Meet Our Members
“I was 58 at retirement. The earlier the better, I say.”
After graduating from Mackenzie High School in Deep River, Ont. in 1959, I enrolled in a three-year municipal recreation, administration and sports course with the University of Western Ontario (now Western University). While studying, I was employed by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, Chalk River, Ont. as a sports and recreation trainee where I engaged in a variety of social, artistic, physical and administrative duties.
Following my university graduation in 1963, I accepted a position with the City of Etobicoke as a Recreation Supervisor, and in five years, I was promoted to the position of Associate Director. While in Etobicoke, I married and began a family.
William James Evraire, 81
Perhaps the best advice I received from my father was this: when you finish your studies and look for work, he said, make sure to look for an employer that has a pension plan. In 1968, I accepted the position of Municipal Recreation Director with the Town of Deep River and I continued until my retirement 30 years later. Deep River, although having a population of 4,300, has been, and still is, a very athletic and diverse community—one of our hockey players played for the Canadian Olympic team, and right now, we have a local who plays for the Ottawa Senators.
I was 58 at retirement. The earlier the better, I say. The perfect situation would be to have a pension, CPP, and be debt-free. Throughout my working career, I have been involved in many leisure pursuits, including swimming, cross-country and downhill skiing, old-timers hockey, gardening and family camping. We still live in Deep River, and every day, I still enjoy a jog in the early morning.
I have been married for 57 years to my wife Joanne, and we are the proud parents of three successful daughters and seven grandsons. We have travelled to Switzerland, Singapore, and Europe, and have spent the last 12 winters in Florida. Fortunately, I followed my father’s advice, and Joanne and I have been able to retire with pension plans and no debt.
Recently, my grandson Matias Totz, was awarded the 2021 Don MacLeod Leadership Award—$5,000 in scholarship money from the Municipal Retirees Organization of Ontario (MROO)—as he pursues a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Calgary. We are proud of Matias, and of all our grandchildren, and we appreciate the good work that MROO is doing in promoting educational opportunities for our youth.
-As told to OMERS