A SOCIALLY DISTANCED TRIBUTE
Joe Segal Salute Goes Livestream

by Joy Metcalfe
Some eight years ago, Vancouver hosted the largest gala-gala do ever in the history of the 125-year old Board of Trade. The event was held in the Vancouver Convention Centre and it was called “Joe Segal: An Extraordinary Life”.

More than 1,500 dressy guests swept in to celebrate the life and achievements of this dedicated philanthropist and renowned businessman. I was an invited guest and I can attest to the fact that this was one of the most spectacular and dramatic musical presentations ever seen in Vancouver.

It was Joe’s story, set to music and dance - pure Broadway!

Fairy tales and happy endings are wonderful to discover in gloomy and pessimistic times like these, except that this wasn’t a fairy tale. It’s the true story of one of the nicest and most generous fellows in town whom I have been acquainted for a very long time.

Joe was born in the town of Vegreville, Alberta, in 1925. His father died when he was 14-years-old and in Grade 8. So, as he would throughout his long life, Joe, as the eldest son, took charge.

He began by selling frozen fish door-to-door to make enough money for the family to eat before journeying north to work as a laborer on the Alaska Highway.

When WWII began, Joe signed up with the Fifth Canadian Infantry Brigade and joined the Calgary Highlanders. Joe and his fellow soldiers were involved in some of the worst fighting of the war and in the joyous liberation of the Netherlands. When he returned home, Joe had no idea what he wanted to do, but he knew about the army and knew about surplus materials - and he knew he wanted to be an entrepreneur.

That’s where it all began.

Joe could sell anything! A lot of moxie, a lot of charm, a lot of smarts. But he had to get going. He had the lovely Rosalie as his bride and babies were coming. He began by buying a second-hand store on Main Street and selling war surplus goods. And the shoppers lined up.

Next up was the acquisition of Fields department store, then the very popular Zellers department store, and finally the jewel in his crown, The Hudson’s Bay Company, along with several other acquisitions along the way.

In 1979, he formed Kingswood Capital Corporation which provides venture capital, real estate development and acquisition of companies.

One of Kingswood’s first purchases was a men’s clothing business which actually became a women’s upscale fashion line called Mr. Jax. The ladies loved Mr. Jax with its high fashion styling, great fabrics and glowing colours.

Joe also gave generously of his time to Simon Fraser University and several other worthy charities. He served on the SFU Board and was Chancellor of Simon Fraser University for six years. In 2005 the SFU Segal Graduate School of Business opened in downtown Vancouver.

Joe and Rosalie donated a large heritage building to be used for the school and were major contributors to the capital campaign. Throughout these busy years, Joe and Rosalie and their four children worked together, determined to give back. In 2010 Joe and Rosalie gave $12 million dollars to create the Joe and Rosalie Segal Family Mental Health Centre for those in mental crisis. Their son Lorne has carried on with the annual Courage to Come Back Awards at the Hyatt, again helping in the recovery of the mentally ill.

Joe’s gala, eight years ago, raised another $2 million for Coast Mental Health.

This year, despite the COVID ravages, the Board of Trade decided that Joe, at 96, should receive a very special award from one of his close friends. Dr. Don Rix is an award-winning pathologist who began testing people’s blood, eventually founding the well-known Life Labs, and each year, some special and deserving person receives the Rix Award. This year it was presented to Joe.

So there he was, the happiest fellow in the world, carefree, satisfied and beaming, sitting in his comfy chair, Rosalie nearby, watching the live stream of a virtual parade of top VIP business people honouring and praising him as an incredibly generous philanthropist and leading Canadian business icon who has achieved so much in his lifetime.

Some of those appearing were Jimmy Pattison, Carol Lee, Lieutenant-Governor Janet Austin, Iain Black, Chip Wilson, CN’s David McLean, Peter Legge, Ryan Beedie, Terry Hui, Darcy Rezac, John Nicols and the BoT’s first-year CEO Brigitte Anderson, among so many others.

And as this touching evening came to an end, the famed Paul Anka appeared magically on the screen, just as he did eight years ago when Rosalie and Joe were in the VCC audience and sang Joe’s favourite song, “My Way”.

It was heart-stopping in its significance and it was so Joe!

Love you, Sir! …

Duncan Holmes, raising a glass to the hospitality industry he served so well.

A QUIET DEPARTURE

Someone else I’ve been very fond of over the years (the same way a great many in the food and hospitality business have felt) has left us. The irrepressible Duncan Holmes has passed away. It doesn’t seem possible that Dunc would go to his great reward in the sky - not without a brass band and a bowl of popcorn!

No, without any fanfare, he simply eased away into the silky dark night leaving no trace in his wake.

Duncan was born in Australia in 1936 and worked for the famed Rupert Murdock in Adelaide before sailing to Vancouver to work at Canadian Press and becoming a copy editor and business reporter. He had such a brilliant creative mind and free spirit, no ink-stained wretch he.

