Passed away peacefully at home on Wednesday, March 8, 2017. Pre deceased by his parents Joan and Russell. Beloved husband of Marian for 30 happy years. Cherished Father of Ariel and Andrew. Dear brother of Lorne (Mary), Lesley (Dawson), Sheila (Barry), Marie (Ron), and Janet (Michael). Gordon was loved and esteemed by many nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.
Gordon was born June 7, 1954 and raised in Burlington, Ontario, the third of six children. His early years were filled with baseball, road hockey in the summer, ice hockey in the family backyard in the winter, and serving as a a devoted altar boy at St John’s Catholic Church. He loved to spend time at the family cottage in Woodland Beach where many of his cousins also summered. He studied English at U of T and travelled across Canada in the summer, playing exhibition Frisbee as a national champion. After graduating with distinction, he headed out to BC where years of intense spiritual searching were rewarded with a deep experience of God that would ground his life thereafter. From there, he travelled to Greece and Israel and parts of Europe before settling back in the Toronto area. He met Marian Janacek and soon realized she was the perfect partner for him. They married and had two boys and Gord shared his love of books, nature and camping, travelling the world, cooking, eating fine food, and listening to jazz, classical and folk music with them. He was a leader in church ministry, played hockey and racquetball, was an accomplished public speaker in both French and English through Toastmasters and was a prolific poet and writer. Later in life, he earned his Bachelor of Education though he continued to pursue his sales career. He was a loyal, generous, kind soul, full of infectious enthusiasm. He will be deeply missed and never forgotten.