Born in Stratford, Ont., Ron grew up in Vancouver B.C. Ron’s father was a high school teacher in Vancouver, and he and his wife Jessie were active members in Fairview Baptist Church there. Ron was baptized at Fairview when he was a young teen. He studied at Acadia University and the University of British Columbia, graduating from the latter with his B.A. in Mathematics and Physics.
In June 1955, Ron moved to Toronto and joined the Meteorological Division, Department of Transport, Canada, later the Atmospheric Environment Service. After taking courses with the Government and the University of Toronto, he received his Master of Arts degree in Physics (Meteorology) from that institution in May 1956.
In September of 1955 Ron met his future wife, Jane Rumley. Ron was singing in the choir of Metropolitan United Church, Toronto, and Jane, who was also in the choir, and was assistant organist, was taking organ lessons from the organist and music director, John Sidgewick. Ron and Jane married at Metropolitan United Church on 6 October 1956.
Following their marriage, Ron was posted to Halifax, where he worked as a weather forecaster at the Dominion Public Weather Office. His duties included issuing public and marine forecasts for the Maritime Provinces. Jane did supply teaching in the Halifax area. They both sang in the choir of First Baptist Church and also in the Halifax Choral Society. It was at Halifax that Ron and Jane adopted their first child, Kathy, in 1959, aged one month.
In the fall of 1959, Ron and Jane with infant Kathy moved to Gander, Newfoundland, where Ron had taken a position as forecaster at the Gander Weather Office. Although they wanted to get back to Toronto, it was necessary for Ron to spend some time at a so-called isolation post before obtaining a preferential posting. While living at Gander, Ron and Jane adopted Bruce in 1960, aged three months, and Karen in 1961, aged two months. In the fall of 1962, the family moved to Toronto, where Ron took on a position as forecaster at Toronto (now Pearson) International Airport.
While living in the Toronto area, Ron and Jane resumed their membership in the choir of Metropolitan United Church, where Jane was accompanist for the Choralairs, a community choir in North York, from 1966 to 1970. In 1971, they decided to change from Metropolitan United Church to Yorkminster Park Baptist Church, Toronto, where they gave many years of service in the choir. About the same time, Ron transferred from shift-work forecasting to day work at the Atmospheric Environment Service’s Headquar¬ters in North York. His new duties involved climatological analysis work, which he did until he retired in 1990. Jane did occasional accompanying work, in particular, playing for the Joan Kohal Ballet School in Toronto from about 1978 to 1985.
Unfortunately, Jane developed cancer of the pancreas in the spring of 1995, to which, after many ups and downs, she succumbed in July of 1996.
Ron’s “hobbies” include of course, the church choir, where he can be found regularly helping in many ways. In addition to music, he also enjoys genealogy, travel, hiking and photography. He and Jane went to literally hundreds of musical and other artistic events throughout the years. In addition to church activities, Ron is often in Toronto doing genealogical research at various archives and libraries, attending concerts, or visiting his daughter Kathy and family.
