Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made the announcement of Perry's appointment Thursday in Ottawa. The former Tignish Consolidated Elementary School teacher will replace Frank Lewis.
Tignish Mayor Allan McInnis said he is pleased with the appointment and said Perry will be good fit in her new role.
“Antoinette has been a very important figure in our town,” he said. “I think it’s a wonderful appointment for her and I think she will be very capable of doing the job.”
McInnis said anytime there was a need for volunteers, Perry was there to lend a hand.
“She was a great person over the years to make Tignish a bigger and better place.”
The appointment is also good for the area, he said.
“I think it’s pretty near time that Tignish started getting some recognition of the good people in our area. For years, this rural part of Prince Edward Island was overlooked in a lot of ways, and finally we are starting to get some things that are due to us.”
Russell Gallant, another member of Perry’s community and a former colleague at Tignish Consolidated Elementary where she taught for 32 years, said Perry was a good choice for lieutenant-governor.
“She’s quite involved in the community and contributed significantly to the church and the music and had a long and dedicated teaching career,” he said.
Gallant remembers when Perry was a music and French teacher at the elementary school while he was the principal there.
“She was always very dedicated to the arts and to music, that was her life,” he said. “She’s well connected to the community and to the cultural world and now that she’s retired I think it’s a good appointment.”
Perry has been an active member of various community and cultural organizations, including the West Prince Arts Council and the Tignish Historical Preservation Society.
Premier Wade MacLauchlan said in a statement Thursday that Perry would serve the province with "grace and vigour."
"Many Islanders will know Antoinette Perry through her passion for music as the church organist in Tignish, and through her 32-year career as an educator at Tignish Elementary School," said the premier. "I join all Islanders in welcoming her to this newest role and am confident she will serve with the same sense of dedication and enthusiasm she has shown throughout her professional and community efforts."
Lewis reached the end of his five-year term last year, but has remained in the role since then. He told The Guardian in August of 2016 he had let it be known he hoped his appointment would be extended.
Trudeau thanked Lewis as outgoing lieutenant-governor, noting his work engaging communities, non-profit organizations, and businesses across the province since taking office in 2011.
The prime minister also called Perry "a proud Acadian and a long-time active member of the Tignish community.
“I know she will work hard to promote the best of Prince Edward Island, a province with an active and growing business community that is known across the country for its beauty and hospitality," said Trudeau.
