My family has visited and lived on the banks of the St Lawrence River in the same old home for my entire life. The river is the reason we travel long distances to experience its wonder. When sewage began to afflict the waters in the 1990s in ways we had never seen before. In July 2006 we push back. Through work that gave meaning and force to our environmental laws, the pollution stopped and the community embraced the river and the Lake like never before. The Gord Edgar Downie Pier, just a few kilometres up river on Lake Ontario, represents a new way of respecting our planet and connecting people to the water.

The story of protection and restoration in the waters of Lake Ontario and the St Lawrence River has inspired many of us to keep working for our community and helping others do the same in their community. All water is connected and so are the people willing to stand up for it.