The H1N1 immunization program in New Brunswick encountered some problems during the roll-out. The biggest turned out to be a shortage of serum followed by confusing information over who should and shouldn’t be attending the clinics.

That’s what happened on October 29th at Inglewood School in Grand Bay-Westfield. The daytime clinic was for elementary school students attending Inglewood and Grand Bay Elementary schools. The evening clinic was supposed to be for people in the priority group made up of children between the ages of six months and five years, pregnant women, women who have had a baby in the last six weeks, people with chronic disease  such as diabetes and asthma under the age of 65, school age children, people of aboriginal ancestry, and household contacts or those who care for either an infant six months old or a person with a compromised immune system. The evening clinic never turned out that way and some people became frustrated.

Krista Hartery & children.

Krista Hartery of GBW brought her three sons to the later clinic. She was told to bring them because they are in a high risk group, all being asthmatic. One of her kids has been hospitalized three times with pneumonia. But Krista and her children were turned away by the security guard at the door. She was told they weren’t eligible for the shot because two of her children attend Westfield School and the other goes to River Valley Middle School. They told her to take them to the clinics at their own school. Apparently the fact they all suffered from asthma didn’t matter even though the clinic was supposed to be for that priority group.  Hartery says they’ll keep washing their hands and hopefully they’ll be fine. “As a parent I know I did all I could do,” she says. “Other than wrestle the security guard down.”

LISTEN TO AN INTERVIEW WITH KRISTA HARTERY

High risk adults were also turned away at the door. Walter Savoy travelled to Inglewood from Clarendon to get the shot. He suffers from heart disease and diabetes. After arguing with officials at the clinic he was finally given the immunization because of the distance he traveled to get here. Janet Wells wasn’t as lucky. She took time off work to come to the clinic after being told to go there by the health department. She is also in the high risk group. Wells said she was told to attend and then blocked at the door. She says they don’t seem to know what they’re doing and no one is in control of the clinic.

LISTEN TO MORE INTERVIEWS WITH FRUSTRATED PEOPLE AT THE CLINIC

Leo Voutour, Walter Savoy, Janet Wells & Allan Driver

A spokesperson at the Department of Health could not explain why people in the high risk group were turned away when the evening clinic was supposed to be for them. Since that first clinic in GBW the department has cancelled other scheduled clinics due to a shortage of vaccine.  They’ve also changed the make up of the priority group, excluding people with chronic disease, to make sure the highest priority groups are vaccinated immediately until more vaccine is received.

The next scheduled clinic in Grand Bay-Westfield is November 5th at Westfield Elementary School for school age children. Following that there are two clinics scheduled for the River Valley Community Centre on November 23rd and 24th. These clinics are for the general public. This schedule changes all the time but as of now, there are no clinics listed for River Valley Middle School and no special clinics for people in the high priority group in this community.

LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW WITH KEN HIRTLE AND RENATA WOODWARD OF THE NATURE TRUST

The Nature Trust of New Brunswick endorses the Blueberry Hill project but is not yet in a position to accept the property. Last spring the 50 acre site behind the Workers Rehabilitation Centre was offered to the Nature Trust as a natural area to preserve and protect. The property is one of the last undeveloped tracts of land in the area, containing fields, wetlands and forests bordering the St. John River.

Renata Woodward & Ken Hirtle

At the Annual Board Meeting of the Nature Trust held in Grand Bay-Westfield, board members supported Blueberry Hill, calling the property a gem, but were reluctant to proceed because of concerns over the state of culverts under the road over Henderson Brook. These culverts were put in about 50 years ago when the property was going to be used as a quarantine station for livestock. The culverts are old and need replacing. Estimates range from 20,000 to 350,000 dollars to do the work. The Nature Trust says it can’t take on that financial liability and for this proposal to go ahead, a solution to the culvert problem has to be found.

An engineering study of the culverts is going to be done to find the best option. One idea may be to remove the culverts altogether and build a walking bridge over the brook. In the meantime, the Nature Trust is reaching out to the community to find partners who value this property and want to see it preserved. A Trail Study has been completed and right now the plan is to make minor improvements to the existing trail system and open the area up for use by the public. A ‘Friends of Blueberry Hill’ group has been formed to help the Nature Trust look after this property and assist in raising money for the stewardship fund. Anyone from the Martinon, River Road and Grand Bay-Westfield area is welcome to join the group. Blueberry Hill is a major asset for the area. Imagine having an accessible park and recreational area preserved for all time right in the middle our community. If you want to help make that a reality, plan on attending the next ‘Friends of Blueberry Hill’ meeting on Wednesday, November 4th at 7:00 pm in Room A of the Centrum in Grand Bay-Westfield. If you’d like more information about  the group call Mike Bonga at 672-5290 or Gary Mittelholtz at 217-0224.

