It was May 1963 as I looked up from my newly acquired desk at the Engineering Office at Columbia Cellulose Co. Ltd., (CCCL) at their Sulphite Pulp Mill located at Prince Rupert, B.C., to survey this new arrival.

“So where are you from?” I started the conversation.

He smiled to what became his habitual drawl, “Caaalgarryee!”

“Married?”

“Yup!”

“We need to have the wives meet then as soon as possible as Marilyn is already afflicted with ‘cabin fever’ with all this rain,” I suggested.

“Elaine asked me if was going to stop raining when I left for work this morning,” he returned. She was not smiling when I suggested that “we can expect 96 inches this year”, he responded. “Yes good idea!”

That was the beginning of a fifty-three (53) year friendship.

We were the first of many other Engineers that the CCCL Recruiting Committee selected from across Western Canada. However destiny arranges these events, a Mechanical Engineer named Robert (Bob) Miller and another Civil Engineer named James (Jim) Holloway, all became part of a close friendship in the two (2) years we all worked at CCCL. It was more than just a bondage that was created at work but our social life that followed the workplace, seemed so natural together.

Most times “The Fearless Foursome” (TFF), as we self-named ourselves, became associated with the following:

  1. Fishing
  2. Curling
  3. Poker
  4. Social Evenings (everyone visited everyone else as there was little else to do as it rained steady)
  5. Crab Trapping
  6. Clam Digging
  7. Watching Friday Nights at Moccasin Square Gardens (there were three (3) hotels at one end of the main street (3rd Avenue) that perpetually had RCMP vehicles picking up inebriated patrons from 8:00 P.M. on Fridays)
  8. Bridge and other card games
  9. Other:
    1. The birth of a child
    2. Catching a fish (a 40 to 60 pound Spring Salmon was not unusual)
    3. It did not rain today, ……….yet
    4. My wife got accidentally pregnant, again
  10. Those who follow this chronicle, must realize that in 1963 through to 1965, Prince Rupert was essentially isolated and even now, Highway 16 is the only access from Prince George some five hundred (500) miles to the East. Flying in was subject to weather which included ninety-six (96) inches a year of rain clouds. Ferry and Boat service was the only sure way to access this coastal city. The residents (some 12,000) became Natural “social animals” and there were parties to celebrate just about any excuse of which there were many such as:
  11. Photo taken at Whatshan Lake Retreat, see blog entry THE FEARLESS FOURSOME (February, 2016) a reunion of TFF, February 09, 2016. Left to right: Jim Holloway, Bob Miller, Elmer Verigin and our buddy, Ron Ross.Slightly Older Curlers Feb 2016

So it was in this environment that my friendship grew with Ron and our wives, Marilyn and Elaine, were also compatible. This ensured a lasting friendship that has matured since Prince Rupert.So, my methodology in this writing will be to capture Ron in the events that I best knew him and that would be of which his children and current friends may not be aware and may even have difficulty believing.

The road from Prince Rupert to the Pulp Mill was twelve (12) miles long that was laid out by a drunk Surveyor as there was no distance more than a hundred (100) yards that was straight. Work started at 0830 hours and our carpool was usually picking up the last guy at 0815 or later. Needless to say that we were on time only when Ron drove. One of our coworkers knew the Morse Code and tried to warn us with his tail lights that we had just passed a radar trap. We failed our first lesson on the Morse Code when we passed him much to the benefit of the Constable who later wrote out our ticket with a smile.

Ron was a faithful employee and would go back to work on weekends to check on crews working his projects over-time. Not to waste his valuable private time, he would improve on his travelling time and in one instance, he was unable to stop his drift on one rainy curve and rolled his 1965 Volvo 122S (with 5,000 mileage), end over end, after bouncing off a rock embankment, winding back on the road. His passing account of the incident was that “it was embarrassing trying to disengage the seat belt when the car is on its roof.”

One day the Engineering Office at CCCL was buzzing with the rumor that the Shrimp Boats were abound with their catch that could be purchased for 10 cents a pound. Ron and I liked shrimp and so we were led by Ron Wright, onto the docks at Point Edwards, pails in hand, as the Fishermen dumped these ugly looking things that looked like grotesque infant toys. These two naive Prairie Boys started to wonder “how do we gut these things” but never let on to The Pro, Ron Wright. It was only when we got home to meet the enquiring looks of Elaine and Marilyn that we had to call Ron and ask “so what do we do with them?”Ron was obviously enjoying this and was very light with his advice that went something like this:

