The Mavrinac family story is typical of how af ather left his wife and children behind, in this case, Croatia, to find a job in Canada. Ivan Mavrinac was hired to work in a gold mine in the Kirkland Lake area of northern Ontario where he saved enough money in three years to send for them, 1929. One of his sons, Joseph, five when he arrived, has since become one of Northern Ontario’s most noted citizens as owner of motels and hotels between 1948 and 1980, and then as a well known politician, serving six consecutive terms as Mayor of Kirkland Lake. In March, 2000, Joseph completed a two year term as Chair of the Ontario Reality Corporation. He has served as President of three hotel/motel associations, President of the Ontario Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and Director, Federation of Canadian Municipalities. In World War II he served on corvettes HMCS Trail and Battleford, on convoy duty in the North Atlantic, and is a life member and recipient of the Royal Canadian Legion 50 year and Meritorious Service Medals. Joe, as he likes to be known, is also a Paul Harris Fellow, Rotary International, and proud of his roots in that he is a Fifty Year member of the Croatian Fraternal Union. Here, His Worship Joe Mavrinac wears Kirkland Lake’s Chain of Office. [Photo, courtesy Major Joe Mavrinac]