How it all began!

I am a stay at home dad. Our eldest child has high needs. When she came home we knew that it was best someone stay home with her. Economics determined it would be me. To this day I will tell you I would not have chose this path and I would not if I could go back….YET I would not change a thing.

Anyways, when my wife was thinking about going to a Sunday School teacher’s conference she was able to get her mom to watch Cynthia and suggested I go too. I was not involved in Sunday School at that time. But when it was suggested that we could go out afterwards I said okay.

I had no idea what lectures I would go too. But I went anyways. When I got there and looked at a schedule I saw a class being offered by “David ‘Dooley’ Milmine” Clowning 101. I thought “what? My wife and I grew up with a Dave Milmine who helped with the youth when we were the youth, played baseball with Dave and hockey too.” So I thought I had to go.

Sure enough it was the Dave I knew. There he was dressed as Dooley and he said he had been Dooley all the time we knew him. And also David had been Santa! He was a regular on a Christian TV Channels kid’s show. WOW!

After the lecture he gave me a registration for a Clown Ministry weekend he was doing “Canadian Christian Clown College” at Crossroads in Burlington Ontario. Before I could mumble a response my pastor piped up “I use to do Clowning. I will go with you” I was stuck. I really did not want to go, but I thought I would go make my Pastor happy and that would be the end of it. WRONG! but before we get there let me tell you about the start of that workshop weekend….

When I arrived I handed in my registration form to Patricia “Gumdrop” Freeman (Mckenzie now) as I walked away she said “your Clown name is missing” I thought she was kidding, she was dressed as a Clown. I told I did not have one, the response was everyone has a Clown name. To me it sounded as if she was never going to drop this. So I said it is Halaloo. She asked me to Spell it…. H-A-L-A-L-O-O and it has stuck from that moment.

I went to a make-up class taught by Kathy Hall (Silly Milli) and Phil Dorval (Happy D), learned things from Dan Wolfe, Dave Milmine, Floyd Shaffer, Klinker and Charles Millard (Choctaw) many who still remain friends today. Also my favorite Clown Shop, Big Moe’s (Jack and Dorothy).by the end of day one I had make-up, hat, nose and a jacket.

Day two was even better! I had no idea what I was going to do with Clowning. On the way home my Pastor said I should MC the Church’s Christmas Banquet as Halaloo. Not one to say no…..

Well, less then 2 months I went from stay at home Dad to Stay at home Dad and Halaloo. I read what books I had bought and came up with some gags and a solo skit. I ate dinner and near the end I skipped out to get ready. I came back, was the MC as Halaloo and did my skit. It went well but if I watched that performance today I would be embarrassed. But I did what I said I would and thought that is it. When I got home my wife told me that the fellow sitting next to me at the table turned to her halfway through my performance and asked where I was…I was missing this. He added “this is pretty good”. When told I was Halaloo he asked if I did this on the side….that was all I needed to encourage me that maybe I could do this.

It wasn't long after that God really started showing me that through Clowning I could share His love with others. But I will leave that for another Blog.

My motto remains the same:

“to be the best me, I can be and then get better”