THWO Als Stories My Story Jack Cooper

7/27/2019 THWO Als Stories My Story Jack Cooper

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My StoryBy Jack Cooper

M y mother was one of five sisters and three brothers and I had almost seventy firscousins from my mothers side most are now gone. My parents had ten children

Two died in infancy and now I am the last surviving, living member of the Cooper family.

I was raised on McCaul Street and attended Orde Model School next to The Penny SavingBank. We had to have a perfect weekly banking record, so if some of the children did nhave pennies to bank, the teacher loaned them to you.

My neighbours on McCaul Street were Silverberg, Singer and Stein no they were nlawyers, they were bootleggers. My boyfriend Henry Stein lived across the street from ohome. Many an evening when I went there to visit Henry, I had to stumble over some drunsprawled in the vestibule.

At the schoolyard, we played handball for pennies a game. You had to hit the ball over a foot ledge so it was a slugfest, not clever shooting as indoor handball. We also played volleybtwo games of 16 points for a nickel and since I was the tallest, I was usually up front tothe spiking. There were a lot of nicknames when I was young. Phillip who became a docwas called Pinkie. In the Stein family, Inspector Croll would raid their home occasionally

when they found illegal liquor, he would take one of the brothers to jail. It was always Haand he always had a suitcase packed, ready for the occasion so everyone called him suitca

Harry had a brother Sammy who was a boxer. When Sammy went to the bathroom it wasa very slow process and he was referred to as a slow leaker. Later the name became juSlow and the name Sammy was forgotten.

Then there was Sergeant. Louie a developmentally disabled person with what we callcockeyed eyes. Someone gave him a police badge and he would stand on the corner oSpadina and Dundas, one eye looking around one corner and the other eye the oppositecorner.

At that time, I had a dear friend Alec Biderman who was in the army at Camp Borden. Durthe war years, the enlisted men got liquor rations enabling them to go to the LCBO and Alwent into the store to purchase two bottles. As he left the store, Sergeant. Louie put a fingein his back and said, Put them up I got you covered. Alec dropped the two bottles to thcement.

So much happened on McCaul Street: bootleggers, professional arsonists, hungry kids, tirboring and I once told Sybil, If you werent born on McCaul Street you havent lived. Itthe depression years, everyone suffered, but to me I went on and inadequacies didnt meaanything.

As a youngster I was accident prone. At the early age of two I fell while climbing a fencehad a hernia. At 12, I had an appendectomy. I was about three when my sister Ida was boilthe laundry on our stove on McCaul Street and I was playing on the floor she tipped thtub and the hot water scalded my left ankle. Today I still have tissue scar. My brother Bowas chopping wood in the back yard and the blade separated from the handle and hit me in


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the head stitches again. Throwing up sticks for chestnuts one stick with a spike in it hmy head stitches again. I was jumping over a low fence and tripped and fell and broke melbow. I was 13 at the time and was destined to be the cadet captain but not with a cast.

At 20 I had a duodenal-ulcer which bothered me a lot and changed my eating habits, buwhen I was drafted into the army, my ulcer helped me out of the army and during the wa years, I made a good living in the textile trade.

I was about 11 years old when I started selling papers on McCaul and College Streets. I saenough money to buy a Planet Bicycle and adopted the corner of McCaul and Dundas tosell papers. To be the first one around to have the final paper, I took my bicycle to The St gathered a bundle of papers and put them on the handlebars and bicycled to McCaul Street

I had a few mishaps on University Avenue when it was icy. There was no salting the roathen. That Christmas, I delivered papers on my route and collected $14 in tips I was ricrich!

My friend Henry Steins sister married Ben Abramowitz and finally they all moved into Henhouse with four of Bens brothers. The Stein and Abramowitz families played four-handcasino and the Abramowitzs were partners and had signals arranged to tell their partneimportant cards in hand one smoked a cigar and two taps on the cigar meant he had the good ten of diamonds. A pull of an ear meant he had an ace. After a while, both families ussignals usually known to the other side.

Ben was out walking with friends and he saw a sign YMCA Yumka he said and his wfamily became Ben Yumka Dave Yumka, Joe Yumka and Pineapple Yumka I cannremember why Pineapple.

