TERRY FOX SLEPT HERE.
/DOES SUNSHINE MOTEL AND TAVERN RING A BELL? - A dinner bell, maybe?Fortunately for us, Mili Mezei, wrote to remind our readers of another little bit of “Disappearing Marmora” - the Sunshine Motel and Tavern, just west of Marmora on the #7, which was purchased by her parents in June of 1980. Having realized that there was no profit to be made in the motel section of their property (although they did put up Terry Fox for the night), they concentrated on a gourmet restaurant. Mili’s mother, Maca Calap, was a chef in Toronto, working for a home for the aged and a children’s nursery, where she added Italian recipes to her European repertoire of flavours. Her father, Dusan Calap, was a professional waiter in the old Yugoslavia before emigrating to Toronto. - a perfect duo.
In an article in the Marmora Herald, reporter Jeanette Moore described her meeting with the restauranteurs. “I am a waiter by profession”, Dusan told her with pride, ‘a statement that explained the dexterous way he flourished a napkin.’, she wrote. Entering the kitchen, the reporter described the chef at work.
Maca Calap in the kitchen. Photo by Jeanette Moore of the Marmora Herald
“Maca, like the many armed Indian goddess, Shiva, was twirling her arms and a spatula like a windmill weaving from pan to pan and toaster, while at the same time attending to a small child requesting a hot dog, studying a number of orders and buttering some slices of bread.”
“Not now, I’m too busy”, (Maca) said on catching sight of her husband and me, and flipping a piece of ham with her left hand as she continued to butter bread with her right.”
“But you can talk, can’t you? asked Dusan, noting she was not using her mouth for anything else!”
Two years later, Maca and Dusan sold their property which found its future in Upper Canada Marine. They returned to Toronto where Maca eventually died of cancer. However, Dusan and their daughter, live on to tell their story.
New information:
Wayne VanVolkenburg: After the Calap family, there was a Chinese restaurant. A person from Ottawa tried to run an upscale restaurant from that location. Unfortunately, for him, there wasn't the clientele to pay his big city prices. Hans Holterman, son Randy, and family converted the location into Upper Canada Marine. After running the business for several years, Rick Roto and Trevor Day purchased the business, with Randy Holterman staying involved. Somewhere along the line, the motel and Marine were demolished, and the present day building constructed. Around 2013, Rick Roto spit from that business, and opened Outback Marine on Preston Road, near Round Lake.
Brian Bronson I remember the gent that built the Sunshine Motel, a Mr Joe Hecimovic. I worked with on Ontario Hydro. Joe started on the Hydro when we built Havelock Transformer Station, that would be mid sixties but he was working on finishing the motel then. Hydro guys boarded at the motel over the years.
Joe wrote a book on his Second World War experiences. It was called In Tito’s Death March. - A gut wrenching story of survival during his youth. He had a little trouble with the English language. One statement he would make when he was not feeling well he would say, “I feel good not me”. Funny how thosethings stick in your mind after all this time. R.I.P. Havelock Joe.
