From personal correspondence, adapted for the web by Laval, Nov. 2005

 

My interests in radio began when I was in high school and used to experiment a bit after buying radio kits from Allied Radio in Chicago.

 

In 1938-39, I started a radio operating course with Radio College of Canada, home studying for about 6 months while working at the Quinte Dairy and, in late 1939, continued at the College in Toronto,  on Bloor Street for a final 6 months.

 

When I got my 2nd Class Certificate in July of 1940, I looked for employment on merchant ships and, in October, joined a British crew  in New York. We then proceeded to Galveston, Texas, and picked up a 10,000 ton ship which was 30 years old ( a lend-lease from the USA ).

 

I remained with the British Merchant Marine for about a year and a half with many different types of cargo, on about 8 trips across the North Atlantic.  Then, I joined a Norwegian ship for another year with voyages to South Africa, the Indian Ocean, Trinidad, Jamaica and back to New York and home to Canada.

 

The Dept of Transport was joined in November of 1942 and I was sent to Edmonton and thence up to Whitehorse, YT.,  to spend about 11 years in the Yukon and the North West Territories.

 

From there, I was transferred to Regina, Sask. and three years later to Winnipeg from which I ended up in Ottawa in July of 1960, at the Air Services Training School and later on with the Human Resources Planning division.

 

Really enjoyed the work and certainly made many good friends across the country.