My father Percy John Terence Best was born on January 23, 1930 at Oxbow, Saskatchewan. My mother Lorna Revilla Best (nee: Howard) was born on February 19, 1934 at Frenchman Butte, Saskatchewan. They were married at Frenchman Butte, Sask. by Reverend Elwood McLean on June 10, 1952 in the log church that used to stand across the street from Buchta's General Store. To this union, four boys were born, Ezra Larry, born on March 24, 1953 and died on April 24, 1953 and is buried at Mervin, Saskatchewan. Terry Ronald was born on May 17, 1954, Patrick Kelly was born on December 9, 1956 and Jonathon Percy Robin was born on March 8, 1972.

We lived in a number of places in Saskatchewan, like Glen Ewen, Midale, Macoon, Livelong and Pierceland, before settling down in Alberta, when we moved there in 1961.

We first stayed with my great grandfather, Robert Alexander Howse, near Islay. We lived with him for a month or so until dad found a job working for Frank Fox, owner of Nupar Stock Farm. It was here that I started school; Terry was already in grade two. Terry had started his schooling at Glen Ewen but halfway through his grade two, was when we moved to Alberta, so for that he was held back one year. Terry and I started to go to Sunday school at the Grace United Church in Islay. Every Sunday morning Mrs. Vera Anson and her daughter, Iris, would pick us up and onto church we'd all go. There were a few times on our way back from church that we'd all be talking and Vera would forget to stop and drive past our drive way, so she'd have to back up and stop. We'd all lost track on how many times she'd done this.

Dad worked for Frank Fox for a couple of years, and then he went to work for Lyle Anson, Vera's husband. We were to move just a few miles south of the Nupar Stock Farm. We first lived in the old Anson house which seemed awfully huge to us two small boys. Dad usually walked to Anson's to work for it was only a half mile away, it was okay in the summer but a might chilly in the winter time. By this time, mom had found work as a waitress at the Hub Cafe in Vermilion.

I remember one of the funniest stories that happened to our family while living at the old place. Some of mom's relatives had come down to visit us, Thelma and Hank Bouchard, Grandmother Howard and two of her brother's, Joe and Tom. It was getting close to supper time, so Uncle Joe decided he'd go and shoot a duck on the slough behind the barn. The funny thing is after he shot the duck, he paid me $1.00 to wade out in the slough to get the duck, then he paid someone else another dollar to clean it and then he paid mom a dollar to cook it for dinner. When it was done, we all tied into it. Well, he sure didn't get his $3.00 worth, little lone get enough for a meal to feed nine people.

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Anson's built themselves a new house, so we were able to move out of the old house and into the one they were moving out of.

Dad worked for Lyle for a couple of years, then in 1966, we moved into the town of Islay and dad decided to work for the oil rigs and by this time mom was working at the hospital in Islay as a housekeeper. The house we moved into was terribly small, compared to the last two houses we had just lived in, this one had only had three rooms.

In the fall of 1966, dad was transferred to Nova Scotia and we sure missed him. He surprised us all by flying home for Christmas that winter. Dad was home until just after New Years and he had to drive one of his workers cars back. Terry and I were in grade six and five. Some of our friend's were Stewie and Sissie (Lucille) Shepard. It certainly didn't take us long to make friend's, for there weren't really all that many kids in town. Since there weren't many of us kids, we certainly kept the adult's on their toes by fighting fires that had gotten started by us kids, who tried to burn the grass so we could have bases to play baseball. This same summer, the old curling rink burnt down but not by our gang of kids.

On July 1, 1967, mom, Terry and I left Islay and flew to Halifax, Nova Scotia to join dad. By this time, he'd been working along the northeast coast of New Brunswick. Dad met us at the Halifax Airport and took us to Upper Rawdon, just west of Truro, where we had lunch with Mary McPhee. When dad worked in this area, he stayed with Mary and her family. Before we left, Mary asked mom and dad if Terry and I could return and stay with her for a week while her son, Joel, went off to scout camp. They agreed.

We left and headed north for Tracadie, NB. The trip was long for us kids, for we'd first been cooped up in a plane for eight hours and now in a car. It took us one complete day of travelling. When we arrived at our destination, we made and called home in summer cabins at Upper Pouchmouche, NB.

