Close X
Wednesday, December 4, 2024
ADVT 
National

Nova Scotia Town Mourns Founder Of World-Famous Culinary School Killed In Crash

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 20 Sep, 2016 11:36 AM
    FOURCHU, N.S. — A small fishing town in southeastern Cape Breton is mourning the death of the founder of a world-renowned culinary school who considered the community "her family's home village" and promoted its catch as a superb cooking ingredient.
     
    Dorothy Cann Hamilton, 67, died in the collision on Highway 105 when her SUV collided with a truck pulling a camper trailer, about 100 kilometres from her summer home in the village of Fourchu.
     
     
    She was the founder and CEO of the International Culinary Center in New York, which also has campuses in San Francisco and near Parma, Italy.
     
    The vocational school, which started as an outgrowth of her father's training institute in trades, has become one of the world's leading cooking schools. Hamilton was also the host of a public television and radio series that profiled chefs and has received the Legion of Honor from France for promoting French cuisine in the United States.
     
    In her final post on her blog "Love what you do," Hamilton praised the island's snow crab, explaining how she'd invited internationally recognized chefs to Fourchu several years ago in hope they'd "go gaga" over the local catch.
     
    "In the summers, you can meet the crab boat and have the sea water boiling back home," she wrote. "Meeting the boat is as much a social event as a shopper's delight."
     
    Gordon MacDonald, a fisherman in Fourchu, said that Hamilton tried to assist the struggling economy of Cape Breton by pointing out the unique, sweet flavour of the lobsters he and other fishermen brought to shore — helping to establish the name of "Fourchu lobster" in the best restaurants of New York City.
     
    He said her delight in his catch was in keeping with her approach to food, which emphasized that excellent cooking stemmed from the freshness and quality of the ingredients themselves.
     
    He said for several months of the year her culinary schools exclusively used his community's catch.
     
    Her loss is a blow to Cape Breton island, as she'd taken a growing interest in helping create a cooking school at community colleges and was continuing to promote the quality of its catch, he added.
     
    "She was a driving force. She was a woman that would get things done. She had influence and power and knowledge of how to bring things together ... While we still may be able to achieve the same thing in the end it's going to be a lot more difficult without her," he said.
     
    Nancy Whitney-Latham, a designated lay minister with the United Church, says Hamilton was also beloved in Fourchu for her contributions to the local church and community firefighting department.
     
    "The people of Fourchu will be grieving this loss of their friend for a long time to come. I know when I got the call, I couldn't speak ... I'm still seeing Dorothy and hearing Dorothy and I really find it hard to accept she's gone in such a tragic way," she said.
     
    Hamilton held parties with music and delicious food, and invited the local people into her home, said the minister.
     
    "She threw on a pair of jeans and a sweater and away she'd go," said Whitney-Latham.
     
    She says a memorial fund has been set up in her name to help preserve the church building, which has seen a declining congregation in recent years.
     
    Whitney-Latham also said a special service will be held at the church this Sunday, and that Hamilton will eventually laid to rest in Fourchu, the home community of her grandfather.
     
    Hamilton was in Cape Breton to organize a surprise birthday party for a friend, and had been on her way to business meetings to help promote various ventures on the island. 

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Mounties Warn Of Sex Attacks In Burnaby, B.C.

    Police say the attacks occurred between Sept. 1 and Sept. 3 and appear to be related.

    Mounties Warn Of Sex Attacks In Burnaby, B.C.

    Medicare On Trial As Private Vancouver Clinic Challenges Coverage Rules

    Medicare On Trial As Private Vancouver Clinic Challenges Coverage Rules
    VANCOUVER — A lawsuit that begins today in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver has the potential to fundamentally change the way Canadians access health care.

    Medicare On Trial As Private Vancouver Clinic Challenges Coverage Rules

    Government Should Rethink B.C. Post-Secondary Funding: Teachers

    Government Should Rethink B.C. Post-Secondary Funding: Teachers
    VANCOUVER — British Columbia's post-secondary system is in crisis and is failing students by forcing them into careers they may not be suited for, says a group of university and college teachers.

    Government Should Rethink B.C. Post-Secondary Funding: Teachers

    Researchers Uncover Genetic Effects Of Prenatal Alcohol Exposure

      The investigation, led by the University of British Columbia, analyzed DNA samples from 110 children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder across the country.

    Researchers Uncover Genetic Effects Of Prenatal Alcohol Exposure

    Canadian Resident Trapped In Moscow Says Clerical Error Caused Government To Revoke Status

    Canadian Resident Trapped In Moscow Says Clerical Error Caused Government To Revoke Status
    Julia Yakobi says the Aug. 11 decision has left her stranded in her native country without means of returning to the country she now considers home.

    Canadian Resident Trapped In Moscow Says Clerical Error Caused Government To Revoke Status

    Trial Begins For Man Accused In Mill Shooting In Nanaimo, B.C.

    Trial Begins For Man Accused In Mill Shooting In Nanaimo, B.C.
    Michael Lunn and Fred McEachern were both killed when a lone gunman entered the Western Forest Products mill on the morning of April 30, 2014, and started firing his weapon.

    Trial Begins For Man Accused In Mill Shooting In Nanaimo, B.C.