"SPI" 2007 Obituary

SPICE  SPICER  SPICHER  SPIEGEL  SPILLER  SPILSBURY  SPINDLER  SPINNEY  SPIVAK 

SPICE o@ca.on.middlesex_county.london.london_free_press 2007-01-08 published
SPICE, Robert William Barry
Of Saint Thomas, on Saturday, January 6, 2007, at his late residence, in his 58th year. Loved son of Connie MAITLAND and the late Albert William SPICE and dear brother of Marilyn and her husband Roy MARTIN of Windsor and Sandra and her husband Earl BROWN of Fort Nelson, British Columbia. Dear friend of Marilyn KELLY of Saint Thomas. Sadly missed by a number of nieces and nephews. Predeceased by his step-father Lloyd MAITLAND. Robert was born in Sarnia on March 8, 1949. He served in the Armed Forces and for the past number of years was a bartender at Branch 41 of the Royal Canadian Legion and also had worked at the Hi-Ro Shrine Club. Bob was a long time member of Branch 41 and was in the Colour Guard. He also bowled a number of years. Resting at Williams Funeral Home, 45 Elgin Street, Saint Thomas where funeral service will be held Thursday at 11: 00 a.m. Cremation to follow. Visitation Wednesday from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. Flowers gratefully declined. Remembrances may be made to the Poppy Fund of the Legion or the Heart and Stroke Foundation.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICE - All Categories in OGSPI

