A Coffee with Marilyn and Marty Rehman

Join us for a coffee and chat with Marilyn and Marty Rehman. 

Marilyn and Marty's journey together has been a remarkable one, filled with love, family, and entrepreneurial ventures. Their 50th wedding anniversary this August marks a milestone in their story that began in Provost, where Marty's spirited win at a school auction captured Marilyn's heart. Together, they raised four children who have each carved their own unique paths in life, from senior NHL refereeing to healthcare and business ownership.

Marty's career has been a tapestry of diverse experiences, from jewelry stores to working with fire departments, showcasing his unwavering commitment to success. Marilyn, a retired registered nurse, brought her expertise to the table, blending healthcare with business acumen in their joint ventures. Their gas detection company was a culmination of their shared entrepreneurial spirit, a business they had grown tremendously over three years before selling to a company in Montreal. Marilyn and Marty had stayed on to help the new owners for a few months before retiring, when Marty had his unforeseen accident leaving him a quadriplegic.

Despite the challenges they faced, Marilyn and Marty remain a resilient team, supporting each other through thick and thin. Their dedication to their work and family shines through, reflecting in the accomplishments of their children and the joy of being grandparents to nine cherished grandchildren. As they navigate this new chapter post-retirement, their bond continues to be the cornerstone of their enduring legacy.

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Transcript

0:14

Well, good morning, everybody, and welcome to another edition of the ABA Coffee In The Park. My name is Cam Milliken, and I am here with my co-host extraordinaire, Jennifer Herrick, the Executive Director of the Acheson Business Association. Hi, Jennifer. Well, good morning, Cam. How are you today? I'm good, but you know, it looks like snow. I don't like this. Well, it's March. It's bound to happen. I thought spring was in the air, and now I see snowflakes. It's false hope. I don't like this. It is, it is. Hey, we want to tell everybody that we're coming to you live from the Wall Coffee Roasters in the heart of beautiful downtown Acheson. That's right. So hey, if you hear some noise in the background, some coffee machines whirring, people talking, kids screaming, it's because we're at the coffee shop. So hey, it's a great place. If you've never been to the wall, you need to come to the wall. It's an awesome place to have coffee. Jennifer, tell us about some very important people. We would like to thank our gold corporate sponsors, which include the Myshak Group of Companies, Genics, Parkland County, and Bow Valley Credit Union. That's right. Without them, we would not be able to do what we do. So thank you all. Jennifer, anything else you want to tell us? Well, Cam, we wrapped up a fantastic annual general meeting today for the ABA. When people hear that, they go, hey, AGM's, there's a little boring, but they're not boring. And do you know why it wasn't boring? No. Because you do, you do, you do. He just said that. It's like drama. Why? Because our podcast guests today were our keynote speakers. I'm so excited about this podcast. They did a fabulous job at our AGM, and now we have them live on our podcast. So why don't you introduce them? It is truly my honour to introduce Marty and Marilyn Rehman. Welcome both of you. Yes, it's good to have you guys. We're so excited that you're here. You have such an amazing story, and I think we'll just kick into it right away because we only have 30 minutes to do this. So Marty, Marilyn, welcome. But let's start off, tell us the story. What is the situation? Well, first of all, thank you very much for having us here. Our story was a lot to do with the business side of things, and then I had a terrible accident in 2016. We had just sold our company, and we were two months away from retiring, and I had fallen down some stairs, which put me in the Calgary Foothills Hospital for nine months. I had a C4 complete injury, which left me as a complete quadriplegic, and it's been a struggle for the last... February 4th of 2025 was nine years since the accident. And every day is a good day. I have to say that. So the day you had the accident, Marilyn was away, I understand, out of the country, and no one was home, and you lay there for 18 hours till someone found you, is that correct? That's right, I called for help. There's, when you're laying in the basement, it's hard for people to hear you. A neighbor lady did come along, and she could hear something strange in the house. So she went to another neighbor who was a firefighter. He broke the glass on the door and came in, and next thing I know, the ambulance was there, and next thing I know after that, I was on a helicopter ride, courtesy of Stars Ambulance, and off to Calgary I went. Wow, wow. So Marilyn, you were obviously out of the country when this happened. What on earth did you think when you got that phone call? I couldn't believe