Bim's Biography

I hope this doesn't seem too self-absorbed. It's difficult to write about yourself. However, it's nearly impossible to write a bio without casually mentioning oneself. Anyone who knows me well ... and there are a few of you ... knows that the following info is only a light scratching of the surface. Over the years, I've met and worked with a lot of great people (I've also met and worked with some not-so-great people ... but that’s another story). Forgive me, but I couldn't hope to mention all the people who remain so dear to my heart. Some of you know it. Some of you have no idea how important you are to me. However ... here it is ... the BIO. “ONCE UPON A TIME” One day in September, 1955, my Mom and Dad brought into this world a wonderful son who would be to them a great source of pride and joy. A year and a half later ... in March, 1957 ... I was born. I guess life has a way of balancing itself. My parents stopped having kids after I was born. I was born and raised in the small village of North Head on Grand Manan Island. Grand Manan is situated about 20 miles off the coast of New Brunswick in the Bay Fundy and boasts a population of approximately 2600 people. It was a magical place to grow up. I have hundreds of stories. “THE NICKNAME” Many of my closest friends are surprised to find out my real name is not Bim. I never tried to hide my real name ... it just doesn't come up in discussion. I've told this story a multitiude of times, so here it comes again. At the time of my birth, my one-and-a-half year old brother, Karl, was being taken care of by our Grandmother. She said Karl began laughing and giggling when a Jim Reeves song came on the radio. The song was called, “Bimbo”. Just as the song finished, my mother came through the door with me and we were greeted by Karl running from the radio. My mother bent down to introduce me to my brother, at which point, Karl thrust his finger at me and said, “Bimbo”. The name quickly shortened down to Bim. My real name is Turner Ingersoll. I might add ... I don’t like being called Bimbo ... nor do I like Bimmer, Bimster or Bimeister ... Please ... just Bim. “GROWING UP” I loved Superman and other superheroes and consequently became interested in cartooning. I liked dismantling my toys to see what made them work. I played ‘Cowboys and Indians’ and ‘Cops and Robbers’. I had a lot of comics, Corgi and Dinky toys and GI Joe's. I got in a number of fights and had run-ins with my teachers. I had a big imagination and I tended to daydream a lot. Church attendance was sporadic as I grew up. I went to Sunday School from time to time and was dragged along to an occassional special service. Though both of my parents believed in God ... church was not a regular part of their lives. I always had a deep spiritual sense and to make this incredibly concise, I became a Christian on March 5th, 1972 on a Sunday morning. I've never strayed from that commitment. “THE GUITAR” In 1973, my life made a big change. My parents separated in July and my brother left home for Bible College. While attending youth camp that summer, I decided I needed to learn to play the guitar. Around the last week in August, I acquired an old beat-up guitar (I still have it ... It's now covered with autographs of 'famous' Christian musicians ... collectors item) ... anyway ... I got this guitar ... took it back to my house ... went up to my bedroom ... layed it on the bed ... knelt down and prayed, “God, if you'll teach me to play this ... I'll use it for You.” I learned guitar very quickly. I also bought a drum kit about a month later and began learning drums. That came quickly as well. Immersing myself in the process of developing as a musician allowed me to ease some of the personal pain I was experiencing at the time. Music had charms to sooth the savage Bim. With the music came a further involvement with drama and performing. I formed a band with some of my high school buddies, and in 1975, we obtained a government grant to perform comedy concerts throughout the summer under the project name, Operation GREASE. Given the popularity of our concerts, we continued performing throughout the summers of 1975 and 1976 as well as several reunion concerts. “COLLEGE” After High School, I attended Bible College to study for the ministry. Though I was in the Ministerial Program, I never felt I would become a typical, standard, preacher-type guy. The votes are now in ... I didn't. At the beginning of my final year at Bible College, in the Fall of 