Douglas – A well-known and highly respected former municipal politician who gave 50 years of service to the public celebrated an early birthday in grand style on Monday at the big St. Patrick’s Day party hosted by Preston and Terry Cull at the Little Red Barn.

Jack Wilson retired from his role as the former mayor of Laurentian Valley (LV) Township in 2014 after devoting a half-century to municipal politics, and on Monday he and his family celebrated his upcoming 90th birthday at the Irish celebration.

“I’ll be 90 on April 20 and the girls wanted to have a birthday party for me,” he explained amid the noisy celebrants. “So they decided to come here, and it’s great to be here.

“Bev (daughter) phoned Preston a while back and they let us reserve a table for 10,” he said. “I didn’t realize until I was here, they were having it for me. It’s very nice.”

He credited the Cull family for creating a facility for the gatherings, noting they host many fundraising activities for the greater community.

“We’re so lucky to have people like Preston and Terry in the community. The contributions they have made have and continue to make a difference for so many great causes.”

When asked what, if anything, he missed being out of politics, he quickly replied, “The people.”

“I don’t miss all the headaches and stuff that went with it,” he said. “I worked with a lot of great people over the years.

“You miss meeting them every day, or once or twice a week,” he added.

He said there have been many changes in the municipal sector since his decision not to seek re-election in 2014.

“I’m glad I’m out of it. There’s so much stuff coming down from the province now, the people in the local municipalities hardly have any control of their own anymore. It’s harder to get enough dollars to go around, and everything’s got expensive.

“But I enjoyed it the years I was in there,” he added. “The people now are doing the best they can with it, but things are changing.”

Mr. Wilson said he has a good relationship with the City of Pembroke and is pleased to see its continued efforts to improve recreation and transportation. He said municipalities must work together, suggesting there will be further amalgamations in the future, or a county-governance model might be adopted.

“When you haven’t got enough money to keep going, you’ve got to do something,” he remarked. He said Laurentian Valley is going to grow, noting it is part rural and part urban, and that is a great asset.

“Being all around the city of Pembroke . . . and we were lucky we got some good development on the east end with Walmart, Canadian Tire and Home Depot. That makes a big difference on your tax base.”

On a broader scale, Mr. Wilson was somewhat optimistic the fractured relationship between Canada and the U.S. would ease.

“I think Trump’s been a bully most of his life and I don’t think he’s going to get his way in a lot of these things, so I think they’re going to blow over. I think it’s unfortunate that it makes such a mess of things when he comes out with these statements that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.

“I hope all the provinces and Ontario get together and show him we’re not going to sit down and let him get his own way,” he continued. “I think things will look a lot different in a year from now.”

Mr. Wilson first entered municipal politics in 1964 as a councillor in the former Pembroke Township at the urging of then-councillor Jim Goudie.

Although unsuccessful on his first two attempts to convince Mr. Wilson, Mr. Goudie persisted and after a third urging, Mr. Wilson agreed, but under the condition it would be for only one term. That condition quickly fell by the wayside as he went on to become reeve of the township, which later amalgamated with Stafford Township.

Years later, they amalgamated with Alice and Fraser to become the present LV Township. A longtime member of Renfrew County Council, he was named Honourary Warden for 2014, a title bestowed on him by his peers for his 50 years of service.