2012 Atlantic Journalism Awards Finalists
Attachments
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| Date Aired or Published | August 2012 |
| Media outlet where first aired or published: | Progress Magazine |
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| If co-produced, list partner: | |
| Location: | Atlantic Canada |
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Short explanation of the story and how it developed: There's an expression in Atlantic Canada known as "big feeling." It means someone thinks very highly of themselves—too much, in fact, for others not to mock or deride. If there is an contrary expression for big feeling, then Canadian comedian Shaun Majumder is the corporeal expression of it. He walks, talks and lives gratitude, all directed to family and friends and his hometown, Burlington, Newfoundland. Majumder may be one of Canada's most successful comedians and actors, loved particularly for his work on CBC-TV's This Hour Has 22 Minutes, but his main focus in life is making a difference in the lives of people he respects and loves. Hence the dream of "Majumder Manor," an eco-hotel complete with a five-star restaurant currently being built in his hometown. The hotel is brilliantly designed to welcome discerning visitors from around the world, and yet be cosy and real enough for down-to-earth rural Newfoundlanders to confidently stride through its doors. The design, in fact, draws on the allure of the iconic Newfoundland "kitchen party," where great food and drink, music and storytelling abound. "Rural communities," Majumder told me, "that's where the birth of culture happened, that's where food and stories began. It's where people look each other in the eye and help each other out. Cities can learn a lot from rural communities." It was a great pleasure and privilege to publish this article on Shaun Majumder. His personal life history is fascinating and his deep love for Newfoundland and its peoples is charming. It was similarly fascinating to become acquainted with the Monica Adair and Stephen Kopp, founding architects at Acre Architects, in St John, NB, the winning firm chosen to design the manor. The young married couple are on fire with ideas and gifted with a cooperative work ethic, which someone as brilliant and visionary as Majumder would need. When he spoke of his dreams, they listened, and together they are building a welcoming hearth at the centre of the tiny community. I also loved talking with the mayor of Burlington, George Kelly—who was quick to point out that the manor would only benefit the townspeople, not Majumder ("The money stays in the community. Shaun's not taking five cents.") Last, my interview with St. John's architect Peter Blackie, who helped Majumder build a project team, gave me a larger perspective on the story: "Shaun's ambition was to come up with a meaningful, long-term, [economic] answer for his hometown. But also something that could inform other communities in this province, of which there are so many." Shaun Majumder feels he owes a debt of love to his hometown he can never repay. "What Newfoundland has done for me, in my heart and soul and perspective, has been so influential. ...it taught me so much about what's important." This story teaches everyone, too, about what's important—and its lessons could benefit every declining community in Atlantic Canada. |
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