Former Powassan teacher Lisa Fry has played the organ in her church, the Trinity Lutheran Church in Commanda, for 79 years. She started at age 10 and was rewarded with a plaque in the North Bay Musicians and Entertainers Hall of Recognition, now relocated to the North Bay Mall.
She's one of dozens you'll find on the wall and it proves you don't have to be famous says president Don Brose.
You might remember Don from years of playing in his band, Don Brose and the Chords. He started playing country music in 1959.
"As a new band nobody would hire us in North Bay. We had to play in places like Trout Creek, South River, Sturgeon Falls and Lavigne. We used to do square dances." He smiles as he remembers. "We didn't get to play in North Bay until 1962."
Brose is 78 now--- still plays with his band, and spends time as President of the Hall of Recognition, which shares a wall in the mall with the Nipissing Country Music Association Wall of Honour.
The display started in the Capitol Centre, moved to Northgate, but facing eviction recently, Brose needed a new location and the North Bay Mall is perfect.
"I'm ecstatic. I've never come into this mall without seeing someone looking at these plaques. What's nice is we now have both the Hall of Recognition and the Wall of Honour together. People walk by and say, 'oh I remember him or her, or I remember this' and we just absolutely love it."
Lorraine Swain was reading the plaques as Brose stood proudly by.
"It brings back so many memories of growing up as a little girl. Every Saturday from one to four my mother would have CFCH on listening to the music---John Size, Bernie Meehan, and on TV Jimmy Nunner and Vic Virgili---there were just so many."
"It (the display) looks really nice. I really like it. They did a wonderful job."
Sixty-three plaques are up now. Nine more will be added Friday June 5th at the Clarion Pinewood Park when Pete Handley, Susan Hay, Tim Clarke, Rod Carley, Cliff Gervais, Terry McLay, Roger Perreault, the North Bay Symphony and Francis "Newfie" Robbins are added.
http://www.northbayhallofrecognition.com/
The Hall was established in 2003 with the first inductees added a year later.
See video on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f440Qn9BoG0&feature=youtu.be
