Who are you?
I have an identity in formation; seeking to understand how people communicate and learn from each other. I have grown through my experiences teaching teenagers canoeing and sailing at the Haliburton Scout Reserve (http://www.gtc.scouts.ca/haliburton/gtc_hsr.asp), living in a multicultural environment at L’Arche Homefires (http://www.larchehomefires.org/), and over the past decade, exchanging ideas with university students. These experiences, and the people with whom I have shared them, have deeply shaped who I am.
I am, however, on the cusp of two major life changes: I am in the process of wrapping up a PhD in history and looking forward to whatever is around the next corner. More importantly, I am very excited about becoming a father in early-July. (It is possible that this could be my fate (http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=574)). 2011 is going to be an exciting year!
What do you do for fun?
Who has time for fun! A wise man once told me that life is work! So I make sure that I spend a good deal of time working on my sailboat and canoes, working through great works of fiction, and working on my cross-country skiing. I am at my most productive when I am at the bar with my friends working to solve the world’s problems (you can’t imagine just how thirsty this makes you!). When I am not too busy with these other things, I usually spend a couple hours a day working on my PhD dissertation on the experiences of Aboriginal people during and after the fall of Acadia and Quebec.
What is your favourite community? Why?
I love L’Arche communities. L’Arche is an international organization built around creating community and home with men and women with intellectual disabilities. L’Arche communities welcome people from around the world to share life together. L’Arche is a dynamic community where people share their knowledge and experience, while working together to overcome the daily challenges of living life together. The best part about life in L’Arche is that you never really know what’s coming around the next corner. Just when you think that everything is perfect and going to plan, something will change unexpectedly. Perhaps it’s a new mess to clean up, but it’s equally likely to be a spontaneous dance party or unexpected visit from friends! Life in L’Arche keeps you on your toes, and reminds me of the importance of flexibility and the ever-changing nature of life.
What is your superpower? 
Saying yes! Yes, I am a yes man! I try to see the potential in every opportunity. Although I have been known to say ‘no’ upon occasion, I usually try to make situations work and build positive and constructive relationships with the people who I meet. Part of this superpower involves listening to what others are trying to communicate and developing an understanding of their perspective. Another part involves sharing my own ideas with others and together shaping a path forward. And finally, when I am able to overcome my fear of heights, I can leap tall buildings in a single bound.
How do you use it to build community?
Although communities need to have a set of core values, community is created through sharing, negotiation and compromise. Saying yes to others helps create and strengthen relationships and demonstrates an openness to other people’s ideas and perspective. It is amazing what splendid things people keep to themselves, that a simple ‘yes’ draws forth! In a nutshell, focusing on the positive helps to bring people together and knit together a diversity of perspectives.
My Three Favourite Things About Tom are…
1. Yes, baby! YES!!! “Anyways, let me know if this works for you. Sorry to take so long with this stuff.” That’s how Tom signed off his email that contained the answers to our five GTKYC questions. He’s a gentleman. He’s a scholar. And, even though he’s busy as hell, he apologizes to us! Like I said, he’s a gentleman. We’re lucky to have him as part of our digital footprint and thank him generously for his time.
2. This Article. One of the things I like most about Activehistory.ca is that it’s on the Internets. This simple fact makes Activehistory.ca more powerful, relevant and awesome than every print academic journal put together…on steroids. And Tom is at the epicenter of the project. In spite of my seething jealousy that more people like his blog than this one (seriously, friends of the The Potentiality, we’re being beaten by nerds!), I am a huge fan of this initiative. You should be too. Tom’s recent article about local digitized history outlines how a variety of cool projects help people get a sense of their neighbourhoods and, consequently, come together as communities. “This project aims to tell the story of my neighbourhood through its people and resources. By giving voice to the everyday stories from this community this history-based website helps to demonstrate why thousands of people have chosen to call Jane-Finch/York University home and reinforces the sense of community in this neighbourhood.” Exactly. And this is just the beginning…
3. Fun Work Ethic. A motto of mine is for people to “have fun with it.” Whatever you do, enjoy doing it. A motto of this blog’s Managing Editor, Kurt Heinrich, is “work life hustle.” Whatever you do, work hard. And I think Tom strikes a balance of the two. Clearly, the guy has fun. And clearly a lot of his fun involves working. My bastardized Aristotalian logic tells me that Tom lives life in his Element, as he’s found ways to surround himself with things that truly reveal his talent and his passion. And that’s a beautiful thing.
As told by John Horn…