Sad Start To a Year of Change

Jeff Green | Jan 09, 2025

It is my tradition, in the first issue of the Frontenac News each year, to ask readers to consider supporting the cost of delivering the paper to their post box each week.

I will get to that later, but first, many readers may notice this week that even though it is the first paper of the month, the “What's Up in the Night Sky” astronomy column is missing. Fred Barrett, who has written the column almost every month since 2010, died on January 27th.

Fred's legacy as a volunteer, going back to when he moved to the Maberly area in the 1990s, went much further than the column. The column was one aspect of his passion for astronomy. Although the column is about the night sky, Fred was as well known for his day sky astronomy, and he had a particular interest and expertise in the study of sunspots. The annual “Pie in the Sky” event, which is put on by the Maberly Agricultural Society, is a day time astronomy event/ pie sale that came about because of Fred's interest in the sun as a celestial object, and his decades long connection to the Ag Society and the Maberly Fair.

Rosetta McCinnis, the current Ag Society President, said this week that she does not know how the fair will replace Fred. He has been running the honey and maple syrup competitions for years, built the sugar shack with a crew back in 2001, and had been handling the plumbing and other infrastructure issues.

“Some people saw Fred as a quiet man, but he was someone who would do anything that needed to be done, all the time. There aren't a lot of people like that.”

Fred was also a member of the Perth Choir, and was in their production in December, and part of the set building and backstage crew for most North Frontenac Little Theatre productions as well.

I thought of Fred the other night, when I stepped outside on a cold dark winter evening, to see a crescent moon in the southwestern sky, with Venus a little lower in the sky and a little to the west, both surrounded by a halo of clouds. I thought Fred would have loved that. Visitation for Fred is taking place at Blair and Sons Funeral Home in Perth on January 15 from 1-4pm. Look for his obit on page 9 (under obituaries at Frontenacnews.ca)  for further details.

As for “What's Up in the Night Sky”, Fred came forward in 2010, not long after our original “Night Skies” columnist, Leo Enright, retired from writing the column in 2009 because of illness, and we are hoping the stars will align a third time we will get someone else to take it on..

As for this being a year of change, that is already starting to shape up pretty quickly. As much as some of us might want to leave US politics to the Americans, the incoming President has been taking a keen interest in Canada recently, and that may have a material impact on everyone in Ontario within weeks, if new tariffs are imposed.

We have had an election holiday for the last two year. The last one was the municipal election in October of 2022, but we will not escape in 2025. The provincial Conservatives are signalling they are ready to call an early election as soon as the snow is gone, even though they enjoy a solid majority and have a mandate to govern until June of 2026.

And there will be a Federal election in 2025, likely as soon as the Liberals select a new leader to lead them into some major electoral headwinds.

Our local economy may or may not be insulated against what is coming this year since the steady growth we have been enjoying is based on the burgeoning desire of urbanites to escape to the pleasures of the countryside (with a Fibre or Starlink connection – we all like the Internet). Realtor Dawn Morden has provided a breakdown of the 2024 year in real estate across the region on page 7, and it is important to note that just about everyone of those sales that she lists resulted in work for local contractors, and new families entering our communities, so that part of our near future looks bright.

But much like the way inflation caught up with us over the last couple of years, and housing  and costs in particular have had a massive impact on many families, provincial and global politics have a way of impacting our lives when things get volatile.

Through all of this, we are starting up our 54th year bringing information about what is going on in our local communities, both online at frontenacnews.ca and in the paper version that is, thankfully, back in your mailbox each week. We are wholly dependent on commercial and institutional advertisers, and the best way to support our work is to read the paper, and to make use of the services offered by our advertisers.

Some of you may want to provide direct support, and we are grateful for that. Based on a rough calculation we did a few years ago, we figured it costs about $35 a year for us to produce and distribute 50 papers a year to each household, a number that is up a little bit by now. For those who are inclined, and are comfortable enough financially to spare any amount, we are happy to receive it. We accept cash, email transfers to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., phone in, or in person credit card payments, Patreon though our website, and even origami. Everything that comes in helps our finances, origami maybe not as much, but any and all  kind gestures certainly brighten our day.Some of you may be inclined to provide direct support, and we encourage that as well. Based on a rough calculation we did a few years ago, we figure it costs about $35 a year for us to produce and distribute 50 papers a year to one household, so those who are inclined, and are comfortable sparing any amount, we are grateful to receive it. We accept cash, email transfers to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., phone in or in person credit card payments, Patreon though our website, and even origami. Everything helps, origami not so much but it brightens our day.