Haliburton Highlands Health Services’ (HHHS’) annual general meeting is coming up today (June 22) and it will be interesting to see what happens.
As of press time June 21, The Highlander had not received a media package. That isn’t surprising. Press agendas for board meetings tend to come only shortly before the meetings. And former CAO Carolyn Plummer’s report was sometimes sent immediately prior to the meeting. Not a great practise for the general public when it comes to transparency.
Many members of the public have also questioned the timing around the Minden ER closure announcement of April 20, and the deadline to apply for HHHS membership only a few days later, since HHHS requires a 60-day period for memberships prior to an AGM.
Others have complained there were no online forms.
It would appear that HHHS has attempted to reduce voices of concern about its hasty closure of the Minder ER prior to its 27th annual AGM.
However, the truth is, even with a stacked meeting of new members, they would have no impact on the ER consolidation or overturning the board.
Last year’s AGM, for example, simply included the business of the corporation, including reports of the CEO and board chair, chief of staff, auditor, HHHS Foundation, nominating committee, election of directors, and appointment of auditors.
There is expected to be a short, perhaps 20-minute question and answer period, but it will have to be on the business of the corporation.
However, with a new board of directors, and we hear there will be some new faces, we can hope the board does a better job of providing the much needed transparency that the public is crying out for.
We are hearing from sources the future will include better community outreach and broader representation.
This is something the newly-minted Minden Position Paper Multidisciplinary Team is calling for.
As outlined in a story in today’s Highlander, they say they have conducted rigourous research into the impacts and decision-making process behind the Minden ER closure.
They are now seeking an open and transparent dialogue with HHHS. They had hoped this would occur prior to the AGM but perhaps it will happen after. We would also ask the board to reconsider it past practise of not having a County council representative. It would be an important inclusion moving forward.
While not giving up on an ER returning to Minden Hills one day, we also welcome news from the province this week that it will fund an urgent care clinic for the town, to fill the dearth created by the loss of an ER.
Many lessons have been learned by this painful process of consolidated ERs in our County. Could the province have done – and do – better? Most certainly. Could HHHS management and the board have done a better job. Definitely. Could the County’s politicians and the public have been more involved in decision-making prior to the April 20 announcement. Most assuredly.
Minden has put a health care spotlight on the Doug Ford government. It is a government that throws health care dollars, and other dollars, away, on seemingly wasteful things. It is heading towards health care privatization.
Personally, I’ll pay more than a buck for a beer, and am happy to pay for my vehicle registration, in exchange for better local health care. I think we all would.
AGM won’t reverse ER closure
Building for climate change
The World Bank forecasts earth’s urban population will grow by 150 per cent by 2045. In some cities, buildings are the biggest source of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions.
In Canada, buildings are the third largest source of GHG emissions, after oil and gas and transportation (Environment and Climate Change Canada). Nearly two-thirds of energy use in buildings is for heating and cooling.
The European Union “green buildings pact” requires public and residential buildings to be more climate friendly by improving insulation and energy efficiency, with plans to double renovation rates by 2030. In November 2022, the UK announced £6 billion of funding to insulate homes and reduce energy used for summer cooling and winter heating. Investment in energy efficiency measures, such as heat pumps and insulation, increased 16 per cent in 2022.
In Sweden, nearly every home is now equipped with a heat pump.
Canada is developing a model retrofit code for 2024. The Pembina Institute will be working on Canada’s Regulatory Solutions project to accelerate the electrification of buildings and achieve a net-zero grid by 2035. The project will provide the Clean Electricity Regulations (CER) to decarbonize and advance electrification in Canada’s highest emitting sectors (buildings, transport and gas production). Canada’s federal government plans to cut building emissions by 37 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030. Currently, about half of Canadian homes are heated with fossil fuels.
In 2021, British Columbia updated its building code to make all new buildings zero carbon by 2030, and all new heating equipment sold and installed greater than 100 per cent efficient (heat pumps use less energy than they produce).
For builders, new technologies must be included as new building codes are enforced. Solar panels, improved insulation and heat pumps are rapidly gaining ground, while other technologies are still in development.
Ubiquitous Energy makes a transparent film that layers over window glass. Made from organic salts that absorb a non-visible portion of the solar spectrum, they have potential to turn every building into a solar generator.
MEER’s Urban Cooling uses passive reflective cooling by installing solar reflectors on rooftops in countries where people are suffering thermal intolerance and have no means to regulate indoor temperatures.