I was around 13 and anti-Semitism was high in Toronto. Henry Steins brother Ruby wpitching softball for a team of Jewish boys against a gentile group in the east-end and theraised Hitler flags and said Heil Hitler. some fighting occurred.

The following week, there was a return match of the same two teams to be played at Christi

Pitts. The day of the game, I was with Henry when a flatbed truck pulled up in front Henrys house and all the Jewish tough guys: Spike Tenenbaum, Dave and Baby Yak, TYulmakas, the Starr brothers and many more. They had brass knuckles, pipes, baseball basticks, chains and it looked very threatening. Henry and I got on the truck as they drove Christie Pitts. We all sat at the South side on the hill and Bloor and Christie. The Nazison the hill on the East side.

After the game, they raised the Nazi banners, singing and saluting Heil Hitler. Like a bof rats pursuing food, the Jewish group stormed the hill and started clubbing, kicking an

smashing in the Nazis and calling them dirty bastards. Many tried to escape and I followour gang and they caught one trying to climb over a backyard fence. Our boys clamped hfinger to the fence and started pounding him. It was a beautiful thing to watch.

That night between Bathurst Street and Spadina Ave, on the north side, man after man(goyim) and on the south side all the Jewish boys and in between holding the peace, weToronto Policemen.


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At Orde Street School, I was in the graduation class and we had a substitute teacher one daand she had planned a debate and she chose me to lead one side. After class she asked minto the cloakroom and said, You expressed yourself very well in the debate with a look confidence. I think you should plan on studying law. When the time came, I knew that wimpossible because of financing. My brother Bob was at U of T and we could not afford mofees, so I enlisted into Central Commerce as I was very good in mathematics. I took the fo

year course as the five-year course was if you wanted to be C.A. Max Soberman took thfive-year course and went on to work for $15 a month and then opened his own accountancpractice. Today the firm has 150 employees.

After I graduated from Central Commerce, I went to Bnai Brith Camp to be the camsecretary. It was hard work, a lot of typing and filing and letters to be sent out and my salawas $50 for the season. At least I ate in the dining hall at a table reserved for the camdirector, the doctor and myself. I met some interesting counsellors. Johnny Weingarten whbecame Johnny Wayne of Wayne & Shuster. Then there was Lou Applebaum who was amusician and composer and he spent many years with CBC.

I needed a job when I returned to Toronto and the only thing I found was to be the bookkeepeat Standard Fur Co. for the godly sum of $11 a week. Then, in the very slow fur seasonJanuary, they laid me off.

I was then recommended (as a bookkeeper) to Monarch Woolens Co. and I was interestein every part of the business and when the war broke out, I became their salesman. Thfunny part was they sent me out with samples to sell the customers; but I was not to selanything. By that time, I was earning $35 weekly. With so much time on-hand, I defected ia poolroom, took up the game and was pretty good at it. Our Rabbi said in a sermon, Tplay pool is OK but to excel is a sign of a misspent youth.

I made many connections with the clothing manufacturers, picked up enough stock to sell my tailors; I knew that I could quit Monarch and make more money on my own and thawas the start of Jack Cooper Woolens.

I found two brothers in the tobacco business with an office above the Bank of Nova Scotand College and Bathurst Street. I told everyone my assets are over a million. The brothhad been drafted and agreed to rent me the place until the war was over, or they weredischarged. The government had put them out to sell bonds after the brother bought a lot of bonds themselves, they go an early discharge and I had to move.

I rented a cubby-sized office across from Abe Witkins office at 581 Bloor Street West. I toout all the kitchen fixtures and installed shelves. I had a living room that was 10 x 8 wan opening to an area 10 x 7 in which I put a cot to sleep on and I had two wooden horsand a narrow cutting board placed over my bed on the horses. I knew someone from a largmanufacturer that wanted to dispose of some stock in a black market way. I would gesamples of goods available and take them around to the tailors I knew and get their orderfilled using the same rope and paper as I had received the merchandise.

