Maryboro Lodge Personality: Randy Meredith

As a boy, Randy Meredith loved Halloween, and as a merchant, he always had a great Halloween display in his Colborne Street store. Some of his friends would remark that with Randy, Halloween seemed to last all year round. He loved shopping for clothes and had many memorable looks, often shared with the community on Wacky Wednesdays. He was never afraid to be creative and express himself, and there was never a dull moment when Randy was around. “He was so colourful, had so much spirit and showed so much love.” 

In 2009, Randy Meredith opened Grr8 Finds Markets in partnership with Bruce Muir and with the help of his parents, Ellison and Janey. By the time he passed away in 2022, many people would say that he was the soul of Colborne Street, or the Unofficial Mayor of Fenelon Falls. For decades, the shop had been a general store, operated by Fred & Ethel Warren, then Ed Taylor, Stedman’s and Pick N’Save. Grr8 Finds was a vendor market laid out in Randy’s own “hectic-eclectic” style, in many ways reminiscent of the old general stores. It included a display of candy in memory of his soulmate, Andrew. He had a very interesting variety of merchandise, so people enjoyed visiting to see what was new—and what Randy was up to today.

Randy probably did more than anyone else to make the LGBTQ+ community feel accepted in Fenelon Falls. Secondary school students and youth who needed someone to talk to knew they could open up to Randy, and that whatever they needed to talk about, he would understand. It was a welcoming place, somewhere where anyone could go, be themselves and be accepted. He was a people person who always made the effort to engage with everyone he visited. Few would ever forget the experience of meeting one of Fenelon Falls’ most memorable characters on a Wacky Wednesday.