same lines. That is almost one-third less!

The federal and provincial governments appar-ently opted for Telus because they presented aglobal solution for six regions: the Gaspé Peninsula,the North Shore, Lower Saint Lawrence, Chaudière-Appalaches, Mauricie and the non-serviced areasaround Quebec City. The two levels of governmentwere also confident that a giant such as Telus hadthe technical capacity of conducting the project fromA to Z.

Governments are often like that. Their homework

is often botched because of preconceived ideas.Bigger is better for government officials. If it is big,then it must be good. If we know the company, itmust be reliable. Developing regional competenciesis not governments’ forte.

With “ifs” like that, no wonder there is less com-petition in this country’s telecommunications worldthan in most industrialized countries, and even thirdworld countries.

With “ifs” like that, we don’t have to wonder whyCanadians pay some of the highest costs in theworld for their phone, internet and television serv-ices.

With “ifs” like that, it is not a surprise to see theCanadian Radio-television and TelecommunicationsCommission, the CRTC, taking years to assess sit-uations that are dealt with in weeks in other coun-tries. Succeeding governments have failed tomodernize the way that commission works, andthey have failed to appoint a majority of commis-sioners with up-to-date knowledge and a modern vi-sion.

So, since the December 2017 government an-nouncement to the effect that Telus gets a $31 mil-lion grant to install fibre optics in six regions,wireless service providers like Navigue.com havesuffered a setback. Online services reachinghouses through fibre optics are faster than wirelessones, and hundreds of clients have switched toTelus.

Having diversified its activities since 2017through the acquisitions of Infocom and SolutionsInfomédia, respectively specialized in security sys-tems and web sites, Navigue.com no longer heavilydepends on internet services financially. Its man-agement was able to “put a knee on the ground,” asits president Jean-Marie Perreault says, only to re-sume the battle, with Gaspesian competences.

It will not be an easy fight. The amount of $1.2million invested by Navigue.com is strictly privatemoney. Over the next 15 months, it will only allowthe company to compete against Telus over a smallfraction of the Gaspé Peninsula, the Hope Town toGascons stretch.

In an ideal context, the CRTC would have beenquick enough to decree that owners of fiber opticnetworks like Telus and the Réseau collectif des

communications électroniques, a regional entity,have to share their wire with users likeNavigue.com. This would have been repeating anold and wise decision that forced telephone compa-nies to share their copper wire networks with com-petitors, for pre-determined rates.

However, the CRTC is still studying the matter,while it is a “fait accompli” in certain countries sincethe end of the 20th century.

Like the company did for IP (Internet protocol)phone services, Navigue.com will likely come upwith cheaper fibre optic rates than Telus, despite notbeing subsidized. In the meantime, we will pay toomuch for those services.

I was somewhat surprised to read the shortarticle by Nelson Sergerie in the March 6 edition ofSpec, referring to our Federal Member of Parlia-ment and Canada’s Revenue Minister, DianeLebouthillier, not being overly concerned regardingthe debate surrounding SNC-Lavalin.

I have been personally involved in politics, bothProvincial and Federal for many years and therewas never an occasion when I would take the pre-sumed results for granted.

After having spent many hours watching, if I maysay, the repetitious antics of various members of thejudicial committee, I am of the opinion that if SNC-Lavalin was unable to bid on construction projectsin Canada for at least ten years, it would undoubt-edly have a drastic effect on the Canadian econ-omy.

SNC-Lavalin is one of the world’s largest interna-tional construction companies. It has projects -some minor, some major in practically everyprovince in Canada, and in many other countries ofthe world.

My greatest concern is that we must be realisticas I am certain the majority of us are, when we takeinto consideration the loss of eleven thousand jobs.

England has expressed an interest in having theSNC-Lavalin head office relocate to London if itwere to leave Quebec. Such a move would provedifficult with the present EUSN and BREXIT situa-tion.

John F. Le Gresley,New Carlisle, Quebec

Enclosed is a cashier cheque for $400.00(USD).

Ms. Joan Sawyer Imhoff's letter to the editor thatappeared in the Spec recently incentivized me tomake this contribution. I admire the mission of theSpec and applaud your effort.

Here in western Colorado where I reside, ourdaily local paper, that has been around since 1893,is struggling. They recently went to an online editionon Monday and Tuesday of eachweek to cut cost and avoid lay-offs.

The Gaspé Spec has an important role in yourregion and I would like to to see it remain viable.

Paul Currie-MillsSnow Mesa CT., Grand Junction, CO, USA

(Taxes included)1-year (paper or digital): $466-months (paper or digital): $25 Outside Canada: 1-year paper $165 digital: $46

SPEC welcomes letters to the editor on subjects relevant to topics covered by the paper. Letters mustbe kept within 300 words or less and may be edited for clarity or to remove any slanderous, sexist,racist or homophobic statements. We reserve the right to reject any letters. Opinions or letters pub-lished do not necessarily reflect the editorial policies or beliefs of this newspaper. All letters must bearthe handwritten signature of the writer and include the address and number(s) for verification purposes.(Address & phone number will not be printed.). The Publisher shall not be liable for slight changesor typographical errors that do not lessen the value of an advertisement. The Publisher's liabilityfor other errors or omissions in connection with any advertisement is strictly limited to publica-tion of the advertisement in any subsequent issue or the refund of any monies paid for the adver-tisement.

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Gilles Gagné

Navigue.com invests $1.2M

to install fibre optics network

NEW RICHMOND: – Nav-igue.com is investing $1.2million over the next 15months to install fibre opticsbetween Hope Town and PortDaniel-Gascons in order tocompete with Telus. The in-stallation will begin over thenext few weeks.