Ed Mirvish had bought all the property West of Bathurst to Markham Street and asked mto move so he could open Honest Eds. I allowed Ed to expand enabling him to become th great success he enjoyed. I moved into a small apartment over a barbershop on College anGrace Street. I kept my little office on Bloor and made a valuable connection in Montreal


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a man known to all the jobbers and clothing manufacturers. I went to Montreal four to sitimes a year and paid cash and he sent me $2,000 to $3,000 of merchandise and the profitstarted to add up, much of it saved as I had very little expenses.

While on Bloor Street I bought a used car for $600. The next few years I spent three timas much fixing it.

At that time I was 6 tall and weighed 135-lbs. I would go out Friday night to St. Andrews on College Street and drink a number of pints of beer trying to put on the weight. My latfriend Barney at that time called me, Jake the Rake. During the war years, there were plenof single girls around and evenings I was busy dating. At no time was I serious as I would until I could afford it.

Then my friend Jerry and I went to Sunnyside Pool and sat in the sand and noticed a taslim beautiful girl on the next blanket. I turned to Jerry and said, This is for me. I wover and talked to her for quite a while and found out her name was Irene Binstock and w

dated. I found her so appealing that I asked her to marry me and she accepted. We planneda September wedding at the McCaul Street Synagogue. Then her father who was a pressefound out he had TB. He was to be sent to Hamilton Sanitorium on the mountain. We moveup our wedding date to June 20th and luckily, my sister Belle offered her beautiful home an garden for the event. It was a great affair and a huge success.

My brother Alec had returned from Okinawa in the Pacific, as he had been drafted into tharmy while living in New York. I offered him a partnership in my business and found a smmanufacturer with a second story factory on Queen Street just east of Spadina. They hada showroom which they allowed me to use and they trained Alec in measuring and fittincustom-made clothes. We registered the name Cooper Clothes and Alec looked after thisand I concentrated on the woolens.

We put out circulars to the U of T and I had a friend who wrote some witty small ads wpublished in the Toronto papers. We soon had a good following with some success. We haa few of the Argos football team as customers. In their program in the shape of a footbalour ad said Argo cant kick about the suits they have made at Cooper Clothes. It was a fpage ad next to the lineup program. After a while we gave up the clothing business as oncustomer complained we were stealing their business.

I then thought it was time to start buying directly from the mills in England. I had built u good reputation with all my suppliers. I paid my bills promptly, my word was always honouso that when I told the local agents I was going to the mills around Bradford, I was receivwith a dignified reception. When I first went on my own, I had no money or financing. I wto my dad who took me to his bank at Dundas and McCaul where he signed a loan to me fo$1,000 payable in a few weeks. I promptly repaid the loan and borrowed another thousanand now had $1,300 to work with.

In London, I stayed at the Savoy Hotel with my brother in-law Joseph Poslums. We visisome of our relatives there and the rest of the week, we could not drive to the mills as theworst pea-soup fog in many years settled in and you could not see ahead of you. I then hirea car and driver to visit Leeds and Bradford area where the mills I wanted to see were locateI was warmly welcomed by the mill owners, so I quickly established good connections thI visited one mill on the side of a hill with a number of chicken coops and just after the w


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years an egg was a luxury. I asked the owner and he had a bag of eggs put in my car and thevery morning the maitred at the Queens hotel in Leeds welcomed me for breakfast anasked How do you want your eggs done today?

We crossed the Atlantic first class on the Queen Elizabeth, which then was the largest shin the world. Probably the size of 3 football fields. Dinner every night was formal and I made a tuxedo for the trip. It was a stormy crossing and after dinner there was dancing ansuddenly you would see all the couples on one side of the boat and minutes later they weron the other side. I had ordered a special steak dinner and all the time the boat was rockinfrom 20 to 30 foot waves (even with stabilizers) and suddenly at the dance, I knew I was goto throw-up.

I started for my cabin and made it to the elevator but knew I couldnt make it to my cabinLuckily nobody was around, so I started to fertilize the large palm plant ahead of me. I thwent to my cabin, washed and rinsed up and returned to the Ballroom and Joe Poslums wain the same seat, unperturbed. The trip didnt bother him.

