Revisiting the thousands of stories published in 2019 by SaltWire newsrooms across Atlantic Canada, it's hard to choose which to showcase in our year-end features. Much happens - both good and terrible - in a region over the course of 12 months
Here are the most-read stories that left a good feeling in our hearts.
Oak Island property owner’s new website displays 20-plus years of found artifacts
In January, Oak Island - part of Nova Scotia popular with cottagers, treasure hunters and reality TV viewers - proved a winner with SaltWire readers with Stuart Peddle's piece on a new website showcasing archives from the area.
Oak Island treasure hunter Daniel Blankenship survived collapse, combat, and the Mafia to die peacefully at 95
A second story about Oak Island - a tribute to the late Dan Blankenship - topped our charts in March when Aaron Beswick interviewed the treasure hunter's son.
Good Samaritan resorts to trickery to make sure Glace Bay woman gets new roof
One of the most memorable stories in Nova Scotia in 2019 was the October story of a Glace Bay, Cape Breton, woman helped by a roofing contractor's generosity - and a bit of trickery.
After Sharon Montgomery-Dupe's coverage of Locke's gesture and a follow-up story about the rough shape MacDonald's house was in, including help with heating and furniture.
Life in the fast lane with Bad Chad Customs
Chad Hiltz from Canning, N.S., is another reality TV personality who is also a SaltWire audience favourite. He made his U.S. TV debut on the first day of 2019, when his show Bad Chad Customs debuted on the Discovery Channel. This Heather Desveaux feature on Hiltz's debut quickly topped our charts.
Fans of "Bad Chad" can read more about the custom car whiz in this feature from SaltWire's Kirk Starratt published in March: VIDEO: No dream too big: ‘Bad Chad’ teaches life lessons while building custom cars
Charlottetown woman who lost 115 pounds is the face of GoodLife Fitness campaign
Three New Years ago, Rachel Moase decided to change her lifestyle. A little more than a year ago, that decision led the Charlottetown, P.E.I., woman to be chosen as the face of a GoodLife Fitness campaign.
Katherine Hunt's interview with Moase was one of our most-read articles of 2019.
Nova Scotian returns wallet found in Newfoundland with $1,000 in cash, refuses to keep money as reward
When an Alberta tourist Bob Gillard lost his wallet while hiking in Newfoundland and Labrador's Gros Morne National Park, staff told him to have hope. That hope was fulfilled a few weeks later when a Nova Scotian, Lukas Wentzell, came upon the lost item and arranged for its return.
Gillard's following gesture of gratitude helped those in need and charmed our readers when Ian Fairclough shared the story in August.
Iowa woman seeks Good Samaritan Newfoundlander
The search for a Canadian who committed an act of kindness while doing some touristing of his own was featured on our network in April, when Rose Mullaley spoke to Kathryn Miller. Afte frantically waiting for almost an hour at Tampa International Airport in Florida on weekday in March for word about the status of her purse, which she had mistakenly left on a shuttle bus from her hotel to the airport, a Newfoundlander came to her rescue. Miller wanted to express her gratitude, so she contacted the St. John's Telegram.
After Mullaley's story was published, a gentleman from Trinity Bay, N.L., called the newsroom. “It’s nice to be recognized, but it’s really no big deal,” the man, who didn't want his name published, told The Telegram. “I’d like to think most people, especially Newfoundlanders, would’ve done the same.”
Nova Scotia woman wins discrimination case
After two years of fighting discrimination, Nova Scotia's Melody Harding convinced the provincial government to remove a requirement that candidates for breast reduction have a body mass index (BMI) below a certain level.
“It’s not a guarantee, but at least people can have their consultation and can actually see a person face to face and see if it’s appropriate,” Harding told Nicole Munro after a settlement was reached in May.
When SaltWire's Ashley Thompson interviewed Harding in 2017 as her battle began, the Aylesford, N.S.- native said: “When I say that it is a life-changing surgery I’m not pussyfooting around. It is a life-changing opportunity.”
JOHN DeMONT: Dartmouth woman who had to live in car humbled by outpouring of kindness
When John DeMont shared the sstory of Joni Rutledge who was living in her car in a Dartmouth, N.S., parking lot, readers reached out to open their wallets and homes to the woman who had ended up homeless and out-of-work. As of Dec. 31, a GoFundMe to help Rutledge had reached more than $9,000
His time to go: Well-known P.E.I. businessman ends ‘wonderful’ life on his own terms
Two hours before Neil Harpham chose to end his life through medically assisted death, the Charlottetown businessman was sharing his story with journalist Jim Day.
“I wake up in the morning and I go downhill every day…and the next day and the next day and the next day" Harpham said Feb. 8. “I’m just so glad I don’t have to wake up to this shit anymore.’’
Over a career owning two taxi companies, Harpham employed more than 150 people. Many of those cabbies lined up outside of their taxis on that February day outside of Harpham’s P.E.I. home to give the man a moving, heartfelt send-off.
What was your favourite news story of 2019? Join the conversation on this article at SaltWire.com.
