Around 74 years ago, a young Chris Hicks met a young Loren Sherlock.
As boys, they both grew up in the small Vancouver Island town of Chemainus.
Sherlock’s father owned a plumbing and heating business and was a tinsmith, Hicks’ father was a chartered accountant and as part of his business, Hicks’ father did the books’ for Sherlock’s father’s business.
The pair rain into one another on Saturday, Nov. 19, at the Medieval Market, the annual market which always leads to fun encounters with old acquaintances.
As they recalled how they had known one another for so many years, they also recalled a time when their families had ended up briefly sharing the same roof.
Hicks’ family had lived in a house on the Chemainus River, which some years would spill over its banks and flood their property.
One year, when the river was particularly high, Sherlock’s father offered to take in the Hicks family for a few days until the river receded, as he was concerned for their welfare. At the time, the Hicks were a family of six, though they would eventually be a family of 15.
Sherlock recalled his family had five members at the time, with three children, and the home filled with makeshift beds to accommodate their guests for the few days it took for the river to return to its banks.
The necessary adjustments were made, and everyone was able to get along and the families remained friends, with the Hicks family sharing access in future summers to a favourite swimming hole on the river through their farm.
“I spent lots of happy hours at the Hicks’ family farm,” recalled Sherlock.
Their chance meeting over lunch and sharing a table and some live music at the 2022 Williams Lake Medieval Market was just another example of the market magic which can happen there every year.
Read more: OUR HOMETOWN: Weaving through life
ruth.lloyd@wltribune.com
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