Terry and I were there for about a week before Duane Anseth, dad's tool push, drove us down to Upper Rawdon. Well, we wound up staying more than a week, we stayed for five weeks. During this time, we had made many friends and taken swimming lessons at Rawdon Gold Mines. We also attended a few baseball games for Mary's one son, Harold, was a player and we also picked a lot of blueberries. On our Leisure time, a bunch of us kids would hitch up the horse, Andy, to the buggy and go for a ride. It was a one seater but we managed to get almost every kid in town in it, all ten of us.

One of the funny things that happened was, Terry decided it was my turn to drive the buggy. Well, I decided to make a trip around the garage and cut one corner too short, for I caught a wheel between a wooden fence and a tall spruce tree. Everything came to a sudden halt. My passenger and I were thrown out and luckily neither of us got hurt and thank goodness the horse and buggy were okay. That was my extent of trying to drive a horse and buggy. We sure had a great summer in Upper Rawdon.

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Mike Winters came down to pick us up around the middle of August, so we had to say farewell to our friends and head back to find our parents. We found that they had moved to Tabasintac, NB.

There was an old gentleman taking care of the cabins here, his name was Mr. Frank Harvie. His favorite saying was, "If I had me keys, I'd show ya me boat." We would laugh every time that he would say this only because of his accent.

I used to take apples off the trees in the yard and Frank asked me one time, why didn't I take them from the neighbour’s trees across the road. I said, "Because they have a big dog."

An incident that happened to mom was when she was walking along the beach and came upon some apple trees, on the other side of the fence, upon a little hill. She was just crawling through the fence, when she saw a big dog come running over the hill, right at her. Well, mom didn't think twice and turned and ran. Once down the beach a ways, she glanced over her should to see if the dog was still chasing her. She was surprised to see that all the dog was running for was to cool off in the water of the river. She didn't think it was funny at the time but when she told us, we sure got a laugh out of it.

On September 7, 1967 we started our journey back west to Alberta, after dad bought a new 1967 Ford 1/2 ton in Truro. It took us five days to drive back and we started our new life in Marwayne, Alberta. We stayed with mom's sister Ethel and her husband, Charlie Oliver, for a couple of weeks until we rented a house next to them which was owned by John Doull Sr. We lived in this house for two years. Then we rented a house from Forest and Margaret Tupper.

In the summer of 1969, dad was working at Pierceland, Saskatchewan, so we moved and lived there for July and August. We were still renting the house in Marwayne, so we moved back at the end of August so Terry and I could continue our schooling.

In 1971, the house was sold to Mrs. Kate Boyce and so we moved into the second house at Gerry and Donna Hines' farm, north of town about 9 miles. We were to only stay for a couple of months but wound up living here for three years. It was here in March of 1973 that Jonathon was born.

One of the biggest excitements that took place every at the Hines', was moving all the cattle, about 700 head, north to their summer pasture which was about thirty miles north, in the Heinsburg area.

Another big event happened in our family, which took place on August 18, 1973 when Terry and Lori Pynten were married. They were united by Reverend Eldred Graves. It was a super day, for it was the first wedding in our family. We had friends and relatives

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from all over. Friends of ours, Dow and Margaret Overcast, their son Frank and his girlfriend Marcia Rusch, flew their plane up from Chinook, Montana. While they were here, we were all able to get a ride in Dow's plane. We used one of VC Hines’ summer fallowed fields as a run way. It was a little rough but it did the trick.

Two years later, Frank and Marcia were married in Chinook, Montana on May 23, 1975 so Terry, Lori and I were the only ones who could go. Dad had to go to Grassland, Alberta to drill and the Hines' were loosing calves on the lease so they were unable to make it.

On May 18, 1974, I graduated from high school and on July 15, I started working for the Toronto Dominion Bank. The staff then were: Frank Johnston, Manager; Doreen Lowrie, Credit Manager; Sheila McKinley, Accountant; Kathy Lennon, Accounting Officer; Donna Oram, JoAnn Bensmiller and Brenda Midgley. I was there until April 1975 when I got transferred to Westlock, Alberta and I remained there until July, 1975 when I quit and moved to Lloydminster, Alberta and started working on August 5 for the Merit Store. I stayed at Ken Hughes' farm and helped him out whenever I could. Then on August 27, I was transferred to Wetaskiwin, Alberta. I was there until I decided to return to the bank.

