Precious, Gordon

Gordon Precious was born May 26, 1924 in Hamilton, Ontario.  He had an older brother, Harry, who was six years older, and when Harry joined the RCAF Gordon was inspired to do the same – though he had to wait until he was 18.  He went into the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, and Gordon was initially training as a fighter pilot, but as the needs of the RCAF began to shift he was remustered as a flight engineer, and his training was geared towards the needs of Bomber Command.  The training time was consequently extended and by the time it was complete the war in Europe had come to an end and the decision was made to send experienced European aircrew to the Pacific first.  Gordon therefore was not sent overseas, and he and a friend took advantage of the chance to fly cross-country and visit California!  Gordon left the RCAF in 1945 and went to work, intent on saving up his money for an extended round-the-world trip, which he embarked on in the early 1950s.  And those travels were memorable, from work on a cargo ship to staying in a Turkish village to finding a remote Swiss monastery to finding a band of Pygmies in the African rainforest.  He and his young wife spent the better part of five years navigating Europe, Africa and Asia and later trips to South America continued this trend:  Gordon is indeed well-travelled, having visited over 100 countries in his life!  He is also an avid skier, having come to our attention when on his 100th birthday he went heli-skiing, setting a record for oldest heli-skier in the world!  Gordon Precious was interviewed at his home in Toronto by Zach Dunn and Scott Masters in August 2025.