Thompson honoured with award at FPEIM AGM
Municipal leaders from across the province met virtually earlier this month for the 63rd annual meeting of the Federation of P.E.I. Municipalities.
Federation president Bruce MacDougall said he is looking forward to the work to be done through the provincial Land Matters initiative, which will include a review of the Planning Act.
Highlights of the day included the keynote speaker, Bill Carr.
The actor, a former Prince Edward Islander who now calls Halifax home, likes to make people laugh at what is trivial while helping them think deeply about what counts.
With the help of photographs and illustrations, Carr used humour to show delegates the silver lining in COVID-19 era.
Another highlight of the meeting was when Karen Thompson stepped forward to accept the Bruce H. Yeo Award on behalf of her late husband, Ralph Thompson.
The award, established in memory of Yeo, the Federation of P.E.I. Municipalities' first president, recognizes the outstanding contributions to municipal government in P.E.I. This year it marks the 10th anniversary of the release of the Report of the Commission on Land and Local Governance written by Thompson.
“On behalf of Ralph, for a project that he certainly believed in, and Jean-Paul Arsenault and Debbie Gillespie, who were very instrumental in putting the whole project together, thank you very much. I know they all appreciate this,” Karen Thompson said.
The former judge's contribution and commitment in preparing the report was a significant step forward for municipalities in the province, says FPEIM president Bruce MacDougall.
“He put his heart and soul into preparing this report, which continues to guide our work today.”
The annual meeting also included a presentation by Dean Lund, an address by Garth Frizzell, Federation of Canadian Municipalities president and speeches by
Premier Dennis King, Opposition Leader Peter Bevan Baker and Third Party Leader Sonny Gallant.
The day concluded with addresses by ministers Jamie Fox, Bloyce Thompson and Natalie Jameson. The ministers talked about the importance of collaborating with municipalities and the federation.