FAMOUS ‘BURGERS Colin Campbell Former NHL player and current NHL executive lives in Tillsonburg
Jay Triano NBA Basketball Coach was born in Tillsonburg Debra DiGiovanni Juno-nominated comedian grew up in Tillsonburg Margaret Fishback Powers Author of the famous “Footprints in the Sand” poem grew up in Tillsonburg Gregory Campbell Former NHL player and current NHL coach grew up in Tillsonburg Michael DeGroote Businessman, philanthropist and member of the Order of Canada grew up working on tobacco fields near Tillsonburg Gary Green Broadcaster and former NHL coach grew up in Tillonburg Austin Pasztor Current NFL player attended Glendale High School David Rokeby Artist and winner of the Governor General’s Award was born in Tillsonburg
1952 Livingston Basketball Team
The Tillson family also found fame abroad through Tillson Lever Harrison, E.D.’s grandson. After training as a doctor at the University of Toronto, Harrison went on to travel the world, speak six languages, and participate in seven wars. While he is virtually unknown in Canada, Harrison is widely honored in China. A statue in his likeness stands tall in Shanghai, and the Harrison International Peace Hospital in Hengshui carries on his medical legacy. According to Harrison’s daughter Rosalind, film producers George Lucas and Steven Spielberg interviewed the Harrison family when creating the character of Indiana Jones. Tillsonburg has also had representation on the world stage through sport. Businessman Gerry Livingston’s love of basketball led him to create a team, popularly known as “The Livvies,” that represented Canada at the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki, Finland. In 1960 a second
Livvies squad won the national title representing Canada at the pre-Olympic qualifiers for Rome. More recently, Tillsonburg swimmer Evan VanMoerkerke competed in the men’s 4x100 relay at the 2016 Summer Olympics. Of course, no article about Tillsonburg is complete without at least a mention of tobacco—the crop that made our community synonymous with back-breaking agricultural labour. The song, “Tillsonburg” was released in 1971, and was one of Stompin’ Tom’s most iconic hits. He performed live in Tillsonburg several times during his lifetime, playing his last show in 2006.
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