Researchers at the University of Maryland have turned ordinary sheets of wood into transparent material that is stronger and lighter than glass with better insulating properties.
Passivhaus offers airtight designs that heat with energy produced by the humans and appliances inside.
The World Economic Forum recommends a tiered carbon reduction strategy: 1. build nothing (refurbish and repurpose old buildings); 2. build less (build only to meet community needs and maximize use of buildings); 3. build clever (reuse materials and use low carbon materials); 4. build efficiently (minimize design loads, maximize material use); 5. minimize waste (prefabricate, reuse, recycle).
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
- Consider the federal government’s home retrofit rebates: Canada’s Greener Homes Grant covers $5,000 on a heat pump, and Canada Greener Homes Loan incentives.
- Review the Climate Adaptation Home Rating Program and EnerGuide home energy audits designed to protect homeowners from the effects of climate change.
- Check out: reThink Green (Sudbury) Northern Home Energy Rebates; Canada Green Building Council Zero Carbon Building Standards (2022); Endeavour – the Sustainable Building School (Peterborough); local Passivhaus builders (e.gs. Quantum, Above Board).
Analyzing Canadian household energy use shows most homes will be 12 per cent lower after transitioning from fossil fuels. The Canadian Climate Institute shows that even after investments into heat pumps, household equipment and electricity grid expansion, clean and sustainable electricity is cheaper than oil and gas. Benefits come from efficient passive forms of heating and cooling, insulating, and heat pumps, which, used for both heating and cooling, have a return of energy at least three to one.
Ford: get own house in order
Since the 2022 provincial election, we’ve heard a lot about how the Doug Ford government is going to build more housing in Ontario.
One key policy the province has put forward to help boost the housing supply is Bill 23, which sees freezing, reducing and exempting fees developers pay to build affordable housing, non-profit housing and inclusionary zoning units – meaning affordable housing in new developments as well as some rural units.
But if we look at a proposed affordable housing development for Minden Hills, the province has dropped its own ball.
Bill Switzer donated land to the Kawartha Lakes-Haliburton Housing Corporation to build affordable housing units along Hwy. 35 just south of the Minden Legion in a project that has been in the works since 2018.
Six years ago.
One of the biggest hurdles, if not the biggest hurdle, has been Ford’s Ministry of Transportation. Apparently, the MTO didn’t get Ford’s pro-housing memo as it has yet to sign off on this development.
First off, the MTO said the development needed a right turn taper.
Now, about three years later, it has determined that is no longer needed.
However, now that five units have been added to the project size – taking it to 35 from 30 – it is asking that a traffic impact study done in 2020 be updated.
More time. More money. More inefficiency.
At a Minden Hills council meeting last week, mayor Bob Carter voiced his frustration with the process. He said there have been two project redesigns, both instigated by the MTO. And now, the MTO has forced another design change and an updated traffic study, he said.
There may be money for affordable housing projects at both the federal and provincial levels. The 2023 federal budget announced the government’s intention to support the reallocation of funding from the National Housing Co-Investment Fund’s repair stream to its new construction stream, as needed, to boost the construction of new affordable homes for the Canadians who need them most.
Another thing that could help is the Eastern Ontario Wardens Caucus (EOWC) recent housing initiative, for which they are now negotiating for provincial and federal funding.
The EOWC appeared before County council this spring, about a new intra-regional housing initiative, aiming to bring almost 500 affordable rental units to the Highlands by 2031. The ‘Seven in Seven’ program aims to construct 7,000 new affordable rental units across 13 counties in eastern Ontario over the next seven years, with a tab of at least $3.1 billion.
However, all of these funders will be looking for shovel-ready projects. Without an MTO permit, the Minden project is not shovel-ready.
At a time when Ontario’s cost of living is making the building of affordable housing almost impossible – thanks to rising interest rates, the cost of building materials, and a shortage of labour – the MTO is doing Minden and its own government no favours.
So, instead of patting itself on the back for all of the housing the province purports it will build in Ontario, it’s time to eliminate the bureaucracy in its own ranks to pave the way for projects such as the one in Minden to come to fruition.
Curious change of tune
There’s been an interesting change of narrative from Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock MPP Laurie Scott on the Minden hospital debacle.
