Category: H

Honoured by Lorene J. Kroger

Gerald and Charlotte Hill

Inspiration comes with many facets – and for our family it came from the resilience, strength, realistic optimism of our parents who turned the challenging realities of wars, illness, and meager times into rich full, happy carefree times for my brothers and I.

My Dad, Gerald (May 22 1892 to March 11, 1960) was a proud Canadian veteran of World War 1 who fought in the front lines of the Battle of Vimy Ridge. With a bullet through his foot, Dad crawled out of the trenches and back through the lines to medics. He spent a year in a Paris hospital surviving several gangrene induced amputations and the rehabilitation that followed. At home he didn’t talk much about the war but he did enjoy the comradery of the annual Vimy Ridge banquets in Toronto. He proudly wore the triangular pin of the Vimy vets on his lapel.

My mom, Charlotte Annie (Fryer) was born in England. (January 17, 1901 to December 3, 1990) She carried the strength of her British heritage with her to Canada. It was with this stoic strength and stiff upper lip that she raised us and managed the family. She took on many tasks that Dad could not do easily, due to the loss of his leg.

Dad took on the job of Fire Ranger when they first arrived in North Bay (circa 1920). Because he was a veteran, he was given the job of General Delivery postal clerk at the old post office on Main Street, now gone.

Whether it was shoveling coal or wood for the fire, rubbing my Dad’s shoulders which ached from the straps that secured his artificial leg, or sewing clothes for my brothers and I, Mom was a tower of strength. When my brother Jack contracted polio at the age of 11 months, mom began to buy and sell land to supplement Dad’s wages to raise the money needed for Jack’s medical care, special boots, steel braces, and the many trips to Victoria Hospital (Sick Kids) in Toronto.   We would also sell vegetables from our garden and I would go door to door, selling the crafts Dad made to help with the expense.  As Jack grew older, doctors recommended a climate change so Mom, Jack and Gerry spent two years in Florida.

Never did I hear my parents complain about their lives. They were honest, law abiding, frugal, loving and instilled in all of us a strong work ethic and the importance of education. They were forged from two world wars and the Great Depression and these values imparted in us a zest for life, compassion and love of all living things.

Dad was a pronounced lover of animals, “Don’t trust anyone who doesn’t love animals,” he often said. We always had cats, dogs and sometimes turtles and goldfish. On Grandad’s farm animals were also well loved.

Our family always ate three full meals a day together. We sat at the small kitchen table with the huge world map on the wall at the table’s end. Dad opened the world of geography with many questions and queries at each meal. We had many laughter filled debates and challenges with each meal and much was learned about the world, life and each other. We all learned the rivers, countries and capitals which helped a great deal when we went to school.

Dad was happy, outgoing and uplifting in nature; virtues that shone during his 33 years as General Delivery clerk at the Main St. Post Office. The population of The Bay in the ‘50’s was around 18,000 and it seemed as though Dad knew a great many of them!

My brothers and I were fortunate to be raised in such an inspiring family. Gerry, a veteran of WWII, went on to establish a very successful photography business in North Bay called “Hill Bros. Photography”. Brother Jack was the other half of that operation. Many weddings were recorded with Hill Bros photographs in the 1950’s and early 1960’s. Gerry’s thriving business ended with his untimely death in 1965 at the age of 42. Having graduated magna cum laude from Laurentian University (Nipissing Campus) with a History Degree and then an M.Ed. in History and Philosophy from University of Toronto, I had fulfilled goals my father had wished for me. I retired from my teaching career in 1992.

Throughout our lives, Dad would quote from the works of Shakespeare, Service, Poe, Kipling, Longfellow, and other poets to inspire and instill life’s lessons. One of his favourites was “IF” by Rudyard Kipling. It was a model lesson for all of us to follow in life’s adventures.

Lorene June Kroger (nee Hill) June 10, 1936
Gerald Albert Hill October 28, 1922 to March 1965
Jack Hugh Hill September 14, 1925 to March 2006

Honoured by Liam and Lauryn Hamilton.  Thank you for purchasing a leaf and supporting your waterfront park.  Story to follow.

Thank you, Bob and Deanne, for supporting the Waterfront Pergola campaign with the purchase of your leaf.

Honoured by Keith Harriman.

This is dedicated to the life and memory of our mother, Edith Harriman, a courageous woman who dedicated herself to her family.

In 1928, mom was born in North Himsworth Township and grew up in Ferris at a time when life was very challenging for her parents. One of nine children, she was very young when our grandfather died and she stepped in to help raise her siblings when they needed a friend and a parent.

