Posted on March 30, 2016 under Faces in the Crowd with one comment

 

She has been blessed with a sunny disposition. “I think I give off a happy vibe.  Life is good.  Enjoy it.”

Meet Pat Cranford

It was a circuitous route that took Pat from Goose Cove, Newfoundland to North Lakevale Road. She and her eight siblings learned about respect from their parents, especially her mother, who was the undisputed boss of the house.  Her father was a raconteur who was known for his telling of “mouth stories.”

After completing an LPN course after high school, she and a friend (her future husband!) headed west and spent a few years in Nanaimo. Don started working on boats, which was to become his career, and Pat joined him for several years.  There were other stops in Thunder Bay, New Orleans and Halifax before they finally settled in Antigonish County.  On a trip back from Newfoundland to Ontario, they stopped in Antigonish to visit a friend.  He told them about a property out in the country.  Asked why they chose Antigonish, Pat says that they owned two trunks of worldly possessions that they had been hauling around for years, and they needed a home for them.

Her neighbors on North Lakevale Road became her family and, as they all started to have families, they created their own neighborhood daycare. Each household took a turn looking after all the children a couple of days a week.

Pat’s first job in Antigonish was with the late Brock Eliot at the original location of Sunflower Natural Foods on College Street. She worked at a variety of jobs until she discovered tax preparation, a career that would last 30 years … and counting.

When she’s not busy extending her signature Newfoundland generosity far and wide, Pat can be found doing Swedish weaving or tending to her flower beds and gardens. The large pond on the property serves as a swimming hole, skating rink and a fishing hole.

Her nemeses are the squirrels who routinely invade her walnut tree. She has been known to grab her trusty slingshot and fire a few volleys of alley marbles … strictly warning shots!

“I have been very lucky,” Pat declares. So are the many people who count her as a friend.

Posted on March 28, 2016 under Monday Morning Musings with no comments yet

Peter MacDonald photo ( Summer 2015 )

 

 

I am rarely at a loss for words (!) .

Every once in a while you experience a sunrise or sunset that words, and even cameras, can’t capture. Such was the case Easter Sunday morning when I wandered up to Bethany at 6:30 a.m. to attend the Easter Sunday Sunrise Service put on by St. James United Church . I went at the invitation of Rev. Peter Smith, the amiable pastor of their congregation.

I’m not going to try and tell you what I saw. Those of you who revel in sunrises and sunsets know what I’m talking about. However, I can tell you that it was awe inspiring to watch the explosion of colors in the sky as we were singing “Morning Has Broken.” Sorry. You just had to be there.

I was relaying this to an old St.F.X. friend Rick Benson. Here’s what he sent to me:

“I was at an International Spirituality and Social Work Conference two years ago and we were in a session on prayer lead by a Rabbi from Israel and asked to break into pairs and discuss a random group of prayers with one another. I was paired up with a peace activist from Israel. We shared our thoughts on two prayers that were handed to us. The third prayer was “ Morning Has Broken.” We looked up at each other and spontaneously started to sing the prayer song. So, here we were, a Christian and a Jew singing a song that a Muslim convert ( Cat Stevens ) made famous!

May I heartily suggest that you add “ catching an early morning sunrise” to your bucket list. It’s cheap and you don’t have to travel half way around the world to catch one. I was going on five hours sleep Sunday morning and had to do some heavy self talk to get my ass out of bed to go to the service.

By the way, the folks at St.James are wonderful people. I was invited to join them afterwards for a pancake breakfast at the church hall.

I have some great stories coming up in “Faces in the Crowd” including one about a double lung transplant recipient. While you’re waiting to read this one ( mid April ), why not check your health card and see if you’re a donor. If you’re not and want to become one, check out this site:

For more information on how to become an organ donor, go to www.legacyoflife.ca.

If even one of you takes up my challenge, you could very well save a life.

Have a great week.

Posted on March 24, 2016 under Faces in the Crowd with 5 comments

 

“Growing up as a child, every home in “Belgium Town”, Inverness, had a geranium in the window.”

Meet Vangie Babin.

Her grandfather came from Belgium to work in the coal mines.

Vangie got her first lessons in client service at an early age, as she and her 10 siblings all had to work at their parent’s store, Van’s Grocery.

Like most teenagers, she was determined to get her driver’s license as soon as she could. Not to be deterred, during driving lessons she had to go especially easy on the gas, as she sported a large cast on a broken ankle.  She took the well-worn path to St. F. X. after high school and only completed her first year.  She would have continued but her application for a student loan was denied … too much family income!  One wonders how the bean counters figured out how a family of 13 could easily manage post-secondary tuition for all.

During her hiatus from university Vangie picked up new skills. She took a stenographers course in Mabou and later was a gas jockey in Ontario.  The latter experience resulted in three marriage proposals at the pumps!

She returned to university and completed her undergraduate degree in English, with a minor in Celtic Studies. During a one year teaching stint in New York she taught the kids a few words of Gaelic.

Still trying to find her niche, she took a computer course in New Glasgow. She hitchhiked every day to and from Antigonish.  When it was suggested that she do some practical work to hone her new found skills, she applied at a funeral home to help them with their “dead records”.

She eventually found a placement at the Antigonish Women’s Resource Center, when she hit the wrong button on the elevator in the Kirk Building, on her way down from an interview on the third floor. And she’s been a key part of the team ever since, assisting women from all walks of life to discover their inner strengths.

Vangie inherited her mother’s artistic streak and loves to sew, cross stitch, crochet and knit. Many of the things that she creates become gifts that are treasured by the recipients of her generosity.  She leads the “Creative Circle” at the Women’s Centre on Mondays.

Three concussions have impacted her life and made her painfully aware not to take anything for granted.

When Vangie eventually writes her book of poetry, maybe we’ll find out what was going on behind those “geranium windows”.