Edward James (Ted) Moffatt was born in Ottawa on the 31st of December 1939 to
Alexander Fraser and Mary (nee Nelson) Moffatt. Growing up in Ottawa’s west end, Ted was an avid sportsman, most notably playing football for the Fisher Park High School team in the mid 1950s. He was also known to frequent the Elmdale Cinema on Saturday afternoons for matinees and serials as well as working part time as a pin setter at the Elmdale Bowling Lanes. Ted was just shy of his twelfth birthday when his father passed away in December 1951. This event was to have an impact that reverberated throughout his life.
Having Scottish heritage on both sides of his family, it’s no surprise that Ted was drawn to the bagpipes at an early age. Ted and lifelong friend, Garry Matthews, joined by George Robertson and John (Jack) Dustan Sr, started piping lessons with Doug Stephenson in 1953. According to legend, each of the boys paid an astronomical sum of one dollar apiece for lessons from Doug. Insofar as it is known, Ted was the first piper in the family of many generations of Moffatts. Thus, Ted begun his lifelong calling as a bagpiper; a calling that would touch almost every part of his life.
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