Birthdays come but once a year and most do not get a chance to celebrate 100 of them, but for a popular establishment in Thorne helping to keep the area on the map, there was little choice.
There had to be a party for the Ladysmith Hotel.
With a lot of music, tons of their community and, of course, plenty of the restaurant’s famous wings, the downtown Ladysmith establishment saw a full house on June 1 as the owners celebrated the big 1-0-0 in style.
But for Ernie and Cathy Pasch, the proud owners of the Ladysmith Hotel, this would be more than a celebration of their business. The anniversary of the building marks nearly 20 years of ownership and working within their municipality, as they’ve cultivated loyal staff and customers, while building a community hub for many more.
First off, a bit of history about the place. As reported nearly 10 years ago in THE EQUITY, Ernie’s great-great-uncle, Theo Bretzlaff, first opened the Ladysmith Hotel in 1918.

“Back then you could buy a meal for 25 cents and a room for 25 cents. Times since then sure have changed,” said Cathy, in the article from the Nov. 4, 2009 issue.
Starting off with two stories to the building, the 1930s saw a need for yet another to be added, due to tourism to the area, as well as the thriving logging industry.
While exchanging hands a few times over the years, it played home to the town’s Merchants Bank of Canada and then eventually the Bank of Montreal at one point.
As well, the building has seen more than just different owners and businesses – it’s also seen the changing face of society.
“The other side was completely closed off,” said Cathy, pointing towards the area in front of the bar, during a conversation last week. “And it was a gentlemen’s bar, so the women couldn’t even sit over on that side. That was right up till the ‘80’s.”
On May 1, 1999, Ernie and Cathy started up their restaurant, bringing ownership back to the original family.
“Nineteen years ago, we made the conscious decision to take it over,” said Cathy. “We were tired of travelling back and forth … and we had two small kids.”
Sick of commuting, while looking to be closer to home in order to raise their young children at the time, the couple started by renting from a previous owner. After a year, they decided to take the plunge and purchase the building outright – allowing them much more freedom with what could be done with it.
“There was a lot of work to be done,” said Cathy. “There’s still a lot of work to be done.”
“The building, being 100 years old, it’s a beautiful heritage building,” said Ernie. “We’ve restored and been working on it for the last 19 years. Every year we do projects and renovations to keep it in top shape.”
However, not too much freedom to change it back into the full hotel establishment that it once was.
“We thought about maybe getting an historical grant to do some restorations to it as well,” explained Cathy, of following Quebec regulations. “They want to do it their way. They don’t want us to [do it our way].”
Instead, the old rooms upstairs remain a storage space for Ernie and Cathy, which they may admit is for the better. A previous owner, in a possible attempt to spruce up the place, left much of the upper floors in disarray and decorated in strange fashions. From uprooted flooring to awkward material choices covering the walls, it would take quite a lot of work for the Paschs to get it up to code and without a guarantee of constant customers, it is simply not worth it.
For the most part, the upstairs doesn’t matter because the main floor is the important part. That’s where folks enjoy their beer, wings, the many different memorabilia filling the walls, and so much more.
And it’s those chicken wings that help keep the restaurant’s community ever-growing, as diners are quick to share with their friends how they’ve just had the best plate – even when returning to far-away places.
“We had people in here from England, with friends who have a place up here,” said Cathy. “They were in a couple years ago and they said, ‘We’re going back to England and we’re telling people about your wings here.’”
As much as it’s always great to have new people join them, the Paschs are especially proud to see the return of clubs year after year. With the likes of the Ladysmith Sportsmans Club and the Northern chapter of the Old Bastards Vintage Motorcycle Club (of which Ernie was a founding member) holding events in conjunction with the Ladysmith Hotel, plus ATV events and trivia nights, there’s always a chance to see many familiar faces or give back to the community.
Despite having a hard time narrowing down a singular memorable moment in owning the building, Cathy was quick to highlight several. From the little interactions with children enjoying the freedom of the playroom to the return of the Old Bastards’ annual show and shine – or even seeing an old customer return with a family of their own – her memories of the place play out like a highlight reel.
“I’ve met some pretty interesting kids over the years, some pretty cute ones, too,” said Cathy, when speaking of opening the playroom to help with the family-friendly environment. “Whenever you get that family come in and they bring their kids in … and you hear them laughing, joking and playing around, I like that.”
“Our clientele has certainly changed over the years,” she continued. “A lot of the kids that were coming here … The odd time they’ll come in, and then when they do come in that door they’ve got a wife and a couple of kids and we say, ‘Oh this is why we don’t see you anymore.’ And they say, ‘Yeah, times have changed.’ … We’ve certainly seen a lot of people grow up.”
Of course, the owners are well aware that they would never have had the chance to celebrate all of those memories or even the 100th anniversary without the support of so many. Hence the big bash on Saturday.
Bringing in a house favourite for music, the Kyle Felhaver Band from Braeside, Ont., and throwing their signature wings and draft beer on for a special price, they figured the only thing missing from the birthday bash was a few gifts. Luckily, they had the support of many suppliers, providing lots of door prizes and more to be given away.
“We had people saying, ‘Oh, what are you going to do for a special?’” said Cathy. “And we said, you know what? Wings is our staple for our business … Why don’t we do a wing night for our party?”
Initially worried they may have gotten ahead of themselves in planning their event for a busy weekend, those worries were soon diminished, as the parking lot was full and tables saw barely an open spot.
“I never expected the crowd,” said Ernie, during the party. “Especially with everything going on tonight.”
With the party behind them and they look ahead to the return of the Old Bastards’ show and shine on June 10, there is still time for some reflection.
“It’s funny, some people come in here and they try to tell you what you’re doing wrong,” said Cathy, with a laugh. “I always say to Ernie, after 19 years of being here, I don’t think we’re doing too bad.”
With little interest from their children to one day take over, Ernie and Cathy know that they won’t be able to do this forever.
While certainly happy to see the building into the beginning of its next century, they’re planning to say goodbye a few years down the line – but they’re adamant to make sure that their legacy ends up in the right hands.
“I think when we sell – which is in the foreseeable future, we’ve talked about it already, neither one of us is ready to retire, but we are getting older, we’re getting tired,” said Cathy. “But we want to relinquish it to somebody we’re hoping is going to have the same ethics that we’ve had over the years to make it work. This community needs something like this and Ernie and I have met a lot of great people working here.”