London was fogged in so we landed in Hern at the RAF station in Southern England. We thwent to London by train which had stopped near a hotel and when we stepped off the trainwe were told to hold hands and proceed to the hotel for the night. There was no visibility Actually, I landed in England on my 1st wedding anniversary.

Returning to the Savoy Hotel, since we did not pay for our suite in advance, our rooms habeen rented out and they finally found us a small room and Joe and I slept in a single beWe left England by ship to New York and then to Toronto.

Alec and his wife Margaret picked me up and I noticed he was not driving the correct way our home on College Street. I then heard Margaret whisper to Alec, Drive faster so he woknow how far it is. We pulled up to a small bungalow on Shelbourne, just South of Lawren Avenue, and he said, I bought this bungalow and the one next door and it is your if you wait. It was very small. The street had open culverts but I agreed to live there.

My brother Bob had returned from the Air Force during World War II and although he wasskilled optometrist, he took advantage of the government offer of a four-year course in thefield of medicine at McGill University in Montreal. At his graduation, I drove to Montreal my sisters Kate and Belle. I took my samples with me and spent a day visiting a few tailknew or had been recommended to me and found I could do good business with the Montreatailors. In those days, everyone had a made-to-measure suit as few stores stocked readmade and they had no variety in fabrics. I then hired a salesman for Quebec but the big salcame when I went to Montreal and then later to the Eastern Townships of DrummondvilleSherbrooke, and St. Hyacinth. 40% of my business came from Quebec.

I also made trips in the spring and fall to Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver aI travelled to Hamilton and locally all over Toronto and was responsible for the growth Jack Cooper Woollens. I had a good, honest reputation and the banks would support meregularly.

Janey and David were born on Shelbourne. I was 34 in 1953 with two small children aMichael on the way and we decided our two-room bungalow was too small for us. Aleand I found a builder who owned some empty lots on Briar Hill which was the last northe


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street of Forest Hill Village. We wanted that location for the education of our kids and thowner of the plots said he could build each of us a 4-bedroom house; and because theywere next to each other, he could save us money and built them for $31,000 each. At thtime the maximum mortgage available was $15,000 and with the proceeds from the saof Shelbourne and some reserves, $30,000 was the maximum we could spend. The buildsaid he could only meet this price by making the house 6 smaller in length and width a

he explained 2 would come off the dining room, 2 off the hall and 2 off the living roomand we did just that.

Today, everyone is anxious to add on more storage space, more bedrooms, extend the kitcheadd a swimming pool times have sure changed and so have we. An interesting thing wour builder, Charlie Demiles would not give us a contract for the house he said he woubuild it to our specifications, but nothing in writing.

He took a year to build both houses, made many daily changes to our needs and by the timthe homes were finished, building costs were up. The land had doubled in value. But he wa man of honour and only asked for the original price, when Alec and I expected him to afor much more and we were prepared to pay it. So we had our homes on a street developingto very nice homes.

On Briar Hill I learned my gardening skills which has always been a source of relaxationpleasure for me. We did not want a fence between our houses, so we had a huge back yardWe had a Japanese gardener, Mr. Matsuri and I would drive around to various gardens anparks and take a few flowers and plan with Mr. Matsuri, after he bought them, where h

should plant these flowers. I planted shrubs, trees, flower beds and it really turned out nichad one trouble with a cherry tree I had planted. When the cherries were about to ripen, onnight a flock of birds descended on my cherry tree and left only the pits. The following ye got a huge net put over the tree but it turned out on a windy day there was a huge openingat the top. Again, the birds stripped my tree. I was then told to tie open tin cans with smapebbles and tin foil inside; this caused a rattling and kept the flock of birds away. We enjoysome cherries that year.

My children were attending West Prep, just a few blocks away and then Forest Hill Collegiand we were a happy family when at 38, I took up golf. To get on a public course was vedifficult and on week-ends we played St. Andrews Golf Course. My good friend and couNorman Cowan had a friend Leon Pape who was president of an investment group who habought St. Andrews for development. I called Leon and he told me to call the starter anvisit him and give him $10.00, use his name and we were promised a starting time week-eof 8 am.

