Cloyne Big Chair

Tammy Whitelock moved to North Frontenac three years ago with her husband and grandson. Since then, she has become settled in the community, made new friends, and joined the Lions Club.

And when she first moved to the area, her grandson was taken with the Big Chair in Cloyne. Built and installed in 1989 by Richard (Dick) and Olive Hook, the Big Chair was originally installed in front of the store they operated, the Lazy Days Gift Shop, north of the village on Hwy. 41.

According to an account by Ken Hook, their intention was to create a tourist attraction.

It worked. Thousands of people stopped by each year, climbed up the chair and took pictures. The chair was maintained by the Hooks, and every year, Olive Hook used a gallon of primer and a gallon of paint to carefully repaint the chair to keep it looking fresh and white.

When the gift shop closed, the chair was sold to Rose and Morris (Mo) McFadden who operated Cloyne Village Foods, and it was moved into Cloyne.

Cloyne Village Foods eventually closed and is now the Cloyne Shell Station and General Store. The years were not kind to the Big Chair, however, and while it was still in place, it had lost much of its lustre over the last ten years or so.

Then, last May, it was a casualty of the Derecho.

This is where Tammy Whitelock comes in.

“My grandson was really sad that the chair wasn't there any more, and I began thinking that maybe it can be rebuilt. I reached out to the mayor of North Frontenac, at the time, and stone District students are provided the opportunity to certify online in various certification courses and sessions, that offer them a step up when seeking employment. Other areas are Hospitality & Tourism, where students can participate in the food service industry in their local cafeteria, gaining valuable experience in safe food handling, customer service, and costing.

Brian Moelker, Department Head of Technology and Co-op, said that he currently has 30 students enrolled in the program, and he is working hard to continue to add elements to the training that directly support the students as they move into the ever-changing workforce. He explained

by Jeff Green

he said the township was interested in anything that would promote tourism, so I kept talking to people to see what could be done,” said Tammy Whitelock.

Tammy then met John Todd, who lived in Tamworth but does a lot of wood working for local businesses on the Hwy. 41 corridor north of Hwy. 7, and found that he was as keen on bringing the chair back as she was, and was ready to design and build a new one.

She started up a Facebook group, Cloyne Big Chair Project, in early March, and many of the details that need to be worked out for a new chair to be built and installed have been worked out in a very short time.

The owners of the Cloyne Shell were willing to provide the space for the chair, but as the project gained community interest, the idea of placing it in a publicly owned spot cropped up, and while formal approval from North Frontenac Township is pending, locating the chair at the Pioneer Museum is the current working plan.

The Cloyne and District Historical Society, which operates the museum, has approved the idea, and a proposal is going to North Frontenac Council, who own the property where the museum is located, later this month.

Meanwhile, the final design has been done, and sourcing materials is already under way.

“John and I wanted the chair to be finished in a natural wood colour, but when we put the question out to the public, everyone wanted it to be white, like the original chair, so we are looking at a white stain. It will be built entirely of cedar, and

By Kelli McRobert

that many move into apprenticeship roles and continue learning through Northern College, St Lawrence College, and Loyalist College, to name but a few. He hopes to continue to build the already successful program to inspire students to investigate a trade they may not have initially considered.

It is expected that their will be a future labour shortage in the province with some estimates claiming 100,000 unfilled jobs. Moelker hopes to reduce that scarcity as best he can, one student at a time.

For SHS students, attending a school will be much stronger than the original chair. John says it will last forever,” she said.

The cost of the project will likely be limited to the cost of sourcing and milling the cedar, as the labour is being provided by John Todd and other community volunteers, and there are businesses and private donors in the local community who may be helping to cover some of the material costs.

“We are planning a fundraising BBQ to pay for the chair” she said.

While climbing into the 8' x 12' chair was always a challenge in the past, the new chair will have two small sets of stairs, on either side, to make it more accessible.

“We are looking at putting some planters in front of the