On Sunday June 4th, our dad, John Turner McNeilly, did something he rarely did in life: he conceded.
John was an East End kid, born 23 November 1929 and raised within walking distance of Commercial Drive, a graduate of Templeton and Britannia. His dad was a Clydeside shipwright and a union man, his mom grew up working in a bakery on Commercial Drive. Dad was a boxer, a soccer player, and a sidewalk entrepreneur.
He funded his Grade 13 through training horses, stooping for tickets at Hastings Park, shaking hides at Burns&Co, and delivering groceries by bike. In time he earned a CA and an auditor gig at PWC, then moved on to Alberta Distillers where he retired as VP-Finance in 1994.
Dad married our mom Irene Phillips in 1959, and never found a moment of silence again [the Phillips clan of a dozen kids had learned that being quiet meant missing out]. Mom and Dad remained together – and best friends - until Mom passed away in 2015.
Dad enjoyed his remaining years with his kids Donna, Jim [Ann], and Dave [Joanne], and his grandchildren Emma, Liam, Adam, Lauren and Janine. Special thanks to Donna for caring for Dad and allowing him to live his life out at home, tending to his yard and garden. Thanks also to Cheryl – dad’s “other daughter” -for keeping dad in her heart and including him in all family celebrations.
Dad was predeceased by his father John McNeilly and his mother Winnifred Godley, his sister Winnifred [m.Frank] and brother Al [m.Patricia, who remains to represent the generation!], and most of his friends and work associates. Being 93 years old has a downside….
Racetracks and thoroughbreds figured prominently in Dad’s life. From Brighouse and Lansdowne to Hastings Park, he’d study the Forms and bet like an insider. The family will be heading out to Hastings Park on a sunny day to celebrate Dad’s life, and to thank him for giving us solid foundations for our own lives.
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