Photo © Barry Peterson

"It was a working class community," S. Thomas Russell says. "Nothing fancy. Six of us lived in a house of about 1000 sq. ft. In my present home we have a walk-in closet bigger than my childhood bedroom. But the window of that little room looked out over Lake Ontario and that view was more valuable than anything. It opened up great vistas. I imagined you could set sail and arrive at the Caribbean or anywhere, for that matter."

"My mother read to us—a lot—and both my parents were readers so I guess my love of books isn't hard to explain. We only received two television stations and there was no movie theatre nearby, so reading was necessary for entertainment."

Favourite books from his childhood include Tom Sawyer ("I read it so many times I can still remember the first few lines."), Huckleberry Finn, and Captains Courageous.

After university Mr. Russell moved to Vancouver, and two years later to Vancouver Island, where he lives presently with his wife Karen and son Brendan, a two minute walk from the seashore.

Mr. Russell cites history as one of his passions, collects old yachting and sailing books, skis, sails and travels. Past interests include caving, rock climbing, hiking, and racing sailboats.