Ren's career in the RCAF started in 1956 as a member of the 2451 Windsor Reserve Squadron. When he became 17 he joined the Regular Force. As he put it......

I transferred into the Regulars (from Reserves) in Nov 57 as an LAC, group 1 FCO - at age 17. I went directly to St. Jean for basic training, and from St. Jean - directly to Senneterre as an FCO in Feb 58. I never did make it to Clinton for any training. I wrote my group 2 in Senneterre (Feb 59 to Sept 59) and was then transferred to Holberg where I wrote my group 3 and then was transferred to France in Sep 60 at the bright young age of 20. The way they worked it was to transfer me into the regulars on the same day that I got my LAC in the reserves. You may recall that you had to be 17 to join up in those days. It then took you a year and a half to reach LAC (at age 18 and a half). In my case, I was an LAC at age 17 and a half, which seemed to pi$$ off some of the guys at Senneterre when I arrived ahead of them in the seniority list. (grin)

Ren's career took him to Senneterre (1959), Holberg (1960), Grostenquin (1960-64, Metz (1964-65), and Marville France (1965). He was posted to Armstrong Ontario (1965-67) and then remustered to ATC. He was then posted to Comox (1967-1968) Goose Bay (1968-1971) Trenton (1971-1974) Lahr (1974-1978).

For many years, while in the RCAF, Ren played guitar in various bands. When he took his commission he gave up this pasttime.

Twenty years of his life was spent in the RCAF. After his retirement from the RCAF, Ren went on to a civilian career and eventually a second retirement. He and Margaret made Puerto Vallarta, Mexico their retirement home.

Ren at his retirement party

Ren ran a BBS called Farwest BBS from Victoria BC. He had over 20 phone lines and 20 modems set up in his apartment. He also had a great sense of humour. He was featured in a very humorous serial called "The Adventures of Molly Modem" about a villian trying to take over the BBS's. He often joked he would live long enough to bankrupt the pension system.

He realized that the Internet was going to be "the thing of the future" and he started a small website called Pinetreeline. Pinetreeline grew and grew and grew. It outgrew the free space provided by his internet provider and so Ren moved it over to his own server. He developed the "Metz" website as a sub-site of Pinetreeline. He then went on to develop three more sites grostenquin.org, marville.org and rcaf-atc.org. Within these sites he also developed sub-sites including sites for Grostenquin and Marville Brats.

Ren relaxing on the beach during treatment for cancer

Ren put his heart and soul into these websites. Even when he was tired and sick from his cancer treatments he would always try to get some work done on them. Ren beat the cancer. He got a clean bill of health but then earlier this year he developed what they thought was bronchitis, then later diagnosed as pneumonia and then a few short weeks ago, as typhoid fever.

Ren was confident he would beat this like he did the cancer. He considered it more of a nuisance then a threat. As he put it....

I have just returned home. I was hospitalized on Monday. I was in an Intensive Care Unit for 3 days and a regular private room the last two days. This ongoing battle started in March when things were initially diagnosed as Bronchitis, then in April upgraded to Bronchial-Pneumonia, and now in July re-diagnosed to Typhoid Fever. I have been pricked, prodded and probed, beyond the point of no return. There was some discussion as to whether I should have been released today but I appear to have won out. For the moment, I will be taking pills, pills, and more pills - at least for the next two weeks. Along with that will be follow-up visits to my local family doctor (he's the "rat" the had me hospitalized in the first place) :) As can be expected - this has placed a damper with my ongoing web site maintenance and activity. I am hoping that it is a simple matter of time before the pills clear this up. And that, my friend, is about all I can say at the moment. Ren

And then communication was lost.

He helped bring thousands of people together. He created a community online not just a website. I became involved in the websites when Ren realized he had bitten off more than he could chew. He was a two-fingered typist and found that he could not possibly finish the historical documents for the individual radar sites. He enlisted my aide. Eventually came the documents for the other sites as he created them as well as new areas of interest for pinetreeline.

Ren will never be forgotten. He will live on in the hearts of all the people he has touched. Knowing Ren, I am sure he is up in heaven setting up another website.