debt and build facilities families
needed. “Now, every municipality
does this,” says O’Brien. “But we were
leaders in this field.”
McCallion’s forward thinking paid
off at the polls. From 1978 to 2014, she
easily won 12 consecutive elections
before finally relinquishing her keys to
the city at age 94.
Because she wasn’t affiliated with
any party, “Politicians of any political
stripe, federal or provincial, would
court her,” says political strategist John
Capobianco, who worked on current
mayor Bonnie Crombie’s campaign. “If
you wanted anything done, you needed
Hazel on side.” Over time, as her pull
spread to all the suburban communities
surrounding Toronto, she morphed into
a super-mayor to what became known
as the 905, effectively creating and serv-
ing as power broker for one of the most
influential voting blocs in the country.
To say that McCallion defies age is
an understatement. Although she’s a
little hard of hearing and slightly
stooped, her mind is razor-sharp. She
takes no medication, other than a daily
Aspirin and a shot for mild osteopor-
osis. A recent fall while lugging wood
to her fireplace left her undaunted:
“My bones are pretty strong.”
She says the keys to her health and
longevity lie in her formative years
growing up with her two brothers and
two sisters (all deceased) in Port
Daniel, Que., a small village of 2,210
on the Gaspé Peninsula. Here, her
parents, Armand and Amanda Jour-
neaux, owned a fish-processing plant
and ran a farm.
Born in 1921, the youngest of the
Journeaux brood, McCallion grew up
during a global depression, which
instilled in her the values she carried
with her throughout life: the Protes-
tant work ethic, spending money wisely
and a healthful diet. “I ate a lot of fish
growing up. I still do,” she says.
Plus, she was always active, playing
pond hockey with her siblings. She
eventually parlayed those hockey skills
into a source of income; after finishing
high school and landing a job in Mon-
treal, she joined a three-team women’s
professional league, earning $5 a game.McCallion can count on one hand
the visits she’s made to hospital: to
deliver her three children and then
that time in 2003 when she was hit by
a pickup truck. “The police chief and
fire chief showed up and they wanted
me to stay overnight. I said, ‘I don’t
have to. I have no pain.’” In the end,
they prevailed—one of the few times
Madam Mayor didn’t get her way.McCALLION DOESN’T
HAVE TIME FOR A
GOVERNMENT JOB,
BUT POLITICIANS STILL
SEEK HER HELP.rd.ca 71