What the estimable Mr. Holmes brought to the pen was a flourish of joy and nonchalance.

With his artistic flair, whether in promotions, scriptwriting, wordsmithing, unsung ghostwriting, bread making and piano virtuoso-ing, Duncan made things happen.

After the newspaper columns ended, he was hired by restaurant kingpin, George Tidball, to become his vice president of communications for the new-to-the-scene Keg and Cleaver Restaurants, which opened in 1971 with great flair in Lower Lonsdale in North Van.

The walls were of rough cedar, the atmosphere dimmed by the smoker’s cigarettes, a trio was playing, steaks were sizzling and the invitees lined up Lonsdale. It was packed inside with a cast of hundreds.

I was doing my own PR bit for the local stages - North Van Players, Metro, Vancouver Little Theatre and John Parker’s Actors Contemporary Theatre or ACT in Gastown.

I have no idea why, but that evening I was wearing a long, very slim and snug strapless green gown while most other guests wore regular togs. I felt that an opening was an opening and a chance to dress up!

Sharp-eyed Duncan spotted me right away and that was the beginning of a very long friendship. I do recall that I wrote a nasty bit in my Kerrisdale Courier column to Georgie Tidball after he actually fired Duncan, telling him that I’m sure that he’d regret it - and he did.

Dunc’s cheery imaginative theme for the Keg “See you tonight!” is still in the ads after 30 years.

Duncan became such a good friend and ally to the restaurant industry, the BC Chefs’ Association, mentoring and encouraging young people in the hospitality and food business, always going that extra step.

And he was the perfect emcee in his immaculate tux at the annual B.C. Restaurant and Food Service Awards evening in the spacious Italian Cultural Centre - bandbox fresh, twinkling eyes and big hearty smile - always chatting, organizing, greeting the awardees and welcoming the crowd.

That’s where I received my B.C. Restaurant Association’s Hall of Fame Award several years ago.

As his good friend Jason McRobbie said, “I know that I am amongst the many who will miss his irrepressible joie de vivre and sheer mastery of so many things. As graceful on the page as he was on the stage, Dunc lived a storied life while bringing life to the stories of countless others.

From the chefs whom he loved and emulated, to the owners, operators, CEOs and shareholders who he never failed to sway and charm with his lifetime of experience. His mark upon the hospitality and publishing realms alike is indelible.”

Close pal Sue Alexander says that “Uncle Dunc, as he was affectionately referred to by friends and colleagues, was one of a kind, highly intelligent, immensely talented in his chosen field, in his artistic endeavors and in his knowledge of food. His complete and total love for life translated into a wonderfully caring individual. I will miss his short sweet emails, crafted with humour and love.”

Over the past few years, Duncan had been beset by illness, strokes and heart attacks, always just making it through. He and his lady love, Joyce, resided for years in a lovely little house in Tsawwassen where he could putter in the garden, paint a few sketches, bake his delicious bread and sit in the sunshine and watch the hummingbirds dart about. It would be so peaceful and he would be content.

My deepest condolences to Joyce and to his three daughters and their families.

Rest in Peace, Duncan Holmes …

Jean-François Vary — Welcome to the Fairmont Waterfront!

NEW GM ON THE WATERFRONT

A very warm Vancouver welcome to the Fairmont Hotels’ newest ambassador gracing our shores, Jean-Francois Vary who is the new general manager at the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel in downtown Vancouver.

Vary comes to us from GMing the Fairmont Winnipeg. I can just hear the chorus of “He’s won the jackpot!”

Prior to his time in Winnipeg, and over the past 25 years, he has held progressive leadership roles in Fairmont’s world throughout North America in hotels in Maui, Seattle, and Quebec. He holds a BA in Business Administration from the University of Ottawa and eight hospitality-focused certifications from eCornell University.

Vary and his wife and their three children are enjoying their new location, but have yet to decide what area and/or neighbourhood in which they’ll reside ...

A GOLD STAR FOR WESTERN GOLD

Kudos to Western Gold Theatre Society, that busy theatre group that has continued providing first-class entertainment for young and old alike through this time of COVID.

Whether the YouTube launch of The First Time, hosted by Linda Cullen, to celebrate World Theatre Day, or the Virtual Gold Podcast on the Easter weekend of The Selfish Giant as read and interpreted by that famed thespian, Bernard Cuffling, they are doing a superb job keeping us entertained. …

Learn more about Western Gold in this month’s “Community Spotlight” in The West End Journal here.

PARTING NOTES

Did you know that Canada was recently named the Number One country in the world by the annual Best Countries Report - for the first time ever! ...

Finally, with more sunshine on the way to brighten our days, say a prayer of thankfulness for all that we are fortunate enough to have. We are so very lucky! ...

Cheers!