Annie Hamel said it was a “magical” experience to paint the images of Taly Williams and Lesley Tashin on Haliburton’s A.J LaRue Arena.

The muralist has more than 15 years’ experience crafting public art. Her work can be spotted across her hometown of Montreal, around Toronto, internationally and now along Maple Avenue.

In a sense, Hamel was hired by Highlanders: the siblings’ murals were funded from community donations.

“When I was painting in Haliburton, I really felt it was important for the people there,” she said, mentioning both the community interest in the project and its prominent spot in the town.

In Montreal, for instance, street art is a fixture of many neighborhoods. The rural nature of Haliburton, Hamel said, makes murals stand out.

“People will live with the murals every day… we have to do it right,” she said.

She spent months painting multiple panels for each mural in her Montreal studio, but that made it difficult to paint certain spots, like Williams’ face, which was divided by two panels.

“It wasn’t possible to put the two panels together [in the studio], it was too big.”

She double-checked Williams’ portrait with his mother, and sent Tashlins’ image to Williams for his feedback.

She conducted phone calls with Tashlin and Williams too, as well as researching their past and major accomplishments before the brushstrokes began.

It was difficult work, Hamel said.

“Especially when I was working in Montreal, I worked on the murals for weeks. I felt alone, it was hard. I was tired, she said. “But I was thinking about the kids and I thought ‘I can’t disappoint them’.”

Finally, in early June, Hamel arrived in Haliburton to put her paintings on the arena’s walls. That meant hours of touch-ups afterwards, as she carefully joined the panels together.

Hamel’s hard work paid off.

Her murals were lauded by the athletes, as well as Highlanders across social media and at an in-person mural unveiling.

Ella Gervais, a student in the class that originally lobbied Dysart et al for help with the murals, called Hamel’s work a “beautiful and legitimate addition to this wall of sports heroes” at an unveiling event June 18.

Hamel wasn’t in Haliburton to see the students or community come face to face with her work, but said she was happy to have been involved.

“I imagine it was a lot of emotion for the kids, and for Taly and Lesley,” she said.

Carl Dixon is a man used to crowds. Big crowds; crowds moving to Dixon’s kinetic rock and roll performances through the decades. He said an “exchange of energy” with the audience has been the heart of his working life as a world-travelling musician playing in The Guess Who, April Wine and Coney Hatch.

“Suddenly, when the pandemic hit – all that was gone. It wasn’t just a huge impact on finances, it impacted me personally,” Dixon said in an email.

Early in the pandemic, online-only performances didn’t conduct the same energy. Even still, he played shows such as an online Haliburton County Folk Society livestream from the Dominion Hotel Pub.

“I’m an entertainer, and now being left with online events as the only immediate fallback really wasn’t sustainable if I was to keep a positive outlook. Being on the road, travelling across the US, Canada and Europe is also what I love about my work but now that was gone.”

Dixon estimates over 100 shows were cancelled one by one. Many were postponed, but others weren’t rebooked.

He said it was a time to reinvent himself.

He became the voice – and melody – of Harvey’s Canada-wide frontline healthcare worker thank you tour, thanks to a connection from a marketing friend.

“Soon I was back on the road playing (at a distance) under strict health guidelines – but over the weeks I played to thousands of front line workers across Canada at these Harvey’s events,” Dixon said.

Dixon was involved in a car collision in 2008, leaving him comatose for 10 days, and a long road to recovery

The downtime during the pandemic was also a chance for him to have the metal installed in his leg removed. In hospital, doctors had to fight off infections before and after surgery, and he was on an intravenous drip.

“Remarkably they removed all the titanium from my left leg and now, at last, I am back playing hockey again,” Dixon said. “We all need a pastime that lifts our spirits. Hockey makes me feel good.”

Along with his star-studded music career, Dixon began touring as an inspirational speaker following his accident.

He has plenty of experience picking himself up after life throws curveballs.

“The pandemic reminded me to set goals: reinvent what you do using skills you have; and face problems with hope for a positive outcome.”

Carl Dixon is back on the road this summer, stopping in at the Highlands Brewing Company July 30.