Memories
April 29/26
I count myself as a very lucky man. At my age, in my 90th year, I am still able to recall a lot of my life experiences. I have few regrets as my life has been a series of events that I moved on from when I felt I had reached my true potential. With this mindset, I was able to reach many life goals. As I have tried with great enthusiasm but not succeeded yet, to convince my grandsons to set their lives up with a want list of all they would like to achieve. They call it a Bucket list now, but I started mine long before it had a name.
My first real memory as a small child living in downtown Toronto was to venture out to the corner of our street and what could have been University Ave. to a large house with 1st World-War machine guns and a small cannon placed on the front lawn. Not like most children now, I was left to fend for myself at a very young age and these actual war machines were very exciting to a toddler. I do remember being reprimanded for getting so far from home so I was probably only about 3- 4 years old. Friends from my mother’s early 20’s from the Tuberculosis sanitorium in Gravenhurst were a large part of my early life. Aunt Marita and Uncle Charlie were living in a large house close to Yorkville Hazelton Ave. I think and I remember the long stairway banister that I was always tempted to slide down. Aunt Miriam also lived in a large house that had a huge red and blue parrot in a cage in the kitchen, it talked a lot but I only understood a bit of what it screeched out. Memories flow back like streams in the springtime when our family finally settled in a new semi-detached house at 25 Randolf Rd. in Leaside. I finally had friends to play with and a new school to go to. My freedom here was even more liberating as we lived close to the Don Valley and exploring there was fun. I was now 5 years old and ready for many new challenges. My time in the forests of Lake Simcoe with grandma and grandpa Franklin while they cleared land for a Dr. Thompson gave me the independence, I now needed to visit the Don Valley with one demand from my mom – “be back for supper”. I didn’t have Teddy to keep me company so I headed out alone for some great adventures.
My grades in school were never very good as I was a dreamer and the report cards always noted that I talked too much. This gave me a very early warning in grade one that I was going to have to repeat it for another year. My first girl-friend was the cute little blonde across the street, Barbara Oakley. This romance quickly turned sour when we picked up and moved to Montreal. As I could not write yet and the phone was too expensive, I had to break off this romance before it really got started.
We went from the sublime to the ridiculous, our new home in the suburbs was now a dingy basement apartment on Sherbrook Street in Westmount Quebec, a suburb of Montreal. Good news, our neighbors were European with three girls. For whatever reason, my time in Montreal was limited and after a year at Rosedale public school, I was posted back in Toronto living with my recently widowed grandmother at 130 Bartlett Ave. Dovercourt public school was nothing like my two former schools, it was old and filled with Italian kids and they were a tough bunch. I was not a happy camper but only spent one year there before settling back with my family in Brampton for my 4th school in as many years.
Finally, I had some stability in my young life and what better place to be for a 10-year-old than in a small town with just the right amenities to grow up and mature. Brampton had two public schools, Central and McHugh, I attended the latter. Brampton District High School was our one and only choice. We had our choice of all the name brand churches, Baptist, 2 United, Presbyterian, Anglican, Dutch Reform, Holy Rollers and Roman Catholic. Brampton was the centre for many small villages that depended on our thriving downtown businesses. That’s exactly what we had with doctors and a fine hospital and all the professionals needed to complete the perfect place to settle down for the rest of our lives. My father was a shoe designer and pattern maker and was a key employee of a rather large shoe factory in town. There were two shoe manufacturers and many other small businesses that supported the main industry, that being the growing of roses. Brampton was the rose capital of Canada. Dale and Calverts were the two primary rose growers occupying hundreds of acres of roses under glass greenhouses. This was a great place to make long lasting friendships and so I did. We roamed and explored the flats along the winding Etobicoke creek that ran directly under the downtown business section. We swam in its waters pushing away the occasional paddy of cow dung. We tolerated the spring flooding but sort of got used to it until Hurricane Hazel did so much damage and took so many lives, something had to done! At the end of Wellington Street where it turned into a short street going over the railway tracks, there was a pond that we kept our distance from as the story was that this was bottomless and had drowned many an unsuspecting soul in its watery depths. I had a Toronto Star paper route delivering 6 days a week, newspapers that many times were over 70 pages and sold for .03 cents a copy. I had a route of 100 papers, the largest in town. After school was a time to earn valuable money to pay my way. I was the cellar boy at the Chainway store, Chings paint store, Little’s Butcher and Bartlett shoe store. I also cut my teeth into the sales business as a full-fledged Fuller Brush man. All before the age of 17 years old. Brampton was very good to me and my family. My church was the focal point of my life and I more than tithed in those days. When I would make $15.00 a week, I split it up to 1/3 % for Mom, 1/3% for the church and the balance for me. I met my wife in the church, Joan was one of more than 20 girls in my father’s Sunday school class, she was his choice for me to consider and we have been together now for more than 75 years. In 1958 we were married and started our journey together in Toronto.
At this point, I feel I must say a few words about my father. Arranged marriages are not a part of our religion or culture. However, in my case I guess I needed a nudge to put me on course to a happy life with a true mate at my side. Dad had the girl from his Sunday school class of more than 20 beautiful young girls picked out just for me. All I needed to do was convince Joan I was her guy. That was a task as my girl was independent and not easily convinced. My persistence has been truly rewarded. My father was the most patient and meek man with a love for my mother that was boundless. Mom came from a less than stable family and my dad worked around that all his life to provide a calm and secure life for his family. After my mother’s death, dad moved into a two-room suite in our Inn and spent the remainder of his life with us. These were the richest days for me to have my father close where we could care for him as he cared for my mom and myself and my two brothers.
