Matthew Congratulates Carole Stimmell 2014 Beach Citizen of the Year “She was an outsider….indeed a far-outsider….American even….who became a foundation stone for this community. And not by virtue of time spent here…not by just putting in the time…that doesn’t get you far and certainly not to the centre of this celebration. She became such in the same manner that other Beach Citizens of the Year before her did….by getting her kicks – her “high” as she once called it – from serving all of us. The “us” I refer to includes us usual suspects who gather annually here but also an impersonal us…the thousands of kids on sidewalks for the Centre 55 Christmas Parade, the hundreds who each year receive toys and food in Centre 55’s hampers, the all of us who cherish the service and the memories of the veterans of Canada and who will gather this year, thanks in part to the efforts of Carole, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Canada’s participation in the 1st World War and, in the interests of time…skipping to what I think Carole is best known for…the all of us not just have received the Beach Metro News during her tenure as Editor but the all of us who turned to that paper as our way into understanding and participating in this, truly the most blessed, truly the greatest, place to live. Carole, though your name is now carved in stone here in this lovely corner of our community I think we must all have the modesty to admit that this place where we celebrate and commemorate so much that’s important in our community life – including your service – won’t be here forever. But take solace…someday many years hence an archeologist will dig up this stone and that path and find the name Carole Stimmell and figure out that she was important to us, important enough to be worthy of designation “Beach Citizen of the Year.” Congratulations Carole.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Sep 2014 21:08:08 +0000
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