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Cornwall’s Stamp man: Larry Markell FRANCIS RACINE francis.racine@eap.on.ca
of Cornwall as well as Alexandria,” explains the man. “I’ve got some people rallied behind me for the cause, but I always wish I’d have more of course.” Although it may sound simple, the whole process is mind boggling. The stamp enthusiast obtains several pounds of stamps, all of them still bearing the paper from past enve- lopes. He then carefully cuts off most of the paper, before packing it and sending it to a distributor in Toronto. “My good friend in Toronto buys them by the bulk,” Markell says with a smile. “He then sends me a cheque, before selling the stamps to hobby shops across America. As soon as I receive the cheque, I automatically give it to the SD&G OSPCA.”
Although it may sound like a good deal on paper, Markell explains that even though a pound of the col- lectible material is made up
to give back to it.” The Cornwall resident also stresses that he wishes he could donate to several more organizations, such as the Agape cen- tre and the Baldwin House. “I really want
to give to the Baldwin house,” explains Markell. “If I can collect more stamps, that’s
CORNWALL | He’s a collector turned com- munity hero. Larry Markell, himself a stamp collector since the tender age of 11, is now giving back to the community. It all started when he visited his grand- father’s friend, a World War One veteran, who simply loved stamp collecting. “He saw something in me,” explains Markell. “So he taught me pretty much everything he knew about the hobby.” Then, three years ago, the Cornwall resi- dent had a great idea: collecting bulks of stamps in order to raise money for local charities. “I receive stamps from nearly all
...my father, a military man, always said that there’s no can’t in the family.
what I’ll do. My ideal scenario would be to hand out $150 to $200 to a dif- ferent charity each month. I’ve got a long list
of over 5 0 0 0 stamps, he only receives from $30 to $40 for it. The entrepre- neurial man is therefore in the process of selling some online. “Selling them online is long and doesn’t bring a lot of funds either,”he said.“The more com- mon stamps will sell for around 2 cents to 20 cents a piece. If you have an extremely rare one, it might go for just a little more than a dollar. Yet I also have to package it and send it off.”
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Three years ago, the Cornwall resident had a great idea, collecting bulks of stamps in order to raise mon- ey for local charities.
at home.” He also hopes that someone in the com- munity will take the reins when he has to hang his hat and retire from the charity stamp collecting. Although the active man walks from store to store, collecting the material, he admits that he will likely end up in a wheelchair. “I hate to think about it, but I know it will happen someday,” he ex- pressed. “There are some mornings where I just can’t get up. But my father, a military man, always said that there’s no can’t in the family. So here I am, doing what I love do- ing, until I absolutely have to stop.” Markell also urges the local community to keep their stamps, instead of throwing them out. “People receive several letters every month,” highlights Markell. “We usu- ally open the letter and trash the envelope along with the stamp. I just ask the people of Cornwall to keep that stamp. I don’t even mind if half the envelope comes with it”
When asked why he chose that particular charity, the self-proclaimed animal lover takes off his glasses. “My parents are some of the first people to be involved in the or- ganization. My father was actually the first inspector for the OSPCA.” Growing up, Markell remembers that family farm having been transformed into a suitable habitat for stray animals through- out the community. “That’s why I love ani- mals,” he goes on to explain. “I grew up with a lot of people who cared for them.” But Markell also has a whole different and more tragic reason to care for the commu- nity. Years ago, he was involved in a serious vehicle accident, which affected his spine. He therefore requires the help of a cane in order to collect the stamps every month. “I used to own two businesses here in Cornwall,” says Markell. “After the accident, I couldn’t continue with them. That’s when I realized that the community had given me so much in the past. I wanted and still want
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City council approved a Heart of the City funding application that will save devel- oper Ron Chenier $1.27 million in taxes over a span of 10 years. The funding comes as construction is set to begin by the start of the summer. Dominion Place, which will boast four storeys, will be located at the corner of Second and Pitt Street and will be made up of condos as well as commercial spaces (on the first floor). Another condo building, the Knox City Centre, located at the corner of Sydney and Pitt Street was al- located a $1.3 million grant by city council earlier this year. (FR)
Photo fournie
Tommy St-Arnaud, Nolan Armstrong, Zoe Meunier et Rebeca Castro ont tous représenté l’École secondaire L’Héritage au concours L’Art de s’exprimer. Le thème de cette année était Comment mes passions ont-elle une incidence sur le monde? Nolan a remporté la deuxième place et Tommy a remporté la première place parmi les garçons de la 7e et 8e années de Cornwall. Tommy, ci-dessus, représentera son école à la compétition Prescott-Russell, SDG, le 13 avril à Casselman. (FR)
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