  • “just boil a pot of water,
  • drop them in.
  • When they rise to the top,
  • they are ready,
  • Pull them out”So being Engineers, following instructions was definitely in our training and so we ended up with these strange things that did not all resemble the prepared Shrimp that we had become accustomed to and craved back home. They still had all these “Porcupine Quill-like” stuff sticking out along with two eyes that were not blinking at this point.”How do we shell them?” I looked at Ron and he looked at me as our wives watched in disgust that once again we were in trouble. “Well, let us call Wright and I am sure there is a technique to all this”, I suggested.So I dialed the number and, it was almost as if Ron was expecting the call, so when I asked the question, “so how do we clean them?” I asked.Calmly, which I am sure must have really been difficult, Ron outlined the procedure, “just take the Shrimp in one hand and poke the eye out with the other. You are now removing the ‘pin’ that holds the head to the body, and now you have the ‘meat’ “, Ron stopped. Then I heard the receiver drop on the other side with uncontrolled laughter as the now loose receiver kept banging against the wall.After the first one or two Shrimp, we figured it out but Wright was still laughing as we entered the office the next morning. Yes, the fresh Shrimp did taste good.

Clam digging rumor was taken on one Saturday, by TFF as we all headed for the beaches with shovels, rakes and gunny sacks. So they said t5hat watch for “geysers” shooting up through the sand and there would be a clam. “Hey, this is a snap”, Ron muttered as we started seeing signs of clams everywhere. we did not stop until we had a full gunny sack and headed, jubilantly, with our booty as the successful hunters to our waiting wives who were not that impressed. We sat around and drank beer while the girls started looking at cook books as to how to deal with this things. Trail and error resulted in clam chowder, stabbed palms as we fought to open the blessed things and of course more beer.

We did not realize that Ron was a Song Writer until the CCCL honored the staff with a company party. Ron advised TFF that we had to be ready to perform on stage when called upon. We were handed the words to “I’ve Been From Main to Prince Rupert” and were instructed to follow his Ukulele as he strummed and led us in song:”….Well I’ve been from Maine to Prince Rupert Well And Rupert is the best now you hear. That’s where the annual rainfall  is 96 inches a year…..”

There were at least fifteen verses that depicted life in Prince Rupert but not all the words are fitting to be quoted here and besides, Ron has the copyright.

 

Yes, the unlikely foursome made history and won the Grand Aggregate in the Marine Bonspiel at Prince Rupert in 1965.

  • Ron played Second on our Curling Rink that was skipped by Bob. Bob had spent5 four years curling in Winnipeg with the many Curlers that had represented Manitoba as well as some that had won the World Championships. So Bob was fussy about his rink “hitting the broom” and being 1/4″ off was considered a miss. It became a challenge for Bob to keep his cool when Ron’s left-handed delivery just seemed a bit awkward. Bob’s persistence paid off and the two times a week in regular curling and bonspiels in Kitimat and Smithers found us at the Marine in Prince Rupert.

TFF enjoyed our camaraderie and favored the Legion in Prince Rupert where would sip a few pints and at times, perhaps a few more than we should. One night as we were leaving Jim decided that he could leapfrog on Ron’s hood and vault himself onto the roof to slide down the back of Ron’s Valiant. This became a sport that the rest of TFF had to try while the RCMP watched, a bit surprised. Just as Ron was picking up speed for the hood, a constable stopped him and asked “whose car is this?” Without any hesitation Ron answered, “Mine!”  “Do you mind these guys using your car as entertainment?” he carried on. Hell no, they are my friends,” as Ron completed his routine.

 

Competition to break the one and a half (1 1/2 ) hour record in driving Highway 16 the hundred (100) miles from Prince Rupert to Terrace on the dated Highway had become a well-known challenge. Even the new Architect in town, Inselberg started bragging how he had broken the 1 1/2 hour record. Ron with TFF went fishing one weekend in Lake Else River and we did one hour and twenty minutes. No, we did not stop to relieve ourselves but the odor in that Volvo was not fit for the squeamish.

Ron left his CCCL job for Cominco in Trail in the spring of 1965 and I followed shortly thereafter to join a Construction Contracting Company in Trail with my two brothers. We enjoyed our friendship until Mickey Thomas, found Ron and offered him a position that he could not refuse and moved to Surrey, B.C.

