Cecil “Tiger” Goldstick was born on August 5, 1915.  He was the second son of Bessie and Hyman Goldstick.  His father, Rabbi Hyman Goldstick, came to Edmonton in 1906 where he became the Jewish community’s first spiritual leader, shochet (kosher butcher), mohel (ritual circumciser), and Hebrew teacher.  After resigning in 1912, he moved his family to Edson, Alberta, serving on the school board, town council, and as mayor, while also operating a men’s furnishing business.

It was in Edson where Tiger grew up.  Having little to do in the town, he became involved with wrestling despite his size of only five foot four.   Tiger came back to Edmonton when he was 14, and shortly thereafter organized the city’s first Pee Wee hockey league.  Then World War II broke out and Tiger enlisted in the navy, where he spent two and a half years at sea on the Prince Robert, which left Pearl Harbour only a few days before it was bombed. While in the navy, he won the Canadian lightweight wrestling championship belt for three consecutive years.

Returning to Edmonton after the war, Tiger’s sports career was fully launched.  First he became a groundskeeper at Renfrew Park, then a trainer with the Edmonton Combines (a football team made up of the Canadian and Maple Leaf Athletic Clubs).  He later was a trainer for the Eskimos, the U of A Golden Bears, and New Westminster Royals. In 1956 he won the C.U.M. Championship belt for wrestling, and served for many years on Edmonton’s Boxing and Wrestling Commission.

His other sports accomplishments, amongst many, included starting Edmonton’s first Knot Hole Gang, organizing Golden Gloves boxing tournaments (Goldstick was also a champion boxer for a time), and founding the city’s bantam football league.

As to how he got his nickname, there are actually three stories in circulation.  According to Bessie Goldstick, Tiger’s sister-in-law and last living relative in Edmonton, it was given to him as a child, “because he was little and he tried to be tough.”  Other stories have the Tiger moniker originating with his wrestling and navy stints, respectively.

Broadcasting is another area where Tiger is known best.  In 1949 he started working at CFRN TV and radio, where he was a sportscaster for 21 years.  “Tiger’s Safety Den” was a regular feature on CFRN during the popular children’s television program Popcorn Playhouse, where he promoted the school safety patrol.  At the station he met his wife Hazel, who unfortunately died in 1979 at the age of 44, from cancer. The couple had no children.

Despite the fact that his father was the first rabbi, Tiger was never very involved in the organized Jewish community, says Bessie Goldstick, who was married to Tiger’s older brother Abe.  However, he never made a secret of his Jewishness, and as a result raised the profile of the Jewish community since he traveled in so many circles in other communities.  “He did a tremendous amount of PR for the Jewish community,” she says.

A generous man devoted to promoting sports in Edmonton, particularly amongst the young and underprivileged.  Having grown up during the Depression, he often saw children who were too poor to afford even the simplest of sports equipment like pucks and balls.  As a result, Tiger’s Christmas for Kids was born.  A yearly drive for sports equipment each December, it was done under the auspices of Sports Central who would collect the equipment, which would be distributed amongst needy children during December.  Tiger would dress up as Santa Claus and shuttle around the city for several nights, getting the sports gear to the kids.  Thousands of children have benefited from Tiger’s generosity over the years and the program continues to this day.

His wit and sense of humour is something Tiger is also known for.  His “Tigerisms,” as they are known, summarize the man’s philosophical views on life and sports. “Be kind to everyone you meet.  You never know who is going to be on that jury,” and,  “If I had your money, I’d throw mine away” are just a couple of examples.

Amongst his many awards and honours is the Order of Canada in 1990, and the naming of a park in Edmonton after him (Goldstick Park).  Bessie Goldstick, a real estate agent, recalls a roast held in Tiger’s honour in the mid-1980s, which proved to be a large gathering for sportswriters and others involved in sports and where she was asked to give the introduction.  “I told a story of how I was traveling down 111 Avenue to get to an open house.  I was a little bit late and I did not realize I was traveling over the speed limit.  All of a sudden this good-looking officer comes out and makes me stop.  He asked me my name and I said Bessie Goldstick.  He asked if I was related to Tiger, and I said yes.  ‘Oh, he said.  Well you know ma’am, this is the closest I’ve ever got to giving a celebrity a ticket’.”

At the roast, she was astonished at learning the amount of things Tiger had done up to that point, because he tended to be quiet about his accomplishments, even to his own family.  “He is the kind of fellow who never asked for anything.  He did everything for nothing and got a great joy out of it,” Bessie Goldstick says.  “Tiger didn’t like to brag about what he did.  He is very humble.  He accomplished so much for the children in this city and he did it without really wanting any recognition.”

This article was originally published in the 2005 Spring/Summer edition of our newsletter. Please view the associated newsletter for photographs related to the original article.