Donald George MacPherson

He grew up in North Vancouver, spending his early years developing a close bond with his grandmother, Jessie, who operated a bakery at 2245 Lonsdale Avenue. (where White Spot and KFC can be found today). One could say his grandmother spoiled young Donald a bit - he always got his own personal pie when Jessie was baking pies for the family!

He graduated from Vancouver Technical Secondary School following his years spent at Model Elementary School at 12th and Cambie. It was at Model school that, at 11 years old, he met Dave Hanna. They became best friends - more brothers than friends - and maintained a close, life-long friendship with each other – even naming their first born children after one another. Much of their childhood was spent exploring together and often they would take their bikes to North Vancouver where they would spend hours (sometimes staying overnight) exploring the woods that covered most of the North Shore beginning a few blocks just above Main Street. They even built themselves a log cabin in the area just past what is now Capilano University.

On Christmas eve 1956 (as Don would tell it), his father insisted that Don come to a party across the street from their home to meet a young woman who was there. It was at this party that he met this woman, his love and future wife: Esther. Don and Esther would marry on July 18, 1959 at Renfrew United Church in Vancouver and together they would have 5 children: David, Kerry, Colin, Cameron, and Douglas.

Following the wedding, they initially lived in an apartment on Salisbury Drive before moving in with Don’s Aunt Elsie who lived in the house at 2245 Lonsdale in North Vancouver.

In 1963, after having worked as a delivery driver (even going so far as to buy a truck to support what he believed would be a decent living), Don found his calling and joined the Vancouver Fire Department, serving with distinction for 33 years and eventually retiring with the rank of Battalion Chief.

Don and Esther would live in the house on Lonsdale with Elsie until 1968 when they, together with a young David, Kerry, and Cameron, moved into the home on Heywood street in North Vancouver.

The house on Heywood street would quickly become a central location for many family events and celebrations over the next number of decades. Many holiday dinners, birthdays and family get-togethers were held in the MacPherson house over the years, most notably the many Christmases when most of the extended family would fill the home to near capacity. In 32 years Don was able to spend only 4 full Christmas days at home with the family as his Vancouver firefighter duties had him scheduled to work either day or night shift on the others, but his love of Christmas could always be gauged by how much he enjoyed decorating the house and his enjoyment of sharing time over the holiday season with family.

Don loved animals and always had dogs. Sport, Juneau, Kodie, Josephine, Cynthia, Rebecca and Misty were all equal parts of the family over the years, keeping him busy taking them for many enjoyable excursions around the neighbourhood. It was on these many outings that Don was able to enjoy one of his favourite pastimes: getting to know people. There would be very few people around the North Van neighbourhood who would not have met and spoken to Don over the years on Heywood street.

He was an avid reader of novels and comics for enjoyment, and newspapers to be informed. There was always a book around the house that he was in the middle of reading. CKNW seemed to constantly be on the radio, whether in the home or the car. Don liked to keep up to date on what was going on.

He enjoyed being entertained through movies and television, a natural progression from his days as a boy when he would go to the matinees and listen to radio programs at home. Even into his later years, Don could be found still listening to recordings of old radio programs: I Love a Mystery, X-1, and remakes of Hollywood movies (with the original stars reading off scripts for the radio listener) were just a taste of the programs Don enjoyed.

He also loved listening to music. The early years on Heywood had a regular soundtrack to them coming out of the stereo in the living room: from the likes of Frank Sinatra, Nat Cole, Benny Goodman, the Glenn Miller Orchestra and similar music, to Burt Bacharach, Barbara Streisand, Helen Reddy, and more. There was always a sprinkling of movie soundtracks thrown in as well: Arabesque, Alien, and Star Wars were just a few. He also had a wide ranging appreciation for the arts. From comic books to music to movies to paintings and more, he had an eye for art (which makes the choice of the bright, loud, multi-coloured shirt he bought himself on a family trip to Hawaii in 1983 a bit confusing… unless you knew Don).

Don was also an artist himself, creating many paintings of his own. Some were gifted to others, but mostly he painted for his own enjoyment. His creative personality would lead him to experiment with (among many things) wine making, macramé, and different wall paper and paint schemes in the Heywood home. He always maintained that if he ever had to create art for money, his enjoyment of it would disappear.

Mostly, Don was in his element when gardening. The house would always have plants throughout it and for many years there was a vegetable garden in the yard. When his tastes began to turn more tropical and he started collecting orchids, he put a greenhouse in the back yard in which they could be grown. Don could spend hours perusing through plant shops and nurseries, as can be attested to by his wife and children who would often be waiting, a little exasperated at times, in the car for him. There were many instances of the kids being sent into the plant stores to let Dad know that he was taking a long time, but his love for plants was clearly illustrated in the amount of time he put towards his green thumb hobby.

The majority of Don’s life was spent dividing time between family, work and his many hobbies – the important things as he saw them.

When Don was 62, the family changed significantly with the arrival of his grandson, Conor. He had a special place in his life and heart for Conor, to whom Don proved to be more of a second father than a grandfather, as Don and Esther spent a good deal of their days before and after school hours caring for Conor as he grew up, with both his parents at work. Don found great joy in being a grandparent.

In the last few years before his passing, while dealing with the onset of numerous health-related issues, Don said, looking back on it, that he had had a good life. He mentioned as memorable: learning to fly and getting his pilot’s license, having the enjoyable career he did with the Vancouver Fire Department and, of course, meeting Esther and having their family together. He was proud of the home they had – but gave all the credit for having it to Esther.

He shared that he had few regrets but fittingly for Don, he wished he had been able to provide more for his family – this from a man who would often in the early years come home from working nights at the firehall and head out to do a full day’s work installing swimming pools with buddies from work or heating systems with Mr. Beckett down the lane.

Donald passed away on March 26, 2023, surrounded by family at St. Paul’s hospital in Vancouver. Just before his passing, Don was able to call from his hospital bed and say a goodbye to his friend Dave Hanna, his face lighting up with happiness as he recounted his memories of the childhood they had spent together.

Although there was nothing more the hospital staff could do for him, Don was able to choose when he wanted to leave. His courage at the end was something that will forever be remembered by those that were there with him. He showed no fear. When he was asked if he wanted to take off the oxygen mask and go onward, his final words were:

“Pitter patter, let’s get at ‘er.”

So very Don.

Looking back at Don’s life it is apparent that he was, first and foremost, a people person. He loved meeting people, talking to them, and genuinely getting to know them as individuals.

He was always ready with a story, sometimes not so PC, but always well-meaning and wanting to laugh. He was extremely friendly and outgoing to all he met.

This is how he should be remembered.

The MacPherson family wishes to extend their heart-felt appreciation to the amazing staff at the St. Paul’s Hospital ICU unit. Their compassion, professionalism and ability to navigate what was an extremely challenging time for all of us, while balancing their duties with the needs of Donald and his family, will forever be remembered by us.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.firstmemorialnorthvancouver.com for the MacPherson family.