Customers located east ofthe Highway 132 bridge inHope Town and in SaintGodefroi will be among thefirst to benefit from the Nav-igue.com network. Theyshould have access to theservice by the beginning ofsummer. Shigawake cus-tomers will follow next win-ter and the PortDaniel-Gascons householdswill be connected during thesummer of 2020.

The $1.2 million invest-ment represents Navigue.com’s answer to the $31 mil-lion grant announced forTelus in December 2017 to in-stall fibre optics in 7,400households located in 148communities from six regionsof Quebec, namely the GaspéPeninsula, the North Shore,Lower Saint Lawrence,Chaudière-Appalaches, theQuebec City area andMauricie.

Navigue.com had submit-ted a bid for that program butthe Canada and Quebec gov-ernments preferred supportingTelus, which received $20.7million from the provincialgovernment and $10.3 millionfrom the federal government.Telus is investing $13.5 mil-lion in that $44.5 million ven-ture.

The president of Nav-igue.com, Jean-Marie Per-reault, says that the Telusproject affected the clientele

base of his company becausethe Telus network was in-stalled first and providedspeed that the wireless sys-tem of Navigue could notmatch.

“We lost clients to Telusbecause of the grant (…) Itmade us more fragile but it isnot because we put a kneedown that we are dead. Weare going at a pace we can af-ford,” says Mr. Perreault.

“It is a must to competewith Telus in order to reducethe price of telecommunica-tions in the Gaspé Peninsula,”he adds.

Twelve years ago, Nav-igue.com started to competewith Telus in high speed in-ternet and telephone servicesby installing towers that pro-vided those services in sectorsthat the telecommunicationsgiant did not want to cover.

Mr. Perreault thinks thatNavigue.com’s fibre opticswill attract 600 new cus-

tomers located between HopeTown and Port Daniel-Gas-cons inclusively. There areabout 1,200 households inthose communities.

They will add to the 500new customers Navigue.comhas recruited over recentmonths in the Mauricie in theQuebec City area. These arepeople who could not con-vince companies like Bell andTelus to cover their areas.Those new customers madeup for the losses experiencedin the Gaspé Peninsula be-cause of Telus’ subsidizedfibre optic network.

The Navigue.com team isconfident in succeeding in itsnew initiative because “ournetwork, called Fibre G, is100% conceived by Gaspe-sians. That money will stay inthe community. (…) We arealso aware that we must staycompetitive, less costly, if ourclients are to opt for us,” addsJean-Marie Perreault.

Maurice Quesnel, president of the Baie des Chaleurs Chamberof Commerce; Jean-Marie Perreault, Navigue.com president;Gilles Arsenault company shareholder; Félix Perreault, direc-tor of networks and systems; Andrée Côté of Caisses Des-jardins, and Marc Wayne Addison, director general ofNavigue.com are confident that the $1.2 million investmentmade by the company will bear fruit.

Musée de la Gaspésie unionizesNelson SergerieGASPÉ: - Musée de la Gaspésie employees want to unionize. Therequest was filed January 28 by the CSN (Confédération des syn-dicats nationaux) but the parties do not agree on the workers tar-geted by the accreditation. A labour policy that outlines theworking relationship between management and workers has beenin place since 1999 and was to be updated this year.

“We had discussions in the fall to review the work policy. Weended up forming a committee. But the employees felt theywanted to go more towards the (unionization) process,” says mu-seum director Nathalie Spooner. The museum doesn’t intend tooppose the approach of its workers.

The CSN isn’t saying much, preferring to wait before com-menting on the approach. However, in a comment sent by emailthe union says it looks forward to starting negotiations for thegood of its members. The museum management says it wants toreveal this information for the sake of transparency towards itsmembers. “It’s important that our members know about it. It’ssomething that was important to say,” concluded Ms. Spooner.

Gilles Gagné

NEW RICHMAND ARENA:

Anglophone communityvoices its concerns

NEW RICHMOND: – Theanglophone community ofNew Richmond expressed itsviews about the future of thelocal arena on March 13 andwhile there is concern aboutthe effect its modernizationwould have on the municipaltax bill, a slight majority ofthe 10 people who attendedthe meeting favour that up-grading.

The meeting was organ-ized specifically for the an-glophone community. A shortpresentation of the situationwas made by town councillorGeneviève Braconnier anddirector general StéphaneCyr. Mayor Éric Dubé andtwo other town employeeswere also in attendance.

The arena needs$7,350,000 in renovationsand upgrades. The roof, theplumbing, the electrical andcooling systems, the cementslab and a number of otherequipment components haveto be changed. The dressingroom and the restrooms haveto be rebuilt. The structure ofthe building also has to bestrengthened because of thenew roof, which will includebetter insulation.

Councillor Braconniermade it clear that the munic-ipal administration will notgo ahead with the upgradingproject “if we don’t benefitfrom a grant covering at least66% of the total bill.”

She added that a 66%grant from the federal gov-ernment would require theTown of New Richmond topay $2,450,000 of the proj-ect, which would have an im-pact of 3% on the taxpayers’bill.

“We have a scenario with66% percent support from thegovernment. Will it be 70%or 80%? We don’t know,”pointed out Ms. Braconnier.

The meeting was consid-ered private by the Town ofNew Richmond in the sensethat the citizens could voicetheir concerns without beingidentified. SPEC was allowedto attend but a couple of citi-zens preferred not beingquoted.

One person suggested themunicipal administrationshould waive the upgradingof the arena because of itscost; or charge the users,since they want an arena; orreach an agreement with aneighbouring town, like

Bonaventure, consideringthat that community willhave a new inside rink by thespring of 2020.

Pamela Dow, who ac-cepted to be quoted, re-minded the citizens that“there is not enough ice timein Bonaventure to includeus.” She also said that reach-ing a deal with other munici-palities might not translateinto a lesser cost. ln regardsto charging only the users ofthe arena, Ms. Dow empha-sized that “we will live in asociety where costs areshared.”

