DOCSLIB.ORG

Strategic Plan 2018–2020

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Strategic Plan 2018–2020 Strategic Plan 2018–2020 Summary & Highlights Elements of Plan • Mission and vision statements • Strategic objectives – High level goals to help realize vision • Strategic initiatives – Short term projects to achieve objectives • Measures and targets • Operational plan Mission To govern, develop and promote cricket across all regions of Canada St John’s Newfoundland Vancouver, B.C. Vision To be a leading cricket nation through growing popularity, building a sustainable organization, and achieving international success Strategic Objectives • To grow cricket in Canada - “Go Cricket“ • Raise the profile of cricket through promotion and public engagement - “Go Canada!” Robust • To develop and maintain the highest Resources standards of governance and financial Good Go Cricket management - “Good Governance ” Governance • To deliver competitive success through Strategic implementing and supporting the Long Term Plan Developing Athlete Development (LTAD) model - Go Canada Elite Players “Developing Elite Players “ • To achieve growth through a sustainable Winning Teams stream of resources - “Resource Planning” • To deliver competitive success - “ Winning Teams” Go Cricket • Infrastructure • Developing coaches and officials • Growing the game in schools • Junior club programmes and youth leagues • Domestic cricket • Women’s cricket Go Cricket Grow Cricket Go Cricket Initiatives • Develop city based youth program • Strengthen/expand school program • Community/ recreational coach recruitment and development • Officials recruitment and development • Funding infrastructure development Go Cricket Grow Cricket Go Cricket Metrics • Number of players • Number of clubs • Number of leagues • Number of women’ playing, teams, leagues (ICC scorecard) • Number of ICC recognised grounds • Number of turf pitches (ICC scorecard) • Number of grounds total (ICC scorecard) • Number of qualified officials (ICC scorecard) • Number of community coaches (ICC scorecard) • Number of schools engaged in cricket every year Go Cricket • Number of youth leagues Grow Cricket Go Canada • Promotion and fan engagement • Marketing • Development of online resources • Managing relationships with government and media Go Canada Go Canada Go Canada Initiatives • Improve website • Develop streaming production • Increase social media presence • Improve PR and media, government, member and sponsor relationships • Develop marketing strategy Go Canada Go Canada Go Canada Metrics • Number of streaming events • Media score (broadcast hours, digital impressions) • Spectator attendance at Cricket Canada events Go Canada Go Canada Good Governance • Transparency and accountability • Monitoring of the progress of strategic plannning • Modern policies that surpass expected standards • Reporting and audit standards that ensure compliance • Risk management based approach to governance • Financial management of the highest standards – comprehensive financial controls, – sound budgeting and budget tracking, – internal and external audits – Spending in line with strategic objectives. Good Governance • Striving for continual improvement Governance Excellence Good Governance Initiatives • Develop organizational structure. • Annual review of By-laws, Constitution, job descriptions and policies • Monitor Strategic Plan implementation. • Develop and implement internal audit process. • Improve committee structure. • Develop provincial member governance criteria. • Develop budget creation, approval and monitoring process. • Implement accounting software. • Implement project budgeting and effectiveness monitoring. GovernanceGood Governance Excellence Good Governance Metrics • Number of fully staffed committees in place and reporting • Financial reporting frequency • Successful audits of finances and compliance with policy • Level of compliance with ICC/ Sport Canada requirements GovernanceGood Governance Excellence Developing Elite Players – Talent identification, development and retention – Development of HP infrastructure – Organise High level competition – Development of high level coaches and officials – Develop Accredited Academy system Developing Elite Players Developing Elite Players Initiatives • Monitor and improve elite player fitness (physical and mental) • Develop national and regional high performance centers • Develop elite player monitoring database (fitness, match performance etc.) • Develop capacity for pre-match analysis and preparation • Develop talent scouting program • Start new elite league/ competition in Canada • Accreditation programme for private academies • Develop elite/ high level coaches • Develop high level officials through training, experience and incentives to improve qualifications • Develop player retention strategy targeting transition from youth to senior, senior player contracts, post retirement DevelopingExcellence Elite retention (coaches, scouts, selectors) ExpresswayPlayersExcellence Expressway Developing Elite Players Metrics • Number of high level coaches. • Number of participants in HP programmes. • Number of high level umpires. • Number of leagues achieving HP status. • Number of high performance games/ year. • Number of players making transition from HP programmes to national teams. DevelopingExcellence Elite ExpresswayPlayersExcellence Expressway Robust Resources • Developing