I had just purchased a set of golf clubs 5,7, 9 irons, driver, 3-wood and putter. The only othassociation with golf; I was in public school when a firm called Tiny Tim Miniature GolCollege and Huron Street went broke. On passing the place I noticed all the equipmen gimmicks that were left there unguarded. I called my friend Jerry Solnek who had a wagand we made a good number of trips and loaded spikes with hole numbers, a few puttersold golf balls and we even took the synthetic grass cover for the balls to roll on. I then dug the whole back yard and began planning and arranging a 9-hole miniature golf course widifferent hazards. I got an old tire and cut it and nailed it to the ground so a ball would ente

spin around and come out somewhere near the holes. I cut out a small opening in a woo


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slat, and you had to hit the ball through these openings. When this was finished, with layof green grass on each hole and the stakes with the hole numbers I had build my coursI charged a penny or two to play but mostly I played it myself and putted for hours anbecame a good putter.

When I started to play St. Andrews I was very good with my irons and putting. I did nhave good control of my driver. Max Soberman and I went to DeHaviland Driving Range Dufferin Street and we took lessons. Max got the good teaching pro I was hoping to get anI got his assistant, Moe Norman ,who later won the Canadian Championship and many smtournaments. He always carried a set of clubs in his old car and drove around until he founa tournament he could register in and usually win for a prize of $200. Fred Couples, a grePGA member, after seeing him hit balls on a range said, Moe is the best striker of a ball I hever seen. He stood with his feet too wide apart, bent at the knees, his rear end jutting ouand with a driver hit the ball consistently 280 yards and if you stood out there with a buck you could catch every ball without moving too far.

Anyway, as a teacher he was not very good. He talked like Mortimer Snerd, very nasal asaid to me, youre bunting the ball, let me show you how its done. He then hit the whopail of balls, lesson finished and I was not told or learned anything.

One summer, I took Irene to the Catskills in NY and we had an afternoon with the golf prHe drew a large circle and from about 130-140 yards away asked us to try and hit in the circI did this a number of times and some shots landed in the circle. He then approached me ansaid if I became serious I could be a golf pro. He then asked me to hit a driver and each b

went on a different direction and he come over to me and said, youll need lessons. Another time, we went to Seabring, Florida and stayed at a golf course built between rowof oranges, grapefruits and lemon trees. If you drove off the fairway, you were behind a treor in the sand around the trees. Taking a penalty, you threw your ball into the fairway... I dplenty of that.

But they had a putting contest which I entered and there were 18-holes. I made some puttbut always left the next putt beside the hole. Another man and I had an 18-hole play-off anI won the championship. He then told me he was a 1-handicap and would I like to play whim and I quickly excused myself. That night at the dance after dinner, they presented mwith a large tin trophy.

When I returned to Toronto, I joined the George Clifton School of Golf which was in building on Wellington and York Street where thy had put up a driving range, chipping arand putting service. George was an excellent teacher and was truly wonderful in the sho game. We practiced at a wooden pillar and had to hit the ball stiff armed with a low follothrough and make chip marks on the pillar.

Now when I played the regular course, I could not get onto the green on long par fours sowas always chipping and putting to score.

I played in a Beth Tzedec golf tournament at Glen Shields; never played there before bushot 81 to win the tournament. The following year I defended the same tournament andwon it again. The temperature that day was 95 degrees and my partner, Dutchie Ginsbergwas soaking wet and since my home was air conditioned, I offered him a shower at my pla

I won the Bnai Brith tournaments the following year at Richmond Hill, where I was pa


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with the best player there. I was up 3 strokes after 9 holes but we were tied going into th18th hole; a 585 par five with a very elevated green and a pond about 60 yards in frontdrove down the centre and my opponent hooked his shot and laid up with an iron and wasstill about 240 yards from the green. He took out his 3-wood and to my amazement hit the green on the fly and rolled to the back of the green. I laid up with a good three wood anmy wedge also went to the back of the green which was downhill and sloping right to le

I was away and had about 30 feet putter and I made it, my opponent 3-putted and I wonthe tournament. A few years later at the Board of Trade, this former opponent won thetournament and I finished second. I must admit, the caliber of the Bnai Brith player was too good. However, even though I was a relatively short hitter, I could play alongside sosmashers and do well.

