In the fall of 1966, George Niznik followed in the footsteps of his father by arriving at Olds College of Agriculture & Technology to take Agriculture Management. What he didn’t know at the time was that 59 years later, he’d be walking the campus with his family, including granddaughter Brooke Niznik — a current Olds College student.
Before George arrived on campus, his father John Niznik graduated from Olds College in 1927. It was the first time John had enrolled in education since the age of 13 when his family immigrated to Canada. During John’s time at the College, he participated in the agriculture program and played in the campus band, where he perfected his craft as a self taught violinist. After his time in Olds, John returned to the family farm and started his own family. Two of his sons, Jack and George, went on to attend the College themselves.
As a second generation Olds College student, George had an idea of what to expect during his time on campus. What he didn’t predict was meeting his future wife, Joan Armstrong (now Niznik) in his second year at the college. Joan is from Carrot River, Sask., and moved nine hours from home to pursue Fashion and Design Technology alongside her twin sister at the age of 17. The sisters had learned to sew at the young age of four and had the choice between Toronto or Olds for further education. Upon looking back, Joan is incredibly happy she chose Olds College.
As one of only 33 women in attendance at Olds College in 1967, Joan saw George on the first day when being toured around campus, and decided then and there that she liked what she saw. Later on, fate intervened when George’s curling team needed a lead — Joan saved the day, and the two eventually fell in love.
Aside from finding each other, the couple speaks highly of the atmosphere on campus. “It was just good times — meeting lots of people and having good fun,” George recalls. For Joan, the impact was life-changing. Growing up in the small farming community of Smoky Burns, she describes her younger self as incredibly shy. “Olds College gave me the confidence in what I loved to do and enabled me to share it with others,” she explains. That confidence was well-earned; Joan perfected her craft during her studies, earning a staggering 99 per cent on her final project.
After graduating in 1968 and marrying in 1969, the couple moved to Calgary. George spent time working for a seismograph company where his job involved crushing rocks in a warehouse — a role he jokingly clarifies by saying, “I wasn't wearing stripes!” while Joan worked for a finance company.
In the spring of 1970, the newlyweds moved to Brooks, Alta. and prepared to welcome their first child. George continued working on the family farm and eventually, Joan’s passion for sewing became a 30-year career. Following the birth of her third child in 1974, she began sewing for the public and later went on to teach sewing and quilting classes in the community of Brooks and County of Newell Further Education. Her favorite projects were wedding and graduation dresses, and now it is quilting, sewing and mending for their five grandkids.
The connections made at Olds College have proven to be lifelong. Three of Joan’s classmates and two of George’s served as her bridesmaids and groomsmen, and the couple still keeps in touch with many friends from their cohort. While they haven't stayed in close contact with their original instructors, they are fixtures at the College’s reunions, returning every five years to see how the campus has evolved. They still remember being the very first students to move into the Frank Grisdale Hall (FGH) dorms, and George notes with a smile that while the campus has grown, “the water tower location still remains”.
The family’s ties to agriculture and the College didn’t stop with George and Joan. The third generation continued the tradition when their daughter, Tracy, completed her Agricultural Financial certificate at Olds College. Today, the family remains innovative in the industry; George’s sons have diversified their black angus herd to include some wagyu breeding that is then supplied into a branded beef program. The shift has made ranch life a bit more manageable during calving season, as the smaller calves are lively and hardy from the moment they are born.
The family still laughs about the "early calving" years, particularly a story involving their youngest son’s wife. After getting up in the middle of the night, she was shocked to find five calves in the house — specifically in the bathroom — staying warm during a cold snap.
Now, the legacy has reached its fourth chapter with Brooklyn Niznik. Though George and Joan were surprised to learn their granddaughter was headed to their alma mater, they couldn't be more thrilled. Brooklyn’s feedback has been the "cherry on top" of a 99-year journey with the institution.
“Grandma, it’s a hundred times better than I expected it to be,” Brooklyn told Joan.
As Brooklyn walks the same paths as her great-grandfather in 1927 and her grandparents in 1967, the Niznik family remains a living testament to the enduring spirit of Olds College. From a self-taught violist in the campus band to a modern student discovering her own path, the Nizniks haven't just attended Olds College — they’ve made it a part of their family history.