John McManus is the person responsible for the resurrection of the P’tite Gare in the fall of 2004. In fact, the idea simply would not have existed without him.

In a hundred years, when our great grand children wonder how this structure came about, it shall be known, that "it was John McManus’s idea in the first place”.

Our children will be scratching their heads for a long time, wondering what was in the minds of these folks to build such a building. It was arguably, the last thing anyone needed. There were no more trains. People were not talking about it and only a handful of people interested in seeing it built.

To read the concise biography of John McManus written by his daughter go here

Dreams rarely get so far. Most dreamers don’t get the power to act on their dreams, because they are not taken seriously, often times for good reasons. Some dreams just don’t make sense, to enough people. Other times, those that DO make sense, aren’t realized because they are just too grand to pull off.

This photo of the P'tite Gare was recently discovered in Marie Smith's photo collection from her mother Charlotte, who may be among this group engaged in what we suspect was a view of the eclipse. To see more of Camp Comfort in the 40's click here

The idea of resurrecting the P’tite Gare was in that category. While it is only a mere 12 x 24 foot whistle stop shelter, only a "station" in our imaginations, it represented for the community of Camp Comfort the equivalent of building New York’s Grand Central Station. In the laws of probabilities, the chance of building the station was one in a million. Faced with such a challenge, most men and women would have become discouraged and given up without even trying. They wouldn’t even share their dreams. Johnny took the next step with the simple statement at the kitchen table, “I want to see this done!”

The first conversations about the P’tite Gare project was around 1994. By then the Camp Comfort community had become a very quiet place to spend the summer. All the families had grown up. There were no more social gatherings like Big John’s Saturday night movies. Gone was the tennis court and the ski jump of the 60’s. Even the number of people taking evening strolls was in decline. He said to me, “I’d really like to see that station back”. Surprisingly, without any further explanation, John Mulligan, Paul Lavoix and I understood instantly what an effect such a building would have on Camp Comfort. It would not just be something to remind us of the “good old days” or the youth of our parents, it could actually re-kindle something of the spirit of that time.

Let's build a physical link to the generations before who had made the station a place to gather, especially a place frequented by young people. A place, first and foremost, for romance and the possibility of finding love.

A board from the original station shows a testiment to the era of courtship without MSN. This looks like Hector Codère's name. Shares in the station were issued by John McManus and her Majesy the Queesn. These are suitible for hanging and can still be purchased from Paul Lavoix for $50 and up.

In 2001, John established our action committee, and a year later announced the project to our fellow Camp Comfort residents. It was greeted with a cautious, almost doubtful endorsement from our formal community association. About a year later, it appeared that over half of the community had warmed to the idea as if they also awoke to realize just how quiet Camp Comfort had become.

But what happened next was a true miracle. By coincidence, during the same year we started to go forward, a tourist train full of passengers began passing through Camp Comfort each weekend.

It was like a sign from above. Now the station could even have a real purpose! We read in the paper how the people of Sainte Adolph-de-Dudswell, just 60 km down the Quebec Central Railway track, were greeting the tourists in period costumes, re-enacting town life at the turn of the century. That someone else was building their ambitious dream, really gave us a boost. The community came forward and pitched in, the checks floweded and it was built on time and within budget. See project details here.

The moment that John cut that ribbon at the Grand Opening ceremony, on September 4th, 2004 with nearly 200 people as witness, one change took place. He pulled off the largest gathering of our community ever!

And today, there are signs of more life. People stop and sit awhile at the station. There have been reports of young people meeting there some evenings.

You deserve a big hug from all the Camp Comfort families. My family will deliver our hugs when each member sees you this summer (Sarah, Annie, Lena, Fabian, Nora (4) and Xavier (2).

And I will work out the logistics in arranging other forms of recognition, like a marching band, a fly over salute by the Canadian Snowbirds, a diner with the Governor General Michaëlle Jean, and a brass plaque. In case those don’t materialize next summer, I promise you a few beers around the camp fire.

And finally, John McManus, you are hereby inducted into the Society for the Advancement of Dreams and Visionaries, a new organization of which you become the first member!

Best regards and wishing you a safe journey home,

Tom Axtell

April 7, 2007