milton 150th anniversary

I had a quite eventful weekend starting on Saturday. Both Chris Hadfield PS and Hawthorne Village PS had carnivals this weekend. I had made arrangements with a good friend of our running the Chris Hadfield event to help them out and be … er deliver Milly the Millstone to the school. Needless to say being a mascot in a huge costume like Milly’s is quite the challenge.

In between the heat, the fact that the fan inside Milly didnt work and the occasional jab/push/shove/kick from the odd kid or two…it was a great time. Many of the children knew who Milly was or were very interested in learning more about it. Thats a start. The number of people calling it a hockey puck has RAPIDLY decreased over the past few months of Milly’s existence which makes those of us who helped bring her to life feel quite good.

NOW on to something REALLY big…

Its something that every municipality tries to do. Some try it with awards, and some try it with accomadations of some kind. Milton’s celebrating its roots.

Milton will have its own Walk of Fame. Twenty seven Miltonians have been selected to be its first inductee’s to our Walk of Fame. This is quite possibly the most exciting undertaking the Town of Milton has been a part of in recent history.

Each one of these inductees will be given a place in our Walk of Fame which will be physically located in the soon to be built Town Hall upgrade.

Here’s the official press release from the Town of Milton. More to come … so stay tuned!

Milton’s 150th Anniversary Master Committee establishes Walk of Fame recognition program

First 27 inductees to be honoured by community on Canada Day

MILTON, Ontario – The Corporation of the Town of Milton announced today that its 150th Anniversary Master Committee, assisted by Milton Historical Society, has established the Walk Of Fame, a 150th Anniversary legacy program that will honour Miltonians past and present who have earned significant national and/or international recognition through their enduring achievements.

The Walk of Fame will be permanently established along the glass overhead walkway that joins Town Hall to its new addition. Each Walk of Fame member will have his or her own specially-inscripted floor tile along the walkway corrider.

Twenty-seven Miltonians will be inducted during inaugural Walk of Fame ceremonies at Milton Fairgrounds on Canada Day this year. They are:

Bert Stewart (Agriculture) – Mr. Stewart is one of the world’s most successful cattle showmen and judges. He has had 16 grand champion show winners at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair and countless winners and champions in Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Italy and Brazil;

Harry Barnes (Athletics) –

Bruce Hood (Athletics) – Mr. Hood was a referee in the National Hockey League from 1963 to 1984. During his 21-year NHL career, Mr. Hood officiated 1,033 regular season games, 157 Stanley Cup playoff games, three NHL All-Star games and three Canada Cup games. He was appointed as Air Travel Complaints Commissioner by then Prime Minister Jean Chretien in the Summer of 2000 and served in the role until 2002. He was the author of two books, “Calling the Shots” (1988) and “The Good of the Game“ (1999);

Mike Kaszycki (Athletics) – Mr. Kaszycki played more than 200 National Hockey League games between 1977 and 1982 with the New York Islanders, Washington Capitals and Toronto Maple Leafs. Of note, he played on a line with fellow Miltonian John Tonelli in 1979 while both were with the Islanders;

Darlene Kranstz (Athletics) – Ms. Kranstz helped to pioneer the sport of Jiu-Jitsu amongst women around the world. She is a four-time female World Champion in Sport Jiu-Jitsu, having won in 1988, 1992, 1995 and 1996

Bob Kranstz (Athletics) – Mr. Kranstz was instrumental in the inception of Sport Jiu-Jitsu in the 1970’s and is a former three-time World Champion (Senior Division over 40);

Peter McDuffe (Athletics) – Peter McDuffe played 57 games in the National Hockey League between 1971 and 1976 with St. Louis Blues, New York Rangers, Kansas City Scouts and Detroit Red Wings;

Enio Sclisizzi (Athletics) – Enio Sclisizzi played 77 National Hockey League games during the Original Six between 1946 and 1952 with the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks;

Tiger Ali Singh (Athletics) – The son of Tiger Jeet Singh, Tiger Ali Singh was a World Wrestling Federation (WWF) wrestler from 1997 to 2002. Over that time he won the Kuwait Cup Tournament, was a two-time International Wrestling Association team champion and the Asian Heavyweight Champion;

Tiger Jeet Singh (Athletics) – Tiger Jeet Singh fought in the Canadian, U.S. and international wrestling circuits from 1965 to 2005. During that time, he wrestled professionally in Japan for 22 years. He won numerous championships;

Leon Stickle (Athletics) – Mr. Stickle worked as a linesman in the National Hockey League between 1970 and 1997. Mr. Stickle worked in 1,967 regular season games, 250 Stanley Cup playoff games, six Stanley Cup games, two Canada Cups and three NHL All-Star games;

John Tonelli (Athletics) – Mr. Tonelli played 1,028 National Hockey League games between 1978 and 1992 with the New York Islanders, Calgary Flames, Los Angeles Kings, Chicago Blackhawks and Quebec Nordiques. He won four Stanley Cups with the Islanders and appeared in the 1984 Canada Cup, where he was named Most Valuable Player;

Ed Whitlock (Athletics) – Mr. Whitlock is a long distance runner and the first person over 70 years of age in the world to run a marathon in less than three hours with a time of 2:59:10 in 2003. Mr. Whitlock became the oldest person in the world to run under three hours in 2000 in age 69 with a time of 2:52:47. Since then, he has continued to extend this record, most recently to age 74 with a time of 2:58:40;