The Nature Trust of New Brunswick hopes to make a final decision on the Blueberry Hill Property by the end of the year.

LISTEN TO THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH REG GALLANT FEATURING SOME OF HIS ORIGINAL MUSIC

Reg Gallant of Grand Bay-Westfield is now a member of an exclusive club. On October
17th he was inducted into the New Brunswick Country Music Hall of Fame. For many years if there was live music being played in the River Valley or anywhere around the province for that matter, chances are Reg Gallant was there. Music has been a big part of his life since he and his brother would sneak downstairs and listen to the tunes being played at house parties while growing up in Richibucto. They’d pick up the instruments and pluck away at them, teaching themselves how to play. Reg can’t remember a time when he wasn’t surrounded by music.

The self taught musician now plays the guitar, mandolin, fiddle, banjo and bass. He also messes around with piano, hammer dulcimer, peddle steel guitar, pretty much anything with strings. “If it has strings,” says Reg. “I’ll make it work.” Being able to play just about everything came in handy on his 3rd CD called ‘Let Me String You Along’. He plays all the instruments on this album of traditional favorites. His second CD is a collection of covers from Merle Haggard and others. Gallant’s first recording is called ‘At the Drop of a Hat’ recorded in 2004 and features almost all original material with the exception of one song. It’s still a favorite and selling well.

Gallant is humbled to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. “It’s something to be recognized by your peers for something you’ve done all you life,” he says. Gallant joins the ranks of other local Hall of Famers including Alison Inch and the late, legendary George Hector, both of Grand Bay-Westfield. “This is like a vindication for those times when you’re out playing and not sure if people are really listening but you know now that people have heard the music and you’re being recognized for it,” says Gallant. “It’s a big honour.”

Reg is famous for his live Jamborees. His annual Port City Jamboree Christmas Food Bank Fundraiser is coming up on November 14th. All money raised from the ticket sales and all the nonperishable food items brought in go to the River Valley Food Bank. Gallant says he likes giving back to the community and more than anything, he enjoys making people smile. “Part of playing music is the joy you get when you look at the audience and they’re enjoying it too,” says Gallant.

Congratulations to Reg Gallant for a well deserved honour.

LISTEN TO A FEATURE INTERVIEW WITH DAWN MACINNIS

Dawn MacInnis is a young, professional woman with a beautiful home nestled in the trees overlooking the river and a brand new book. It’s her first stab at being an author and her book is about her first stab at home ownership. The book about the house came together in an unlikely way. Dawn had been chronicling her experiences as a novice home owner ever since she moved into her house in March, 2007. A chance encounter with a local publisher running a contest looking for new authors led to the publication in September of ‘My First House: A Single Girls Journey’.

Dawn’s book covers a year of triumphs, trials and tribulations in her new home. She writes about making the decision to first buy a house and then finding this little gem by the river. Her adventure begins in the spring waiting for the gardens to bloom and knowing nothing about flowers. The summer brings more gardening challenges and insects to deal with. Fall and the vibrant colours of the leaves brings its own pleasures and finally winter arrives with record breaking snow falls and storms. Through it all, MacInnis learns a great deal about, not only home ownership, but also about herself. “I truly believe this was a journey,” says MacInnis.  “I’m a stronger person for it. I have so much more belief in myself now thinking that I can do this. I wanted to share my story. I believe everyone’s meant to travel their own journey and for a better part of a year, this was mine”

MacInnis says writing the book was equally as traumatic as taking ownership of the house. She entered a book-writing contest sponsored by Trinity Publishing. In her pitch to the publishers she said her journey as a first time home owner was good therapy for her and she felt her experiences could help others. They bought it and soon MacInnis had a book deal. She discovered that, as in home ownership, you need a lot of discipline to be a writer. Her book was a year in the making and now that it’s out, she’s pleased with the final product.

MacInnis is also pleased with her choice of living in Ketepec. “I’ve lived in uptown Saint John but I wanted my own privacy and space,” she says. “I had no idea this existed so close to the city. I’m close to the river, surrounded by beautiful mature trees and being originally from PEI I’m drawn to the water and some of my friends from the island have visited and felt this is a little piece of PEI that I was able to find in Saint John, New Brunswick.”

