News
Municipality of Cumberland opens 2026-27 grants program
- Details
The application process for the Municipality of Cumberland’s grants program has opened.
The municipality recognizes the important contribution that not-for profit volunteer organizations make to the sustainability of its communities.
Last year, more than $910,000 was provided to approximately 70 organizations in support of capital projects, facility operations, and community programs & events with the aim of promoting arts, culture, tourism, community services, and recreation.
The municipality is currently taking applications for the following:
- Large Capital Project Grant – for capital projects $20,000 or over in total value.
- Small Capital Project Grant – for capital projects under $20,000 in total value.
- Community Program Grant – for community-based programming and services.
- Community Event Grant – for community-based events, festivals and workshops
- Large Operations and Maintenance Grant – operational support for larger facilities.
- Small Operations and Maintenance Grant – operational support for smaller facilities, community halls and museums.
The application deadline for these grant programs is March 31, 2026.
More information can be found on the municipality’s website: https://www.cumberlandcounty.ns.ca/grants-to-organizations.html
Job Posting: Seasonal Glooscap Campground Attendant
- Details
The Municipality of the County of Cumberland is currently accepting resumes for the Seasonal Glooscap Campground Attendants located near Parrsboro, NS.
Help us shape how your community grows
- Details
Planning shapes how our communities grow.
The Municipality of Cumberland is reviewing its Municipal Planning Strategy and Land Use Bylaw, and we want to hear from you. Your input will help guide future decisions around housing, development, and land use across our communities.
Drop in to one of our open house sessions or take a few minutes to complete the survey and share your perspective.
Visit https://form.jotform.com/FBM_Planning/cumberland-mps-and-lub-review to complete the survey and https://www.cumberlandcounty.ns.ca/mps-and-land-use-bylaw-review.html to learn more about the process and open house sessions near you.
African Heritage Month: Ruddick's music and leadership saved the lives of his fellow miners
- Details
When the deepest coal mine in North America "bumped”, an unlikely hero emerged. Maurice Ruddick was an African Nova Scotian man whose music and leadership saved the lives of his fellow miners.
Maurice Ruddick (1912-1988) was born in Joggins to a coal mining family descendant from Black Loyalists. Upon moving to Springhill, he became known as The Singing Miner.
The Springhill No. 2 coal mine had a “bump” (similar to an earthquake) on October 23 1958, killing 75 men. Seven men (Garnet Clarke, Frank Hunter, Doug Jewkes, Herb Pepperdine, Percy Rector, Maurice Ruddick and Currie Smith) were trapped together around 3 km deep in the mine for 8 ½ days. On a normal workday and occasionally while trapped, Ruddick led hymns and rhythms like “The Old Rugged Cross” to keep others’ spirits up. When he was rescued, he famously said “Give me a glass of water and I’ll sing you a song.”
Being trapped for eight and a half days took its toll on all of them in different ways.
Ruddick said, “I cried in the darkness, but I made sure that nobody else heard me. It might have broken their resolve to live."
Other miners' mothers and wives said that "if it wasn’t for Maurice, they’d all have been dead.”
Ruddick also spent a lot of time nursing Percy Rector, who was dying with the weight of the earth on his trapped arm. All the men in the group tried to help Rector, but they could not free or remove his arm. Rector held on until the fifth day, when he died of his injuries.
Municipality of Cumberland recognizes African Heritage Month with flag-raising, proclamation signing
- Details
Municipality of Cumberland Mayor Rod Gilroy was joined by members of municipal council and the Cumberland African Nova Scotia Association in kicking off African Heritage Month in the municipality.
The mayor signed a proclamation declaring February as African Heritage Month in the Municipality of Cumberland and helped members of council and CANSA raise the Pan-African Flag at the Upper Nappan Service Centre during a ceremony on Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026.
“African Heritage Month is an important time to celebrate African Nova Scotians and their rich history, culture, and contributions,” the mayor said. “In Nova Scotia, African heritage is deeply rooted and spans more than 400 years, shaping our communities, institutions, and shared identity.
“This month gives us an opportunity to honour that legacy and to recognize the resilience and achievements of African Nova Scotian communities.”
The story of African Nova Scotians is one of endurance and determination, dating back to the first arrivals in the 1600 to the Black Loyalists from the United States, the Jamaican Maroons and generations that followed.