This September the cattle industry lost a true champion and ambassador of the cattle sector, Tony Saretsky.
Those who knew Saretsky during his many years in Alberta may not have realized that he was a Saskatchewan boy who grew up in Humboldt and spent his formative years in Prince Albert and Saskatoon. As a youth, Saretsky was a very gifted athlete, winning numerous regional, city and provincial championships and going on to win the Canadian Junior Football Championship on the Saskatoon Hilltops team. His early passions were baseball and hockey but as he grew older football became his focus.
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After graduating from the University of Saskatchewan, Saretsky moved to Calgary to begin what would be a very influential and fruitful career in the cattle business. Shortly after moving to Calgary, Saretsky met the love of his life, Marilyn, and they married in 1976. Their three children — David, Philip and Samantha — followed. Together they made a commitment to always put their family first. In 1986, they moved from Calgary to Lacombe, where they put down roots to raise their family.
It did not take long for Saretsky to become a deeply respected member of the community, being heavily involved in youth organizations, especially hockey, 4-H and wherever he felt his involvement would help. As the family grew, so did Saretsky’s influence in the cattle business. He attended many weekly cattle sales throughout central Alberta and always enjoyed the camaraderie between the other buyers as well as the farmers and ranchers who brought their cattle to the sales. Saretsky also built a large cattle export business and had several years where he oversaw the export of 200,000-plus animals. Among the companies Saretsky created were Cantriex Livestock International, Cantriex Feedyards, Morningside Livestock Transport and Stockmen’s Financial.
Tony took great pride in his involvement in cattle politics. He sat on almost every major cattle industry board during his career, including the then Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, the Livestock Identification Services and the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency, to name just a few. Saretsky helped form the Livestock Patrons’ Assurance Fund and played an integral role in the Canadian cattle industry during the BSE crisis. In Saretsky’s later years, his favourite thing to do in the world was spend time with his three grandchildren: Jack, Charley and Emma. He rarely missed a hockey game, dance recital or school function.
Known to many and respected by all, that was Tony Saretsky. Our condolences to the whole Saretsky family from all of us at Canadian Cattlemen.