it. I was so, so shocked and so, so scared that I wasn't there to be part of it, to see what was going on. And when I arrived, I think it was about 5.30 in the morning, I was met by three doctors in the hallway, and I was so, I just couldn't believe that maybe I missed and he had passed away because they were waiting for me in the hallway. But they just wanted to have instructions as to what to do if something should happen where Marty's heart would stop or so forth. So from that very moment that I stepped off that plane, it was like just such a, I can't even describe all the things that went on. And you know that for about a month, they didn't know if Marty was going to make it or not. And I was just instructed to sell everything, to move to Calgary because Marty would be in the Fanning Centre for the rest of his life on a ventilator. So you know what? Good Lord willing, Marty beat the vent, Marty beat the trach and here we are today. And we've been at home now for nine years. And where is home? Home is Red Deer. Yay, Red Deer. Yes. Red Deer, Alberta. Yes. Yeah, that's awesome. Let's backtrack a little bit. How long have you guys been married? 50 years this coming August. 50 years in August. And we were engaged for three years and dated for two years. So, in my book, that's 55 years. 55 years. That's incredible. Wow! Congratulations! Okay. Now, Marty, I know a little bit of this story. So, I really want to hear this story. How did you guys meet? Well, we went to the same school in Provost, Alberta. And it was in grade 10 when Marilyn was in, it was a frat year. They don't do hazing anymore. Yeah, no. It got a little out of hand. It's called initiation. Yes. Okay. So, the grade 12, I was in grade 11. She was in grade 10. And the grade 12s, arranged for a program where you would buy the student. So, I had all my buddies, I warned them that they better come to school the next day with a lot of money, because I was going to buy Marilyn. Would you say buy? Was it like an auction? It was like an auction. Are you kidding me? Well, back in those days, it was... Oh, I had to parade on a table. Oh, my goodness. This is hard to take. This is incredible. Okay. So, you were parading, and he was bidding. Yes, and it was very embarrassing. Do you remember how much did you pay? She was the highest one I know. Yeah. So, like, no matter inflationary, today would be like a million dollars. Oh, I'm sure it would be that. Worth every penny, right, Marty? Yeah. You had to borrow the money from your friends. And I'm still paying. You're still paying. Yeah. Maybe it was a million dollars. Wow. 50 years. And how many children do you have? We have four. We have three boys and one girl. And tell us a little bit about what they do. Because, wow, they're also successful, Marilyn and Marty. Well, Kyle is an NHL ref. Yes. He's been in, he's a ref now for 14 years. 18 years? Oh, my. I missed four. Yeah. He's a senior NHL ref. Yeah. And in the Western Division here. So, anybody listening, if you go to a hockey game, do not boo the ref. Because it could be Kyle. Okay, sorry. Bret has a business in Cochrane, and he has two little girls. Kyle has three kids, two boys and a girl. And our in-laws are also the best. Brad is the, what is he called, Marty? Journeyman electrician. He's a Journeyman electrician. And he has a C. COO? Not exactly what his position is, but he is married and has two little girls. Kristen is an RN. She works at Children's Hospital and Public Health. She's married to Mark, and he's a fireman paramedic. And they have a little girl who's two, and they just had a baby. And that is another journey for us, because she was born early. The day she was born, she wasn't even quite 30 weeks yet. So we are diligently and pleading with the Lord to help her grow outside her mom's uterus, and that she just grows healthy and strong. So we're just believing. Well, and so today we're doing this live, but it'll air a little bit later. So folks, I guess to be totally honest, I want to say thank you both to you, Marty and to Marilyn for joining us today, because I know you have things going on at home, and you could be there, and you've chosen to come for the day, and then go back to be with them again. So we really appreciate that. And I hope you keep us updated as to how it's going, because everybody listening will want to know for sure. Okay, so is that four? You've told us all four? Okay, we're all four do. And how many grandchildren? Nine. Come on, nine. Unbelievable. Two boys and the rest are all girls, seven girls. Oh my goodness. And the boys feel like somebody else should give them another boy cousin. Well, that's what they all think. Okay, so let's backtrack again a little bit further. So Marty, you tell us all the jobs you had in your life. Well, okay, I was in Stettler. It's where I practiced in the jewelry business, learning my trades. Right. And then I went and moved to Edmonton. I was with the Edmonton Fire Department. Okay, how long were you with them? Around four years. Four years. And I used to do engraving and clock repairs at the fire hall. Right. And I always did it after hours, so I