The following speech from Doug Hill was presented to Kyle and Kara Hellyer at the re-opening of Hellyer’s Foodland on June 13th.
Kyle and Kara, Steven and Kathy, Bob and Jeanette, Morgan and Gert, Roy and Katie, Distinguish Guests, Friends and Neighbors,
In the Summer of 1969, 55 years ago NASA put a man on the moon, and Morgan Greig put me behind the wheel of a Volkswagen Van to deliver Groceries, a service provided by RN Greig and Sons Lucky Dollar Store. My Job description also included trimming and wrapping heads of lettuce and other produce, bagging oranges according to one of the three sizes, packing groceries, stocking shelves and sweeping the floor (Morgan’s way, I mean… the right way)
Bananas were 19 cents a pound, butter 72 cents, and I was making a $1.35 an hour. Perks were ice cold Canada Dry in the walk-in-freezer, and the odd trip all the way out to Forbes pit, which at that time was the garbage dump, to throw away bones from the butcher shop.
Ronnie Lyons was the butcher, Nellie Tyndall the bookkeeper, other employees, Freda Warder, Barb Blacklock, Wynn Rouse, Verna Richardson, and Isobel Everett. Morgan was the boss, but RN was a presence every day and cast a long shadow, to me he was like a character out of a Dickens novel.
The following spring I approached Morgan about my position. I told him my dad had offered me a job in construction for $1.75 an hour, but that I liked working at the store and would do so if he raised my rate for the summer 15 cents an hour to $1.50. His answer, “I think you better go work for your dad.” My dreams of becoming president of Sobeys died that day.
Little did I know on that fateful day that I would one day become a Tradesman and in 20 years assemble a team of skilled and ambitious workers so that Bob and Jeanette would have enough confidence in James Hill Construction to retain us as the Contractors for the addition in 1991 (where the entrance, Produce, Meat, office, and 5 tills are now), and yet again this past winter to be offered a cameo role in pouring a new concrete floor in the old walk-in-freezer which is now the Deli/Bakery.
I grew up on Main Street less than a block from the store; I currently live on the Main Street just under two blocks from the store. You would be correct if you thought I haven’t gone very far in life. As a boy I spread sheep manure and cut grass on RN’s property. As a teen he had me up on the roof with an axe chipping ice off the eave. Today I have the privilege of living at the same address, but I no longer get paid to cut the lawn or spread fertilizer. The property was owned by the Greig Family for 80 years. RN bought the Grocery Store in 1922 from RE Moore and his residence on Main Street also from RE Moore, although WB Moore lived in it.
Kyle, I would like to present you with a rendering of the Lion’s Head lighthouse to commemorate this historic moment. It is on a piece of American Elm from your great great grandfather’s property. There is a parallel between the Lion’s Head lighthouse and Hellyer’s Store – 4 Years ago a winter storm destroyed the iconic landmark, but it was rebuilt and the light on it in just over 9 months. Kyle and Kara you suffered a similar blow 9 months ago, and your livelihood lay in ruins. But in just over 9 months you have rebuilt, and have added your own touch, your own signature, to the institution that we now know as Hellyer’s Foodland. I commend you both, and your entire family for your hard work and perseverance through these trying days, and I congratulate you, your family and friends, and all those who have contributed.
We speak of the past, of 5 generations, but today is to the future! May you know health, peace, happiness, love, success, and God’s Blessing.
Doug Hill,
James Hill Construction
