Roger Jarvis

Roger was a long-term volunteer for the Calgary Stampede, as happy to be presiding over meetings as flipping pancakes (Photo: Rotary Vimeo)
Roger was a long-term volunteer for the Calgary Stampede, as happy to be presiding over meetings as flipping pancakes (Photo: Rotary Vimeo)

Watching the Calgary Stampede chuckwagon races last week reminded me of Roger Jarvis, past president of “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth.”

I was thirty-one years old, had never made a travel reservation and been outside the country by air only once when Roger hired me to work for him at Jarvis Travel. Besides being a great boss, always positive, full of fun and open to new ideas, he is one of the kindest people I’ve ever met.

Was.

A day after watching those thoroughbreds, Mike sent us a note: “This was in the Herald last week. I thought you probably knew but decided to send it just in case. https://calgaryherald.remembering.ca/obituary/charles-jarvis-1085691792.

Roger used to joke about starting Jarvis Travel on April Fool’s Day. (His initial dream to be a pilot with Wardair was thwarted when a medical test showed he had a mild congenital heart situation.) The company was ten years old when I started in 1981 and had recently joined Woodside, an affiliation of international business-travel agencies. Roger said he’d like me to learn the ropes, start a quarterly newsletter to clients and help him market the company against the big players, like American Express and Marlin Travel.

Roger was a joker, but he was no fool.

His was the first travel agency in Calgary to install a computer for ticketing instead of relying on the airlines. (Yes Virginia, that’s how it was in prehistoric times.) He hired smart agents like Steve Chu, the genius who could calculate complicated international business fares from YYC to DEL.

Roger believed in the personal touch.

He spent more two-thirds of his day calling on clients (returning with a box of doughnuts for the staff when clients praised their work, which was often), drumming up business, lunching with one or the other or a supplier. Soon he had me doing the same. Embarrassing myself when a company I cold-called said, “We already deal with Jarvis Travel,” Roger and I went from a file-card index of our clients by name to a computerized list we could also sort by address!

Early on, he hired a vivacious woman named Pauline to deliver tickets, knowing she’d be chummy with clients and relay any misgivings they had about our service. When Pauline was away on summer vacation, he hired from within, the kids of staff, including our daughter Lynn.

The backers of Jarvis Travel had been amply compensated for their initial investment and Roger was keen to go it on his own. With or without them, he knew he needed a clear vision, a long-range business strategy that addressed clients’ needs, staff profit-sharing and enhanced compensation from the airlines. He turned to Baker-Lovick, who put their VP Ruth Ann (who became one of my best friends) on the job.

Of all the many clients I helped develop long-range plans and key messages, Roger was by far and away the most enthusiastic and involved—both in developing the plan to spread his wings and then making sure the company followed it. Six months after we developed the plan, he decided we should do a review to make sure the company was on target. It was! “No sense doing all this work without making sure we’re doing what we said we wanted to do,” he said. We did a second follow-up a year later at his ‘cabin’ at Canmore. And of course, several staff were involved as they had been throughout. It was a great celebration (read party)! I thought the world of him.

He closed both money-losing holiday-travel offices but kept the staff. Introduced profit-sharing for all employees—which he handed out personally in envelopes of CASH. And instead of just focusing on cutting costs to increase profits, we negotiated significant over-rides from the airlines.

Magellan and Roger’s wife Marie usually accompanied us to international Woodside meetings, held annually,  like the one in Dublin during the October 1987 stock-market crash.

Magellan recalls our post-meeting vacation with them:

Roger was a great driver who loved Ireland’s stone-walled narrow roads. He didn’t take his golf game too seriously, he was just out there for the moment, even at Ballybunion. I remember drinking a lot of Guinness after our game there and Roger saying to me, “You’re only a pint short of a gallon.”

One of our most memorable times together was in Rome, beginning with flying upstairs, above the nose of the plane, on Air Italia.

After the long, expensive cab ride from the airport to our hotel, Marie and I both reached for the burgundy suitcase, not realizing we owned the exact same luggage—and someone’s was still at the airport!

Much as he loved flying, Roger didn’t really enjoy travelling. He didn’t drink much, and he preferred plain food. But he let me choose the restaurants when the four of us holidayed together and in Rome, I picked Taverna del Ghetto—where Jewish-Roman cuisine is still being served.

Concern first appeared on Roger’s face when our cab neared the shabby and forlorn neighbourhood of Portico d’Ottavia. On a Saturday night at 7 pm, we were the only diners. The menu was in Italian and not easy to comprehend. What was Carciofi? Animelle? Tacchino? Our waitress, about eight months pregnant, didn’t speak English. Nor did her husband, the chef. I can still visualize her “charading” the menu, rubbing her belly to indicate animelle, what Magellan correctly guessed as sweetbreads, flapping her elbows, shaking her head no when we guessed “chicken,” then enlarging her wingspread so we figured tacchino must be turkey, all of us, by then, laughing so hard, Roger’s napkin was wet from wiping his eyes.

