< HENRY • Intelligencer f 4X * While most people dread doing their own income tax, Robert Beddie revels in them. And he even does it for free for others! The retired professional engineer and volunteer tax co-ordinator for Pensioners Concerned personally completes about 200 returns a year for seniors, adults with physical, academic and developmental dis- abilities, and others on limited income. He has been doing this since retiring 15 years ago. "I certainly get a lot of satisfaction out of doing it because our clients appreciate the help," said the 73-year-old Beddie. "Some of our clients have no close fami- ly or friends to help them with their annu- al ordeal and I'm glad I can be of help to them." There have been lows and highs for the tax preparer. "The worst was telling a little old lady that she owed $5,000 in back taxes because her late husband didn't report all the income over the last few years," he noted. On the other hand, Beddie recognized that another husband could have claimed disability and he was able to get another $5,000 from back years for his client. "Fortunately, I've had more good stories than bad ones," he chuckled. Beddie took an income tax course from H and R Block when he retired from Nortel in Belleville in 1989 to prepare him for his new retirement role with Pensioners Concerned. "I might as well be competent if I was going to do this," he said. Beddie is celebrating his 15th year with Pensioners Concerned and is in charge of the tax preparation program for the non- profit community group staffed entirely by volunteers. It's almost a natural fit for him, consid- ering his engineering background. "Being a professional engineer, I was always number literate and paper comfort- able and felt quite at ease doing it," he said. Beddie has always done his own income tax and for his wife, Edith, as well. The couple has four children and nine grand- children and will be celebrating their 48th wedding anniversary next month. Born near Prescott and raised on a dairy