ESTEVAN — Graham Shirley is being remembered for his contributions to Estevan, its business community and the trucking industry in Saskatchewan.
Shirley died June 17 in Estevan at the age of 89. He, his wife Nancy and their family owned Bert Baxter Transport in Estevan.
His son Darryl said Graham was one of the pioneers of trucking in Estevan.
"He ran back and forth to Edmonton with Bert Baxter Transport for many years before the highways actually had asphalt on them. He bought this company from Bert Baxter, which was a pioneer in the trucking industry," Darryl said in an interview with Â鶹ÊÓƵ.
When Graham bought the company, its fleet boasted four trucks and two old forklifts. According to Darryl, it now has over 40 trucks; at one time, it had 60 or 70 such vehicles.
"He always supported many different charitable functions in Estevan, through labour, work and monetary value, when he could," said Darryl. "He came to Estevan in about 1964 for one or two years, and then he was going to go back to farming. He ended … putting down roots here."
Darryl said he learned everything from his father. Graham believed people could achieve anything if they worked hard enough, and he instilled the same work ethic into his children.
"He was my mentor, my father and my hero. The strongest man I ever met," said Darryl.
Darryl remembers his father basically lived at the shop in the early days. He slept in a bed in his office because there was too much work going on.
In 2023, Bert Baxter Transport was inducted into the Nick and Verna Morsky Estevan Business Hall of Fame by the Estevan Chamber of Commerce. Darryl said his father was "very, very proud" of the honour, and wishes he could have been given a bigger speech.
When the company was inducted, it was noted that Baxter arrived in Estevan in the early 1950s after working on the construction of the Alaska Highway.
Bert Baxter Transport was incorporated in 1957. Graham Shirley moved to Estevan in 1964 to work for Baxter, and in 1977, Graham and Nancy Shirley, along with Elmer Vicary, purchased the business. Vicary eventually left to serve with the Estevan Police Service, and he sold his shares to the Shirleys.
The company's head office is still on Kensington Avenue. They have two other locations in the Estevan area and an office in Leduc, Alta.
A celebration of life was held June 17 at St. Paul's United Church in Estevan. Darryl said people attended he hadn't seen in many years, which he believes show the impact his father made on so many lives.
"People that worked for us 20 years ago were down there to show their respects."
Graham Shirley is survived by his wife of 65 years Nancy, plus children, grandchildren and other family members.
