Catégorie : Tribune-Express (Hawkesbury)

More than a dozen of Champlain Township’s veteran firefighters received special honours for their dedication and service over the years.

Township council held a special session September 14 for ceremony to celebrate the presentation of exemplary service awards from the federal government and provincial awards for long service to 14 members, both active and retired, of Champlain Township’s fire department.

« Thank you very much, » said Mayor Normand Riopel.

Fire Chief Ghislain Pigeon made special note of the “courage and dedication” of the firefighters honoured that evening and the sacrifices they and their families make for the community.

The Ontario Fire Marshall’s Office also provided council with a statement that was read out as part of the ceremony, highlighting the courage and dedication of the 14 firefighters honoured.

« Their unwavering dedication to duty has made your community a safer place to live, » stated the Fire Marshall’s Office. « They are true heroes and we are privileged to have them as part of your community. »

Receiving honours during the evening were: 20-year-veterans Patrick Bernier, Richard Sincennes, BenoÎt Larocque, Stéphane Pépin, Marc Brunet, Greg Lydiate, and Kevin Bernique; 30-year veterans Mark Henderson, Jeffrey Carkner, Eric Jaring, James Cowan, Louis Turcotte (now retired), and Michel Martin; 40-year veteran Ernest Roebuck, former captain for the Vankleek Hill fire station, now retired after 42 years service.

They each received their federal and provincial honours, along with a certificate from the Governor General, letters of congratulations from MP Francis Drouin, Mayor Riopel, and a letter of thanks for service to the community. Their spouses received flower bouquets in recognition of their emotional and psychological support to their partners who sometimes have to deal with dangerous situations for the protection of the community.

For the past 25 years Doug Kego has been the face and name behind Nissan Hawkesbury and he does not expect that to change.

“I’m never retiring,” he says, with a grin, during an interview in his cluttered upstairs office at the local Nissan dealership. “I’ve been grateful to make a good living just talking to people.”

Twenty-five years ago, Kego brought his Nissan dealership to Hawkesbury. It wasn’t his first business venture and it was not his original goal to own a car dealership. It just seemed to follow as a natural result of what he likes to do, which is meet and talk with people about what they like, what they want, and what they dream about.

Kego was born in Toronto but never knew his birth parents. He was adopted 11 days after he was born by Bob and Anne Kego, who raised and loved him all through the years. He smiles when he recalls his childhood.

“We had nothing much, but I thought we were rich,” he said. “We had a roof over our heads and food on the table.”

He graduated from Hawkesbury District High School, the local bilingual high school at the time. Sports, rather than academics, was more his interest. He went to Algonquin College for a welding trades course and got his certification, though in the end he didn’t do too much actual welding when he entered the job market.

He worked at the PPG plant in Hawkesbury then later with Canox, a welding supplies company. That is when he was introduced to sales.

At that time, Kego was a young man on the go, but also a young man who did not have his own car, though he knew how to drive. That didn’t deter him from answering a newspaper ad for a car salesman position at Hawkesbury Chrysler. Hughie Brown, the sales manager at the time, was impressed with the young man without his own car and decided to give him a chance.

“An absolutely outstanding man,” said Kego. “He took me under his wing.”

After a week at the Chrysler dealership, young Kego finally got his first sale. Brown congratulated him and also said he was glad that Kego had to work to get that first sale. If Kego had gotten his first sale within his first couple of days on the job, Brown explained, he might have gotten the wrong idea that sales was an easy thing to do.

Kego spent a year at the Chrysler dealership, learning that sales was all about meeting people, learning and understanding what they needed, and trying to figure out how to provide that very thing.

“I worked lots of hours, but that didn’t bother me,” he said. “I loved dealing with people, and I was making good money compared to when I was at Canox.”

His time at Hawkesbury Chrysler proved to be a key point in Kego’s business future. Through his sales dealings he got to know three fellows who were putting together a proposal to open a Mazda dealership. They offered Kego a chance to buy into the project with a 10-per-cent share and the promise that he could increase his partnership share in the future. He decided to go for it.

“I learned a lot about business in general that way,” he said, adding that he stayed on as a partner in the Mazda dealership for eight years before deciding to let his partners buy him out. He had something else in mind. One of his former partners helped him put together a proposal for a Nissan dealership.

