Obituary for Gordon James Ferguson
FERGUSON, Gordon James
A life well lived. A loving husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, and a friend to many.
Dad was taken home to be with his Lord on October 28, 2020 at the age of 95 joining Shirley, his beloved wife of 69 years who predeceased him in 2018. He was also predeceased by his parents Jim and Edith Ferguson, and by his only brother Doug.
He leaves four children Jane Macdonald (the late Claude) in Calgary, AB; Jim Ferguson (Jan Pidhirny) in Vancouver, BC; Terry Ferguson (Danielle) in Cambridge, ON; and Kathy Gieni (Clint) in Battleford, SK; along with nine grandchildren and eighteen great grandchildren.
Gord was born and grew up in Winnipeg meeting Shirley in 1941 at Gordon Bell High School. They were married in 1949. Gord joined the RCAF during WWII and upon completion of his training was commissioned as a Pilot Officer. He performed his service in Canada and received an honourable discharge in January 1945. He then pursued a career in sales and eventually joined Sun Life where he worked in group sales management in Winnipeg, Calgary, Montreal, Vancouver, and Regina. In 1977, he and Shirley moved to Waterloo where Gord worked for Dominion Life which later became part of Manulife. After retiring from Manulife, Dad then worked for Wright Mogg & Associates until his final retirement at age 70.
Dad first joined Rotary in 1972 in Regina, transferring to the Kitchener-Waterloo club in 1977 and then in 1981 was one of the charter members for the new Kitchener-Westmount club, serving as President in 1990. He was awarded a Paul Harris Fellow and made an Honorary Lifetime member and continued to be an active member of the club until his death. Since 1997, he has also been a member of the Kitchener Waterloo Probus Club including one year as President in 1999. Gord also served as a director of Crime Stoppers, Chairman for Neighbourhood Watch, and has been a long-time supporter of KidsAbility. Gord made friends easily as he was always interested in others and had a marvellous way of making others feel good. He was a man of integrity and will be remembered for his hearty laugh and firm handshake by all who knew him.
Gord's family will receive friends on Thursday, November 12, 2020 from 6-8 pm at the Henry Walser Funeral Home, 507 Frederick St., Kitchener 519-749-8467.
A memorial service celebrating Gord's life will take place at 1:30 PM, Friday November 13, 2020 at Community Christian Reformed Church, 1275 Bleams Road, Kitchener.
Private cremation has taken place.
Masks are mandatory. Please pre-register at the funeral home’s website to attend the visitation or service.
In lieu of flowers, donations to KidsAbility would be appreciated.
We wish to express our gratitude and thanks to the nurses and staff at both Fairview Retirement Suites, Cambridge and the Cambridge Memorial Hospital for their care and compassion provided to Dad while in their care.
Visit www.henrywalser.com
A life well lived. A loving husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, and a friend to many.
Dad was taken home to be with his Lord on October 28, 2020 at the age of 95 joining Shirley, his beloved wife of 69 years who predeceased him in 2018. He was also predeceased by his parents Jim and Edith Ferguson, and by his only brother Doug.
He leaves four children Jane Macdonald (the late Claude) in Calgary, AB; Jim Ferguson (Jan Pidhirny) in Vancouver, BC; Terry Ferguson (Danielle) in Cambridge, ON; and Kathy Gieni (Clint) in Battleford, SK; along with nine grandchildren and eighteen great grandchildren.
Gord was born and grew up in Winnipeg meeting Shirley in 1941 at Gordon Bell High School. They were married in 1949. Gord joined the RCAF during WWII and upon completion of his training was commissioned as a Pilot Officer. He performed his service in Canada and received an honourable discharge in January 1945. He then pursued a career in sales and eventually joined Sun Life where he worked in group sales management in Winnipeg, Calgary, Montreal, Vancouver, and Regina. In 1977, he and Shirley moved to Waterloo where Gord worked for Dominion Life which later became part of Manulife. After retiring from Manulife, Dad then worked for Wright Mogg & Associates until his final retirement at age 70.
Dad first joined Rotary in 1972 in Regina, transferring to the Kitchener-Waterloo club in 1977 and then in 1981 was one of the charter members for the new Kitchener-Westmount club, serving as President in 1990. He was awarded a Paul Harris Fellow and made an Honorary Lifetime member and continued to be an active member of the club until his death. Since 1997, he has also been a member of the Kitchener Waterloo Probus Club including one year as President in 1999. Gord also served as a director of Crime Stoppers, Chairman for Neighbourhood Watch, and has been a long-time supporter of KidsAbility. Gord made friends easily as he was always interested in others and had a marvellous way of making others feel good. He was a man of integrity and will be remembered for his hearty laugh and firm handshake by all who knew him.
Gord's family will receive friends on Thursday, November 12, 2020 from 6-8 pm at the Henry Walser Funeral Home, 507 Frederick St., Kitchener 519-749-8467.
A memorial service celebrating Gord's life will take place at 1:30 PM, Friday November 13, 2020 at Community Christian Reformed Church, 1275 Bleams Road, Kitchener.
Private cremation has taken place.
Masks are mandatory. Please pre-register at the funeral home’s website to attend the visitation or service.
In lieu of flowers, donations to KidsAbility would be appreciated.
We wish to express our gratitude and thanks to the nurses and staff at both Fairview Retirement Suites, Cambridge and the Cambridge Memorial Hospital for their care and compassion provided to Dad while in their care.
Visit www.henrywalser.com