52 Weeks – Week 43: Organized

Wow, hard to believe that with this post, there are only ten weeks left of this year’s 52 Ancestors Challenge!

This week’s theme is “Organized”. I can be organized, but I hate doing it and it bores me as a topic. The irony is, given some unexpected events, I find myself having to be organized so that I can create this post. If not tonight, then it won’t be done at all!

I decided to do another take on the word. Organized labour came to mind. My maternal grandfather, Leo Burgess, was a strong union man. I thought I had a photo of his union card, which would have been a centerpiece of this post. Turns out I have almost everything but!

My grandfather worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway for 32 years. He started as a brakeman and worked through the ranks, later becoming a yard manager. Early on, because of winter layoffs, he chose to work for the CPR in Cranbrook because there was more work there during the winter to provide a steady income. In 1972 he became a conductor, performing that role until his retirement in 1982.

My grandfather often brought me to the train station when I was little. Of course, the highlight was always getting to go on to the caboose. When I was older, he’d often take us kids to his favourite haunts, which included the former Labour Club of Lethbridge. We’d always get a treat, like a pop and french fries, but what we loved best were the “pull tabs”. This was many years before lottery scratch tickets, but the idea was similar. They were about the size of a scratch ticket and had semi-perforated tabs that you’d pull off. Underneath were the kinds of images you’d see on a slot machine. Grandpa would buy a bunch and let each of us kids open one up.

My grandmother’s politics were never a secret and she was more than happy to share her opinion about it. However, I don’t remember my grandfather ever talking about politics. I didn’t want to assume what his politics might be, even though he was a staunch union supporter. A few years ago I asked my mom about it. She told me that she rarely heard him talk about politics and he never said what parties he might have supported. My mom had her theories, but had little to base them upon.

I’ll be at my folks’ later this week. I’ll have to dig through what of my grandfather’s belongings that my mother still has and see what more I can find.

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