sustainable funding model • Diversification of funding sources • Maximising existing funding opportunities. Robust Resources Robust Resources Initiatives • Standardize and operationalize ICC funding qualification and application process. • Develop infrastructure to support commercial events. • Standardize and operationalize Sports Canada and other grant funding qualification and application process. • Develop sponsorship revenue generation program, sponsor management program. • Develop yearly commercial event program. Robust Resources • Increase online revenues. • Review member contributions and fees. Robust Resources Metrics • Amount of ICC funding • Amount of Sport Canada funding • Number of sponsors/ amount of sponsorship • Total annual budget • % of non-ICC funding • Administrative/ expense ratio Robust Resources Winning Teams Improve performance of representative teams through using state of the art training techniques to develop and improve: • Physical fitness • Cricket skills • Mental fitness • Team/ match preparation • Monitoring performance Winning Teams Winning Teams Initiatives • Physical fitness training and monitoring for representative team squads • Mental fitness training and monitoring for representative team squads • Developing cricket skills at representative level • Develop analytical and match preparation capacity Winning Teams Winning Teams Metrics • Fitness levels of national player pools • Individual player performance analysis/ ratio of positive trends • Number of high performance matches played by each player • Run rate curve for batting performance • Economy rate for bowling performance Winning Teams Key Measures • Number of players (male, female, junior) • Sponsorship revenue • % ICC contribution to revenues • One day match ranking Player Numbers 120000 100000 80000 60000 40000 20000 0 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Senior Playing Male (Players) 8550 8880 9450 10800 12315 Senior Playing Female (Players) 60 60 60 60 60 Junior Playing (Players) 0000960 Modified Cricket (Tape ball ‐ Beach) 0 0 1529 3332 2370 Junior Involvement (Kids) 49649 60084 82816 95640 111366 Sponsorship Revenue Sponsor Revenues 350,000 300,000 250,000 200,000 2020 target ‐ $250 K 150,000 100,000 50,000 0 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 ICC Contribution to Revenue ICC contribution to total revenues 100 90 2020 target 80 –< 65% 70 60 50 % 40 30 20 10 0 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 One Day match Ranking Year 2005 2007 2009 2010 2014 2015 2017 10 Afghanistan Ireland 2020 target: Netherlands ODI Status 15 Scotland Nepal 20 Oman Canada ranking ICC United States 25 30 35 Implementation Team roles • Prioritize strategic initiatives assigned to them • Develop an annual plan • Ensure initiatives are adequately resourced • Request budget funds to implement initiatives • Monitor progress in each initiative • Accountable to board - quarterly reporting • Recommending new initiatives • Monitoring progress against Metrics Teams Strategic objective Responsible individual Support Go Cricket President Development officer, Program Committees & Development Committee Go Canada Director; Marketing Brand Manager & Media Team Good Governance Director; Governance Governance Committee Developing Elite Players President HP Manager & Coaches Committee Robust Resources President Funding, Sponsorship & Commercial Events Team Winning Teams Director; National Teams General Manager and Team operational staff.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Building Canadian National Identity Within the State and Through Ice Hockey: a Political Analysis of the Donation of the Stanley Cup, 1888-1893
    Western University Scholarship@Western Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository 12-9-2015 12:00 AM Building Canadian National Identity within the State and through Ice Hockey: A political analysis of the donation of the Stanley Cup, 1888-1893 Jordan Goldstein The University of Western Ontario Supervisor Dr. Robert K. Barney The University of Western Ontario Graduate Program in Kinesiology A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree in Doctor of Philosophy © Jordan Goldstein 2015 Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd Part of the Intellectual History Commons, Political History Commons, Political Theory Commons, and the Sports Studies Commons Recommended Citation Goldstein, Jordan, "Building Canadian National Identity within the State and through Ice Hockey: A political analysis of the donation of the Stanley Cup, 1888-1893" (2015). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 3416. https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/3416 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship@Western. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository by an authorized administrator of Scholarship@Western. For more information, please contact [email protected]. i Stanley’s Political Scaffold Building Canadian National Identity within the State and through Ice Hockey: A political analysis of the donation of the Stanley Cup, 1888-1893 By Jordan Goldstein Graduate Program in Kinesiology A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies The University of Western Ontario London, Ontario, Canada © Jordan Goldstein 2015 ii Abstract The Stanley Cup elicits strong emotions related to Canadian national identity despite its association as a professional ice hockey trophy.
