Jerrine Verkaik

Bio in brief

I was born in Toronto (Canada) in 1949, brought on by my mother’s laughter at the movie, “Passport to Pimlico”. Although I grew up in the guts of the city and attended the University of Toronto (and later University of Guelph), after I moved out to the country in 1973 I was spoiled for city life.

Having survived the Sixties as a teenager (with my fair share of peace and social justice activism), I met Ken Craig in the spring of 1969 and we married in December 1969. (I can’t believe I was barely 20 at the time!) Ken was doing his Masters in Sociology at Guelph and I was finishing my BA.

In 1972 we had our first daughter (Ailsa Kinton Craig) and in 1976 we had our second (Kristin Laura Mae Craig). In the meantime I had encouraged Ken to follow his dream and start farming. He loved it, but times were tough (22% interest rates and no market yet for organic produce). We had to sell our first farm in 1979 and we leased a derelict fruit farm to try to make a go of it that way. But in the spring of 1980 Ken died in a tractor rollover while pulling stumps.

Because my work as a communications consultant and then production editor was in Toronto, the girls and I moved back to the city. It felt like jail after the open air of the countryside. After two years of working too hard to keep a roof over our heads we moved back out to enjoy the open spaces. Young widowhood had given me a keen desire to engage energetically with life and I was convinced that I wouldn’t remarry unless I met an extraordinary man.

Enter Arjen Verkaik. Arjen (Ed) has a passion for the sky that was hard to resist. It didn’t take long for me to realize that by joining him in his life and work I would be able to live the engaged and active life I wanted. Little did I realize that in marrying him I was marrying the sky!

Life has rarely been dull. Chasing the sky, writing and speaking about it, standing up for peace, social justice, environmental and community causes, designing and building our own home and following the twists and turns of our daughters’ lives (and those of their husbands and children) have kept me busy.

And I always have one eye open for the next adventure, so bring it on!