Russell “Russ” Hazzard served in the Royal Canadian Navy in the Second World War. After the war ended, he returned home to Becher, a small settlement in southern Lambton County north of Wallaceburg. He was 23 years old when local businessman Harley Bishop approached him about buying his local feed mill business. Hazzard had very little money at the time, but Bishop cut the war veteran a break. Bishop agreed that Hazzard could pay as he was able. The deal was struck and Hazzard launched his business career on January 2, 1947. He established Hazzard’s Grain Elevator that year.
He met his wife Margaret at the Royal Bank in Wallaceburg. The romance flourished as he made weekly deposits at the bank from his feed mill business. They were married in August 1947 and the couple raised 12 children together. Margaret was a confident partner and joint owner of their business. She assumed all responsibilities for the business accounting.
Their son Jim knows what it was like to grow up in a busy home and a busy business. He noted, “All the children born to them were literally raised in the middle of this growing business.”
As his business developed, Hazzard became a founding partner of South West Ag Partners Inc. This enterprise grew quickly. It soon included a seed cleaning business, an Allis Chalmers dealership, a CIL Fertilizer dealership, a grain elevator, multiple farm service locations, a joint venture with Cargill, and an amalgamation with Kent County Fertilizer. They operated as one the major farm service companies within the region.
Hazzard's commitment to the customer was a key to his success. He always thought of himself as a farmer from downtown Becher, not as a businessman.
Read more about Russ Hazzard’s legacy and his induction into the Lambton Agricultural Hall of Fame in this article from Sarnia and Lambton County This Week.
Community Contributions
- Bethel Pentecostal Church member, ran the bus ministry and occasionally a preacher
- Missionary in Canada, Sri Lanka and around the world
- Member of Gideon's International
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