Canadian philanthropist Maxwell Munday is a devout Christian, who has been legally blind since the age of 21. 
But that didn’t prevent him from establishing a successful mobile home park business in British Columbia and using some of the profits to build a portfolio of mining stocks that features well known names such as Claude Resources Inc. (TSX: T.CRJ, Stock Forum) and (AMEX: CGR, Stock Forum), Alexco Resource Corp. (TSX: T.AXR, Stock Forum) and (AMEX: AXU, Stock Forum)
At the age of 72, Munday has been investing in stocks for over 50 years and says he tends to take a cautious approach that keeps him focused on small cap gold and silver companies, located in regions where the political risk is low.
“We all suffer from fear and greed syndromes, including me,’’ he said. “I pray and ask God for wisdom.’’
Munday’s preference for gold and silver is driven not so much by religious beliefs, but by what he sees on television and reads in the business pages. “We see that the world is in a pretty tough condition right now. It just seems that gold can’t do anything else but go up,’’ he said.
“I think that in the long term silver is going to do well too. But the safest (investment) is gold.”
The Burnaby, B.C. resident says his aversion to perceived political risk convinced him to sell the remainder of his shares in Alamos Gold Inc. (TSX: T.AGI, Stock Forum), which operates the Mulatos mine in Sonora, Mexico. I’m not saying it’s not going to be successful. I’m not critical of the company. I’m just critical of Mexico,’’ Munday said.
He was referring to Mexico’s financial problems and the well documented activities of illegal drug traffickers in that country.
“I like to buy value; I don’t like to buy hopes,’’ added Munday. It is why he tends to favour companies with established reserves and near-term production scenarios rather than juniors who are engaged in grass roots exploration.
As reported in Stockhouse recently, Munday financed Bralorne Gold Mines Ltd. (TSX: V.BPM, Stock Forum), a Vancouver-based junior, which recently celebrated the reopening of the former Bralorne mine, which is located 240 kilometres north of Vancouver in B.C.’s historic Bridge River/Bralorne mining camp.
He remains an investor in Klondike Silver Corp. (TSX: V.KS, Stock Forum), but says he wouldn’t recommend the stock to anyone else. “Let’s say I’m disappointed with my investment in Klondike Silver. He bought shares in the company because it had acquired property in the Slocan area of British Columbia, in the vicinity of 50 or 60 former silver mines. Many of those mines were shut down because of low silver prices. “I thought it was a fantastic area play. But they haven’t come up with much in the way of new reserves.”
Munday says he is hanging on in the hope that Klondike “will have its day in the sun.” “But even with silver at US$50 an ounce, you have to have reserves to make it go of it.’’ Klondike traded Tuesday at 25 cents in a 52-week range of $1.50 and 22.5 cents.
Meanwhile, San Gold Corp. (TSX: T.SGR, Stock Forum) remains one of his top stock picks. “I bought a lot of it at under $1 and now it’s at $3.25 (in trading Tuesday). San Gold’s operations are located 250 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, Man. “It’s been successful at finding more reserves,’’ said Munday, adding that the company has about 10 active drill rigs. However, he says that in his opinion, the company has been slow to get its annual production up beyond 80,000 ounces, even though it has the capacity to produce 250,000 ounces annually. The stock has come down from the 52-week high of $4.78. “But I still like it,’’ he said.
Munday also likes Claude Resources Inc. (TSX: T.CRJ, Stock Forum) and (AMEX: CGR, Stock Forum), which has two mines in Saskatchewan and is increasing its annual production rate to around 70,000 ounces from 50,000 ounces. Claude also owns the former Madsen Mine, which is close to Goldcorp Inc.’s (TSX: T.G, Stock Forum) flagship Red Lake gold mine in northwestern Ontario. Madsen currently has a National Instrument 43-101-compliant gold resource of 1.23 million ounces. It is currently using the existing mine workings to target high grade gold mineralization at depth. “That is the big upside,’’ Munday said. “It could be phenomenal.’’
Alexco Resource Corp. (TSX: T.AXR, Stock Forum) and (AMEX: AXU, Stock Forum) recently made the transition to mining company status when it brought the Bellekeno silver-lead-zinc mine into production. Alexco got control of the Yukon-based operation in 2005 when it agreed to clean up contamination at the site and later put the mine back into production. “The only thing I don’t like about this is that the price is a bit on the high side,’’ Munday said.
The stock traded at $7.16 on Tuesday, in a 52-week range of $10.28 and $2.85. “I would like to own more. But I’m not sure if I should be buying more at $7 when it might go back to $4 or $5,’’ he said. “Maybe this isn’t the time to be fully invested when we don’t quite know what’s ahead.’’
Munday is well known in Canadian mining circles for donating mining stocks to charity. His philanthropic efforts are influenced by a life-long handicap (blindness) that made him sympathetic to people who struggle in life. “It gives you a sense of humility,’’ he said. Munday functions with the help of his assistant Jenny, who has been at his side for the past 37 years. “Counting on others also gives you a better understanding of people who have difficulties,’’ he said.
A native of New Westminster, B.C., Munday is involved in 20 charitable organizations. When he spoke to Stockhouse last week, he was prepared to take his wife Gaylene on a 2-week tour of Africa. The couple planned to visit projects headed by International Needs, a Christian network that is involved in missionary work in 36 countries
“I like giving to things with a Christian basis that can really encourage and change people’s lives and give them a new start,’’ he said.