Nelson, John Howard
May 8, 1932 -May 8, 2016
In the early morning of May 8, 2016, John died peacefully in the Almonte General Hospital. Cherished husband, lover and best friend forever of Vera-Lee. Predeceased by his first wife Gaynor Nelson. Well-loved and respected father and stepfather of John (Lorena Jenks) of Fort Frances, Anne Nelson of Victoria BC, Sheila Mendonça (Lib) of Ottawa, Graeme Watson (Michelle Lamarche) of Kingston and Margo Watson of Kingston.
Proud Grandpa of Andrea,(Eric) Michael, Nathan, Thomas, Ben and Hannah. Also sadly missed by his sister Madeleine Nelson of Vancouver, brother-in-law Donald Laing (Judy Jones) of Toronto, brother-in-law Joe (Pam) Patterson of Windsor and nieces and nephews.
John was born and raised in Vancouver. After graduation from the University of British Columbia, he travelled east to join the Federal Trade Commissioner Service. His career with the Service took him to postings in India, Switzerland, Guatemala and Liverpool, England. His last ten years with the Service were challenging ones spent working on trade to the Middle East. Early retirement gave John the opportunity to pursue his love of nature and the outdoors. He owned and developed a wetland property near Westport that became a wonderful site for nature trails, canoeing and John’s active bee yard. From the honeycomb, John produced exceptional honey and made and molded beautiful beeswax candles. Twenty-five years ago, John and Vera-Lee built their dream house near Almonte. John built his own maple sugar shack where he boiled the sap from his own trees to make excellent maple syrup. The sugar shack became an early spring gathering spot for family, friends and neighbours. The yards surrounding the house feature a pond where Grandpa spent hours looking for frogs with his grandchildren, beautiful perennials and the extensive raised beds that John designed and built for growing a profusion of mixed vegetables and flowers in the summer.
In accordance with his wishes, John’s body has been donated to the University of Ottawa. A service to commemorate John’s life will be held at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, 70 Clyde Street, Almonte on Friday, May 20 at 11:00 am with reception to follow at home. Memorial donations may be made to the Almonte General Hospital/Fairview Manor Foundation.
Funeral Arrangements Entrusted Into The Care Of
C.R. Gamble Funeral Home & Chapel Inc.
(127 Church St., Almonte, ON., 613-256-3313)
Condolences & Tributes: www.crgamble.com