As a Fuller Brush door to door salesman, I learned in a big hurry to throw off all my insecurities and I became an adult very quickly. At 17 years old I went from an income of $28.60 a week in a shoe store to over $100.00 a week almost overnight. I had to pay all my own expenses and even a delivery man to free up more time for just plain selling, but this still afforded me a larger than normal pay cheque than most, even more than my father was making. After a few months becoming one of the best earners in my group, it was time to face the reality that this could not be my fate as a lifetime career, so I took advantage of an offer as a salesman in training with a large prestigious manufacturing company (GSW) and started at the ridiculous wage of $50.00 per week. I exceeded at all the tasks I was given the east side of Yonge Street to the outer bounds of the city. I was the youngest salesman to get a territory and was not 20 years old yet. Joan and I were married in July 1958 and January 1959 we were transferred to Sudbury where I took over the sluggish sales of the Northwest of Ontario from North Bay west to the Manitoba border. This was a daunting challenge for a young man that was still wet behind the ears, but within a few months my sales were increasing and all sales contests were dominated by my efforts. On a free Bermuda trip, I was awarded two diamond rings for my sales. I would have taken them both but got only one as the guy from Montreal (Joe Ebere) got my second prize. This was the point where I knew I was not cut out for silly sales contests that in many cases were falsely presented. My earned rewards should be gladly given to me not someone that did not win the contest. Early in life is the best time to learn these valuable lessons. Look out for #1 and always be aware that if you are successful, you will have to fend off many wantabes.
GSW was notorious for taking advantage of their people. I think it was the work of our esteemed VP Col. Jim McIlroy. Between Christmas and New Years, we were all brought in from across Canada for our annual sales meeting and at that time we were given our new contract for the following year. The contract was to be signed before returning to your territory. It was set up by professional accountants that were good at making a donkey look like a stallion. When most would analyze their contract at home, they would realize that it looked pretty good but reading between the lines, we were often getting screwed. The last thing I wanted was to have to return to Toronto to try and get out of a contract that was going to pay me less for reaching a higher budget. This was just insane and had to be sorted out before I could leave the building. Perhaps I was mis-understanding the thing or perhaps to give these people the benefit of the doubt, this needed an explanation. No time like the present to sort this out. It was not easy for me as the Colonel was a very imposing man of large stature and a very blustery fellow as well. It did not help my case at all because I did not like the man and I think it showed. I felt very inferior; this was his way of making me feel inadequate. The lights to his dark imposing walnut lined office were left off to give me the idea that this was going to be a short visit and my problem was so insignificant that a flick of a switch was not necessary. After explaining my concerns about this impossible contract the best, I could, the Colonel got rather violent. This upstart would have the courage to stand up against such an imposing being. He did not have the savvy to appreciate my position and give me credit for my arrogance and standing up for my rights and my family’s welfare., He slammed his fists on his monstrous antique desk and yelled so the rest of my fellow salesmen could hear clearly, – YOU’RE A PIRATE – YOU’RE A PIRATE - This outrage would have a dual effect, he thought I would cow down to him and no one else would dare have the courage to repeat this outrage. Little did any of us know at the time, that this small encounter was the seed planted that eventually brought down this once venerable company. I was one of 3 that saw the writing on the wall. All three of us went on to much more lucrative and rewarding lives. This is just one story of many I have experienced in my years of being on the front line as a sales representative for many companies.
1963 was to be a year of great upheaval. We started the year with no income and no savings and no job and no expectations of one strange land called the great North. We had a new house with a big mortgage at 6%, our two small boys were both diagnosed as profoundly deaf, I had no skills other than sales, I was a grade 9 drop out, we barely had food enough for the family and gas was cheap but with no savings everything was beyond our reach, yet, we both carried on as if the world was our oyster. GSW sales manager called and wondered where my first week of January orders were and why had I not sent in my daily report. I do not work for you, I said. Did you not get my resignation? Yes, but I thought you were kidding. It was a rare thing that anyone would resign from such a prestigious company, and certainly not from a sales management job, but I did and I was so confident that all was going to be OK, I was not worried too much at all. Trust in God and you will not fail. Sorry, not true, not on the inside, I was scared to death. I did land a job with a small competitor of GSW in pantry ware and had the whole Province of Ontario as my playground. Within two years, I had the metal pantry ware cornered for Canada. We were starting to make a recovery from near bankruptcy when on July 19th 1963, our world came spiraling down on us again. I was alone in my new 1963 Plymouth when two trucks, a Redpath sugar tanker and a loaded gravel truck came from out of the blue and hit me head-on. My story is elsewhere so I won’t repeat it in this piece. Only to say that a 5-week hospital stay was the beginning of pain for ever more and a set back to where we started out this same year. My memories come back frequently to haunt me and make me realize how precious life is and how frail we are as human beings. My dear brother on this same day was experiencing his own hell under the surgeon’s scalpel for the 23rd.time. What pain and anguish my mom and dad had that day only hours before my 27th birthday. When looking back on these events, it makes me wonder how we were able to cope with such trauma. Well, sometimes, it is really too much and the mind says enough is enough. During my 5-week hospital stay, Joan gave in to her many setbacks and had a nervous breakdown. She joined me at St. Joseph Hospital on the Lakeshore in Toronto but refused to see me as she was totally exhausted. This whole ordeal must have had a negative effect on our two boys as well. It took a long time before they were back to normal after losing both their parents and us not being able to communicate to them where we had disappeared to and why?