Roger pulled many a practical joke. Like leaving a message with the secretary of Air Canada’s local manager. “Just tell Jack that Zellers called, and his suit is ready for pick up.” Or slipping cutlery into the suit pocket of an unsuspecting dinner companion, everyone’s eyes turned toward the jangling sound when he got up, Roger beckoning the waiter to catch the “thief.”

One Saturday before April Fool’s Day Roger stuffed up some of his clothes (he was a very natty dresser) to create a dummy that he locked into a cubicle in the women’s washroom at the agency. When Helen came into work on Sunday and discovered a “man” in the women’s loo, she called the police. Roger was so sorry he bought her flowers.

He was a humble and unpretentious man, kind to everyone he met: executives and secretaries, coat girls and homeless men. On more than one occasion, he lent staff money, to help with a downpayment for a house, finance the purchase of a car, even a wedding I think…

In 1988, Magellan was transferred to Vancouver, and I got a job with another great boss (Willard Holmes at the Vancouver Art Gallery). Cheeky I know, but I asked Roger if he’d consider a “leaving bonus.” He wrote me a cheque for $10K!

Twice, in 1989 and 1995, Jarvis Travel was named “one of the 50 best managed companies in Canada.” Twice, Roger personally received the Capital Pinnacle award for Calgary’s Entrepreneur of the year.

In 1998 he received an offer too good to refuse and sold the company. Roger carried on with his generous volunteer commitments to Rotary (40 years—watch the Vimeo of him telling his story and you’ll get a real sense of the man), the Calgary Stampede (he was its president in 2001) and the Calgary Airport Authority, among others.

We saw Roger while in Canmore to celebrate my 60th birthday. One Saturday morning he called to see if he could come over to say hello. My family was there and we were about to go hiking. “I’ll be at the trailhead,” he said. “Just for a few minutes. I’d like to meet your mother.” (He adored his parents and totally charmed my mom.) Later that September was the last time we saw Roger. He had had a stroke a few years before and over dinner, credited his beloved Marie with saving his life. He was in good shape and thoroughly accepted no longer being able to drive at night and having to sell his share of the airplane he could no longer fly.

How like Roger to leave these parting words for his obituary. “Thank you! Thank you! For being a part of my life.”

(Photo: Rotary Vimeo)

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Roger tells his life-story on Rotary Vimeo

