I n the fall of 1950, Irgens Tynning and his wife Kari packed up their three children, immigrating from Norway to a farm near Kindersley, Saskatchewan. Irgens was encouraged to immigrate by an aunt who had previous- ly moved to Canada to begin farming. He was 45 at the time of the move, and by then five of Kari’s siblings had also already immigrat- ed to Canada, all within Saskatchewan. In 1950 the Tynning family did not yet speak English, but, by chance, Irgens met a fellow Norwegian, Ivar Husdal, who’d been there a number of years working in the plumbing trade. That winter Irgens began working as Ivar’s helper, learning English alongside learning the plumbing trade. In the fall of 1953, Irgens’ son Ansgar began working for Ivar Husdal as well, though by that time Irgens owned his own farm. A year into his employment with Ivar, Ansgar was approached by plumbing inspector Stu Hanford about becoming an apprentice and attending trade school. Ansgar jumped at the chance, and showed up to first-year plumbing at the Canadian Vocational Training School (CVTS) without an apprenticeship contract or a letter to attend school. THREE GENERATIONS LIVING AND BELIEVING IN THE TRADE THE TYNNING DYNASTY By the second week he was attending classes and had lined up his first apprenticeship with Airline Plumbing and Heating. In 1958, Ansgar completed his apprenticeship at Herco Manufactur- ing in Eston, SK. Besides earning his Journeyman certificate in the plumbing trade, he also earned his Commercial Gas Certificate. Gas had just made its way to Eston at that point, and since he had his gas certificate, they offered Ansgar a job. Eventually he would go back to get his interprovincial certificate, as well as receiving a Special Permit in the refrigeration trade in 1989. In 1959 the town of Kyle had recently voted to install a municipal sewer system, and on April Fool’s Day of that year, Ansgar moved to town and opened Kyle Plumbing and Heating. A year later natural gas came to town, followed by a municipal water system in 1962. Kyle Plumbing and Heating became a member of the MCAS in the mid-90s, and Ansgar continued to own and operate the shop until 2000. Amidst the hectic pace of his new business, Ansgar still managed to settle down, marry his beautiful wife Norma in 1960, and welcome daughters Joy and Ann, and son Ryan. The three generations: Ansgar Tynning, Ryan Tynning and Cory Tynning 22 MCAS www.mca-sask.com FEATURE