Our boys have been a blessing to us and at the time we realized they were deaf, all we could think was, why us? This is a story about memories and I feel that for me my most moving memory was the day our Michael became the centre of our existence. Our friends in Sudbury from the church, Russ and Norma called one day and wanted to come for a visit. This was kind of strange as northerners just dropped in. Not something we southerners do very often. They were here on a mission and not a very pleasant one we found out soon enough. They got to the point. Are you aware that there is something wrong with Michael? We were shocked; however, Russ and Norma were a few years older and had two daughters and they obviously knew more than we did as to how babies should react to their surroundings. We think that Michael may have a hearing problem. We were shocked. We, all four of us went to the crib where Michael was sleeping and I leaned over the boy and called quietly at first and then louder and louder, but not until I hammered a serving spoon on a metal pot did he even show a slight response. Richard came along 21 months later hopefully to be a help for his big brother and he has been, but he is also deaf. Richard has slightly more hearing than Michael but Michael has a perceptual problem so as to not be able to read or write sentences. Both our boys have been a credit to us. They are in their mid-60’s and retired with no debt. We have 4 grandsons all hearing and healthy.
One or two observations before we progress any further. I have to declare that in my mind, there is a purpose to all that happens in one’s life. We are rarely aware at the time why things happen as they do but as I named one of my books, Time Will Tell, this is something we should be aware of and make sure it is in the planning of our future as we journey through this life. I am a great believer in the physic world. Joan gets it from her mother and I have a certain ability to sense problems in friends at times. As our generation seems to progress, in each advancement, we lose a little more of that inner instinct, the human touch as it could be explained. A different world can only be observed plainly from the eyes of older generations. In one sense, I envy the wonderful advantages of the cell phone, however, those advantages come with a price tag, I am not talking about the sticker price, I am speaking of a sense that little by little we as humans are losing our grip on a life of freedom. Freedom of thought, action and control.
My memories wander back to when our boys were very young and playing and communicating in their way. Telepathy, is a means of communication through the mind with speech and sound eliminated. Joan’s mother had that talent and our boys were confused and irritated when they became aware that she could listen to their minds. When we were suffering with debt in Sudbury away from family and friends and desperately in need of $500.00 to pay for hearing aids or a house payment. Elsie would send a cheque, with a note. Thought you might need this. When I relate back to the days of peril when both of us were in the hospital and our boys were being so confused with the disruption of life as they knew it, I was so upset that our government had enacted legislation almost directly at me so that I could not legally sue the companies that were responsible for my grief and almost loss of life. The government would only pay my medical bills assigned to the accident. That meant that I would have to return to work ASAP. That meant that I would not have a sizable lump of cash to fall back on. That meant that I would have to get my life on track and move on. All good for me in the long run. So now as I look back, not getting a settlement was the best thing for me and my future. I had to get back to work, I had to struggle every day for months as I was the writer of my destiny and with sales only came that needed commission cheque.
Memories Part 2
We continue with a brighter outlook and memories that are a lot easier to enjoy. I had a Benefactor and mentor in my friend and employer John A. McMaster. I was, in reality, a sub agent representing a small but successful manufacturer in Montreal. My memories are overflowing with stories about my good friend that seemed to understand me and lead me along into many of his ways. John A was a multi-millionaire and that first encounter with him and his son Ross in his room at the Westbury Hotel, was all I needed to give me the inspiration to be in many ways like him. He had a wonderful dry sense of humour that we played each other off of. He understood right from our first encounter on the telephone my circumstances. He flew me down from Sudbury for my interview and paid for my moving expenses but every other benefit during our wonderful business association was strictly business. I was paid about 2% for all my sales and my expenses were my responsibility. He, of course had a much more lucrative arrangement that I knew nothing about and had no reason to know. I have to assume that I made the owner of the company and John a lot of money. When the company, years later, was sold for millions, the new president was told that John wanted $25,000 for each month he continued. The new president politely turned him down as this was his annual figure. I was bringing in about $40 to 50,000 per year. I later had my run-in with the president of Ekco Canada who you might imagine was another former pompous colonel. I had many colonel friends in my life; most were Americans but the two I ran into in my business life were total A/Holes.
For most of the next few years, my life was consumed with work as an agent trying to keep the companies I had built in my stable, and acquiring others that I would need to build as inevitably we would lose some along the way. During this time, I lost Ekco Canada and they went bankrupt shortly after. I picked up Anglo Canadian, built them into the millions in Ontario and lost them and started my own manufacturing company that made wooden housewares and clocks. We also were forced into the importing business where some profits were generated. Joan was producing over 65,000 clocks per year but we were barely treading water. During the months of over 20% interest on business loans we were bleeding $40,000 per month. At one time our complete stock of finished goods had to be sold at below our cost to satisfy our bank loan. Our plant worked two shifts per day for a month to get the parts inventory made into a finished product.
At one time my agency was made up of myself, three sales personal and a secretary. Almost all the revenue was generated by myself. The manufacturing company was eventually run by Joan who pared the staff down from 15 to 8 employees. This was a losing game from the start but it accomplished our goal of giving Michael a job and eventually a career in woodworking.
I was hoping that my new partner George Walker would help establish some new accounts as he was well connected as the former president of Wahl Canada. He was only with me for a few weeks when he had a heart attack and was the first in Canada to have bi/pass surgery. His recovery was slow so we had to part company.
My passion was boats and boating, primarily sailing but I enjoyed all my boats. My passion for old woodies evolved into restoring over 20 boats, many over 20 ft and one was a 40-foot Ditchburn owned by the Eaton family in the 1920’s.
In my really productive years between 30 and 50, I restored boats and houses for flipping along with all my business endeavors. I was able to claim being a millionaire a few times but my nature was not to care about the money, it was always the adventure.