SPICER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-06-01 published
Canada's first environment minister had orders to clean up Ontario
Appointed in 1969 by premier John Robarts, he was described by a Toronto Telegram reporter as being like 'a sheriff from out of the Old West.' He also twice served as solicitor-general, resigning each time after separate scandals, writes Sandra MARTIN. He survived handily
By Sandra MARTIN, Page S8
A natural politician who loved the meet-and-greet of politics, George KERR was a cabinet minister in the Ontario governments of John Robarts and William Davis. The first politician to hold the environment portfolio in any jurisdiction in Canada, he was as far-sighted in his struggles to combat pollution as he was controversial in his attempts to ban phosphates and reduce automobile emissions.
The only son and elder child of lumber trader George and Florence (HINTON) KERR, he was born in Montreal but grew up in Esquiminac on Quebec's Gaspé Peninsula. As a child, he and his younger sister Patricia (Patsy) went to the village school in a cart pulled by their pony Julie. He was apparently heartbroken when his parents decided to send him at the age of 9 to Rothesay Collegiate, a boarding school located near Saint John. The school yearbook, The Blue and White, calls him Buzz and says he came to the school as a "wee mite" who "from the hour of his arrival" was into everything "official and not quite so official." He was very athletic, playing on all of the school teams, winning a middleweight boxing championship and serving as captain of the football and hockey teams in his senior year.
He graduated in 1942 and entered the undergraduate program at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton that fall. Barely a year later, he tried to enlist in the armed forces, but was diagnosed with tuberculosis when he underwent his mandatory medical. Instead of serving overseas, he was sent to a sanatorium where he was subjected to the clean-air cure that was standard treatment in those days. After recovering, he worked for some time in the lumber trade with his father before returning to university in 1949, managing to complete his degree in a year by attending summer school. During this second stretch at University of New Brunswick, he met a student from Spencer Island, Nova Scotia, named Joan Merrydith (Mim) SPICER. They both enrolled in the law school at Dalhousie University in Halifax in September, 1950. Afterward, he liked to claim that he got through because she tutored him. They were married September 1, 1951, and eventually had three children, Larry, Margot and James.
After earning their law degrees from Dalhousie in 1953, the KERRs moved to Ontario, settling in Burlington in 1954, where they both worked in the law firm Kerr and Hawken. As he had done at boarding school two decades earlier, Mr. KERR got into everything "official and not quite so official" from the hour of his arrival in Burlington, from the town council to the chamber of commerce to the Halton County Progressive Conservative Association. He was first elected to the Ontario Legislature in 1963 for Halton and held his seat (which was renamed Halton West and then Burlington South) for more than two decades, finally retiring before the 1985 election.
As a backbencher in premier John Robarts's government, he served on a number of standing committees, including municipal affairs and education, health and welfare, and won his riding in the 1967 provincial election with a plurality of nearly 6,000 votes. Two years later, in June of 1969, Mr. Robarts appointed him to cabinet in the new portfolio of energy and resources management, with the express mandate of cleaning up Ontario's soil, air and water. He was 45.
A reporter from the now defunct Toronto Telegram interviewed the newly minted minister in his Queen's Park office in January of 1970, describing him as tall, with a strong, firm jaw and looking variously like "a sheriff from out of the Old West" and "a trifle stiff and stern in the manner of a not-so-bad high-school principal." Sitting behind a huge desk and smoking his ever-present pipe, Mr. KERR said: "Pollution is the thing everybody seems to be concerned about right now. It's just amazing how the interest in it has boomed in the past 12 months."
He lived beside Hamilton Harbour, infamous for the belching smoke from the Stelco and Dofasco steel smelters on its shores, and admitted that it was "not the most beautiful body of water in the world." He made a promise to change all that, vowing that the bay would be clean enough to swim in within five years.
Five years later, he climbed into an old-fashioned horizontal-striped bathing suit adorned with shoulder straps and plunged into the water for a short but bracing swim, and emerged without any seeming ill effects.
When William Davis succeeded Mr. Robarts as leader of the party and as premier in 1971, he appointed Mr. KERR as environment minister. "He was a very able minister," Mr. Davis said yesterday, suggesting that heading up the first environment ministry in Canada was his major political legacy because "it was a major departure in terms of government responsibility and George did it and did it well." A year later, Mr. Davis shifted him to the ministry of colleges and universities, with postsecondary schools expanding rapidly as the baby boom shouldered its swaggering way into secondary education.
A strong supporter of his own community, Mr. KERR "strenuously and successfully" resisted the inclusion of Burlington in the formation of the Hamilton-Wentworth regional government in the early 1970s, according to Mr. Davis. "He was very persuasive in that regard," said Mr. Davis, who can still remember the arguments around the cabinet table before the legislation was passed in June of 1973. "Most people in Burlington would say that his success in keeping Burlington as a separate community was his main accomplishment."
Mr. KERR's political life was not without controversy. He was solicitor-general twice, resigning each time after a public clamour, although his exile to the wilderness of the back benches was short lived because he had never done anything illegal.
The first occasion, in July, 1975, involved the mention of his name in the trial of former Hamilton Harbour commissioner Kenneth ELLIOT/ELLIOTT in connection with dredging contracts. Mr. Davis reappointed Mr. KERR to cabinet three months later for his second stint as environment minister, where he remained until January, 1978, when the premier shifted him back again to solicitor-general.
The second stumble was more serious. On August 14, 1978, while Mr. KERR was solicitor-general and provincial secretary for justice, he made a telephone call to an assistant crown attorney on behalf of Francis HARRISON, a constituent who was facing trial for driving while his licence was suspended. According to Mr. KERR's explanation, he made the call not to attempt to influence the outcome of the pending trial but to learn whether Mr. HARRISON, a pipe fitter (who had telephoned the minister at home after looking up his number in the telephone book), would face a mandatory jail term if convicted. The intervention quickly became public and Mr. KERR resigned from cabinet on September 9, 1978, in an atmosphere that was already contaminated by John MUNRO, another Hamilton-area politician, who had been forced to step down the day before as the federal labour minister after calling a judge to offer a character reference for an accused constituent.
"I think it was something he felt personally he should do," Mr. Davis said. "George was one of those individuals who was very anxious to do what he felt was appropriate and that is why he resigned. He was not pushed."
Mr. HARRISON was acquitted at a trial that November. A subsequent report of a government inquiry into the matter questioned Mr. KERR's wisdom but stated that: "It does not seem that Mr. KERR's telephone call constituted an attempt to obstruct, pervert or defeat the course of justice within the meaning of Section 127 of the Criminal Code."
Although he never returned to the cabinet table, Mr. KERR served on a number of standing committees and was asked by Mr. Davis to become speaker of the house in 1981, an invitation he declined. "I think he was tired of refereeing," the former premier said.
Four years later, Mr. KERR resigned his seat and returned to practising law with his wife. "He was very dedicated to his family and of course he was supported by Mim," Mr. Davis said. "I would argue that she may have gotten more votes for him than he got for himself. They were a great pair."
About five years ago, Mr. KERR was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Although frail, he enjoyed what his daughter Margot called "his last hurrah" in February when he made an appearance at a fundraiser for Joyce Savoline, the successful Progressive Conservative candidate in a provincial by-election in Burlington.
Although Mr. KERR wasn't on the list of speakers, he responded to the call when he was asked to say a few words, said party chief John Tory, who was there to "motivate the troops" for the upcoming vote.
"He was absolutely magnificent," Mr. Tory said of Mr. KERR's 10-minute speech on how much he enjoyed his early days in politics. "I think it was a very moving experience for most of the people there, probably two-thirds of whom were far too young to have known him as an active politician. He summoned up everything he had."
In the middle of April, Mr. KERR suffered a fall and had to go into hospital.
George Albert KERR was born in Montreal on January 27, 1924. He died of pneumonia in a Burlington hospital on May 21, 2007. He was 83. He is survived by his wife Mim, three children, four grandchildren, his younger sister Patricia Lawson and his extended family.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-06-09 published
KERR, Merrydith (née SPICER)
After struggling with a bronchial infection and the recent loss of her beloved husband George, 'Mim' peacefully passed away early Thursday morning, June 7, 2007, at her home in Burlington. Beloved mother to Larry, Margot and James, mother-in-law to Ellen and Dana, and grandmother to Spencer, Callaghan, Martha and Maxwell, Merrydith was born on July 14 (Bastille Day), 1930 on the kitchen table of the family farm in Spencer's Island, Nova Scotia. Daughter to Peggy and Isaac SPICER, a Harvard educated lawyer and village patriarch, and brother to Peter and Max, all predeceased. Her strict upbringing at home and a single room schoolhouse all changed when she attended Edgehill School for Girls, the University of New Brunswick, and Dalhousie Law School where she was the only woman in her graduating class. Merrydith was known to tutor her classmates, and her husband credited her with his academic accomplishments. A natural student with a photographic memory, an innate artist and member of the varsity basketball teams, she ultimately settled in Burlington, Ontario where she raised her family, worked at the Kerr and Hawken Law firm, and donated her time to the Salvation Army, March of Dimes, Canadian Cancer Society, and The University Women's Club, all the while a supporting champion of her husband's political career. Until her recent health challenges, Merrydith was an avid reader, lover of language, the theatre, and the visual arts, history and politics. Those who knew Merrydith will miss her quick wit, outstanding seafood chowder, and passion for Friends and fun. Her door was always open. This summer, a memorial service will be held for Mim in Spencer's Island, her Nova Scotia home, where she bloomed like the lupins and the lilacs. Visitation at Smith's Funeral Home, 485 Brant Street (one block north of City Hall), Burlington, (905-632-3333), on Sunday, June 10, 2007 from 3-4 p.m., followed by a ceremony at 4: 30 p.m. If desired, in lieu of flowers, donations to the Canadian Cancer Society would be sincerely appreciated. www.smithsfh.com

