August 4, 2025
By Mike Wilson
I, like a majority of you reading the special edition of the Palmerston Observer this Homecoming weekend, grew up in Palmerston.
As a young child, I looked at Palmerston as a town that many people pass through without a second thought. For most of my childhood and teenage years, it felt like a place suspended in time – familiar, quiet, and endlessly routine.
The morning coffee crew would descend at Your’s Restaurant at 10 a.m. to solve the town’s problems and spread the “news” of town. Mom or Dad would send me to Becker’s to grab a jug of milk (and take back the empty for the 25-cent deposit). Grandpa Russ would drop by to see Dad and I at the lumber yard, where more often than not, a project followed that Grandpa needed my assistance with.
Looking back, it was a simpler time that I wish I could relive. However, at the time, I wanted more and couldn’t wait to leave. In high school, I swore up and down that once I left Palmerston, I’d never come back. Not to live there, at least.
And so I left. I went to college in Oshawa. The school had more students than Palmerston did residents. I soaked up every minute of it. The anonymity, the diversity, the energy, the seemingly endless possibilities.
When I finished college, I came back to Palmerston. Why? Like every new grad, I had very few funds. After a couple years at home, I was on the move again… to a smaller town.
My then girlfriend, now wife Grace and I moved to the very small community of Baker Lake, Nunavut for a job opportunity. After three years there, we found out we were expecting our first child. So what did we do? We moved back to Palmerston.
Some people were surprised. Some asked why I’d ever want to return after “getting out.” Others just nodded knowingly, as if they understood that sometimes life has a way of leading you back to the places you tried to escape.
Returning wasn’t without its challenges. There were adjustments to make: professionally, socially, personally. Some of my old friends had moved away and never looked back. Others had stayed and built lives here that now included growing families, established careers, and roots that ran deep. I had to find a new way to belong, as an adult, not just the kid who once swore he’d never come back.
But slowly, Palmerston welcomed me back.
Professionally, I took a job with a local company when we returned from Baker Lake, and eventually my background in journalism (I had spent two years in high school as a Norwell Co-op student with the Minto Express) called me back. I eventually shifted to working full-time at the Mount Forest Confederate before becoming editor of several local papers, including the Minto Express. After a decade in that field, I shifted into working in community and economic development at a local municipality.
Personally, I got involved in local initiatives such as the Lions Club and the Norgan Theatre, reconnected with familiar faces, and built new relationships. As my kids got older, I got involved with coaching with Minto Minor Hockey and Minto Minor Ball. Today, all three of my kids play on Minto ball teams and I serve as the organization’s president.
And here’s the truth: coming back wasn’t settling. It was choosing. Choosing a life that aligns with my values. Choosing to invest in a community that shaped me. Choosing to slow down and focus on what matters most.
Palmerston isn’t perfect. It still has its small-town quirks and challenges. Sometimes the gossip moves faster than the news. Our community is a lot more diverse now than it was 20 years ago, and that’s a good thing. But for all its imperfections, Palmerston feels real. Grounded. Sincere.
Now, when I hear younger people talk about leaving, I understand. I don’t try to convince them to stay, because sometimes you need to first go away to figure things out. But I also let them know that it’s OK to come back. That coming back doesn’t mean failure – it means growth. It means realizing that sometimes the place you thought was holding you back is actually the place that helped you become who you are.
Palmerston was never just a town I left. It’s a part of me, and always will be. I didn’t return because I had to. I returned because I wanted to. And that makes all the difference.
Mike Wilson is a former journalist who calls Palmerston home. He has the distinction of being the final editor of far too many newspapers, including the Minto Express.