You can imagine during that time, how many interesting people we met in all my dealings all over the world. These were the fun times that were made even more precious by having my dear Joan at my side all the time. If we were in the Philippines buying thousands of knife blocks or Hong Kong or Tokyo, or renovating an old broken-down house in Orillia or making upholstery for one of my boat restorations. We were together as a team. This is why I am writing this piece called “Memories”. My girl in so many ways is as sharp as ever. However, time is taking its toll and I want to be ready for whatever comes along, either good or bad. Joan’s epileptic seizures a few years ago are now showing their terrible effects. Memory is a wonderful thing. Many of us in our last years have only memories to fall back on. Without memories. What is the point of struggling to survive. And yet we are expected to do just that. Joan is re-reading some of my books to try to keep those special occasions in her memory. So, I will now continue with many of the memorable acquaintances and friends that are memorable to me. I will be giving as many as come to mind so if you are missed it will be because I am losing my memory to some extent as well.
More memorable experiences and people for all to enjoy.
One of the biggest surprises in my life happened after we retired from our regular life style. We go back to our Sudbury days when we were friends of John and Leona. John was older than I and owned a construction machine rental business. He was flying pretty high so we were not really in his wheel house socially. Later, after we were both settled back in southern Ontario and had our winter homes in Florida only a few miles apart, we connected again and became quite friendly. Leona passed away quite suddenly but we kept in touch with John and I even gave John my Cadilac in Florida for a month to just get away and have a change of scenery and to re- think his future. Bad things started to happen without Leona to steer the ship and John got caught up in a mining stock scam. He needed money to fix his problems and came to me a number of times for a loan or at least buy into this stock to hold its value until it could start production. I refused until finally, I had to help him out. I had almost forgotten the loss until there was a phone call from John’s son Jimmy. His Father was not well and in going over his papers, he saw that John owed me $25,000. Would you be OK with a cash payment of $18,000? I never spoke to John or Jimmy again. The payment was nice but the thought was even sweeter.
By 1972, less than 10 years from one of our worst years, we were now able to relax a bit and enjoy some of the great wealth of experiences we were hoping and working for. We were nicely settled into a large 5-bedroom house in Milton with a 4-unit apartment building we renovated from a two-storey coach house original to the property. The boys were finally re-united at one school and they seemed to be happy in residence there. Our 5 mortgages were paid off and the project (40 ft. Shamrock) in our back yard was about to be completed and launched in the spring. A friend put me in touch with a travel agent and before we could say no, we were scheduled for a 14-day cruise on one of the most beautiful ships sailing the Caribbean. It was a bargain as we were flown to New York the day before with hotel accommodation for a total cost for the two under $1,000. We sailed away on Joan’s 33rd. birthday. The first memory that has to be mentioned was the insistence of an older woman so anxious to know how a couple as young as Joan and I could afford an expensive cabin on such a luxurious ship as the Italian S/S Raffaello. Her name was Mrs. General Louis E Ford jr.
George and Charlotte Budahazy
The best and lasting memory is the one where we were just finished our luxurious dinner in the dining room when I spotted another couple about our age lighting up a Canadian cigarette (Matinee). Without hesitation, I went over and introduced myself and we have been friends ever since. George and Charlotte are still our friends but we do not see them as often as we would like as age and travel are restrictive. Of all the couples that go back to the 60’s and70’s George and Charlotte are the only ones left. George at 93 is still playing golf and Pickleball and Charlotte is keeping up to him also doing very well. George ended his career as VP of a large real estate and shopping mall developer and still spends winters in Florida and summers in Toronto with Charlotte.
Our first cruise in 1972 was the beginning of a habit that became a retirement career and ended in 2016. My memory is vague as I have always said we had about 65 cruises. That may be, but I have forgotten a large section of time that I find hard to recall or document.
Florida holds a large portion of our memory bank as we spent a lot of Canada’s winters in the comfort and warmth of that beautiful state. Most of memories are good except for the terror we experienced in the wake of so many Hurricanes that came close to us losing everything including our lives. We were lucky but the luck ran out finally for the area we occupied, thankfully after we left.
Many of the characters were in our lives in Florida and our social life could not have been better. Both Joan and I enjoyed sailing, golf, entertaining in shows and going to Busch Gardens and so many other interesting venues. We ate a lot of our meals in fine restaurants at prices that were reasonable. We spent our Sundays at church and the problem was which service will we attend today? So many times, we would find it hard to return home to Canada and leave our friends. So many were so interesting and memorable. The following are people that made a big impression on our lives.
Larry and Jeane Parish Our next-door neighbours and friends. Larry came from a very wealthy background. His father owned two of the Presidential yachts. I only knew him as my friend that was very poor in worldly goods but richer than any other, I could think of with lifetime experiences. His story is in my book, “Drummer”
Col. Roger Tessier US-Army.
Roger was a WW2 Colonel and tank commander, and an exquisite Sailor. He was a POW and a pilot. He avoided 3 assassinations by the German Gestapo. He was buried at Arlington cemetery. I wrote the eulogy read at his burial ceremony. Roger was the only person that had as equally varied life as Larry but both men in their own way made a great impression on me. I was to write Roger’s story when I returned to Florida but Roger died in his sleep as all Warriers should. I was so impressed when we would press him to tell some of his life experiences. These were great days when we were sailing in the Gulf of Mexico on a 5-week trip to southern Florida. While enjoying a cigar and a scotch anchored for the night in some far-off secret Gunk hole, Roger would loosen up and related stories that just spell bound my dear sailing friends and myself. One of my last sailing trips with Roger was bringing a small sailboat up to Tampa Bay from Port Charlotte with no charts and very little in the way of safety equipment on board. We finally made it into the Tampa area but we were already in high winds that this little boat could not handle in the shape it was in. We were floundering badly and going aground due to the high waves and low tides. It was as if God had looked down on, we two old farts and said, “I had better give them a hand” Our boat found deep water all of a sudden and we were able to control her, we were safe for now. It was as if God had picked us up and put us in a safer place. Soaking wet and worn out from our two-day ordeal, we got home just after midnight. All was well with the world.