didn't want to alienate my buddies. Right. I wanted to be with them, you know, doing the things. Yeah. And then I had still had a did all the work at the fire hall, had all the days off yet. So I bought a truck and bobcat and started doing landscaping and driveways. Because you didn't have enough to do. You didn't have enough to do. You would call him ambitious. Yeah, I would say. Work all day at the fire hall or all night. Then he needs to drive a bobcat and a truck. Okay, yeah, okay. Yeah, and then we went, we bought the jewelry store together with my brother in Stettler. And then a few years later, we bought the store in Ponoka, Jewelry Store. And that's when interest rates were 19%, 21% on the mortgage. And we worked extremely hard on it for three years. We ran the ambulance in Ponoka at nights for extra income. And it was just beating our head against the wall. And eventually, we talked to an insolvency. And we ended up going bankrupt on that, which was back then, that's 50 years ago. That was pretty embarrassing. But we came out of that very well. Then I was area manager for Ben Moss Jewelers, Peoples and Mappins Jewelers. And then we bought another store in Red Deer, Parkland Mall, sold that to a company in Calgary. And then I joined a well control company where I was groomed to be a firefighter on well controls. And then we had our own gas detection company. And we rented monitors out to the oil field and built that company up real quick in three years. Company from Montreal bought us out. And then we were close to that retirement, which led us to my accident. Wow. You certainly have worked in a number of fields. You talked about the bankruptcy. That wasn't your fault, which I think is important to note. And I only say that because people listening may be going through the very similar thing, not by their own doing, but it just happens. It just, things happen, circumstances happen. For you, it was a number of circumstances that happened. And how did you, how did you, how did you, I mean, how did you pull out of that? Or how did you even weather that storm? Are you talking about the part of the... The bankruptcy part, because I know Marilyn, you've talked about how you guys just worked. You had to work so hard. You had a young family, and the stress of that. I just, I can't even imagine. And it is very hard when you're trying to do everything you can to make your business survive. And we were taking our children to the babysitter in their pajamas and picking them up in their pajamas, and that's not how we planned to have a family. So it was, it was, it was very difficult time. But you know what, we just kept pushing forward and day by day, and then things got better, and then we got out of it, and we had other chances, and you know, our kids have done, we're so proud of them, and their partners, and our grandchildren, they're our life, and they give us, they give us so much joy, and so much happiness. So you know what, our advice to people is like, never wait, because we always say when we retire, we'll do this, and when we retire, we'll do that. And you know what, you never know. So live and enjoy life, because it's a blessing, and every day counts. That's what I would say. I'd like to add to that bankruptcy. We were a victim of circumstances, and today many people are victims of circumstances. The uncertainty, out of your control, but don't beat your head against the wall too long. Talk to people that may be able to help you, and bankruptcy is not the end. Keep on driving, keep on moving, and something good will come out the other side. Right, right. Marilyn, you're a nurse. Yes. Yeah. How many years have you done? I nursed for 37 years. Wow. In different aspects. I was in the hospital, then I was in home care, and then I did work in the industrial industry. So it was good for me because I had some learning challenges. It kept me on my toes and interested. And when Marty moved to Calgary, I decided I didn't want to have to nurse in Calgary. It's such a big area. So I decided that I wasn't going to work as a nurse anymore. And it wasn't too many days after we moved there, Marty called me and asked me to be a temp, and I didn't even know what a temp was. Yeah, yeah. A temp. And I got things with computers, and I was doing things I had no idea what I was doing, but I was like so determined to learn. So I learned the whole different part of, in industry and in business that I had never known before, but it was a good learning experience, and it developed into being able to help Marty with our business. Sure. That's interesting. And Marty, jewelry, the jewelry business, like how did you ever get interested in, like what was it that spurred your interest in jewelry and jewelry store? But you did engraving, you designed jewelry, you fixed clocks. Yes. What spurred that along? Well, my brother was in it, so it was a job to go to. Yeah. And I'm glad I got to trade behind it. And I did, like I mentioned earlier, I engraved that big silver tray for Norm Olman when he retired, and the big wine cooler for Al Hamilton, the captain of the Edmonton Oilers at that time, and a