Jim Thomas
Columns
August 21, 2008 12:53 AM
By: Jim Thomas
Young or old, he was everyone’s friend.
Everyone privileged to know him.
Michael (Mickey) Hunt died Friday in the palliative care unit of Markham Stouffville Hospital.
He was 79.
Mickey, or Mick as he was commonly called, arrived in Stouffville from Toronto in 1956, filling in as a temporary service station operator.
He remained at the station for 25 years.
During this time, his outgoing personality attracted people of all ages.
His Sunoco site, at the corner of Main Street and Winona Drive, was always a hive of activity, particularly for young drivers.
Often, he allowed them to work on their vehicles, using his advice, his tools and his time.
While charitable, Mickey also possessed a keen business sense that made him one of Sun Oil Company’s top operators in Ontario.
Achievement awards and certificates line recreation room walls.
Born of a blacksmith’s family in the Mt. St. Patrick area of Renfrew Valley, Sept. 28, 1928, Mickey grew up in the small town of Dacre, Ont.
Since his grandfather, father and two uncles were all skilled blacksmiths, he was able to gain considerable knowledge of the trade, spending time in the shop while attending school.
At age 18, Mickey began working in lumber camps.
He later assisted with the construction of a lumber mill at Terrace Bay, near Thunder Bay, and then worked in the mines at Sudbury
He and wife Kay moved to Toronto in 1950 and then to Stouffville.
After 25 years at Hunt’s Sunoco, Mickey was hired by the Town of Markham’s parks and recreation department, where he remained for 17 years. There, staff employees affectionately referred to him as ‘Gramps’.
Mickey’s love for Stouffville was indicated by the enjoyment he received taking part in all aspects of community life.
He sponsored and coached several hockey and softball teams.
His envied 1947 Dodge was a part of many Santa Claus parades. He was a founding member of the Stouffville Kinsmen Club.
The Rupert Park toboggan hill that he envisioned next to the Hunt family home now bears his name.
While business and community activities kept him busy, Mickey always found time for family including his wife of 55 years; sons Chris of Stouffville and Tom of Cambridge; daughters Debbie Logan of Uxbridge; Janet Gray of Toronto and Mary Marshall of Stouffville; 11 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Family photographs created a pictorial gallery inside his garage. These were accompanied by a poem that, in retrospect, reflects the entirety of Mickey’s life.
It’s entitled The Man in the Glass. It reads:
When you get what you want in your struggle for self
And the world makes you king for a day,
Just go to a mirror and look at yourself
And see what that man has to say.
For it isn’t your father or mother or wife
Whose judgment upon you must pass,
The fellow whose verdict counts most in your life
Is the one staring back from the glass.
Some people may think you a straight-shooting chum
And call you a wonderful guy,
But the man in the glass says you’re only a bum
If you can’t look him straight in the eye.
He’s the fellow to please, never mind all the rest
For he’s with you clear to the end,
And you’ve passed the most difficult, dangerous test
If the man in the glass is your friend.
You can fool the whole world down the pathway of life
And get pats on your back as you pass,
But your final reward will be heartache and tears
If you cheat the man in the glass.
The admiration held for Mickey Hunt was indicated by the hundreds who paid their respects at the O’Neill Funeral Home Sunday and funeral mass Monday at St. Mark’s Catholic Church where he served as a member and usher.
He’ll be greatly missed.
By young and old.
Jim Thomas is a Stouffville resident who has written for area newspapers for more than 50 years.