‘My First House: A Single Girls Journey’ by Dawn MacInnis is available from Trinity Enterprise in Saint John.

LISTEN TO INTERVIEW WITH GOLLAN FAMILY OF NOVA SCOTIA

The Gollan Family

They came. They camped. They blasted off. They are members of a small but passionate group of rocketry enthusiasts. About 50 members of the NB Rocketry Club and other groups from the region, along with a handful of spectators, spent two days recently under 25,000 feet of open sky on a hill top in the middle of Base Gagetown. This was the Rage in the Gage Rocket Launch held annually on the Labour Day Weekend.

Tom Raithby of Willow Grove is one of the organizers of the event. He says this is the biggest launch of high power rockets they have every year. To fire off these bigger rockets they need permission to use the airspace and the operators must be certified. These rockets are not toys even though these enthusiasts are all amateurs and hobbyists. For them building and launching rockets is what the hobby is all about.

You may be familiar with the model rockets that kids build and launch, sometimes in school or Scout programs. These things are impressive and can go as high as a thousand feet. There were plenty of model rockets at Rage in the Gage but this was really a vehicle for the big boys to show off their work. High power rockets come in various sizes and with different engines but they’re capable of reaching altitudes of 10,000 ft. or more and velocities in the supersonic range. Many of these rockets have complicated electronics in them that transmit the altitude, speed and location of the rocket. This is essential to find them because the rockets employ a parachute to gently bring them back to earth and sometimes the rockets can land far from the launch site.

“I really like that I can send something that high and I can build it myself and I can get it back without breaking it,” says Raithby. “It’s really satisfying to send something up against the elements and bring it back unbroken.”

Tom Raithby with his rocket.

Of course some times accidents happen and rockets crash but that’s all part of the hobby. With all rocketry you’re dealing with explosives and sharing air space with planes so safety during the launch and decent is the most important thing. All rockets must be inspected before launch and the range is tightly controlled by the launch director during any flight.

Greg Gollan from Windsor, Nova Scotia has one of the largest rockets this year at Gagetown.  His rocket called Dragon Farts is 9 feet long and weights 37 pounds. It has five motors on it with a combined burn time of 9.5 seconds that can produce 1,125 pounds of thrust. It can reach an altitude of 7,000 feet and best of all, the rocket has an onboard video camera to record the whole flight. Gollan says he built the rocket for  3 or 4 hundred dollars and he has about $300 of electronics on it. He says the propellants to launch the rocket cost about $400 every flight and it takes about five hours to prepare the rocket for launch. “It’s awesome….what a rush,” says Gollan after the successful first launch of Dragon Farts at Rage in the Gage.

LISTEN TO ENTIRE LAUNCH OF IN MOTION IN GBW (Sept. 15-09  – 40 Minutes)

Doing the Wave

Over 60 people came to Brundage Point on September 15th for the launch of ‘In Motion’ in Grand Bay-Westfield. Some wore running shoes and sweat shirts. Good thing too because before long they were waving their arms and bending their knees, participating in some fun activities to get everyone ‘in motion’.

This is a community based health initiative to encourage people in Grand Bay-Westfield to be active and to eat healthy. The program started in Saskatoon in 2002 and has spread across the country. It’s new to this province and Grand Bay-Westfield is just one of 7 communities piloting ‘In Motion’ this year. The Province, through the Department of Wellness, Culture and Sport’s Wellness Strategy, has supported the Healthy Eating Physical Activity Coalition (HEPAC) of NB in leading the implementation of ‘In Motion’. The Partners in Prevention (PIP) Committee, a Grand Bay-Westfield community-based  wellness network was the group successful in having ‘In Motion’ brought to the town. This committee had already identified through a health survey that physical activity is one main area of focus, so having ‘In Motion’ to pilot will certainly assist in educating the community on the role that it plays in improving health.