I was honored when Ron accepted my offer in the formation of an Engineering Firm EMCO Engineering Ltd. The idea was to have Electrical, Civil and Mechanical Engineers represented with :

Ron as Electrical

Les Kitchin as Mechanical

Elmer as Civil

Harry Soloveoff as Design and Drafting

The idea was good but I soon realized that my contribution was difficult as I was also President of a Construction Contracting Company and when tenders were advertised, a conflict of interest was definitely a factor. I also could not contribute my designs due to time constraints. There were other challenges to the partnership that resulted in Ron going on alone to establish a very successful Electrical Design / Engineering under the name EMCO with offices in Castlegar, B.C. Ron invited partners and eventually sold the business to Ready Engineering that still operate in Castlegar.

Ron’s Rotary achievements:

  1. Castlegar Swimming Pool
    1. Chaired the Projects Committe
  2. Castlegar Skateboard Park
    1. Chaired the Projects Committee
  3. Castlegar Seniors Patio
  4. Founded Castlegar Morning Club
  5. Millennium Park Celgar Pavilion
  6. Rotary District Governor 1997 / 98
  7. Rotary International Achievements
    1. Tegucigalpa Market Children
    2. HELP Honduras Society (Registered CRA Charity)
    3. Group Study Exchange Co-Chair and Chair
    4. Ron and Elaine hosting twenty-one (21) Youth Exchange (YE) Students from the following countries:
      1. Finland
      2. Poland (2)
      3. Germany
      4. Mexico (2)
      5. New Zealand
      6. South Africa (a Zulu)
      7. Japan (4)
      8. Phillipines
      9. Ron still smiles with memories of these students who still keep in touch with Ron and Elaine. Many have invited them to their weddings and / or have visited them in their home countries. Others have visited in return.
    5. Established the Conger Memorial Scholarship for YE Students with economic difficulties
    6. District Representative for eight (8) years on Pacific Northwest for President Elect Training Program
      1. Program Chair foe three (3) years
      2. Audio Visual Chair for three (3) years
    7. District Committee Chair of
      1. World Community Service,
      2. Membership
      3. Rotary Foundation
      4. Group Study Exchange
    8. Awards from the Rotary Foundation
      1. Distinguished Service Award
      2. Citation for Meritorious Service
    9. Donald McCrae Peace Award foe 2012 (annual award to one Ro9tarian in Canada)
    10. Past President of Castlegar Rotar6y Club
    11. Past President of Castlegar Sunrise 2000 Rotar6y Club
    12. Paul Harris FellowAs I write this chronicle about my life-long friend, it almost appears that Sir Winston Churchill would be easier to interview. There is no question that Ron’s philosophy on life meets the Rotary Four Way Tests:

“Is it the TRUTH?

Is it FAIR to All Concerned?

Will it build GOOD WILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIP?

Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?”

There is no question in my mind that he has surpassed all the tests that anyone can make in this regard.There is another saying that Rotary attests to which goes like this:”We are sent to this Earth and rented space. Check from time to time if your Rent has been Paid….”It is my opinion that Ron has a significant credit for his rent payments.

Ron and I had lunch together June 30, 2016. It was just like times of yore as Ron handled his Chemo Treatments well. I commented that it was commendable that he did not complain about his struggles. His answer to me was “I never took any courses on ‘self pity’ and so there is no room in my discussions in this area.”

Jim Holloway suggested that we get together again and Ron invited us to his summer home on Christina Lake. This started with Jim being there on August 01, 2016 and Marilyn and I followed on August 02, 2016. We all stayed together till Thursday, August 04, 2016. Jim and Ron went Kayaking down the River from Grand Forks to Gilpin while I became the Shuffle Driver. It can be termed “a time of our lives”.

“Wednesday, September 27, 2016…….Gord, Elmer, Jim, Bob and Bill

Elaine and I met with Dr. Malpass Wed AM, and examined the facts which were: 1) The newest chemical seemed to be taking a severe toll on my ability to function, 2) the time to recover from the various side effects was longer than the other chemicals, 3) the side effects were more severe, 4) there was no improvement of the various cancer markers, and in fact they were getting much worse.

We decided it was time to pull back, get healthier, adopt some policies to extend my life, and look forward to each day as it rolls around.

Ron…..”

“…..Hello to all of you

Ron died this evening Sept 28th.  He was suffering badly, and was in great pain.

It seems hard to believe I don’t have him in my life any longer.

No flowers.

Perhaps I can set up a donation in his name for Help Honduras.  He would really like that.

More with regards to plans later.

Elaine…..”

This blog process involved interviews with Ron Ross over a period of time.

  • June 02, 2016, I started this without interview
  • Ron and I had lunch June 30, 2016 with where he provided some input
  • Ron provided a list of Rotary Projects July 01, 2016
  • EWV made emendments to the original Ron Ross Story October 06, 2016
  • EWV entered the final draft into this blog October 06, 2016