Paul Henderson reminisces with the hometown crowd in Kincardine

Hockey legend Paul Henderson was welcomed by the hometown crowd in Kincardine as he did a little reminiscing about his life, his success, and his faith, at the Kincardine Legion, Thursday morning.

About 100 people attended the breakfast business meeting, while another 30 tuned in on-line.

Following a delicious meal served by Legion volunteers, Gordon Clark, one of the organizers of the event, said Henderson’s claim to fame is the Goal of the Century which he scored Sept. 28, 1972, to win the final game in the Summit Series against the U.S.S.R. (now Russia).

“What it really came down to was not a battle on the ice, but a war of politics, between capitalism and communism,” said Clark. “Welcome home, Paul.”

Henderson spent the first part of his talk, reminiscing about his family and his famous birth on the Lake Huron ice as his mother went into labour and delivered him before she could even get to the Kincardine hospital.

“On my 57th birthday, we were doing a documentary about my life,” said Henderson, “and Lexie Bell, the nurse who picked me up out of the straw in the sleigh, told me, ‘I gave you your first bath’.”

His first memories of Kincardine were of his father working as a station agent here.

He also remembered when his neighbour and friend, Clarke Pollock, who was about six years old, and Henderson, who was four, decided to deal with the miserable guy who lived across the road. He had a beautiful hedge, so they filled it with dead leaves, twigs and paper. It was a windy day, and when they lit it up, it exploded and totally destroyed the hedge.

“My dad had to replace it,” said Henderson. “I stayed away from dad until he got that job done.”

Due to his father’s job, Henderson and his family moved to Exeter and then back to Lucknow, then to Port Colborne when he was in Grades 1-3, returning to Lucknow again where he grew up and played hockey.

“My father served overseas in the Second World War, and it really impacted him,” said Henderson. “He never talked about it; it was too difficult for him.

“My first hockey coach was Toby Greer and then dad decided he wanted to coach, so that meant I played the whole game – I was forward and defence. It was embarrassing. Dad would scream and swear at the players, telling them to get the puck to Paul and then get out of the way. It was rough because these weren't just players, they were my friends.”

Henderson remembered getting hit one time during a game, and his knee was swollen up. His dad took him to Dr. Mel Corrin in Lucknow who treated it, and then he was back in the game, because his dad was making him into a man.

“My dad was so proud of me,” he recalled. “You know, there are three things you need from your father – to know he loved you, he was proud of you, and that you were good at something.

“My claim to fame is that I played 18 years of professional hockey and scored one goal, but that goal was voted the sports moment of the century.”

Henderson said while hockey was a major part of his life, the best thing to happen to him was when he married Eleanor.

“I met her when I was working at a grocery store in Lucknow,” he said. “Two girls came into the store. I got her number and on our third date, I told her I was going to marry her; and I did. Now, we have this great family and amazing life together.”

After scoring the goal of the century, Henderson was the toast of Canada but he said he felt as if something was missing. That’s when he embarked on the journey to understand the spiritual side of life.

He got a modern version of the Bible and read it. He learned about Christianity and salvation, and started praying.

“March 12, 1975, I prayed and asked God, ‘Tell me who you are’,” said Henderson, “and then I prayed for God to make me the man He wants me to be. And I became a Christian.”

Three days later, he told Eleanor and she said ‘wonderful’ and walked out. But three months later, he realized that he had changed. He wasn’t so restless and worried about everything. And his whole family became Christians.

While living in the United States and playing hockey, he joined a men’s group and it changed his life. Then he was asked to become the leader of a group and was told to just be passionate, disciplined and be yourself.

When he retired, he came back to Canada and reached out to others who were “out to lunch” spiritually. He started LeaderImpact in Toronto in 1984 with three men who met regularly, and it has grown into a global organization.

“When I got cancer in 2009, I was told I might have five years left to live,” said Henderson who continues to battle the disease. He now has an associate and staff who operate LeaderImpact.

“Forty years ago, Eleanor and I discussed what kind of legacy we wanted to leave behind,” said Henderson. “We were praying for an unbroken line of people who love Jesus, and now we have a generation of people who love Jesus. It’s more my wife than me – she’s the heart and soul.”

Clark then introduced several people who are part of the LeaderImpact organization who want to start a local group, Lake Huron Grey Bruce. For more information about LeaderImpact, visit www.leaderimpact.com