Canadian Yachting October 2017 - 46

Continued from page 41

From the Ranks Interview - David Ferguson
propeller in the water! It was quite a ride
and David was very glad he had his PFD
on.
When I asked him about his hobbies
he said, "Too many, though usually
one at a time." His interests include
model railroading in the HO scale,
RVing with a fifth wheel trailer, boating in the North Channel of Georgian
Bay and hunting. With this interesting
mixture I inquired about any unusual
talents or interests. David informed
me, "being the least academic in my
family, writing novels would rate as an
unusual talent."
So with that information at hand we
spoke about his writing career. "It all
started on a Commodore 64" and he
realized that if he wanted to be part
of his family's life the writing part of
his life would have to be sidelined
until his two daughters grew up. But
once they were off on their own he

got out his computer again and four
computers later his first novel, Toxic
Waters, was ready to launch at the end
of 2016. Being a Conservation Officer
certainly helped in providing not only
a setting but also many of the characters. David sent me a copy of his novel
which you can read the review of in
this issue's Recent Reads.
David has boated throughout most
of Georgian Bay and is very familiar
with the North Channel's hidden inlets and coves. His current vessel, a 75
hp runabout, can be launched from his
own front yard and "I can be at most of
my favourite North Channel destinations for a picnic and a swim in under
an hour." He has put both his Georgian Bay and his boating knowledge
into his book and it certainly shows.
When I asked David about his thoughts
on CPS-ECP he said "Through no fault
of its own, I think CPS-ECP is going to

be in for some tough times. In an era of
when "me first" so often appears to be
the prevailing attitude, volunteerism has
been fading in almost all of our traditional service organizations. In order to
rekindle the enthusiasm CPS-ECP used
to exude, we need to be thinking outside
of the traditional box. And CPS-ECP
needs to carry on its present excellent
training programs but also come up with
that special something that will catch
the enthusiasm of the next generation
of boaters. While we of great experience
are very smart, and know almost everything, the next generation should not
keep expecting us old, set-in-our-ways
Boomers to have all the answers!"

Continued from page 42

THE PORT HOLE

From the Ranks Interview - Barb Hickson
year we had a laptop on site and could
provide each person with all the contact information for their area. Most of
the people that come are not from the
GTA but from the outside the area. So
this way they get the information they
need and want". Barb felt that this was
a much better procedure to follow than
what was done in the past.
When Barb is not delving into CPSECP matters she likes to nurture her
container gardens and also likes to cycle
but not with a real bicycle. She attends
spinning classes at her local gym. Then
of course there is her passion for reading "almost everything, but not fluff!"
Barb also commented that "what has
started has to be finished", and while on
vacation it usually amounts to a book a
day, so up to fifteen books accompany
her each year to her vacation spot.
When I asked about her boating
travels Barb replied, " My boating
travels have been on Lake Ontario,
Georgian Bay, the Rideau Canal sys46

Canadian Yachting

tem, and bareboat chartering in the
British Virgin Islands. I don't own a
boat but have been very fortunate to
have many friends with boats who have
included me in their plans. This has
included sailboats and power boats",
and no doubt with Barb's enthusiastic
charting ability she is in high demand.
Barb has earned twenty one Merit
Marks in CPS-ECP and I have known
her for much of that time. When
I asked her about her thoughts on
CPS-ECP and the future I was listening carefully. Barb said, " I believe
that CPS-ECP will continue to make
changes to, or add, courses and seminars as needed over time, based on
the needs and wants of students and
members. Many young people and
potential students are not buying big
boats and their focus might well be on
paddle sports. I also think with constantly changing technology and social media that CPS-ECP will adapt
accordingly. The changes to the interOctober 2017

net website at National should also be
extremely well accepted by the members and certainly will help to alleviate some of the frustration felt by the
users of WBAS." As to the situation
the Squadrons find themselves in Barb
commented "I think we will continue
to lose squadrons entirely or have
many more merge with each other
over the next few years. In some cases
this will be out of necessity as there
are just aren't enough new volunteers
to fill the executives. I also think that
many Squadrons will join forces to
run their training programs together."
So I can see that both the North
York Squadron and the York East District will be delighted to have Barb
aboard for the next few years, carefully charting both the direction of the
public image and the course offerings
of CPS-ECP and the needs of the Canadian boating public.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Canadian Yachting October 2017