    [Show full text]
  • Analysis of the Effectiveness of a Preseason Strength and Conditioning Program for Collegiate Men's and Women's Lacrosse
    Lindenwood University Digital Commons@Lindenwood University Dissertations Theses & Dissertations Fall 12-2012 Analysis of the Effectiveness of a Preseason Strength and Conditioning Program for Collegiate Men's and Women's Lacrosse Aaron Michael Randolph Lindenwood University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/dissertations Part of the Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons Recommended Citation Randolph, Aaron Michael, "Analysis of the Effectiveness of a Preseason Strength and Conditioning Program for Collegiate Men's and Women's Lacrosse" (2012). Dissertations. 473. https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/dissertations/473 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses & Dissertations at Digital Commons@Lindenwood University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons@Lindenwood University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Analysis of the Effectiveness of a Preseason Strength and Conditioning Program for Collegiate Men‟s and Women‟s Lacrosse by Aaron Michael Randolph A Dissertation submitted to the Education Faculty of Lindenwood University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education School of Education Acknowledgements To my committee, thank you for sticking with me through this dissertation and for all your help guiding my thoughts and writing process. Special thank you to Dr. Wisdom for being my go-to person for statistics and general study approach. Many thanks to my wife for supporting me while I pursued this degree and wrote the dissertation. Lastly, I would like to thank my mom and dad for continuing to support my academic endeavors and always being there to help guide me both professionally and emotionally.
    [Show full text]
  • Cricket As a Diasporic Resource for Caribbean-Canadians by Janelle Beatrice Joseph a Thesis Submitted in Conformity with the Re
    Cricket as a Diasporic Resource for Caribbean-Canadians by Janelle Beatrice Joseph A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of Exercise Sciences University of Toronto © Janelle Beatrice Joseph 2010 Cricket as a Diasporic Resource for Caribbean-Canadians Janelle Beatrice Joseph Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of Exercise Sciences University of Toronto 2010 Abstract The diasporic resources and transnational flows of the Black diaspora have increasingly been of concern to scholars. However, the making of the Black diaspora in Canada has often been overlooked, and the use of sport to connect migrants to the homeland has been virtually ignored. This study uses African, Black and Caribbean diaspora lenses to examine the ways that first generation Caribbean-Canadians use cricket to maintain their association with people, places, spaces, and memories of home. In this multi-sited ethnography I examine a group I call the Mavericks Cricket and Social Club (MCSC), an assembly of first generation migrants from the Anglo-Caribbean. My objective to “follow the people” took me to parties, fundraising dances, banquets, and cricket games throughout the Greater Toronto Area on weekends from early May to late September in 2008 and 2009. I also traveled with approximately 30 MCSC members to observe and participate in tours and tournaments in Barbados, England, and St. Lucia and conducted 29 in- depth, semi-structured interviews with male players and male and female supporters. I found that the Caribbean diaspora is maintained through liming (hanging out) at cricket matches and social events. Speaking in their native Patois language, eating traditional Caribbean foods, and consuming alcohol are significant means of creating spaces in which Caribbean- Canadians can network with other members of the diaspora.
    [Show full text]
  • Cricket, Canada and the Caribbean Diaspora
    35 1 Community Diasporas are communities positioned at the interstices of (1) a (mythical) homeland or local community where people are from, (2) the location where they reside, and (3) a globally dispersed, yet collectively identified group. These communities are neither homogeneous nor innate. A sense of commu- nity, Brubaker (2004) notes in Ethnicity without Groups, is often objectified as a “thing,” something always already there that people “have,” but “ ‘groupness’ and ‘boundedness’ [are] emergent properties of particular structural or conjunc- tural settings” (p. 55). Some groups go to great lengths to establish themselves as cohesive and bounded communities. For example, as Brent Hayes Edwards (2001) astutely points out, the term “diaspora is introduced in large part to account for difference among African-deri ved populations, in a way that a term like Pan- Africanism could not … it forces us to consider discourses of cultural and political linkage only through and across difference” (Edwards, 2001, p. 64). A key example of discourses of cultural linkages is the pre- civil war collective self- definitions of the Afro-dia spora, which “often treated Africa as a fallen civ- ilisation to be redeemed by African- American Christians. Self- identification as a diasporic 'people' did not necessarily imply claiming cultural commonality” (Brubaker, 2004, p. 57). The boundaries that diasporic groups construct around themselves shift around the multiple identities people express. Flattening a com- plex history and complex individuals through a focus on a singular identity as a diasporic group prevents us from understanding the ways in which group boundaries are constantly being (re-)made by people who have experienced the uneven trajectories of ancestry, plurilocal homelands and varied ways of con- struing sameness and difference.
