George Swede [SEP] place of birth
George Swede
George Swede (), (born as "Juris Puriņš", November 20, 1940 in Riga, Latvia) is a Latvian Canadian psychologist, poet and children's writer who lives in Toronto, Ontario. He is a major figure in English-language haiku, known for his wry, poignant observations.
Life.
In 1947, Swede arrived with his mother and stepfather from post-WW II Europe to live with his maternal grandparents on a fruit farm in Oyama, British Columbia and, when
Swede, and Alberta Melba Pritchard (1912 - 2001), a first generation immigrant of Welsh and English descent. His sisters, Adrienne Ann and Rae Levan died prior to his birth. He has a brother, Jay, who was born in 1953. Ackerman attended Centennial Elementary School, George Washington School, and graduated from McKeesport Area High School in 1964. He was noted as a baseball pitcher there, and in 2005 he was inducted into the McKesport High School Hall of Fame. He attended Pennsylvania State University and the