After spending weeks standing behind the Haliburton Highlands Health Services (HHHS) board and management, endorsing the decision to shutter the Minden emergency department, Scott changed tack in a pair of social media posts June 1 and 2, expressing frustration at the way the closure has been handled. She specifically said communication from HHHS prior to the decision being made public, and in the weeks since, has been lacking.
Huh?
I mean, it has. But it’s curious that Scott is only now figuring that out and expressing it publicly.
She has had ample opportunity to convey her frustration in interviews with The Highlander and other media sources since April 20, but has neglected to do so.
I’m sure on some level, especially as a former nurse, Scott has an issue with the closure. Even if she doesn’t, a significant portion of her community clearly does, as evidenced by the thousands of signatures on a petition calling for the Ontario government to overturn HHHS’ decision. That Scott hasn’t come forward to at least project those feelings shows she’s more concerned with toeing the Conservative party line and not creating more waves for premier Doug Ford and health minister Sylvia Jones, than she is advocating for her constituents.
Scott’s absence has been noted as the community has organized several rallies to fight this perceived injustice. She has conveniently been elsewhere each time the ‘Save the Minden ER’ group has made the trip to Lindsay to protest outside her constituency office.
Might this changing of the tune have something to do with the fact many of these residents, some of whom claim to have been loyal supporters of Scott’s for decades, have sworn never to vote for her again? I’d suggest so. While a provincial election is still three years away – plenty of time for people to forget or change their minds – I have a feeling the bad blood that has been percolating may stain the long-time MPP’s reputation for good.
Slightly more innocuous but no more egregious was Scott’s apparent attempt to take credit for the Kawartha North Family Health Team (KNFHT) applying to open an urgent care clinic at the Minden site. In the aforementioned posts, Scott said the announcement “is an example of where my efforts have been spent” in the weeks leading up to the closure. She then claimed she “sought out” KNFHT and encouraged them to pursue funding for the clinic.
Asked point blank if Scott had played any role in the application, KNFHT executive director, Marina Hodson, indicated she hadn’t. She knew enough not to completely throw Scott under the bus, noting the MPP had been very supportive once learning of the proposal, but that’s beside the point. Why did Scott think she could get away with taking credit for something she had little input in?
It all suggests to me that Scott, after 20 years and six terms as the local representative at Queen’s Park, has lost touch with her community’s priorities and values.
A landmark day
On Dec. 12, 2000, the services of the old Minden hospital were transferred to the new one, ending close to a half century of service.
Today (June 1), the emergency department is shuttered after servicing Minden and surrounding communities for 23 years.
It is understandable that the loss is being grieved by everyone in Minden Hills and beyond.
It has been a tumultuous six weeks since the Haliburton Highlands Health Services (HHHS) announced its intentions to consolidate ER services at its Haliburton site.
We applaud the Minden community, and its council, for their tireless efforts in pushing to have the decision paused or overturned.
HHHS and its board have been consistent in their messaging from the start. It remains that a shortage of staff meant the prospect of short-term, temporary, ER closures – with as little as two hours’ notice. HHHS is also confident its plan for the consolidated site will work.
With all avenues to stop the move as of June 1 now exhausted by community members, we will all hold our collective breaths to see how it goes over the summer. We all hope and pray the transition is smooth; that wait times are reasonable; the Haliburton site does not have to temporarily close; and that lives are not unnecessarily lost.
We have also learned that HHHS and its board need to step up their transparency game. Surely, with hindsight, they must recognize that while they believe their decision is right – how they went about it was very, very wrong.
The very workings of the board are questionable. With this decision, they refused to meet face-to-face with the public. They did not consult before the announcement, even with their own ER doctors in Minden. They hold closed meetings before meeting on Zoom. Why are they even still meeting virtually? They don’t have board members’ contact details listed on their website. There have been claims the board is stacked since a past board chair selects from the nominees and the board vets candidates. County councillors say they have asked for board representation and have always been refused.
Going forward, we expect so much more of health care leadership in this County.
We hope they have read the many stories and letters in The Highlander, from doctors, other health care workers, councillors, community groups, fundraisers and service clubs. The list goes on and on of people floored by how all of this has been rolled out.
Our MPP, Laurie Scott, has much to answer for as well. While she may have backed the HHHS decision via media statements and emails to constituents, she should have come to the community.
She should have had the guts to face angry residents. She should have responded to claims her government has dropped the ball on healthcare. An MPP who truly cared about her riding – and did not take it for granted – would have appeared.
