Emma Louise Siegner was born on July 21, 1894 to parents John Metz and Helena Schneider, their only daughter and youngest child. She married Walter Valentine Siegner on June 23, 1920 with whom she had three children; John, Kathryn and Carolyn. Siegner died in Kitchener on June 15, 1994 of pneumonia in her 100th year of life and was buried at Woodland Park Cemetery.

Walter Valentine Siegner was born on June 5, 1897 to parents Valentine and Elizabeth Siegner. He got married to Emma Louise on June 23, 1920 with whom he had three children; John, Kathryn, Carolyn. He was the president of W.V. Siegner Lumber Co. which he organized in 1924. He served on the Kitchener Public School Board for eight years from 1934 to 1937 and then 1943 to 1948. Included was service as chairman in 1948. Siegner died August 15, 1952 and was buried at Woodland Park Cemetery.

The Sims family were early white settlers of what is now Hawkesville, Ontario. Members of the family are the descendants of Reverend James Sims was born ca.1812 in Insch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. On June 1, 1836, he married the widow Janet Harvey Robertson and in 1837 came to what is now Canada with a large party of relatives: his father and mother, his wife and step-children Alexander, John and Jane Robertson, his brothers Peter and Andrew Sims, his sister Margaret, and nephews James and Peter Sims.

In 1838 the family settled as squatters on Queen's Bush land near Hawkesville in Wellesley Township. James and Margaret Sims had four children: Janet Sims, (1838-1926), James Campbell Sims (1842-1929), Peter Harvey Sims (1844-1920) and William Andrew Sims (1846-1930). James Sims died October 31, 1880. Both he and his descendants played an active role in the the educational, religious and commercial development of what is now the Region of Waterloo.

Florence Katherine Roos was born December 22, 1873 in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario to William Roos and Elizabeth Davidson. She married Harvey J. Sims on October 29, 1902 and together they had two children, James Kenneth Sims, born July 12, 1904 and William Harvey Sims, born June 27, 1908. Florence Sims died June 20, 1938.

Gay Estill Sims, born September 7, 1884, was the second wife of Harvey J. Sims of Kitchener, Ontario. She died May 8, 1970.

Harvey James Sims was born December 25, 1871 in Waterloo, Ontario to Peter Harvey Sims and Jemima Cook. A graduate of Trinity College at the University of Toronto, he went on to complete his law course at Osgoode Hall. "In 1921 he was made King's Counsel and became a well-known authority on municipal law, acting as Kitchener's solicitor for many years. He was a leading authority on insurance law and was author of Life Insurance Contracts in Canada." (Waterloo Region Hall of Fame) He became known for the landscape gardening of Chicopee, his country estate south of Kitchener, Ontario, and for reforestation programs in the area. Harvey J. Sims married Florence Katherine Roos on October 29, 1902 and had two sons: Kenneth James and William Harvey respectively. After Florence's death in 1938 Harvey married again, to Gay Estill. Harvey J. Sims died June 8, 1945.

The Reverend James Sims was born ca.1812 in Insch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland and was largely self-educated. On June 1, 1836, he married the widow Janet Harvey Robertson and in 1837 came to what is now Canada with a large party of relatives: his father and mother, his wife and step-children Alexander, John and Jane Robertson, his brothers Peter and Andrew, his sister Margaret, and nephews James and Peter Sims.

In the spring of 1838 the family settled as squatters in Queen's Bush near Hawkesville, Wellesley Township. The journey was likely complicated by the birth of James and Janet’s first child, Janet Sims, born March 1, 1838. They later had three sons: James Campbell Sims (1842-1929), Peter Harvey Sims (1844-1920) and William Andrew Sims (1846-1930). The family worked to clear a homestead on the land with James working as a labourer in surrounding areas when needed. He was ordained a minister on October 5, 1841, after joining the Baptist Church in Blair, and began working as an active itinerant preacher. In addition to preaching at the church in Blair every other weekend, he oversaw marriages, funerals and baptisms, and supported both Black and white residents in and around the Queen's Bush. He left the Baptist Church in the 1860s to join the Christadelphian faith.

