2 minute read
Kirkland Metal Shop
Christa Andersen, established 1984. The year I became a daughter, a sister, and future employee of Kirkland Metal Shop.
Barney and Nancy Andersen (aka my heroes…aka my bosses) are the definition of grit, perseverance and love. They didn’t just pass on these qualities to their four children; they poured every ounce of it into their business and community.
I was too young to remember my dad and his one employee hauling furnaces from our garage to jobs. I was crawling between my mom’s feet as she ran the business from our kitchen table, crunching numbers on her word processor. But I do remember when they took their modest home based business and their unwavering passion and took over a historic and respected heating company.
The year the Kirkland family established a necessary and revered local business. They paved the way for all heating companies that followed. Years later, the torch would be passed and the Andersen family would continue the Kerrisdale legacy.
Nancy and Barney made their own mark in Vancouver’s history. They roamed the halls of Prince of Wales Secondary School, ice skated at Kerrisdale Arena, and grew up in Vancouver Specials. I consider them the OG’s (#GoogleIt) of Dunbar. For them Kirkland was never just a business opportunity, it was a dream, a chance to honour history while making a future.
As their daughter, their employee, and a Vancouverite to the core, I am never more proud than when I meet people and they say they know Kirkland Metal Shop. Better yet, when they tell me we’ve been in their house, serviced their furnace, installed their fireplace, and they know my dad! My favourite is; “Barney’s your dad?! Ah man, he’s awesome, he installed our furnace, that’s so cool!” It never gets old. The kid in me thinks, “Yep, my dad’s the coolest!” The adult in me is so grateful to have worked in my family business for the last 13 years (not counting the years I only coloured on work orders and spun around on office chairs with my sister).
I’ve learned the integral part of what being a local business is about; it’s not just about knowing the community you live and work in, it’s about becoming the community and becoming a trustworthy staple in people’s homes.
We’ve lived in Dunbar for forty years. We operated our business in Kerrisdale for thirty. Kirkland Metal Shop (aka Kirkland Heating & Cooling) is celebrating 96 years of business this year. We may have relocated our store front, but that will never change the fact that our roots are forever embedded in the infamous tree lined streets of Dunbar, the historical train tracks of Kerrisdale (now the Arbutus Greenway) and in the homes of our fellow Vancouverites.
On behalf of my family and the entire Kirkland team, we thank you for your trust, loyalty and continued support. And I’d like to personally thank you, for being a part of the creation of my own family’s history.
Yours truly, Christa Andersen (aka The Boss’ Daughter)
Kirkland Heating and Cooling, 112 W. 2nd Avenue, Vancouver, BC V5Y 1C2, Telephone 604-261-2525
www.kirklandheating.com
