Miracles Happen: The Rendell Drover Story

By Janice M. Drover

Miracles Happen is the story of a tragic event that happened in Harbour Grace, Newfoundland and Labrador, in 2010. On August 13, Rendell Drover, a respected fisherman in the community, was injured in an industrial accident that nearly claimed his life.

In this memoir, Rendell’s wife, Janice, recalls in heartbreaking detail the weeks and months that followed. Throughout his recovery, Rendell underwent a series of dangerous medical procedures . . . and lived. Doctors agreed his survival was nothing short of miraculous.

Today, Rendell Drover, known locally as “the big-hearted fisherman from Upper Island Cove,” is alive and well. His story will inspire readers and remind them that, in times of crisis, miracles really can happen.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Flanker Press
• Release date: Mar 3, 2017
• ISBN: 9781771175944

Janice M. Drover

Janice Marie Drover is the youngest daughter of Harold and Mary (Gosse) Bishop of Spaniard’s Bay. She grew up in Spaniard’s Bay and attended Holy Redeemer School, and from there she went to high school at Ascension Collegiate in Bay Roberts. She attended St. Columba’s School in Harbour Grace, where she obtained a business and commercial course while working in retail. Janice married Rendell Drover, son of Albert and Myra (Stone) Drover of Upper Island Cove, on September 24, 1971. The Drovers, a large fishing family, helped Janice obtain employment in several crab plants over the years. For more than twenty years, Janice worked as a fisherperson alongside her husband, Rendell, and their two sons, Shawn and Robin. She did this until August 13, 2010, when Rendell suffered a life-threatening injury. Janice has spent the past six and a half years helping Rendell recover from his near-death experience. She and Rendell enjoy spending time with their three grown children and their spouses—Shawn and Lorraine, Robin and Charlene, and Terri Lynn and Gordie. Janice and Rendell have seven grandchildren: Brandon, Noelle, Brianna, Reilly, Shelby, Abby, and Darien.

Book preview

MIRACLES HAPPEN

The Rendell Drover Story

Janice Drover

Flanker Press Limited

St. John’s

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Drover, Janice M., 1952-, author

Miracles Happen : the Rendell Drover story

/ Janice Drover.

Issued in print and electronic formats.

ISBN 978-1-77117-473-2 (paperback).--ISBN 978-1-77117-594-4

(epub).--ISBN 978-1-77117-595-1 (kindle).--ISBN 978-1-77117-596-8 (pdf)

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from Library and Archives Canada.

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© 2017 by Janice Drover

All Rights Reserved. No part of the work covered by the copyright hereon may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means—graphic, electronic or mechanical—without the written permission of the publisher. Any request for photocopying, recording, taping, or information storage and retrieval systems of any part of this book shall be directed to Access Copyright, The Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency, 1 Yonge Street, Suite 800, Toronto, ON M5E 1E5. This applies to classroom use as well.

Printed in Canada

Cover Design by Graham Blair

Flanker Press Ltd.

PO Box 2522, Station C

St. John’s, NL

Canada

Telephone: [phone] Fax: [phone] Toll-free: 1-866-739-4420

www.flankerpress.com

We acknowledge the [financial] support of the Government of Canada. Nous reconnaissons l’appui [financier] du gouvernement du Canada. We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, which last year invested $153 million to bring the arts to Canadians throughout the country. Nous remercions le Conseil des arts du Canada de son soutien. L’an dernier, le Conseil a investi 153 millions de dollars pour mettre de l’art dans la vie des Canadiennes et des Canadiens de tout le pays. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Department of Tourism, Culture and Recreation for our publishing activities.

I would like to dedicate this book to my great friend, Evelyn Adams, of Upper Island Cove. Evelyn was always there despite all her illnesses. She put everyone ahead of herself. She was a true fighter in every sense of the word. Her long, hard battle with cancer came to an end on August 20, 2014, just before her sixty-sixth birthday. Rest in peace, my dear friend and confidante. You were one of a kind and you are sadly missed.

I would also like to dedicate this book to my brother-in-law, Ray Adams, of Spaniard’s Bay. Ray passed away suddenly on November 3, 2015, while moose hunting. This was just days before Ray and my sister, Bertha, were to celebrate their fiftieth wedding anniversary.

