John Smale introduced Kevin Bazkur under the classification of Event Planner, a great idea man, soft spoken who first got involved in the Rotary Poker Walk. Kevin is joined here today by his sister Kathleen.
Kevin was pleased and honoured to have this time to speak and share a little bit about himself. Kevin was born in Toronto and lived there for many years. He grew up with CNE, the Blue Jays, Maple Leaf Gardens, riding the Rocket, Honest Eds and so much more. Great people like Jane Jacobs, Ed Mirvish, Sam the Record Man, Mayor David Crombie. All visionaries who always gave back to the community. He was lucky to have met them all. Kevin witnessed Toronto changing and becoming a multi-cultural capital of the world. He grew up poor in terms of money, but was very fortunate to have a mother who made sure he and his sister Kathleen were rich in opportunities. They always had books, newspapers and music in the house, and went to see films and theatre. They would go to free concerts in the park where they were introduced to opera and big band music. The CBC had several production facilities in Toronto so they were able to see many free tapings of shows. Kevin had the opportunity to live in many places in Toronto plus attend many schools, including Harbord Collegiate, a school rich in history in the arts, politics and finance. People like Wayne and Shuster, President of the Bank of Canada Louis Raminsky and David Cronenberg were students. This gave him a chance to make new friends and see different communities. He learned about charity at a young age as a recipient of the Toronto Star Santa Claus Fund. To this very day he still donates each year.
Kevin started working with several community groups, including the Horticultural Society and PEC Green Trust. He also completed his Financial Management Advisor designation with the Canadian Securities Institute and opened a fee-only financial planning business. He expanded his horizons and opened Chatsworth Antiques and had two stores, one in Bloomfield and one in Picton. After his dad passed away, Kathleen and Kevin built two rental suits, called Chatsworth Suites and ran them for 6 years with great success. And then more recently, Kevin started a new business called Mercantus Events. Organizing events requires attention to detail, something Kevin learned at an early age and he is excited about his business venture. Kevin also has a radio show at Loyalist College called Quinte in the Groove, a weekly talk show with music. Guests have included President Tracy and Sam Brady. Check it out Sunday evenings at 8 pm.
Pat Feasey thanked Kevin for his talk today as well as his daily inspirational quotes on Facebook and his featured song of the day. President Tracy presented Kevin with a pair of Rotary socks in place of the traditional Rotary ruler.