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Interview with Bill Gruenthal
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription19636
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [1950-2023] (interview content), interviewed 31 Jul. 2023
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 2 sound recordings (wav) (74 min., 37 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (74 min., 37 sec.)
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Bill Gruenthal conducted by Burnaby Village Museum Registrar, Eric Damer on July 31 2023. 00:00:00 – 00:27:01 Bill Gruenthal provides details on his family background, his early life experiences, how he got into the insurance business,…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Series
- Museum Oral Histories series
- Subseries
- Many Voices Project Interviews subseries
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 2 sound recordings (wav) (74 min., 37 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (74 min., 37 sec.)
- Material Details
- Interviewer: Eric Damer Interviewee: Bill Gruenthal Location of Interview: Burnaby Village Museum Interview Date: July 31, 2023 Total Number of tracks: 1 Total Length of all Tracks: 01:14:37 Digital master recordings (wav) were recorded onto two separate audio tracks, edited and merged together and converted to mp3 for access on Heritage Burnaby
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Bill Gruenthal conducted by Burnaby Village Museum Registrar, Eric Damer on July 31 2023. 00:00:00 – 00:27:01 Bill Gruenthal provides details on his family background, his early life experiences, how he got into the insurance business, his knowledge and interest in Judaism, places that he and his wife lived before moving to Burnaby, family life in Burnaby and his political involvement in running for the Burnaby school board. 00:27:02 – 00:42:50 Bill Gruenthal talks about the Burquest Jewish Community Association, it’s background and his involvement, experiences of discrimination in his career, a brief history of the Jewish people and some cultural traditions. 00:42:51 – 00:56:04 Bill Gruenthal mentions some of the charities that he supports including Burnaby Hospital, his volunteer work within the community and community organizations including the Nikkei Place Foundation and shares more details on his insurance career. 00:56:05 – 01:14:37 Bill Gruenthal shares information about his Burnaby neighbourhood and Jewish funeral customs and provides his impressions of new development at Brentwood, Burnaby Council and other development projects in Burnaby.
- History
- Interviewee biography: Bill Gruenthal was born in the British Mandate of Palestine, now Israel, in 1935 after his parents had fled Germany in advance of the then worsening political situation. Bill’s father died in 1942; some years later his mother remarried to an Irish-born senior civil servant in that government. He had a difficult and somewhat dangerous job. Soon after marriage, the family, including Bill’s older brother, Martin, immigrated to Canada in January 1947 on the strength of his step-father’s British Passport. They traveled via New York, where Bill’s uncle and his family resided and who put up the family. Later that month, the parents travelled by CP rail from Montreal to Vancouver, followed by Bill and his brother in March 1947 who travelled from New York to White Rock on an American railroad. While passing through the Fraser Valley Bill’s parents took an interest in Silverdale, a small hamlet west of Mission where the four eventually settled. Bill finished High School in Mission and soon joined the insurance industry. Bill connected with the Jewish Community in Vancouver where he met his soon-to-be wife. Upon marriage they were transferred to Calgary; after five years suffering its cold weather they were transferred back to Vancouver. They settled in Burnaby in 1966 as an affordable neighbourhood with easy access to his office downtown Vancouver. Outside work, Bill helped raise his family of three daughters who all graduated Burnaby High School (Alpha). They joined Temple Sholom in Vancouver, and he volunteered and still volunteers for a number of non-profits, including The Jewish Museum and Archives and Nikkei Place Foundation (Burnaby). He was an early long-term supporter and a past president of Burquest Jewish Community Association, mostly involving persons from Burnaby, New Westminster, and the Tri-Cities area (hence the name). He ran for political office in Burnaby in 1976 but was not elected. He delivers food in Burnaby for the Food Bank and is a donor to many worthy causes including Burnaby General Hospital. Interviewer biography: Eric Damer is a Burnaby Village Museum Interpreter, Museum Registrar, Researcher and Blacksmith. Eric pounded hot steel for the first time in 1977 in junior high. Fifteen years later, he joined Burnaby Village Museum where he has smithed for three decades. He also provides historical research for museum exhibits and special projects. Outside the museum, Eric is a social historian with a special interest in educational history.
- Creator
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Subjects
- Migration
- Persons - Jewish Canadians
- Transportation
- Transportation - Rail
- Religions - Judaism
- Cemeteries
- Organizations
- Elections
- Names
- Gruenthal, Bill
- Gruenthal, Noemi Yadlow
- O'Connor, Herta Ingrid Gruenthal
- O'Connor, John
- Burquest
- Jacobson, Max Alec
- Temple Shalom
- Brentwood Shopping Centre
- Brentwood Park School
- Alpha Secondary School
- Burnaby School Board
- Responsibility
- Damer, Eric
- Accession Code
- BV023.16.14
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No known restrictions
- Date
- [1950-2023] (interview content), interviewed 31 Jul. 2023
- Media Type
- Sound Recording
- Planning Study Area
- Brentwood Area
- Notes
- Title based on contents of item
- Transcription available
Documents
Audio Tracks
Interview with Bill Gruenthal, [1950-2023] (interview content), interviewed 31 Jul. 2023
Interview with Bill Gruenthal, [1950-2023] (interview content), interviewed 31 Jul. 2023
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2023_0016_0014_003.mp3Douglas Road School
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark573
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Description
- School building.
- Associated Dates
- 1928
- Other Names
- Douglas Road Elementary School
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Other Names
- Douglas Road Elementary School
- Geographic Access
- Canada Way
- Associated Dates
- 1928
- Description
- School building.
- Heritage Value
- The Douglas Road School was originally established as a two-room school in 1908 on this site, and later expanded to four classrooms. Anticipating rapid settlement of this district, the School Board purchased two acres adjoining the old building. Two of the four rooms were designed to become one large auditorium suitable for special events and public gatherings, with seating for two hundred people. The classically-influenced school has been altered with new windows and extended with additional wings, but has retained its original red-brick veneer, tan-brick quoins and bellcast octagonal roof ventilator. Designed by McCarter & Nairne, the school was built by contractor A.S. Perry. McCarter & Nairne, who also designed the Second Street School, were the Burnaby School Board architects at this time. John Y. McCarter (1886-1981) and George Nairne (1884-1953) formed their partnership in 1921 after serving overseas during the First World War. The partners began designing houses and small apartment buildings, and their commissions included Vancouver’s first skyscraper, the Marine Building (1928-30).
- Locality
- Burnaby Lake
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Douglas-Gilpin Area
- Architect
- McCarter & Nairne
- Subjects
- Buildings - Heritage
- Buildings - Schools
- Street Address
- 4861 Canada Way
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
Images
Burnaby's heritage : an inventory of buildings and structures
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary5437
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Author
- Luxton, Donald, 1954-
- Wolf, Jim
- Edition
- Rev.
- Publication Date
- 2011
- c2007
- Call Number
- 971.133 LUX COPY 1
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Digital Reference Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- ISBN
- 0969282893
- Call Number
- 971.133 LUX COPY 1
- Edition
- Rev.
- Author
- Luxton, Donald, 1954-
- Wolf, Jim
- Place of Publication
- Burnaby, B.C.
- Publisher
- City of Burnaby
- Publication Date
- 2011
- c2007
- Physical Description
- 157 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Architecture
- Historic buildings
- Buildings
- Historic sites
- Subjects
- Buildings
- Buildings - Heritage
- Notes
- Includes bibliographical references and index.
- 2 copies held: copy 1.