Dick and Helen Pell –
Dick was by far the most controversial friend I had in Florida. We were miles apart in every way, I was a Christian, he was Jew but an Agnostic Jew. I was of the Conservative persuasion and Dick was a Democrat. Nothing made us happier than to pick a subject and take our opposing sides and go at it for a couple of hours. We would wind it up, hug each other and say wasn’t that fun. Dick and I had the same sail boat, a 36 ft. Gulfstar motor Sailer. Helen, his dear wife died of Alzheimer’s.
Howard Markham –
Howard was a Canadian but we met in Florida on the golf course and became good friends. We were both independent entrepreneurs but in entirely different fields. Howard owned a wrecking yard with no less than 1000 vehicles at any given time. He declared many times how much he enjoyed his business. He financed all his dealings himself and had a set rate for every deal of 10%. As Howard was a public school drop out as many of my wealthiest friends were, 10% was fair and easy for him to quickly calculate. He had hundreds of customers that were quite agreeable to his terms. He smiled and said many times, “it’s like picking $ up off the ground.” I bought a number of cars from Howard and I remember going to the huge car auction in Orlando and buying a Buick Riviera. It was the most beautiful car I ever owned and that is something as I have owned more than 50 cars over the years. Howard’s garage re-built the engine twice and then I gave in and sold it. I went with Howard to the Canadian car auction in the Guelph area as a driver, only members in good standing could buy there. I had Howard buy two cars for me that day, a yellow and a white Sundance. One for me and one for Michael. Howard was very good to me when we had the daunting task of cleaning up the grounds of the MacKenzie mansion, He came with his tilt-and-load and took away an old abandoned car and then delivered a 5-ton GMC truck for my use as long as I needed it. What a life saver! Howard and Roger both died the same day just hours apart. I was devastated. It was a Sat. morning at the Flea market when Joan called to give me the horrible news. Two of my best friends died the same day
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Col. Tom Culbreth and Carolyn
US Army. Tom ran the golf league in Florida that I enjoyed so much. I was a terrible golfer but loved the game. I think for a couple of reasons, the social aspect of playing to improve your own score and the comradeship of your fellow players. It was hard to know where you were from one day to the next when it came to Tom. He was a gruff sort on the outside but a pussy cat when you knew him. I was far more comfortable when I was told by a mutual friend that Tom did in fact like me. Everyone wants to be liked. I find that there are people we come in contact with every day but only a few you want to make a special friend. Tom and Carolyn were in that category of me wanting to be their special friend.
Richard and Cathleen VanWicklan -
Richard had a rich history with his family going back to almost the first families to arrive in North America from Holland. Richard was a retired fire chief on Long Island NY and like my friend Tom and Carolyn were in our park in Florida and became valued friends. They travelled with us to many parts of the world when we were selling and escorting our friends around the USA and beyond. Richard loved his sailboat but rarely took it out on his own. Lucky for him, his neighbour loved to sail, so was almost ready at the drop of a hat to take the boat out. I crewed for this fellow only once with one other older guy and our captain really drove the boat too hard and the crew as well. After retuning with a cracked rib, I passed on any further dealings with Richard’s captain.
Rick DePaulo & Mike Facia -
I am inserting these two boys into my list of memorable characters in my life as they were a huge influence on our manufacturing branch of our business activities. A Tenant in our office space put me in touch with Mike and Rick as they held the Gruen Watch name for anything they could develop in clock sales. We were just dipping our toes into the manufacturing of wall clocks with the introduction of a small battery run motor for wall and mantle clocks out of Japan. I was to design a number of clocks that I felt we could make with this new motor and along with costs, present a range of samples and pictures of what we could do under the Gruen logo. Joan was getting very good at developing packaging and labelling and I was anxious to put my artistic talent to design a new line, especially for this customer. This was a real gamble as a lot of work had to be done before even an order could be filled. Remax was our new customer and they were so new, credit was difficult to determine if we even wanted their business. Consumers Distributing was one of their credit references and I knew if Jack Stupp was involved, we would be OK. Jack was a valued customer of mine for many years. Everything went well and Remax became a valued customer buying about 50,000 clocks a year from our little plant in Mississauga. Rick and I took a trip together to Hong Kong where we were involved in the design of a new watch collection. As a side story, we were also acting for a real-estate broker to hand deliver a contract to a young Chinese diamond merchant for the sale of the Westbury Hotel in Toronto. I spent many hours at the Westbury so could highly recommend it as a good investment and purchase. I do believe the deal went through. Both of these fellows were very nice to deal with and we rarely had any problems. My secretary always commented on Rick’s outrageous fur coat. Mike a lower key, however he was a professional wrestler under the professional name “The Italian Stallion”
Bill and Helen Jeffery –
My life would have been an awful lot less interesting without the friendship of a couple that were not only friends but allies as well. Again, like most of all our social life, certainly the most interesting friends were almost all berthed in Florida. Bill had a small mobile home across from my mother and father’s place in Tropic Isles. I was acquainted with the Jefferys and I did know they were Canadian and from the Oshawa area. I had heard that Bill was a stone mason and brick layer so when I purchased the 13 acres and the mansion of 14,000 square ft of living space that was derelict, I was pretty sure I could use his help if he was available. My whole working years have taken me into some strange and different situations from restoring a 40ft. cruisers in my back yard, to re-building and restoring about 20 other boats and almost 50 properties in Canada and Florida. It does not take long to figure out the Bull Shitters from the legit hard-working professionals. Bill from the start and all the way through our journey together proved himself to be a legitimate pro. He loved history and re-purposing old into new and beautiful pieces of art. His medium was stone and brick but he was a great carpenter and whatever else he put his talents to were all very well done. We started Bill off rebuilding the huge brick chimney at the front of the house. This had to be torn down and re-built from the