How a signed photo of Fred Penner made my childhood dreams come true
By Now or Never host Trevor Dineen
Quick... what do you get when you combine Kijiji, a signed photo of Fred Penner, and a healthy dose of on-air competition? How about the greatest story of online swapping the world has ever seen!
The other day my co-host Ify Chiwetelu and I decided to each post something on Kijiji with the goal of seeing who could get the best swap deal for it. She decided to post an ad for an empty fire extinguisher that had brought her so much joy.
I posted a signed picture of Fred Penner circa 1991. I found it in the basement of CBC Manitoba.
To be honest, I'd never posted anything on Kijiji before so I didn't know what to expect. I was not disappointed.
The first offer I received was for a laptop bag. Not bad right?
The next person offered me a collection of bells. How many bells in this collection you ask? I have no idea, but I would not swap for anything less than 100. Another person told me that she was willing to try and knit me the exact sweater Fred Penner is wearing in the photograph.
Now, I know what you're thinking... she's the winner, right?! Who would turn down a replica hand-knit, multicoloured sweater worn by their favourite childhood entertainer? So, I was just about to make the deal when I received this message...
Hello there sir, or ma'am. My name is Damien Penner. Fred is my Dad. My father in law came across your ad and sent it to me. Now I know it might seem silly that I would want this, but I am slowly collecting memorabilia of his. I have never seen this photo either. What kind of a trade do you have in mind? Would you like something else signed by him? Lol. Let's chat and see what we can do. Talk soon.
WHAT??!?
This was a game changer. My dreams of having a sweater made from every colour in the rainbow were now put on hold. This was Fred Penner's son. So I did what any good Kijiji'er would do. I drove to his house and tried to figure out a swap.
When I arrived Damien was ridiculously kind. He was excited about the poster and told me about how another childhood entertainer named Al Simmons recently lost his life's work in a storage locker fire. Decades of props and memorabilia were gone in an instant and this made Damien think about his father's legacy and how he'd hoped to preserve pieces of it.
So my obvious question was: what are you willing to swap for it? He offered me something signed by his dad. I said nope. Been there done that. He then offered me a stuffed lion that was the size of regular lion. That one was tough to turn down.
But I presented him with an offer of my own: If your dad, Mr. Fred Penner can phone me and bring my childhood dreams to life by leaving me a personal voicemail singing The Cat Came Back, the picture is yours!
Is this a story with a happy ending? I guess you'll have to listen below to find out!