big cooler for Bill Hunter. And I was asked by Irving Klein Jewelers to do that engraving. So it's a trade, it never leaves you, except now I can't use my hands. And so it has left me in that sense. Yeah. Is it a dying art? I mean, is it? Oh, there, you can't find clock makers. No, I was going to say. Or a watch, someone to repair watches, or watch makers. But nobody, they're all throw away watches. Yeah, that's true. Except if you have the good ones, so you're not. So I have to ask this question. When Kyle was coming up as a referee, you used to go on his, when he used to have to do the circuit. Marty, you went with him, didn't you? You traveled with him. We did some road trips, yeah. Yeah, I did some road trips. He was in Edmonton at the University of Alberta, getting his degree, education degree. And he'd leave Friday and drive to Brandon, Manitoba, and do a game on Saturday, and then stop and do a game in Regina or Saskatoon on Sunday, and then drive back to Edmonton for University for Monday. And what leave was he? He was reffing? In the WHA. WHA. Or WHL, yeah. Yeah, WHL. And I went with him one time from Calgary. We went to Kelowna, to Prince George, and then back so he could be home for Monday for school. I think most people have no clue about that. You know, Cam, sitting at my son's hockey game yesterday, people just see the referee, and again, people don't yell at the referee. But it's a grind. Like that travel schedule, especially at that level, is something else. You really have to be committed to do that. Yes, well, hopefully one day, maybe when Ryan is doing an Edmonton game and he has a layover, or Kyle, sorry, has a layover, we can pull him in to do the podcast in his layover. So we'll bring him to the coffee shop. Anyway, okay, so tell us now about about life for you guys. Like I know you were planning your retirement, and obviously some of that has changed. But tell us about life now. Well, we are both board members of our condo association. I used to sit on four different condos at one time. Now we are at one, and it's in a, I call it the Old Folks Centre. I'm 72, and I'm one of the youngest ones. So we have some interesting meetings. There's a lot of yelling and shouting there. But that's mainly because people can't hear, and they've got to hearing aids on. I love it. We go to St. Twice a year, and we talk to the respiratory technicians, and then we go back and do another talk to the physiotherapists. And the occupational therapists. Okay. They're the techs, pardon me. I think that's fascinating. I think that's incredible. And that you have the opportunity to talk to them and speak in to them. That's incredible. And we have two caregivers that alternate, and I find, I always told Marilyn, I said, it's very important that she gets away, so she goes to visit our son in Phoenix, and because, you know, it's quite a different environment that we're living in now, and I don't want her to get, to burn out. So she gets away, probably a couple months a year, and she enjoys that. She's got a big smile on her face, yes, I do, with the grandkids. To me, it's really important to keep that relationship with our grandkids in Phoenix. And I feel really bad that Marty can't fly because of his injury, and so, but he's very good about, you know, our blessing me in it, and saying go and be there for part, for both of us. And so then we get to, I get to have one-on-one time with them, which is really important, because I want them to know their grandparents also. You can't fly, Marty, but you guys, you can travel around. What's the furthest you can go, or can you just drive as far? Well, the hard part for me is the hotels. Right. I can't get out of my chair and into bed unless I have a lift, and hotels don't have lifts. Note to hotels. Yes. I'm being serious. They should have rooms like this. Note to hotels. So we get to go when our sons are there, because they lift him in and out. Because he has to have a manual lift. Sure. And then there's restrictions there too, because the bed I have at home is adjustable. It turns so you don't get sores. And hotel beds, I just lay there and it's very uncomfortable. So we travel, day trips, some go here and there, but not too far. Yeah. Well, we appreciate you making the trip today for us. We showed a video this morning at our AGM that you gave us of your daughter's wedding. And a specialty chair, I guess, that was designed for you so that you... You could walk your daughter down the aisle. Tell us a little bit about that, how that came about. Well, that was one thing that weighed on my shoulders for a long time. And Marilyn and I talked about it. And we didn't know... I knew I wasn't going to be able to get up and walk, like I wanted to. But so we talked about it. And Marilyn and I researched. And she talked to people. And we finally found something that would stand me up. And it had a platform welded to the bottom of the chair. So I was vertical. And you see the video? If you could take the chair out of that picture, you would see me walking my daughter down the aisle. Amazing. And there are chairs out there. And there we met a wonderful