    [Show full text]
  • Sport in the Black Atlantic: Cricket, Canada and the Caribbean Diaspora
    1 Introduction First Caribbean Days in Canada I play cricket for de telephone company in Barbados. It was June of 1975. I went to dis one game up in St. Andrews village and everyt’ing set for me to leave for Canada de following day. And I remember, like it yesterday, as I walkin’ off de fiel’ one of de guys on my team come runnin’ and literally dive at my feet. I had a pair of Gary Sobers boots dat my father brought me from Englan’, see? Dey had de autograph on de side, you know? Dey were pretty new and it hadn’t really occurred to me what I would do wit’ dem when I was leaving, but dis fella, boy, he knew! He dive at me and tek me off me feet. He strip dose boots off me quick fas’ and say “You’re not going to need these where you’re going!” and run away. Well, dat’s what I thought too. I thought, well you know, it’s not likely I play cricket in Canada and I’m not going for life, anyway. I plan to come here for five years and further my education, make some money and den head back. I thought, I’ll get dose boots back soon enough. So I walk de rest of de way home in my bare feet. Den, t’ree weeks later I in my sister’s front room. De doorbell ring an’ I look out de window an’ see dis man dress all in white. I thought, wow, in Canada de bakers deliver de bread! Den I see he don’t have no bread.
    [Show full text]
  • The PUB Visits • Ontario Brewers Directory 4.0
    Fall 2013 • www.pubmagazine.ca • THE PUB visiTs Port Colborne, Pickering , Stouffville, Toronto, Guelph • Ontario BREWERs DiRECTORY 4.0 • sainT anDREW’s DaY • Canada, ThE FalCOn has lanDED • MMMmmmmmmmm WaRm BEER • sOUnDs OF sUmmER • A History of shUFFlEBOaRD • CRiCkET “OWZAT” • FighT nighT aT “WILD WING” • Fight Night at WilD Wing • BEsT BaR nOnE Ontario ... and many more Available at good pubs everywhere! CLEAN LINES, CLEAN BEER. Good Beer, Good Business. CALL US TO BOOK YOUR LINE CLEANING. 905-829-9015 1-800-668-4718 2923 Portland Drive Oakville ON L6H 5S4 f: 905-829-9054 e: [email protected] The PUB • Fall 2013 WELCOME TO ANOTHER EDITION OF THE PUB MAGAZINE Welcome to another edition of the Pub Magazine, in this issue I visit Canalside Pub in Port Col- borne, Port in Pickering and check out the new kid on the block in my home town of Stouffville, the King’s Landing. Our Roving Reporter Glenn brings us back tales of the little Newfie pub fondly called Scrummies. Ample Annie makes an appearance along with the Tudor Arms. Welcome to the Pub my friends, pull up a stool, pour yourself a cold one and enjoy. Cheers Bill Perrie, Canada’s Pub Guy Look Who’s Pouring’ Michaela bru Restaurant Oakville www.pubmagazine.ca 3 The PUB • Fall 2013 11 • Fall 2013 Ontario Brewers Directory 4.0 5 6 8 Best Bar None Ontario was offered for the fi rst time in Ontario in 2012/2013 and is now in its second year of a pilot program. This year‘s expansion extends throughout a larger section of Toronto’s down- town core, as well as in Ottawa’s ByWard Market.
