The Common Vein

September 2009

Bio for KD class of 69 reunion

Summary;

Living in Canada since 1997

Married to Laura Sack

Three daughters: Dana Lerner (26) married to Matthew Lerner; Rikki Bennie (23); Carly Bennie (19)

Memories of KD:

Sunday evening back at hostelL 3 weeks at Veld and Vlei, Sedgefield, Dec 1968 (inspired by Eddie Webster); smoke break in the bottom toilets; many many more?.

Always grateful for life?s wonderful blessings.

The final day at KD

I need to begin with my last day at KD. School and living at the hostel was finally over, I was about to start the rest of my life. It was the last and final matric exam. I had paid for my air ticket to Israel and I was going to be travelling for the next year instead of going to the army like everyone else. I had spent a few months getting my plans together. Everything changed when Sandler walked up to me, just as I put my pen down after completing the final matric exam to tell me my Dad had passed away. A car was waiting to take me to the funeral that afternoon.

 

After School

One of my few redeeming qualities; I was the youngest person in our matric year. I subsequently was too young for call up for military service. So, in 1970 I was certainly the youngest in my BCom class at Wits. That first year was a blur. I grew up fast, tried to take care of my Mom and partied much too hard. I was fortunate to switch to the chartered accounting program where I was forced to do articles by working during the day and attending classes in the late afternoons and Saturdays. The disciplined routine forced me to settle down. I qualified as a CA in 1976.

 

The most wonderful turning point in my life took place on a Friday night in February 1974. I was introduced to Laura Sack. Its still seems hard to believe but I knew from the moment I saw Laura that this was the girl I was going to marry. Some 33 years later I have no regrets (last time I checked she did not have any either).

 

Canada

In 1976 I qualified as a CA, and the SA military wanted me to spend the next two years as their guest. Many late night political debates at the hostel, when we had tons of time to kill, left me decided that I would never join an apartheids regimes military. However, no avoidance plan was ever in place. A trip to the Olympics in Montreal had us fall in love with Canada and immigration would certainly solve the call up issue. Fortunately, my late Mom had re married, so Laura and I left in February 1977 for Canada soon after we got married.

We set ourselves up in a small apartment and began adjusting to life in Toronto. It was lots of fun being immigrants, working and playing hard, dreaming about the better life. I qualified again as a Canadian CA, so so very painful!

 

Family

 

Laura and I have three of the most marvellous daughters, even if I say so myself. The eldest, Dana (26), met her husband at law school and got married in June. Such nachasJ you can check the wedding pics on facebook.  Rikki (23), our middle daughter, is a qualified nutritionist and the coach at a next generation, high tech, soft touch weight loss clinic (http://www.newtopia.com ). The youngest, Carly (19), is doing her HBA at Ivey School of business in London, Ontario. I am blessed to be surrounded by women and I love it, most of the time.

 

Career

 

I was desperate to get out of the accounting profession after practising for a year in Toronto. So, I made the most stupid move and in 1979 started a brand new venture with a few partners I had just met. With enthusiasm and energy that only youth provides, we built a company that still produces great high end home theatre equipment called Mission Electronics (http://www.mission.co.uk ). I now had the entrepreneurial bug. So, I sold my stake in Mission and started a computer software distribution company that is today called Ingram Micro Canada (http://www.ingrammicro.com ).  In 1987 Mr. Ingram bought my stake and gave me the opportunity for another start up. Delrina Technology (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delrina) was a marvellous adventure. From humble beginnings, we grew to be listed on both NASDAQ and TSX until we sold to a larger company, Symantec, in 1995. Since then I have been funding early stage ventures doing business as XDL Capital Group (http://xdl.com ). XDL started in 1996, before the explosion of venture funds and lived through the crazy boom and bust .com era. A marvellous few years when it was popular for rules to be broken and innovation ruled the day. The last few years have been a little more relaxed but filled with more than a fair share of interesting business ventures. A couple that you can check out are: Mill st brewery (http://www.millstreetbrewery.com ) the best beer served in Canada and a small public company, Adira Energy (amgof.ob), that will begin drilling for oil in the Hula Valley in Israel by November 2009.

 

Community

I think it must have been the constant drive to raise funds for the womens Zionist league that my mom was always busy with or the fact that she was a survivor that compels me to work with the Jewish community as a way of life. In the last few years, as the need for Jewish advocacy and political influence has become critical, I have been involved in establishing the Canadian Jewish Political Advocacy Committee (www.cjpac.ca ). A first for the Canadian Jewish community, direct access to politicians to make the case for Israel. And it so happens that the current prime minster is the most outspoken pro Israel leader in Canada?s history.

 

That?s it ?

Life has been very kind to Laura and I. We are always aware of just how fortunate a hand we have been dealt. I would love to share more with you in person but the timing of the reunion sucks for us. Please look us up when you visit Toronto or we are usually in Plettenberg Bay in January every year. Wishing you all the very best!

 

One last question:

What do you attribute the amazing amount of successful accomplishments of our generation of Jews, especially the ones who left SA and competed without much support at all? Was it the schooling at KD?  SA warm climate?  Or simply genetics? I would love to hear your thoughts?.