Tribute to Mike
***Mike Cormier – Former Manager of Winter Harbour Marina and RV***
This tribute is intended to celebrate the legacy Mike left to the Marina, hence it is an overview of “Marina Mike”.
Mike, together with his partner, Patti, spent the summers, the last 10 years, as the Manager of Winter Harbour Marina and RV. On and in the ocean was where Mike felt at home.
For those who didn’t know Mike, besides his wonderful work at the Marina, he was passionate about the outdoors, was a skilled Scuba Diver and an avid advocate for saving the oceans and all life in them as such, he worked with the organization “Oceans Watch”, for several years.
Photography was his lifelong passion: no wonder he took so many pictures of all of us, with our catch, to share our joy and passion for fishing, with others.
This is one of the rare pictures of Mike with his catch of the day.
The long-time guests of Winter Harbour Marina have expressed their disbelief and heartfelt sorrow when they heard about Mike’s passing: “It was surreal and seemed like it just could not be true.”
He will be remembered, by all who knew him, for his kind, gentle nature, his welcoming smile, his help and support for a great stay at the Marina. If you had an “oh no!” moment and needed to borrow something like cannon balls, fuel, tools, downrigger clip, bait, a hose, a book or just a helping hand to launch, Mike was always right on it.
His whole demeanor: the way he walked, talked and smiled gave all guests the assurance that they were in a calm and friendly place and they will get the help they needed.
Mike was considerate of others: he had a strict rule of “NO noise! after 10:00 pm, which he was enforcing with calm diplomacy. He was caring: worried about the boats returning late and their safety and, at times, had to give a gentle lecture about letting him know they would be late returning. He was respectful and asked the guests to “please leave the place as clean as you found it”.
The Manager’s Office is now known as Mike’s Trailer, and will be used by the guests, and to honour Mike it will have a plaque on it, which was made by his daughter. A bench will be added near the campfire that brought memorable moments for all who joined Mike, sitting around it.
R.I.P., Mike Cormier!
May 27, 1952 – May 13, 2022
Comments 4
A wonderful tribute to Mike. We will miss Mike. He seemed to be always around when you needed him. He always treated us very special and we became friends. My boys and I have been coming to Winter Harbour since 2019 when we first stayed with Wayne Bazen. Then I found out my racing buddy Hank owns WHM! So we have stayed at WHM ever since, getting to know the area. We use to fish out of Gold River, Kyuquot, Galiano and Campbell River, but those places have either become packed with boats or the fishing has simply gotten poor. We love Winter Harbour because the fishing pressure is so low, the salmon highway is so close compared to down island and the fishing has been spectacular. It’s paradise. We look forward to Don and Julia managing WHM. Thank you for taking over the helm to continue on the legacy of WHM in this unique part of the world. We are grateful.
Author
Thank you, Otto, for such a heartwarming comment to Mike’s Tribute.
You also validated why we and most of the Marina’s guests, keep coming back, year after year, for fishing and enjoying the beautiful surroundings of Winter Harbour.
Thank you for taking time out of your day to reflect on the the post and for your kind welcome
A very nice tribute to a well deserving man, Mike and Patti were always welcoming hosts and there to help when it was ever needed and it was at times, but Mike never failed to deliver. Mike will be missed RIP.
Have enjoyed Winter Harbour for fishing and hunting and hopefully return this year.
Wishing Don and Julia all the best on their new adventure and management of WHM.
A wonderful tribute for a kind and caring man. Like you said, the walk, the talk. All memorable. Making sure we had radios to go kayaking. He was respected and is missed