Celebrating Clint Rohr

Clint was born in Waterloo and grew up in Conestogo. He has been married for 60 years to Sandra and has four children, six grandchildren, and two great grandchildren. Clint dropped out of Elmira District Secondary School in grade 10. After writing a test at the age of 21, Clint qualified to become an adult pre-theology student at Waterloo College. In 1967 he became a Lutheran Pastor after graduating with a BA and Diploma in Theology from Waterloo Lutheran Seminary and further completed his Masters in Divinity. This set him on a path of working in many different communities before returning to St. Jacobs in 1983 to become Chaplain at Lutherwood Children’s Mental Health Services and finally, as Executive Director of Woolwich Community Health Centre in St. Jacobs. It was there Clint was able to integrate all of his learned skills in the formation of what he believes to be a model of community health services. After retiring he continues to be part of Woolwich Healthy Communities Coordinating Committee.

“I loved the people and community of Halifax very much and learned so much about the importance of being community. It was there I began to face the fact there is no way anyone can save the world on their own.”

What volunteer experiences are you most passionate about in your life?

“I am passionate about volunteer experiences that strengthen our sense of community, whether it be tree planting, trail maintenance, visitation, community planning, etc....”

“Most recently I have been part of an initiative called “Many Voices, One Woolwich Community. This is an initiative inviting residents of Woolwich to tell their personal stories of how they are coping with COVID-19.”

What aspects of serving your community and giving back are most important to you? What motivates you to help in these ways?

“I am fortunate to have been and continue to be part of many communities. The interactions, give and take, plus opportunity and problem solving together with others becomes real and viable interactions to enrich the lives of one another.”

“We are all givers and takers and when we can hold that in balance with our vulnerabilities and strengths, we are all the better for it.”

“Everyone needs a sense of belonging. We get that as being part of a community.”

What is something most people in your life would not know about you?

“Most people would not know I like pawn hass and smoked shit-a-boo as a kid.

(Pawn haas is a cornmeal mush fried in a pan. Shit-a-boo is the root of a tree, along a river.)

What would you want future generations to know about these efforts? What advice would you share with them?

“Firstly, listen and try to see the whole picture. Secondly, I would say, we are all in relationships with one another and all beings leading to the awareness we need to live with diversity and that it is better to connect than to be correct.”

What would you want people to know about the process of aging that you feel is currently misunderstood within society?

“I see the process of aging as letting go of the trivial and grounding oneself.”

“Aging seen outside the context of experience can be perceived as empty and useless, whereas, aging can be a process of growing wisdom to be shared with the younger generations.”

“Usefulness implies you are productive in a marketing sense. Usefulness is many dimensional once our experiences, telling of stories, and the wisdom has been learned. Our nursing homes at the present time with the influx of COVID-19 indicates where the priority for aging really lies in our society at this moment. That is where we have our weak link and it is a critical weak link.”

What aspect of your life are you most proud of?

“I am most proud of my family.”

“I’m proud of the range of experiences I’ve had and the opportunities of being involved in different communities and the work aspect, working with people.”

What does age mean to you?

“A dear friend who has passed some time ago, use to say, ‘we are too soon old, and too late smart.’ Aging means ‘opportunity’ for more insightful living and affirms the elasticity of always stretching out into the unknown to the end we never stop living.”

"The Interview Project" Featuring Clint Rohr