She married our father in 1946 just after WWII and started our family, while staying close by
her brothers and sisters who relied on her support.

She was an accepting and protective mother that supported us at every stage of life. We knew she
would be there for us regardless of what we did and made the home a refuge and a place of comfort for everybody.

As a grandmother, she spoiled our children rotten and taught them the art of Nintendo and the
significance of laughter and pizza pops.

Her sense of humour, dedication and outlook on life has changed the way we live and helped shape the importance we place on family.

What we learned from mom about life is invaluable and though we miss her daily words of wisdom and her wit, we will always remember our mom, our nanny and our friend.

Honored by siblings, Mike Holmes and Karen Holmes

Agnes Adele Holmes (nee Doucet) was born in Timmins on February 27, 1926 and John Victor (Vic) Holmes was born in Ottawa on August 23, 1926.

In those days, it was hard to believe one could meet a life partner, so far away, but at seventeen, Vic left home, as he was transferred from Ottawa with Gamble Robinson (a national food manufacturer) to become assistant office manager in their Timmins branch. Agnes was working as an assistant to a C.A. in Timmins, when Vic arrived on the scene. Both were unable to pursue a university education due to WWII as each was responsible to provide funds to educate younger siblings. They did so without resentment, such were the times. However, they so valued education and both would have been strong candidates to attend university, if it were possible. Their shared view of the importance of education for their future children was motivation for their hard work and dedication over the years.

They met while acting in community theatre and enjoyed a long, happy courtship and they were married in 1949.They set their sites on North Bay as a honeymoon destination and a place to live and raise a family.

Vic began his entrepreneurial grounding by opening Barker-Holmes Motors on Fisher Street, in 19.. Featuring cars of the day, such as the “Nash” “Peugeot “ and “Mini”, he and Bernie Barker made a success of it for many years. However, due to his partner’s desire to pursue other interests, Vic closed up shop, sold the land and the building to a grocery chain and moved into the diamond drilling business until the bottom fell out of the copper business.

Frustrated by volatile markets, Vic decided to enter the real estate market, because he cared about the city he lived in and wanted to be an integral part of it. He began as a sales representative with Bain and Graham Real Estate on Ferguson St. and, after he became a Broker in 1968, he opened his own Brokerage, Vic Holmes Real Estate, right around the corner, on McIntyre St. East. Vic’s company enjoyed #1 position in the city for many years and continued to do so, after Mike Holmes joined his father in 1976 and eventually became the new owner, along with Norm Pellerin in 1986. Both Vic and his son Mike served as Presidents of the North Bay Real Estate Board.

Over 37 years, both Agnes and Vic became very engaged in the community by volunteering in charitable groups such as Rotary, Knights of Columbus, Catholic Women’s League, St. Joseph’s Hospital Auxiliary and became sponsors of many local initiatives. They believed in giving back to their community and have taught us to do the same. They both enjoyed, long, happy friendships that lasted well over 50 years.

Vic and Agnes raised five children, David, Lisa, Michael, Karen and Gerard in this city and they took their past feelings regarding education to heart and made sure each child attended university. Consequently, all five graduated from the University of Western Ontario. It was this accomplishment, of which they were most proud.

In 1975, after the children had left home, Agnes opened a clothing boutique named, Le Pavillion located on McIntyre St. West. It was the first store of its kind in North Bay, as she carried one of a kind, designer labels such as Anne Klein, Outlander and leather goods from Paris and Milan. She had to make a strong sales pitch to the buyers in Toronto, to convince them to allow her to sell their lines in the north and it worked. It was a lifelong dream of hers, so she and Vic worked to make it happen after the task of raising children was over. Their daughter Karen was fortunate to work with her Mother during these years and see first hand, what a capable businessperson she was.

Vic and Agnes moved to Oakville in 1986, to be nearer all of their grandchildren, but North Bay continued to be an important part of their lives. Frequent visits, particularly in summer, continued the connection and their fondness for the city. Vic continued to sell real estate in the Town of Oakville, until he retired at the age of 78. He has been recognized as one of only a few Realtors who have worked continuously in the industry, for close to 50 years. He is proud that two of his children, Mike and Karen, have followed in his real estate footsteps.

This leaf is an homage to our dear departed Mother, who graced us with her wisdom, elegance and heart and our Father who continues his journey of life with integrity, good humour and an ever present optimistic outlook. We thank them for the many opportunities they have afforded us and the love they have brought into our lives.

Thank you to Jamie and Carole Houston for honouring Summer and supporting the Waterfront Pergola Campaign.  Story to follow.