Arbor Memorial Guestbook Page for Roger

14 Responses

  1. I regret not sharing this at Roger’s Celebration of Life: Here it is now.

    Memories of Roger

    I am Valerie Sawyer. Roger was my cousin, my big brother figure, and my friend. His mother, Vera & my dad, Lee were brother and sister. Roger’s dad, Stan was a good friend of my dad’s before he and Vera married and they, along with my mom, remained close throughout the years.
    Stan & Vera would visit my parents in Vancouver on their way to wintering in Arizona and I always remember the fun they brought to our house. Roger got his beautiful eyes, smile and love of practical jokes from his mother and maybe a bit of the practical jokes side from his dad as well, along with his business acumen.
    I first remember Roger as a teenager when he & his parents came to the coast to visit us. I wished I had a big brother like him!
    Later his parents were worried that he wasn’t moving forward in life as he was passionate about baseball and wanted to be a pitcher. A family friend got him a job with CP Air in a local ticket office and from that point on there was no stopping him. That family remained life long friends with him.
    Later, when I was about 13, he lived with us while out in Vancouver taking business courses when he worked with CP Air. Along with Roger came his friends & his little red sports car! Exciting times, those!
    During that time with us we saw the thoughtful empathetic and caring side of him as he sat at my desk and carefully composed a letter to a friend who had received a terminal diagnosis.
    And then, we saw his bitter disappointment when he failed a health test due to a mild and what could have been an erroneous test result to become a commercial pilot.
    In 1962 CPAir dispatched him to Hawaii to deal with the aftermath of a crash on a Honolulu runway. There were fatalities. He didn’t relay a lot of detail to me but I could see he had been considerable shaken.
    He adored my parents, his Uncle Lee and Aunt Ellen and consulted with them throughout the years. When he visited he’d bring a photo of the girl he was dating at the time and tell them all about her – getting feedback from them.
    Then when he met Marie, we knew she was the one. He had taken my parents and me to a football game in Calgary and afterwards couldn’t wait to drop in and introduce us to Marie and peek in on her two little sleeping children. Later he brought Marie to the coast for a visit and we all fell in love with her!
    When he was transferred out to the coast Marie & I house hunted for a place not too far from the airport and it was the start of the friendship phase for my husband Wray & me with them. Their daughter, Lori was our flower girl shortly after that.
    We were all thrilled to have them in Vancouver and sad when they returned to Calgary. He had gotten a promotion, as Calgary & District Sales Manager for CP Air and was happy to be returning to cattle country.
    Sometime after that he talked to my dad about going into business on his own. I remember them sitting side by side on the Living Room couch and him saying, “ Uncle Lee, do you think I can make a go of it?” He admired his Uncle Lee, especially for his success in business with
    a family run lumber supply company. My dad adored Roger and thought he would indeed be successful!
    Throughout the subsequent years Roger would write notes to my parents frequently, telling them about the current state of Jarvis Travel. “ We had x number of sales this month”. Mom would phone and say “ we got a note from ROGER today”!
    When my husband and I bought our first house he phoned. Trying to disguise his voice, he asked “ Is this the lady of the house?”
    My husband & I had a big 50th anniversary celebration for my parents in 1989 – he and Marie came and he wowed all 68 people present with his enthusiasm ! He swept in hugged me, picked me up and spun me around!!
    In later years when we visited Calgary he took my husband & son up in the plane while Marie & I got dinner ready. He loved having a fire pit in his back yard and we have fond memories of that evening around the fire at the Lake Bonavista house.
    Then when he found their current home he called to enthusiastically tell me all about it. It was the perfect house with a view of the Rockies he so loved, a few acres, and room for his western memorabilia!
    One of the first things he did was buy a ride on lawn mover. He loved to get out on that and used it to clear the snow as well.
    He had a passion for cars and his motorcycle and shared that with his many friends. I remember one time when we were visiting, not long after his stroke, a friend came by with a vintage car to take him for a spin. He was so happy to be heading out in that.
    Another friend would take him up in the plane!
    Later, the four of us started a tradition of spending a few days in Victoria together for our birthdays ( his & my birthdays are both in February) as well as their anniversary. We have particularly special memories of celebrating their 50th Anniversary there.
    Once his stint as president of the Calgary Stampede had finished he invited us to come to Calgary to experience the Stampede with them. We had an amazing time but what really struck my husband was how much like his Uncle Lee he was as we walked through the grounds. He knew so many by name from the stable boys on up and he’d stop & chat with everyone. My husband said “just like his Uncle Lee when I visited the lumber mills with him!”
    We wanted to show them the beautiful Oregon Coast and we all took a road trip down through Washington & Oregon after spending time at our cottage on Whidbey Island. It was a magical time together.
    We had plans to do a road trip up to all the little towns he had worked in, in his earlier years where he filled in for people on vacations, while working for CP. Air. – as far up as Whitehorse. That would have been so interesting to hear his stories of those early years.
    He also wanted to do another trip up through his home area of Frenchman’s Butte & Paradise Hill where is sister Colleen and many of her family live.
    The last time I saw him was at the beginning of Covid. My husband and I had done a road trip in California/Arizona and upon flying home arranged for a Calgary stopover to see them. I
    was wondering how we should greet them, with Covid awareness just starting to dawn on us. . No worries there- he gave me a big hug and said “Love you Hon!”
    Thank god we hadn’t picked up Covid along the way!
    One last haunting memory Roger and I shared. On November 14, 1998, I left a message for Roger on their answering machine. Usually we joked around but this time I was serious. “Call me, Roger”. Then, when I listened to my messages, Roger had left a similar one on mine.
    Unbelievably, both our dads, lifelong friends and brothers-in -law, in their late 90s, had passed away on the same evening. My dad, in Vancouver in hospital suffering from pneumonia after a broken hip. Roger’s dad had just fallen asleep in his chair at home up near Frenchman’s Butte Saskatchewan.
    To think they lived all those years, shared so much, and left this earth together was somehow comforting.
    I pictured them saying to each other “It’s time, let’s go together”.
    To echo his message to those left behind on July 7th,
    Thank you, Thank YOU, Roger, for being you and such an important part of my life. I love you.

    1. Valerie, on behalf of ourselves and the many who knew and loved Roger, thank you for this personal insight into his life. You have captured the essence of a man who lit up and lightened every occasion. “Love you Hon.” Words he’d say to you, to end a phone call to a friend, to an agent leaving for the day…A reminder to all of us on how to live more fully wasn’t he?

  2. Sounds like a wonderful person with a sense of humour to match, not often you get someone with a true feeling for a business and looks after his people as well, amazing how that combination can build a business and a lifetime friendship as well. So nice to hear about people that embrace the simple life and leave a memory on their friends and employees, very rare indeed. Nice of you to share the man with your readers and acquaintances.
    Cheers,

    1. Roger knew the answer to a good life. As Mary Shelley wrote: “There is but one solution to the intricate riddle of life; to improve ourselves, and contribute to the happiness of others.”

  3. This is a great tribute to Roger — and a well-deserved one. Thanks for asking me for my memories of him. I so enjoyed working with Jarvis Travel — and as a bonus you and I became friends.

  4. Really enjoyed this beautiful tribute to what was obviously a wonderful man. Seeing you had such limited travel experience when you joined his company – maybe he is partly responsible for planting the “travel bug” in you. I remember when you started work there. Sounded like a terrific and rewarding experience. Pat & Dallas

    1. The travel bug bit me while listening to the sound of the train three miles away from my childhood home. But travelling with Roger (the airlines loved him so we always had great seats, roast beef carved as you liked it), really spoiled us. I learned a lot about business from him—1980 was when the NEP decimated YYC and interest rates reached 21% and travel is a low-margin business. And marketing. And persistence…

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