The community of Capreol will greet visitors with a newly refurbished Welcome Sign. The new metal topper was commissioned by the Capreol 100 Committee to pay homage to the town’s historical relationship to the railway.
“The town and the railway are intricately linked to each other through a shared past,” explained committee chair Cody Cacciotti. “The railway has always been the lifeblood of Capreol. The new topper adds another incredible piece of public art to the community’s landscape that reflects that relationship.”
Capreol celebrated its centennial in 2018 with a year full of activity which included a number of highlights such as visits from the Stanley Cup, Highway Thru Hell star Al Quiring, and descendants of Frederick Chase Capreol, for whom the town is named.
The sign was designed by local artist Bob Michelutti and built by Derick Lingenfelter of Mind Over Metal Restorations.
“Derick captured the vision of the committee and what it wanted to achieve with the topper,” said Cacciotti. “It’s definitely a piece that the community can be proud of and will share with visitors for many years to come.”
Due to the size of the topper, the existing sign required some restoration work and needed to be reinforced.
“The topper was constructed as one single piece, it’s big.” explained Stu Thomas, Vice-Chair of the Capreol 100 Committee. “We would like to thank Frank Taylor, David Jobin, and Eric Doni from the City of Greater Sudbury along with Jean Guy Allaire for their efforts in reconstructing the original sign and ensure that it can support the new addition. We would also like to thank George Sidun and Norm Laverne of Northern Heat Treat for supplying the speed swing so that the topper could be lifted and mounted safely.”
The Capreol 100 Committee fundraised to cover the cost of the sign and the installation was paid for through the City of Greater Sudbury’s Healthy Communities Initiatives Fund.
