The Story of Arne Rasmussen
Denmark
I was born in 1934 on Aero Island, Denmark. Father managed a mill near Marstal. Our house was on a sea-dike and I vividly recall low-flying German planes passing over. Salt water must run in my veins because my whole life has been linked to the sea.
To Sea and Home Again
After elementary school I went to sea. As soon as we cast off I was violently seasick, an ill-omened start.
We mostly plied the Baltic. In port, we'd stop at the Sømandshjemmet (Seamen's Home) for coffee or to write letters home.
One year of sailing was enough. I returned to Marstal and apprenticed with a shipping company. But my shipboard experience was invaluable––I'd learned how to handle cargo.
Off to See the World
In 1956, I decided to work my way around the world. I headed to Canada first. In Montreal, a Danish pastor found me a landscaping job.
Language and food were a struggle but the boss's wife was my guardian angel. She'd look at my lunch of cornflakes, shake her head and bring me a sandwich. Cheese on rye bread, pure heaven!
Family and Career
I landed a job with the Hudson's Bay Company in Baie Comeau. Two years later I was transferred to Sept-Iles, where I married. We had four children.
In 1961 I returned to my true calling––marine shipping. I worked for Cargill Grain and then held various managerial positions for Bunge Corporation in Montreal and the Port of Quebec.
By 1987, I was single again. Ten years later, I retired.
Full Circle
Retirement is sweet. I volunteer at the Quebec Seamen's Club, which is much like the Sømandshjemmet of my youth.
And by combining my passions, bird watching and travelling, I've nearly completed that trip I started in 1956!
Adapted from the 2004 Heritage Book,with permission from the Federation of Danish Associations in Canada
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