    [Show full text]
  • Women's Cricket Spaces: an Examination of Female
    WOMEN’S CRICKET SPACES: AN EXAMINATION OF FEMALE PLAYERS’ EXPERIENCES IN CANADA By Sabrina Razack A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Graduate Department of Exercise Sciences University of Toronto © Copyright by Sabrina Razack 2009 WOMEN’S CRICKET SPACES: AN EXAMINATION OF FEMALE PLAYERS’ EXPERIENCES IN CANADA Masters of Science 2009 Sabrina Alisha Razack Graduate Department of Exercise Sciences University of Toronto Presently the literature available on women’s cricket is very limited. This thesis attempts to redress this gap by telling a story about the experiences of women’s club cricket in Toronto and Victoria. The player’s social spaces were examined, as were the intersections of gender, race and culture.. Using qualitative methods, narratives were interpreted and analyzed using post-colonial, spatial and feminist theoretical frameworks. Major findings indicated that there are specific challenges to women’s participation in cricket in Canada and revealed differences between players due to geography, access to resources, ethnicity and race. Women also experienced inclusions and exclusions based on gendered reproductions. The results indicate that much more support is needed for women’s cricket to flourish in Canada. One strong recommendation this study makes is that we pay more attention to, and develop better strategies for, the integration of Canadian immigrant and racialized women into the Canadian sport and recreation system. ii Table of Contents CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCING THE
    [Show full text]
  • Winter Sports Turf: Levels of Play
    DEC E M B E R 1 999 VOL U M E 12 • ISSUE 4 Winter Sports Turf: Levels of Play he wet conditions of the past win- recovery requires overseeding or these winter wear problems. There is no ter (and spring) highlight many of reseeding on less than 20% of the surface," substitute for the time required to relieve Tthe challenges faced by turf man- They also suggest that the budget required compaction and re-establish a healthy turf agers of sports fields used for winter play. to maintain grass cover at higher use cover. Some options do exist to improve As a result of heavy use, I have received a intensities is wholly uneconomical. The wear tolerance for the winter play season, number of inquiries about expected lev- costs of the high specification sand-domi- but these come at additional capital cost els of play and use of winter games turf, nated root zones was four to five times that and would similarly require a rest period as well as "rest" periods for fields. In re- for soil-based fields. during which the fields were protected sponse to those inquiries regarding field from play. All of the guidelines for good use and wear tolerance, I prepared a re- ,\1/ quality soccer pitch management incorpo- - '" sponse based on my own experience work- -ji~ Winter usage of rate a "close-season" period to facilitate ~'I ing with sports turf and used information ""'/\\-- approximately renovation. ~"-;:. from the publication Natural Turffor Sport eight hours per Overuse, in addition to providing poor and Amenity by Bill Adams and Richard ""\\"= field conditions, also creates significant week and/or 125 Gibbs.
    [Show full text]
  • Cricket in Canada Sport Tr~: Did You;Kntjwf
    Cricket in Canada Sport Tr~: Did You;KntJwf Cricket Facts Cricket Associations, but a • Cricket was played in shortage of grounds pre- many cities, towns, and vil- vents their joining and be- lages in the early 1800s. ing able to accommodate • The Canada vs. USA regular fixtures. cricket match is the oldest - info & pic provided by the annual international sports Canadian Cricket Association competition in North America. Canada to Play Host • "It isn't cricket"! This in 2001 expression pays tribute to the Calcutta, India, and high regard the sport has at- Canada will host the Inter- tained in its insistence on fair national Cricket Council play. Trophy in the year 2001, • Cricket is probably the ICC president Jagmohan only active team sport which Dalmiya said yesterday. includes many good players Twenty-five teams from well into their 50s and 60s. non-test playing countries • Because of its origin in will participate in the tour- Britain, cricket was well-founded through- ewan, Alberta, and British Columbia. nament. Three of them, Kenya, Scotland, out the British empire, and flourishes to- Cricket is played in the other provinces, and Bangladesh, had participated in the day in most parts of the world. but not on an organized basis. The Cana- recently concluded cricket World Cup af- • The Ontario Cricket Association was dian Cricket Association sponsors inter- ter qualifying at the last ICC trophy con- formed in 1880, some 95 years after the provincial tournaments at both the senior test held in Malaysia two years ago. • first games were played. Prior to that, most and junior level and in 1979, in England, - The National Post, June 29, 1999 a Canadian team played in the World Cup games were played as "friendly matches," Photo Caption: Players from the for the first time.
