Mack Laing’s birthday celebrated

The Mack Laing Historical Society and some of its friends celebrated the 132nd birthday of its namesake,
on Friday, February 6th.

Mack Laing, in effigy, was also in attendance and feted. An uncatalogued, original charcoal drawing by Laing, of a pair of Bohemian Waxwings, was displayed for the occasion.

In honour of his birthday, a hazelnut cake was served, made from nuts harvested from some of the trees planted by Laing and his wife Ethel on their Baybrook Nut Farm. Many original fruit and nut trees remain on local properties in the Baybrook subdivision.

A Comox Valley Nature walk celebrating Mack Laing’s birthday, drew about 35 people on the stormy Sunday, February 8. Many had never been to Baybrook.

CVN sponsored a special walk to Baybrook on Feb. 8 2015

Laing, a well-known and respected Canadian naturalist and local pioneer, died in 1982 at the age of 99, leaving a huge collection of magazine articles, letters, diaries, photographs and artwork. Some of this material resides in the Comox Archives and Museum and some in the BC Museum in Victoria.

Vertebrates he collected during his lifetime reside in prominent collections such as The Smithsonian, UBC, and The Museum of Nature in Ottawa.

He bequeathed his property and second home, Shakesides, to the Town of Comox, who named it the Mack Laing Nature Park. The 2.6 hectare Baybrook property, including Laing’s first home, Baybrook House, was purchased by the Town and BC Nature Trust in 2011.

The Board of the Mack Laing Society and consultants pose for a group photo with “Mack” on the occasion of his 132nd birthday, February 6, 2015. L-R: Jarrett Krentzel, Angela Burns, Kate Panayotof, Denise Lawson, “Mack”, Fred Newhouse, Gordon Olsen, Loys Maingon.

The Mack Laing Society will be celebrating his life and legacy by participating in Canada Flag Day on February 15, and in BC Heritage Week celebrations February 16 – 21. Both events will feature a range of displays and activities in the Comox Mall.

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