Christopher Allan James

It is with deep seated anguish and bittersweet grace the James and Panganiban families announce the unforeseen tragic passing of an exceptionally admirable, humorous, kind-hearted, quick-witted, and unimaginably incomparable husband, son, brother, uncle, nephew, cousin, friend and colleague, Christopher Allan James, on Tuesday, January 9, 2024.

Chris is predeceased by his dedicated father, Maurice James and his warmhearted “twin” cousin Amanda James. Additionally, he is survived in legacy by his devoted wife, Charlene Panganiban-James, his loving mother Hazel James, his thoughtful sister and brother-in-law, Carol and John Rice along with his energetic niece Annabella Rice, his master chef father-in-law, Leonardo Panganiban, his “favourite” sister-in-law and brother-in-law Brenda Panganiban-Sotelo and Bryan Sotelo along with his sweet niece and nephew Keyra and Ethan Sotelo, and his cousins Mark ”baby brother” James and Erin English along with his niece Etta English-James, Trenell Moses along with his niece and nephew/godson Brianna and Davis Moses, Kain and Taylor Allicock, Ashley Jackson, Richard and Sophia Duggan, Lisa and Kim Douglas, Carmalita, Sam and Stephen Cleare as well as numerous extended family and friends.

World-renowned for his lack of patience, confidence in his opinion, and a knack for “telling it like it is”, were traits that could never by overshadowed by his affective presence, one-of-a kind personality, boisterous laughter, and mischievous grins.

Never short on words, every sentence Chris spoke contained a witty, comical, and sometimes unnecessary sarcastic remark. From dubbing himself “the favourite child” to truly believing he was the “most hilarious man on earth”, Chris laughed inappropriately at every chance, learned what he wanted to learn, fixed what he wanted to fix, and loved who he wanted to love.

A true comedian, rum aficionado, avid fisherman, car enthusiast, and natural conversationalist, Chris was always the life at any party. He kept people rolling in laughter because he could find humour in the most mundane life circumstances.

But no matter how busy everyday life got in the way, he was never too preoccupied to hit the pause button and be there for the ones he loved and adored.

Authentic to the core with a genuine soul, he was a rare combination of someone who embraced life and had a firm understanding of what was important — the simplicity of living a life with those you love.

A visitation to honour and celebrate his life will be held on Friday, January 19, 2024 between 3:00pm – 8:00pm at Kane-Jerrett Funeral Homes, 8088 Yonge Street, Thornhill, ON L4J 1W3

A funeral service will then be held on Saturday, January 20, 2024 at 1:00pm followed by an interment at 2:00pm at Holy Cross Catholic Cemetary, 8361 Yonge Street, Thornhill, ON L3T 2C7

To honour the memory of Chris, the families kindly request for those who knew and loved him, to record their thoughts, feelings, and memories in the online memorial guestbook. By doing so, these tributes of him will be a source of comfort, healing, and peace to the families while also ensuring that the memories of him continue to live on in the hearts and minds of all those who knew him best.