BLIND RIVER – The pavilion on the riverside in Blind River will be named Vyrn Roy Peterson Pavilion after the former town supporter and council member.
The name was suggested by the Peterson family to recognize a person deeply committed to the community.
The following request, which was approved by the town, was submitted by the family:
Vyrn Roy Peterson was the eldest son of Roy and Marjorie Peterson, late of Blind River ON. A true northerner, Vyrn was born in Sudbury ON, where his family had landed up during his dad’s wartime service in Gander NF. The family moved initially to Sault Ste. Marie ON, where Peterson’s Welding & Machine Shop was first established (and I came on the scene), then to Blind River circa 1951, where they settled for the duration and where succeeding generations began their life journeys as well.
Vyrn spent his formative years in Blind River and ultimately would choose to stay on and live his adult life, raise a family and see out his final days here. In the intervening decades, he graduated primary and secondary school, operated a successful local business serving local, regional and transient customers, and devoted much of his time and a significant portion of his life to civic service and community activities for the betterment of the town he loved and cared so deeply for.
Vyrn loved the river, owning various boats from which he took much pleasure, cruising the waters alongside the town, as well as taking friends and family out for day trips, pointing out the many delights of the area.
One of his acknowledged achievements was initiating the installation of the first fountain, which I think everyone agrees was a great addition to the waterfront, in the picturesque area between the two bridges and near the town hall. We know he spent a great deal of his time in town hall activities and we can never look at the building without bringing back memories of him.
Vyrn devoted himself to the town of Blind River, which he loved, investing many hours, serving multiple terms both in his role as councillor and later mayor, and in other unsung ways.
He was an active member of a number of charitable organizations, including the Lions, the Masons and the Shriners. An avid curler and club member as well, his other contributions over time included working closely with the air cadets and as a welding instructor at the high school.
I believe he was actively involved in working to secure the Eldorado nuclear refinery in Blind River, in an early effort to revive the community. He was also part of the “Urgent Caring Committee”, raising funds for the new hospital.
Vyrn worked unstintingly and successfully to ensure good relations with our First Nation neighbours as well, many of whom were longstanding family friends.
He also helped out regularly at the Legion, where his wife Betty was deeply involved, in many ways both behind the scenes and in a higher public profile. I recall seeing him at one point in his latter years, when his health had begun to deteriorate and he really should have been retired anyway, still operating his backhoe to level out the borders of the larger parking lot cum beer garden to make it more attractive and accessible.
In today’s terms, Vyrn would be considered an entrepreneur, a latter day pioneer and a visionary who helped build and sustain the infrastructure and the community of this special place called Blind River.
Vyrn contributed a great deal to the Town, in many many ways. I should like to recognise this in a way which will make even more people happy, which was perhaps Vyrn’s main ideal in life. Helping others out, ensuring people and businesses had the best opportunities available to grow and prosper, Vyrn deserves to be commemorated in a way which recognises these efforts.
The naming of the river pavilion in his memory will surely make me and all of Vyrn’s surviving family both proud and happy, whilst bringing pleasure to those who use the facilities.
It may also be the case that giving a new identity to this unnamed facility will make it even more meaningful as well, both for individuals and for the community at large, and add another icon to the rich history of Blind River.
Sincerely,
Dan Peterson on behalf of the Peterson family