Canada Region

Canada Region’s Two Original Railroads

This past fall, the first two Canadian railroads acquired by G&W – Quebec Gatineau Railway (QGRY) and Huron Central Railway (HCRY) – celebrated their 25th anniversaries.

Right: David Braun, QGRY general manager (left), with Rick McLellan, president of G&W Canada

Below middle: Jack Hellmann, G&W CEO, mingles with event attendees.

Above: Daniel Cournoyer, deputy mayor of Trois-Rivières, raises a glass to QGRY’s past 25 years. QGRY’s locomotives were outfitted with a special 25-year decal.

Front row, from left: G&W Executive Vice President of Business Development Matt Walsh, G&W Canada’s Vice President of Finance Harold Perrault, G&W Canada’s Vice President of Engineering Andre LaPalme and G&W’s General Counsel Allison Fergus. Back row, from left: G&W President of North America Michael Miller, G&W CEO Jack Hellmann, G&W Canada President Rick McLellan, G&W Canada Chief Commercial Officer Christian Richard and G&W Canada Vice President of Administration and HR Andre Houde.

On the evening of September 15, nearly 60 guests, including current and former employees, customers, as well as representatives from the Port of Trois-Rivières, the Trois-Rivières mayor’s office and the Railway Association of Canada, attended the QGRY anniversary celebration at the railroad’s Trois-Rivières site. Today, QGRY is G&W Canada’s largest railway – spanning almost 310 miles in the Quebec province from Quebec City to Gatineau and including a subdivision to Shawinigan. It provides nearly 50 customers across a wide range of industries with an essential link to the North American rail network and is operated by roughly 140 dedicated employees – 28 of which have been with G&W Canada since Day 1. Part of the celebration included the unveiling of a QGRY locomotive outfitted with a special decal commemorating “25 Years on the Right Track.” This decal recognizes QGRY’s achievements over the past two-and-a-half decades while looking ahead to a promising future with an absolute dedication to the safety of our people and the success of our customers.

Canada Region

Commemorate 25 Years as Part of the G&W Family

The celebration for HCRY was held on November 10 – with over 30 guests in attendance, including the Honorable Ross Romano, Member of Provincial Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie; mayors from neighboring towns along the Sudbury-Sault Ste. Marie line; representatives from the Ministry of Northern Development; the local HCRY task force that helped to lobby the government for continued grant funding; and customers and employees. HCRY runs 173 miles from Sudbury to Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, with 13 employees serving roughly nine customers. It interchanges with both Canadian Class I railroads – Canadian Pacific and Canadian National.

G&W congratulates the entire QGRY and HCRY teams on these remarkable milestones.

From left, Steve Butland of the HCRY Task Force; Ross Romano, Member of Provincial Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie; and Joe Fratesi of the HCRY Task Force. Andre Houde welcomes guests to the HCRY celebration.

Seated, from left: Andre LaPalme, G&W Canada’s vice president of engineering; Tom Alcock, HCRY trainmaster; Brendan Wallage, director of sales and marketing for HCRY; Patricia Ottoni, G&W Canada executive assistant; and Catherine Moher, HCRY trainmaster. Standing from left: Roger Lacroix, HCRY assistant roadmaster; Lou Mastrandrea, director of MOW for G&W Canada; Jessica Farinaro, HR manager for G&W Canada; Murray MacBeth, chief mechanical officer for G&W Canada; Daryl Duquette, HCRY general manager; Adrianne Purificati, administrative assistant; Andre Houde, vice president of administration and HR for G&W Canada; and Stephane Tardif, director of safety and security for G&W Canada.