Rants & Raves
Rave: For Good Samaritans. Sure, they’re everywhere, but Cape Breton sometimes seems to be blessed with an embarrassment of riches when it comes to helpful citizens.
Last month, Ronnie Penny of Halifax ( formerly Whitney Pier) was home for a visit and discovered a fishing tackle box in East Bay while cruising past some of his old haunts. He looked inside, found a fishing licence, and drove out of his way through Sydney to return the mislaid tackle. The angler wasn’t home at the time to properly thank Ronnie, but the gesture was definitely appreciated.
More recently, we ran a letter on Saturday from Yvon LeBlanc of Margaree Harbour, who credited Yurij Salmaniw for picking up a briefcase that had fallen off Yvon’s car roof.
These are only two recent examples, but they both deserve a tip of the hat for reminding us that there is good in the world — and in Cape Breton — and for that we should be thankful.
Rant: For an unnecessary wait. A few weeks ago, Joe Black of Howie Centre made a sensible suggestion: Have the traffic lights located at the Keltic Drive entrance to Walmart set to flashing amber until the Sydney River bridge replacement is complete (Red lights unnecessary for the odd seagull, Sept. 4).
“That way, drivers turning left into the Walmart parking lot wouldn’t have to sit there waiting for a red light to turn green,” he wrote. “The only thing travelling the opposite way nowadays is the odd seagull.”
Waiting for a red light is not the end of the world, but why make people wait when it’s not necessary?
Rave: For breaking a record. The sixth annual Cape Breton Cares radiothon on Thursday raised a record-breaking total of more than $607,000. The radiothon raised approximately $576,000 last year.
Over the years, the funds raised have been used at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital in areas such as the neonatal intensive care unit, the pediatrics unit, labour and delivery, the cancer centre, the cancer patient care fund, renal dialysis and the palliative care unit.
“You know what, we are completely overwhelmed and excited,” said Brad Jacobs, CEO of the Cape Breton Regional Hospital Foundation. “It’s a significant increase and we are so fortunate to have a community that cares as much as they do and gives back in such a big way.”
Rave: For a spirit-lifting photo op. The Inverness Oran recently reported on the acre of sunflowers grown by Jack and Marguerite Miller on their farm in Northeast Margaree.
In addition to being a source of sustenance for birds and bees, the thousands of golden flowers and green leaves are a beautiful contrast against the blue sky of a fine late-summer or early-fall day.