In the fall and during the winter I bowled in a Bnai Brith league, first 5-pin and thenpin. I was an average bowler but I became president of Toronto Bnai Brith bowling aattended tournaments in Ottawa, Montreal and Windsor and national BB tournaments inBuffalo, Syracuse and Detroit. I excelled in tournament bowling and we all had handicaps;I managed to win a few trophies.

Two of my three children were now in High School after their bar and bat mitzvahs. Janiewas at Beth Tzedec and took place a day after a fire in the building. 100 workers were brougin to wash the seats, floors, walls etc. but there remained a distinct smoldering smell. Despthis, I can proudly say that Janies reading of the Torah was the best I had ever heard.

We then had trouble with my son Davids Bar Mitzvah. Richard, his cousin, lived next doorhoped to have both boys at Beth Tzedec. The board ruled against that and Alecs synagoguBeth Shalom agreed to the double bar mitzvahs. I did not want guests coming in one weeand then again weeks later for another Bar Mitzvah; so the final arrangements worked ouwell.

Our business was running at a steady pace and Alec and I decided it was time to inve

mainly in real estate. We started a firm called Aljac Investments and bought small industbuildings with 10-year leases and 10-year mortgages, with a return of 8 to 10%., but at tend of 10-years, you had a paid up building. Our lawyer Jack Friedman asked Alec and join him, his brother in-law Eric Exton, my cousin Norman Cowan and one other partner awe became Champion Investments. At first we were in the mortgage financing but later wstarted to buy properties.

Every summer we had a special meeting in New York, San Francisco, Big Sur, The BriaLake Simcoe, the Deerhurst and Huntsville and the Montibello near Ottawa which wasretreat for the Ottawa parliament people. On all these trips ,which I arranged, I was thsnack, goodies and liquor provider and the evening parties were set up in my suite.

When my brother was 70, he was eight years my senior and wanted to retire, sell our busineand investments which were good. We finally sold the building and woollens business aChampion was wound down. Then at 62, I had an early retirement just when we were makinbetter money buying woollens from China.

I was not ready to retire so I approached my son Michael to take over the business.


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I would stay on and finance him, help him with the buying and selling and he wold mak good living but he refused saying he wanted to be a photographer like his brother David.

When I was 49 years old in 1968, my dear wife Irene had experienced a year of depressiwhich led to her suicide. I was now alone had to take care of three teenagers and spenmore time at home. I went to services at Beth Tzedec twice a day for 11 months. I was a veunhappy person but I did learn to daven and lead services many times.

I began dating a year later and fortunately I found Sybil Kalles, who had lost her husband to an unfortunate accident at Oakdale Golf Course. We hit it off very well and soon Sybbecame number one and I dropped all my other lady friends and we were married in 197Sybil had a nice home on Whitmore which she sold and I sold my Briar hill home and togetwe bought a large home with 5 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms on Ridelle Avenue. Now we ha8 adults living together, children not adjusted to another family and there were hardship

But our marriage worked out well and Sybil was strong and capable enough to look aftecooking, shopping and integration of the two families. Today we have ten fine grandchildr

We spent our vacation in Florida where Sybils parent went each winter. Sybil had a girlfriRuth with a sick husband who had to leave Torontos cold winters and drive to Arizona. Thwere very lonesome there and Ruth called and invited us to come to Phoenix and stay witthem in their home on an executive golf course. We agreed to visit them and she said to mebring your sticks I have someone you can play with.

Sybil and I enjoyed two weeks of continuous blue skies, perfect 80 to 85-degree weather ansaid, Ruthie, find me a place for next year because this place is heaven. We spent 21 winin Phoenix in different apartments at the Cloisters and we loved the place.