And those who voted for her again in 2022 should have done their homework. She was part of a government that capped pay for nurses way back in 2019.
Today is a landmark day in our County. We only hope that we can write in three months’ time that it was one for the better.
Rethinking basic income
If there’s one thing I’ve discovered over the past couple of weeks, it’s that there are few concepts more polarizing than that of a universal basic income (UBI).
I attended a workshop at Haliburton United Church on May 10 that saw around 20 area residents discuss the merits of a UBI. Most seemed to be in favour of it, but there were the usual questions of “how can we possibly afford it?” and “what will it do to our already depleted labour market?”
The answer to both those questions is… nobody really knows. UBI has been tested in two high-profile government-funded pilot projects in the past 50 years – the first in Dauphin and Winnipeg, Manitoba in the 1970s and then in Lindsay, Thunder Bay, Hamilton, Brantford and Brant County in 2017.
Research compiled by a pair of University of Manitoba professors in the early 1990s suggested the impacts to the labour supply were minimal, though it should be noted this is based on data that’s now two generations old. The workers of yesteryear are a little different from the workers today.
The office of the parliamentary budget officer (PBO) said a basic income program like the one piloted by the Liberals six years ago would cost $81 billion if it were rolled out nationally. To qualify for that initiative, people had to make less than $34,000 per year to receive a maximum top-up of $16,989. Couples who made less than $48,000 could receive up to an additional $24,027.
The PBO estimates around 7.5 million Canadians would be eligible.
Even at a 50/50 split with the provinces and territories, that would be a more than $40 billion cost for the feds to swallow – around 10 per cent of the total projected budget spend in 2023/24, and just under half what the country has set aside for national defence. In fact, UBI would become Canada’s costliest file, just edging out Indigenous Services ($39.5 billion).
I’m not exactly impartial in this debate. My sister-in-law and her husband were two of the 4,000 people to benefit from the pilot in 2017. At the time, they were both working minimum wage jobs and spending a huge chunk of their take-home on rent and other household costs. When they started receiving the top-up, they used the money to go back to school. Fast-forward six years and they both have careers they love and recently purchased their first home.
I’m not sure that would have been possible without the pilot.
So, should our federal and provincial leaders be looking into this? I think so. The Basic Income Canada Network polled participants in the Ontario pilot, with results stating most experienced a significant decrease in stress, anxiety and other mental health issues. Some said they were able to buy food they otherwise couldn’t have afforded, while others improved their housing situation.
The high cost would be offset by savings in other areas, notably healthcare and social services. Would it be enough to justify moving ahead? I’m not sure, but it’s certainly something that should be investigated.
Maybe there’s a reason nowhere else in the world has done this. Maybe it is totally pie in the sky. But given the dire situation we find ourselves in today, with around five million Canadians living in poverty (with costs associated with that pegged at between $72 billion and $84 billion annually, incidentally) maybe it’s time to start thinking way, way outside the box.
Province must take blame
The Haliburton Highlands Health Services board and management may be closing the Minden emergency June 1 – but the province’s hands are all over this decision despite their attempts to distance themselves by citing local autonomy.
It seems a bit hypocritical too, since in April 2022, the Ford government announced support for Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare’s plans for two new hospitals: one on existing land in Huntsville, and a new hospital at a new location in Bracebridge. The province has pledged financial support for the estimated $967 million builds over the next five to 10 years.
The rationale is population growth. We guess the province has not looked at 2021 Haliburton County Census data saying our County population has increased about 14 per cent, and Minden – where they are allowing an ER to close – by about that same percentage, 14.5.
It pays when your premier has a cottage in the Muskokas.
We can thank the provincial government for Bill 124, too. That is the law they passed in 2019 to cap wage increases for nurses and other public sector workers at one per cent a year for three years. The premier insists it’s now lapsed but the damage has been done. HHHS CEO Carolyn Plummer told County council this week, it will take years for health care staffing shortages to level out.
Nurses have left the industry in droves. They began to pack up prior to COVID-19 but the pandemic exacerbated an already-bad situation. Many have opted to relocate south of the border. Others have joined nursing agencies, which the Ontario government allows despite them wreaking havoc on the province’s healthcare system.
Using them has put HHHS severely in the red. It’s also impacted morale since lower-paid public healthcare nurses are working alongside agency nurses that are making a lot more money than them. They are, in some cases, coaching them through shifts, all the while knowing these outside nurses do not have skin in the game. They are here for the money, not the community.