Getting In Motion

The evening began with words of support from MLA Jack Keir and Mayor Grace Losier, who both emphasized the importance of physical activity and exercise. Betty Hoyt, the co-chair of HEPAC, who lives in Ketepec talked about the program and how it came to the province. She outlined the health challenges we face in New Brunswick where one in every three children are overweight or obese, higher than the Canadian average. We have more smokers than most provinces and the rates of diseases linked to poor lifestyles like heart disease, some cancers, diabetes and high blood pressure are also higher in New Brunswick. Next came Kathy Orser, a wellness coordinator for HEPAC, who got the group up and exercising and then gave more details about ‘In Motion’. She said to gain health benefits from exercising requires one hour of regular physical activity every day. Health Canada says inactivity is as bad for your health as smoking. Orser said the health profile for Grand Bay-Westfield showed that we have the highest rate of asthma in the province and a higher rate of people with high blood pressure. After that, Grand Bay-Westfield resident and mother of five, Holly Johnson talked about her life long battle with weight, especially during the birth of her twins. Two years ago she was 150 pounds heavier than she is now. Holly became emotional as she explained how she turned her life around by joining weight-watchers and training for a half marathon. Finally Joanne Barry, chair of the Partners in Prevention Committee came to the microphone to explain how the program will be rolled out. She asked all the participants to visit various tables in the room to provide ideas and suggestions on how ‘In Motion’ could work in Grand Bay-Westfield.

Over the next few minutes people threw out all kinds of ideas and many signed up to be an ‘in motion’ partner. Another meeting is planned for October 6th.

Holly Johnson

Joanne Barry

LISTEN TO INTERVIEW WITH MARC MACLEOD, GENERAL MANAGER OF LANDFILL

Landfill General Manager Marc MacLeod checking out the pumpkins growing in soil made right at the landfill

Marc MacLeod calls it his perfect job. The General Manager of the Fundy Region Solid Waste Commission is excited as he takes me on a tour of the landfill. He’s showing off his baby and you can tell he’s a proud dad. We check it all over, from the top of one cell that is soon closing to the entrance where the new scales are being readied for use. This is a landfill on the move, adapting to environmental challenges as they occur. It’s an exciting time for MacLeod and all his staff.

The biggest change is the recent switch to just three bins for recycling. Instead of sorting everything into five groups now we have just three;  cardboard, paper and boxboard, and the rest of the recyclables including plastic, metal and for the first time, milk cartons. Macleod says the changes are necessary because the recycling market has been seriously affected by the recession. He says they’d like to recycle glass but there’s still no market for it in the region. The exciting news is a major investment to build a sorting conveyor to simplify the process of separating recyclables. In addition, baling equipment will be installed so materials can be packaged on-site for shipment. The project will significantly reduce the operational costs of the Commission and will allow it to manage its recyclables more efficiently.

MacLeod checking a gas pump

Early this fall visitors to the landfill should notice a big improvement in wait times at the front gate. Another set of scales has been installed and will soon be operational. Macleod says this should end some of the long line ups they’ve seen in the past, especially on Saturdays.

By next year the landfill will begin generating its own electricity from the landfill gas it produces. This is mainly methane produced as the garbage in the cells decomposes. MacLeod says they’ve been capturing the gas for the last year and a half and just burning it off but soon they’ll be burning it to produce electricity. A turbine has been ordered and should arrive in March. Once the system is installed the landfill will be able to produce about a thousand kilowatts of electricity a year, enough to power about 800 homes. Macleod says the landfill uses 180 to 250 kilowatts and it will take another couple hundred to run the system, leaving about five or six hundred kilowatts to go into the grid. That’s enough to meet the electrical needs of around 300 homes in a year, all generated by gas that would normally just be burned off.

Recycling building

Composting is continuing at the landfill and they’re experimenting with making their own soil. It must be pretty good judging by the crop of vegetables they’ve been able to grow on site. MacLeod says all this makes the Crane Mountain Landfill one of the largest greenhouse gas reducers per capita, in North America. And that’s something we should all be proud of.

LISTEN TO INTERVIEW WITH MAYOR GRACE LOSIER

LISTEN TO INTERVIEW WITH DEVELOPER, DARYL DIBBLEE

Not since the debate over building the Crane Mountain Landfill has an issue so ignited the people of Grand Bay-Westfield. Over a hundred concerned citizens turned out for the March 23rd public hearing into the new municipal plan and proposed zoning changes. That same evening, prior to the council session, many of the same people attended an information session presented by the developer of the proposed ‘Woods of Westfield’ subdivision. People are concerned about the impact this project may have on their water supply.