When Sybils brother, Elliott a cardiologist from Philadelphia, and his wife Sylvia visited, travelled all over the South West. Elliott driving and I planning trips to Sedona, a beautiful rcountry, The Grand Canyon, The Painted Desert, Lake Powell, Monument Valley, Canyon Chelly, The Petrified Forest, Santa Fe New Mexico and in Utah Zion National Park wh you are at the bottom of mountains looking up. Bryce Canyon where you are on the top othe mountains looking down on the most amazing rock formations with fascinating colour All these places provided breath-taking views and we visited canyons in New Mexico aColorado. These were beautiful sites I will always remember. I can state we enjoyed 22 yeof wonderful life, except twice for health problems; and nearly always perfect weather wilots of golf and swimming.

Golf in Phoenix was cheap at the public course if you were a registered citizen of Arizoand costly otherwise. One of my friends knew all the angles and he told me to go to a polistation and register my address and I got a card. I took the card to the library and registereas a Phoenix resident and using their card, I could play all the public courses at a very chrate. The only problem was that I had to be at the course by 7:30 am in order to get a gamas after 8 am, all times were booked by people who lined up 4 - 5 am to register to play thday, went home and came back for their starting time. Weekends were impossible to play, I went regularly Monday, Wednesday and Friday. One day I played at 7:30 with three othPhoenix residents. They asked if I would like to play with them again as they could get 7starting times. I quickly agreed and LeRoy, a retired auto worker from Detroit hired to fix


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the golf carts, put our names down for the days I would play and I had it made!

At our swimming pool I became friends with Tommy Fricarra, a retired engineer, divorcliving alone and later he became my golf partner. He got us a game at the Phoenix countrclub was a retired member but friendly with the golf pro. It did not cost us anything tplay but I took the pro a nice gift. Tommy and I attended the Phoenix Open and a number oother tournaments and I had a new buddy. Tommy later became involved with a local womastarted to really dress up and got married on Valentines Day, February 14th. Unfortunatelymonths later on mothers day, his wife divorced him.

My friend Max Soberman had spent a winter in Palm Springs and he liked it and booked winter vacation there for many years. We visited him and after dinner, he rushed us into thden and taught us the new card game he had learned. It was called, Kalooky. From thon, we played Kalooky for years with different partners. Back in Toronto, we decided to taBridge lessons which still today we play every Monday in our building.

Sybil and I had been living for 22 years on Sylvan Avenue off Avenue Road, vacationin Arizona each winter. In the year 2000, I needed a by-pass and had surgery at the Arizona heaInstitute. I had just turned 80. When I returned to Toronto, we realized the constant use ofsteps wasnt good for either of us, so we sold the townhouse and we bought an apartmenton Yonge Street Governors Hill and we enjoyed the comfort and incentives of apartmenliving the gym, the pool, the library and an elevator made life easy.

Sybil was always an avid reader and I began to read regularly and often. We enjoyed CNnews and a few other TV programs and we kept busy. Sybil and I did a lot of travelling. Trto England, France, Holland, Israel, Spain the Far-East, Hong Kong, Japan, Taipei, ThaHonolulu, all of Western Canada and many places in the U.S. They were all pleasurable tand left good memories.

In 2007, two days before I was to go to Florida with my friend Morley Klayman, I slippethe shower reaching out for a towel, fractured my back and our Florida trip was cancelleFor three weeks I could not get out of bed and then Michael brought me a walker and fo

four months I had physiotherapy 3 times a week. I had to miss the full 2008 golf seasoLater Jane said I should try acupuncture, which I did for three months and now I am back physiotherapy. My back still bothered me and I hope to be able to play golf in Florida in 20

Sybil is now 80, I turn 90 in May 2009 and my children promised me a big celebration.

The past two years have been very sad for me I lost my brother Dr. Bob, Dave and my sistKate just after she celebrated her 101st birthday. Most of my dear friends are gone. I ha

had a lifetime of very good friends: Alec Biderman, Max Soberman, Jerry Solnek, ConDominica, Barney Berenbaum, Joe Strashin, George Shear but unfortunately they have passed away, except Jerry who lives in Florida and I do miss them.

