HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2012-11-22, Page 24PAGE 24. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2012.Seili honoured with Queen’s Diamond Jubilee
Brussels resident and former
Huron East Mayor Joe Seili was
honoured by Huron-Bruce MP Ben
Lobb last week with a Queen’s
Diamond Jubilee medal.
Seili was one of 26 winners of the
award and one of several winners
from Huron East. He was presented
at a ceremony at the Knights of
Columbus Hall in Wingham.
Seili received a personal call from
Lobb on Thanksgiving Monday
informing him that he had won. To
this day, Seili still doesn’t know who
nominated him and Lobb said he
wouldn’t spill the beans.
Seili said Lobb was happy to talk
to him, which he did for a short
while, discussing the award and the
reasons given for his nomination.
The reasons included his years of
service to municipal politics, hismembership with the BrusselsOptimist Club and, above all else,
his dedication to rural healthcare in
Huron County.
It was during his time as mayor
that Seili led an expedition to
Hazzard, Kentucky to view a rural
healthcare centre that was changing
the way rural residents viewed their
health. After seeing the centre, he
knew he wanted to bring an
Canadian version of the centre to
Huron County.
To this day he goes to work every
day with a lapel pin on his blazer
from Hazzard, Kentucky denoting
the popular television show that took
place in Hazzard, The Dukes of
Hazzard.
Plans then began for what would
soon be known as the Huron East
Health Centre, a home for the Huron
Community Family Health Team as
well as Gateway Rural Health
Research Institute.
“A lot of people thought we were
nuts,” Seili said, “but rural Ontario
needs a good healthcare system.”
Seili and members of Huron East
Council, however, saw their vision
through and the institute has since
partnered with Georgian College,
signing an official memorandum of
understanding.
Seili was also honoured for over
15 years of service as a municipal
politician. Seili began as a member
of Brussels Village Council and then
after amalgamation he was a
councillor for the Brussels Ward of
Huron East before becoming the
municipality’s two-term mayor.
After stepping down from the
position of mayor, he returned as a
Brussels Ward councillor, but
stepped down before the end of the
term, citing an increasingly-heavy
workload between politics and the
business he owns, Huron Feeding
Systems.
Seili said that being honouredalongside so many other communityleaders made him feel “pretty good”
to be at the ceremony. However, he
said that recognition isn’t why he has
done the things he’s done over the
years.
“Sometimes you feel like you’re
not appreciated for what you’ve
done, but you don’t really care about
it,” Seili said. “I don’t do this stuff to
be recognized.”
And with a handful of winners
coming from Huron East, Seili said
he was honoured to be standing
alongside his neighbours and
friends.
“This was a really great class of
volunteers,” Seili said. “These are
people who give so much of their
time, it was quite an honour.”
Seili has spent years as a member
of the Brussels Optimist Club, but he
stepped back from his duties with
the club when he became the mayor
of Huron East. He said he didn’t feel
it would be fair to be a heavily-
involved member of a service group
without giving his time equally to all
of the community’s service groups.
Seili says that since resigning from
his council position he has never
been busier. Work has kept him busy,
he says, and he has been able to
continue volunteering throughout
the community.
There are some things about his
council position, however, that he
does miss.
“I don’t miss the job, but I do miss
the staff and the people,” Seili said,
adding that the conflict that comes
along with being a member of
council had become too much for
him to endure.
As for Huron East, Seili joined
Winthrop’s Graeme Craig, Walton’s
Neil McGavin, Dublin’s Arthur
Bolton and Egmondville’s Robert
Fisher and William Strong as
winners from the municipality.
MARIE STEPHENSON
Marie Stephenson passed away
peacefully at her residence in
Huronlea Home for the Aged,
Brussels on Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2012.
She was 88.
Marie was a member of Atwood
Presbyterian Church. She enjoyed
knitting, crocheting, cooking,
baking, gardening, playing Lost
Heir and crokinole, but most of all
cherished the time spent with her
family.
Marie was the beloved wife of the
late Ross Stephenson who
predeceased her in 2011. She was
the loving mother of Donna and
Robert Mitchell, Dublin; Jim and
Kathy, Ethel; Jean and Murray
Whytock, Teeswater; and Les and
Susan, Ethel. She was the special
grandma of Stephen, Paul, Craig,
Trevor, Ann, Michael, Adam, Dan,
Ben, Darcy, Nyssa, Brad, Scott and
great-grandma of Molly and Case.
Marie will be fondly remembered by
her sister-in-law Mary Pringle of
Alliston and seven nieces and
nephews.
Marie was predeceased by
her parents Stanley and Laura
(Speiran) Hammond, two sons in
infancy and her brothers Ken and
Alex.
Marie’s family invited relatives
and friends to share their
memories at the Brenneman
Funeral Home, 141 John
Street, Atwood on Wednesday,
Nov. 14. The funeral service to
celebrate her life will be held on
Thursday, Nov. 15. Rev. Andrew
Thompson will officiate. Interment
is in Elma Centre Cemetery,
Atwood.
As expressions of sympathy,
memorial donations to a charity of
one’s choice would be appreciated
by the family.
Online condolences may be left at
www.brennemanfuneralhome.ca
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Obituaries
Time in the community
Brussels resident and former Huron East Mayor Joe Seili was one of those honoured with the
Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal last week in Wingham. He was honoured for his time in
municipal politics, with the Brussels Optimist Club and his commitment to healthcare in Huron
County. (Shawn Loughlin photo)
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
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