Twine Loft – January 2017

Passed On: Robert Truckair – Glace Bay, N.S. Fisherman

Truckair passed away November 16 at the Glace Bay Hospital with loving family at his side. Born in Glace Bay he was the son of Lambert and Elsie (MacLeod) Truckair. Truckair was a self-employed boat captain/fisherman, fishing all over the coasts of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. He was a member of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 3 and the Glace Bay Harbour Authority. He started fishing on his own at the age of 16, where he fished lobster and long-lined. In 1975, Truckair went to work for the Cadegan’s at Highland Fisheries where he fine-tuned his ability for offshore mobile fishing. In 1983, he purchased his first offshore fishing vessel Mustn’t Tell which jumpstarted the rest of his career. In 1991, he built the Glace Bay Lady and continued in the groundfish fishery until 1996 when he then fished with his sons in the snow crab industry. In 2009, he took his three grandsons under his wing, teaching them the importance of how to fish and run a rig.

Passed On: Robert Leard – Alberton, P.E.I. Fisherman

Leard, 65, passed away at the Palliative Care Unit of the Western Hospital, Alberton, on October 8. Born at Alberton on March 11, 1951, he was the son of the late M. Roy and Gladys M. (nee Cousins) Leard. He fished out of Northport and was a former president of the P.E.I Fishermen’s Association and the founding president of the Western Gulf Fishermen’s Association. He was also the founding president of the Northport Harbour Authority.

Passed On: Cecil Randell – Englee, N.L. Fisherman

Randell, 83, passed away at the Curtis Memorial Hospital in St. Anthony on October 22. He was born to Joshua and Sophia Randell on December 17, 1932 in Williamsport, N.L. Randell was a man who could put his hand to any job, a proper jack of all trades. There was no job that he would not take on. He was a home builder and also a boat builder. Over the years he worked at the whale plant, on a whale boat, he sawed logs and even spent two years as a teacher. However, fishing was his calling.

Passed On: Floyd Roy – Milton, N.S. Fisherman

Roy, 69, passed away suddenly in Queens General Hospital, Liverpool on November 7. Born in Southwest Port Mouton, he was a son of the late Floyd and Edna (Fisher) Roy. Roy was a fisherman all his life. He enjoyed hunting and fishing as well as his friendships with his neighbours at his apartment building.

Passed On: Hendrik Ackermann – Port Mouton, N.S. Coast Guard Radio Operator

Ackermann, 93, passed away peacefully in Queens Manor, Liverpool on October 31. Born in Uniondale, South Africa, he was a son of the late Helgaard and Annamarie (Davis) Ackermann. Ackermann was an apprentice bricklayer in 1941 when he volunteered for the army and did three months training for the signal corps. While on leave, he was reported for having joined up while still an apprentice and was forced to leave the army. A month later, he enlisted in the navy, and this time, was not caught. He served with the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve (RNVR) South Africa Division during World War II. He saw action in the Mediterranean, the North Atlantic and Madagascar while serving as a telegrapher. Ackermann spent time in Africa and the United Kingdom working both as a bricklayer and a radio operator before immigrating to Canada in 1954. He was able to continue bricklaying in Ontario and Nova Scotia and returned to radio operating, ending his career as radio officer with the Canadian Coast Guard Service at the age of 66.

Passed On: Gerald Lumsden – Canso, N.S. Fisherman

Lumsden, 73, passed away November 5 at Eastern Memorial Hospital. Born April 21, 1943, in Canso, he was a son of the late Captain Belmont and Edith Lumsden. He was a career fisherman. He loved the sea and was one of the founders of the Trawlermen’s Co-op in Canso.