Debbie Letawski took one last call before she locked the doors of the George Little House for the last time on July 31.
It was from Bob Crosby at Usk.
“He called every time as the VIA train passed through. He’d say we had 15 minutes until it arrived,” said Letawksi of the early warning arrangement dating back years.
And once Letawski and her George Little House employees took care of what has needed when the train did arrive, they all climbed aboard for a trip to Prince Rupert courtesy of VIA Rail.
It marked the official end of Letawski’s 18-year management of the city-owned George Little House containing an information centre, arts and gift shop and VIA passenger station.
But it wasn’t how Letawski expected it to end.
“I said I would give Telus 25 years and then would give George Little House 25 years. I really wanted it to be 25 years,” she said.
Last year the city indicated it wanted to end what had been a series of rolling three-year contracts with Letawski and put the management and operation of the building out to tender.
Letawski filed her proposal but it was not accepted and, instead, the city went with the owners of the Southside combination The Fix coffee shop and bicycle repair shop.
It was a shock to Letawksi who organized yearly Founder’s Day teas in recognition of George Little’s role in founding Terrace. That the building was Little’s residence held even more significance to those who attended.
Information released by the city after it made its decision about new operators indicated it was looking for an operator to “demonstrate and describe how they will position the building and property as a community and/or tourist asset.”
Letawski built up a collection of local history for tourists and locals alike which was supplemented by a gift shop of local artists and artisans.
“When people got off the VIA train, I really wanted them to see what Terrace was,” she said.
Offices upstairs became home to historians and heritage consultants. A large room contained community historian Yvonne Moen’s extensive collection of papers and documents collected over the years.
In the basement, Indigenous artists welcomed visitors and for one period it was the home of a do-it-yourself bicycle repair outlet.
The building also became a stop for bus tours, allowing employees to provide information on the city and region.
Being responsible for the VIA passenger station required Letawski to sometimes wait for several hours if the train was late, ensuring that arriving and departing passengers were taken care of before locking up.
Running the building also came with its challenges with Letawksi and her employees losing Christmas lights to theft, an arson attempt, and growing anti-social behaviour and drug use that become common in the downtown core in recent years.
There were also more break ins that Letawski would likely care to remember with losses climbing into the $30,000 range.
One person who broke in even took the time to dismantle a camera before ransacking a jewellery case.
“I asked the city to put bars on the windows, but they never did,” she said in adding that the city has done exactly that.
Letawski can list a long list of those who participated in the success and operation of the George Little House over the years.
It includes employees Shirley Bedard, Lenard Lindstrom and Britny Charron, her daughter.
Charron, trained in martial arts, proved an invaluable asset at times because of anti-social behaviour around the building.
Since learning that the city has chosen new operators, Letawski began gradually emptying out the building of dishes, fine china numerous artifacts.
The bell at the school at Pacific, a one-time railway repair hub and settlement, is now at Heritage Park as is a railway baggage wagon.
Even though the George Little House won’t be what it was, Letawski is confident its historical legacy will continue.
“If not there, then someplace else. We all need to remember our history,” she said.