Evelyn Adams

1948–2014

Ray Adams

1943–2015

1

Upper Island Cove is a little town in Conception Bay North in eastern Newfoundland. It is nestled in the hills and close to a rugged shoreline—not an ideal place for an airport—with a long history of fishing. Some of its people also worked in various places in Newfoundland, such as the mines in Bell Island and Buchans. Everybody knew everybody. It is a friendly little town off the main drag, as they say, and well-known for its witty people and their musical abilities. Many talented and ambitious people come from there, such as, doctors, nurses, lawyers, politicians, and of course sea captains.

Like other outport communities in Newfoundland, Upper Island Cove has had its share of tragedies in the past. We often listened to the older people tell of whole families becoming lost while cutting firewood for the winter or falling through a thin place in the ice. Some were lost in a blinding blizzard, some were lost while out at the seal hunt, and others were lost when their boats went down. The rugged coast brought much sadness just a few years ago, when two teenaged boys went over a large embankment on a quad and were never seen again.

This story began over sixty-six years ago. Rendell Drover was born on July 30, 1948, in a little Conception Bay North town called Upper Island Cove. Rendell was the third son of Albert and Myra Drover. His father was overjoyed to have another son because he would have a crew in the future for his fishing boat. Rendell’s mother probably wanted a little girl this time but never said anything. She proudly showed off her chubby little boy to his brothers and the rest of their family and friends.

Rendell soon became a middle child. Myra got her little girl, whom they called Sarah, after Albert’s mother, who died at a very young age, not long after the Drovers were married. Four years after Sarah’s birth, Myra and Albert were blessed with their last child, a little girl they called Shirley. The Drover household was complete with five small children, and Albert’s father, whom everyone called Uncle Walter. John and Walter, their first-born sons, were named after two uncles who had both passed away at an early age.

Uncle Walter had a son Llewellyn from a previous marriage. He went to live with maternal relatives. Uncle Walter, still a young man, married Sarah Vokey of Spaniard’s Bay and they had four children: John, Walter, Susie, and Albert (Rendell’s father). Susie and Albert were the only two surviving children, and Llewellyn came back to live with them later. Rendell’s grandmother Sarah, being a very religious woman, would instill her faith in her children. Susie was a very intelligent woman and was often called upon to solve problems or settle arguments. When someone was sick or needed help with anything, Susie’s was always the place to go.

Susie was well-respected by Llewellyn’s and Albert’s crowd, as they were fondly called. Susie married William Drover. She never had to change her name and she didn’t move far from her parents’ home. Susie and Will had six children. Llewellyn and Alfreda had five children and lived next door to Susie and Will. The three houses were only a stone’s throw away from each other. They raised fifteen children between them. Susie’s daughter Sarah passed away at an early age.

Susie, who lived not far from the wharf, could keep an eye on those who ventured to the wharf without permission. A piece of rope with a knot was hung in the porch as a deterrent for anyone who broke the rules. Susie probably saved a few lives in her lifetime, and I’d say the rope was never used. The back dock and the wharf often come up now in stories as they get together to reminisce. Susie was loved and respected by all who knew her.

As in many outport communities, in the summertime the wharf was one of the main gathering places in the small town of Upper Island Cove. A lot of families depended on the fishery, especially during the summer. You knew spring was coming when the cod traps came out of the sheds and store lofts. Boats were repaired and painted and gear made ready for the water. Many mended holes in their traps that the hungry rodents had made during the long winter in the shed. Everything had to be ready for the water when the fishery opened.

Everyone scurried to get the best fishing berth down along the shore and made sure the traps were set right. In later years, the fishermen would call a meeting and put the names of the berths in a bag, and everyone had a chance to pick the prime berths, such as Deep Water Point, Greenhead, Freshwater Rock, Hawk’s Nest, and Sisters. Some would be satisfied, and some would be disappointed and hope for better luck next year. They knew all the berths and what the ocean floor was like and where the tides ran, all without the technology we have today. Sometimes, all the equipment they had were a compass, a sculling oar, and a bailing can.

There were many fishing families in Upper Island Cove, and the Drovers were no exception. Rendell, John, and Walter grew up in a fishing boat with their father, Albert, and grandfather Uncle Walter. For years, Rendell, being a typical boy, would spend his summers outdoors and would be well-tanned when summer holidays came to an end. Rendell enjoyed the life that revolved around the wharf at a young age. Those days were a learning experience that would stay with him for the rest of his life. Jumping from rock to rock or from boat to boat tied up to the wharf were fun times. He became