Come for the corn, stay for the stories.
If you’ve been to Innisfil’s iconic Kernel Simpson’s farm store over the last seven years, you may have noticed the friendly face sitting on the front porch, behind a desk and a collection of wood products — from benches to bird baths to pet steps to colourful “butt-out” poles where smokers can extinguish their cigarettes.
That’s Jim Quinlan of Quincy’s Creations. And at 85 years old, the Alcona resident is happy to greet you, talk about his craft and share his take on history in the Innisfil area. He may also have a joke or a math trick to give.
“You don’t realize how fast time is in life until you get older,” Quinlan said, an open book and a bowl of assorted chocolates, JuJubes and gummy bears laid out on the desk, and the Simpsons’ three-year-old dog, Morty, lying at his feet. “When you’re young, you’ve got your whole life ahead of you. When you’re older, you say, ‘I haven’t been there, or I haven’t done that’. But I’m on the right side of the grass, and I’m not sitting in an old-age home.”
The first handmade item he remembers designing was a candle-holding birthday tray, built back in a high-school shop class.
“It’s on my wall in my bedroom,” he said. “That was 1952.”
Quinlan admits the “butt-out” has become less popular in recent years, as smoking habits change. But he says you can replace the sand with bird seed and use it as a feeder instead.
What Quinlan makes is determined mostly by “whatever comes into (his) head” on the day.
As he is talking with this reporter, Quinlan offers a pepperette meat stick, a product new to Kernel Simpson’s.
“They just came in,” he said. “You have to try them.”
I did and they were sweet and savoury and good. Add ‘food critic’ to his portfolio.
Kernel Simpson’s owner Richard Simpson initially offered the free space to Quinlan after meeting him at Innisfil’s Lions Hall, and while Quinlan has had to cut back on hours in recent years due to health issues, he is still a regular fixture Fridays through Sundays.
“We’re happy to have Jim here selling his wares,” Simpson said. “He’s just great to have around.”
So, what tales will you hear between the ears of corn? These are Quinlan’s stories from a life well-lived, so how dare this humble writer attempt a deep retelling! But I advise you ask about the punishment for his unique use of the inkwell on a school desk, his summer milk-delivery run to Big Bay Point, where, as a teenager, in his first job he encountered an Italian movie star, how he just missed out on singing in the same group as a Canadian music icon, and the wake he held for himself. (Spoiler: He’s got another one planned in a few months.)
It’s also clear Quinlan cares deeply about each piece and customer. Recently, he refurbished a bench in memory of Tim and Candi Cosgrove’s two dogs, Mickey and Harley. The Cosgroves placed the bench at Havelberg Pet Cemetery in Orono, east of Bowmanville, next to their beloved dogs and for mourners to sit on.
“We moved to Innisfil a little over a year ago,” the couple said in an email. “When we initially met Jim to speak to him about redoing the bench he told us it would take about a year to complete because he was backlogged. Once he found out what we were going to do with the bench, he went ahead and completed the project in two months. Everyone has commented on how beautiful the bench is. We are eternally grateful to Jim for the excellent job he did.”
They called Quinlan a “friend for life.”
“Jim is a unique, one-of-a-kind individual,” the Cosgroves said. “They just don’t make them like him anymore. He genuinely cares about the pieces he is refurbishing but is actually more interested in the history and purpose of each item. Jim is truly a landmark around Innisfil.”
Kernel Simpson’s, in its 59th year, is located at 5813 Yonge St., just north of the 2nd Line. The store specializes in freshly picked corn, but also offers a variety of other produce, as well as items like preserves and baked goods.
For more information, check out its Facebook page.