Another man expressedbeing ambivalent about thewhole issue. “I am paying al-most five grand in municipaltaxes. I grew up in an arena. Ifind it extremely importantfor a town but I am maxedout in taxes. I can’t afford arise.”

Geneviève Braconnierpointed out that the town isdiscussing the matter with thecommunity of Cascapedia-St-Jules and those discussionsinclude Cascapedia-St-Julespaying a certain portion of theoperating costs.

She also emphasized thatwhile the population is agingin New Richmond, the popu-lation of Gesgapegiag isyoung, and could spellgreater needs in the future.

“We do have concerns forall people’s needs,” con-cluded councillor Braconnier,who also said that anothermeeting will take place at onepoint over the next months todo a whole wrap up of the sit-uation.

The New Richmond arena,like 40 other arenas in Que-bec and many more else-where in Canada, is dealingwith the January 1, 2020,deadline, when it will be pro-hibited to buy Freon inCanada. (Freon is the gasused in the other arenas’ cool-ing system.)

Mayor Éric Dubé is confi-dent that the federal govern-ment will come up soon withan infrastructure program tai-lored for those arenas. “Thetiming couldn’t be better. It isan election year. So far, theQuebec government is offer-ing $800,000 for the replace-ment of the cooling systembut if the federal governmentcomes with a program, wecannot use both. We have tochoose and I am pretty surethat the Ottawa program willbe more advantageous.”

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Details will follow in future issues of theSPEC and on various social media sites.For further information, please contact

CASA at 418-752-5995.

Mental Health and Wellness Fairs for the English-speaking community will take

place later this year.OCTOBER 19 at the Galgoisiet Hall in

Gesgapegiag and OCTOBER 26at the Gespeg Centre in Gaspé.

Page 6 - March 20, 2019 - Spec


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Cynthia Dow

Gesgapegiag: Future of the language in good hands!

GESGAPEGIAG: - The

United Nations has chosen

2019 as the Year of Indigenous

Languages, and Gesgapegiag

is one Indigenous community

that will not be left behind!

Thanks to recent grants

from the Ministère de la cul-ture et de communications, the

Gesgapegiag Band is working

on a cultural policy and taking

initiatives to strengthen the

use of the Mi’gmaq language

within the community – and

perhaps outside the commu-

nity as well.

“We started with a survey

which we had never done be-

fore,” Melissa Bryan told

SPEC, “Erica Marchand-

Gedeon did it for us, going

door to door, and talking to

elders.”

The results show that

Mi’gmaq is spoken by about

50% of the respondents, who

were mainly from the older

age groups. All respondents,

even if they don’t speak Mi’g-

maq, noted that the language

is either extremely important,

very important or somewhat

important to them.

“We are developing lan-

guage tool kits for each house.

These would include stickies

with vocabulary for household

items such as fridge, stove,

kettle, etc,” Melissa ex-

plained.

“We are also trying to

reach those who live else-

where, because about half of

the Band members live out-

side the community. So we’ll

use our facebook page and our

Youtube channel to show

videos.”

The Band is also aiming to

use the language more in the

Band office, putting up posters

and translating position titles.

Along with Melissa, Alex

Jerome is working on the tech-

nical aspect of the project,

preparing video material with

the help of language teacher

Roger Lee Martin and some

youthful volunteers. “We are

Alex Jerome and Melissa Bryan are working to encourage in-terest in learning Mi’gmaq.

hoping to be able to stream his

language classes online,” Alex

explained. Besides teaching

Mi’gmaq to the children at

Wejgwapniag School, Roger

sometimes offers an adult

class in the late afternoons.

“We’re trying to break the

stigma around speaking Mi’g-

maq, encouraging people to

relate to the language differ-

ently. It needs more exposure.

The greatest barrier is that eld-

ers don’t feel that comfortable

teaching the language. They

just want to use it. So we in-

tend to offer them lessons in

coaching so they can teach

others. Secondly, people get

discouraged because the

grammar is so different from

English,” Melissa explained.

The young lady knows

about learning another lan-

guage. While living in the US

she picked up Spanish and her

daughter is now learning

French. She is proud that her

grandparents, Ernestine and

Wallace Condo, speak Mi’g-

maq at home and she’s slowly

picking it up herself.

As the Communications

and Policy Manager for the

Band, Melissa is hoping the

initiative to develop a cultural

policy will result in the coor-

dination and centralization of

efforts to use and teach the

language. “For example, we

have been working with the

Public Works Department and

now the stop signs are in

Mi’gmaq,” she explained.

The policy will also outline

protocols for meetings in the

community which will begin

with traditional prayers. “We

are awaiting funding for a cul-

tural coordinator now and are

hoping to post it soon.”

Watch SPEC for future ar-

ticles about learning the Mi’g-

maq language!

Orléans Express modifies its scheduleNelson SergerieGASPÉ: - There is good news for users of the Orléans Expresscoach service. As of March 24, a schedule change will result inpassengers saving 1 hour and 15 minutes on the Montreal tothe Gaspé trip. The bus will leave Montreal at 7 a.m. instead of6 a.m., which will reduce the waiting time in Quebec City byone hour and in Rimouski by 15 minutes. Westward departureswon’t be modified due to interconnections with other networks.

Last fall a petition of 1800 signatures was initiated by Mar-tine Thibault of Sainte-Anne-des-Monts and filed with KeolisCanada, Orléans Express parent company. “The basic goal wasto improve the service in general, but I was told that going westwas too complicated because of all the connections that meet.I’m glad to see a big company like that listened,” said Ms.Thibault. The member for the National Assembly in Bonaven-ture, Sylvain Roy, is also satisfied with the decision of the car-rier: “When citizens take charge and criticize a situation ordemand improvement, it works,” he said. Some people continueto complain that the bus leaving the Gaspé in the morning doesnot arrive until late in the evening in Montreal.

