Bio: Bruce Mansell

I spent the first 18 years of my life in Leask which included every summer at Emerald Lake. Soon after graduating high school in 1969, I was off to the big city of Saskatoon where I worked a few jobs before joining Stonehenge, a local night club band with Gerry Teszeri, Jerry Renaud (from Marcelin), Edna Johnson and Valerie Greaves from Saskatoon and Larry Marquis (from Blaine Lake). After about 4 yrs of travelling around western Canada playing night clubs, the group disbanded. 

I then spent a year working at my family’s hotel at Murray Point, Emma Lake before moving back to Leask to start farming the land that my dad still owned. The farming gig lasted 7 years during which time I married Roberta Wilson, who I’d met years before at Emerald Lake. We had 2 beautiful daughters and also built our first cabin at Emerald during that time. 

After farming we moved to the lake for about a year and a half before moving to Calgary where I attended Devry Institute of Technology. About a year after graduating from Devry, we agreed that Calgary was too big and too fast paced for us so we decided to move back to Saskatoon. Roberta found a job right away but it was a few months before I landed a Field Service Technician position with Datatech, a National Computer Service company. 

During that time we sold our cabin at Emerald and acquired Roberta’s Mom’s cabin which we eventually tore down and built our retirement home where we are now living. It is our happy place. We have been blessed with 7 wonderful grandchildren, 3 boys and 4 girls ages 12 to 18 who love spending time at the lake. After retiring and moving to the lake in 2011 I went to work for the park during the summer months doing general maintenance which lasted 8 years.

As for travelling, we’ve taken many family trips to B.C. over the years to visit family,
a trip to The Dominican Republic and a family Christmas in Los Angeles and Mesa Arizona . Since retiring we’ve visited the Yukon Territories as well as all 4 Maritime provinces. Other international trips were to Florida, Cuba, Jamaica, Indonesia, Mexico, Ireland, Scotland, and England.

As for hobbies, I usually have a project to two on the go to keep me busy as well as general house and yard maintenance.

In the summer I enjoy golfing, bike riding and spending time with family at the beach or on the water. During winter months I stay active with curling, snowmobiling and going for walks. We also clear and maintain a small skating rink on the lake every winter for the kids to enjoy. I also enjoy playing cards and other games as well as watching curling and other shows and movies on tv.

One of my favourite memories of growing up in Leask is playing anti-I-over with my friends in our huge yard or playing kick-the-can and hide and seek across the street in the old school yard. Another favourite memory is playing keyboard in a band called “The Odds and Ends” with Larry Hamilton on guitar, Glen Hamilton on drums, Gerry Teszeri on guitar and Andy Jacobs on bass. This band later became “The Twelfth Night” with Gerry, Andy and myself on drums and later, Bev Bartels on vocals and my younger brother Jim on percussion. We even had our own band house to rehearse in. We would rent local town halls in the surrounding area and put on Saturday night dances.

Other fond memories include playing baseball in the summer, hockey in the winter and pool year round at Rene Lamontagne’s Pool Hall.

As far as my “bucket list” goes, I think it’s pretty much done except for maybe a trip to outer space which would only be possible if I win Lotto Max. I guess I better start buying tickets.

If life has taught me anything, I think it’s to enjoy each day as best you can because you never know, you could be here today and gone to Maui.