Larry Grummett has some advice for anyone dealing with boredom.
“I always tell anybody that says they’re bored to join a service club or a church and then take part in what’s going on, because you do not need to be bored in this country.”
Grummett, the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award at the seventh annual Minto Community Achievement Awards banquet on April 28, is something of an authority on keeping busy.
During a varied career the Clifford resident has farmed, sold cars, run a gas station and car wash, operated an insurance brokerage and owned a variety store.
He came to the Minto area at age 13, and moved away after attending high school in Harriston, where he met his wife, Elsie. The couple returned to the area in 1962.
Before moving back, he worked from Stratford selling appliances around the province.
“I sold washing machines all the way from Windsor, Niagara Falls and up to Sault Ste. Marie – and I used to deliver them in the back of my car,” said Grummett.
“So when somebody tells you they can’t find work, send them to me. I’ll tell them a job or two they can do.”
Through it all, Grummett found time to be an active community volunteer and a prominent member of the Clifford Rotary Club. He is a past assistant district governor and has received multiple Paul Harris Fellowships, the organization’s highest honour.
Locally, restoration of the covered bridge in Clifford, beautification of the Clifford cenotaph and grounds, and the Clifford Rotary Park pavilion and washrooms are a few of the projects he has been involved with.
Grummett sold his insurance business in 1995, but remains an active volunteer in the community.
“I’ve been retired for 22 years and I think the only time I was out of work was when I was in the hospital,” he quipped.
A total of eight awards were given out during the evening, hosted by the Minto Chamber of Commerce at the Harriston Legion.
The OSIM Business Community Service Award went to Grants Service Centre of Palmerston. Also nominated for the award were Brenmar Transit in Harriston and the Redwood Restaurant in Clifford.
The McLaughlin Financial Group Community Event Award went to the Palmerston and District Hospital Gala, which has raised more than $2.2 million for hospital enhancements over the past 15 years. Also nominated were Crossroads Church in Harriston for the annual community Canada Day celebration and the Great Lakes Truck Show, held annually in Clifford.
The Wightman Telecom Business Innovation Award went to AG Business and Crop Inc. The business, which recently moved to the Palmerston Industrial Park, offers strategic crop advice, technological support, including drone adaptations, and business planning for the agricultural industry.
The Harriston Home Hardware Outstanding Organization Award for non-profit organization went to the Canadian Diabetes Association’s Harriston branch. Also nominated were the Blair Masonic Lodge in Palmerston and the Grey Wellington Theatre Guild.
For the 2016 ceremony, the chamber created three additional awards to recognize businesses, organizations or individuals who have done something unique in terms of community betterment.
These awards were presented to:
– Triton Engineering and Moorefield Excavating for their involvement in the “We’re Diggin’ It” campaign to minimize disruption to businesses during last summer’s main street reconstruction project;
– the Palmerston Lions Club for renovation of the CNRA Clubhouse; and
– Minto Minor Hockey, created through an amalgamation of the Harriston and Palmerston minor hockey associations in 1989, for its efforts to develop teamwork, Sportsmanship, work ethic and respectful relationships with peers in a nurturing, fun environment.
