Heritage

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On Tuesday August 17th at around 10 am we were on the Peerless with a full tour to visit Chantry Island.

To our surprise a red Canadian Coast Guard helicopter flew overhead and landed on the island. The pilot invited the tourists to look over the helicopter and gave some history. We in turn invited the helicopter crew to tour the Keeper's quarters. Both parties were delighted and it added a special dimension to our trip.
 

We learned that the future of lighthouses are in immediate jeopardy, the crew member Mike Gleeson explained that the government has zero dollars allocated for the preservation of lighthouses.

In fact, he said that if groups such as Marine Heritage are not willing to preserve their lighthouses that they will be demolished and a pole with a light will be installed. This is going to be for all lighthouses across Canada.

 After hearing this our group was quite dismayed, the consensus was that the lighthouses are an important part of our heritage and once they are gone they will never be restored.

Submitted by
Carol Walberg

Editor's note.  The Light on Chantry Island is in no danger due to the hard work of the Marine Heritage Society, the Town of Saugeen Shores and the cooperation of many government agencies including the Coast Guard

Helicopter crew member Mike Gleeson and pilot Andri Harasym

Peerless crew consisting of (L) Carol Walberg, Randy Schnarr and Anne Holman

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010