John Clarence Blair

John Clarence Blair was a modest man, quiet and observant in his ways. He was trustworthy and traditional in his approach to his life and in his relationships. He was tough-minded with the kind of “stick to it” attitude that earned the respect of all who knew him. He was also a man who was meticulous, carefully disciplined, and orderly in virtually everything he undertook. Realistic about life, he was always at the ready, prepared to take on responsibility.

      John was born on May 7, 1965 at Toronto Wellesley Hospital in Toronto, Ontario. His parents were John Clarence Warner and Lilla Charellette May Blair. John was raised in Toronto, Ontario. He was brought up to be self-confident and dependable. These were traits that would serve him well throughout his life.

      Growing up in the Blair household was a bit different than most homes. There were good times to be had, but just as often there was a fair share of challenges as well. However, John was able to work through the usual family problems when they appeared, and he was the one person in the family who seemed able to keep the stress at bay. John was raised with seven siblings. He had one older brother Foster and 6 older sisters, Gayle, Eleanor, Linda, Sharron, Jo-Anne and Jackie. John was constantly involved in activities with his brothers and sisters. John and his siblings may have had the typical rivalries while growing up but John was always consistently loyal to his family.

      As a young child, John was never someone who needed to be the center of attention. He wasn’t pushy and never forced his way into games or other activities. John developed a variety of interests, though, and the things he enjoyed doing he did well. He was always curious about the world around him and was often eager to explore it. John took part in football, baseball, swimming and climbing. In his spare time he liked model cars, playing his guitar, writing songs and camping. John's memorable achievements included helping his brother, Foster, to build his car for racing and national car shows. However, what John enjoyed most was simply playing and spending time with his many friends.

      While his teachers and even his friends generally thought of John as being a serious person, he managed to have a pretty good time in high school as he made that critical transition from adolescence to adulthood. He enjoyed some courses more than others, having favorite classes and teachers. His favorite class in high school was machine shop. John was a very logical person who enjoyed learning about factual information. Using his exceptional memory, he was able to learn much through observation. John always seemed to have a command of the facts and was able to make it seem as though he could easily master any problem that might be presented to him.

      Always considered to be a solid friend, John was fortunate to have numerous acquaintances and several very close friends during his life. Since he disliked making generalizations about people and preferred to draw his own conclusions based on direct observation, John was able to see beneath the surface of relationships and became a true friend to those who knew him. He was committed to his friends and valued the trust he placed in them. It was not uncommon for John to go beyond the call of duty for others, and friends frequently sought him out for advice because he had a knack for coming up with practical solutions to any type of dilemma. While growing up, some of his best friends were Jerry Miller and David Trout. Later in life, he became friends with James McKinnely.

      John brought the same traditional values in his marriage to bear on how he raised his children. He was a good parent to them, always firm yet fair in his dealings. He would always listen carefully and think things through before he acted, even when it was an adverse situation. John was also a walking schedule, always seeming to know what everyone in the family needed to do, where they needed to be and when they needed to be there. John was blessed with Four children, One son, Johnathon, and three daughters, Nicole, Emily and Lillian.

      John greatly enjoyed what he did for a living. He was a hard worker who expected the same in return from his co-workers. He was skilled at working effectively in small groups and in one-on-one situations as well as handling solo assignments efficiently. John enjoyed dealing with concrete ideas and could penetrate any amount of fuzzy information to reach the essential facts. Always able to attend to the task at hand, John was excellent at meeting deadlines. He was an efficient worker, one who paid careful attention to detail, allowing sufficient time to complete one task before moving on to the next. His primary occupation was Machine assistant. John worked hard to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done.

      John liked to experience things first-hand as well as learn about them. This trait carried over into his hobbies, where he was very methodical in how he organized his activities and categorized things. Since he enjoyed his private time, John always tried to allocate a specific time for working on his hobbies. His favorite pursuits were Camping, fishing, watching movies, playing his guitar, and writing songs. John was content to enjoy his hobbies alone but was also willing to share his interests with others.

      John was a lover of animals and cherished his pets. One of John’s favorites was his cat, Babygirl. They were best friends for 3 years. Johnny and his family loved growing up with their dog, Brownie.

      John Clarence Blair passed away on August 20, 2013 at St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto. Johnny was diagnosed with bleeding on the brain. He is survived by his children Nicole, Emily, Lillian and Johnathon and his 7 siblings Foster, Gayle, Eleanor, Linda, Sharron, Jo-Anne and Jackie. Services were held at Giffen-Mack Danforth Funeral Home. Johnny was cremated and is with his sister, Gayle, along with his mom.

      Commitment is a key word that can be used to describe the life of John Clarence Blair. He was committed to living the life of a good man who was both practical and trustworthy. He was committed to the traditional values that he upheld his entire life. He committed himself to being a hard worker who expected the same effort in return from those around him. Most of all, he was committed to those he knew and loved.