Nickel Days 2019 officially got started June 19 at the annual president’s reception, where Susie Miscavish and Merv Sterzuk were named the Honorary King Miner and the Honorary Driller, respectively.
Miscavish started working at the Inco smelter in 1989 and also worked at Birchtree Mine before retiring in 2018
Sterzuk first started working for Inco at T-1 mine back in 1967 and stayed there for two years before taking up farming for nearly 20 years and then becoming a miner again in 1988, working at T-1 and T-3 until his retirement in 2017.
“We’re proud to showcase the mining industry in the National King Miner contest,” said United Steelworkers Local 6166 president Warren Luky before revealing the Honorary King Miner and Honorary Driller. “A lot of people don’t understand how much is involved. There’s a lot of moving parts.”
Reception attendees, including Nickel Days board members and sponsors of Thompson’s summer fair, enjoyed musical entertainment by the Thompson Community Band also heard from head of Vale’s Manitoba Operations Gary Eyres.
“The amount of volunteers is fantastic and an event like this is really special for Thompson,” he said.
Mayor Colleen Smook encouraged people from Thompson and the surrounding region to enjoy the four days of festivities, saying that Nickel Days has been going on for the entire 48 years that she’s lived in Thompson.
“This is the party of the year,” she said. “Please come out and enjoy this year. It’s absolutely no different than any other year.”
The reception closed with Nickel Days president Wendell Fitzpatrick, Luky and Stacy Kennedy of Vale officially opening the fair by toasting with the secret booze concoction from the Nickel Days boot.