I may not be as active as I used to be. Jane told me I was hyper, my grandchildren calledSpeedy Gonzales, but thank G-d I still get around very well. My mind is sound, my memvery good, but I have slowed down in many ways and Sybil and I can only pray we have so good happy and healthy years ahead of us and nachas from our children.


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I must tell you about my three children. Janie, the eldest was born 2 months early. Shweighed just 4.5 Ibs, but her early arrival made her birth on May 31st a true Cooper I wborn May 2nd, Bob May 2, David May 3 and Alec May 20th. Janie was very artistic so I her to Sienna, Italy to study art. She returned to Toronto and studied to be a teacher. Shethen became a vice-principal and later principal. She then went to Etobicoke to be supervisiprincipal for 18 different schools. I paid for her to be a member of the Board of Trade an

now she is an avid golfer, retired from teaching but filling in as a sub for a teacher or princiJane has two sons: Mark who graduated from the University at the Lakehead and is now a Aish ha-Torah in Israel and Andrew who wants to be a top chef.

David enrolled at University of Toronto to be an architect. After two years, he was flounderiin the course and his teacher suggested he take a year off. He went to Vancouver and got a job in the camera department at a London drugstore. He later saw an ad: Vancouver theatreneeds a photographer, paying $150/week. On one of my later visits to Vancouver, I encouraghim to work part time for the Vancouver Theatre, but pick up other commissions whichworked out very well for him. He married Wendy Garling who had studied Mime in Franand is now teaching it at school. She later became an actress, a drama teacher and they hava beautiful daughter, Emily who studied photography at Sheridan College in Ontario wheshe won scholarships all the time. Today she assists her dad and has showings of her owwork. David is a leading ballet photographer he travels a lot, working in Toronto, VancouSeattle, Portland and for many years has been the photographer for the Shaw Festival. Hwork is greatly admired.

Michael went to Northern Vocational school and studied photography. Today he has hiown studio, shoots the Canadian Opera Company, does theatre and business photographyMichael is 64 has a daughter Jessica 6 tall who continues to study herbology. His youndaughter Nicole is very interested and talented in art and presently she is attending NovScotia School of Art & Design.

From my three children, Jane, David and Michael I have five grandchildren and I wouldthem included in my memoirs.

Mark, my first grandchild was a very loving and devoted child. He always was very handsosuper intelligent and grew into a tall, handsome youngster. He had a great singing voice awas in the Temple choir and then at camp was the star in all the musical plays they produceMark had a good education at Forest Hill Collegiate and then at the Lakehead in Thunder BHe later tried different positions but his heart and mind did not respond to any of them. Las year he took a trip to Israel and studied at Aish ha-Torah and soon found his ambition tbe a teacher and rabbi. Mark has a brilliant mind that will help in his future studies to absoand acknowledge his studies in Hebrew ethics, Torah and teaching.

Andrew, Marks younger brother is the happy carefree one in the family, always smiling a joking and accepts everything in life as a gift. In high school he stated he wanted to be a chstudy in Europe and then go into business in Toronto. He studied at George Brown Collegin Toronto and presently works for the restaurant Scaramouche in Toronto.

Emily, Davids only child was born and raised in Vancouver, where her father is a very succetheatrical photographer. Emily was a super student, always very active and played soccer wtop teams, studied and practiced piano and later gave piano lessons. After assisting her fathin his work, she became interested in photography. She won a scholarship to Sheridan Colle

and was the top student each year. She now works and travels with her dad as he work


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across the continent. Emily went to Santa Fe for a special photography lecture and now hhad some very special showing of her work at exhibits in Toronto and Vancouver.

Jessica, Michaels first daughter grew to be a tall, young lady which came naturally from a father and 6 mother. She is a very loving and caring person and has done a lot of travellingCanada. She has lived with friends in Montreal, and Vancouver and now settled in VancouvIsland and is studying herbology.

Nicole, Jessicas younger sister has grown to a tall, beautiful and artistically talented arShe is now attending an art school on the East coast and when she graduates she wants tobecome an art teacher. Jessica and Nicole were wonderful grandchildren and we had man good times together.

THWO Als Stories My Story Jack Cooper

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Transcript of THWO Als Stories My Story Jack Cooper