Senior in the Spotlight - Myron Welik

Name: Myron Welik‍

Age: 73 — going on 53

‍Where did you grow up? Montreal, Quebec‍

Where do you live now? Montreal, Quebec

Family details: I’ve been married to my wife, Laure, for 40 years. We met standing in line at LaGuardia Airport, of all places. We have two children, Jenna and Jeremy, who are now in their 30s. And then there’s Brooklyn, my six-year-old Wheaten Terrier, who is very much part of the family.

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What were your main occupations during your career?

I’ve never really followed a straight line.

When I was young, I worked as a journalist for The Suburban in Montreal and had the opportunity to interview people including former Prime Minister John Diefenbaker.

Then, almost by accident, I became an entrepreneur. I saw a product in a store that I thought I could do better, told them so, and built a clothing business that eventually grew to more than $20 million.

At around 50, I lost the business in bankruptcy.

That began a very difficult period in my life. Years later, I reinvented myself again in commercial real estate, working on large investment opportunities. Then, at 72, that chapter abruptly came to an end as well.

So what did I do?

I started again.

Today, I’m building Groovy AI, an initiative designed to help older adults understand artificial intelligence without making them feel like they’ve been sent back to school.

That’s basically been the story of my career: find a way or make a way.

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1. What is one accomplishment in your life that still makes you smile?

Without question, my greatest accomplishment is my kids, Jenna and Jeremy.

They’re both in their 30s now, and what makes me most proud isn’t any particular achievement of theirs. It’s the relationship we have as a family.

As they’ve gotten older, we’ve actually become closer.

I’m bursting with pride when I think about the people they’ve become, but I’m equally grateful that we genuinely enjoy being together. We talk, we spend time together, we create traditions, and our family feels closer now than ever.

I’ve built businesses. I’ve had successes and failures. I’ve reinvented myself more than once.

But none of that compares to my kids and the family Laure and I have built together.

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2. What do you hope to accomplish in the next 10 years?

Forget 10 years. Let’s talk about what I want to do before I’m 80!

First, I want Groovy AI to become successful enough that we can genuinely help a lot of older adults understand AI, both the opportunities and the dangers.

We've already presented to hundreds of seniors around Montreal, talking about everything from scams and deepfakes to the positive ways AI can be used. I believe older adults are an incredibly important demographic, and too often technology leaves them behind.

But I have a few more personal goals too.

I want to reach a point of true financial independence.

I want to meet Paul McCartney.

I want to learn enough piano to play “Let It Be.”

And this is where my wife thinks I've completely lost my mind: I want to go on America's Got Talent.

My plan is to creatively recite the Gettysburg Address. I don't care about winning the million dollars. I just want to get on there once and share something I believe is incredibly powerful with a huge audience.

Will all of this happen?

I have no idea.

But you have to have goals.

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3. What is something people might be surprised to learn about you?

People who meet me probably figure out pretty quickly that my brain moves at about a million miles a minute.

What might surprise them is how organized I need to be.

My mind can be chaotic. I'm jumping between ideas and projects constantly. But if I don't organize my day and know what I'm doing next, I get completely frazzled.

So there's actually a lot of order underneath the chaos.

There's a method to the madness.

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4. What is one place you’ve travelled to that left a lasting impression?

Italy.

To me, it’s heaven on earth.

My wife and I went a couple of years ago, and we're planning to go back. I've been fortunate to visit some wonderful places. I love Portugal, Spain and New York for completely different reasons.

But if you made me choose one, it would be Italy.

The people, the food, the lifestyle, the history. There's something about being there that makes you excited to be alive.

And I still have a lot more travelling to do.

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5. What is one tradition, recipe or family story you hope gets passed down?

More than any particular tradition, I hope Jenna and Jeremy carry forward the importance of family.

At the end of the day, the thing that really matters is love.

In fact, if you look in my phone, Laure isn't even listed by her name. She's listed as “Love.”

Jeremy and I have our own traditions. On Christmas Eve we'll go out and have a cigar together, something that connects back to my own father. We also occasionally pick a smaller American city, go there together and take in a basketball game. We've done places like Oklahoma City and Charlotte. It's not really about the basketball. It's the experience and the time together.

Jenna and I have our own traditions too. We love exploring places together. Last year, we went to Salem, Massachusetts, which was quite an experience. We also love doing walking tours around Montreal.

I've lived in Montreal my entire life, and somehow we still manage to learn something new every time.

I love this city. It has a soul to it that’s hard to explain unless you've experienced it.

Everyone should experience the soul of Montreal at least once.

Those are the kinds of traditions I hope continue. Travelling together. Exploring. Learning something new. Spending time together.

Because ultimately, the tradition I care most about passing down is simply this:

Stay close to the people you love.

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6. What do you most enjoy about being a senior?

First of all, I don't really think of myself as a “senior.”

I'm not offended by the word. Call me whatever you want!

I just don't think very much about the number.

I'm 73, but I don't wake up in the morning thinking, I'm 73 years old. What should a 73-year-old do today?

I still have ideas. I still have things I want to accomplish. I'm building a business. I'm writing. I'm thinking about the next project.

Age is there, obviously.

I just don't let it define what I'm supposed to do.

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7. Describe your involvement within your community.

My wife, Laure, and I participate in an annual walk for cancer, usually with Brooklyn joining us.

But these days, the community I feel especially connected to is older adults.

That has become part of the mission behind Groovy AI.

When I first started trying to learn about artificial intelligence, I couldn't find anything aimed at people my age that spoke to us in a way I liked. Everything felt like going back to school.

I thought there had to be a better way.

So we created a 30-minute presentation that mixes AI education with music, stories and references from the 1960s. We talk honestly about the bad stuff, such as scams, cloning and deepfakes, but also about the enormous possibilities.

If I can help older adults feel less intimidated by this technology and better prepared for what's coming, that's a community contribution I'm very passionate about.

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8. What message would you give to your 21-year-old self?

Become more financially savvy.

That's it.

Learn how money works much earlier.

I've been an entrepreneur for most of my life. I've made money, lost money and learned a lot of lessons the hard way.

If I could go back and talk to that 21-year-old version of myself, I’d tell him that understanding finances and building financial security matters.

You can still take risks.

Just understand the financial side of those risks a lot better.

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9. What helps you stay positive during times of change?

I'm actually not positive at first.

That's the truth.

When something really bad happens, I can go pretty far down. I sometimes joke that I have to die a couple of times before I can live again.

But eventually, a voice inside me starts saying, Okay. What's next?

Another idea appears.

Sometimes I wish that voice would leave me alone! I think, Why don't I just get an easy job somewhere, stop creating things and call it a day?

But I know myself.

I can't.

There's always another idea, another project, another possibility.

I'm even writing something now called Johnny Chance, which is partly based on my own story.

Apparently, I'm just not very good at surrendering.

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10. What does “home” mean to you at this stage of life?

Home is everything.

And without Laure, there really wouldn't be a home.

By nature, I think I'm a bit of a vagabond. My mind is always somewhere else, thinking about another idea, another place or another possibility.

Home grounds me.

It centres me.

Jenna and Jeremy have their own places now, but our home is still their home. And one of the things that means the most to me at this stage of life is that our family is closer than ever.

I love when everyone is here. I love entertaining. And, of course, Brooklyn is part of that picture too. A house without the people, and the dog, you love in it doesn't mean very much.

People talk about how, when your kids are young, the noise can drive you crazy. Then they grow up, move out, and the silence drives you crazy. Both are true.

For me, home is the people inside it.

And Laure is the person who created that home for me.