After an outstanding 53 years at LM, Lloyd Mymko is retiring.

When Lloyd joined the company in August of 1973, it went by Libling Michener and Associates, being re-named LM Architectural Group a few years later – Lloyd likes to think it was in his honour. He started in an intermediate drafting position, and less than two years later he transitioned to a Contract Administrator position, which he has held ever since. He played an instrumental role in major healthcare, civic, and educational projects year after year.

“A contract administrator’s position is actually an easy job … all you have to do is know everything about everything; make the owners, consultants and contractors do their jobs, you are the last pair of eyes and ears for the office,” said Lloyd. To him, no two days have been the same. He really has seen it all, and his wealth of knowledge has guided the team to bigger and bigger projects.

Many projects Lloyd has worked on won awards, including the Governor General’s Medals in Architecture and Landscape Architecture, multiple Heritage Winnipeg Preservation Awards, Prairie Design Award of Excellence, Canadian Architect Award of Excellence, and many more.

As a colleague, Lloyd is all quick wit and friendly banter, as Michael Sagriff, a Contract Administrator who worked closely with Lloyd for over a decade, tells it:

“Lloyd is an avid hockey fan, as am I. The difference is he is a Jets fan, and I am a Leafs fan. Naturally there is some friendly ribbing between each other. Anytime the Leafs have a bad loss I knew to expect Lloyd to come in the office the next day, yell over to me from his desk “Hey Mikey, what the hell happened”. Whenever they had a good game, it would be “Hey Mikey, looks like you have a team”. Over the last decade, working together has always been the same. Lloyd has the 1967 Stanley Cup Team photo of the Leafs. He brings it up all the time to me. Come spring time when playoffs start, he always mentions it. And when the Leafs inevitably lose, there is Llyod “Hey Mikey, looks like I don’t have to get a new picture yet”. I’m going to miss the friendly banter back and forth.”

“Lloyd’s been here long enough to have learned and forgotten how to use the fax machine. He’s willing to share his experience – self-taught and self-learned – and that willingness has been invaluable to the firm. Lloyd’s impact really lies in the strong foundation that he built single-handedly – there were many times when he was the only CA in the office, and he’s carried a disproportionate amount of load for years.”
Carson McCance, Senior Project Manager

“Lloyd is confident in his ability, and he’s not afraid to tell you that. He’s known for saying “you architects design what you want and I’ll fix it.” He does it with a lot of bravado, but his intent is always good, always wanting what’s best.”
David Kressock, Senior Advisor

“Lloyd is his own biggest advocate. He doesn’t do computer sketches, only sketches by hand. He expects people to think for themselves, and he’ll tell you if you’re wrong, doesn’t matter who you are. A story I’ll always remember about Lloyd is when we had an Architectural Intern, they went on site and Lloyd asked him to go to the General Contractor and ask him for the deflectoscope, which he did with confidence. They all went laughing because there is no such thing.”
Reg Spurrill, Architectural Technologist

Our team couldn’t have asked for a better mentor. The impact Lloyd has made on the firm and on his colleagues is insurmountable and will be cherished.

We extend a tremendous thank you to Lloyd for all his contributions in his journey with us, the laughter and the lessons. It is with mixed emotions that we wish Lloyd many new adventures, some well-deserved rest, and all the best in his retirement. Cheers to Lloyd!