John Faichney is a Canadian dancer, television producer and software analyst born in Montreal in 1952. He graduated from Oberlin College where he developed an interest in choreography and dance improvisation. In May 1976 he performed at the Centre for Experimental Art & Communication (CEAC) in Toronto and was invited to join the Centre’s staff. Amongst other activities, he designed printed matter, maintained exchange programs with other artists’ groups, curated an exhibition of artists’ books and managed distribution of mailings and periodicals (including Strike, a quasi monthly newspaper.) An offshoot of the Kensington Art Association, CEAC moved in 1976 to 86 John Street and then to 15 Duncan Street, offering space for performance art, installations, videos and music. Key members of the group were Amerigo Marras, Suber Corley, Bruce Eves and Ron Gillespie (a.k.a Ron Giii); Marras in particular encouraged connections with European and American artists. The group became increasingly politicized and in 1978 its government funding was rescinded. An attempt at self sufficiency by starting a television production studio at 124 Lisgar Street was not sustainable and CEAC disbanded in 1980. John Faichney lives in Kitchener, Ontario, and remains involved with Contact Improvisation.
George Blair (1852-1935) was a prominent member of the Burlington, Ontario community as a builder and fruit farmer, an elder and treasurer of Knox Presbyterian Church and a municipal councillor. He also served several terms on both the public and high school boards and was also a member of the Fruit Growers Association. Many of the houses that Blair built are still standing and several of them have plaques from the Burlington Heritage Committee. Blair was born at Harper's Corners, Ontario and as an adult, lived and worked as a carpenter in Kilbride. In 1886, he built a home for his first wife, Lorentia (nee Parkin) and their family at 472 Burlington Avenue, Burlington. In 1893, the now-widowed Blair married Hannah Smith (nee Shepherd), who was also widowed. George Blair feared the effect of city living on their sons and so bought a 50-acre fruit farm on Brant Street. Though rural in character, it was still within the boundaries of the Town of Burlington. Together, the couple raised their several children: George's two sons H. Melvin and Ferguson G., and daughter, Mary Grace, Hannah's two sons, Henry Melvin Smith and Edward (Ted) Shepherd Smith, as well as the couple's sons George Stanley and John Nicoll, and daughters Eva Marion and Mabel Beatrice.
Gilbert Forrest Bagnani (1900-1985) was a professor of ancient history. He was born in Rome to General Ugo Bagnani and Florence Dewar. He served as a Second Lieutenant of artillery towards the end of World War I. After the War he returned to the University of Rome where he received his doctorate. Instead of entering law as he had planned, he turned to the Italian School of Archaeology in Athens to study antiquities. In 1929 Gilbert married Mary Augusta Stewart Houston (1903-1996) of Toronto, daughter of Stewart Houston (editor of "The Financial Post") and Augusta Robinson (daughter of John Beverley Robinson, Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, and granddaughter of Sir John Beverley Robinson, Chief Justice and Attorney-General of Upper Canada). Gilbert and Stewart had an apartment in Rome and for seven seasons worked, in the Sahara Desert, with the Royal Archaeological Mission to Egypt. In 1937 they fled fascist Italy and purchased a 200 acre farm and house built around 1845 near Port Hope, Ontario and named it "Vogrie". In 1945 Gilbert was invited to teach ancient history at the University of Toronto and in 1958 became a Professor. He retired from the University of Toronto in 1965. The Bagnanis returned to "Vogrie". In the same year, Gilbert was asked to accept a term-appointment at Trent University. He was honoured with a LL.D. by Trent in 1971 and he continued to teach as a Professor of Ancient History until 1975.
William Lyon Mackenzie King (1874-1950) was Canada’s Prime Minister for 22 years, holding office 1921-1926, 1926-1930, and 1935-1948. King was born in Berlin (later renamed Kitchener), Ontario. King received his BA, LLB, and MA at the University of Toronto. At Harvard University he received an MA and a PhD. King was leader of the Liberal Party from 1919-1948.
Kenneth Hewitt (1937- ) was a professor of geography and environmental studies at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, from 1976 until his retirement in 2002. Hewitt earned his BA and MA at Cambridge University, and his PhD at London University. He is a founding member of the Cold Regions Research Centre. Hewitt has been the recipient of many research awards. Hewitt was proclaimed Wilfrid Laurier University Research Professor for 1988-1989, and received the Award for Scholarly Distinction in Geography from the Canadian Association of Geographers in 1991.
John Cowper Powys (1872-1963) was an English author and lecturer. Born in Derbyshire, England, he was the eldest of eleven children of Rev. Francis and Mary Powys. John Cowper Powys was educated at Sherborne School and Corpus Christi, Cambridge. He first lectured at girls' schools in the Brighton area, and from 1898 to 1909 lectured for the Oxford University Extension Delegacy. In 1905 he made his first lecture tour in the United States, where he continued to tour until 1934. Powys' publications include novels, an autobiography, and a series of philosophical essays. In 1958 he received the plaque of the Hamburg Free Academy of Arts for outstanding services to literature and philosophy. In 1962 Powys received an honorary degree from the University of Wales.
