Our Executive

Ron Schroder – Chairman

Ron's career in the printing discipline known as flexography, the dominant form of package printing, included executive experience in sales, marketing and technical service. He is the immediate past Chairman of the Canadian Flexographic Training Committee (CFTC). During his tenure with the CFTC, he spearheaded the establishment of a perpetual scholarship for students continuing their career path in flexography at the post-secondary educational level. Subsequently he served on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Printing Industries Scholarship Trust Fund (CPISTF) in the administration of their substantial portfolio, supporting students in all printing disciplines, Canada wide. Having recently relinquished his seat on the CPISTF to concentrate on the Chairmanship of the Mackenzie Printery & Newspaper Museum, Ron has been voted into the prestigious Honourable Society of the Wayzgoose in recognition of his philanthropic contributions to the Canadian Graphic Arts industry.

Louise Rowe - Vice Chair, Secretary

For the last decade, Louise's career has been focused on customer service, tourism and events. In 2016 she moved to Canada to study at Niagara College and following graduation in 2017 began working in the Niagara hospitality industry. A member of her local printmaking cooperative back in England, Louise was eager to find a local group of printing enthusiasts, having been gifted an antique printing press in 2017. Later that year, discovering the Mackenzie Printery & Newspaper Museum, she became a member. With much of her printmaking background rooted in fine art, Louise has since been focusing her time on learning about local printmaking history and the use of the letterpress print medium. A creative person by nature, Louise is an also an avid writer, painter and photographer and this year launched her own art studio and printery – Out of Sorts.

www.outofsorts.ca

Marvyn Rivett - Treasurer, Webmaster

Marvyn retired from teaching in 2001 after 30 years in the elementary school system. He taught every grade from one to eight at least once. He also spent eight years teaching special education and seven years as a consultant teaching teachers.

He is currently a full time artist working in oil, acrylic, pastel and printmaking. His latest passion is adding letterpress techniques to his wood engravings. When he is not working at his art, he enjoys golf and playing mandolin. Marvyn is a member of the Queen Street Artists' Group in Niagara, the Harper Printmaking Studio near his winter home in Florida.

snowbirdpress.ca

Tim Stevens - Education & Membership

Tim's early influences sealed his interest in printing. In middle school, he received formal and informal training in hand typesetting and basic presswork, initially by Leo Schmitz in Saginaw Michigan, and later by Ernest Morgan, the founder of the Antioch Bookplate Company of Yellow Springs Ohio. His skills were sufficient to get him a needed job offer, facilitating his immigration to Canada in 1970 where he worked in job shops in Victoria BC for several years. Following an interesting assortment of other jobs, he took up teaching in 1991, with a degree in Multicultural and Minority Education from UBC. He has an affection for vintage processes and machinery that are becoming antiques. Tim and his wife Jane Litman relocated to Thorold in 2018 to be near family, both working to restore and improve their 1910 bungalow. Tim volunteers as well at the Habitat ReStore. He is an amateur musician on fiddle and mandolin, passionately researching lute history for a future article. Tim remains a dedicated teacher, doing some online teaching.

Our Directors

Denis Cahill

Denis Cahill is a retired award winning photojournalist having spent his entire career with the St. Catharines Standard. Hired in 1965 as a staff photographer, he was appointed photo department manager and chief photographer in 1988. The Cahill family arrived from Ireland in the 1850's and he is the third generation to be born in St. Catharines. Love of local history runs deep in the Cahill family. His father Lou Cahill was a co-founder of the Mackenzie Printery & Newspaper Museum. (1991) Denis is a member of the St. Catharines Historical Society and the Dalhousie Yacht Club. He continues to live in St. Catharines where he and wife Bridget have raised their three children.

Nick Howard

As a partner in Howard Graphic Equipment and curator of Howard Iron Works, a privately held printing museum, Nick is a printing historian, consultant and Certified Appraiser of capital equipment. A second generation print equipment dealer and refurbisher, Nick also authors a regular column for Print Action magazine.

George Henry

As a child, George grew up in a family owned print shop and enjoyed playing with every machine as his toy! His main fascination was their Linotype typesetting machine, spending many hours watching and helping in its operation. As an adult George was hired by Linotype UK to install and train the new era of computerized equipment to customers all over Europe and Africa. Upon his arrival in Canada George continued his print career joining Linotype Canada and later Heidelberg. Says George: "It has been fascinating to see the progress of the print industry during my career and nostalgic to see the same Linotype machine still in operation in our "Printery" museum today!"

Art Seto

Art Seto worked in the printing industry from 1981 to 2004, where he served in bindery and prepress apprenticeships, before progressing through roles as an Estimator, Production Manager, General Manager, VP/Chief Operating Officer, and print shop owner. In 2001 he completed an MBA in Information Technology Management. Since 2004 Art has been employed at Ryerson University and has taught many courses in the Graphic Communications Management program, including cost estimating, manufacturing management, human resource management, project management, binding and finishing, and currently teaches letterpress printing, and a course called The Art of the Book." Art is the Faculty Advisor to the Ryerson Letterpress Club. At home he has C&P Pilot and Westman & Baker letterpresses.

Kevin Martin

Kevin is the co-owner of the Papertrail Handmade Paper and Book Arts where, since 1997, he has been working in hand papermaking, marbling, type casting, and letterpress printing. His academic background in physics and computer science provides him with a good insight into troubleshooting and repairing old undocumented machinery.

Directors Emeritus

Art Ellis

Art Ellis has been actively involved in the Mackenzie Printery and Newspaper Museum since 1997. He has served the board in several capacities including Vice Chairman, Treasurer and bookkeeper.

... Art Ellis Interview

John Hunt

John is a licensed electrician and ski-lift mechanic. He has been engaged in the electrical fields most of his career. During the early 70's he was employed for his skills at a St Catherines' based printing company.

For several years starting in the mid 1980's, John worked on aerial tramways and funicular railways. John was a founding member of the Mackenzie Printery and Newspaper Museum and has continued to support this historic site for several decades.