Eginamasi Migmewei - I am learning Mi’gmaq


Gaspé mayor receives positivefeedback about transportation file

GASPÉ: - In late February themayor of Gaspé, Daniel Côté,met with Quebec governmentministers and high-rankingcivil servants to discuss essen-tial issues for the town, theCôte-de-Gaspé MRC and theGaspé Peninsula.

Mayor Côté says that hewas “wearing my four hats,”during that business trip, as heis also the Côte-de-Gaspé pre-fect, president of the RéGIM(Régie intermunicipale detransport Gaspésie – Îles-de-la-Madeleine) and president ofthe aerial services committeefor the Union des municipal-ités du Québec.

“The aerial infrastructureproblems are solved since thenew government made an an-nouncement over the fall,”says Daniel Côté, referring tothe $8.33 million announced inDecember for the Grand Riverairport, the $3.58 million slatedfor the Gaspé airport and the$4.7 million earmarked for theSa in te -Anne-des -Montsairstrip.

He also points out that ayear ago the former govern-ment adopted the partial reim-bursement measure for users,which can translate into a $500or 30% reimbursement ofplane tickets annually.

“Now, we must tackle theprice of tickets and improvethe fiscal measures (for airportoperators). The previous gov-ernment had created a national(Quebec-wide) committee sup-posed to take care of those as-pects. The committee membersnever met. In fact, its creationremains to be completed. Now,the first meeting will takeplace. I was offered a datepretty soon, as in next week. Iwill try to make some time forthat but it is not sure yet. Wecan say that things are mov-ing,” explains Mr. Côté.

It often costs more to flybetween Gaspé and Montrealthan between Montreal andEurope, a situation criticizedby numerous organizations andindividuals since that situationalso prevails in other Quebecregions.

Rail transportation was alsocovered during Daniel Côté’svisit to the Quebec TransportDepartment.

“The orientation of the newgovernment remains thesame,” says Daniel Côté. He isreferring to Coalition avenirQuébec minister François Bon-nardel’s statement to the effectthat the $100 million budgetannounced on May 5, 2017, by

former premier Philippe Couil-lard for the Gaspé line will beinvested as expected.

Is a date for the return oftrains to Gaspé set? “It offi-cially remains 2022 but as longas the studies are not com-pleted, it is a tentative date.They (Transport Quebec offi-cials) don’t want to say toomuch. We sometimes hear thatthe service could be restoredby the end of 2021 but I amcautious with that,” says Mr.Côté.

“One of the problems thatmarked the past years is thatthe MTQ (Quebec’s Ministryof Transport) had no railwayengineer, someone with a thor-ough knowledge of infrastruc-tures. Many (government)people were saying whateverthey want because the level ofknowledge was very low atthat department. Now that theyhave hired some engineers,things are going in the right di-rection,” he comments.

As president of the RéGIM,Daniel Côté approached Trans-port Quebec’s management inorder to ask them if it is possi-ble to accelerate the annualconfirmation of the commuterservice’s regular funding.

“It takes between 12 and 18months before getting confir-mation. We always get thefunding but it is so compli-cated. The accountability re-ports are also very complicatedto fill,” he points out, confidentthat his message was heard.

RéGIM had a good year,with an increase in ridershipfrom 113,000 to 116,000 usersbetween 2017 and 2018. Thatnumber is including adaptedtransport for handicapped peo-ple.

“Our regular annual grantamounts to $600,000. The gastax reimbursement brings inbetween $1.1 million and $1.4million yearly and the restcomes from the ticket sales, fora total budget of $3 million,”says Mr. Côté.

The property transfer of theport of Gaspé from the federalto the Quebec government willrequire some patience, says themayor of Gaspé, after ex-changes with Transport Que-bec officials.

“It is up to the federal gov-ernment to move. To put itshort, it is not progressing fast.I wanted to make sure that theQuebec government has notchanged its mind regarding theacceptance of the port’s prop-erty. We also wanted to makesure that if a stake is not clearin Quebec City, they can al-ways call us to get information.We told them that the accessroad to the port and the under-ground pipes all belong to thefederal government,” explainsDaniel Côté.

In what kind of state is theport? “We know nothing aboutit. The port was rebuilt 34 or 35years ago. It is well-protectedfrom the storms. It looks infine shape but it requires an as-sessment. Ottawa has neverbeen able to tell us anythingabout its state. We don’t knoweither how things will proceedif repairs are necessary. WillOttawa do the work and thentransfer the property or will Ot-tawa transfer the property tothe Quebec government with asum of money for the repairs,which will then be carried outat the provincial level? I couldbet on the second option,”concludes Mr. Côté.

Gilles Gagné

SUPPLYSAND, GRAVEL & OTHER MATERIAL

Ville de Gaspé requests tenders to supply sand, gravel,crushed gravel, rock abrasive, top soil, black ground, asphaltand cold patch.

The necessary documents are available at the Town Hall'spublic works department during regular office hours situatedat 25, rue de l'Hôtel-de-Ville, Gaspé.

Whichever mode chosen, the tenders, to be valid, must be re-ceived at Ville de Gaspé's Clerk office, in sealed envelopes,before April 10, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. with the following inscriptionon the envelope "Soumission – Sable, gravier & autres " to bepublicly opened the same day, at the same address, beginningat 2:01 p.m.

Ville de Gaspé does not bind itself to accept the lowest nor anyof the tenders received.

Gaspé, March 20, 2019

Isabelle VézinaDirector of legal services and town clerk

CALL FOR TENDERS

Reflections

by

Diane Skinner Flowers

Earth - Air - WaterIs the climate of our planet really changing? Despite re-

cent controversies in the public domain about whether cli-mate change is real, we cannot deny that scientists areproducing data that supports this premise.