Saint John developer Daryl Dibblee is planning a 561 home subdivision on 850 acres he purchased above the highway at exit 80. In order for the project to proceed, the zoning of the area must be changed to allow for a mix of housing and commercial development along the highway. Under the municipal plan the developer is also responsible for providing sewerage to the subdivision. Dibblee attended the information session along with representatives of Fundy Engineering who are doing an Environmental Impact Assessment on the site. Plenty of questions were asked about the amount of water available in the area and plans for sewerage but few answers were forthcoming from the developer. Dibblee says they don’t have the answers yet because they haven’t completed all the studies. “We don’t see this going forward unless there are proper solutions to water and waste water,” says Dibblee. “We are working in conjunction with the town and with the Department of Environment as to where is the best solution for waste water treatment. We’ve done desk top studies now for water content and come the spring we’ll be doing our testing.” Dibblee says he wants to set up a committee with town people so they can be part of the process. He says now that he knows the concerns, he can address them. “I think we can satisfy the concerns of the citizens,” he says. “We are a citizen here as well.”

Frustrated by the lack of answers, the crowd made their way downstairs to the council meeting and public hearing. Council received five letters on the issue, one email and a petition containing 355 names. Fifteen presentations were made, all but one opposing the zoning changes in the municipal plan. One by one, residents stepped up to the microphone, asking questions and expressing their concerns over water supply, sewage treatment, lot sizes and wondering why this rezoning had to be done now, before all the environmental studies have been completed. Only the developer himself, Daryl Dibblee spoke in support of the project. He told council he wants to be a good citizen of the town and proposed the establishment of a liaison committee and a website to keep people informed.

A large turnout was there again for the April 14th council meeting, expecting to hear first and second reading of the municipal plan and zoning by-law. Instead, Councilor Bev Day made a motion to postpone the vote for two weeks. The town manager then read a 9-page report prepared by the Development Officer outlining the towns response to every one of the objections expressed by citizens at the public hearing. That report is available on the town’s website.

“We want the community with us, we’re not looking to be in opposition to our community,” says Mayor Grace Losier.  “We are attempting to give understanding to residents because there was a lot of inaccuracies and misconceptions about how it was proceeding, so we want the community to share in the same information that has led council to where each of us probably sits in respect to an opinion on the municipal plan.” Losier said the public can now take two weeks to digest the report and better understand where they’re coming from before the vote on the municipal plan at the April 27th session of council.

“The ‘Woods at Westfield’ and the municipal plan adoption are two very separate things,” says Losier. “We can’t say we’re supportive of the project because we don’t even have a tentative subdivision plan, no EIA and it requires further testing that can’t be done until June.”

When asked by a reporter why the zoning changes had to be passed now instead of waiting until after all the water testing was completed on the site, the mayor explained that this type of rezoning represents a substantial change to the municipal plan and would require another round of public hearings before it could be implemented.

Sue West, one of the people who made a presentation opposing the municipal plan and someone who has serious concerns about the ‘Woods of Westfield’ development, is not impressed with the two week delay by council and the report they passed out. “There is still a lot of misinformation about it,” says West. “Why was it postponed for just two weeks? We would have liked to see the vote postponed for two months so we have more time to contact the Department of Environment.” She said this housing development appears to be driving the municipal plan and not the other way around. West says they’re also disappointed that water analysis is being restricted to within a kilometer range of the housing development. “I expect it to pass first and second reading,” says West. “Council is becoming a huge disappointment to the people of Grand-Bay Westfield.”

LISTEN TO INTERVIEW WITH VAUGHN BLANEY

LISTEN TO INTERVIEW WITH REV. ROBERT MCDOWELL

As this issue of the newspaper hits the streets there are only a few days of life left for the Gagetown, Hampstead and Belleisle ferries. The provincial government extended the run for a month but unless something has changed in the last few days, the almost two hundred year old tradition of a river ferry in Gagetown is coming to an end.

The government announced in the budget it was cutting these services to save 1.5 million dollars. Despite protests and rallies, the minister and the premier say they are not changing their minds. Supporters of the ferries have made it clear they aren’t backing down either.

They received a boost at the last Village of Gagetown Council Meeting when Conservative Opposition Leader David Alward pledged to reverse the Liberal government’s decision to scrap the ferries, if he’s elected premier in 2010.

Former Liberal Cabinet Minister and Gagetown native, Vaughn Blaney says losing the ferry is like having a rug pulled out from under you. “It’s very difficult for me to believe that the ferry of the Shiretown would be gone,” says Blaney. “But I have a sense that this is the tip of the iceberg. If their reasons are economical because of the age of them, (ferries) well you better hang on to Westfield and Evandale and right on around.” Blaney sees this fight as a wake-up call for all of rural New Brunswick. “In the last depression it was rural New Brunswick who fed the fat cats in the urban area and if this whole country goes down the tube, it’ll be rural New Brunswick again that they’ll be coming to and saying please feed us, please get us out of this.” Blaney introduced himself at a recent Gagetown rally to save the ferries as a P.O.L. – Pissed Off Liberal.

