One man's life tells larger story
Bill McCarthy, Burnaby Now
Published: Tuesday, December 25, 2007

On Oct. 20, Elio Sicolo passed away after a battle with ALS, more commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease. He was 62 years old.

For so many of his customers and friends in South Burnaby, he was simply Elio, who operated his comfortable barber shop at Royal Oak Avenue and Rumble Street for over 30 years.

He was my barber for this entire time. I greatly appreciated his friendship. Over the years, while my hair decreased, our conversations increased. And while he was an excellent barber (you never referred to him as a hairstylist), he was even a better man. I had thought about writing a column about Elio, tying in the role of the small business operator and the changing nature of commercial real estate in Burnaby since I realized he would be retiring about two years ago.
I thought more about this during his beautiful funeral service and decided to write these words this month and further connect it in to the changing demographics of Burnaby.

As with any exemplary person, one can learn a great deal by his example.

Elio was an extremely well-read individual, a keen observer of the events and individuals.

He was a very practical person. Over the years, he cut the hair of politicians from all political parties and all levels of government. He also had as his customers many business owners and operators, employers and employees. All of them were fond of Elio and remained his customers for decades.

When Elio wanted to emigrate to Canada from his small village in Italy, it took him almost three years of applying. This was in the beginning of the Trudeau era before immigration policies were essentially rewritten, and those wanting to come to Canada required both a plan and perseverance.

After multiple applications, Elio was able to join his brother in Edmonton only after his brother guaranteed his sponsorship and Elio could prove he had work lined up and sufficient command of English in the country he planned to make his new home.

From this time forward, Elio embraced his new country and never complained about the long hours he worked and what was expected of him as a new citizen.

He and his wife Christine proudly raised their five children from the income he generated cutting hair. He gave back far more to his adopted country than he ever took. And he was an entrepreneur: leasing space, generating revenue, paying taxes and expenses. He provided quality service for a fair price.

And now, almost 40 years after Elio was permitted into Canada, it has been reported that more than half of Burnaby's population was born outside of Canada. Fully 56 per cent of Burnaby residents have languages other than English or French as their primary language.

These trends were well underway while Elio was still working, and he would often reflect on how times had changed since he was permitted into this country.

He could never have dreamed of so many services and benefits being provided for newcomers. Nor is it likely, knowing the man, that he would have been comfortable accepting them. He acknowledged that sacrifice and personal accountability and responsibility made him appreciate what he had earned through his own hard work.

Canada's size and diversity and rapidly declining birth rate means we will increasingly need immigrants. The question going forward will be from the huge and unprecedented numbers of new Canadians in our city and province, how many of them will prove to be the great asset to our country and city that Elio Sicolo proved to be.

William P. J. McCarthy is president and CEO of W. P. J. McCarthy & Co. Ltd., a firm specializing in property management and development.

http://www.canada.com/burnabynow/new...2d46f3&k=24394