Richard Karon Blog, Crozier Foundation

RICHARD KARON BLOG WILL BE UP AND RUNNING BY THE END OF THIS WEEK

IT WILL BE UPDATED AS MORE PAINTINGS AND INFORMATION BECOME AVAILABLE

     TECHNICAL WIZARD / SON ROBERT, TELLS ME THE "RICHARD KARON BLOGSITE" WILL BE READY BY THE END OF THE WEEK. WE'RE RUNNING IT AS A BLOG SO THAT UPDATES AND NEW PAINTINGS CAN BE ADDED TO THE SITE, AS A SORT OF CHRONOLOGY - ON TOP OF THE BIOGRAPHY. IT WILL START OFF WITH THE MUSIC VIDEO OF MR. KARON AND A SAMPLING OF HIS ART WORK. THE STRAIGHT-BODY OF WRITTEN BIOGRAPHY WILL FOLLOW, AND THE GALLERY OF HIS KNOWN ART WORK WILL BE ADDED AT THE END. ALL NEW MATERIAL WILL BE ATTACHED ONTO THE ART GALLERY COMPONENT, BUT IN BLOG FORMAT, IT WILL ACTUALLY APPEAR AS THE BEGINNING. YOU WILL BE ABLE TO "ARCHIVES BACK" TO READ THE BIOGRAPHY FROM THE BEGINNING. WE DO EXPECT THE BLOG WILL BE UPDATED REGULARLY FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS, AS PAINTING OWNERS CONTINUE TO RESEARCH THE MUSKOKA ARTIST. WE ARE HOPING THAT IT WILL BE COMPLETED, FROM OUR MATERIAL, BY NEXT SUNDAY EVENING.

     ALTHOUGH IT'S BEEN A MONTH SINCE THE PROJECT CONCLUDED, I HAVE TO ADMIT, IT WAS FAR MORE EXHAUSTING THAN I HAD EXPECTED. I THOUGHT WE COULD DO THE BIOGRAPHY FAIRLY EFFICIENTLY AND ON A THREE MONTH SCHEDULE, BUT WE HADN'T COUNTED ON SO MANY ADDITIONS AND PAINTING SUBMISSIONS, TO ADD TO THE FEATURE STORY. IT WAS GREAT BUT IT ADDED ABOUT TWENTY-FIVE PERCENT MORE TO THE WORK-LOAD. I HAVE A TRADITION OF NOT MISSING DEADLINES. IN THE NEWSPAPER BUSINESS, I HAD A WHOLE COMPOSITION STAFF DEPENDING ON THE WRITERS BEING ON-THE-BALL, AND GETTING THE COPY TO LAY-OUT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. I DREADED WHEN THE LAYOUT STAFF USED TO MAKE FORAYS INTO THE NEWSROOM, CLICKING THEIR EXACTO-KINVES, TRYING TO HURRY US UP. THEY MEANT IT! THEY HAD DATES IN THE EVENING. THE LONGER WE WERE, DELIVERING THE EDITORIAL GOODS, IT MEANT A LATE NIGHT SHIFT, AND THEN THE DREADED CALL FROM THE PRINTER, SCREAMING OVER THE PHONE, AT THE PRODUCTION MANAGER, ABOUT US MISSING OUR TIME SLOT. THAT COULD MEAN PUTTING ANOTHER PAPER AHEAD OF OURS, AND THAT WOULD HAVE AFFECTED DELIVERY TIMES IN THE MORNING…..AND IF THE POST OFFICE RUN WAS INTERRUPTED, THERE WAS "HELL TO PAY." SO WHEN I PROMISED THE KARON PROJECT WOULD RUN IN MID-APRIL, IT WAS MY EDITORIAL GUARANTEE, IT WAS GOING TO MAKE IT INTO CYBERSPACE TO "THE SECOND" I PROMISED. WE CHEATED A TAD. THE VIDEO FOR THE ARTIST, WAS PUBLISHED ON YOUTUBE THE NIGHT BEFORE. ON MONDAY AFTERNOON WE HAD SOME COMPUTER AND POWER PROBLEMS IN TOWN, AND WHEN THINGS GOT UP AND RUNNING AGAIN, I PULLED ROB FROM HIS MAIN STREET BUSINESS, TO GET THE FIRST BLOG ON RIGHT AWAY. SO WE WERE ABOUT TWO HOURS EARLY I THINK. I INHERITED THESE WORRIES AS AN EDITOR, AND I'VE KEPT THEM EVER SINCE. I'M ALWAYS FIVE TO TEN MINUTES EARLY FOR EVERYTHING THAT I'M SCHEDULED TO ATTEND. THIS INCLUDES PICKING UP FAMILY MEMBERS FOR DELIVERY SOMEWHERE. THEY HATE ME BEING EARLY, BECAUSE IT RUSHES THEM. I CARE MORE ABOUT MY OWN PUNCTUALITY MORESO THAN THERE TIMELINESS.