man in Lacombe who lent us his chair because he had it fashioned so he could have a dance with his daughter at graduation. And then he lent it to us so Marty could walk Kristen down the aisle. So it's just amazing. And I, you know, I hope that anybody else who's in the situation will have the same opportunity because it's life changing. I don't know if we can. I'm looking to you, Jennifer, but I maybe on our on the ABA website. We can upload the video with your permission. Absolutely. Just to show people. I know when we showed it this morning, there was a, sorry. It wasn't a dry eye in the room. Just, you know, because as a father of a daughter, that is their dream for sure. And your dream, our dream as a father to be able to do that. And that was just so incredible. I was like, this is amazing. This is unbelievable. It was amazing. I imagine that day was very emotional. Oh, it was fantastic. Yeah. So one of the things that I know, you mentioned this morning at the AGM and that we talked about, and I think this is really important. And Marilyn, you touched on it is kind of live for the day. Yeah. You know, Marty, you talked about how, you know, you went to visit somebody in the hospital that had an accident and they didn't want to see anybody. And even when you were in the hospital, you know, you guys had a great life. You had all the things that, you know, everybody wants, you know, the new cars and the houses and the boats and the toys. But none of those things came to visit you after your accident. But it's the people that came to visit you. And how important it is to keep up those relationships. Maybe just share with us a little bit about why that's so important and how. I think sometimes we really lose sight of that. Yeah, we do. Well, I know we enjoyed the things we had. But when I was with my friend, he didn't want to see anybody. He wanted to die. And he said he would see us. So we went there and talked to him and his wife. It was new to her, too. I mean, all of a sudden, everything is normal. And now there he is, quadriplegic. And she said, we just bought new this. We got trips planned. And then I finally said, you know, all of the things that we had, that seemed important to us. When I was laying in the hospital, not one of those things came to see me and say, we're thinking about you, we're praying for you, we hope you get better. So I told her, it's just stuff. Yeah. That's all it is. I remember you told me that story the night, first time we met at the hockey game that night, that Marty, that story has never left me, ever. And I've really, in my mind and in my heart, purposed that, yeah, there's, your words of wisdom were incredible for all of us, regardless of our situation. Yeah. The stuff doesn't make us... The stuff doesn't make us who we are. No, it sure doesn't. So, yeah. And it's when you're in these crisises that you need people around you and you need those relationships just to hold you up when you're weak. And then you can pass it on. And so that's what we wanted to do to this couple, is to pass on encouragement. And there is hope on the other side. Absolutely. Oh boy, 30 minutes. I could go like six hours with both of them. But they got to drive back to Red Deer. I know they got to drive back to Red Deer. So yeah. So Marty and Marilyn, I'm going to ask each one of you individually. We ask all of our guests, Marilyn, maybe we'll start with you. What is the best piece of advice you've been given either personally or professionally that you carry with you to this day? Oh my goodness. Sorry. I need to pass that to Marty first. I'm going to think about it, Marty can answer that. Well, there's a whole plethora of advice out there. No one ever grabbed me by the shoulders and said, Marty, I would suggest you do this. But I have come up with one that I share with people. And that is, every morning when you wake up, thank God for the day he blessed you with. And what you do with that day is up to you. And then you can ask him, if you don't mind, can you please do the same tomorrow? Wow. Oh, and I'd agree with Marty on that one. Life is a blessing. And every day is, who knows what's coming, but you know what, we just got to go forward and believe that we're not in control, but God's in control. And just rest in that and have peace in that. That's my... Wiser words, never spoken. Fabulous, absolutely fabulous. You know, I say this so sincerely with my whole heart. First of all, thank you for coming today. Thank you for driving all that way, leaving the metropolis... At 4 a.m. You had got up at 4 a.m. The metropolis of Red Deer and coming to downtown Acheson. Thank you. I feel... I hope... I'm going to take a liberty here, and you feel free to correct me if you want. But I'm blessed today and have been blessed because I have new friends in my life, you and Marty and Marilyn. And I am so blessed. And it's... I look forward to today so much. And boy, you guys are just great. And I love you. And you're amazing. And we want to help you write that book. Yeah. Stay tuned for the book. And then the movie. So yeah. Anyway. Thank you guys. Thank you so very much.