Cast your vote to name the newest Halifax Transit ferry

The Halifax Regional Municipality is inviting residents to vote in favour of one of five names proposed for the newest replacement harbour ferry, expected to go into service this summer.

Residents will have until end of day Monday, Feb. 15, to vote online at www.halifax.ca/surveys for their preferred of the following five names put forward by Halifax residents for the new vessel:

Private John Curwin

John Curwin, a native of Mount Uniacke, served in the Royal Canadian Regiment, 2nd Battalion of the Canadian Forces in the International Security Assistance Force. Pte. Curwin was killed in 2008 when his vehicle struck an improvised explosive near Kandahar City, Afghanistan.

Vincent Coleman

In 1917, during the events of the Halifax Explosion, Vincent Coleman stayed behind to warn an inbound train about the impending explosion that would take his life. Regardless of how many people he actually saved, his actions speak to a level of heroism of which all Haligonians should be proud.

Viola Desmond

Viola Desmond was from Halifax but became famous in New Glasgow, NS, in 1946 when she unknowingly sat in the Whites only section of a movie theatre that practiced segregation. She was not permitted to stay, and was detained overnight although she offered to pay the extra required to sit in this section. Her story highlighted the need to address segregation in Canada and raised awareness of the African Canadian situation nationally and internationally.

Major Gavin Rainnie

Major Gavin Rainnie, a Dartmouth native and graduate of the Royal Military College (RMC), was a member of the Royal Canadian Artillery when he gave his life in defense of his country on D-Day, Jun. 6, 1944, at Juno Beach.

Ron Wallace

An optometrist by profession, Mr. Wallace turned to politics at both the provincial level as a member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1970 – 1978, and later as the City of Halifax’s longest serving mayor from 1980 – 1991. Mr. Wallace passed away in 2008.

More information on each of the five finalists is available on the voting site at www.halifax.ca/surveys.

More than 200 names were submitted by Halifax residents in the fall 2015, which were then reviewed and narrowed down by Halifax Transit and Corporate Communications staff based on appropriateness, originality, cultural significance and diversity. The final five names were selected from the short list by a committee comprised of Mayor Mike Savage and one member from each of the three community councils.

The name receiving the most votes will adorn the new ferry, subject to final approval by Transport Canada. The resident who submitted the winning name will receive a one-year conventional transit pass courtesy of Halifax Transit and the municipality. Stay tuned to @hfxtransit on Twitter, use the hashtag #namethatferry, and check www.halifax.ca for the announcement of the winning name at the end of February.

This is the final of three new vessels that will replace aging infrastructure in the fleet of five harbour ferries – bringing more continuity and efficiency to Halifax Transit’s ferry services. June 2014 marked the first new vessel to be added to the Halifax Transit ferry fleet in more than 25 years. Residents voted to name the ferry “Christopher Stannix” in honour of a young soldier from Cole Harbour who was killed in 2007 while serving with the Canadian Armed Forces in Afghanistan.

The second replacement ferry received in 2015 was named Craig Blake, to memorialize Petty Officer Second Class Craig Blake, who was the first Canadian sailor to be killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan. He was part of an elite navy group that specializes in neutralizing bombs – underwater and on land – based at the Fleet Diving Unit Atlantic in Halifax.

For more information on the Halifax Transit harbour ferry service, visit www.halifax.ca/transit.