     THE READERSHIP FOR THE RICHARD KARON BLOG, MORE THAN DOUBLED DURING THIS NINE OR SO DAY RUN, AND WE HAD OVER ONE HUNDRED VIEWS OF THE VIDEO, ON YOU-TUBE, SHORTLY INTO THE SERIES. IN MY SITE STATS, I CAN CHECK TO SEE WHAT BLOGS WERE READ, DURING THE PAST 24 HOURS, AND THE KARON MATERIAL IS STILL GETTING VIEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD. WHICH IS QUITE PLEASING, AND SHOULD BE TO THE FAMILY. IN POLAND AS WELL! WE DID THIS FOR THE LONG-TERM MORE THAN JUST A BLOG-HIGHLIGHT. AFTER YEARS OF NOT BEING ABLE TO ANSWER MORE THAN JUST THE BASIC QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MUSKOKA ARTIST, WHICH I GET SEVERAL TIMES EACH MONTH (AS SOMEONE WHO BUYS AND SELLS ART), NOW  I CAN REFER THEM TO A FRAMEWORK BIO. THE IDEA WAS TO BE ABLE TO PUT TOGETHER A BASIC BIOGRAPHY, TO CREATE A SOURCE OF PERSONAL INFORMATION, TO HELP THOSE WHO OWN HIS PANELS, OR HAVE RECENTLY ACQUIRED THEM, TO FIND OUT A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT HIS CAREER IN MUSKOKA, AND HIS BACKGROUND, DATING BACK TO HIS CHILDHOOD IN POLAND. WE HAD LOTS OF COMMENTS BACK FROM READERS, ESPECIALLY FROM THOSE WHO OFFERED US ART WORK TO PUBLISH WITH THE BIOGRAPHY, OF WHICH WE ARE PARTICULARLY GRATEFUL. WE WILL INCLUDE OTHERS THAT ARE SENT TO US IN THE FUTURE. OVERALL, IT CAME OFF WITHOUT A HITCH, EXCEPT OF COURSE THE FEW LITTLE TECHNICAL ISSUES YOU CAN NEVER REALLY PREPARE FOR IN ADVANCE. I PERSONALLY GOT A LOT OUT OF THE RESEARCH AND PREPARATION OF THE BODY-COPY, AND CONNECTING WITH THOSE WHO HAD KNOWN RICHARD KARON PERSONALLY. I HOPE THE BLOGSITE WILL GET SOME USE, AND FOLKS WILL FEEL COMFORTABLE SENDING ANY INFORMATION THEY HAVE, THAT WE DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT PREVIOUSLY. HIS SON, RICHARD SAHOFF KARON, IS STILL VERY INTERESTED IN HEARING FROM ANY ONE WHO KNEW OR WORKED WITH HIS FATHER, INCLUDING HIS YEARS SPENT PAINTING IN EUROPE, UP TO THE EARLY 1950'S, BEFORE HE CAME TO CANADA. YOU WILL BE ABLE TO CONTACT HIM THROUGH THE NEW BLOGSITE.

     IF I DIDN'T PREVIOUSLY THANK YOU FOR JOINING MY BLOG DURING THIS PERIOD, PLEASE ACCEPT MY THANKS NOW. IT WAS A SUCCESSFUL ENTERPRISE, TO GIVE A TALENTED ARTIST THE CREDIT HE DESERVED, FOR GIVING ART OWNERS, SO MANY BEAUTIFUL AND INSPIRING SCENES, TO BRING INTO OUR RESPECTIVE HOMES.

THINKING BACK TO THE DAYS - WHEN I GOT TO HAND OUT MONEY! NOW THAT WAS LIKE CHRISTMAS EVERY DAY

     Whenever it gets to be this time of year, I habitually start to ready myself for the annual Crozier Foundation Skating Camp, that we used to fund and operate at the Bracebridge Arena. The Crozier gang would invite fifty to seventy kids, to participate in the week-long camp, complete with basic skating lessons, and a hockey camp for those who were so inclined. We ran it for more than a decade, after Roger Crozier launched the Foundation for children, back in the mid 1990's. Suzanne, Andrew, Robert and I provided food services, as part of our role as camp volunteers. Gravenhurst artist, Nancy Hunter ran the craft program for the campers, when they weren't on the ice. It was a wild week, at times, and the kids kept us on our toes. The Crozier Foundation provided everything imaginable, including skates, sticks, helmets, pads, pants, and expert  hockey and skating instruction, from well known Bracebridge Hockey Coach, Mike Thompson. Everything was provided free of cost, including an open kitchen with lots of everything. Campers helped us make desert squares, and as Suzanne did for our boys, when they were wee lads, she invited campers to assist in making the food they were going to consume. It sure was interactive, and when the camp started up again, she always had her returning chefs-in-training. The first clue, was the tug on her skirt, that her camper friend was back.

