Barwell was a great Buddy
Paul Henderson quickly embraced the topic of the interview -- which, for a change, was not his heroics in the 1972 Canada-Russia hockey showdown.
Paul
Henderson quickly embraced the topic of the interview -- which, for a
change, was not his heroics in the 1972 Canada-Russia hockey showdown.
Instead, Henderson was asked about former Saskatchewan Roughriders receiver Gord Barwell.
"He was one of my great buddies,'' Henderson, who established a ministry with Barwell, says from Toronto. "Unfortunately, he died on April 21, 1988.''
Barwell was only 43 when cancer claimed him. Despite Barwell's premature death, the mere mention of his name often inspires laughter.
"He was the consummate practical joker,'' Henderson says. "The common bond is that we loved the Lord. We were really interested in telling other people that the Lord loves them also.
"Neither one of us was what you would call a straight arrow before we became Christians. We understood what we'd been saved from. He was just a great guy. He had a great sense of humour. I loved his sense of humour.''
There are myriad examples.
"We'd go for dinner and I'd turn around and there would be a grape sticking out of one of his nostrils,'' Henderson continues.
"You never answered the phone. Any time we were doing anything with football players, something would happen. He'd say, 'The phone's for you. Go pick up the phone.' Of course, it was filled with shaving lotion and the side of his head would all be covered with lotion.
"Life's too short not to have a sense of humour. Gord sure had a great sense of humour.''
Barwell pulled one of his patented pranks in the early 1970s, shortly before the Roughriders embarked on their first road trip of the CFL season.
"It was when he had the Mr. Big & Tall Shop,'' recalls Nancy Barwell Kraft, who married Gord in 1964. "He told two or three different rookies that they should come in and he'd get them all dressed so they'd look good for the road.
"One by one, they all came in and he sold them exactly the same outfit. I think that was back in the days when there were the plaid leisure suits. So they arrive at the airport to go on their first big road trip and there they all are, dressed in the same jackets. I'm sure they got even somehow, but he just thought that was the greatest.''
Nancy had the same appraisal of Gord when they met as 16-year-olds at a high school track competition in Saskatoon.
"I borrowed his sweatpants and it was love at first whiff,'' she says with a chuckle from Tsawassen, B.C.
Barwell's speed was evident on the track and, eventually, the gridiron. It took him under 10 seconds to cover 100 yards, which made him difficult to cover.
Barwell's jets were on display Oct. 24, 1965, when he caught a 102-yard touchdown pass from Ron Lancaster. That was the longest pass in Riders history until Kent Austin and Jeff Fairholm collaborated on a 107-yarder in 1990.
Lancaster and Barwell hooked up for another memorable bomb in the 1966 Grey Cup. Their 46-yarder was Saskatchewan's longest pass play in its 29-14 victory over the Ottawa Rough Riders.
The following year, Barwell caught 30 passes for 753 yards -- averaging a stratospheric 25.1 yards per reception.
He remained with the Riders until 1973, retiring after an injury-plagued season. Despite being only 29, he had already played 10 years in the CFL.
Instead, Henderson was asked about former Saskatchewan Roughriders receiver Gord Barwell.
"He was one of my great buddies,'' Henderson, who established a ministry with Barwell, says from Toronto. "Unfortunately, he died on April 21, 1988.''
Barwell was only 43 when cancer claimed him. Despite Barwell's premature death, the mere mention of his name often inspires laughter.
"He was the consummate practical joker,'' Henderson says. "The common bond is that we loved the Lord. We were really interested in telling other people that the Lord loves them also.
"Neither one of us was what you would call a straight arrow before we became Christians. We understood what we'd been saved from. He was just a great guy. He had a great sense of humour. I loved his sense of humour.''
There are myriad examples.
"We'd go for dinner and I'd turn around and there would be a grape sticking out of one of his nostrils,'' Henderson continues.
"You never answered the phone. Any time we were doing anything with football players, something would happen. He'd say, 'The phone's for you. Go pick up the phone.' Of course, it was filled with shaving lotion and the side of his head would all be covered with lotion.
"Life's too short not to have a sense of humour. Gord sure had a great sense of humour.''
Barwell pulled one of his patented pranks in the early 1970s, shortly before the Roughriders embarked on their first road trip of the CFL season.
"It was when he had the Mr. Big & Tall Shop,'' recalls Nancy Barwell Kraft, who married Gord in 1964. "He told two or three different rookies that they should come in and he'd get them all dressed so they'd look good for the road.
"One by one, they all came in and he sold them exactly the same outfit. I think that was back in the days when there were the plaid leisure suits. So they arrive at the airport to go on their first big road trip and there they all are, dressed in the same jackets. I'm sure they got even somehow, but he just thought that was the greatest.''
Nancy had the same appraisal of Gord when they met as 16-year-olds at a high school track competition in Saskatoon.
"I borrowed his sweatpants and it was love at first whiff,'' she says with a chuckle from Tsawassen, B.C.
Barwell's speed was evident on the track and, eventually, the gridiron. It took him under 10 seconds to cover 100 yards, which made him difficult to cover.
Barwell's jets were on display Oct. 24, 1965, when he caught a 102-yard touchdown pass from Ron Lancaster. That was the longest pass in Riders history until Kent Austin and Jeff Fairholm collaborated on a 107-yarder in 1990.
Lancaster and Barwell hooked up for another memorable bomb in the 1966 Grey Cup. Their 46-yarder was Saskatchewan's longest pass play in its 29-14 victory over the Ottawa Rough Riders.
The following year, Barwell caught 30 passes for 753 yards -- averaging a stratospheric 25.1 yards per reception.
He remained with the Riders until 1973, retiring after an injury-plagued season. Despite being only 29, he had already played 10 years in the CFL.
