My grandpa was the first entrepreneur I ever knew.
He was one before I even knew what that word meant… or maybe before it was even something people talked about the way they do now.
He married my grandma when she already had five kids. The youngest – my mom – was just four years old. Overnight, his world got a lot bigger. And it didn’t take long for him to realize that the job he had wasn’t going to be enough to support this new version of his life.
So, he started a construction company.
On a Grade 8 education.
He built that business over 20 years, then sold it so he and my grandma could retire out on Vancouver Island. A full chapter – built from scratch – with nothing but grit, instinct, and responsibility driving it forward.
I didn’t know my biological father. But I never felt like I went without one.
My grandpa stepped into that space without ever making a big deal about it. He just showed up. Consistently. Quietly. Fully.
And in doing that, he taught me more about business, and about life, than any course or book ever could.
Here are five things I learned from him.
- Keep your heart soft, even when the world is hard
My grandpa had the most tender heart I’ve ever seen – for people, for animals, for everything.
He was the first to tear up at a happy moment. The first to feel deeply.
And yet… he worked in a tough world.
Long hours. Physical work. People who weren’t always honest. People who tried to take advantage of him. People who stole from him.
But none of it hardened him.
He never let the world take that part of him away.
- Take care of your family
This wasn’t something he talked about. It was something he lived.
He made decisions based on what his family needed. Not what was easiest, not what was safest, not what looked the best on paper.
Everything he built was for them.
- Take joy in thesmall things
Every time he went to the grocery store, he came back with Smarties for us.
Without fail.
He’d joke about squirrels chasing our tiny dog up a tree. He found humor in the simplest moments.
And cooking? He loved it.
He would stand at the stove for hours making bacon – making sure every single piece was perfectly flat and cooked just right.
It wasn’t about the bacon.
It was about the care. The attention. The joy he found in doing something simple… really well.
- Live a life of adventure
At one point, he got tired of driving between job sites.
So he got his pilot’s license.
And bought a small Cessna plane.
My grandma was his first passenger after he finished – flying to Drumheller together. Just like that.
After he retired, he didn’t slow down either.
He got his boating license… and started a deep-sea fishing company.
He never stopped trying new things. Even the ones that were a little intimidating at first.
- Never stop learning
After selling his company, he taught himself the stock market.
I can still picture him sitting there, watching the news, writing down stock prices in a small notebook. Month after month. Tracking. Learning. Figuring it out.
That curiosity… that discipline… it mattered.
It helped him and my grandma build a retirement that lasted decades. Comfortable. Secure. Earned.
To all the fathers out there – biological, step, adopted, or chosen –
Happy Father’s Day.
And to my grandpa…
I love you. And I miss you.
Lanna
