Say Goodbye To The Most Weird And Wonderful Office In Parliament

    Guests to Peter Stoffer's office were usually amazed. Now 18 years of collecting is being torn down.

    Paul McLeod
    by Paul McLeod

    BuzzFeed Political Editor, Canada

    This is Peter Stoffer. He was the NDP member of Parliament for Sackville-Eastern Shore in Nova Scotia before this election. This is his office.

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    It includes a pool table, a dart board, a fridge for beverages, oh, and over 8,000 hats.

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    All of the walls and the ceiling are covered in hats, buttons, pins or other memorabilia.

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    Stoffer inadvertently started the collection with just four hats after he was first elected in 1997. He didn't know what to do with them so he hung them up.

    "I just stuck them to the wall. Next thing you know, another guy comes up and says 'hey I got a couple hats you might like' so I put them on the wall. It's like rabbits, they bred all over," Stoffer said.

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    Every new guest takes three shots at his dart board. If you hit a bullseye you get an "allegedly wonderful prize." BuzzFeed Canada failed this challenge and cannot confirm what this prize is.

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    Stoffer said the usual reaction from first time visitors is "Wow, are you nuts?" Naturally, he has a guest book.

    "They're tweeting their friends all about it. Many, many people have come here," he said.

    Stoffer is famously kind to politicians of all stripes. MPs continually vote him "most collegial" at the Maclean's Magazine awards. He also founded the "all-party party" to get partisans to come together over drinks.

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    Despite regularly winning elections by huge margins, Stoffer lost his seat this month when the entire region of Atlantic Canada elected only Liberals.

    "People wanted Mr. Harper to go, I just didn't think he'd take me with him," Stoffer joked.

    The plan has always been to sell off all of his hats, pins and buttons, then donate the money to charity.

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    • The proceeds from the hat sales will go to the Kinsmen Club of Nova Scotia.
    • The proceeds from the pins go to the Lions Club of Nova Scotia.
    • The proceeds from the buttons go to the Buffalo Club of Nova Scotia.
    • The proceeds from some larger items — including his pool table and a bottle of Calvados brandy signed by 150 Second World War veterans — will go to veterans charities.

    So if you're in Ottawa, you can call up his office to set up a time, then take whatever you want for a donation of your choice.

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    Stoffer says he's sad to leave his staff and leave the job, but is looking forward to going on a vacation and doing some volunteering.

    "I'll be 60 years old in January. I'm sure my wife will like to know what I look like again," he said.

    As for his next job, he figures he should get a job as a bartender.

    "Think about it, you get to eat, you get to meet people and they give you money. What's so bad about that?"