First, let’s be certain to make the distinction between cli-mate and weather. It is critical for understanding what ishappening. Weather is local. Weather is temporary andshort term. Weather forecasters predict the weather, withsome mixed results. Meteorologists predict snow, rain,wind, blizzards – this is weather.

Climate is something different based on observationsof weather. Climate is based on data and carefully recordednumbers. This includes temperature, snowfall, rain, windand other weather events BUT over a long time and over alarger area. For example, today it is raining in Caplan, witha high of 5˚C and a low of 2˚C. However, statistics gath-ered over many years tell us that this is an anomaly. Mostdays in early March see snowfall in our region. This is cli-mate.

Is the climate of the Earth really changing? The answeris yes. This is not an opinion. This is based on a great dealof data. This is based on numbers collected over a hundredyears and more. The Earth is getting warmer. This is nosmall thing. The effects are already being seen and they arecatastrophic. The average climate of the planet is warmingup. This is not my opinion. This is according to scientistswho gather and analyze data, and scientists are very wor-ried.

The Earth provides all living things, including humans,with air, water and food to survive long term. All livingthings are connected to the Earth, but currently the bal-ance of life has been shifted. Again, let’s look at the bigpicture. Humans have drastically impacted the balance ofliving things on our planet. We also can look at our globalclimate. This is the overall health of the Earth. It is chang-ing. What happens in one region can affect another. It islike we are one big biosphere and things are changing andnot for the better.

Scientists have pretty much concluded that humans havecaused a change in the Earth’s balance. In the past 100years, the overall climate has risen one degree. Don’t mis-take this as a one degree rise in weather today. The rise inoverall climate of the planet has already started a massivechange in our world. Admittedly, the Earth has hadchanges in its climate before. We have had several ice ages.During these times, a great deal of the Earth was coveredin ice. After time, the planet warmed and most of the icemelted.

Global warming may be caused by volcanic eruptions,increased solar activity or carbon dioxide. The last one iscaused primarily by human activity. Air pollution is the fac-tor that produces carbon dioxide. That’s on us. Humansand their lifestyle produce this. Fossil fuels is a large con-tributing factor. Cars, planes, and factories spew carbondioxide into the atmosphere. It is affecting the balance ofthe world’s climate. As the climate warms, the waters warm.Animals change their habitat to seek cooler water, for ex-ample. Polar bears are losing their habitat at an alarmingrate. The disappearance of any species upsets the balanceof the world.

So, climate change deniers examine the facts. Don’tconsider opinions. This planet is fragile. Can we change thiscatastrophe in the making? Yes. But sooner, rather thanlater. The question is, “Do we want the Earth to have ahealthy and viable future?” If not for us, then we shouldwant this for future generations. This is no small thing. It’s

MAIN: JimIt is with great sadness that we announce the pass-

ing of Jim Main on March 11, 2019 at the age of 79years. He was born on March 4, 1940 in New Carlisle,Quebec.

Jim is survived by his loving wife of 13 yearsLeone; children: Shawn (Sam) Main, Christian Main,Carla (Rod) Allen, Shawnee Main; grandchildren:Monica (James), Nicholas (Lizanne), James, Graeson,Kaylan; Uncle Ronnie (Marg) Main; and nephewDarin. Jim is predeceased by his parents, Henry andAdela Main; brothers: Henry and Doug Main andUncle Leonard and Aunt Jean. A memorial servicewas held at the Sundre Gospel Centre, Sundre on Fri-day, March 15, 2019. Heartland Funeral Services Ltd.,Sundre entrusted with arrangements. 403-638-4393www.heartlandfuneralservices.com

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Card of Thanks, Birth Announcement,Prayer, Engagement,

Birthday, Anniversary, Memorial Service announcement:

$30 ($35 with picture) up to 20 lines.

In Memoriam: $30 ($35 with picture) up to 20 lines

$40 ($45 with picture) for more than 20 lines

Obituary or Wedding:$40 ($45 with picture) (Max. 300 words)

SUBMISSIONS FOR THIS PAGEMUST BE IN OUR OFFICE BY THURSDAY.

The New CarlisleFuneral Association

extends sympathy to the family of Mrs. Virginia Huntington

Prayer to the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit, you who makes me see everything andwho shows me the way to reach my ideals. You whogives me the divine gift to forgive and forget from allthat is done to me and you who are in all instincts ofmy life with me. I, in this short dialogue, want tothank you for everything and confirm once more thatI never want to be separated from you. No matter howgreat the material desires may be, I want to be withyou and my loved ones in your perpetual glory. A person may pray this prayer three consecutivedays without asking for their wish. After the third daytheir wish will be granted, no matter how difficult itmay be and promise to publish this dialogue as soonas your favour has been granted.

C.D

O B I T U A R I E S

MACWHIRTER: WilliamJanuary 10, 1924 – February 28, 2019 - 95 years old

It is with great sadness that we announce the pass-ing of Mr. William MacWhirter which occurred at theage of 95 years on February 28, 2019, at the HospitalHôtel-Dieu in Gaspé. He was predeceased by hiswife, Mrs. Evangeline Doiron. He leaves behind: sonWilliam MacWhirter Junior "Champ" (Jann); daugh-ter Jo-Ann MacWhirter (Mick Kennedy); grandchil-dren Dylan and Jenna Kennedy; great-granddaughterBridget; brothers-in-law; sisters-in-law; nephew andnieces.

Visitations was held at the Valère-Fortin FuneralHome located at 86 Jacques-Cartier Street in Gaspé,on Saturday, March 2, 2019, and on Sunday, March 3,2019. The funeral service was held at the CathedralChrist-Roi in Gaspé on Sunday, March 3, 2019, at 2p.m.