    I was always impressed by the Crozier Foundation generosity. If the kids had asked for steak, they would have got it. It was wonderful to be a part of the week long camps, and to see how much good it was doing for the kids. The youngsters you see, were from families that could not have afforded to send their sons and daughters to a similar program, and that's when Roger Crozier stepped-up. Before he passed away, after a short illness, he had created the Crozier Foundation, to help youth achieve their goals by removing financial barriers. Boy did he ever. As a kid from a family of fourteen, growing up in Bracebridge, he knew the shortfalls of having too little money and so many ambitions. The former all-star netminder, of the Detroit Red Wings, and executive manager, at the time, with MBNA (an American / Canadian banking institution), set up the Foundation to help those youngsters who, because of circumstances beyond their control, couldn't participate in a lot of recreational activities, such as minor hockey and figure skating. The idea for the camp, was created only a few months after his death, by his former staff at MBNA, and put hundreds of kids onto the ice, some for the first time, fully equipped. We always got excited when those cherubic little faces showed up at the snack-bar counter, and Suzanne and I would look down on some the familiar faces we had grown fond of, from previous camps. Then there were the big sparkling eyes of the first-time campers, who were over-joyed to be part of such an amazing summer retreat with all the bells and whistles. We fed the whole bunch for that ten year run, and it seems we should be getting our pots and pans packed-up for the coming camp. But unfortunately it no longer operates. Several years ago, MBNA, where most of the volunteers worked, was acquired by another American bank, and the staff….Roger's former employees, weren't able to get the time off, to come from Wilmington, Delaware, to help run the program. It was suspended and the Muskoka wing of the Crozier Foundation closed forever. I can't tell you how sad this made us all feel, and how disappointed the kids were, to have lost this opportunity. But we recall what good it did for all of us, including the camp workers, for the years it did run.

    I was the curator of the Bracebridge Sports Hall of Fame for 12 years, and my cherished job, was to show the kids some of Roger's hockey memorabilia, and the stick he used in the Stanley Cup final, against Montreal, in 1966, when he won the Conn Smythe Trophy, as the most valuable player in the series. Even though he was on the losing club, he was awarded the trophy. We had his skates and mask also on display, and the kids got a real kick out of putting it on, and trying out the goal stick. The stick's shaft, was actually worn down, where Roger's hand had been, making those acrobatic saves he was well known. Roger kept his stick for many more games than I expect goalies do today. So he may have had the stick for an entire season. It was still in pretty good shape, considering the work he had, keeping Henri Richard and Frank Mahovolich from slipping pucks past. I really enjoyed sharing the game-articles, and it was good to keep Roger's hockey accomplishments in the present. We had all of his hockey cards on display in the massive showcases, Roger had financed for me, in the months before he died. He asked me what I wanted as a showcase, and when I asked if we could get a couple of small cabinets for the arena lobby, geez, he brought in a carpenter. Mike Thompson did the work on the five huge panels of the hall of fame showcases, and added another three for the Bracebridge Figure Skating Club some time later. Roger never thought small. He wanted the Hall of Fame to look great, and highlight the sports accomplishments of local athletes. He blew people away with his attention to detail, and we only wished he could have seen what his vision had created, at the ribbon cutting, and how many athletes were astonished by the recognition the cases afforded. I even took his story on the road, whenever I did a speaking engagement for minor or senior hockey organizations. 

     For many of those years, I was the chap who handed out the money, on other funding gifts the Crozier Foundation granted, primarily in South Muskoka, many kids benefitting from the Town of Gravenhurst. I can't even describe the thrill, of being able to present cheques, to parents with youngsters, suffering from serious illness, who required costly specialized treatment. I delivered one cheque to a mother and father who had been living in a special residence at the hospital, as their son was at that precarious point between life and death. This happened a few more times, to other families, and each occasion was the same……and how thankful we all were to Roger for having provided the financial resources to maintain the funding base. In the fall of the year, I worked with local children's services, to get our funding-needs list together. We also paid thousands of dollars to cover registrations for hockey and figure skating, and some other club registrations for those kids not interested in winter sports. These kids would not have been able to join, without the funds from the Crozier Foundation. So it was a tremendous honor, to take that annual funding cheque over to the Children's Aid office on Pine Street. I always thanked Roger immediately after the cheque was in their hands. I don't know if he was listening, but it didn't matter. It had to be said. He made such a difference in kids' lives here in South Muskoka…..and even if it concluded much sooner than we could have expected, it was a great ride while it lasted. I saw the positives of benevolence up close and personal. Kindness is magic. I hope some of the youngsters we helped back then, remember us…..because we remember them. I've had a lot of interesting and even exciting jobs in the past, but working for the community, as part of Roger's Foundation fulfilled ambitions I didn't even know I had…….and we, as a family, have been running fundraisers in the community ever since. There are hundreds of folks who get the same buzz, by helping others. It is addictive…..but if there's any good addiction, it's being of a benevolent heart. It can be honestly said, we'd be in a pretty rough spot indeed, without the many community-minded groups that operate in our community, looking after those who find themselves in crisis. This is what a hometown is all about.

     As for Roger Crozier, thanks for inviting our family to join a great adventure, that wasn't for a long time, but it was most definitely a good time.