Honoured by Nancy Sayer.
Wilfred was born in North Bay in 1915, the son of Rose and Bert Sayer. Jean, the daughter of Hubert and Maryanne Dube, was born in 1913 and raised on the shores of Trout Lake.
Jean and Wilf met and courted in North Bay and were married in 1937 in Kirkland Lake, ON, where Wilf was employed as a bus driver.
In 1939, Wilf accepted a position as firefighter with the North Bay Fire Department and they returned to live their lives in North Bay. In 1941, following in his father’s footsteps, Wilfred was hired as a fireman with the Canadian Pacific Railway and was later promoted to a locomotive engineer. Wilf’s second career, while still working for the railway, was working part time at Martyn’s Funeral Home. After retiring from the railway in 1975, Wilf’s part time employment at Martyn’s turned into a full time job.
Jean was a professional stay-at-home mother, raising four boys and four girls.
Wilf and Jean were well known for their hospitality, always welcoming family and friends to their home on Fifth Ave. or to their cottage on Lake Nosbonsing. Jean was well known for her excellent culinary skills but was best known for her “World Famous Jean’s Beans” that were enjoyed by anyone who had the pleasure of tasting them.
After a lengthy illness, Wilfred passed in 1985 and Jean joined him in 1998.