David and Charlena met in 1985 at West End Alternative high school in Toronto, Canada. They fell in love and a year later moved in together. March 2021 celebrates their 34 year living together.

They raised and home-schooled 4 children of their own. 

• Jennifer, born in 1989, is married to Denis Joduoin, and has a beautiful daughter, Annabelle.
• Benjamin, born in 1991, is engaged to his long-term girlfriend with Michelle Cyr. They will be getting married in August 2021. He is a social service worker for children with developmental delays.
• Kyle, born is 1992, has always been our most active child. He is a professional scuba-diver and is currently finishing his Yachtmaster license to become a ship's Captain.
• Rebecca, born in 1995, is a university student working on her doctorate to become a psychologist.

Over the years they had numerous other children living with them and raised them all in an enviroment of love, tolerance, and support.

In 2001, they moved from Toronto to a Northern Ontario farm. They embraced Canadian winters by dog sledding and offering dog sled tours to others. The family kennel consisted of up to 40 Siberian Husky dogs, all of whom were rescued. They also lived a farm life, having up to 200 farm animals at their homestead. All of the farm animals were raised in their natural environments and not caged or penned.

Over the years, they have been hosting children of all ages and from different cultural backgrounds. They have hosted 4+ children at a time and can accommodate for the different learning styles and strategies that parents look for in a well rounded educational program.

In 2015 having 4 adult children and an empty nest, they decided to embark on a lifelong goal of travelling. They traveled the Caribbean by sailboat with with Kyle and Rebecca who decided to join the adventure, and Cedar, their Standard Poodle.

Since then they have travelled to a dozen countries on three continents, and lived in a half dozen countries.

Credentials

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Energetic sailor/mariner

• Meticulous, often catching things others wouldn't.
• Able to read and understand temperature and pressure gauges, record data, analyze information, and respond appropriately.
• Strong working memory and processing speed.
• Problem solver with dependable critical thinking skills.
• Particularly useful for troubleshooting and repairing equipment malfunctions.
• Calm demeanor enables me to make good decisions in high-pressure situations.
• Experienced operator of ship equipment.
• Positive role model.
• Diligent worker performing job tasks thoroughly and efficiently.
• Motivated to follow orders.
• Ensure the objectives of the journey are met.
• Encourage crew members to perform their best work.
• Exceed standards of cleanliness and safety.

Credentials

Personal Trainer

Other

First Aid/Medical

Scuba

Maritime/Yachting

References

In The News

David's love of programming started at a very early age. His dad owning the first computer store in Canada, allowed him access to computers when they were a ridiculous size.

Through his high school years he was hired on by the Toronto District School Board to do some of their programming. He was excited by this position as he was doing something he loved to do and earning a wage. He even made top dollar for that position. While raising his 4 children with his wife and working, he still found time to indulge in his passion for computers and long before the Internet existed, he was running a successful BBS (bulletin board system).

In 1999, the City of Toronto hired David to help in the upgrades needed for the City to function come the year 2000. Although this was a short contract with the city, he later went on and worked with the Seventh Day Adventist church constructing a health benefit program for their employees. At the same time as working with the church, he developed a new passion and this is where he started to dabble in website design. With a handful of clients who needed websites, he ventured off into the newest trend.

Up until 2003, David was kept busy with helping his clients reach their full potential. In 2003, he finally got around to attending University for his degree in Computer Science. He graduated Cum Laude, but not before he helped in the upgrading and development of one of the program courses for his program. During his University years, he was also working with the University's President's Office, Vice-President's Office, University Secretary, and Privacy & Freedom Office constructing their new websites. He was often sought out by his professors to tutor, teach, mark and invigilate exams. His final year of University and in collaboration with Charlena, and his test clinic, he developed an online Patient Management System that was both interactive with the patient and the provider. The program metamorphed and reshaped as the test clinic critiqued the program to its completion.

Although David has always considered himself a father first, he recognized that his passion has been what has supported his family through the years and is very thankful that he was introduced into the computer era in its early stages by his dad. He feels honoured to have been able to raise his family while having "fun", something which most people seek, but never find.

• Published Photographer
• Web Developer

Credentials

References

In The News