The short drive from the Village at University Gates north to the town of Elmira is a journey through history. Stone houses and red barns stand out among the lush August cornfields, and though the roads are busy with cars and trucks in the early morning hours, they slow for the Mennonite farmers who clip-clop along the shoulder in buggies drawn by slight, muscular horses.
Along a fence row, two boys in homemade clothing and straw hats race their bicycles in the fresh morning air before the August heat strikes hard. In the van, Tom Farr meanders into his past, calling out directions as it makes its way to the farm where he grew up.
Tom is among a small group of residents from Schlegel Villages chosen to share the story of the places that shaped them as part of the 10th anniversary celebrations of the #ElderWisdom campaign. In late July, the campaign travelled to London, England, and earlier that month, to St. John’s, Newfoundland.
Tom’s hometown and the influences of his youth are just a few kilometres away, and he’s greeted with warmth by Jen and Steve, who now own the horse farm where he grew up.
Their families go back a long way, and they reminisce with the easy familiarity often found in small rural communities. Steve guides Tom in his wheelchair through the barn, and Tom tells stories of the old dogs who used to escape through the high windows. Jen laughs—she has one who does the same when thunderstorms roll through the hills.
With some assistance, Tom manages to stand and climb a few stairs, and his hosts show him into the renovated kitchen where the old fireplace remains. He points out the nooks in the stone where his mother tried, unsuccessfully, to hide her Christmas baking – his brother would steal from one side while he stole from the other.
What Steve and Jen have done with the house is exactly what his parents had envisioned, Tom says with gratitude. After an hour-long visit, his hosts gift him a framed picture of the farm before he departs.
The next stop is the sprawling new arena built on the site where Tom once played with the Elmira Sugar Kings. He’s met by the Kings’ General Manager, Ian McAdam, and two young players who present him with a new jersey and delight in his hockey stories.
Tom has plenty of those stories, he admits, but he might shield young ears from some of them: “I’m not sure when the statute of limitations is up,” he laughs.
The Farr family, says a guest at the #ElderWisdom event later that afternoon who goes by the name of Kernel, is synonymous with “hockey royalty” in Elmira, and Tom smiles with pride. As he takes his place upon the green #ElderWisdom bench, he’s greeted by many old friends who’ve come to see him. They talk of simpler times and the way progress moves and shapes a town. They talk of hockey, and they talk of school days.
Tom later reflects on the emotions stirred as he spoke about life’s losses—of loved ones, and of his independence.
“The emotions have been up and down,” he says. “The funny thing is, I haven’t got emotional talking about what happened to me in a year, and then it all comes back.”
Yet his heart was full – visiting the arena, seeing old friends, breathing in the country air, and feeling the warmth of Steve and Jen’s hospitality.
“It’s just so cool that I know all of these people,” he says.
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