CHEERS: To Summerside couple Nick Cameron and Richard Rogers. The pair are doing their part to bring a little Christmas cheer to a group of Summerside-area seniors. It all started with one comment: “They would love to see a Santa on the roof.” That was enough to send the couple on a quest to find a lighted Santa for the residents of Wedgwood Manor long-term care home to enjoy. After sending the plea out on social media, they found themselves on the receiving end of a lot of donated Christmas decorations for the Brophy Street home they bought two years ago and which is within view of one of the manor's common areas from across the street. This couple exemplifies with community spirit is all about – especially in a year like 2020 which has faced so many hardships. Said Cameron: “It’s 2020 – if there was ever a year to be a little extra and do something more, it’s this year.”
JEERS: To those who continue to drive while drunk. We write about this topic a lot and intend to keep doing so until we start to see a decline in the numbers of Prince Edward Islanders whose names appear in the weekly court docket. On Friday night, during the annual Santa Claus parade, Summerside firefighters who were directing traffic at the event witnessed a vehicle trying to go around their barricades. After speaking with the driver and fearing he was drunk, they called the police. They were right. When police located the suspect a short time later in the St. Eleanor’s area, the man allegedly failed a roadside screening test and later provided breath samples that were more than two and half times the legal limit. How close of a call was this? Imagine a drunk driver trying to get around a barricade protecting families during a holiday parade. This has to end. Current penalties are obviously not tough enough to act as a deterrant. It's time for justice officials to make them tougher.
CHEERS: To Summerside doctors Paul Kelly and Cyril Moyse. After nearly 50 years of practicing medicine on P.E.I., the pair has retired. Not enough good things can ever be said about those who work in health care, but even beyond that, these two have a unique connection to this community and each other. They raised their families and worked in the same city, at the same clinic, after graduating in the same medical school class (1972) from the same university (Dalhousie) after leaving the same hometown (Summerside) - where they attended grade school together. It's a remarkable story (and it's on Page 3 if you missed it).
