Ron Sajack remembered for larger-than-life murals and big heart
When Ron Sajack decorated the La-Kassa-We Pub in Minto inside and out with his signature, large-scale murals, owner Pauline Johnson says he "brought the castle to life."
Those brushstrokes mean even more so to Johnson now.
Sajack passed away Saturday morning after a battle with cancer, according to close friends of his.
Sajack painted several large-scale murals across the Maritimes over four decades, including one the Minto Foodland depicting the town's history, and at the Greener Village food bank in Fredericton.
But his work holds a special place in Johnson's heart.
Initially, Sajack had offered to paint one mural in Johnson's pub: a massive painting of two lions and a husky dog that watches over La-Kassa-We's stage.
The design was based on a photo of two lions Johnson had found, and incorporated Jesse the dog, who was a big part of the pub, she explained.
But the project took on a life of its own, and Sajack's brushstrokes now adorn the pub inside and out, including another large mural on the pub's exterior.
Johnston said there would be no La-Kassa-We without Sajack's work.
"Everything that he's done, to me, is worth more than gold," she said, describing Sajack as her "earth angel."
"He was just a man with the biggest heart to me. He just wanted to paint the world."
Sajack also painted the 50-foot mural on the exterior of the Greener Village food bank, that morphs into the four seasons as it progresses.
Alex Boyd, the interim executive director of Greener Village, said the mural encapsulates the spirit of the food bank.
"Of course now when we look up at it, we won't only think of the beauty of what he created but we'll think of the time he gave to us when that time was so fleeting," he said.
"That's the beauty of art and the creative things that we do, that they can continue on long after we're gone."
Sajack wanted no funeral service or obituary run, his close friends say.
But Johnson said she is organizing a celebration of Sajack's life for his friends and family in the new year.
