County of Brant Council celebrated Ron Eddy, the County’s former Mayor, with the unveiling of the “Ron Eddy Way” sign at his family farm on Monday, November 25, 2024.
Eddy served County residents as Reeve of the Township of South Dumfries and Warden of the County of Brant for 16 years, and was also a Member of Provincial Parliament.
Following amalgamation in 1998, Eddy was soon elected to serve as the Mayor for the County of Brant and did so until 2018.
“He was instrumental in establishing the County as a single-tier municipality, bringing together the former townships into a ‘community of communities,’ promoting growth and prosperity, and advocating for agriculture as a key local economic driver,” read the Tuesday, November 26, 2024 County news release.
Looking for a way to honour the now 93-year-old former mayor and his work, councillors approved a resolution back in September of 2023 that instructed staff to work alongside Eddy’s family members to explore various naming opportunities around the county.
“Councillor Brian Coleman kept bringing it up to Council that he really thought they needed to do something to recognize my father, and he’s said before, that every time they did something to recognize someone in the community, he always felt like my dad never got recognized the way that he could have been,” said Mark Eddy, Ron’s son. “As the ball got rolling, staff got in contact with the family and there were some different ideas that came up like naming a park or even a forest after him, but none of those really seemed to fit because they weren’t close enough to where he lived. Eventually in conversation with Councillor Coleman, the idea of a road dedication came up in conversation and I ended up taking it back to dad, and he thought that was a pretty good idea so then it took off from there.”
This past October, the councillors unanimously supported a staff report recommending that a portion of Governors Road East officially be dedicated as “Ron Eddy Way,” and work to have the sign made got underway.
Surrounded by family, friends and current Council members, the sign was unveiled on Ron’s family farm under two Norway spruce trees, planted for the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, on Monday afternoon before it was officially installed the following morning.
As Ron and David Bailey, the current Mayor for the County of Brant, lifted the cover off the sign, Ron’s reaction was simple but impactful, “wow!” he said.
“I just thought when they unveiled the sign and he said, ‘wow!,’ there couldn’t have been a more responsive, positive reaction from him because he was overwhelmed with it,” said Janice Eddy, Ron’s wife. “I thought that was really just perfect because ‘wow’ is exactly what it was.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