My last day in Wetaskiwin was October 11, 1975. On October 16, 1975 a very good friend of mine was killed in a car accident. This accident claimed three lives, Arden Hines, Blair Parker and Mrs. Marg Wilcox. It was a real shock to everyone in the community. Arden Hines was the only son of Terry and Patsy Hines. Blair was a son of Herb and Doreen Parker and Marg was the wife of Bruce Wilcox and a mother of four children. The funerals were held on October 20, 1975. Marg's in Lloydminster and the boys in the school gym at Marwayne, Alberta.

October 27, 1975 was my first day back to banking in High Prairie, Alberta. I was located here for one and half years before receiving a transfer to Medicine Hat, Alberta. I moved to the "Hat" on March 1, 1977 and remained there until May 28, 1977 when I decided to leave my career in banking and travel to further adventures.

I decided to move to Edmonton, Alberta. There I knew people and could find a new job. While living in Edmonton, I had a few jobs like being a bill collector for Borg-Warner, sales person, janitor and I even tried my hand at hairstyling, something that I had always dreamt of becoming, but it didn't last long either so I had to quit.

After struggling for a few months of not working, I decided to return to Lloydminster. Upon arriving to Lloyd, I phoned some friends of mine, Gordon and Colleen Saunders, to see if I could hang my hat at their place until I got situated. The very next day, I went down to Manpower and got the names of two businesses that here hiring. One was the Prince Charles Hotel and the other was Chopstick Palace. I applied for a front desk clerk position at the hotel and for a cocktail waiter’s position at the Chopstick and low and behold, I was hired at both jobs on the same day. Someone above was certainly keeping

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his eyes upon me. I worked at the front desk for about one month when I received a position in their tavern as a bartender. This was something really new to me. For now I wasn't drinking with my friends in this bar; I was keeping an eye on them so they wouldn't get into trouble.

I stayed in Lloydminster for three and a half months when I decided to tackle the bright lights of Edmonton one more time. I had been in Edmonton for just a couple of days when I received a bartender’s position at The Four Seasons Hotel. I worked here for about six months and then I ventured on. I accepted a position at the Pub in McCauley Plaza, where I bartended for one year and then I became assistant manager under Brian Silsbee. I worked as Brian's assistant for six months then I accepted a bartender’s position at the Creperie Dining Lounge. By this time I had lived in Edmonton for four years and I remained at the Creperie for one year, before I decided to move to Vancouver, BC.

While I lived in Edmonton for the last two years, I met some very nice people, who are still very close to me, even though we're miles apart. Greg Schneider was my room mate for the last two years. He was wonderful and intelligent man, who moved back to Saskatchewan to work for his dad in North Battleford, Saskatchewan.

We had a lot of good times with our friends, Esther Kuberness and her daughters Linda and Angie; they lived at the opposite end of our hallway. Across from us was Betty Watt, a very charming and witty girl who moved here from Peterborough, Ontario. Esther and I worked together every once in awhile at Sue and Curtis Roberts, doing dinner and cocktail parties. Esther did all their cooking and prep and I did their bartending. Here I met a lot of very well know people.

Greg, my room mate, decided to move back to Saskatchewan the same weekend that I decided to visit Vancouver, before moving there. When I arrived there that weekend, I knew right away that I'd be moving there. This was on October 29, 1981; I was impressed at first sight. So when I left to go back to Edmonton, two days later, I said to everyone that I would see them all in one month. Not one of them believed me until I showed up on their doorstep on November 28, suit cases and all. I never regretted moving there.

Vancouver was a big step for me. In nine years, I have travelled throughout Alberta from place to place, from farm and high school to the working field and moving to the bright lights of Vancouver, BC. In the three years that I have lived here, I have met and saw some wonderful people. Some are from our movie industry in Hollywood, the Pope, Billy Graham and Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth.

I have been back a few times to Marwayne since I left and I have come to this conclusion. That no matter where you go and how many people come in and out of our life, the real true people that one finds the friendliest are the ones that live where you grew up and mine are in Marwayne, Alberta. My parents, Percy and Lorna Best and younger brother have now lived in Ft. St. John, BC for going on seven years now.