Excerpts from Waterloo Region Hall of Fame describe him as "a significant religious and educational leader in Waterloo County in the 1800s. [...] Sims was perhaps best known for his significant leadership role in promoting public education. In 1853, when Waterloo County was established, he became the first Superintendent of Schools for the Townships of Woolwich and Wellesley. He also became the first Chairman of the Board of Public Instruction.”

James Sims died October 31, 1880 and was buried in Kitchener's Mount Hope Cemetery.

James Campbell Sims was born February 14, 1842 near Hawkesville, Ontario to James and Janet Sims. He lived in Montreal, working as a civil servant in the Post Office Department. He died in Winnipeg, Manitoba on January 22, 1929 and was buried at the city's Brookside Cemetery.

Janet Harvey was born ca. 1806 in Insch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. On January 2, 1823, she married John Robertson with whom she had four children, Alexander, James, John and Jane. Her husband died ca. 1832 and on June 1, 1836 she married James Sims. They emigrated to what is now Canada in 1837, settling as squatters on Queen's Bush land near Hawkesville, Ontario. Together Janet and James had four children: Janet McQueen, James Campbell Sims, Peter Harvey Sims and William Andrew Sims. Janet Harvey Sims died October 3, 1881 and was buried in Kitchener's Mount Hope Cemetery.

Jemima Sims was born October 4, 1845 to James and Elizabeth Cook. She married Peter Harvey Sims on May 18, 1869, with whom she had two children: Harvey James Sims and Rella Sims. Sims died in 1921 and was entombed at the Forest Lawn Mausoleum in Toronto, Ontario.

James Kenneth Davidson "Kenneth" Sims was born July 12, 1904 in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario to Harvey J. Sims and Florence Katherine Roos. He married twice. First, to Lyla Patterson Hughes (date unknown) and later to Mabel Alguire Cameron of Cornwall, Ontario on June 28, 1930. He died July 29, 1970 and was buried in Kitchener's Mount Hope Cemetery.

Mabel Alguire Cameron was born July 19, 1904 in Cornwall, Ontario to James Cameron and Mabel Alguire Cameron. She married James Kenneth Sims, son of Harvey J. and Florence Sims, on June 28, 1930, and died August 10, 1961 in Kitchener, Ontario.

Peter Harvey Sims was born May 18, 1844 in Hawkesville, Wellesley Township to the Rev. James Sims and Janet Harvey Robertson. He married Jemima Cook on May 18, 1869 and together they had two children: Harvey James and Rella May. He became a school teacher, serving for a time as principal of the Waterloo Central School. He later went in to insurance, eventually founding the Mercantile Fire Insurance Co in Waterloo, Ontario. As an adult he supported those of his family who did not flourish in Canada, including his parents James and Janet Sims and his sister Janet McQueen. At the time of his death, Sims was vice-president of the Dominion Life Assurance Co. He died November November 20, 1920 of pneumonia in Kitchener at the home of his son, Henry James Sims. He was entombed at the Forest Lawn Mausoleum in Toronto, Ontario.

William Andrew Sims was born in May, 1846 in Hawkesville, Ontario to James and Janet Harvey Sims. He died July 21, 1930 in New Westminster, B.C. after living in Swan River, Manitoba for many years. He was buried at Ocean View Burial Park.

Miss Oktoberfest 1981.

Oscar Douglas Skelton was born July 13, 1878. He was appointed Undersecretary of State for External Affairs in 1925 by William Lyon Mackenzie King and filled that position until he died on January 28, 1941.

Harold Stanley Smart was a Lance Sergeant in the 2nd Canadian Survey Regiment, No. 2 Canadian Artillery Reinforcement Unit, stationed in England during World War II. Born in Grassie, Ontario, to Frank and Edith (McLeod) Smart, Stanley had a fraternal twin brother Stuart, older siblings Murray and Kathleen, and younger siblings Norman and Helen. He joined the army ca. April 29, 1942, as a Gunner in the 1st Canadian Survey Regiment. He was later promoted to the rank of Lance Bombardier and transferred to the 2nd Survey Regiment, and eventually became a Lance Sergeant. He spent most of his time during the war in England, but also did tours of duty and spent time on leave in France, Belgium, and Holland. After the war, Stanley worked for McKinnon Brothers in St. Catharines, Ontario, which became a division of General Motors. On October 7, 1950, he married Helen Josephine Scammell and they had two children: David Stuart and Marie Helen.