Peter Appleyard (Arts & Entertainment) – Mr. Appleyard is one of the world’s best vibraphonists, percussionists and composers. Mr. Appleyard has played on television and radio and toured all over the world since becoming a professional musician after World War II. He has accompanied almost every major band leader, jazz musician and jazz singer over his long and illustrious career. Mr. Appleyard was named a Member of the Order of Canada in 1992;

Albert Casson (Arts & Entertainment) – Mr. Casson is one of Canada’s foremost wildlife artists. Amongst his most celebrated works are At The Edge, artwork depicting giant Panda’s from China, for which he was commissioned by Kodak Canada on behalf of the Calgary Zoo;

Ernie Coombs (Arts & Entertainment) – Mr. Coombs was “Mr. Dressup” on the CBC television network from 1968 and 1996 and was supported in his entertainment of Canadian children throughout those years by his friends, Casey and Finnegan. He was named a Member of the Order of Canada in 1996;

David James Elliot (Arts & Entertainment) – Mr. Elliot was the star of the hit CBS television series “JAG,” which ran from 1995 to 2005. He played the character, Harmon Robb, Jr. Mr. Elliot has played in a number of TV and movie productions, most recently “The Man Who Lost Himself,” based on the true life story of former Canadian Football League player Terry Evanshen;

Lieutenant-Colonel G. Allan Burton (Business & Industry) – Mr. Burton began his career with the Robert Simpson Company, one of Canada’s leading department store retail chains during the 20th Century, in 1935 and retired as Chairman in 1978. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada in 1985;

Colonel F.H. Deacon (Business & Industry) – Mr. Deacon founded F.H. Deacon & Company in 1905, making it one of the first brokerage firms in Canada and one of the first 30 securities firms to have a seat on the Toronto Stock Exchange. He became a millionaire by 1914 and almost lost it all during the stock market crash of 1929. Through financial cunning, perseverance and hard work, Colonel Deacon kept his firm afloat through the stock market crash of 1929, the Great Depression and World War II while most of his competitors closed their doors. He sold the firm to his sons in 1948;

Susan Delacourt (Business & Industry) – Ms. Delacourt is currently Ottawa Bureau Chief for the Toronto Star, a columnist for the Ottawa Citizen, and a regular commentator for CBC Newsworld’s “Politics” show and CBC Radio’s “The House.” She also worked for the Globe and Mail in a similar capacity and has covered national politics for more than 20 years. She is the author of “United We Fall,” an account of the doomed Charlottetown constitutional accord, and “Shaughnessy: The Passionate Politics of Shaughnessy Cohen”.

Jim Dills (Business & Industry) – Mr. Dills served as Executive Director of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association between 1979 and 1987, and played a leadership role in bringing community newspapering in Canada through tough times economically as well as in terms of educating it to better understand the need to incorporate emerging technologies;

Douglas Leiterman (Business & Industry) – A major creative talent of the 1960s, Mr. Leiterman, in partnership with Patrick Watson, created and produced the CBC’s seminal public affairs programme This Hour Has Seven Days, which has repeatedly been cited as the most exciting and innovative public affairs series of its kind in the history of Canadian television;

P.L. Robertson (Business & Industry) – Mr. Robertson is the Canadian inventor of the socket-head screw and the socket-head screwdriver, first produced in his factory, P.L. Robertson Company Limited, in 1908. His firm was the largest employer in Milton for more than 50 years. Mr. Robertson also authored “The Gold Standard.”

Senator Betty Kennedy (Government & Public Service) – Senator Kennedy was appointed a Canadian Senator in 2000 by then Prime Minister Jean Chretien. She is best known as a panelist on the long-running CBC television network show, Front Page Challenge, from 1962 to 1995. She was the author of two books, “Gerhard” (1975) and “Hurricane Hazel” (1979). In 1982, Mrs. Kennedy was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. In 1983, she was elected to the Canadian News Hall of Fame and in 1992 Mrs. Kennedy was elected to the Canadian Broadcasting Hall of Fame;

The Honourable Jim Snow (Government & Public Service) – Mr. Snow was Canada’s longest serving Minister of Transportation, serving almost ten years, from 1975 to 1984. He served as a Member of Provincial Parliament, representing Halton from 1967 to 1985. He wrote an autobiographical account of his life in politics, entitled, “Mr. Jim.”

Lieutenant-Colonel Chris Hadfield (Health & Science) – Canadian Space Agency Astronaut Chris Hadfield was the first Canadian Mission Specialist (STS-74 – November 1996), the first Canadian to ever leave a spacecraft and float free in space (STS-100 – April 2001), the first Canadian to operate the Canadarm in orbit (STS-74 – November 1996), and the first and only Canadian to board Space Station Mir (STS-74 – November 1996);

Dr. John Wallace McCutcheon (Health & Science) -Dr. McCutcheon was one of the five founders of Blue Cross (Ontario) in 1941.

To be considered for Walk of Fame recognition, a candidate must be born in Milton or have spent formative or creative years in the community over a minimum 10-year period. The nominee’s accomplishments must be national or international in scope and must be best-in-class in his or her best-in-class field of endeavour for a minimum two-year period. Inductees will only be added to the Walk of Fame as credentials permit, rather than on an annual basis.

In future years, the program will be administered by the Town of Milton’s Department of Community Services, with nominations provided by Milton Historical Society and the general public.