EAR FALLS -- Karen and Darryl Desjardins have been a fixture of Ear Falls for more than 20 years.
Karen was born in Magherafelt, Northern Ireland and immigrated to Canada when she was two. She and her family lived in Winnipeg for three years, and relocated to Ear Falls when she was five years old.
Karen and her husband Darryl both serve on the Ear Falls Firefighters Association 17 and 22 years respectively. They both received encouragement to join from retired members and people in the community and have worked their way into leadership roles over the years. Karen’s title is captain, fire prevention and training. Darryl’s title is chief. The EFFA is proudly involved in volunteering at almost each and every event within the community.
“It is an ongoing cycle of volunteering and fundraising. Darryl and I are both passionate about supporting the community, making it the best we can for everyone,” says Karen.
This year, Karen and Darryl took on a new role in Ear Falls when they took over Wilsons Fine Foods. Together they rebranded the store, dubbing it K and D’s Fine Foods. Darryl had always wanted to own his own business and this opportunity came up and they took it.
Karen and Darryl have put in many upgrades since taking over the store in February.
One of those upgrades was installing a historical photo on the front of the store.
“We wanted a mural to cover up the spot where the building was damaged, we knew we wanted a storefront picture from days gone by,” says Karen.
The photo was taken on June 24, 1916 in Waterford, Ireland. The store in the photo was called Mortimer’s Shop, which was located on Bridge Street. The family in the photo are husband and wife with their daughter, Mary Mortimer. Mary later married a man named Tommy Corcoran, and together they ran the shop and the adjoining pub after Mary’s father passed away.
Karen’s Irish heritage is so important to her and her family, and she loves to be able to represent it in her day-to-day life. She and her husband have taken trips to Ireland over the years, and she noticed that many of the buildings are old and unique, with lots of character. The olden day uniqueness was very appealing to her. When it came time to select a photo to put up at their store, she knew that Mortimer’s Shop photo captured that same feel. The bonus was that it was a historical photo from Ireland.
Karen and her husband Darryl are avid travellers and when the COVID lockdowns ended, she got the idea to build an Irish styled pub in her own backyard. They spent five months renovating a shed; installing hydro and insulation, and Karen collected unique decoration pieces from online and from her childhood. It turned out as a miniature of an Irish Pub, which may unofficially be the smallest Irish Pub in Canada, which they called Finny Magoo’s Irish Pub. They’ve had visitors from Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Hungary and even Ireland. Each guest signs a beer cap, as a guestbook.
“The Irish heritage is fun and feisty, lots of small communities where everyone knows everyone, time seems to stand still over there,” says Karen.