1977, I formed a Christian rock band. The band, called "Dove", was one of the first (possibly THE first) Christian rock bands to form in the Maritimes. We enjoyed ministering throughout the year and played our last concert in May of 1978. We reunited for five or six songs at a concert in Woodstock, NB in 1982 and again in 1983. There was even a write-up about these performances in Contemporary Christian Music magazine. “THE REAL WORLD” After graduating with my BA in 1978, I moved to Belleville, Ontario to work as a Youth Pastor. That summer, I married the most wonderful woman a man could wish for. Ruth and I met the Fall of 1976 and were married on August 26th, 1978. In August, 2011, we'll be celebrating 66 happy years of marriage ... 33 for her ... 33 for me. (feel free ot insert 'Isn't that sweet!' here). I worked for two years as a Youth Pastor and children's pastor at the Wesleyan Church in Belleville. To this day, I am still in touch with many of the children, teenagers and parents I worked with for those two years. After resigning my position as Youth Pastor, I worked with Youth For Christ beginning the Fall of 1980. Moving to London, Ontario, I worked in the London and Belleville chapters until moving back to Belleville and resigning the summer of 1981. In the London chapter of YFC, I was approached, one day, by the Executive Director and asked if I would do a tour of Ontario with Christian comedian, Mike Warnke. That's where I got my first taste of performing solo before a large crowd. During the tour, I was performing before audiences as large as 1400 people. That was over half the population of Grand Manan. It was my element and I loved it. “ANSWERING THE CALL” After a brief stint working with a photography company, I answered a 'call of faith' to begin performing music. On December 18th of 1981, I stepped out to begin my music ministry full time. Over the following ten years, I recorded two albums and performed/toured with a "Who's Who" of the then current Christian music scene. Larry Norman, Randy Stonehill, Randy Matthews, Mylon Lefevre, Darrell Mansfield, Degarmo & Key, Stryper, Servant, Petra, The Altar Boys, etc....... The list gets pretty long. The highlight would have been being before an audience of 15-20,000 people at Bingeman Park in Kitchener, Ontario armed with only an acoustic guitar. What a rush. “CALL WAITING” During that period, I observed a number of artists who ended up neglecting their family in order to pursue their 'career'. Having known the pain of a broken home, I vowed I would never allow that to happen. I promised Ruth I would get off the road when we had children. In November 1988, our daughter, Tira, was born. About two months later, I hung up the guitar and began the process of 'weaning' myself off the road (I still had commitments to fill a couple years down the road). In 1990, following a nine-month stint with YFC, I moved to Cape Sable Island, NS to begin a Street Ministry. That August, our son, Tayson, was born. Shortly after Tayson was born, I received a call from Refuge Records wanting me to sign on their label to replace blues artist, Larry Howard. I turned that down because of my promise to my family. It was a good decision. My ministry on Cape Island went from 1990-1995. “BAD LANDS” In 1995, I accepted a call from a church in North Dakota to become their Youth Pastor. The Youth Pastor before me survived only four months; and the one before him lasted six months. Working at the church was not at all a good work experience. I stick it out for a full year, but in the fall of 1996, we moved back to Belleville, Ontario. In Belleville, I worked at a Christian (I’m unsure what gave it that title) Open Custody facility for Young Offenders The facility was called, Onesimus House (or as I dubbed it ... A-Mess-A-Stress House). After suffering two stress leaves, I resigned in the fall of 2004, saying the place would shut down within a year. It did. “NOW WHAT?” So, now, it’s 2011. My beautiful daughter is finishing up her University Degree and my incredible son is in Bible College. Ruth and I are praying for direction as to what's next. If you think of us while you're praying, please breathe some words for us. If you have a great revelation offering direction, I'm all ears. “THE LAST CHAPTER HASN'T BEEN WRITTEN ... YET”

“OKAY ... AUTOBIO” Nobody knows as much about you as you do. Even a parent, sibling, spouse or offspring can only report their observations and perceptions of that person. They cannot know your soul.