Ask Chuck

Name:
Location: Whitby, Ontario, Canada

Born in Malta but in Canada since age 5. Has written three books and presently does several columns about wine and food for various magazines.

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Ken Zayette RIP 2014

We live in a very finite World. Everything has a begining and an ending. There are no exceptions. Our journey begins with only one emphatic reality that it must end. For some it is a bit longer and for some the ending comes so very quick.
We take great efforts to extract that extra hour of life even though by living we actually forget what life is all about. Some fear death so much that they do not realize that fearing death is to fear life itself! Not so a tiny dynamo called Ken Zayette.
I first met Ken in the early 1960's when entered the hallowed halls of Henry Street Highschool in Whitby. Ken and I were in the same grade together 9F and it didn't take long to realize that his person was someone to be reckoned with.
Small in size he made up for it with his amazing strenght and agility. I learned that he was a wrestler and an Ontario Champion at that. The guys looked up to him and the girls----well let's just say that he had no trouble getting a date. In many ways, the "Fonz" of the 70's television series "Happy Days" seemed to have been patterned on Ken.
I still picture Ken's antics in the classroom or him strutting down the hallways in his Henry Jacket like a rooster in a hen house. He was both an ideal setter and a comic at one time.
However, on the wrestling mat there was no comedy. It was all serious. Ken moved like a cat. Coiled like a snake and sprang with the power of a tiger. That is why he was an undefeated All Ontario Wrestling Champion.
There was another side to Ken. He would give us "newcomers" advice on all levels. Whether it was a girl problem, teacher hangups, sports or just the blues, he would be there for us! When all hell would brake loose, he was there to solve the problem.
As we got older, he would keep up our interest in wrestling by picking us up and taking us to Toronto clubs where we would get more experience. His advice came readily and without any obligation from our part. Ken was the real thing.
Ken and I lost touch after we left Henry but he was always in the back of my mind and of course everytime I saw a repeat of "Happy Days" there was "The Fonz" to bring Kenny back to mind.
We connected again via Facebook about two years ago. Ken would let me know of his travels and seemed so very happy. Ken was basically a very happy person who had achieved what he wanted to achieve.
He loved life and inspite of some setbacks, kept on going forward with his connection to wrestling, sport and most of all family. He loved travelling and was at peace with the Wrld!
Ken lived life the way he saw it. He wasn't afraid of death since he loved life and accepted the challenges that it would bring.
Ken cannot be replaced----- but his truths and deeds will continue to live. In the long run isn't that what life is all about----our deeds, actions and who we are and the choices we make. Ken was talented but the choices he made determined who he ultimatley was. There are many talented people out there but their final legacy of who they are depends on their choices in life.
Ken, if you are up there looking down on us all I can say is that your choices were good ones. Now it is up to us to carry on!
Rest in Peace Buddy! Ready-------------Wrestle!