Let’s take a trip back to the February 1965 pages of the Optimist when a profile ran on a young Ladner man who had an unusual hobby.
Arnoud Stryd two years earlier began collecting automobile licence plates, amassing a collection of over 1,300 plates during that time.
He obtained plates from all over the world including such locations as Argentina, Great Britain, Mexico and Panama.
He had also collected military plates from the Canadian and American armies.
“It’s interesting and unusual,” answered Stryd when asked why he got into the hobby.
“I’ve always been interested in geography and unusual letter combinations and this hobby combines both. Some people collect stamps, others coins. I collect licence plates,” he said.
He had joined the Automobile Licence Plate Collectors Association, which had around 600 members from around the world at the time.
His unusual plates included a mint 1928 B.C. plate and a 1959 Massachusetts plate number 11111.
He got his inspiration to begin the hobby from South Delta resident Len Garrison, a veteran licence plate collector himself.
Noting he made friends at the local post office with his frequent visits to pick up more plates he ordered, Stryd asked readers to be on the lookout for any non-B.C. or older B.C. plates.
The Automobile License Plate Collectors Association convention continues to be the main annual gathering of collectors from all over Canada, the U.S. and other countries.
