Image: A film still showing the preparation stage of a riverboating trip (SPRA 253.01.08, Fonds 253: Jerry Stojan family fonds)
Movie Monday highlights videos from the Archives’ film collection. Every week, an archival film will be featured on our YouTube channel and here on our blog. The Movie Monday project is made possible with the generous funding support of Swan City Rotary Club of Grande Prairie.
Today’s Movie Monday is an introduction to the Stojan family. Louis and Bessie Stojan came to Grande Prairie from Czechoslovakia in 1926, bringing with them their four young sons – Louis Jr., Charlie, Jerry, and Frank. Louis Sr. worked at Thompson Motors for three years before moving the family to a homestead near Goodfare. After six years, they returned to Grande Prairie where he opened his own service garage. In 1939, the family moved to Ontario, but following the Second World War, sons Charlie and Jerry returned to the South Peace. They settled in Sexsmith and bought the Sexsmith Garage, following in the footsteps of their father.
Charlie eventually took over the garage, while Jerry became involved in a number of outdoor pursuits, such as raising quarter horses and becoming a big game guide. The Jerry Stojan family fonds includes many 8mm films that depict the outdoor activities of the Stojan family; several of them will be highlighted in the Movie Monday series.
Today’s film features a riverboating trip undertaken ca. 1956, likely by Jerry Stojan and family members or friends, though our records do not identify the people in this film. Later in the film, we are treated to mountain views, which may have been a part of the riverboating trip, or were perhaps part of a later expedition.
Keep following along with Movie Monday to see more of the Stojans’ adventures!