Barbara Latkowski
Caledonia Courier
For Heinrich Grimm, it’s all about nature.
And since moving to Fort St. James 39 years ago, he continues to enjoy the beauty and tranquility that Stuart Lake continues to offer.
An avid sailor, Grimm began the sailing club in Fort St. James 28 years ago.
“There’s nothing like it. Sailing is so quiet and peaceful. Mind you I have been caught in a few storms on the lake, but I’ve never been afraid,” Grimm said.
Grimm has sailed up the Pacific coast in B.C. and the Gulf of Mexico but Stuart Lake has always remained dear to his heart.
“We used to go on four day sailing trips on this lake,” Grimm said.
Grimm, 91, and his wife Almut, came to Fort St. James from Prince George. Prior to that, they lived in Kitimat and Calgary where Grimm studied carpentry.
And it is quite clear that Grimm has a passion for it after touring his home on the lake.
“We built it ourselves,” Grimm said.
The home includes carvings, woodwork, hunting trophies and an array of pastel paintings by Grimm himself.
We’ve done a great deal since coming here,” Heinrich recollects.
“My wife worked for Stuart Lake Lumber. I was involved in construction. I helped build Kwah Hall and the office next door.”
Grimm also worked as a building inspector which at times took home to remote properties that he used to fly to.
“I used to be a pilot in WW2. We had to depend on compasses and maps back then.”
Grimm married his wife in their home country of Germany in 1951. They raised four daughters and now have seven grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
“We have loved it here, the nature, the fishing and hunting. “We’ve mostly lived on game meat and we’ve always had a garden. It’s so much healthier and we are always sure not to waste anything in nature,” Grimm said.
For Grimm, living in Fort St. James has also been very much about the people and friends heand his wife have met over the years.
“Everyone is so helpful and so friendly.”
Grimm has no plans of slowing down soon especially when it comes to sailing. Both he and his wife are honorary members of the Stuart Lake Sailing Club.
“It’s a blessing that we are able to live this long. Love overcomes everything.”
