Jean Robinson has been chosen as Queens County’s volunteer of the year for 2025. (Rick Conrad)

Part of Jean Robinson’s job more than 30 years ago was to choose Queens County’s volunteer of the year.

Now, the Brooklyn resident and consultant has received the award herself.

“I was really surprised and honoured to be selected and I’ve been thinking it’s kind of funny because I came here in the late ’80s as the recreation director for the county and part of my job was helping select the representative volunteers, so it’s a bit of full circle.”

The Region of Queens Municipality announced earlier this summer that it had chosen Robinson as its volunteer of the year for her “remarkable and diverse volunteer resume”.

She has a full-time job as president of Horizons Community Development Associates, Inc., but that hasn’t stopped her from giving much of her free time to non-profits and other groups in the community.

Originally from Beersville, N.B., near Moncton, Robinson moved to the area in 1988 and has made her mark with many organizations, whether that’s volunteering at her kids’ schools when they were younger to the Queens County Girls Choir and Queens County Seafest to her current volunteer gig as chair of the Liverpool International Theatre Festival.

She’s also helped shepherd local community theatre productions at the Astor Theatre and with the Winds of Change Dramatic Society as a producer.

She credits her parents with teaching her the importance of volunteering at a young age.

“I just think that arts and culture have a really important foundational role in community and in a healthy community, so this is my way of being part of that and it ties to my bigger value that volunteering is foundational to communities, to community development and having a healthy place to live, work and play.”

She’s been involved with the theatre festival since 2011 and it was that connection that also garnered her the prestigious King Charles III Coronation Medal in January for services to the arts.

Former Lt.-Gov. Arthur LeBlanc and his wife Patsy are big fans of the festival and he nominated Robinson for the honour.

“And that came as a complete surprise. I opened my email one day back in early January and I thought is this a real email?” she says, laughing.

“It was very special. It was a lovely ceremony. I was able to take two of my three adult children. … It was lovely to see the breadth of volunteers that were being recognized for their work, whether it was in civil society or in government or in Indigenous relations.”

She says volunteering is changing as people’s family lives and priorities shift. Many groups, especially in rural communities like Liverpool, find it challenging to recruit and retain volunteers.

“I think it is still a struggle and I think that the days of folks volunteering for many years with an organization is maybe more of the exception than the rule than it used to be and just the ongoing long-term volunteer is a little more difficult to get now.”

Robinson is bucking that trend by staying with organizations like the theatre festival for the long haul. She says volunteering has helped her form and strengthen long-lasting friendships.

“People volunteer for different reasons and so, understanding that people may want to volunteer for social connections, they may want to do it for building skills which could then even potentially help on a resume.”

She says volunteer-run groups have had to adapt to remove any barriers to bringing new people on board.

“Knowing that there aren’t financial barriers for them to being involved and understanding that as an organization. Thinking about the strengths that volunteering brings to a person in the community but also how can we break down the barriers and support people to be part of the community. How do we open the door and make them feel welcome?”

Robinson will be the Region of Queens delegate to the provincial volunteer awards ceremony on Sept. 29. She’ll be one of 70 from around the province to be honoured with the award.

The Queens volunteer of the year is chosen from nominees for the region’s Ripple Effect volunteer recognition program which allows the public to nominate fellow community members for their volunteer efforts. More information about the Ripple Effect is available here on the Region of Queens website.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Premier Iain Rankin in Lunenburg. Photo Ed Halverson

The province announced five new palliative care beds are opening on the South Shore.

Premier Iain Rankin was in Lunenburg to share the news the province will provide $1 million annually to fund the five spaces at Fisherman’s Memorial Hospital in Lunenburg.

The new unit will provide team-based palliative care, including end-of-life care, symptom management and support for patients and families from across Queens and Lunenburg counties.

Existing beds at the hospital will be converted into home-like environments.

The province will pick up the tab for equipment and furnishings and additional staff requirements.

Chair of the South Shore Hospice Palliative Care Society Trudy Johnson says the new beds will provide dignity at the end of life.

“I guess I’ll describe it as a giant hug,” said Johnson. “You know, you have people embracing you at your end of life and being able to be with you with dignity and comfort and care and knowing that they love you.”

Trudy Johnson. Photo Ed Halverson

The new unit is set to open this fall.

The new funding announcement is the latest in a string from Premier Rankin, leading many to believe an election call is imminent.

Border blockade takes center stage

Wednesday’s announcement was overshadowed by news of the blockade that has been erected at the New Brunswick – Nova Scotia border.

Protestors blocking the Trans-Canada Highway into Nova Scotia are reacting to last minute changes to quarantine requirements for anyone entering this province from New Brunswick.

The premier announced Tuesday people coming from New Brunswick may have to quarantine up to 14 days based on the number of vaccines they have received and testing.

Protestors are frustrated restrictions weren’t lifted for travellers from New Brunswick the same as they were for people coming from Prince Edward Island or Newfoundland and Labrador.

Rankin has a message to those blockading the highway.

“Think about all the families in Nova Scotia. I have a duty to look out for safety and everyone’s lives,” said Rankin. “We just lost two Nova Scotians yesterday. One had one shot of vaccine. I need to trust the advise of public health that we need one more week.”

At a press conference late Wednesday afternoon, PC Leader Tim Houston said he has been in touch with New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs about the blockade

“I urge the premier to do the same thing. To have those discussions, get everyone to the table and open up the border. But the blockade must end. Goods and services have to be able to flow, families have to be reunited and out products have to move, so end the blockades now,” said Houston.

PC Leader Tim Houston. Screen grab from Zoom conference

For his part, the premier is once again calling on Nova Scotians to put their faith in the people who have kept them safe throughout the pandemic.

“Support public health and support the safety of Nova Scotians for one week and then we’re in a much different place,” said Rankin. “We’ll have thousands of more people with their second dose. Let’s give public health the confidence we have for five months.”

Reported by Ed Halverson 
E-mail: edhalversonnews@gmail.com
Twitter: @edwardhalverson

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