by Tim Bernard Executive Director of Mi'kmawey Debert Cultural Centre

Last month the Mi’kmaw Nation lost one of our important storyteller tellers, Pierre “Rick” Simon passed away peacefully among family at the Colchester Regional Hospital, he was 68. I had the honour and pleasure to watch the very first edition of the Micmac Nation News roll of the presses in November 1990, as I mentored under the guiding hand of Rick. Both Rick Simon and Daniel N. Paul teamed up to begin a brand new Native newspaper, with Rick being recently hired on as The Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq (CMM) Self-Governance Advisor. Rick was transitioning after a successful career as the Mainland Photographer and News Reporter for the Micmac News, and Paul was eager to publish a newspaper that would promote good news stories for the new tribal council he established in 1986, CMM.

Rick was the Editor of this newspaper from November 1990 through until the Spring of 1994 and under his leadership, he encouraged many communities to submit photographs and good news stories to be published under the newspapers banner. The paper grew from the inaugural first issues of 12 pages, under the title of the M ...