Meet Senator Jim Quinn
Like his seafaring Irish ancestors before him, Senator Jim Quinn spent a lot of time on boats while growing up in Saint John, New Brunswick. At age 14, he started shuttling sailors to shore on his uncle’s old fishing boat in the early hours before the first school bell. And as a young adult, he joined the Canadian Coast Guard with the goal of becoming the next captain in his family.
But after years sailing in and out of Port Saint John, an eye injury set him on a different course. He stayed ashore with the Coast Guard, moving up the Coast Guard and public service ranks before returning to his home in 2010 to join the Saint John Port Authority as CEO, where he steered the organization through a major modernization and a pandemic.
Senator Jim Quinn was appointed to the Red Chamber in 2021.
You come from a family of Port Saint John workers. How did your upbringing shape who you are today?
My dad and my uncle were harbour pilots, and the Port of Saint John was my backyard, so I always had this attraction for the sea.
I had a brother and I have five sisters. Three of them became doctors and three became nurses. I started down that road but during my second year at Dalhousie University’s pre-med program and after completing my degree, I realized that I wanted to go to sea. I think it was the genes pulling me in that direction.
During your time with the Canadian Coast Guard, you travelled to ports across Canada and around the world. Do any destinations stand out to you?
As a member of the Coast Guard, I had the opportunity to travel to every province and territory in Canada. I really grew to appreciate the country that we live in, from the Arctic to the Pacific to the Atlantic.
As a seaman and officer on tankers, I also got to visit ports in Colombia, the Canary Islands, Senegal, the Mediterranean and the United States. I think it helped me to grow up quick.
Throughout his career with the Canadian Coast Guard, Senator Quinn visited ports in Canada and around the world. Here he is closer to home, at the Port of Montréal on March 27, 2023, while touring the Nukumi, an advanced automatic self-loading ship that was docked at the port for maintenance. Also pictured is Dave Cook, chief engineer on the Nukumi. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)
You worked in the public sector for more than 30 years. How did this experience prepare you for the Senate?
I moved to Ottawa in 1982 for a six-month term assignment with the Coast Guard and ended up staying with the Coast Guard for 18 more years. Then I went to work for the Privy Council Office for two and a half years, and for much of that time I was the senior analyst for Indigenous files. It was a life-altering experience. I became a better public servant, a more understanding Canadian and, today, a better senator for having learned more about the history and contributions of Indigenous peoples.
How did you come to be CEO of the Saint John Port Authority?
My family and I often travelled back East to visit our relatives. I remember driving across the Saint John Harbour Bridge and seeing the port was much quieter compared to when I used to sail in and out. I remember clearly thinking that someday I would do something to influence this port.
Then one day I learned my older brother had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I called my wife and told her we were returning East, and I was going to resign from the government. While this was happening, the gentleman who led the Saint John Port Authority announced he was leaving, so I applied for the job. Over 200 applicants applied from across Canada and beyond. I was thrilled to be the successful candidate.
My first day in the office, I could look up the street and almost see the house on Broad Street where I grew up. I could look down the street and see the dock where I walked up a gangway onto my first ship. It was like coming full circle.
Port Saint John has seen some ups and downs over the decades, from its booming First World War days to its decline after ice-breaking ships opened up the Saint Lawrence River to Montréal. Today the port is once again thriving. What role did you play in that?
After I became CEO in 2010, the board assigned me several tasks, which included transforming Port Saint John back into the internationally recognized port it once was. A few months later, I remember sitting in my colleague’s office, pulling out a napkin and drawing a diagram of all the steps we had to undertake to put our port back into the mainstream shipping lanes and the trade equation for Canada. It didn’t take us long to develop a blueprint mapping out a major modernization for the port, which became a significant part of the economic story of New Brunswick and remains so today. It was all part of that napkin.
I was also blessed to have one of the best teams I’ve ever worked with, if not the best. We changed the whole dynamic of the port authority. It became a more diverse, younger workforce, a fun place to work and renowned across New Brunswick and beyond. You’ve got to empower your employees to do what they’re good at. I’ve always held on to that belief.
As a senator, you have participated in the Senate’s youth outreach program, SENgage. What’s your most memorable moment?
New Brunswick Lieutenant Governor Brenda Murphy presents Senator Quinn with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal on February 16, 2023 for his contributions to his home province. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)
Senator Quinn with the Honourable Noël Kinsella, former speaker of the Senate, at the unveiling of a Navy memorial on the waterfront of Port Saint John. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)
My first official SENgage event was down in Saint John with a group that welcomes newcomers. It was planned for months. It happened to be on the same day U.S. President Joe Biden visited Ottawa, an event that we only learned about days in advance. But I had been approached about the SENgage event long before I knew about the presidential visit. I knew the organization had worked very hard to get ready for our meeting and I felt I couldn’t disappoint them, so I took a pass on attending the president’s address. After a great session in Saint John and seeing the enthusiasm of our new Canadian community members, I knew I had made the right decision.
