Fonds MG 1 volumes 3173-3179 - Ralph Loomer

Ralph Marsters Loomer was born on 12 May 1905 in Falmouth, Nova Scotia, the son of Handley Wilcox and Eva May (Marsters) Loomer. He was married first to Cloyda Hope Neaves on 16 September 1929 and secondly to Mrs. Avis MacCammon. With assistance from Frank Marriott and others, Loomer organized and operated Avon Greenhouses Limited which became the third largest flower grower in Canada. He was well known on television as the "Avon Valley flower man." Loomer was involved in local cooperatives and agricultural societies, including Nova Scotia Greenhouse Growers Association, 1950s-ca. 1979; Hants Cooperative Limited, 1943-1961; and Producers, Retailers and Consumers Cooperative (PRC), serving as chairman, 1956-1957. He also contributed to the establishment of the Cooperative Snowplow Service in Falmouth, Nova Scotia circa 1974. Loomer was also active in world peace and social democracy issues. He began corresponding with the United States Unitarian Church in the late 1940s and was involved with establishing it in the Maritimes, serving as Executive Secretary, 1952-1961. In the late 1940s, Loomer became involved with the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), serving in various capacities. He ran as the CCF candidate for Colchester-Hants in 1955 and became President of the Nova Scotia Committee of the CCF in 1959, serving in that capacity until the formation of the New Democratic Party on 4 August 1961. He continued working for the party, broadcasting on local radio and making regular television appearances on the "Provincial Affairs" program on CBHT. He also served as a member of the World Federalists of Canada, 1958-late 1970s. He participated in the "Law of the Seas" conferences, 1971-1974, and served as a branch director of the World Federalists of Canada, 1974-1976. Loomer was also President of the Windsor-Falmouth Rotary Club, 1952-1955. He died on 21 February 2003 in Windsor, Nova Scotia.