Jim Birtch (19-- - ) is the Executive Secretary of the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association, a non-profit association incorporated in 1997, to provide support and networking relationships that help develop and maintain biosphere reserves throughout Canada.
Jean Narozamski was a horticulturist and a librarian who helped to found the Walden Garden club in 1976.
Terry Copp was born in 1938 and grew up in the Montreal suburb of Notre Dame de Grace. He attended Sir George Williams University (now Concordia) where he earned his bachelor’s degree. His career as an educator began prior to graduation when, in his third year, a teaching position at the University. As a condition of his employment, he was required to graduate before the beginning of classes in September and enroll in the Master of Arts program at McGill. After his year of teaching at Sir George Williams, he taught history at Westmount Junior High School. While there, he became concerned about the conditions at a local residential house where a number of his students lived, known as Weredale House. When he had a letter outlining his views published in the Montreal Star, many supporters of Weredale were upset and Copp left his position with the school board.
Copp completed his MA in 1961 and soon after was accepted into the PhD program at McGill. After a realization that his thesis would not work out, he took a job at a high school in Lindsay Ontario as an emergency replacement geography teacher. After this, was offered a full-time position teaching history at Loyola College and part-time teaching courses at McGill. He became a full-time faculty member at Loyola for the 1965/66 academic year while still teaching the Canadian history survey at McGill.
In 1968, Copp married and became a father to two step-children and later a third. In 1970, he took a position at Sir George Williams, which led to a year-long position as visiting professor at the University of Victoria. While in this position he was able to complete much of the manuscript for what became The Anatomy of Poverty: The Condition of the Working Class in Montréal 1897-1929, which was published in 1974. In 1975, Copp and his family left Montreal when he took up a position at Wilfrid Laurier University. In 1980, Copp’s research interest shifted from labour history to military history. He has published extensively in this area of study, including the five-volume Maple Leaf Route series with Robert Vogel, and numerous articles in Canadian Military History and other journals. In 1991, Copp and Marc Kilgour were awarded a grant from the Security and Defense Forum to finance what became the Laurier Centre for Military Strategic and Disarmament Studies.
Copp has been involved in numerous projects outside of the university. He has served as a research director and on-camera historian for the television documentary series “No Price Too High”, which was produced in response to the controversy caused by the CBC’s “The Valour and the Horror”. He was involved in the Canadian Battle of Normandy Foundation raising money for a Canadian Memorial Garden and student bursaries.
Copp retired in 2005 and is currently professor emeritus of history and director of the Laurier Centre for Military, Strategic and Disarmament Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University. He also writes a series of feature articles that have been published in Legion Magazine since 1994.
Jacob 'Jack' Sebastian Heit was born on February 5, 1914 in Tramping Lake, Saskatchewan. He moved to Sudbury, Ontario, travelling by train at a cost of $6, and arrived on March 25, 1938. Heit took many odd jobs such as seasonal mail deliverer during the Christmas season in 1939 or work for Pioneer Construction in 1940. Other odd jobs included 'pick and shovel' work, farm work, house construction, cement drilling, and steel jobs. He worked for firms such as Red Brown Cement Products, Gustiana Company, and A.L. McGinn using his skills as a mechanic and blacksmith. He began his career at Falconbridge Nickel Mines Ltd in 1941 underground as a miner. He later became an Inspector for Mine Safety and First Aid. Heit was certified in basic Mine Rescue Training at the Sudbury Rescue Station in June 1948. By 1951, he received the Advanced Mine Rescue Training and in 1961 the Supervisory Advanced Mine Rescue Training. In May 1950, Heit was a member of the winning team of the inaugural First Aid Championship of Falconbridge Nickel Mines at a competition held in the Community Hall. Heit continued to compete in both local and Northern Ontario mine rescue competitions and won several times. Awards included the H.J. Fraser Trophy for defeating the top plant first aid team at Falconbridge.
Heit was also an avid volunteer with the Garson Volunteer Fire Department for 20 years (circa 1950 to February 1971). When Heit resigned from the fire department, he held the position of 'deputy fire chief.' He was also an amateur photographer and won 1st prize for the best photograph of the King and Queen's visit to Sudbury in 1939.
Jack Heit married Katherine 'Kay' Kraft (born March 4, 1918 in Allan, Saskatchewan) on February 5, 1940 at Christ the King Church in Sudbury, Ontario. They had five daughters, Diana (1941), Janet (1943), Marilyn (1947), Kathy (1948), and Susan (1954).
Heit retired from Falconbridge Ltd in 1976. He remained active in the community with bridge games, curling, and water skiing. For their 50th wedding anniversary, Jack and Kay Heit renewed their vows at the same church they were originally married.
Jack Heit passed away on November 5, 1999 at the age of 85 at Extendicare York in Sudbury, Ontario.