Умер 92-летний учитель и активист ЛеРой Пич, боровшийся против угольной шахты

Retired Ontario teacher, Cape Breton advocate dies at 92 The Singing Peaches have lost another voice to the choir of angels. LeRoy Peach of Port Morien, a devout Christian and environmentalist, died on Aug. 8 after a life full of love, advocacy and music. Along with his brothers, sisters and parents, Peach would sing harmonies while another person played the piano. “When I was seven or eight, when company came over, we weren’t allowed to stay up, so we’d be sent to bed,” said one of his nephews, John Peach. “I was just in awe of the harmony that I heard.” The poet, environmentalist and die-hard Toronto Maple Leafs fan has left a legacy of kindness, generosity and community activism. Along with founding the Port Morien Community Development Association, Peach co-founded the Cow Bay Environmental Coalition to take on issues with noise and other pollution created by the Donkin coal mine. “He was 90 years old and he was with us when we were stopping the coal trucks turning down Long Beach Road. He was right in front of them,” said co-founder of the Cow Bay Environmental Coalition Catherine Fergusson. “He was 91 and was with us at the Department of Environment and Climate … protesting outside with a sign. He never stopped … he was generous with everything that he had. He had a way of helping people reach their potential.” EARLY YEARS During an interview with the Cape Breton Post for the release of his memoirs (which he published when he was 90 years old), Peach spoke about his childhood, Born in 1933, he attended the one-room schoolhouse in Port Morien where students were in split or mixed grades, something the retired teacher thought wasn’t good for learning. “I personally think we were at a disadvantage, as were most students at rural schools, if you compared with people who had facilities, like, say in, Sydney or a larger centre,” Peach said during the interview in 2024. “It was … a top-down kind of instruction where we were sort of like vessels to be filled up rather than instruction,” he said. “That never brought out the best in individuals.” Peach didn’t pass Grade 2 in the one-room schoolhouse and he suspected it was because he couldn’t tell time. After high school graduation, Peach followed in the footsteps of his father and brothers by joining the Canadian military. When he was 17, he enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force and was deployed to Northern Canada. In the Yukon, Peach was very home sick and came home as soon as he could, which was for the Christmas holidays. It was a long distance to travel then, with many bumpy plane rides and landings. Peach told the Post his nerves were so rattled by the time he got to Cape Breton that he was cured of home sickness for the rest of his life. While serving with the air force, Peach was a radio operator. He left the military when he was 20 to attend Dalhousie University and obtained bachelor’s degrees in arts and education. For two years he taught at a school in Halifax until he was hired at a high school in Brampton, Ont., where he spent the remainder of his 30-year career. Peach moved up the ranks in the English department until he was promoted to head of it. “He really cared about his students,” said John Peach. “He always bragged to me about, you know, he said, ‘You have no idea how many students that I taught in Ontario who to this day are still good friends of mine’ … he was incredibly respected by his colleagues.” Even though he loved teaching, the call of Cape Breton pulled him and his second wife Barbara — who was also from the island — home. He retired a year and a half shy from being able to get his full teacher’s pension but that didn’t matter to Peach, who truly did follow his heart. “I was very lucky to have met two amazing women,” Peach told the Post in 2024, as his eyes welled with tears. “Very lucky to have had two amazing wives.” POETRY AND ADVOCACY Once home in Cape Breton, retirement for Peach might have been busier than employment. For decades, he had written poetry and decided to start his own publishing company called Peachtree Press to release them. He published for books of his poetry and then penned his memoirs, which Boularderie Island Press released in 2024. The memoirs were based off more than 70 years of diaries he kept and he joked with the Post at the time that it was far more work than he had anticipated. Along with his poetry and memoirs, Peach also wrote a community newsletter and was a part-time columnist for the Cape Breton Post. He wrote about community issues, hockey and his experience attending the Toronto Maple Leafs’ 1967 Stanley Cup win. “He was very passionate and insightful. He was very intelligent. A lovely man,” said Carl Fleming, retired managing editor of the Post. “His columns were first rate, always very professional. He was just very passionate about his community and Cape Breton.” Peach became heavily involved with St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Port Morien, often giving a sermon during the annual anniversary celebration. “It was based on the history of the Anglican faith in Port Morien,” John Peach recalled. “To listen to him tell that story at these anniversary services, I couldn’t believe it. My lord, he knew more history on the Anglican faith than anyone around here. Even the ministers.” Community development and bettering Port Morien for everyone in the village became a passion for Peach. He founded the Port Morien Community Development Association and was integral in getting the metal stairs to the beach at the harbour. Peach also spearheaded other initiatives like getting a computer and internet site in the village. It was located at the Port Morien legion and that’s where Fergusson met Peach after moving back to Port Morin about eight years ago. “I didn’t get anything done that evening because we just sat and chatted and had a great time,” Fergusson remembers. “LeRoy knew my father and my uncles. We just became fast friends.” When the Donkin mine started operations again, Fergusson went to Peach to ask him for advice on what to do. From there, the two spearheaded the Cow Head Environmental Coalition to protest the mine and push for accountability from the owners. “He was well informed and always encouraging people to keep learning and make this a better place … I feel I am a better person because of LeRoy.” FOND MEMORIES Along with his singing, John Peach has many fond memoiries of his uncle. Whenever his wife Cynthia cooked a chicken or turkey, they would invite Peach up because it was his favourite supper. Peach would often get John into a conversation about the Donkin mine, knowing the two were on opposing sides of the issue. However, LeRoy Peach would never get heated when his nephew didn’t agree. Rather, he’d continue with facts as he tried to change his mind. John Peach also remembers his uncle on grading day in 1991, sitting on a lawn chair on the back deck with a stack of loonies. LeRoy Peach made the children who were playing stand in a line then spoke with each individually, asking them if they passed. When they said yes, he congratulated them and gave them a loonie.