A Calgary man is giving new life to a bit of metropolis historical past that was destined for the dumpster. The long-lost piece of the previous is now going again to its previous residence.
John McDermid had an oil portray of the previous Crescent Heights library hanging in his storage for the previous 20 years.
McDermid was a part of a volunteer crew that got here throughout the portray whereas cleansing out a storage room within the close by Crescent Heights Community Hall 20 years in the past.
“I said ‘No, that can’t go in the bin,’” McDermid stated.
After saving the portray from the trash, McDermid hung it on the wall inside his storage.
“It accumulated some dirt over the years,” he stated.
McDermid lately obtained out a brush and material, and cleaned the mud off the portray, readying it to donate to a dentist close to his residence.
The household of Dr. Gilbert Ng had transformed the previous library to a dental clinic after buying the constructing shortly after the Calgary Public Library closed the Crescent Heights department in 1994.
The library had been working because it opened in 1943.
“The building was originally a restaurant and dance place,” McDermid stated. “It opened in 1939.”
When McDermid offered the restored portray to Ng, the dentist was impressed.
“Wow, this is incredible!” Ng stated.
Ng plans to hold the portray in his ready room, offering a little bit of a enjoyable historical past lesson for his sufferers.
“It’s absolutely fantastic to see a piece of history like this, immortalized in an oil painting,” Ng stated. “It’s very well-restored – looks like it’s professionally done.”
