For more than six decades, Michael Morris has been telling stories — on a typewriter, a classroom chalkboard, from a mayor’s chair, and now from his room at Swan Valley Lodge.
This June marks the 16th anniversary of his weekly column in the Chapleau Express, his beloved hometown newspaper in Ontario. These days, with more limited dexterity, Morris receives help from Swan Valley staff to continue submitting his work — a gesture he says makes all the difference.
“They are very helpful to me in getting my column done, because I really can't. I have trouble typing,” he said. “I never took typing but reporters of my generation, we can move like hell with two fingers.”
Morris still has a sharp memory and easily recalls the details of places, dates, and names. A storyteller by nature, he easily charms his visitors with shared anecdotes from his vibrant life of travel, newsroom antics, and days in the classroom.
His columns, Chapleau Moments, are love letters to the town that shaped him. Even with the town's tiny population of 1,900, Morris has managed to mine stories from his deep family roots for many years.
Morris was just a child when his father, a former police officer and Second World War bomber pilot, was shot down and killed. He was raised in Chapleau by his mother and grandparents and credits their values with guiding him throughout his life.
“Mom was a teacher for 40 years, and I never heard an unkind word about my mother,” he said. “I think I tried very hard to be like mom.”
Despite some hardship and struggles with alcoholism, Morris recovered and found success in his career. After earning his degree at the University of Waterloo — where he edited the student newspaper and launched his journalism career — he received five job offers from Ontario newspapers. Over the years, he worked for 12 publications across Canada, including freelance work for the Toronto Star.
He learned a lot from the "old-school, tough-as-nails" editors he worked under. One of them, at the Star Phoenix in Saskatoon, once told him: “Journalists have no friends and no enemies. Just tell the truth.”
"Mr. Wade had his favourite staff go to the liquor store at 10 o'clock every morning and get him a bottle. And if you were a good boy, you could have a drink. But nobody thought anything of it. We could still smoke in any room. I smoked a pack of cigarettes before deadline," said Morris.
Beyond those startling cultural differences, the tools of the trade were different too. Stories were hammered out on manual Underwood or Remington typewriters — no computers in sight.
"The times have changed. Now I’m on my phone on Facebook," he laughed.
His career highlights include interviewing former Prime Minister John Diefenbaker and reporting on major events like the groundbreaking research by scientists to study nuclear winter theory in Chapleau — a story that landed on the front pages of American dailies in 1985.
While living so close to the U.S. border, Morris became an avid traveller, eventually visiting 44 American states. He stood among the crowd during Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s historic “I Have a Dream” speech and went on to cover two World Series — including the 1968 championship in Detroit while reporting for the Chatham Daily News.
“It was something to sit in the stadium,” he said. “You’d type some stuff up and yell, ‘Copy!’ And the copy boys would come around and grab your piece of paper and take it to a Linotype machine and send it to the American newspapers. That was a great privilege.”
Morris’s colourful career extended beyond journalism. In 1972, he was elected to Chapleau’s town council, and soon after became mayor — a position he held for 10 years.
“I ran and I led the polls. I was only 30. All the other councillors were friends of my parents,” he said.
During his time of civil service, he helped usher in the construction of a senior’s care facility, a recreation centre, and a civic centre.
He also spent 34 years as an educator, first brought onboard by his mother, the Chapleau vice principal at the time, “for just one year” — that turned into nearly two decades.
Later, he went back to school and received his masters from the University of Toronto. Then in 1989, he moved to Cranbrook for work at the College of the Rockies (COTR). He was originally hired for a theatre program but shifted focus to teach communications, but also economics, history, and law over the years.
Even now, many of his former students remain connected to him through his nearly 5,000 Facebook friends.
Throughout his teaching years, Morris never stopped writing. He authored two books, including Chapleau Boys Go to War, which honours the town’s local veterans and lives lost to war. The book sold over 3,000 copies.
“Everybody in town bought a copy, which really pleased me because my family on both sides were pioneer families,” he said.
He stayed on staff at COTR until retirement, when his hearing started to deteriorate. A lifelong lover of music, he relied on wisdom from Kenny Rogers’ lyrics for knowing when it was time to quit.
“Know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away, and know when to run,” he said. “I think I made the right decision.”
He has been a resident of Swan Valley Lodge in Creston since 2022 and has continued writing not just for his loyal readers, but for his health.
“(My doctor) didn't tell me what to write about. She just said, ‘Damn well write.’ She said, even if you only have to think for an hour a week, that will help the old brain,” said Morris. “There are people with dementia and Alzheimer's who can't even remember their own names. So, I keep it going as long as I can.”
Many of his column's can be read online at michaeljmorrisreports.blogspot.com.
Interested in becoming a hospice volunteer?
The Creston Valley Hospice Society welcomes compassionate individuals looking to connect with seniors in the community. One of the unexpected joys of the role is meeting fascinating people like Michael Morris. To learn more, visit www.crestonhospice.ca/volunteering.
