Phidon Story: Rob Shenker

I've been enamoured of fountain pens for most of my life. When I graduated from University and my parents bought me a brand new laptop computer as a graduation gift, I told them to take it back, because all I really wanted was a gold Mont Blanc fountain pen. 

I got through Medical School and my plastic surgery residency by using my father's old Parker fountain pen that he used in high school back in Montreal in the late 1950s and early 1960s after fleeing war-torn Europe. Although that pen doesn't function very well anymore, I still have it, and I still love it.

After I finished my residency in Toronto and my fellowship in Vancouver, I moved to the outskirts of Hamilton and was working in Cambridge at the Cambridge Memorial Hospital. I figured that being away from the big city would make it difficult to feed my fountain pen habit. It was my great good fortune to find Mano and Baldeep at Phidon Pens.

For a pen geek like me, it's one thing to walk into a beautiful shop full of magnificent writing instruments. It's another thing to walk into such a store and be greeted with a smile, a cup of tea, and the good natured warmth that Mano and Baldeep always bring to every visit.

Isaac, now 13 and a half, poses with Rob and a small selection of their growing collection. Some of the products pictured include Diplomat Aeros, a Lamy Al-Star, and the ever-favourite Blackwing pencils!

I can tell so many stories about my visits to Phidon over the years. I could tell you that despite my best efforts, I've never actually managed to walk in there and walk out without buying a pen, even if all I went in for was a package of paper. I could tell you that every time one of my favourite pens comes out in a new colour, it somehow ends up in my pen collection. I could tell you that I have made new pens my standard gift for friends and colleagues over the years. I could tell you of all the nibs I've accidentally broken, that Mano and Baldeep have repaired. Or I could tell you that when my 20th wedding anniversary rolled around, my wife knew exactly which shop to go to to find the perfect gift for me. 

However, I think my favourite Phidon story involves my youngest son, Isaac, who was probably about 10 years old the first time I took him to the shop.  His eyes grew wide, his jaw dropped and he wanted to write with every pen. We left the shop with a beautiful box of Blackwing pencils, to which he has become addicted. Somehow, one of my Diplomat pens seems to be on permanent loan to him as well. He also ended up with the Lamy ABC kids fountain pen and pencil set.  

I'm so pleased to see that my love for pens and for writing has not skipped a generation! 

Thank you, Mano and Baldeep, for keeping my pen habit satisfied and for creating the next-generation of pen lovers.

Thanks to Rob for sharing this wonderful story with us! This blog post was written as part of the Phidon Stories collection. If you would like to share your story, please email us at phidonpens@bellnet.ca.