Interment will take place during the summer inHope Town. Donations may be made to the CancerSociety or the Legion. Following the funeral service,there was a light snack served at the Gaspé Legion.The Valère Funeral Home was entrusted with organ-izing the above mentioned services.

BOURGAIZE: Elizabeth (Morrison)1938 - 2019

It is with great sadness that we announce the pass-ing of Betty on February 15, 2019, at the age of 80.Beloved wife of Weston. Mother to Lori and the lateJohn, her grandson Shane, his mother Ingrid and hersister Hazel. Betty also leaves other close relatives andfriends. Betty will be greatly missed and fondly re-membered by all who knew her.

CAMPBELL: GoodwillGoodwill Arnold Campbell (“Goodie”) passed

into the presence of His Lord and Saviour Jesus Christon Tuesday, March 5. Beloved husband of Daphne,loving father of George and Tedd (Marla), and proudgrandad of Rowan and Melody. Predeceased by hisparents George and Lottie Campbell and sister FaithDelaney (Bruce).

Goodie was privileged to host “The Gospel Hour”radio program on CHNC for many years. Goodieloved the Gaspé Coast and its people, calling it the“Holy Land” because Percé Rock (the pierced rock)reminded him of how the Lord was pierced for ourtransgressions.

Goodie liked to say that he was born twice on theGaspé: once physically at birth and again spirituallyat age 14, when the truth of Bible verse John 3:16, “ForGod so loved the world, that He gave his only begot-ten son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish,but have eternal life,” dawned on him. He believedand received the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour.

Goodie is remembered by his aunt Ruth Starnes,cousins Ivan and Shena Starnes, and cousins Loringand Shirley Campbell, who visited often. He will bemissed by his nephews Rex and Glen Delaney andtheir families, and by extended family members andfriends too numerous to mention but no less loved.

A memorial service was held for Goodie on March9 in Kemptville, Ontario. Interment will be in thespring at Bishop Mills Cemetery, Bishop Mills, On-tario. Those who wish may make a memorial dona-tion to Fairhaven Bible Camp.

LANGLOIS: Cecile January 6, 1932 - March 8, 2019 - 87 years old

It is with great sadness that we announce the pass-ing of Mrs. Cecile Langlois which occurred on March8, 2019, at the age of 87 years. She was predeceasedby her husband Mr. Clifton Langlois. She leaves be-hind her children: Dorna (Denis), Gillis (Mike),Kevin, Clyde (Jennifer); her grandchildren: Stephane,Stephanie, Kayla, MacKenzie, Jeffrey, Kent; her great-grandchildren: Liam, Jayden; one sister: Hilda;nephews; nieces and many other family membersand friends.

Visitation was held at the Sanctuaire Notre-Damede Pointe-Navarre on Monday, March 11, 2019, from1 p.m. to 3 p.m. The funeral service was held at 3 p.m.the same day. Donations can be made in memory ofMrs. Cecile Langlois to the Sanctuaire Notre-Damede Pointe-Navarre.


Order your announcement online at thegaspespec.com

HOCQUARD: Francis GeorgeDecember 31, 1944 - March 24, 2009

Ten years have passed and with heavy hearts weremember you, Fran, a loving brother, brother-in-law,uncle and great uncle and we cherish the memoriesof our time shared with you.You had a nature we could not help lovingAnd a heart that was purer than goldAnd to those who knew you and loved you,Your memory will never grow old.

Loved and missed everyday. Forever in ourhearts. Barry, Thelma, Debbie and Jayden.

Card of Thanks

A sincere thank-you to my family, friendsand staff of the second and fourth floors at theMGR. Ross Sanitorium who made it possible tocelebrate my 90th birthday.

Many thanks for the lovely gifts, flowers, bestwishes and food I received and the deliciouslunch.

Vera Roberts Simon and family.

I N M E M O R I E S

HARDY: MurraySeptember 6, 1928 - March 22, 2009Your gentle face and pleasant smileWith sadness we recall.You had a kindly word for each,And died beloved by all.The voice is mute and stilled the heartThat loved us well and true.Ah, bitter was the trail to partFrom one so good as you.You are not forgotten, loved one,Nor will you ever be.

Deepest SympathyTo the family of the late Jimmy Barter, who

passed away in Whitby, Ontario, in February2019. Special thoughts are sent to his belovedwife Joyce Brash, their family and to all whoknew the family.

From the Campbell girls; Edna, Blanche, Gertrude, Isobel and Jean

MALONEY: Cynthia MitchellFebruary 5, 1919 - March 24, 2017We think of you in silence.We often speak you name.What would we give to hear your voiceAnd see your face again.

Forever in our hearts is Dear Mama. Sybil, Glen,Desi, Marlene, Diane, Ron and families.

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Forage Moreau Inc.418-392-9501

Mathieu Mercier - Driller/Owner

3 Rue CerisiersGaspé, Québec G4X 2M1

Tel. (418) 368-5425Fax (418) 368-7290

www.groupeohmega. com

Electricity - PlumbingAutomationIndustrial computing Counter sales

Going beyond and reliable since 1982

IN BUSINESS FOR 35 YEARSProud to serve you!

Distributors of petroleum products: diesel, furnace oil, stove oil, gas and motor oil

HEAD OFFICE:Bonaventure125 Route 132Bonaventure, QC G0C 1E0Tel.: (418) 534-2777Fax: (418) [email protected]

Chandler125 Route LeblancPabos, QC G0C 1K0Tel: (418) 689-2595

Gaspé216D Montée Sandy BeachGaspé, QC G4X 2B3Tel.: (418) 368-8777

MEMBER OF

BILINGUAL SERVICE

p.m.

