Profile Kingston profile

I received this email out of the blue on February 3: 

"Hi Mr. Gagnon, I hope this email reaches you... Can you please give me a call. I have a personal request and hope to connect with you today. Thank you, Bonnie Golomb 

-Profile Kingston... Kingston's favourite city magazine since 1985

-Summer in the City magazine... your essential guide to beautiful, historic Kingston"

When I called Bonnie back, she kindly asked if Profile Kingston could profile me in an upcoming issue. Perhaps the May issue, perhaps July.  Very flattering, and I accepted, but throughout the process we never discussed why me? The people featured in this glossy local magazine always seem to be very involved, very accomplished and usually photogenic. So it seemed to be on the strength of photos I'd posted to social media of this layout.

Thus began a months-long process to a Profile Kingston piece just published in early May in their current issue. By February 5 I'd been contacted by writer Ann-Maureen Owens and photographer Bernard Clark. I remembered Bernie from our school days at Amherst View Public School. 

By mid-February we'd had visits from Ann-Maureen and Bernard. We visited the layout downstairs, sat on sofas, recalled memories and family events, stood and sat for photo shoots, and then everything went into the queue at Profile Kingston. 

The magazine has been published bimonthly since 1985, and features the stories, accomplishments and passions of Kingstonians. Bonnie is justifiably proud of the magazine's reputation and the importance of supporting local businesses so I'm not reproducing any of the magazine content in this post.

The magazine always features an abstract cover image, never of those people profiled inside. Bernard had made a point of taking several shots of the layout scene, and now I realized why. When I stopped at the Metro store and looked on the magazine rack, 'Wellington Street' was staring back at me:

That cover photo is reproduced in triplicate on the TV ads running on Global Kingston! The Profile Kingston website features a blurb and photo of the those profiled in each issue. It has been a nice experience to see my modest efforts reflected in print and online via the Kingstonist, The Skeleton Press, Kingston Life, Global Kingston and now Profile Kingston. Perhaps this latest phase of my My Hanley Spur Journey will inspire others to also document local history in unique ways!