    [Show full text]
  • Frederick Heather Wisden Cricketer (Article)
    openers Magnificent 7 The best things we’ve learned this month from Frederick Heather More than a game Cricket in unusual places ... }[Nelson] discovered that under certain conditions he could get more destructive results Harry Potter actor Tom Felton’s from his cannon 1girlfriend bought him a year’s balls by making subscription to The Wisden Cricketer them ricochet off (page 114) the sea … Usually he pitched them The parents of Kenya’s Peter quite short, about 2 Ongondo had never heard of two thirds of the cricket (pages 36-39) way between his guns and the target, Not one of the 18 county coaches but there is some 3 thinks Mark Ramprakash is the evidence to suggest Championship’s best batsman but Hero of the Canadian game that during the they do think Somerset will win battle of the Nile everything (pages 66-67) A CAMPAIGN to induct a cricketer into On retiring he embarked on an he dismissed the Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame for the umpiring career that would span 38 French flagship with More Indians watched the first first time is gathering momentum. years and more than 1,000 consecutive a yorker 4 match of the football World Cup You may not have heard of him but games, making him the longest-serving on TV than the IPL’s opening game Frederick Heather above far left is a umpire in Canada. He umpired in the ~ last year (pages 44-46) Canadian cricket hero. I must admit a first match of first-class status held Michael Redgrave vested interest – he was my great uncle.
    [Show full text]
  • Frederick James Heather's Lifelong Contribution to Cricket
    Frederick James Heather, Canadian Cricket Builder, 1890-1976 Fred Heather’s introduction to cricket started in England. He was born in Godalming, Surrey, England on January 27, 1890. As a boy, he put up score tins for the Broadwater Cricket Club. Here he learned to play cricket and eventually captained a team in Cobham, Surrey in 1916. Immigrating to Canada in 1921, he continued to play the game competitively and was a member of the St. George’s Cricket Club that won the Toronto & District Championship in 1922. Winning a city championship after only a year and a half in his new country, was a sign of what Heather would accomplish in the next five decades. In 1926, Heather joined the Bell Telephone Cricket Club, and earned an Ontario Championship. The Bell Telephones narrowly missed the national title to McGill by one wicket in the final John Ross Robertson Cup match. Bell Telephone continued to be a cricket power by winning the Toronto & District Championship in 1927. In the first round of the 1927 John Ross Robertson Cup tournament, Heather was dominant almost hitting for a “century” scoring a massive 85 runs. The Bell Telephone Cricket Club would end their 1927 season in the semi-final round. In 1928, Bell Telephone captured their second Ontario Championship and travelled to Montreal to play McGill in a rematch of the 1926 Canadian final. The match between the Bell Telephone Cricket Club and McGill for the John Ross Robertson Trophy for the Canadian Championship in 1928 would end in controversy due to inclement weather.
    [Show full text]
  • My Remarkable Uncle and Other Sketches
    MY REMARKABLE UNCLE AND OTHER SKETCHES BY STEPHEN LEACOCK MY REMARKABLE UNCLE AND OTHER SKETCHES SOME MEMORIES I - MY REMARKABLE UNCLE The most remarkable man I have ever known in my life was my uncle, Edward Philip Leacock--known to ever so many people in Winnipeg fifty or sixty years ago as E.P. His character was so exceptional that it needs nothing but plain narration. It was so exaggerated already that you couldn't exaggerate it. When I was a boy of six, my father brought us, a family flock--to settle on an Ontario farm. We lived in an isolation unknown, in these days of radio, anywhere in the world. We were thirty-five miles from a railway. There were no newspapers. Nobody came and went. There was nowhere to come and go. In the solitude of the dark winter nights the stillness was that of eternity. Into this isolation there broke, two years later, my dynamic Uncle Edward, my father's younger brother. He had just come from a year's travel around the Mediterranean. He must have been about twenty-eight, but seemed a more than adult man, bronzed and self-confident, with a square beard like a Plantagenet King. His talk was of Algiers, of the African slave market, of the Golden Horn and the Pyramids. To us it sounded like the Arabian Nights. When we asked, 'Uncle Edward, do you know the Prince of Wales?' he answered, 'Quite intimately,' with no further explanation. It was an impressive trick he had. In that year, 1878, there was a general election in Canada.
    [Show full text]