NEW RICHMOND:Flea Market

New clothing has arrived, $1each. Good, hot meal at noon.Free. Donations accepted. Wealso give away hundreds ofitems every week. To donate orobtain furniture, please call418-392-5161. Open on Fri-days and Saturdays from 10a.m. to 3 p.m. at 248 PerronBlvd, New Richmond.

CASCAPEDIA-ST-JULES: Royal Canadian Legion

Br. 172The Royal Canadian Legion,Branch 172, meets monthlyevery third Saturday at theLegion located at 55 GallagherSt.

CASCAPEDIA-ST-JULES:Bookroom

Please be advised that thebookroom has reopened.

CASCAPEDIA-ST-JULES:50+ Club

Every Tuesday: Bingo begin-ning at 7 p.m. Welcome to all.Every Thursday: Dame dePique at 1 p.m. $5 per person.GESGAPEGIAG:

Important MeetingThis is to inform the communitymembers of Gesgapegiag andthe surrounding area that Ges-gapegiag healing lodge(NNADAP) hosts AA meetingsand is open to everyone. If youare interested in a lifestyle freeof alcohol and substance aduse


For more information contactLloyd Roussel at 418-645-3700or 418-645-2786.

BARACHOIS:Recreation Centre

March 29: The BarachoisRecreation Centre will be hold-ing an 18+ money bingo at 7p.m. Bilingual. Over $600 incash prizes.

PORT DANIEL: Three Star

Golden Age ClubEvery Wednesday: Pétanquefrom 7 to 9 p.m. Cost $3. Comeand join the fun and learn anew game! March 23: Military Whist be-ginning at 8 p.m. Light lunchserved. Admission $5.April 5: Bingo beginning at 7 p.m. $10 per series or 3 for$20. Canteen open.

SHIGAWAKE:Community Centre

March 30: Supper/Ski-doorally/dance at the ShigawakeCommunity Centre. Registra-tion from noon till 1 p.m. Sup-per beginning at 4:30 p.m.Dance beginning at 8 p.m. Rally$10, supper $10 and dance $12or $25 for all three events.Prizes to win. All welcome.

HOPE TOWN:Hope Baptist Church

Hope Baptist Church welcomesyou. Sunday School for all agesat 9:45 a.m. and CorporateWorship at 11 a.m. on Sundays.Prayer Meeting and Bible Study

at 7 p.m. on Wednesdays.Young Peoples for grades 7-11at 7 p.m. on Fridays. 305 Route132 West, Hope Town, 418-752-5838.

HOPE TOWN:Community Centre

April 13: Military whist begin-ning at 8 p.m.April 26: Gift bingo beginningat 7 p.m. $10 per series orthree for $20.

NEW CARLISLE:Bible Chapel Services

Sunday: Breaking of Bread forBelievers - 9:30 a.m.; Sundaynight service - 7 p.m.;Wednesday: Bible Study andPrayer - 7 p.m. “You Must BeBorn Again.”

NEW CARLISLE:50+ Club

March 28: Annual generalmeeting beginning at 5 p.m. atthe New Carlisle town hall. Fol-lowed by a free lunch.

NEW CARLISLE:Royal Canadian Legion

March 23: Afternoon cribbagetournament. Registration atnoon. Tournament begins at 1p.m. $10 per person. Bringyour partner. All welcome. Formore information contactNorma at 418-752-6214.April 19: New Carlisle Legionpresents Tammy Adams from 8p.m. to 12:30 a.m. $10 perticket. Limited number of tick-ets will be sold. Saturdays: Legion open at 1

ANGLIGANCHURCH

OF CANADA

YORK:500 Card Party

Please note that the York RiverFADOQ Seniors Club 500 cardparty previously scheduled forApril 5 will be held on Friday,March 29 at 7:30 p.m. at theYork River Community Hall. $5per person. Call Tony Patterson(418-368-3276) to register orfor more information.

DOUGLASTOWN:Community Centre

Tuesdays: Zumba classesfrom 7-8 p.m. $10/class.Wednesday: Yoga for womenThere are two groups: 5:15p.m. to 6:45 p.m. and 7:15p.m. to 8:45 p.m. $17/class(drop in). Requires minimal ex-perience in yoga. Bring yourmat.

MALBAY:Malbay ACW

July 27: All Saints by the SeaTea, Crafts and Bake Sale at theMalbay Hall from 10:30 a.m. to2:30 p.m.

BARACHOIS:Legion Branch 261

Every Monday: The RoyalCanadian Legion, Branch 261,will be having a bingo at 7 p.m.at the Legion.Every Tuesday: Sandbagsfrom 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.Every Thursday: Darts from 7p.m. to 9 p.m.

COAST ROUND-UP COAST ROUND-UP: $5 per weekCLASSIFIED: $6 per week

and have the desire to change,you are invited to attend meet-ings every Monday at 7 p.m.

GESGAPEGIAG:N.A. Meetings

N.A. Meetings held every Tues-day at 7 p.m. at the MawiomiTreatment Centre, located at 85School Street in Gesgapegiag.Everyone welcome! For moreinformation call 418-759-3522.

ROTARY CLUB WINNERSThe winners for the week ofMarch 10 are: RaynaldRitchie, Simone Young, SophieBergeron-Leblanc, ÉlizabethMalett, Laval Cyr, Line Arsenaultand Adrienne Poirier.

COAST ROUND-UP

Sunday, March 24New Carlisle

11 a.m.Holy EucharistPort Daniel

9 a.m. Holy Eucharist

PARISH OF GASPÉ

Sunday, March 24St. Paul’s - Gaspé10 a.m. Holy Eucharist

comes from it.

LIBRA – Sept 23/Oct 23

Libra, home is where the heart is, es-

pecially this week. Spend as much

quality time as you can with loved

ones in the days to come. Find a cozy

spot to read and unwind as well.