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-06-13 published
SWENSON, Bernard " Ben"
Veteran World War 2. Retired Businessman
Passed away at Good Samaritan Seniors Complex, Alliston, Ontario on Monday, June 11, 2007, in his 92nd year. Beloved husband of Lois PINGLE of Alliston, Ontario Loved father of Larry SWENSON and his wife Barbara Jane of New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, Sharon SWENSON of Toronto, Ontario, Debbie and her husband Tom HOGARTH of Windsor, Ontario Loving grandpa of Stephanie and her husband Andrew JONES, Samantha SWENSON, Alex and her husband Gord HARTLEY, Ainsley and Madison HOGARTH. Dear brother of Mary and her husband George HAIG and predeceased by Oscar SWENSON, John SWENSON, Sophie ERICKSON, Carrie PEARSON and Ingla GROOME. Dear brother-in-law of Edith BURR, Phyllis McROBBIE, Ann SPICER, Bruce and Donna PINGLE. Ben will be fondly remembered by his nieces, nephews and Friends. Resting at W. John Thomas Funeral Home, 244 Victoria Street, E., Alliston on Wednesday, June 13, 2007 from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. Funeral Service will be held in the Chapel on Thursday, June 14, 2007 at 1: 30 p.m. If so desired, memorial donations to the Canadian Diabetes Association or Canadian National Institute for the Blind would be appreciated.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-08-02 published
MARTYN, Ian Dales, M.A.
Peacefully, on July 31, 2007 at Credit Valley Hospital, in his 84th year. Most loved husband of Dorothy (née PERDUE) for 56 years. Loving father and grandfather of Jennifer (Peter) SPICER and their children: Jared, Alysa and Evan, and John (Teresa) MARTYN and their children: Nicole, Katrine and Ian. Dear brother of Marian SALM, Beth (John) DOLL and the late George. Brother-in-law of Anne. Ian will be fondly remembered by his Friends and family. Ian was born in North Bay, Ontario the eldest son of the late Ian and Elizabeth MARTYN. He served as a navigator in World War 2 Royal Canadian Air Force, and graduated with a Master's Degree in Psychology from University of Western Ontario in 1951. During his career he worked as an Industrial Psychologist. Friends will be received at the Neweduk Funeral Home 'Mississauga Chapel' 1981 Dundas Street West (1 block east of Erin Mills Parkway), from 10-11 a.m. Friday, August 3, 2007. A Celebration of Ian's Life will follow in the Chapel at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Ian's memory to the Canadian Diabetes Association or to the Alzheimer Society. Neweduk Funeral Home 905-828-8000 www.neweduk.com

