Ruth and Vincent Wahlgren

Ruth (born 1926) grew up in Österslöv, Skåne. Her father was employed by the owners of Karsholms Castle as the fisheries manager for Oppmannasjön and her mother was a former teacher. Ruth made lifelong friends at teacher’s college in Lund and kept contact with them her entire life. Her most adventuresome post was to Pajala. This is how she met Vincent. Ruth wrote, “Having done his military service, Vincent got a job in the northern part of Sweden. I had my workplace 100 kilometers above the Arctic Circle and was on my way to start work. We happened to be on the same train and as fate wanted it, we were seated at the same table having our lunch (at least I thought it was fate but sometime later I found out that Vincent had given the Porter 5 Swedish Kronor as a tip for seating us like that).”

Vincent was born in Shanghai, China in 1925. His father was Swedish and was employed by the Chinese Maritime Customs Service. Vincent’s mother was from Latvia. In 1933, Vincent’s father retired after 30 years’ service with the Customs Service. The family settled in Göteborg. As a child in China, Vincent attended Hankow Private School, so he became fluent in English—an advantage for moving to Canada.

“Why not go to Canada and try our luck!” was how Ruth recalled the sentiment shared with her husband Vincent when they were both 31 years old, living in Perstorp, and restless despite good jobs. Ruth was an elementary school teacher. Vincent was Assistant Export Manager and Export Traveller (for decorative laminated plastics products; Perstorps Plattan) at Skånska Ättikfabriken AB. Ruth and Vincent with their sons Roland (4-1/2) and Richard (8 months old) emigrated from Sweden to Canada in July 1957.

The Wahlgren family foursome sailed from Copenhagen to Halifax aboard the MS Stockholm. From Halifax they rode the Canadian National train to Vancouver. Vincent found work as a sales representative for Dominion Sound specializing in acoustic surfaces products for offices and institutions. He visited architects to convince them to specify the products in their projects. The family rented a suite in a house in Kitsilano and happily settled down. Besides raising her sons, Ruth attended evening classes to learn English and Canadian culture. In 1960, the family moved to North Vancouver.

That year, Ruth and Vincent founded Modern Materials Ltd in North Vancouver as an International Paints dealer but by 1963 transformed into a wholesaler to the cabinet and millwork trades. Perstorp brand decorative laminate was among the products offered. Shipping logistics caused Modern Materials to switch to distributing an American laminate by the late 1960s. Vincent attended meetings of the Scandinavian Business Club. Once, Prince Bertil was a guest—he shook hands with Vincent who joked later this was a privilege so great he might never wash his hand again. Modern Materials thrived by introducing new products to industries in Western Canada until the 1990s when transportation and communication advances doomed many independent businesses. When Ruth and Vincent retired, Richard and Roland managed the firm. Modern Materials ceased business in 1998.

Ruth became active with the Swedish Cultural Society. Ruth’s Valborgsmässoafton speech about misunderstanding, in her college days, an invitation from her farmer sister to help round up heifers (jokingly called Fröknarna Horn by her sister) as an invitation to a dance hosted by young women of the nobility at Häckeberga Castle was remembered fondly by some SCF members. Vincent died in 2000 (aged 74) after five years struggle with blood cancer. Ruth enjoyed her friendships in Vancouver’s Swedish Community for many more years until she succumbed to Alzheimer’s Disease in 2017 at the age of 91.

RW