Cape Breton's Magazine

Bishop John R. MacDonald at an ordination of priests We built an addition onto this building. (Onto the house that you were living in.) And we started our portrait studio right- there. And we also put in a photofinishing lab, where we would develop your films--at a retail store. We had competition from-- locally, Myers were doing it. And Kelly's did it. Wheeler did a little bit of it. But at the time that we came back from the war, these gentlemen were well advanced in age. And they had nobody to succeed them in their business. And they either sold it or they just sort of closed up. We were all single. We all lived here. All of our family, except one sister (that) was married. But we all lived here. Moth? er, father, 7 brothers, 4 sisters. The girls would participate (in the business), and the (other) boys, too, would par? ticipate, at times. And I had one sister that came to work with me permanently after she got married. That's Mrs. Annie Hashem. But she worked for us from about 1951 until about 3 years ago. Although she wasn't a partner, she just about ran everything for us. Fr. (Frank) Abbass worked with us in his vacation times. And he was a real good photogra? pher. He and Tony. This is how they really, shall we say, de? veloped their experience and their expertise as photogra? phers. Tony did all the photo? graphs for the yearbook at Sydney Academy, from the time Grade 10 till he graduated. And "We will give Life Insurance to anyone age 1 to 80. No one turned down. No Health Questions asked." Druker Insurance 363 Charlotte Street, Sydney, N.S. B1P 6J1 562-5504 Call Toll Free In NS & PEI 1-800-661-3500 '00, Budget Plan Available he was in Fr. Abbass did the same thing. I mean, we had no formal education as pho? tographers. It cost us a lot to learn pho? tography, because we made a lot of mis? takes. We had a lot of spoiled film. We had a lot of spoiled portraits. And that cost us in materials and so on to learn this trade. But anyway, we started in 1946. We started to do a lot of photographs for the Herald. And we were also selling pictures to the Cape Breton Post. The Cape Breton Post in 1951, I think, asked me if I wanted to do all their photographs. Because a lot of newspapers at that time were doing away with staff photographers. And they were jobbing out all their news photographs. So, we made a deal with them to provide them with all their photographs. We'd be on call to them. If their reporter called at half past 2 in the afternoon or half past 2 in the morning--24 hours a day, we'd provide the service. And they would pay for that service. We were on a retainer. We had to provide them with so many photographs. We weren't obliged to supply them with any given number, but once we went beyond a given number, then they paid us extra. I.G.Tax Services Quality Tax Preparation • Fast and courteous service • Special rates for seniors • Year round tax service 350 Charlotte Street Sydney, Nova Scotia 564-8800 GILLIS 'Kmiecare I BUILDING CENTREl Sji>ec/a'z//(' in House, Pacia'es Sc tU na/'d-To-rmd mrnwrn. THAT NEW HOME CALL US FOR AN ESTIMATE FLOOR & ROOF TRUSSES located behind Foodtown IGA Kings Road & Lewis Drive f'QO HTOQ KINGS ROAD OOi7"U/00 SYDNEY RIVER