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-12-29 published
WENHARDT, Helen Jean (née ODDIE)
Jean WENHARDT, was born November 11, 1914 and passed away December 25, 2007 in Victoria, British Columbia. With joy we celebrate the life of Jean and sadly announce her passing, one month past her 93rd birthday. She was the youngest of four children and grew up on a farm at Milestone in southern Saskatchewan. In 1932, she completed Grade 12 and worked diligently at various jobs for six years to finance her university education. Jean graduated from the College of Home Economics at the University of Saskatchewan in 1941 and completed her dietetic internship at the Royal Jubilee Hospital in Victoria, British Columbia in 1942. She worked for the Junior Red Cross in Saskatchewan for the remainder of the war years, and was awarded a MBE (Member of the British Empire) for her efforts. She went on to complete an M.A. in Public Health at the University of Michigan and returned to Saskatchewan as the first provincial nutritionist, a post she held for several years. Jean married Arthur WENHARDT in 1951 and their children Lorna, Wesley and Murray were all born in Swift Current, Saskatchewan. The family relocated to Saskatoon in 1961. She was predeceased by her husband Arthur in 1988 and Jean moved to Victoria in 2003. Jean's connections to people were vital and her relationships dear. Her first love was family and Friends who brought great joy throughout her long and energetic life. Jean had many interests: gardening, camping, travelling the world, genealogy, promoting nutrition, language and lifelong learning. Left to carry on her spirit are her three children: Lorna (Gibson) Victoria, Wesley (Paula) Vancouver, and Murray (Venice) Toronto and her five adored grandchildren: Matthew PIERCE of Brisbane, Australia, Daniel PIERCE (Alison BAILLIE) of Vancouver, Robin PIERCE (David SPICER) of Auch, France, and Ella Jean and Brynn Helena WENHARDT of Toronto. A memorial service will be held in Saskatoon in July 2008. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the charity of your choice that best represents your memory of Jean.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICER - All Categories in OGSPI

SPICHER o@ca.on.simcoe_county.nottawasaga.stayner.stayner_sun 2007-08-29 published
SHARPE, Marion Elizabeth
Peacefully on Friday August 24, 2007 at the Stayner Nursing Home in her 88th year. Marion of Stayner, beloved wife of the late Jack SHARPE. Loving mother of Brenda and her husband Wayne DAVIDSON and the late Lynda GREEN. Dear grandmother of Tonya (David) HUGHES, Greg (Chantelle) DAVIDSON and Leah (Allan) HANCOCK and great-grandmother of Taylor and Carson HUGHES and Maxwell DAVIDSON. Sister of the late Marj SPICHER, late Roy BUIE, late Earl BUIE, late Helen PERRY and Hazel McGAULEY. Friends were received at the Carruthers and Davidson Funeral Home, Stayner (705-428-2637) from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. Sunday. Funeral Service was held at Jubilee Presbyterian Church, Stayner on Monday August 27, 2007 at 2 o'clock. Interment Stayner Union Cemetery. Remembrances to the Stayner Nursing Home resident's Council would be appreciated by the family. For further information or to sign the online guest book, log on to: www.carruthersdavidson.com
Page 11

