It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Chris, a loving husband, father, grandfather, son, brother and uncle at Memory & Company on Wednesday, February 1st 2023 at the young age of 73.
Chris is survived by his wife, Brenda of 47 years, his two beautiful daughters Jill (Mike) and Heather (Daniel) and his four grandsons, Benjamin, Patrick, Eli and Henry. He will be deeply missed by his entire family including his parents Ian and Meg (predeceased) and his sister Barbara (Rick). He will forever be remembered by his nieces Sarah (Drew) and Rachel, his great niece Addison as well as his extended family, friends, flying community and neighbours.
Chris was a kind and gentle soul, an inspiration known for his quiet and easy-going demeanor. He always thought about how his decisions affected others and thus people rarely had anything negative to say about him. His moto was “you’ve got to have fun in life” and his intent when he had interactions with others was to make them smile.
Chris had a fascination with how things worked, as a boy he could often be seen taking things apart and putting them back together in order to understand. It’s not surprising he became an Electronics Engineer in the field of Audiology.
Chris loved to fly; in his free time, he would often be found at Brampton Flying Club with his best friend Carl tending to his Cessna 172 CF-OWL, a birthday gift from his wife for his 40th. His passion for understanding how things worked extended to his airplane. He dismantled it into pieces in order to paint it and put it back together. Many weekends he would fly to various parts of Ontario, he even took 2 extended flights to Florida and Albuquerque, New Mexico. With the help of his close friend Bing, he continued to fly his plane two to three times per week up to his last four months of his time on earth.
Chris loved spending time outside, he enjoyed gardening, something inherited from his mother. He spent much time in his backyard tending to his tomato plants and picking weeds. He enjoyed skiing and coaching his daughters’ rep soccer team. In his home you could always find Chris in one of two places, sitting in his spot on the couch or working on a project he was fixing in the basement.
Chris will be forever missed; he was taken all to soon by the horrible disease Alzheimer’s. His memory and love will continue to live in our hearts. The family will forever be grateful for all the compassionate care of the entire team at Memory & Company in Oakville.
In honour of Chris’s memory, family and friends are invited to attend a Celebration of Life at Glen Oaks Funeral Home & Cemetery. As per Chris’s wishes, the celebration will take place later on (Saturday June 10th, 2023), he wanted to ensure people came together to celebrate and enjoy rather than be sad.
In lieu of flowers, donations to Memory & Company to support a Palliative Care Program will be greatly appreciated.
For those unable to attend the service, please join the family via livestream by accessing the link below: Livestream Link
Please take a moment to share a memory or offer a message of condolence to the family by using the virtual guestbook.
Living 5 houses away for almost 40 years, we did not really know Chris but what we did know was that he was soft spoken and did not speak badly about anyone. He always had a ready smile or an easy wave when we met on the street. What I particularly remember was the strength Chris must have had as he re roofed his house by himself. Yikes both Bill and I were supper impressed as we saw him roofing.
It saddens us to hear that he has passed and maybe in a small way he is back to being the Chris everyone knew and loved.
Our condolences to Brenda and his and her twin girls and all the family he has left behind.
May he find peace.
Joanne and Bill Wilson
Dear Brenda,
I was so, so sorry to hear of the passing of your dear hubby. Please accept my sincerest sympathy and know that you and your family are in my thoughts at this difficult time. As long as we keep them in our memories, those who leave us all too soon are never really gone. I'm sure your Chris will be impossible to forget.