Introduction
It’s time for our fourth thrilling chapter in the “Spotlight on Top 100 Local Guides” series! After diving into the worlds of the amazing Herve, Steve, and Katy, we’re shifting our gaze to another incredible individual from the Top 100 Leaderboards. This month, we’re celebrating a guide who found purpose, a community, and even a new main hobby through his amazing contributions.
Say hello to Terry, a retired Canadian, originally from England and with a passion for cooking, mind-bending games, and, most importantly, making a huge impact on Google Maps. He’s a veteran contributor who has seen it all, and he’s here to share his journey from dabbling in reviews to hitting a massive billion photo views. So, without further ado, let’s zoom in on our next Local Guide hero and discover what makes Terry a true legend!
The Interview:
1. Where on Earth do you call home?
I was born in the Midlands of England, My parents immigrated to Canada in the late 60s. I have lived in many places in Southern Ontario, Including Toronto, Windsor, Ottawa and now consider the Ajax area my home town.
I asked Terry if he had an English or Canadian accent and he replied: “It’s Canadian now. When I was a teenager all the older girls used to come over and ask me too talk to listen to my accent. This was at the height of the Beatles.. I worked on losing it. I was shy.”
2. What do you do when you’re not rocking the Local Guides world?
I am now retired but have had 3 very successful careers, Food service Sales and Management. Real Estate Agent, and in my last career I worked for Costco in management.
As far as hobbies, Being a Local Guide is the main one and keeps me very busy. I do like mind challenging games like Sudoku, Crosswords and Wordle. I believe it keeps my old brain active. My daughter and a friend and I compete daily to see who has the best score in Wordle.
3. How and when did you dive into the Local Guides adventure?
I really started in 2018. I had dabbled in a few reviews and photos over the years prior to that, later deleting most of them because they closed. I enjoyed getting prompts from Google to leave a review and a photo. Once you do you are hooked.
When I actually started posting reviews and photos seriously, I mistakenly believed I had to leave a review in order to add photos. I did not know for many, many months until after I joined Connect in 2019, I could just add photos. I enjoyed a lot of fast food from different cultures from all over the world so I could leave reviews. My waistline appreciated it. Maybe that’s why I still receive messages from Google stating “ you are in the top 10% of all guides for restaurant reviews”.
Here’s a link to one of my first ever reviews and photos posted in October 2018. The photo is currently my #5 top photo for views with over 7 Million views. They serve a great breakfast. Not the greatest photo but it still receives views.
4. What gets you fired up about being a Local Guide?
When my wife passed away, I knew I used local guides as a crutch. It gave me purpose, kept me busy and occupied and I am forever thankful and grateful for that. Up to recently it was always “photo views” . I never realized when I started that so many people from across the world would view and hopefully enjoy my photos. I remember the pride and excitement as I reached 1 Billion views in 2023 and was honoured to be featured Connect’s 2023 proudest moments.
I still find it hard to believe that someone from a smaller town can achieve 1 Billion views.
Being a local guide offers you so many different ways to help. By adding roads in different countries. By cleaning up the inaccuracies in maps. By showing people what to expect when they reach their location.
5. What epic message would you love to share with your fellow Local Guides?
Try something new! Add a road, try uploading a video, try cleaning up maps and make some edits, Review a business that you love and frequent. There are so many guides that will help you get started and support you. I could have used this advice when I first started and don’t worry about points, they will come.
While I have the chance. Please no selfies and no children in media contributions.
6. What’s your absolute favorite type of contribution and why does it rock?
It has changed over the years, but I have to say now it’s videos. After the slowdown in photo views early in 2024 I have to admit I did get very discouraged. I had already started taking videos and the more I took the more I enjoyed it. Now the weather is better here. I am out walking again and taking videos and photos in my area.
