Grand Bend, Ontario community newspaper and entertainment events guide. Also serves Zurich, Dashwood, Port Franks, Exeter, Parkhill. Casey Lessard photos.
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Oh where, or where, did our little vacuums go? Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard A lot of strange and wonderfully humourous goings-on occurred in Huron Park in the 70s and 80s. One time I was employed in the stock room at Hughes Columbia Yachts and was asked by my boss to come in on [...]
Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard Back in the good old days – the early 70s, that is – there was a company in Huron Park by the name of Hall Lamp. It was a large employer that produced taillights and mirrors. The company used most of the industrial park’s hangars. In the southwest corner [...]
Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard Hey kids, who wants to go to the beach? That was a stupid question to ask on a hot summer’s day. I ended up with nine kids loaded into my good-sized car. I put some pieces of cardboard in the trunk for the sand dunes and off we went. [...]
Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard The air force had recently moved out of Huron Park when we moved from London in April 1968. There were very few tenants in the community, so when five of us army guys moved in, we had our choice of houses. Gradually, as time passed, word got around and [...]
Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard During the years I worked (mostly part-time) as a waiter and bartender at the Club Albatross in Huron Park, there always seemed be someone ready to cause some kind of annoyance. I recall one night I was working along when two men and a woman came in, sat down [...]
Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard Even though I spent 18 years in the army, I was never trained as a fighting man. My first two years were spent doing some foot drill, learning how to be a storesman and getting more education. Next, I was posted to London’s 27 C.O.D., where I worked in [...]
Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard After living in Lizard Flats for a few months, the monotony of the same routine and weather day after day with very little excitement, we waited for something interesting. It just so happened that two corporals living in the signals shack had a disagreement resulting in one throwing the [...]
Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard Sunday morning. Club Albatross, Huron Park. Hockey game in Detroit. Most of us arrived at the club early as usual. About three hours ahead of bus departure time. As there were 45 passengers, quite a bit of alcohol was being taken with us. While we were waiting, it was [...]
Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard Years ago Bill Brady, the announcer for CFPL 980 radio, ran a fundraiser for Sick Kids called “The Bunny Bundle.” Listeners of all ages found different ways of raising money. The fundraiser ran for years. One night, after work at the Dufferin, the staff was sitting around having a [...]
Keeping the Peace By Tom Lessard A lot of life spilled through the doors of the Dufferin, most pleasurable, but some not so. I remember one time early in July of 1970 or 1971, Gig, Des and I planned what we thought was a funny prank. The 12th was coming soon (Editor’s note: July 12, [...]
Keeping the PeaceBy Tom Lessard In April of 1968, Rita and I moved our family from London to Huron Park. There were five of us from 1 RCR who moved at the same time, and we were told that we could choose any house that we wanted. A one-and-a-half storey house rented for $58 per [...]
Keeping the PeaceBy Tom Lessard For some reason, I had driven myself to work at Wolseley Barracks in London instead of travelling with my normal carpool (five of us from Huron Park usually rode together).It started to snow in the morning and by noon, reports coming from the radio indicated the weather was going to [...]
Keeping the PeaceBy Tom Lessard Many years ago, I had the good fortune of working for a window and door company on Highway 4 southeast of Centralia. At one time during my employment, I was given the task of building plastoramic picture windows. My department was very large in area because I needed room to [...]
Keeping the PeaceBy Tom Lessard, CD I spent Christmas 1967 stationed at Lizard Flats outside Nicosia, Cyprus, which had at one time been used during the Jewish exodus from Germany to Palestine. It was pretty run-down and in a way reminded us of Ipperwash.A sergeant oversaw the junior ranks canteen. During the holidays, he would [...]
Keeping the PeaceBy Tom Lessard, C.D. At 27 C.O.D. (the Central Ordnance Depot on Highbury Avenue in London), the only physical training I ever did was playing hockey in the London industrial league. Every Friday afternoon we had a practice at the fairgrounds arena. Our coach was an Indian sergeant who enjoyed his wine. We [...]
Keeping the PeaceBy Tom Lessard In 1953, I was having a difficult time at my high school, St. Jerome’s in Kitchener. It was an all boys’ school. My grades were bad. I missed a lot of classes and didn’t appreciate the teachers. I’d rather hang out at the pool halls or be caddying at the [...]
Keeping the PeaceBy Tom Lessard About 14 years into my military career – by this point the late 1960s – I was working in the quartermasters stores in Wolseley Barracks as a clerk for the RCR. I’d just come off a court martial, got a $25 fine and was promoted to corporal rank – back-dated [...]
Keeping the peaceTom Lessard, former UN peacekeeper It’s Christmas Day 1956, and I’m on leave at home in Waterloo. I had to leave at noon, so we had an early Christmas dinner. I hitchhiked to London (my parents didn’t want to drive in the weather). My last ride got me right to the CN station.Being [...]
Keeping the peaceBy Tom Lessard, former UN peacekeeper I was over in Cyprus in 1970 for a six-month tour. I was with the Delta Company, 1 RCR. I came off the outpost – I had been on the night shift – and I had a couple sandwiches and went into the shack, which was a [...]