What was supposed to be a one-hour event turned out to be a three-hour session. I’ve since become a mentor for one of the participants, a gentleman from Nigeria, and we touch base every week to talk about the challenges he faces as a newcomer.
What public policy issues are important to you?
I think people need to pay more attention to the importance of our transportation systems and climate change. Our marine transportation systems keep the economy moving.
Following the recent floods in Nova Scotia, cargo did not move out of the Port of Halifax by rail for five days. Last year, the Port of Vancouver was paralyzed by forest fires and the floods. These events cost our Canadian economy millions of dollars and events like these will continue to happen with greater frequency.
I also recently tabled Bill S-273, the Chignecto Isthmus Dykeland System Act, which would bring the vulnerable rail and road corridor linking New Brunswick and Nova Scotia under federal jurisdiction. This low-lying land is protected by centuries-old dikes that are at risk of being overwhelmed. The federal government should fund climate change adaptation upgrades when the vulnerability threatens interprovincial and international trade. Our Fathers of Confederation understood this principle and embedded it into the Constitution. Action needs to be taken now before disaster strikes.
What is a hidden gem in your region that more Canadians need to know about?
The Bay of Fundy, which has the world’s largest tides that can reach 50 feet. That’s like a five-storey building going up and down. Twice a day, over 100 billion gallons of seawater enters and exits the Bay of Fundy where you’ll see fishing vessels that are floating and then sitting on mudflats.
The second hidden gem for me is the Saint John and Kennebecasis river systems that are dotted with many islands and flow through valleys surrounded by magnificent countryside. It helps give New Brunswick its reputation as Canada’s “Picture Province.”
Senator Quinn joins his daughter Meaghan, son-in-law Yan and grandson Aidan outside the Red Chamber for the senator’s swearing-in ceremony on November 22, 2021. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)
Grandchildren Jack, Liam and Aidan visit with Senator Quinn at his son’s home. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)
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Meet Senator Jim Quinn
Like his seafaring Irish ancestors before him, Senator Jim Quinn spent a lot of time on boats while growing up in Saint John, New Brunswick. At age 14, he started shuttling sailors to shore on his uncle’s old fishing boat in the early hours before the first school bell. And as a young adult, he joined the Canadian Coast Guard with the goal of becoming the next captain in his family.
But after years sailing in and out of Port Saint John, an eye injury set him on a different course. He stayed ashore with the Coast Guard, moving up the Coast Guard and public service ranks before returning to his home in 2010 to join the Saint John Port Authority as CEO, where he steered the organization through a major modernization and a pandemic.
Senator Jim Quinn was appointed to the Red Chamber in 2021.
You come from a family of Port Saint John workers. How did your upbringing shape who you are today?
My dad and my uncle were harbour pilots, and the Port of Saint John was my backyard, so I always had this attraction for the sea.
I had a brother and I have five sisters. Three of them became doctors and three became nurses. I started down that road but during my second year at Dalhousie University’s pre-med program and after completing my degree, I realized that I wanted to go to sea. I think it was the genes pulling me in that direction.
During your time with the Canadian Coast Guard, you travelled to ports across Canada and around the world. Do any destinations stand out to you?
As a member of the Coast Guard, I had the opportunity to travel to every province and territory in Canada. I really grew to appreciate the country that we live in, from the Arctic to the Pacific to the Atlantic.
As a seaman and officer on tankers, I also got to visit ports in Colombia, the Canary Islands, Senegal, the Mediterranean and the United States. I think it helped me to grow up quick.
Throughout his career with the Canadian Coast Guard, Senator Quinn visited ports in Canada and around the world. Here he is closer to home, at the Port of Montréal on March 27, 2023, while touring the Nukumi, an advanced automatic self-loading ship that was docked at the port for maintenance. Also pictured is Dave Cook, chief engineer on the Nukumi. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)
You worked in the public sector for more than 30 years. How did this experience prepare you for the Senate?
I moved to Ottawa in 1982 for a six-month term assignment with the Coast Guard and ended up staying with the Coast Guard for 18 more years. Then I went to work for the Privy Council Office for two and a half years, and for much of that time I was the senior analyst for Indigenous files. It was a life-altering experience. I became a better public servant, a more understanding Canadian and, today, a better senator for having learned more about the history and contributions of Indigenous peoples.