roof up. Closer inspection revealed that four other chimneys were due for refurbishing as well. Our 7-foot brick wall needed to be re-built so the boys brought about ten of their friends up to the Inn for a week-end and 700 ft of wall was torn down and re built. What a grand project that was. One Sunday evening we took this time to catch up and relax with a scotch or two and one of my Cuban cigars. Our veranda was a constant challenge to keep maintained properly, I looked up and noticed a suspicious crack in the facia board. I think we had better take a look at that Bill. The next day by 10:00 AM half the veranda was on the front lawn and we were well into a total re-build of our huge veranda. I was putting the final coat of paint on the next Sat. morning to be ready for an afternoon wedding. We were ready. Our friends not only worked on our project but were pressed into action running the Inn as we had 5 deaths in our family between June 1995 and December 1997. Who better with similar skills to our own, but our friends Bill and Helen. Bill was always ready to come back to Kirkfield when we were planning to put a 125 pound pig on the outdoor spit. He was our chef for each of our boys’ weddings. Bill and Helen both passed on to their next adventure Feb and Mar 2024. Bill enjoyed sailing as much as any man could. He and Roger were two of the three that accompanied us on that adventure. Bill blames me for getting caught in a horrendous storm off the coast of Florida on our treck returning home. He was obliged to leave the Keys a day early with us because our boat was the only one big and powerful enough to get him free when he would get grounded. After my first book came out, Bill vowed he would write a similar book about his life and their one-year sabbatical for a trip of a lifetime around the world. Travel and curiosity will allow you to hold your own in most conversations so you appear to have a formal education when what you have is just a general knowledge of the world. “Billy’s Way” is one of the best books I have ever read.
Richard and Judith Marr –
Except for family, Dick and Judy go back as far as I can recall, to our first months of married life in Sudbury Ontario. We were very lucky to get established in the north so quickly. The church had a big influence on our first weeks and months. Russ and Norma took us under their wing after church on our first Sunday in this new land. We were invited back to their home for a bite of lunch. I mean no disrespect but it really was barely a bite. No one in those days had very much of this world’s luxuries. “I thought we would have a hot dog but I don’t have any buns. Wonder bread be OK?” Norma apologized but we were fine just to be there. We were just so thrilled to have made friends so soon. I especially was pleased because I would be away from home 3 weeks out of five and Joan needed some friends. We used this experience a few times when we spotted new people in our congregation. Sudbury was a testing ground for young people to prove themselves with the corporate world. If you were good enough to survive in the harsh north, you would get a chance for advancement. Dick was just out of Engineering school and joined Inco mining company. They were new in town and like us, a little bewildered. We speak of this first lunch and how impressed we were with the little thing that happened in our lives that have such an impact on others. Dick and Judy have withstood many ups and down through their lives together. Judy almost died with encephalitis in her early 30’s and Dick has been bed bound now for over three years. In better days, we were so impressed and surprised when we answered the door at the Inn. They came all the way from BC to celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary. Too much weight in Sir. William’s tub flooded our Ballroom. We then reciprocated by going to their 50th in Arbutis Ridge BC. What a wonderful time we had with their friends and neighbours.
June and Vernon Little
A wonderful couple that took care of Joan and the boys for so many weeks when I was off in the wilderness of the north. They joined us on one of our visits to Hawaii. Vern was a top performer for Great West Life insurance co. and lived in Calgary.
My memories of our time at the Inn in Kirkfield and the experiences owning a Flea market in the wilderness are many. There are so many wonderful stories of the literally thousands of connections we made in those years. The terrible storm in 1995 did take its toll on us as we were just starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel. However, after losing over 100 mature and majestic trees, many planted by Lady MacKenzie, we were in the hands of our God and for every storm, there will follow the sunshine and many times a beautiful rainbow. This event was no exception. I was able to get the CBC News team to come to the Inn and give us 15 minutes of fame short story on our catastrophe. We had country wide distribution and we were also written into the annals of Hansard. Many people have entered our life that would not have If we did not have such an experience. David Jewel who came to our rescue and gave us a week of his time and expertise cleaning up our devastated 13 acres. David was an inspiration that was so special to us. Shortly after the storm, we entered into something new for us and that was to turn our property into a sculptor garden. We had the trees, now all we needed was the people to carve them. We had a stump carving contest that lasted a number of weeks and culminated with a big event that drew hundreds of spectators that were our judges as well. We were so lucky to be able to gather six of the most interesting characters one could ever want to have as friends. This was Joan’s idea after viewing the devastation of the storm. Let’s turn this negative into a positive and turn these broken trees into something beautiful.
Peter Turrell – Peter Nicapetre – Peter Mogenson – Bob Devries
Dorsey James and George Best were our carvers.
Peter Turrell –
Three of our compliment of 6 carvers were named Peter. Peter T carved Cougar on the rocks and he was my first contact through his company “Stihl”. All the other guys with the exception of George Best came to us through Peter or word of mouth. I am still in touch with Peter and Donna and they are like my kids only a lot smarter. I go to Peter for information on almost everything as he is probably the most learned man I know. Suffice to say, it was on our lawn that Peter and Donna met and they are celebrating their 30th anniversary this coming July. Their story is unbelievable and long so I will leave the details to read in some of my other pieces. Peter’s cougar won the contest and received the tree at the front of the veranda to carve his choice of work up to a certain amount which Joan and I have long forgotten. Peter and Donna carved a larger-than-life statue of Sir Wm Mackenzie. I cared for all the carvings covering them in the winter with material used by our army. Sadly, the next owner did not bother and they have all but disappeared through neglect or many have been stolen. Only Peter and Bob Devries are around Dorsey can’t be found and the others have all passed.