At the same rally, Jean-Frances & Dick Mann drove all the way from Bathurst to voice their opposition to the government decision. They say the province should be promoting rural NB and the ferries are part of the whole fabric of the way people live, you just can’t rip it apart.

“This is just the first, watch out Westfield and Gondola Point,” warns Queenstown resident Anne Fawcett. She’s convinced this is just the beginning of the end for all river ferries. She fears this government decision may throw her into bankruptcy. “I’m partially disabled and can’t teach anymore,” she says. “Last summer I got a job as a deckhand on the Hampstead ferry and loved it. It was best job I ever had.”

The fight over ferry service has brought these river communities together like never before. Jemseg, Cambridge Narrows, Hampstead, Queenstown, Upper Gagetown are all working together along with other communities affected by the Belleisle ferry closure. They’ve already organized rallies at home and in Frederiction, collected names on petitions and launched letter writing campaigns. They’re determined to continue fighting to the end. “We’re just going to fight right to the last day,” says Gagetown farmer Wilf Hiscock. “We’re going to try and keep the ferry. It’s our road. It’s our bridge. We’re just not going to turn belly up. We’re going to keep fighting because we’re one big community here and this has brought everyone closer together than ever before.”

Gagetown councillor and United Church Minister, Rev. Robert McDowell is still hoping the Graham government will change its mind and maintain the service but if it doesn’t he says they’ll insist the infrastructure remain in place. If they try to remove it he says they will defend it and do what they need to do to preserve it, including civil disobedience. “We’ll plan on having all night vigils at the ferry,” says McDowell. ” We’ll have someone sit there all night because I suspect if they do come to take the ferry it’ll be in the dark because they know they wouldn’t be able to do it during the day.”

McDowell says they’re looking at all the options in this fight including taking legal against the province but he wasn’t able to give any details just yet. He says the government did this with the intent of sweeping the economy of these little communities away and that, he says, is immoral.

The Gagetown, Hampstead and Belleisle ferries are due to stop running for good at the end of April.

LISTEN TO INTERVIEW WITH DONNIE ROBERTSON

He’s like a member of the family for thousands of people in the Saint John area. They’ve awakened to his friendly voice, corny jokes and weather reports for the last 37 years and Donnie in the Morning on CFBC Radio is still going strong. He’s a broadcasting legend in this town. Not bay for a shy guy from Grand Bay-Westfield.

Donnie Robertson says radio has been in his blood all his life. His parents told him that at the age of five he would sit by the radio and mimic the announcers. Young Donnie set his sights on a career in radio and he hasn’t been disappointed. He started at CFBC in September of 1970 but after only two months he got an offer to work in his hometown of Halifax. Two years later he was back in Saint John hosting the first rock show on the station from 7 to midnight. In 1973 he went to the morning and has been doing it ever since.

“Listeners have been so loyal through the years, like a family,” says Robertson. “And even though the AM audience has eroded over the years, we still have a good fan base who love the oldies.” Donnie was playing these same songs before they were oldies, when CFBC was the number one Top 40 station in the city. Over the years he’s worked with some great people, broadcasting institutions in their own right. People like the late Ingham Palmer and Dave Lockhart, Tom Young who’s now on the Rogers news station and even Steve Murphy of CTV worked with Donnie in the morning.

And those early, early morning shifts have not been always easy for Donnie. You never get used to getting up at 3:30 am but it goes with the territory. Donnie jokes that on weekends he lies around in bed until 6:30. The early morning drives into work from Grand Bay-Westfield have sometimes been challenging, especially in the winter but Donnie wouldn’t be anywhere else. He’s lived in the community for 35 years. His family has grown up here and he loves it.

“The best thing about being on the radio every morning is that I’m in touch with what’s going on in the community and I love Saint John because of the people. They’re down to earth, hard working, very giving people and it’s been an honour for me to talk to some of these people over the years,” says Robertson. “I’m basically a shy person. A lot of radio people are introverted and it’s a way to perform hiding behind a microphone. I got to do it. It’s my dream job and I’m still doing and I’ll continue to do it and that’s about it, I’m all out of words.”

Being out of words is unusual, especially for Donnie in the Morning.