Saturday, March 14, 2020
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Many years ago (it was 2007 as I recall), I was on site setting up for Calgary Bluesfest. A team member knocked on the door of my trailer, telling me that there was someone who wanted to speak with me outside.
I stepped out to find an elderly gent waiting for me. I greeted him, extending my hand, which he shook with a firm but gentle grip, introducing himself as Bob Beagle. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Beagle,” I said. He responded, “please, call me Bob.” Thus began a long friendship. As an aside, to this day he will always and forever be Mr. Beagle to me.
Mr. Beagle told me that he was a Blues fan and that he would love to come to the festival, but needed a place to park his RV as his “Honeybunch” needed a place to rest after going through some health issues. My heart was immediately engaged with his beautiful spirit and his loving way of ensuring his wife would be comfortable. We mobilized and found a place for the Mr. Beagle to park his RV so that they could be with us for the festival.
One night that week, during the late night dance party, I looked out from backstage to see Mr. Beagle standing there. I went to him and pulled him backstage, where the late great Buckwheat Zydeco was sitting, waiting to go on stage. Buckwheat spotted Mr. Beagle and leapt from his chair, the two men embracing. They sat together for the longest time chatting. I found out later they didn’t know one another but clearly their spirits recognized each other.
Over the years, Mr. Beagle came to the festival each year, bringing his Honeybunch and an ever expanding group of family members. They are all delightful people and all have become Bluesfest family members. No matter what the weather, no matter how long the hours, the Beagles would remain on site, listening to the Blues and shaking hands with whomever passed by their family sitting in their lawn chairs. Mr. Beagle would take Mrs. Beagle home at the end of the evening, then he would come to our late night dance parties and stay till the end, sitting and chatting with all who came to love him.
After a couple of years, Mr. Beagle asked if there was a way for him to help us with the festival. We gratefully accepted his sponsorship, each year Mr. Beagle choosing a festival artist and paying a portion of their fee. His suggestions for artists always matched my tastes, we agreed on the sound and the quality of the artists he recommended. It was a gift to have Mr. Beagle’s artist included in the lineup, he often helped us introduce an artist that had never performed here before, opening our ears and hearts to some mighty fine Blues acts over the years.
I loved the day each year when Mr. Beagle would stop by my trailer to pick up his parking pass and festival passes. No matter how crazy things would be in the final hours before the first act hit, things would stop while hugs were shared, updates were had and laughter prevailed. He had a way of making each and every person feel important and was always a welcomed sight.
It took me many years to convince Mr. Beagle to come backstage to the artist green room. He was such humble man, he never wanted to impose. The last few years I was able to convince him to at least meet the artist he’d selected. Last year, he spent quite a bit of time backstage and it was grand to look over and see him deep in conversation with many of our headline artists. He had me take many photos for him on his old school camera (with film inside!) of him standing alongside his Blues music heroes, such as the photo below with beautiful Keeshea Pratt.
Through our many telephone conversations, I learned that Mr. Beagle was not only a huge Blues music fan but that he was a hard working, humble, generous, iconoclastic, truth telling, affectionate guy, one who didn’t suffer fools, who had an incredible memory and always a great story to tell. He loved his family dearly. He was a pioneer in his own right, tackling the government to build his border crossing businesses and farming right till the end. Last we spoke he was still helping take crops off the fields, including his own and his friend’s in Saskatchewan. He and Mrs. Beagle traveled south for the winters, where they had a community of friends and Mr. Beagle would go to Blues clubs and festivals. He remained vital, strong, and a Blues fan right to his last breath.
It was a gift to know and love you, Mr. Beagle. My deepest sympathy goes out to your beloved Honeybunch and to your family. Know that you will always be a much loved Calgary Bluesfest family member. Your choice for this year’s artist will be embraced with your memory in our hearts, and you and your precious spirit will live on in the Blues.
We will miss you.
love, Cindy