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Jonathon is now in grade six and is going to be the whiz kid in our family. Terry and Lori live and farm with Lori's mom and dad, Doris and Leif Pynten at Heinsburg, Alberta. They have two children in their family, Kimberly Dawn in ten years old and their son Cameron Jon Leif (CJ) is seven years old.

A lot has gone on in our lives since the time of this original writing. Mom and Dad have retired and moved to the Heinsburg area. They did this about 15 years ago. Jonathon has graduated from high school in Heinsburg and is married, with a family of his own. He and his family live at the Village of Pelican Narrows, west of Bonnyville, Alberta. Jonathon married Melanie Lebrie from St. Paul, Alberta and they have one daughter, Karisa Christine and one son, Jaydon Patrick.

Terry and Lori have been divorced for approximately fifteen years now. Terry is a grandfather from both Kimberly and CJ. Terry lives in Bonnyville, Alberta. His second wife was Tina McLeod and together they have three children, two boys; Sean Allen and Tanner Percy: one girl, Tyra Jane. Kimberly married Brent Grieg from the Marwayne, Alberta. CJ married Yvette Laux from Elk Point, Alberta.

Kim and Brent have three daughters of their own. They are Paige, Kelly and Jullian. CJ and Yvette have one son and one daughter, who are Devon and Myranda.

And over the years, I have moved to quite afew different places, taking me from Inuvik, Northwest Territories to southern Alberta in the Pincher Creek area where I worked at the Kilmorey Lodge in the beautiful Waterton National Park. I settled into Edmonton once again about 4 years ago and this time, I think I will stay longer and call it my home.

On May 15, 2002, I received a phone call from my mom, Lorna Best, that my dog, Muffin had passed away. She was about 14 years old and she passed away from a heart attack around noon. Mom and dad buried her on the farm over looking the place so she can keep a watchful eye over the place for years to come.

On June 15, 2002, we, the family of Percy and Lorna Best, helped them celebrate their 50th Wedding Anniversary. In attendance of this celebration were over 250 people, which most of them were relatives, who came from far and wide across Canada to join in on this wonderful celebration. Not only did we celebrate my parents wedding anniversary, they also help Percy's sister, Jane White and her husband, Walter White, celebrate their 45th Wedding Anniversary. The celebration was held amongst the river hills of the North Saskatchewan River and Vermilion River at Lea Park Jubilee Park. What a wonderful day it was, the sun was shining. A warm but gentle breeze was blowing from the west, to keep the heat down.

The things that keep me busy are that, I manage two apartment building here in Edmonton and a collection of family history. I have managed the apartment building now for a better part of four years.

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I got started on my collection of family history started about three years ago, when my paternal grandmother, Bessie Penner, passed away. Two months after her death, mom, dad and I were sitting around the kitchen table having a discussion about some of the ancestors that had passed away. One of us suggested that we should write down the names and history of these people so we could remember them. Mom brought out a history book from southern Saskatchewan titled, "A Stake in the West", which had originally belonged to my grandmother. We found out that tucked in the back of the book, she had taken the time and effort to record her family history of the Barker’s and the Atkinson’s. Her maiden name was Barker. The Atkinson surname was her mother’s maiden name. Well, this got the snowball rolling on my collection because my mother gave me more information of family history about her ancestors.

Todate, I have collected over three thousand names and I have it all put together on my computer. Each day, I am receiving emails from people who are somehow related to me, one way or another. Just recently, I received an email from Sheila Geddes. She is from my Best Family side and she put me intouch with two other family members, who I never knew before.

With all of this wonderful history about family, my cousin, Carol Vulliamy and I have set up a web site so we can share our knowledge of our ancestry with anyone wants to read it. Some of our family history dates as far back as 1035, in France. Carol and I have discovered that we come from a very strong breed of people, who were not afraid to show their love for one another or their strength, when it came to helping out one another. They were not scared either when it came time to pull up stakes and move to a new frontier land, like Canada was, way back when. To these people, I take my hat off to. For if it wasn’t for their hearty ship and determination, who knows how my family history would have turned out to be.