Made by embracing change and curiosity

I was born in Gabin, Poland in 1921. My family always wanted to emigrate to Canada where my mother’s two brothers had settled, and we went when immigration reopened in 1935. I was 14 years old.

I learned English in six weeks from a McGill Arts student. It helped that I knew Latin well. I always wanted to be an architect. I loved to draw and, while in high school in my new home, I attended art classes at l’École des Beaux Arts.

When I entered McGill University it was 1939. With the outbreak of war, the School of Architecture had only six new students, and McGill decided to discontinue the school. I switched to a pre-engineering program and graduated in 1944 as a University Scholar with a Gold Medal and Honours in Mechanical Engineering.

During the war, Engineering students had to attend military school, which you had to pass to get your degree. We were part of a regiment called “CREME” – Canadian Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. Every week, we had three nights of military lectures and training on Saturday afternoons. And then we’d go to military camp for two weeks in the summer. The camp started right after exams in April. One year, no camps were accessible to us due to late snowstorms. We were billeted in the Curie Gymnasium and made to climb up and down Mount Royal in the middle of the night as training.

Now that I am 103, I can’t believe how far technology has come. I was drawing blueprints by hand, and by the time I retired, CAD software had completely replaced the pencil.” 

All Engineering students had to take summer jobs in their field. After a stint at Dominion Bridge in the draughting department, my survey professor asked me to join a wartime emergency job surveying for an oil pipeline from Portland, Maine to Montreal East. German U-boats were sinking oil tankers at the entry to the St. Lawrence River. I was part of the Canadian survey group. We surveyed the right of way for the pipeline in Canada from Highwater on the US-Canadian border to Montreal East. I was responsible for drawing all the survey plans for the Canadian section of the pipeline. I wrote a paper on this work which won the Engineering Institute of Canada’s Phelps Johnson Prize and was published.

I started my own construction company, building homes in Montreal and Cote St Luc. When McGill started a course in Fundamentals of Real Estate Practice, I became one of the first 10 graduates. This course was directed by Professor John Bland, Director of the School of Architecture. I opened a real estate office and bought land in Hampstead where I designed and built custom homes, apartments, and condominiums. I took this experience to other places in Canada and the US, always mindful of the McGill University motto: “By work, all things increase and grow.” I’m proud of the innovations we brought to new construction with the use of drywall, insulation, telephone pre-wiring, underground electrical cables, etc.

Now that I am 103, I can’t believe how far technology has come. I was drawing blueprints by hand, and by the time I retired, CAD software had completely replaced the pencil. We used to make intricate calculations on slide rules, and they have been rendered obsolete by computers. I am lucky that I’ve always embraced change and never lost my curiosity. This is something I learned at McGill.

Although I’m proud of my career, I’m even more proud of my family. My wife and I were engaged using my iron ring, which I’ve worn for 80 years. We were married for 75. We had three children, who gave us six grandchildren.

Nothing makes me happier than being in constant contact with all of them. I want to know every little thing that’s happening. I strive to pass along what is written on McGill’s pin: “My word is my word.” Because at the end of the day, that’s what’s really important.

Another point of pride is looking at my family and realizing how many have attended McGill!