According to ziprecrutier.com, the average annual pay for an agency RN in Ontario is $94,098 a year. The same source puts the rate of pay at $75,668 for RNs in Ontario.
Small wonder nurses do not want to work for HHHS. With the HHHS board and management saying staffing is the issue behind the Minden ER closure, let’s pass this buck onto Doug Ford, and let’s not forget about Laurie Scott.
And what about the cost of Health Force Ontario doctors? Surely it would be less costly to have a medical system that compensates ER and family doctors to practice in places such as Minden and Haliburton, rather than throwing money at highly-paid outsiders.
The list of provincial failures, sadly, goes on and on. Every year, HHHS finds itself in a deficit position because of the Ministry of Health’s tardiness in reimbursing monies owed.
Ford, Health Minister Sylvia Jones and Scott keep telling us about the millions, if not billions, they are throwing at health care. They are promising more nurses, for example. However, we are not seeing the results locally. Their failure to manage the province’s healthcare system has directly led to where we are today.
County needs HHHS’ plan
I recently returned from a walking holiday in Spain. Even though the sojourn itself was not until early April, I began my preparations in January. I booked flights, a train, and accommodation months before arriving. I set off knowing that there would be surprises but because of my meticulous planning, few, if any.
Three weeks from today, the Minden emergency room will close and services amalgamated at the Haliburton hospital site. However, when I sat down for a Zoom chat with HHHS CEO Carolyn Plummer and board chair David O’Brien this week – specifically to ask them about plans for June 1 – I was disappointed by what little I was told.
I had hoped that revealing more of the corporation’s plans to the public would somehow allay some of the fear out there, as well as the rumours and speculation a dearth of information can create. In essence, I asked Plummer and O’Brien – in a Jerry Maguire kind of way – ‘help me to help you.’ I emerged from the chat feeling quite frustrated as I had little to share with readers.
We addressed the issues of doctors staffing the consolidated ER, since Dr. Dennis Fiddler had made it clear during the week that his Minden physician group was withdrawing its services – despite assurances they would have continued at the Minden ER indefinitely.
I specifically asked what doctors would staff the new ER. I received assurances they were working on it and news would be forthcoming “very, very soon.” As much as I pressed, I received no concrete answers. I understand some of the reasoning behind that. If there are negotiations ongoing between the Ministry of Health and the Ontario Medical Association, they can’t be discussed openly. Plummer did say maybe Fiddler’s group would help out. If you read the letter in today’s Highlander, it doesn’t sound like the Minden Physician Group is about to change its mind, so it’s not much of a plan.
Plummer did seem to indicate they would be okay from a nursing schedule perspective, but only two weeks previous she indicated they’d have to hire about half-a-dozen nurses.
As for the physical site itself, we did get a bit more information and an offer of a schematic floor plan up to now. It was appreciated learning that the department would endeavour to separate true emergency walk-ins or ambulance transports for those of us who do not have a local family doctor and are left with no choice but to go to the E.R., for non-emergent situations.
And while we understand the June 1 transition has to be top of mind for HHHS, it was conceded the future of the Minden site is still being considered in the background. Ideas are being bandied about. No one wants to make promises that could fall through. We’re still waiting for that plan as well.
We truly hope that HHHS’ assurance it will share its plans in a matter of ‘days’ comes to fruition. The lack of transparency has only fueled the flames of discontent across Haliburton County. Every situation that presents – whether it is pending highway works along 118 – only deepens local fears. HHHS must begin to quell that now. They really should have long ago.
We’re all going on a trip come June 1 and we’d like to know the plans are well in place so that the eventual hiccups are minor and won’t cause ripples across the Highlands.
Bringing the movies back
The brain trust behind Those Other Movies (TOM), the Haliburton International Film Festival (HIFF) and Doc(k) Day will soon be hitting the road for Sudbury and Toronto as they scour the fall film circuit for movies to elicit laughs, tears, and thought-provoking moments for local audiences.
But before they start the car, TOM will present their first autumn offering Sept. 14, with showings at 4:15 and 7:15 p.m. at the Northern Lights Performing Arts Pavilion.
The Miracle Club stars Maggie Smith, Kathy Bates, and Laura Linney. Set in 1967 Ireland, the dramedy is about three Irish women, best friends from a somewhat insulated Catholic Dublin suburb of Ballygar, who travel to the shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in France, each with her own miracle for which to pray.
