Tom Johnson has led interesting life as athlete, military man, entertainer

He honed his skating skills on the lakes and ponds of Sackville, learned the ABCs of hockey as a minor official with the powerful Sackville Eagles, and parlayed his talents into becoming a top centreman with his regimental hockey team that toured much of Europe and Canada over a lengthy career with the Canadian army.
Tom Johnson of nearby Westcock says he vividly recalls learning to skate on places like Dixon's Pond, Morice's Pond and the Mount Allison Lily Pond. And he says this helped him to become a much quicker hockey player as he combined army training and hockey during much of his 24 years with the Royal Canadian Dragoons.
Older hockey fans will recall the speed and finesse demonstrated by Tom's older brother Cutter, who also joined the army and enjoyed a matching career, combining army duties with hockey.
"We quite often came face-to-face in service matchups," says Tom, "and while I could never beat him in a race I could keep up to him. And there were a few times when I had to rough him up a bit."
Tom served as stickboy and performed other duties with the Eagles teams of 1952-54 and he usually was intent when top coaches Cy Taylor and Jim Keefe handled the team and, as a result, absorbed many of the better aspects of the game.
"I spent a lot of time with those fellows and I recall such skillful players as goalie Toughie Steeves, defensemen Lou Cormier and Ed Booth as well as Billy Harris, Pete Gauvin and Henry Cormier. They were knowledgeable and fun to be around and one of my favorite times was after home games when management would take us to the Kennel Club Restaurant and I could eat out," he recalls.
"Then there was the trip by train to Campbellton when the team really came together. That could easilly be the best hockey team ever to be put together in Sackville."
Tom did not play in the minor system in Sackville but began his organized career with the Black and Red of Sackville High. He still remembers goalie Jim Snowdon and others like Rollie Berry and Bob Tower as they enjoyed some successes.
Tom is widely recognized as a talented musician who has contributed his time and talents to the community, usually in company with his brother-in-law Del Wheaton. They have played in numerous groups since 1979 - the time of his retirement - until today although he is cutting back on the number of annual shows.
"I guess you could say, though, that I was a "rink rat" and spent a good deal of time there, hanging out with Mr. Berry (father of councillor Bob), and so I didn't miss much that went on at Allison Gardens until I left Sackville in 1956."
Military duty took Johnson to many parts of the world and his hockey playing was a bonus as his teams would often travel throughout Europe. He served two stints in Germany and was with the UN peacekeeping unit in Cypress.
It was while posted in Cypress that as sergeant he was ordered to a large farm that was being shelled from the hills by the Turks. He recalls how the shooting stopped when they arrived since the attackers were not interested in tangling with the UN troops.
Knowing that attacks would continue on their departure he and his troops searched the huge farmhouse and among other things found a home-made mandolin. Tom kept the instrument and later brought it home with him. Stories have appeared about this and he was able to make contact with an English newspaper in Cypress after learning to use a new computer and, in brief, was joined by his wife and two other couples as they returned the mandolin several years ago to the nearly 100-year-old owner.
Near the end of his military career he was posted to Shilo. Manitoba, as a training officer with German army contingents who were using the Canadian base.
After having served in a peacekeeping role for so many years, Tom Johnson was asked to comment on Canada's role in Afghanistan, a far different approach that the Canadian military have known in a long time. He will only say that he will support the troops as long as they are over there but agrees whenever they leave, Afghanistan will no doubt revert and be run by war lords and lose out on much of the good things that Canadians have managed to provide.
So what about another love - music? Tom says he first remembers listening to brothers Clarence and Cutter on fiddle and guitar and the late Gandhi Holmes on the guitar along with Brud McCarthy. But it was not until he joined the army he began to perform, being self taught, and he entertained the troops and also had a gig on the army radio in addition to playing for dances for the officers. He had bought a stand-up bass from Del and joined some good bands in the Fredericton area when posted to Camp Gagetown.
"I remember after I came home that Del invited me to a practice session at Curtis Hicks' home and, as it turned out, they were looking for a bass player in order to cut a record."
Ivan Hicks, Curtis and Del were the members of the group and those remaining still hang out. Tom leaned to bluegrass while the others were more of an old-time band; but he slowly and surely led them over to his style.
Joining with others, the Maritime Express was formed and then Tom and Del formed the Newfoundland duo of the Grubb Brothers, bringing hysterical laughs to many audiences and being invited to a wide variety of events.
While Tom got to see much of the world during his army career, he has travelled extensively since with the Maritime Express -- across Canada and to many cities and towns in the US, and they are still going strong, having a get-together this year for a concert in Bloomfield.
The love of music sees the talented 70-year-old as a member of several groups including Diamonds In The Rough with Brenda Estabrooks, Del and Janet Adams and with Hardly Hurt composed of Royal Hicks, Del and Syd Cole. And at one time the Johnson Family - Clarence, Cutter, Carol, Tom and Julia - performed as a group.
While still in the army Tom met his wife-to-be Barbara Baughan and they have produced three successful children -- Scott (Sue), Janice, a teacher in Salisbury, and Jackie Vantournout of Sackville, and he is also grandfather of several.
Tom Johnson may be limiting his on-stage performances, but he still has the ability to liven up and entertain a crowd and he and Del often play fundraisers for churches and can be seen each sumnmer at the local bandshell during the Concert in the Park series. He has enjoyed an amazing career in the military, as a hockey player and definitely as a quality entertainer.