Born in "Toronto the Good", I was the third oldest of five boys and one girl. I attended Central Tech and Business College. We moved frequently in those days but I was never at a loss for a job on the side. One of my biggest thrills as a boy was bringing home my first pay cheque and taking over the responsibility of paying the hydro bill for the family.

I was certain that Toronto was my ticket to becoming a millionaire before age thirty, however, a quirk of fate intervened. When I met my future wife, Evelyn, at a lodge in Muskoka, I followed up with a trip to her hometown of Sebringville and fell in love with the slower pace and open country. I moved to the area at the tender age of 18 and produced two lovely daughters and, eventually, two grandchildren.

Initially, I was employed at Wilkins Frosted Foods acquiring my refrigeration papers but soon, due to the untimely death of Evelyn's father, I purchased her father's business and began my career in Plumbing and Heating contracting in Serbringville. I also saw a future in building apartments and this dovetailed nicely with my business as I could absorb the employee's slack time in the off season with building assignments. At 24, I built an 8-plex, showroom and shop in Serbringville. This escalated nicely into building more apartments, buying land and building houses on spec. At age 37, I sold the business and concentrated more intensely on building ventures.

More opportunities presented themselves. I acquired a real estate license and worked in that business for several years. I built more homes in the village. I also worked on Baffin Island building houses for the Inuit. This certainly expanded my horizons as I sailed a 26 foot sailboat to within 300 hundred miles of the North Pole. The United Church of Canada gave me contracts to build homes and hospital facilities in Bella Bella on the coast of northern British Columbia which has resulted in long standing friendships with fascinating people.

Selling the Plumbing and Heating business also gave me more time to pursue my hobbies . . .especially the love of my life. . .sailing (sorry, Evelyn!). I built various boats, the largest of which was a 37 foot ketch weighing 11 tons, but the real joy comes down to the wind in your face and the challenge of becoming one with the sea. New challenges thrill me and I have sailed solo the Great Lakes and many of the large rivers in this continent like the Mississippi, the Ohio and the Missouri. I look back on some of the risks I took and marvel that I made it through every time.

I began barbershopping in 1962 when another member from the village invited me to attend. I sang with the Stratford chorus until they folded and then traveled to Seaforth. I even manage to squeeze in barbershop singing in Florida every winter. Thirty-seven years in all! My talent may be limited but my enthusiasm for barbershopping knows no bounds. The hair still stands up on the back of my neck when a chord rings and I'll stick around until the wee hours of the morning in anticipation of hearing just one.

Having retired in 1994, we moved to the family cottage outside Grand Bend. It makes the drive to Seaforth just a little shorter.