May-day call triggers rescue on Rainy Lake

By Ken Johnston
Editor

Giving back to the community. It is a trait that Carol Peterson of Bergland exemplifies.
Last Tuesday the Town of Rainy River officially recognized her family’s $25,000 donation of a columbarium to the Forest Lawn Cemetery in Rainy River.
Peterson, who was a Dalseg, grew up in Morson and the Rainy River area. She left in 1959 and spent the next 38 years living in California. In 1997 she and her husband Ross, moved back to Bergland to retire. “This has always been home to our family,” said Carol last week. Many of her family members are buried at Forest Lawn and she wanted to do something special for the community.
Her first idea was to donate a monument to put people’s ashes in to the cemetery. After talking to Ken Noble of Noble Monuments the concept shifted to a columbarium. Last October she pitched the idea to Rainy River Town Council and they graciously accepted.
The recently delivered columbarium is the first of its kind at the cemetery. “So many people are getting cremated now so this seemed fitting,” said Peterson.
The 18,000 lbs. columbarium came from Quebec and has 40 niches for urns; each of which can hold two urns. Carol and family have spoken for three of the niches so far and the rest are for sale through the Town of Rainy River. The idea is that enough money will be raised to purchase another columbarium with the proceeds and then from the sale of the niches in the second one to pay for a third one. “We drew up plans for the area to host three of them and be fully landscaped,” explained Peterson. The area also includes a cement bench that Peterson donated, also in memory of the Dalseg family, about three or four years ago.
“We wanted to do something for the town,” said Peterson.
Mayor Deb Ewald thanked Carol and her family for the wonderful donation last Tuesday. She and councillors Gerry Marchuk and Marilyn McAlister, on behalf of Rainy River presented her and her family with a certificate of appreciation and then treated them to lunch at a local restaurant.
(Fort Frances, ON) - On August 1st, 2009 at approximately 8:00 pm, an employee of a Minnesota houseboat company overheard a “May-Day” call on Marine Channel #68. The May Day call indicated there was a stranded vessel in Bleak Bay, Rainy Lake for the past two days. The employee of the American houseboat company immediately contacted Canada Border Services which in turn contacted the Ontario Provincial Police. OPP officers coordinated the search efforts with the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary unit stationed out of Ash River, Minnesota. The combined efforts of all agencies resulted in the US Coast Guard Unit locating two American anglers and their boat in Bleak Bay. The 18 foot vessel became disabled as a result of engine troubles. With strong winds, the vessel drifted across Bleak Bay to the south side of the bay where the men and their vessel were out of sight and left stranded for almost 48 hours. Neither of the men was injured as result of the incident.

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