Meet Terry. Trying to pin Terry down for this story pretty much sums up her life – busy. A ‘do-er’ from way back, Terry, her husband Bruce and their kids have been active members of Leslieville since before it was named that. No surprise, they had a hand in that too.
Meet Jim. We first met back in 2004 down at Cherry Beach Dog Park. I had just gotten George, my first dog and he, puppy Bella the Crazy Chocolate, shortly after the death of Arnie, his beloved Lab. We would walk the loop a few times, a few times a week. Since then, George has passed, Gracie (my other dog) too, and I lost touch with Jim until we reunited down at Cherry around 18 months ago when I got Sunshine. We would share a few laughs, talk about his cases (he’s a lawyer), the latest in real estate, and small talk.
Meet Joanna. Many of you probably know her from her Inside Toronto and Beach Mirror postings on The Leslieville and Beaches community Facebook pages. She’s a prolific ‘digger’ and seems to be literally ‘everywhere’. She’s one of those people you can attach this adage to: ‘If you want something done, ask a busy person’. She’s a million places at once, but gets the job done.
Meet Joanne. Many of you may know her from the Facebook. She’s a regular on several local groups where she posts her historical pics and stories of the area we live in. Or you may know her from her historical walks or simply from being a long-time resident of the area. Joanne has lived in the east end with her partner, Julia, for more than 30 years. Interviewing Joanne was a fascinating experience. It was the first time I nearly ran into the ‘3-hour’ mark and had severe writer’s cramp when I left her house. I couldn’t keep up/take it all down! She’s a veritable history book and a natural story teller. Before I even sat down I learned her house (1912) was built in the ‘open concept’ model, to provide air flow to prevent of TB, that next door was an original shack house (tar paper & shoebox shape), that the area was called ‘Shacktown’, and greedy Erie Realty bought up all the land west of Coxwell to Ashdale and named streets after himself, one of them, now Craven Rd., once named ‘Erie Terrace’. *If you meet Joanne one day, don’t forget to ask her why Craven Rd. only has houses on one side and why that long grey fence runs the length of the street.