Spokeswoman Tammy Rea said, “we’re very happy that we’re starting with what we see as a classic kind of TOM movie.”
After that, the ladies will head out on the circuit. They traditionally shop their films at Cinefest in Sudbury (Sept. 16-24) and the Toronto International Film Festival (Sept. 7-17). Their finds will round out TOM offerings, on the second Thursday in September, October, January, March and May; HIFF Nov. 3-5; and Doc(k) Day April 13.
The second TOM movie is Oct. 12. Jules stars Ben Kingsley and Jane Curtain. Kingsley plays Milton, a man who lives a quiet life of routine in a small western Pennsylvania town, until he finds his day upended when a UFO and its extra-terrestrial passenger crash land in his backyard.
Rea said the film is like “E.T. for seniors.”
After the Sept. 14 screening, they head north for Cinefest. With their VIP passes, it will be a blur of non-stop film watching. “We barely even have time to eat,” Rea said, as they pop in and out of the Cineplex showings.
HIFF returns this fall after a four-year hiatus, thanks to COVID.
“It’s really hard to think of how long ago it’s been since we’ve had something, because it would have been 2019,” Rea said.
While nothing is firmed up, they are talking to documentarian Matt Finlin about The Movie Man, about Keith Stata and the iconic Highlands Cinema. They are also chatting with Haliburton native Kate Campbell, who attended the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year.
Once they pick the remaining TOM films and the eight for HIFF, they will turn their attention to Doc(k) Day and the four films in the spring.
Rea said in light of COVID and the passing of Lisa Kerr, they considered not restarting.
“But we just feel there’s still a need for people to get together, to see and experience. That’s why we’re looking for the positive stories to bring. Things you just aren’t going to find on Netflix or Prime. We’re trying to find the ones you haven’t, and won’t see. We hope to bring back lots of laughs, a few tears, a few touching moments and make you think.”
Ramsay says new consulting role to help Huskies
After a career that saw him rack up 324 games in the Ontario Hockey League, earn a pro contract with the NHL’s St. Louis Blues, and eight seasons playing professionally in Europe before moving to the Highlands to coach the Haliburton County Huskies, Ryan Ramsay has built quite the hockey resume.
The 40-year-old added another feather to his cap this summer, joining the OHL’s North Bay Battalion as a development consultant. He’ll merge the role with his coaching duties with the Huskies for the 2023/24 season.
Speaking to The Highlander about the opportunity, Ramsay said it wasn’t something he chased or sought out, coming about due to a prior relationship with Battalion general manager, Adam Dennis.
“I played with Adam when I was a pro. We’ve always connected when it comes to hockey, we talk a lot – he asks some questions of me, me of him, and we frequently bounce ideas off each other as GMs,” Ramsay said. “We had a couple of conversations over the summer and that turned into us talking about working together on player development, which I’m really passionate about.
“I have a lot of respect for Adam and the program he runs. North Bay has gone to the conference finals two years in a row – I really like what they’re doing, so this is a great opportunity for me to work with, and learn from, some great hockey minds,” he added.
Ramsay will be charged with reporting back to Dennis on OJHL talent, while also working with the Battalion’s pool of prospects. This is good news for the Huskies, as it means Haliburton County will likely be the first stop for talented young hockey players with commitments to the Battalion who haven’t yet cracked the roster.
“It’s a great opportunity – we could get a really good kid to come in here at 16, spend a year developing and then go on to play in North Bay, and maybe even get drafted to the NHL. So, I think this will help grow the Huskies program,” Ramsay said.
Asked if this was, potentially, a first step towards leaving the Huskies, Ramsay reaffirmed his commitment to the local program.
“The last two years I’ve had a couple of opportunities to go and be an assistant coach in the OHL, but I haven’t taken them. I’m happy here. I really like what the Huskies are doing. My family is here, my kids are here, I love this community. At this time, I’m not looking to leave,” he said.
His primary goal is to bring an OJHL championship to the Highlands. He believes this arrangement with the Battalion will help with that goal.
“It shows that people are taking notice. It’s been two great years since we moved the franchise north. [Owner] Paul Wilson has done a wonderful job putting us on the hockey map, and I’ve been fortunate to work with some fantastic young players,” Ramsay said. “If we’re being honest, we didn’t think it would have gone this well when we first started. Now, I just want to build on everything we’ve already accomplished and win a championship here. That’s the dream.”