Ralph Lewis McCall

RALPH LEWIS McCALL
(1925 - 1995)

Ralph Lewis McCall was born December 4, 1925 in a little white house in Morrin, Alberta. He lived in Morrin for less than a year before his family moved to Rich Hill, Missouri. As opportunity seemed better in Alberta, his family returned in the fall of 1943 and settled in Rumsey. This is where Ralph spent his childhood until the fall of 1943 when he went away to school. In 1948 he graduated with a Bachelor of Education degree from the University of Alberta and began his teaching in Acme, Alberta, in a two-story building with four regular classrooms and a classroom for home economics and shop in the basement. He spent his summers taking courses and in 1956, he received his Master of Education degree. From 1955 to 1958 and in his later years, he served as a Professional Development Consultant. In 1958 he married Marilyn, a fellow teacher and eventually raised three children, two girls and a boy.

In 1963, he moved his family to Red Deer where Ralph taught at Red Deer Composite High School. He moved to Airdrie where he ended up teaching for 21 years at George McDougall and Bert Church High Schools. He retired in 1985. During his teaching career he worked diligently for the Alberta Teachers Association (ATA). In 1974 he broadened his horizons further than the ATA and joined the Municipal Planning Council. This was when Airdrie was a mere village in the process of becoming a town. Ralph was elected as Deputy Mayor in 1977. He retired from council in 1985. He was quite happy as Deputy Mayor and had no interest in becoming mayor. He was a man of deep commitment and interest in the community and he truly enjoyed his work on the Town Council. He represented Airdrie in business exploration to Taiwan and an exchange in Airdrie Scotland.

In the following years, Ralph continued as a board member for the Nose Creek Valley Museum where he enjoyed sharing his knowledge of the history of Airdrie and surrounding area, with small children and seniors during the tours.

Always interested in history, Ralph was in the process of writing a book about the history of Airdrie as well as a column for the Airdrie Echo when he passed away in 1995.

Besides politics and history, Ralph enjoyed a variety of sports.

He was an active ball player and curler, he coached volleyball, basketball and hockey. He also sang in church choirs for at least 40 years. He enjoyed summers with his family, whether at home or taking trips across Canada and the USA. His spring would include planting flower and vegetable gardens. He was very special to his grandchildren, he loved taking them to the Calgary Zoo or just sitting and reading them a book.