Longtime resident and Acton community-booster Jack Carpenter passed away on Jan 5. He died peacefully at home with his wife Joyce at his side, in the same Elizabeth Street bungalow that the two had called home since 1957.
Carpenter was a legendary figure of sorts, known for a myriad of efforts over the years to raise the profile of the town of Acton. He worked as a radio and television broadcaster and reporter for stations in Kitchener and Guelph. His “Music Hall” variety program on CFCA-FM ran on Sunday evenings for 26 years.
Acton Mayor Russ Miller, left, compares beaks with Jack Carpenter. Toronto Star Photograph Archive, Courtesy of Toronto Public Library
He was perhaps best known as an indefatigable organizer of many charitable and civic events over the decades. Jack and his wife Joyce were instrumental in getting the Round Up festival started in 1965. This was a popular western-style musical event that was held in the old arena at Prospect Park during the 1960s.
Carpenter is also credited with designing the Acton flag in 1972. The story goes that he was having coffee one afternoon with neighbour and Acton Free Press editor Hartley Coles. They were looking at an Ontario road map and trying to come up with a concept for the banner.
Carpenter made some slits in the map and pushed the adjacent cities together. The magic happened when the equidistant circles over-lapped and formed a trillium (Ontario's flower) right where Acton was located in the centre of the map. To complete the figure, a stream of green and white bunting was added to the borders of the trillium, representing the escarpment and its seasons. “It worked out as a design. I got a lot of pleasure out of building it.” said Carpenter.
In 1974, while he was a reporter for CKCO-TV in Kitchener, he spearheaded a campaign by the Acton Centennial Committee that tried to bring the Grey Cup game to Prospect Park. The effort reached the ear of CFL commissioner Jake Gaudaur and a delegation was received in the league's Montreal offices. Unfortunately the bid was eventually rejected because of a proposed television blackout, but the media and public had great fun with the idea that the Grey Cup might be coming to Acton.
There was also the time Carpenter helped get North York mayor Mel Lastman arrested for besmirching the good name of Acton. Former mayor Rick Bonnette was serving as Regional Councillor at the time and describes what happened:
“Back in the 80’s there was no Sunday shopping. Places like the Eaton Centre and the Olde Hide House were designated tourist destinations and were allowed to open on Sundays. Mel Lastman was a bit of a media star in those days and he wanted to get North York designated as well. He was quoted in the Toronto Star saying that North York is more of a tourist area than Acton.
“So Jack went to work. He drafted a letter inviting Mel to come to Acton and experience the community himself. The mayor of the day wouldn’t sign it, and many thought it was a mockery to Acton. But I signed it along with Jack, Ted Tyler and Steve Dawkins, along with four others.
“Mayor Lastman accepted. With Jack’s media connections he sent out a bulletin that Mayor Lastman will be arrested when he arrives in town for using language “unbeknown to Acton Citizens”. This was big news at the time and was reported on CFRB 1010 radio and a multitude of other stations.
“So on that Saturday morning, Mel arrived at the railroad tracks holding the reins of a horse and wagon. I am sure Jack arranged this behind-the-scenes. Lastman was escorted to the Acton Town Hall where I read a proclamation that he would be arrested. Then the Halton Regional Police put the hand cuffs on him. There were probably 250 citizens at the town hall during the arrest.
“Lastman was put on a school bus and taken to Prospect Park where he fed the geese. He then stopped at the Acton IGA where he had a hot dog from a charity group barbecuing outside. After touring Acton, he was treated to a lunch at the old Hide House. CTV news, City TV and many media outlets attended.
Steve Dawkins of the Old Hide House said Acton got about $100,000 worth of publicity. Jack was the genius behind the whole thing. He was the funny bone for Acton as he touched many of us with antics and zany ideas over the years.”
In 1992, Carpenter launched the “Lighten Up Canada—Wear a Red Nose” Campaign, which was a tongue-in-cheek effort to get Canadians smiling and laughing during the dreary month of February. The initiative was a success that eventually saw thousands of Canadians and hundreds of Acton residents donning red clown noses.
Residents line the town's main street on Lighten Up Canada Day.Toronto Star Photograph Archive, Courtesy of Toronto Public Library
Carpenter also came up with the concept of the Acton Trunk Sale in 1994. He saw a similar event when visiting his hometown of Wiltshire, England, where he was born in 1926. The Rotary Club-sponsored Trunk Sale remains a popular attraction at the GO station parking lot on Saturdays during the summer months.
Jack Carpenter's community service initiatives have left an impressive legacy. He was a member of the Mason's Walker Lodge in Acton where he served as Worshipful Master and was a past Grand Lodge Officer. In 1995 he was made Acton Citizen of the Year for his many contributions over the decades.
The man wore many hats during his 96 years on earth, among them actor and artist. His cartoon “RR2” appeared in the first issue of the New Tanner in 1998, and did so every week until the Acton paper closed its doors during the pandemic of 2020, 22 years later.
Angela Tyler, editor and publisher of the New Tanner had this to say about Jack Carpenter: “Jack was a part of Acton and he wanted the people of Acton to be an involved community. The stories of Round Up, the Grey Cup bid, to the Trunk Sale and everything between wasn’t about Jack…it was about community. He was the guy with an idea who was always able to get people behind the concept. A guy who was funny, entertaining, caring and wanted people to smile and laugh and enjoy life. Sadly I think he’s the last of that era that I don’t think we’ll ever be privileged to see again.”
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