Meet the Committee
Shannan Boothby - Coordinator, Web/Communication Design
Shannan Boothby being born and raised in Port Cunnington has come to know the Lake of Bays Fire Department well. Her father Chuck was a member of Station 20 for a number years, along side numerous other of her family members and close family friends. It doesn’t end there, in 1998 while attending her cousins wedding in Northern Ontario the family woke up hearing that they had suffered a fire back home and that the had lost their garage and storage shed. Thankfully nothing else was harmed.
After having witnessed a boat explode just out from Port Cunnington Marina and watching as it burned from the safety of her own boat, knowing that nothing could really be done given that all the equipment was on shore and there wasn’t time to load it on the barge. Shannan fully supports this fire boat campaign and strongly urges everyone in Lake of Bays to “Get on Board”, because accidents do happen.
Janice Clark - Member-at-large
Janice was employed as a Flight Attendant and In-flight Service Manager for a major Canadian airline for 16 years. During this time, she regularly upgraded her skills with emergency equipment onboard many aircraft types and emergency medical aid.
In 1988, 2 weeks before giving birth to her second son, she had a house fire and had to rebuild. The quick response of the Volunteer Fire Department minimized the loss of the house contents and many sentimental items.
Her family also saw the fire on Gardner Island in Haystack Bay and their boats among others were used to transport Firefighters and their equipment to the island.
Janice feels any additional equipment is beneficial to the Fire Dept and will be happy to assist with any fundraising events for the purchase of a Fireboat for Lake of Bays.
George Daniels - Coordinator- Philanthropy and Corporate Donations
George has been a Muskoka Lake of Bays resident since the mid sixties. He has a track record of supporting worthwhile community initiatives He was co-founder of the Lake of Bays Heritage Foundation, served as a director of the Lake of Bays Associations for 25 years and was president from 1988 to 1990.
George is a marketing-communications specialist, a licensed commercial pilot, helps steer the Andrew Daniels Lake of Bays Fish Stewardship program and enjoys fitness, skiing and gardening at his Lake of Bays residence.
George and his team can help you make your donation count for the safety of Lake of Bays and your gift giving and tax purposes.
Susan Grant - Coordinator-Special Events
Susan Grant and her husband, Allan, moved to Lake of Bays in May 1987, when they purchased Haystack Bay Marine. Allan was a Volunteer Fire Fighter for many years. Both Susan and Allan continue to offer their help to the Volunteer Fire Fighters at fund-raising events - where an extra hand is always useful!
Over the years at the marina, they have witnessed many fires and accidents, offering their boats whenever necessary. In one incident, a neighbour’s boat blew up in the bay. Susan watched him jump from the boat, called 911, and then watched the confusion as boats appeared from everywhere. He survived the boat blowing up, only to be almost drowned by the wakes of too many boats! As no proper emergency response boat was available, a co-ordinated rescue effort was hampered. Fortunately he did survive, but it remains a vivid memory to all who witnessed it.
In another incident, a family member ran aground on a small island in Dwight Bay in the wee hours of the morning. Passengers were injured, with one passenger being thrown from the boat. The Volunteer Fire Fighters had to perform a search and rescue, using private boats. Fortunately, the passenger was found in time, (unfortunately with injuries) and transported to the mainland, where they were transferred to the hospital. Luckily they have fully recovered.
Susan’s commitment to the fund-raising effort is a result of watching the our Volunteer Fire Fighters deal with situations where a properly equipped Fire/Rescue boat would have assisted them in their personal safety and in the efficiency of performing their, sometimes perilous, duties.
Our Volunteers give so much of themselves - 24/7/365.
Let’s show them that we support their efforts!!
Victoria Hungerford-Hall - Co Chair
My family settled on the Lake of Bays in 1898 on the property which is called Lumina in upper Haystack Bay. The resort was started in 1921 and is still run by our family today. My family has always protected Lake of Bays, it’s environment and it’s wildlife with total commitment.
I was approached by some concerned cottagers after the fire on the Boothby property, regarding fund raising for a fire boat for the lake. I had been an advocate of one for sometime because of two separate incidents which affected our family personally.
My husband Garry has volunteered his time and made many sacrifices for the Lake of Bays Volunteer Fire Department for 25 years. Countless times he has been called in the middle of the night to an accident or a structure fire and I as a spouse prayed that nothing would happen and they all returned safely. Another situation comes to mind once in late October about 11.00 p.m. on a cold windy night. They received a call about a boating accident; someone had called 911 saying that they had heard a boat crash at the south end of Biqwin Island. It was a cold windy, pitch black night with the waves being quite high. Again these volunteers left their warm beds, and had to use a boat from Port Cunnington Marina, to search the lake for an accident which turned out to be a false alarm. I would have felt much easier knowing that they had been in a boat that was designed for this type of rescue. It is easy to think that Lake of Bays does not need a Fire Boat, because you personally have not needed the assistance of the Volunteers. But as far as I am concerned the better and safer the tools we can give them to do their jobs, is better for us all.
Marie Poirier – Co-Chair/Secretary
Marie is a resident of Lake of Bays in Port Cunnington. Her family operated a cottage rental business for over 30 years on Haystack Bay. Marie currently practices her profession as a land-use planning consultant in Dwight.
She is well acquainted with the devastation of fire, and the challenges facing our volunteer firefighters. Her family has been burnt out of their own home, and both her son and husband are members of the Lake of Bays Volunteer Fire Department (Station 20). As a shoreline resident, she has seen island, shoreline, and boat fires, as well as accidents on Lake of Bays that required the assistance of the volunteer firefighters. On occasion, their own family boat has been used to fight fires on the lake prompting her to build this campaign to provide a fireboat as an additional tool to our brave volunteer firefighters.
Lonnie Rumney - Treasurer
Fire! Less than twenty-four hours after my husband, Peter, and I moved into our home on Lake of Bays, I looked up to see flames shooting out of our roof (actually it turned out to be the chimney)!. Mesmerized and horrified, I stood rooted to the spot. Luckily, clearer heads prevailed and the fire department was called. In a surprisingly short period of time the fire trucks arrived, the firefighters went to work and the fire was out. The house was intact and the firefighters won my undying respect, admiration and support. Shortly after that incident Peter joined the Lake of Bays Volunteer Fire Department. That was twenty-five years ago and he still proudly serves as a volunteer on the department.
We still live in the same home and continue to operate Port Cunnington Marina. I also work as a realtor so our livelihoods depend to a great extent on the beauty and allure of Lake of Bays, More than that we want to protect and preserve this land because we love it and we believe you do too.
So as a wife and friend and neighbour of these brave souls who rush into burning buildings when others rush out, who respond to medical emergencies, to auto and boat accidents, to forest fires, help with search parties and so much more, I ask you one and all to consider what our lives would be like if we phoned 911 and no one answered our call. Please support this worthy cause and give from the heart and give generously.