Marty Wynston –
What a dear faithful friend I had in my buddy Marty. Our friendship started as did many, at the Hardware show held every February at the Exhibition grounds in Toronto. Marty represented Leviton for many years and this was a good fit for him as he was well connected in the electric fixture business. He took the business over from his father who was for many years on Front Street next to the Royal Alexandra Theatre. Most long time Torontonians will know the property that Honest Ed owned called Ed’s Warehouse restaurant. Where today stands The Princess Margaret Theatre. Marty was another of my friends who fought in World War 2. He was a radio officer on three ships that were sunk under him in the North Atlantic Ocean. Marty was married 5 times and his last wife Eleanor, is still one of our closest friends. Honest Ed Mirvish was a customer of mine and he was a very nice guy to be around.
Bryan and Donna McDonald –
One of the last of the good guys in my life. Again, my first encounter was at the show in Toronto and the new buyer for Towers was at my booth comparing prices on the latest fad in wine drinking called the “Grand Vin” a huge bulbass bowl on a long stem. I got the order and this was the beginning of a long and pleasant friendship. Our relationship became very close when we were able to get rid of our waste woodchips for his basement wood stove. We were rewarded when re-furbishing was needed on unsalable goods and our plant was kept busy doing these jobs. Bryan was kept busy helping others on their projects so when I insisted, he and Donna buy their own project, Bryan had no time but for his beautiful cottage that he deserved having so much pride for his efforts, Donna would often have home made cookies made for us when we were off on a flight. Bryan and Donna were the first to view our new project, the Sir. Wm. Mackenzie mansion in Kirkfield.
Bernie Carpenter –
My list of personal friends and relationships would not be complete without the friend I had all the time I was in the Hardware/housewares business. Bernie and I both worked for very successful sales agents. As life progressed, we both evolved into our own companies and while Bernie’s lines were far better known and he had far greater stability in keeping them, we both were very successful. Pat Mulligan, Bernie and myself were the three initiators of the HHIRC. - Hardware/Housewares Independent Reps. of Canada. This group is still thriving to my knowledge and represents the value of sales companies made up of professional sales people that take over the representation of the company in the selling and marketing of their products. I knew Bernie was not well and dropped in for a visit and gave him my latest book.. Bernie had a heart condition as did my friend Howard that few knew of. I was not informed of his death and missed the funeral to my sadness. The loss of a good friend and soulmate was what I was to experience too many times in my life.
Debbie Reynolds
I have worked many trade shows in my life and many were made much easier with Joan at my side. We worked the Chicago Houseware show when we had our own booth. We worked the LA houseware show and one in Calgary and many in Kitchener and London. I only took my team to Chicago once. It cost me a fortune for plane tickets and hotels and only gave me a headache from the experience and my people a headache from too much fun. Trade shows are never profitable but you need to be there to show you are still operational. I was sitting in my booth the last day of the winter Chicago housewares show. It was very quiet Almost everyone had left the city but the hanger-ons like myself. I was almost ready for a nap when a cute blonde sat herself down and said “want some company?” Over the years I have met many show people at tradeshows for whatever reason, probably to get exposure. I had Miss. Toronto in 1956 Judy Welsh, she sat on my knee when we were both only 18 years old. Gordy Tapp, Mohamid Ali, Shiley Jones, Tommy Hunter, and at the Conrad Hilton on an elevator a cutie for sure, Ed. McMan’s most recent wife. She hugged me and wanted me to buy her a drink. She said I was funny. Our Inn was a great place to meet the famous and near famous. We entertained notables in Politics and theatre. One of our regulars was a famous Nobel Prize recipient. The most interesting and moving experiences I have had in my memory was this lonely woman wanting to spend some time with me. Out of the hundreds of booths at this, one of the largest Housewares Trade shows in the world, there she sat ready to open her heart up to a complete stranger. I was not aware at the time but Debbie and I were only four years apart in age and I could tell that she was hurting and needed a shoulder to lean on. I let her get it all out and I was not going to let anyone disturb this special time that she needed to unload her grief. Debbie had been horribly treated by her agent and her former husband Eddy Fisher. According to her, she was almost destitute as these two and others scammed her out of all her money. She was concerned as she had to support herself and her daughter Carrie Fisher. She was working trade show booths to just barely get by. We spoke for a couple of hours and as fast as Debbie appeared – she was gone.
Ron
I do not want to reveal Ron’s last name for many reasons so we will call Ron the tall lanky good looking cowboy guy. Ron’s teen age son was a thorn in my side as he could not stop himself from stealing from me on a regular basis. He and his friend were banned from entering the Flea market but that did not stop the kid. He cut a hole in the wall one winter and used my market as a supply store for his illegal activities. Ron had a bit of a record as well but even under the circumstances, I liked the guy. I trusted him to do a job for me that I was not able to do myself. We needed a new roof for the addition at the Inn which was an attached building to the main mansion that was 3 stories high and trusses were needed to change the configuration of the roof to match the rest of the building. It was a big job but Ron assured me he was able with some friends, to do the job right and at a fair price He was good to his word and I did not see him for a few months. It was in the Flea Market on a busy Saturday afternoon when he appeared and I greeted him as a long-time friend returning home. He through his arms around me and cried, Thank you -Thank you -You saved my life. I was a bit embarrassed but I had to know what the man was talking about. Through his fears he explained he was on the verge of killing himself with a pistol in his mouth ready to pull the trigger when he heard my voice pleading for him to stop. This was a very emotional moment for two grown men to find themselves.