The one hitch to his plan was that Nissan Canada already had a nearby dealership across the Ottawa River in Lachute and wanted to avoid market conflict. So instead, Kego was offered the chance to buy the Lachute Nissan dealership. He thought about it, said yes, and took over the Lachute franchise in June 1998. Based on his performance and convincing arguments, Nissan Canada later allowed him to relocate the franchise to Hawkesbury in September of that year.

Kego broke ground on his new location that autumn, starting with a 6000-square-foot building and a staff of 11, including himself. Over the years both the site and the staff have grown, but what he is proud of most are the people he has had working for him during those 25 years.

“All of the people who’ve been with me deserve a ton of thanks,” he said.

Kego has watched all of the changes, up and downs, that have shaped the automotive industry over the past 25 years. While car styles have come and gone, and new technology offers customers more energy-efficient vehicles, and cars and trucks that come with standard features like GPS, that were unheard of a quarter-century ago, one thing has never changed as far as Kego is concerned.

“People are pretty much the same,” he said. “In a small town, if you give good service, then there’s no problem. But if you give bad service, then everybody knows.”

It is part of the message that Kego emphasizes when dealing with new customer service staff. Anyone in business, he observed, needs to make themselves familiar to people and “to make sure the clients know they will get a fair shake.”

That rule sums up how Kego views life in general.

“Follow your heart,” he said. “Be passionate about what you do Whatever you’re going to do, be honest about it. Be the best you can be. If you get to do something you truly love to do, then you’re fortunate. And just treat people right. It’s as easy to smile at someone, as it is to frown.”

Le conseil municipal de Hawkesbury appuie avec enthousiasme un projet de vitrine des forces commerciales et industrielles de la ville.

«Quelle belle nouvelle», a déclaré la conseillère Jeanne Charlebois à la suite d’une présentation faite le 28 août par Anne Lizotte sur le projet d’Expo Hawkesbury.

Mme Lizotte, par l’entremise de son entreprise Anne Lizotte Communications, est la principale organisatrice de l’Expo Clarence-Rockland, qui est devenue une vitrine annuelle pour le secteur des affaires de cette ville depuis 2011. Elle propose d’utiliser l’Expo CR comme cadre d’organisation d’une exposition commerciale similaire pour mettre en valeur les entreprises et les industries de Hawkesbury.

«L’objectif de l’exposition commerciale de Hawkesbury sera de mettre en évidence le développement économique de la région et les divers produits et services qui sont disponibles dans cette région, a déclaré Mme Lizotte. L’exposition sera l’occasion de créer des réseaux d’affaires.»

Au fil des ans, le nombre de visiteurs de l’Expo CR a oscillé entre 2000 et 5500. Les statistiques de l’événement montrent une augmentation annuelle du nombre de visiteurs de l’extérieur de la ville à la vitrine commerciale, ce qui, selon Mme Lizotte, montre une sensibilisation croissante aux attractions commerciales et industrielles de Clarence-Rockland.

La proposition pour l’Expo Hawkesbury est d’avoir au moins 125 exposants et un objectif de plus de 3000 visiteurs lors de l’événement qui débutera en novembre dans l’espace polyvalent du Centre sportif Robert Hartley.

Lors d’une interview ultérieure, le maire Robert Lefebvre a décrit l’Expo Hawkesbury comme une occasion précieuse de promouvoir les secteurs commerciaux et industriels de la ville.

«Nous voulons que les gens viennent localement et de l’extérieur de la région pour leur montrer ce que nous avons, a-t-il déclaré. Il est important que nous ayons notre propre saveur pour cette exposition.»

Le conseil municipal a voté pour devenir un partenaire actif de niveau platine de l’exposition Hawkesbury et a approuvé un montant de 6 000 $ plus la TPS pour sa cotisation à l’événement.

East Hawkesbury Township council and administration want feedback from residents about present and future recreation needs for the municipality.

A public meeting is scheduled for September 18 at the municipal office on recreation issues. One of the topics for discussion is a proposal from administration for amalgamating the recreation matters for the three villages within the township into one single recreation plan.

“Whatever is decided, though, should be pleasing to each community,” said Mayor Robert Kirby, during a phone interview.

Mayor Kirby noted that the township is not planning on any actions that will affect the existing community centres in the villages of Chute-à-Blondeau, Ste-Anne-de-Prescott, and St-Eugène. That includes the new community centre under development in St-Eugène.

“We’re still going to look after each community centre in each village,” said Mayor Kirby.

He noted that there is there is no financial burden to the township for the various recreation programs and servies for residents. He also indicated that residents have shared access to recreation facilities and programs among all three of the villages.