Many signs say to slow down when entering Balm Beach, but perhaps the best sign is the one that welcomes visitors to stand beside it and ‘Take Only Pictures, Leave Only Footprints’.
That’s thanks to the grassroots efforts of locals who recently restored the historic entrance sign from its short absence at Lesperance Corners.
Across the street from Lesperance Service & Towing sits the newly reconstructed 8-foot-by-12-foot sign, donated through time and effort by Tim Lesperance and his wife Shelly, carpentry from neighbour Paul Desroches Construction, and metal supplied by Rob Liz of Huronia Steel Sales & Building Supplies.
“The sign was about 35 years old, and it started to decay,” Lesperance explained. “Three years ago, I guess the wind dropped it down to the ground. The township picked it up and brought it up to their shed, and people were asking: ‘Where’s the Balm Beach sign?’
“I decided to go and get it from the township to see if we could repair it, but it was too badly decayed. My wife and I decided we were going to put the sign back up.”
From the original 8-foot-by-8-foot sign which Lesperance keeps in his backyard, only the main Balm Beach display was salvageable. While Huronia Steel supplied the steel, silicone and screws for the new sign, Lesperance supplied the remaining materials.
After that, the project went to Desroches who used his carpentry skills from late last year until early spring to bring it together.
“It was a challenge,” Desroches said with a laugh. “There was something that had to be done, and we did it.”
Sod was laid down and a flower box was added last month as the tourism season hit its peak. Mention is made at the top of the sign of the participants who helped its reconstruction, but Lesperance admitted the ‘Kodak Moment’ addition to the flower bed was something the original sign didn’t have; something that has allowed Balm Beach visitors to stop to take photos of their visits.
“It makes me feel awesome,” said Lesperance, “because I’ve been here all my life in the same place, and the sign has always been there. And when it fell, it was kind of like a piece of history gone.
“So we brought the history back.”
Even members of Tiny Township council praised the return of the sign through the group’s efforts. Mayor Dave Evans recently called it “public devotion and commitment at its best”.
“This is an example of a small community of people making their community better,” said Evans. “They’ve taken it upon themselves to contribute their own time and money, creativity, to bringing the sign back – not just bringing it back, but making it better.”
As the previous sign had lasted nearly 40 years, Lesperance stated that he hoped the new sign would last just as long. And when asked what would happen in 40 years when this sign needed replacement, Desroches was amused and said with a laugh: “I hope somebody else will do it.”
