SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Wilf Schidlowsky isn't going to let a minor stroke get in the way of doing what he loves.

Schidlowsky, the 78-year-old co-owner of K&W Cycle, suffered the stroke while toiling away in his shop off Coronation Drive approximately four weeks ago.

K&W bicycle repairman Wilf Schidlowsky, 78, recently suffered a minor stroke while working in his shop, but said he plans to be back on the job this week, handling paperwork, with eventual plans to go back to repairs. - NNSL file photo

"I was fixing a bike and it bit me," cracked Schidlowsky. "I'm fine."

According to his son-in-law Wayne MacDonald, Schidlowsky hasn't exhibited any serious side effects.

"He can do pretty much everything," said MacDonald. "You wouldn't think anything had happened."

Schidlowsky certainly doesn't show any signs of slowing down.

The repairman said he would be back on the job this week, although he'll start easy, handling paperwork mostly, with plans to eventually get his hands dirty again.

"I've been down there (visiting) about every day," said Schidlowsky.

Friday afternoon, as young attendant Kyle Hnatiw tightened the bearings on a Supercycle, Schidlowsky popped his head in.

"Everything okay?" asked Schidlowsky, his eyes fixed plaintively on the bike.

"Oh yeah," Hnatiw reassured him. "Busy, though."

According to K&W's other co-owner, Ken Leonardis, who is putting in more hours in the wake of his business partner's stroke, Schidlowsky is a crucial part of the operation.

"I usually do other things," said Leonardis, who also works for JSL Mechanical. "Because this happened, it was either put the lock on the door or help out.

"I've been his business partner for 20 years."

Schidlowsky is kept busy every year fixing bikes for the Rotary Club of Yellowknife's annual bike auction in May, sprucing up many of the bikes himself.

In a previous Yellowknifer interview, Schidlowsky said, "I hate to see waste. That's the big thing. I see so many wasted things just fill up the garbage dump.

"Why? We're in a disposable society. You buy a Canadian Tire bike or a Wal-Mart bike or a Home Hardware Bike. Use it for one year. And then it's gone."

Schidlowsky said he was visited by Rotary members while in the hospital.

"We were all very concerned about his health," said member Michael Morse, adding that Schidlowsky is an integral contributor to the bike auction.

"He is the one source we have with the sorts of skills that we need, and also for the way he contributes," Morse said of Schidlowsky.

"He makes quite a significant donation by way of his time. He does make a charge for his services, but as we understand it, it's subsidized, because he believes in what Rotary is doing."

Morse said Schidlowsky's return to work is a testament to his firm character.

"I'm very impressed. The man is obviously heavily committed to his work. He loves it. He wouldn't be working like that at that age (if he didn't)."