I have been preaching for a while that “videos are the future and the future is here now”
7. Which is your favourite all time contribution and why do you like it?
This question really got me thinking because I have had a few over the years, a couple of foodie photos, photos from the Caribbean. I had to be honest with myself, I am so excited about my new video. It has now received, as of today, one and a half million views in less than 4 months. It has been so exciting to watch it grow everyday!
8. Spill the beans! What gear do you use to create your amazing media contributions?
Nothing fancy, just using my trusty Android Samsung 13 mobile phone. Before that I used a Samsung 8 model and originally my old Canon 35m camera.
9. What do you like most about the Local Guides Community, Connect?
Definitely the people I’ve met, so many guides through posts and virtual meetups and Telegram chats. I have yet to meet anyone in real life, but I know it will happen one day. The community is full of kind and knowledgeable people who are always willing to teach and help. I consider so many of them friends for life. Thank you Connect for that.
10. Which particular Top 100 Local Guides Leaderboards do you like most and why?
I love all the leaderboards and can proudly say I have been involved since the very first one on day 1. I do remember before the leaderboards even started Adam was hinting then, about what was to come (we all know how much Adam likes to tease us with hints!!). I love the Country leaderboards, it’s great to view and compare and see what other guides from all over the world are doing. But my real favourite is the “Movers and Shakers Boards.” It’s exciting to see who’s making waves every month. And then of course there’s the big annual Movers n Shakers highlighting the big hitters over the past year and the best of these get the best looking and most unique badge on Connect. I was fortunate to receive inaugural Movers and Shakers badge for 2024.
Also, are there any new Leaderboards or features that you’d like to see
I would like to see a leaderboard based on how many contributions a guide has that their individual media has received over a Million media views.
11. What is your favorite holiday destination and what do you like about it?
My wife and I loved cruising and I was lucky enough to visit over 20 countries in the Caribbean. I could easily say anywhere in the Caribbean, narrowing down I would say the Beaches of Bermuda. Jobson’s Cove in particular, just off the beaten track for most tourists but peaceful, quiet and offers spectacular views and beautiful water.
12. What destination in the world would you just love to one day visit?
There is so much I could say but I have always wanted to visit Italy, there is so much history, rich architecture there and of course the food.
13. What’s a super fun fact about you that might surprise us?
I love to cook and experiment with new recipes. I remember back in 2020/21 when The Ninja Foodie became popular. I did twice monthly posts about what I was cooking in the Foodie on Facebook. It was called “What’s Terry cooking in the Foodie tonight?” It went on to be quite popular. Turns out at least 10 of my friends, relatives and co-workers ended up buying a Foodie. This amazing device has 8 different cooking methods, Air Crisp, Roast, Broil, Pressurecook, Steam, Slow Cook, Sear and even Dehydrate. I rarely use my oven anymore, the Foodie is easier and quicker. Let me share photos of a couple of meals I’m well known for 
Caption: Terry’s famous Thai Chicken Tenders (LG: @TerryPG)
Caption: Terry’s Home-made Garlic Parmagian and Honey Garlic Chicken Wings (LG: @TerryPG)
Wrapping up:
What an incredible and inspiring journey into the world of Terry! From his past careers to his dedication to the Local Guides community, Terry truly shows us how this platform can bring purpose and connection. His billion-view milestone and passion for new challenges, like creating engaging videos, are a testament to his vibrant spirit. We hope you found his story as moving and valuable as we did!
And with that, we’re wrapping up another unforgettable “Spotlight on Local Guides” feature! The leaderboards are brimming with incredible talent, and we’re already buzzing with excitement about who we’ll feature next. Which amazing Top 100 Local Guide will step into the limelight and share their unique journey in our next edition? You’ll just have to keep your eyes peeled for next month’s post to find out! Until then, keep exploring, keep contributing, and keep being the amazing Local Guides you are!
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a true and inspiring local guide 
with whom I’ve had the pleasure of exchanging opinions about our contributions, especially the videos and the friendly competition we have on the leaderboard 
. Thanks for sharing this meaningful post! 
, when we live Germany instead )
die Gerichte sehen fantastisch aus.