From student to supervisor, Gowan retires with 44 years
Dan Gowan has handed in his keys, ending a 44-year career in the parks and recreation department.
“I’m hoping I did the community proud,” said Gowan. “We have nice facilities, we have nice parks in Clearview. My staff are top-notch at both spots.”
Born and raised in Creemore, Gowan began his career as a high school student working part-time for the Village of Creemore. He worked under his father, Carl, whom Gowan says taught him the ropes.
Gowan’s initial duties included moving hockey nets, sweeping bleachers and other odd jobs. He eventually got into ice maintenance, operating a tractor- mount flooder in the early 1980s before an Olympia ice resurfacing machine was acquired.
The Village of Creemore also hired him off-season to cut grass and maintain the parks and municipally owned facilities.
On May 9, 1986 he was hired on full- time and after his father retired, not too long before his death in 1991, Gowan was promoted to manager, taking over for his dad.
Gowan said he did apply for the position but things worked differently back then so it was assumed he would be stepping into the role.
“Not a lot changed,” said Gowan. “There was just a lot more responsibility as a manager.”
At the end of his career Gowan retired as recreation facilities supervisor, overseeing a crew of three full-time staff for each arena and five seasonal part- time employees.
Post amalgamation in 1994 he worked for the Township of Clearview, and was responsible also for the arena and parks in Stayner.
Gowan said he has enjoyed seeing the Creemore arena expand and improve over the years including an addition, new refrigeration and the installation of new boards.
One downside of being so well known in the community, said Gowan with a laugh, is that everyone knew exactly where to find him for a last minute request or access to a storage shed.
“Sometimes I’m too close to my work. People would come to my house, so that’s sometimes a downfall but I don’t think I ever turned anyone down,” he said. “Everyone knows where I live and if they didn’t, they soon knew.”
A former Stayner Siskin and long-time baseball player, Gowan is entrenched in the sport community. He was a member of several championship baseball teams throughout the years, winning provincial and national titles. In 2013, he received the NDBL President’sAward recognizing outstanding service to baseball in the area and to the league.
Gowan has spent many of his off- hours at the arena, where he won a senior championship hockey title.
As a father he said he never missed watching his daughters’ figure skating carnivals, and participated in a few even before he had children.
Gowan, now himself a grandfather of two young boys, said it is nice to see a third generation of families coming through the facilities.
A shoulder injury is keeping him off the field and ice but is he hoping to get back at it once he is healed.
In his newfound free time, Gowan said he may pick up some work here and there, and has no big plans for retirement, other than spending time with his grandsons.
Gowan celebrated his retirement on Friday, Oct. 18 with a township party followed by a gathering of friends and family at home.
