WESTLOCK - In every community, there are those who have a positive impact on the place they chose to call home, and when they pass on, we mourn their passing, but we also remember the legacy they left behind.
Rex Dawson was one of those people, and though he had been out of the business world for several years when he passed away Thanksgiving Day, Oct. 12 at age 92, he left a legacy of a life well lived and a community well served.
Rex was born Aug. 1, 1928 and grew up in Sunnyslope in southern Alberta, finishing his high school education in Calgary at Central Collegiate High School. His post-secondary schooling at Mount Royal College was cut short when his father passed away in 1946. He came home to help his mother in the Neapolis Corner Store his father had purchased, which was just a mile up the road from where his future wife, Marjorie (Marj) grew up.
He later was able to study accounting at Henderson College and began his career in the accounting department at the MD of Mountain View in Didsbury from 1948 to 1952.
He married Marj in 1948, and the couple had 72 happy years together, raising four daughters and at his passing, seven grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
From his job with the MD, Rex went on to the Motor Dealers Insurance Corporation, a GM company from 1952 to 1969 as an insurance adjuster. The job took him all over the province, including Westlock, a place he particularly liked.
When a promotion took him into an office position, he decided that wasn’t for him, and decided to ‘go it alone.’
The Ford dealership had been vacant in Westlock for several months when Rex and his family arrived to take the dealership on in 1969, opening it as Rex Dawson Ford. From the start, he always sought employees who had the same business ethics as he did, and the customer was always number one.
Marj told me, “He had some wonderful employees.”
She said Rex loved the business, his staff, and the community. She said he was 77 years old when he sold the business to Lavern Bazin in the fall of 2002, and said he had to “make the decision with his head and not his heart.”
Just as with his employees, he wanted to ensure the business was going to a person with good character and the values he had himself.
Lorne Boyd worked in the body shop for a previous Ford dealer and met Rex when he was in the body shop for Doherty’s Garage, the GM dealer. He later came to work for Rex, where he was employed for 17 years after Rex coaxed him to come work for him.
“You couldn’t find a better guy to work with,” he said recently.
During his time as the Ford dealer, Rex was active in both local and national car dealer’s council, and a director for Motor Dealers of Alberta (MDA), representing all auto dealers, not just Ford. In 1987, he received the MDA Time Dealer Award.
Rex was also involved with the United Church and the Masonic Lodge in Westlock, serving as Grand Master of Alberta from 2005 to 2008, Marj said. He volunteered in many organizations and groups in the community.
He also sat as a Town of Westlock councillor and later joined the Westlock Rotary Club, and was a member until his passing last month. He was club president for the 2010-2011 club year.
“My business partner Jody Wiese and I started negotiations with Rex in the fall of 2002. Rex had insisted to meet the daily operator (me) before finishing the deal. He wanted to make sure it was going to a person of good character and values,” said Bazin recalling when he first met Rex.
“I had spent some time at the Dawson house and enjoyed Marj’s great cooking including her delicious zucchini soup.
“Rex’s daughter Jane stayed on as the office manager for a few years after helping make the transition very smooth. Rex was always available for any questions and was eager to assist.
“Rex was a man that other men aspired to be like. Long after his name came off the building he remained a pillar of the community; very active in Rotary and community projects. I will personally remember Rex as a man who loved to laugh, the stories he told always had humour and he enjoyed a good joke and the fellowship of people.”
Dwight Brown, whose name still adorns the Chrysler dealership in Westlock, said Rex was always ready to lend a help hand.
“In 1981 when I opened the doors to Brown’s Chrysler across the road from Dawson Ford, Rex showed up offering assistance for anything automotive. Rex was a good competitor and we often travelled together to auctions, proof of Rex’s commitment to working along side with his competition.
“Rex served on the board of directors for the Motor Dealers of Alberta for many years, and we were proud to be in attendance when Rex was presented with the Time Dealer of the year award, an honor voted on by all dealers of every manufacturer in the province.
“Terry and I enjoyed many dealer conventions with Rex and Marj. Rex was a great community supporter, Rotarian, a true car guy, and true mentor. Rex made his mark on and a difference in our world!”
Note from the author: On a personal note, I purchased my first Ford, a 1973 F-150 from his salesman, Ernie Martin. I remember Rex also personally checking with me to ensure I was well satisfied.
A few years ago, during a time when I wasn’t allowed to drive due to medical reasons, Rex would stop by the Westlock News office shortly before noon on Thursdays to take me to our Rotary meetings, and then return me back to the office afterwards.
That was Rex; personable, likeable, and always ready to help out wherever and however he could. He was one of those memorable people in my life I will never forget, and feel I am much privileged for having known him. I am sure there are others with similar feelings about him.