SCORPIO – Oct 24/Nov 22

Scorpio, might you be so fixated on a

problem that you’re overlooking the

simplest solutions? Take a step back

and refocus. The answer might be

simpler than you think.

SAGITTARIUS – Nov 23/Dec 21

You are always ready to take on more,

Sagittarius. This week you may have

to set some limits or you may burn

out. An adventure with a BFF is

doable.

CAPRICORN – Dec 22/Jan 20

It is possible to accomplish much in

stressful situations, Capricorn, but

sometimes you don’t realize when you

need to take a step back. This is the

time.

AQUARIUS – Jan 21/Feb 18

Aquarius, a long-held belief might be

holding you back or preventing you

from moving forward. Once you let it

go, you’ll feel emancipated and ready

to take a step in the right direction.

PISCES – Feb 19/Mar 20

Pisces, a bad mood need not dictate

how you approach the day or even the

week ahead. Call up a friend and beat

the funk.

ARIES – Mar 21/Apr 20

Your mind is receptive to innovative

ideas, Aries. You may feel inspired to

try out many new things in the days to

come. Catalog those that make you

happy.

TAURUS – Apr 21/May 21

Turn off the logical part of your mind

for a little while, Taurus. Let your fan-

tasies run wild. Trying to manage

everything down to the minute can

short-circuit your brain.

GEMINI – May 22/Jun 21

Gemini, a truckload of new ideas is

coming your way. These may serve

as catalysts for new hobbies, projects

and even developing new friendships

along the way.

CANCER – Jun 22/Jul 22

You may not be entirely sure what’s

holding you up this week, Cancer.

Once you put your finger on it, you’ll

be able to work through the issues

that much more readily.

LEO – Jul 23/Aug 23

You have carte blanche to hibernate

for the week if you feel you need

some alone time, Leo. But try to put

your self-imposed exile to some good

use around the house.

VIRGO – Aug 24/Sept 22

Virgo, why slip quietly into a party

when you can make a grand en-

trance? Don’t be afraid of pointing

the spotlight on yourself for a

change. Then enjoy the rush that

HOROSCOPES

Brain Teaser

What has

teeth but

can’t eat?

(a comb)


Photo: G. Gagné

RENEW ONLINE AT

THEGASPESPEC.COM

Tel.: 418-368-0288 28 St-Patrick, Douglastown, Quebec

Email: [email protected]

AN APPROACH THAT PAYS!

alphonsebernard.caCARLETON�SUR�MER418�364�7471CPA

ALPHONSE BERNARD, FCPA, FCACLAUDE BERNARD, CPA, CAHÉLÈNE LAGACÉ, BAA

ASSOCIATES

This could beyour

advertisingspace.

Give us a call!

Cascapedia – St-Jules:St Pat’s concert provides quality musicCynthia DowThe rain and fog seem to have dampened spirits on Friday, March 15, as only about 30 peo-ple turned out for the St Patrick’s Concert at the 50-Plus Hall, but the music was great! Stal-warts Jimmy Cahill and John Gedeon played their guitars and sang, and siblings Dan and LyneSexton did two numbers, including Wild Mountain Thyme. A real treat was the song Come By TheHills, with the first verse sung in Irish Gaelic by Laura Teasdale who is undertaking a projectat NRHS for ELAN. The whole evening started off, of course, with a delightful series ofsongs and dances with the children, directed by Elaine Sexton. The little leprechauns includedVincent Sexton-Goulet, Emma McNeil, Elijah McNeil, Eliane Sexton-Goulet, Edward andJosephine Sexton and a tiny, reluctant Riley McLeod! The supper was held on Sunday, March17, at the community hall and there was a great turnout in support of the Mutual Aid Soci-ety and $3,000 was raised for the church.

Vincent Sexton-Goulet, Emma and

Elijah McNeil, Eliane Sexton-Goulet,

Edward and Josephine Sexton played

their various “instruments” for the

audience!

Riley McLeod mesmerized by John Gideon’s performance

Cont'd from coverFUNDING:

of $113,779 to develop and

implement a tourism strategy.

The organization will carry

out two projects, the first one

consisting in hiring a tourism

manager with a mandate to

develop a long-term tourism

strategy.

The second project in-

volves restoring the commu-

nity's pow wow site by

setting up a new structure for

the drums, and adding perma-

nent seating, an outdoor fire-

place and washrooms, and

new signage. It will also in-

volve the modernization of

three 18-foot tipis and the

Micmac medicinal plant in-

terpretation hiking trail. Fi-

nally, a website specific to the

tourism sector will be set up

and new sound equipment

will be installed.

Hollie Larocque, director

of economic development

and lands in Gesgapegiag

points out that those projects

“are building sustainability in

the community.”

The Banc de Paspebiac

Historic Site gets a $30,000

grant for a project totalling

$298,804. The money will be

used to cover the costs asso-

ciated with the new exhibit’s

English-speaking community

component.

Cime Aventures receives a

$45,000 loan for a total of

$119,715. The money will go

towards a project for an aerial

adventure course, the fit-up

of a free zone for river rafting

activities on a section of

Bonaventure River and the

purchase of equipment. It will

create three jobs.

The Château Blanc of

Bonaventure will use a loan

of $45,000, out of a total in-

vestment of $98,000, to reno-

vate and modernize the

hallway and the eight pre-

mium rooms, as well as pur-

chase banquet equipment.

The representatives of the Bonaventure MRC organizations andcompanies were glad to get funding confirmation from GaspéPeninsula and Magdalen Islands Member of Parliament DianeLebouthillier.

Documents

19680 VOLUME 45 / NO 11, MARCH 20, 2019 Soap …...2019/03/20 · Cont'd on page 12 Gilles GagnéJeanie LeLacheurPhoto: J. LeLacheur VOLUME 45 / NO 11, MARCH 20, 2019 19680 ESTABLISHED