HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2017-08-24, Page 12PAGE 12. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, AUGUST 24, 2017.
Daughter writing book on life of Jack Lee
A life well lived
Jack Lee, who passed away in 2013, was well known in the
communities of Blyth and Londesborough for his
commitment to youth sports and hockey refereeing, which
he often did for free for the right cause. Now, his daughter
Beverley is capturing his life story in a new book she's
working on. (Photo submitted)
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
Beverley Lee, the daughter of Jack
and Helen Lee, is in the process of
writing a book about her late father.
Jack, who was recently honoured
as a community builder by the
Western Ontario Athletic
Association (WOAA), was a well-
known figure in the Blyth and
Londesborough communities before
he passed away in 2013.
Jack was known primarily for his
work in local baseball and hockey,
specifically his decades of
refereeing Blyth hockey, much of it
in charity tournaments for which he
insisted on no payment.
Beverley is no stranger to
documenting the stories of her
family members, as she wrote a
book on the life of her mother Helen
a number of years ago and circulated
it to friends and family members.
However, before she knew it, a
number of people in the community
ended up with a copy. She has since
uploaded it digitally to the internet
so anyone can read through it.
She began work on Jack's book
while he was still alive, which was
special for Beverley, as her father
was able to see some of the early
drafts before he passed away. The
process has been interesting, she
said, because Jack never wanted
attention or the spotlight and simply
lived his life the way he thought was
right, not to earn accolades in the
community.
Beverley had to stop writing the
book for a while after her father
passed away, saying that tackling the
subject was simply too difficult for
her. However, the recent WOAA
honours have reinvigorated her and
she has returned to the project in
recent months.
Lee was honoured at the
organization's 75th Diamond Jubi-
lee Anniversary Banquet held in
Wingham last month. He was
nominated by the Blyth Lions Club,
specifically memvers Ryan Lee,
Chris Lee and John, Ken and Barney
Stewart, all of Blyth.
The Lions Club detailed a number
of Lee's achievements in its
nomination, including his work with
area hockey referees for an annual
Lions -sponsored hockey tourna-
ment.
"For 35 years the Lions Club
hosted the Blyth Little Lion Novice
Hockey Tournament. Jack Lee
scheduled the referees for this
annual tournament," the nomination
read. "He volunteered his time to
referee numerous games throughout
the tournament each year and never
requested or accepted payment for
any of those games."
Beyond the Lions tournament, Lee
was well known as the man in
charge of hockey refereeing in Blyth
for decades.
Lee held the position of referee -in -
chief for the Blyth Minor Hockey
Association for a number of years,
scheduling all referees for all Blyth
games during that time.
"He recruited and encouraged
many young athletes to take up
refereeing. He provided training for
these new referees both on -ice and
off -ice. He was always there to assist
new referees throughout difficult
situations," the nomination read. "As
new rules were introduced, he would
attend team practice sessions to
explain rule changes and outline
situations where penalties were
warranted"
The Lions Club nomination also
said that Lee played both hockey and
softball in the Blyth and
Londesborough areas for a number
of years before taking up hockey
refereeing.
In the book, Beverley has worked
on chapters that outline the Lee
family's history, Jack's hockey and
refereeing years, his work in
bowling and the local Masonic
Lodge, community service, his grasp
of technology and his love story with
his wife Helen. She says she hopes
to add to it in the coming months to
include his numerous awards in the
Community Sports Builder
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Honoured
Jack Lee, who passed away in 2013, was recently
honoured in the sports builder category by the Western
Ontario Athletic Association. His family is seen here at the
gala dinner honouring him. From left: Beverley, Chris,
Helen, Ryan and Dave Lee. (Photo submitted)
community for his work over the
years.
Beverley's motivation behind
writing the book, she said, has been
Jack's involvement in the
community, which ran so deep. She
wanted to make sure she told his
story to family members, friends and
those in the community who knew
him well.
She has received help by way of
Facebook recently, with a page
entitled "RIP Jack Lee" where those
who knew Jack have been free to
leave behind stories or experiences
that Beverley hopes to include in the
book. She encourages those who
knew Jack to visit the page and
leave their memories even now as
she continues work on the book.
In addition, she's hoping that
interested community members will
contact her with information, stories
or pictures that can help enrich the
story of her father's life in the book.
Beverley can be reached at 705-818-
2533 or by e-mail at
drbeverleylee@gmail.com.
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