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The mayor of Goderich has died in a boating accident near his family’s fishing resort in northwestern Ontario.
Publication date:
Aug 10, 2022 • 31 minutes ago • 2 minutes read • Join the conversation John Grace, Mayor of Goderich. Picture taken on Friday, August 20, 2021. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)
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GODERIC – The mayor of Goderich has died in a boating accident near his family’s fishing resort in northwestern Ontario.
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Sioux Lookout OPP confirmed that 64-year-old John Grace was killed on Lake St. Joseph, south of Pickle Lake and north of Thunder Bay.
The Grace family has owned and operated the Old Post Lodge on the lake since 1986.
Police said the boating incident happened Tuesday and that the provincial Department of Labor is investigating.
Photo of the Old Post Lodge near Thunder Bay taken from its website.
Police at the Pickle Lake OPP Detachment, about 530 kilometers north of Thunder Bay, said a man was found dead when his boat overturned on Lake St. Joseph on Tuesday. He was reported missing “around 11:30 a.m. Central Standard Time,” Sgt. Julian Porritt told The London Free Press.
He was the only resident, police said. His body was found about seven hours after he was reported missing.
Grace has been a fixture in Goderich’s municipal politics for decades. He was elected mayor of Huron County in 2018. There are reports that on Wednesday morning, the Huron County Council held a moment of silence to honor Grace’s memory before their meeting.
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Before becoming mayor, Grace served as the city’s deputy mayor from 2007 to 2014. He recently announced his intention to run for mayor again this fall.
The Old Post Lodge sits on a Hudson Bay trading post known as Osnaburgh House, founded in 1786. On the lodge’s website, Grace says he and his wife built the resort with a commitment to “respecting the historic and cultural significance of the property. “
He added: “This is a very special place and we love nothing more than to share it with others.”
The Huron Chamber of Commerce paid tribute to the mayor Wednesday following news of his death, and its president, Jennifer Werdam-Woodward, said he left an “indelible” mark.
Google Maps: The red icon indicates the location of Old Post Lodge, in northwestern Ontario, near the Manitoba border.
“He loved this town, this community where he grew up,” she said. “He works tirelessly to make it a better place.”
Grace’s political colleagues were stunned by his death. “It’s all so tragic and so sudden,” Cone. Trevor Bazinet said.
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