How did you come to be CEO of the Saint John Port Authority?
My family and I often travelled back East to visit our relatives. I remember driving across the Saint John Harbour Bridge and seeing the port was much quieter compared to when I used to sail in and out. I remember clearly thinking that someday I would do something to influence this port.
Then one day I learned my older brother had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I called my wife and told her we were returning East, and I was going to resign from the government. While this was happening, the gentleman who led the Saint John Port Authority announced he was leaving, so I applied for the job. Over 200 applicants applied from across Canada and beyond. I was thrilled to be the successful candidate.
My first day in the office, I could look up the street and almost see the house on Broad Street where I grew up. I could look down the street and see the dock where I walked up a gangway onto my first ship. It was like coming full circle.
Port Saint John has seen some ups and downs over the decades, from its booming First World War days to its decline after ice-breaking ships opened up the Saint Lawrence River to Montréal. Today the port is once again thriving. What role did you play in that?
After I became CEO in 2010, the board assigned me several tasks, which included transforming Port Saint John back into the internationally recognized port it once was. A few months later, I remember sitting in my colleague’s office, pulling out a napkin and drawing a diagram of all the steps we had to undertake to put our port back into the mainstream shipping lanes and the trade equation for Canada. It didn’t take us long to develop a blueprint mapping out a major modernization for the port, which became a significant part of the economic story of New Brunswick and remains so today. It was all part of that napkin.
I was also blessed to have one of the best teams I’ve ever worked with, if not the best. We changed the whole dynamic of the port authority. It became a more diverse, younger workforce, a fun place to work and renowned across New Brunswick and beyond. You’ve got to empower your employees to do what they’re good at. I’ve always held on to that belief.
As a senator, you have participated in the Senate’s youth outreach program, SENgage. What’s your most memorable moment?
New Brunswick Lieutenant Governor Brenda Murphy presents Senator Quinn with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal on February 16, 2023 for his contributions to his home province. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)
Senator Quinn with the Honourable Noël Kinsella, former speaker of the Senate, at the unveiling of a Navy memorial on the waterfront of Port Saint John. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)
My first official SENgage event was down in Saint John with a group that welcomes newcomers. It was planned for months. It happened to be on the same day U.S. President Joe Biden visited Ottawa, an event that we only learned about days in advance. But I had been approached about the SENgage event long before I knew about the presidential visit. I knew the organization had worked very hard to get ready for our meeting and I felt I couldn’t disappoint them, so I took a pass on attending the president’s address. After a great session in Saint John and seeing the enthusiasm of our new Canadian community members, I knew I had made the right decision.
What was supposed to be a one-hour event turned out to be a three-hour session. I’ve since become a mentor for one of the participants, a gentleman from Nigeria, and we touch base every week to talk about the challenges he faces as a newcomer.
What public policy issues are important to you?
I think people need to pay more attention to the importance of our transportation systems and climate change. Our marine transportation systems keep the economy moving.
Following the recent floods in Nova Scotia, cargo did not move out of the Port of Halifax by rail for five days. Last year, the Port of Vancouver was paralyzed by forest fires and the floods. These events cost our Canadian economy millions of dollars and events like these will continue to happen with greater frequency.
I also recently tabled Bill S-273, the Chignecto Isthmus Dykeland System Act, which would bring the vulnerable rail and road corridor linking New Brunswick and Nova Scotia under federal jurisdiction. This low-lying land is protected by centuries-old dikes that are at risk of being overwhelmed. The federal government should fund climate change adaptation upgrades when the vulnerability threatens interprovincial and international trade. Our Fathers of Confederation understood this principle and embedded it into the Constitution. Action needs to be taken now before disaster strikes.
What is a hidden gem in your region that more Canadians need to know about?
The Bay of Fundy, which has the world’s largest tides that can reach 50 feet. That’s like a five-storey building going up and down. Twice a day, over 100 billion gallons of seawater enters and exits the Bay of Fundy where you’ll see fishing vessels that are floating and then sitting on mudflats.
The second hidden gem for me is the Saint John and Kennebecasis river systems that are dotted with many islands and flow through valleys surrounded by magnificent countryside. It helps give New Brunswick its reputation as Canada’s “Picture Province.”
Senator Quinn joins his daughter Meaghan, son-in-law Yan and grandson Aidan outside the Red Chamber for the senator’s swearing-in ceremony on November 22, 2021. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)
Grandchildren Jack, Liam and Aidan visit with Senator Quinn at his son’s home. (Photo credit: Office of Senator Jim Quinn)