Sir. William MacKenzie Inn and new owner.
Jeremy Pierpoint
The Inn was sold to a couple that I incorrectly assessed as being capable of making the Inn even more successful. We took this derelict old mansion that had seen better days and within a year transformed it into the most desirable Inn of its kind in Canada. We attracted two rating companies to give us a 5-star rating after only open for three years. We attracted travelers from all over the world to a (back water village) that no one had heard of. Jeremy was a graduate of the finest private schools in Canada and had a silver tongue that impressed all who came in contact with him. I gave him a deal of the century. Our buildings had no end of history with 15 bedrooms, most with ensuite bathrooms, a ballroom that could seat over 100 guests with everything to back this up in duplicate. From a 15-passenger bus and a diesel tractor, Lawn cutter, to all the tools for inside and outside maintenance. The property boasted a two-story brick restaurant that was once the local Highschool when it was a convent following Mackenzie’s death in 1923. A large two-storey barn, a gazebo for outdoor BBQs, for weddings and an original water tower as was on the Canadian Northern railway line over 150 years ago. My price was $750,000. This was the bargain of the century and more than acceptable to the buyer since we had a steady business 6 months of the year which added greatly to the value. We were tired and as much as we loved the business and living in a millionaire’s mansion, it was time to move on. This was a turn-key operation.
The doe- doe I was dealing with may have had the best education money could buy, but it went straight through his head and out the other side when it came to ethics and smarts. He needed more time to raise the funds and would we continue with the deal and they would pay us rent for a year or so when funds were in place to seal the deal legally. We moved out with only our personal belongings and a few treasured pieces but left everything that made the transition as smooth as possible. My Flea market kept me in Kirkfield every week-end so I was able to keep track of the physical side of the Inn and with some exceptions, things seemed to be running pretty smoothly. I was called upon about 5:00PM one Saturday when a waitress came over from the Inn and asked if I could come right away and finish the food preparation for the wedding that day as the chef, Jeremy’s wife went to bed with a headache. When I arrived, the place was a hive of people not knowing what to do. I first checked the salads and appetizers and they were ready but the two Large Prime beef roasts were sitting partially cooked on the stove top. I think there was a soup also but what were they doing with the star of the dinner? The Two roasts of beef. I assessed the situation and gave my opinion as to the temperature and time for the balance of the cook and left. This incident started me to think, was I giving our business that we worked so hard to build, into the hands of amateurs? Would it succeed with such a casual attitude on such a special day for these newlyweds? Rumours were always circling about the MacKenzie property. I had purchased the Rona store and building center so there was little else to talk about and there was lots to be said. There was always a love/hate relationship between the mansion property and the village folks. I was never able to extinguish that fire. My neighbours were happy to see the mansion doing well, but there was always that animosity toward the owners. I called for a meeting with Jeremy and Sharon to sort this problem out as we were about to leave for our Florida home for the winter. Dinner at our home in Orillia was planned for 6:00PM and by 8:00 PM they still had not arrived. I was not in a very good mood as this was going to be difficult enough. My rental experience as a landlord for many years taught me that I was not in a very good place for any negotiations leading to getting these people out especially in the fall with winter approaching. They finally arrived but would not even remove their coats. This was a bad sign. They explained that they were not able to come up with enough money to close the deal and further discussion revealed that they were $12,000 behind on the taxes and they also owed a substantial amount to the gas company and the Electric company. Not considering our back rent I quickly calculated that they were far in over their heads and were carrying at least a $25,000 to $30,000 debt, in less than two years. These people were on their way out the door. I could not let them out without some further conversation as to how we could resolve this mess before it got completely out of control. If I evicted them immediately, which I would not guarantee could be done, I would be responsible for all the debt they had incurred which was impossible to quickly calculate. The Inn was completely clear of debt but, I had a huge mortgage on the house I was living in. We were both between a rock and a hard place. As they were on their way out, Jeremy said almost as an afterthought, “I think I can have half a million by next spring” Without even thinking I shook his hand and said “You have a deal”. Right or wrong, I had given us both time to work things out and I would not make a nice profit as I had hoped but I was free to get on with other things that meant as much or more to me than a pocket full of money. My feisty lawyer insisted I return early from Florida to be present for the closing. He could not believe that the deal went through. I have no idea where the money came from but I expect it was a family arrangement. No more than 10 years passed and the property was in foreclosure and up for sale for about $1,000,000. The present owner, a very well to do dentist in Toronto feels he should get several million for the place but not until more TLC is performed in my opinion.
Following my third retirement after we gave up my legitimate jobs, we sold our treasured home on Lake Couchiching with our western exposure to the delights of so many beautiful sunsets and great summer days. Our winter home in Florida also had to go as expenses were far too great for health insurance We were not looking forward to winters in Orillia so we moved to Welland Ontario where winters are slightly less severe.
There is far more I could write, but this might be helpful for my dear wife. I have taken a few days to document some of the stories and interesting people in our lives. I am trying to keep these memories alive in my brain but more important my sweet wife has forgotten some of the interesting events already. This will be a reminder if she wants to re live in her mind some of our fantastic life stories. Joan has been reading some of my books to keep these events fresh in her mind. We have just heard that Carol, Joan’s sister, is getting worse with her problem of dementia and that her brother-in-law is also suffering from this terrible problem, so we are trying to work to prevent the same happening to Joan and I. Perhaps this document will be helpful in the future to us, if not, stories of much of the life we had can be passed down for future generations.
Our life together has been one constant Merry-go-round.
Paul D. Scott rantingsandraves.com