Damaris Isabella McGee Smith was an author and teacher. She was born Sept. 27, 1831 at Somerville, New Brunswick. She moved to Ontario when she was 18 and taught school in the Lee neighborhood [of Hamilton?]. She married Sylvester Smith, son of a United Empire Loyalist, in 1853. She wrote "Pioneer Wife" which describes the condition of life in the early days of settlement in the area. She died Nov. 18, 1913 and was buried in the Stoney Creek cemetery.

Colonel Herbert D. Smith, K.C. (November 2, 1866-November 2, 1938) was County Crown Attorney in Chatham, Ontario in the 1930s.

Mauritana Smith was the daughter of Damaris Isabella Smith and sister of Elizabeth Smith Shortt, who was one of the first three female medical doctors in Canada. Mauritana was born on August 9, 1856, to a loyalist family in Winona, near Hamilton, Ontario. She was educated by a governess, in the Winona School and at the St. Catharines Collegiate Institute. She taught in the Lee neighborhood and at Hamilton Beach, and the Waterford Public School. She married Hervey A. Coon in 1887. She died June 18, 1946.

Children's author and librarian Barbara Classen Smucker was born September 1, 1915 in Newton, Kansas. Barbara began writing in elementary school and would later go on to earn a degree in journalism from Kansas State University in 1936. After university she taught English and eventually returned to her hometown in 1939 to work as a reporter for the Evening Kansas Republican until 1941. In 1939 Barbara married Donovan Smucker who she had interviewed for the paper. Donovan was a Mennonite Minister and the couple moved to Wadsworth, Ohio where he pastored a church. Donovan later took a job at the Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Chicago where Barbara got the idea for her first book, Henry's Red Sea. From 1967-1969 the couple lived in West Point, Mississippi where Donovan was president of Mary Holmes College. In 1969 they moved to Ontario when Donovan accepted an offer to teach at Conrad Grebel College.

Barbara became a children's librarian at Kitchener Public Library (1969-1977) and then head librarian of Renison College (1977-1982). During this time Barbara continued to write, producing some of her most famous works including Underground to Canada (1977) and Days of Terror (1979). In 1993 the couple moved to Bluffton, Ohio where she would continue to write and speak to children about reading. In all, Barbara wrote 12 books which were published in 16 countries and translated into such languages as Japanese, Danish, Swedish, French and German. She and her books received numerous awards including the Canadian Council Children's Literature Prize and an honorary doctorate from the University of Waterloo. Barbara Smucker died in Bluffton in 2003.

Gertrude Mabel Snider was born March 19, 1913 to William B. and Faith Snider. She moved to Victoria with her family at seven years of age where she developed an interest in art. She was an active member of the Victoria Sketch Club and helped found an art gallery in the city in the 1946. She died June 25, 2001 in Victoria and was buried at Hatley Memorial Gardens.

Ralph Edward Snider was born July 19, 1904 to William B. and Faith Snider. He moved to Victoria with his family as a teenager, where he spent the rest of his life. Snider married Sarah Isobel Mowat September 19, 1928 and together they had several children. He owned an operated the Oaklands Nursery for 35 years in addition to being a long time member of the Rotary Club, the C.N.I.B., and a senior elder of St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church. Snider died March 23, 1968 at the age of 63.

David H. Snyder was a a farmer in the New Dundee area of Ontario.

Herbert Maplin Snyder was born April 21, 1873. He was a prominent citizen, a a furniture and upholstery manufacturer in Waterloo, Ontario. He died February 1, 1942.

Lydia Kolb Shantz was born in Freeport, Ontario on August 17, 1851 to Benjamin Shantz and Lydia Kolb. She married Amos W. Snyder on February 15, 1874. Shantz died July 16, 1900 and was buried in the Bloomingdale Mennonite Cemetery.