EDITOR’S NOTE: Manitoulin is being transformed with the influx of new residents and business owners who bring with them fresh ideas, experiences and perspectives that are enriching the area. Some individuals and families are still unpacking boxes, having only moved in the past month or two, while others made the move over the last few years and are now comfortably established in their new communities. Here is one of their stories.
Living on a country road on the outskirts of Manitowaning reminds Pamela Anderson a lot of her childhood growing up in Ballinafad in southern Ontario, which “boasted a general store, a community centre and a cemetery,” she laughs.
Most of Pamela’s life was spent in and around rural and small-town southwestern Ontario. When she moved to Georgetown in her teens, Pamela became a high-level athlete playing AA women’s hockey alongside Angela James on a team that went on to win a provincial title.
Hockey and physical activity, generally, remained an important part of her life during her adult years after she moved to Burlington where she worked in the automotive industry at the dealership level. Pamela spent 25 years employed by Reynolds and Reynolds, a US software company serving car dealerships with its retail management system that helps them to streamline operations and improve customer service satisfaction. Over the course of her career, Pamela moved up the ranks from managing support centre staff to being a utilization specialist for Toyota and other major automotive manufacturers.
It was through a hockey connection that a friend introduced Pamela to Lesley Shoji who, ironically, had also grown up in Georgetown although the two women didn’t previously know each other. Reinforcing that it really is a small world “we discovered we had all kinds of experiences and people in common,” explains Lesley, “including dating the same boy when we were younger!”
Like Pamela, Lesley was active in sports throughout her high school years before attending Western University where she earned a business degree. She initially worked in the banking sector following graduation as a management trainee for CIBC. She then met and married her husband, Bud. The couple began a label manufacturing business, a thriving company that they sold almost 30 years later in 2015. During those years, Lesley lived in Oakville and raised two sons; Adam, now 33 and living in Toronto and Jason, now 30, based in Oakville. While the business endured for almost three decades, Lesley’s marriage did not.
Pamela and Lesley became partners in 2005 and solidified their relationship with a ring exchange ceremony several years later. While they continued to live in the city, they pined for the tranquility of country living and the opportunity to be more physically active so purchased a condo in Collingwood for ski getaways. Weekend ski trips evolved into their next move when they relocated full-time to the city. The duo replaced their condo with a rural home with 40 acres of forest that they would go on to establish as a five-star deluxe B&B, Nocimo Woods “right where you want to be.”
Pamela continued her day job, commuting around Ontario, but worked remotely from home as frequently as possible as she and Lesley launched their new business. It was an undertaking that included everything from cutting down trees to create forest trails for visitors to building a guest cabin and outhouse with stained glass windows as an Airbnb rental property.
Business was booming and enabled the couple to support numerous local causes throughout the Blue Mountain area, including key charities. They promoted local farms, breweries and restaurants with whom they collaborated on fundraisers for groups such as Jack.org, a mental health organization by young people for young people.
As fulfilling and rewarding as life on the Blue Mountain was, Pam and Lesley wanted a change of pace and scenery and decided to capitalize on the increased value of their beautiful property in the fall of 2021 at the height of the pandemic migration to country living.
When their home sold within a week, they were left scrambling to look for a new place to live. They were open to any location so long as it included being on the water. They were initially drawn to several places in the Kingston area but, given limited inventory and intense competition during that period, lost out on repeated properties. As they began looking elsewhere in Ontario, they found a listing for a property in Gore Bay on Manitoulin, a place neither had ever been to before. That led them to meeting Isobel Edward who showed them a variety of homes on their first, fast, one-day visit to the Island.
Among the houses they saw—only from the exterior as it wasn’t yet listed—was a beautiful property on Manitowaning Bay owned at the time by Steve and Rhonda Bondi who were in the midst of building their new home on Lake Manitou. Pamela and Lesley were smitten at first sight and, as soon as the home was listed, were first on the list of eager buyers. A deal was sealed within a week and they took possession six months later in April 2022.
“Manitoulin chose us,” says Lesley. “It checked all the boxes on our wish list, including our fabulous view of Lake Huron. It’s so beautiful and peaceful yet we’re close to Manitowaning so do not feel too isolated.”
The couple quickly integrated into the community, thanks to the kindness and warm welcome of neighbours. They’ve since become close to Phil Blake and Jude Wright, who live right across the road, as well as Lianne Hovingh who lives a few doors down. A chance encounter when out walking their dog, Chance Hudson, led to meeting Chris Prosser, who invited them to join the Assiginack Curling Club. There they have befriended more locals, including Sharon and Reuben Allen who “welcomed us with open arms.”
Lesley has taken up several art classes and donated some of her artwork to support a fundraiser for the curling club while Pamela has found her niche helping in the kitchen during winter bonspiels. Both are relishing retirement and their new lives on the Island.
“Our experience here has been so positive,” sums up Pamela. “It’s similar here to how I grew up in the country. So many days we walk the dog along the lake and hear only birds and the wind in the trees. In some ways, I feel I’ve come full circle settling here.”
“We love living here and being part of this wonderful community,” adds Lesley. “Being members of the curling club, we’ve seen how everybody chips in and helps each other. There’s a real sense of community and fun.”
Heather Marshall and her husband worked as journalists and consultants in the National Capital Region for more decades than they care to admit before making their Sandfield cottage their permanent home. A lifelong learner, Heather loves discovering new things and people and relishes the opportunity to write about newcomers to the Manitoulin. If you would like to share your story or know of recent arrivals we should meet, send a message to HAMarshall@proton.me
by Heather Marshall
