Mike Gogo with crew from his sawmill.
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Industry: Gogo family
rop the name ‘Gogo’ anywhere in Nanaimo and listen to the stories start. It is the family name of one the first pioneers to settle in Nanaimo and now lays claim today to an incredible legacy of music, art and business. The 639-acre Gogo family farm has been in operation for more than 100 years. Today, Mike Gogo has diversified the farm to include a woodlot, sawmill and Christmas tree farm. Gogo is proud to point out that no more timber is cut each year than is naturally regrown.
A trip up to the Gogo farm to cut a Christmas tree from the lot is a long-time tradition for many, many Nanaimo families. It’s here that you’ll see Mike’s collection of historic forestry equipment and, when the rest of the family isn’t handing out saws and giving you tips on taking down your own tree, you might just run into a spry, white haired fellow with a twinkle in his eye and a hearty laugh – it’s not Santa, it’s Mike Gogo.
Brother Ken Gogo didn’t grow trees as much as he grew a family of talented singer/songwriters and provided a family setting with wife Dodie that turned virtually the whole household into lifelong entertainers. Canada’s legendary rock band and Juno Award-winning Trooper, now resurfacing due to popular demand, has served as family and home on the road to son Paul Gogo since 1995. Paul’s cousin David, son of Mike, is a multiple Juno Award nominee and winner of Canada’s Maple Blues Award. Other family members haven’t attained the same kind of fame but all continue to represent one of Nanaimo’s famous names in music and art.
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