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICHER o@ca.on.simcoe_county.nottawasaga.stayner.stayner_sun 2007-10-31 published
Pillar of Sunnidale community remembered Monday
Betty SPICHER honoured earlier this year with Sunnidale Senior of the Year award
By Michael GENNINGS, Page 8
Betty SPICHER, Sunnidale Winterama's 2007 Female Senior of the Year, died on Friday at Stayner Nursing Home.
She was 80.
The▼ family said SPICHER's cause of death was related to heart trouble.
SPICHER (née PADDISON) was a native of Sunnidale Township and throughout her life was heavily involved in the community.
She was awarded the Senior of the Year honour during a special ceremony in February at the New Lowell branch of the Royal Canadian legion.
"I sure wasn't expecting this?" SPICHER told The Stayner Sun in an interview at the time. "It was very nice. Thank goodness they didn't ask me to make a speech because I wouldn't have been able to give one."
In receiving the award, SPICHER was recognized for her 55 years with the Women's Institute and for her volunteer efforts at the Sunnidale Corners Community Centre, where she helped organize such things as dances and lunches.
As well, for the last 17 years, until just recently, SPICHER was the caretaker and treasurer of the hall.
In an interview earlier this year, SPICHER said she enjoyed helping out. She added that volunteers help make small communities such special places.
A funeral service for SPICHER was held at Centennial United Church in Stayner on Monday afternoon, with burial at Stayner Union Cemetery.
SPICHER's daughter Elaine COLLINGS told The Stayner Sun that her mother was "a hard-working person who didn't like to be idle."
She added her mother was devoted to family and Friends.
Her interests included quilting, knitting and gardening. COLLINGS said her mom did pickling every year, giving much of it away to family and Friends.
COLLINGS said she would remember her mother as "the go-to person," for advice about such things as recipes and family matters like birthday dates and names.
The▼ family said that donations in memory of SPICHER could be made to the Heart and Stroke Foundation, General and Marine Hospital or the charity of choice.
SPICHER, predeceased by her husband Edward, is survived by daughter Gail and her husband Randy JOHNS of Blackstock, Elaine and her husband Allen COLLINGS of Stayner, Murray and his wife Carolin of Collingwood and Barry and his wife Louise of Sunnidale Corners.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICHER o@ca.on.simcoe_county.nottawasaga.stayner.stayner_sun 2007-10-31 published
SPICHER, Betty▼
Passed away peacefully on Friday October 26, 2007 at the Stayner Nursing Home in her 81st year. Betty of Sunnidale Corners, beloved wife of the late Edward. Loving mother of Gail and her husband Randy JOHNS of Blackstock, Elaine and her husband of Allen COLLINGS of Stayner, Murray and his wife Carolin of Collingwood and Barry and his wife Louise of Sunnidale Corners. Dear grandmother of Andrea and her husband Sam GALICK, Jeremy, Ryan and his partner Megan, Darryl and his partner Ashley, Glen and his wife Amber, Kathy-Jo and her partner Eugene NESS, Sabrina and her fiancé Mike McDERMID, Christopher and his fiancée Deidre, Bradley and Samantha. Great-grandmother of Ginea, Kaden, Tyler, Kyle, Lauren, Lindsay and Ryley. Also survived by her sister Ruby NEVILS of Stayner and sister-in-law Geraldine PADDISON of Collingwood. Predeceased by her sisters Leola PADDISON, Jean SPECK and twin brother Eric PADDISON. Friends were received at the Carruthers and Davidson Funeral Home, 7313 Highway 26 (Main St.), Stayner (705-428-2637) from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. on Sunday October 28, 2007. Funeral Service was held at Centennial United Church, 234 William Street, Stayner on Monday October 29, 2007 at 2 o'clock. Interment Stayner Union Cemetery. If desired, donations in Betty's memory may be made to the Heart and Stroke Foundation, General and Marine Hospital Foundation or a charity of your choice. For more information or to sign the online guest book, log on to www.carruthersdavidson.com.
Page 13

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICHER o@ca.on.simcoe_county.nottawasaga.stayner.stayner_sun 2007-11-21 published
SPICHER, Betty▲
The▲ family of the late Betty SPICHER would like to extend their sincere thanks to all our relatives, Friends and neighbours for their generous support and expressions of sympathy. We appreciated all the food sent to our homes, flowers and donations made in her memory. We would also like to thank Rev. BOUGHTON for his kind words and the ladies of the Sunnidale Women's Institute for providing lunch. Gail and Randy, Elaine and Allen, Murray and Carolin, Barry and Louise and their families
Page 17

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPICHER - All Categories in OGSPI

SPIEGEL o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-11-03 published
He escaped the Nazis to become Canada's 'most brilliant photographer'
Initially trained as an engraver in Vienna, he pursued a passion for photography that led him to produce trademark black-and-white images. The results took him to the heights of his profession
By Charles OBERDORF, Special to The Globe and Mail, Page S11
Toronto -- Peter Newman once described Walter CURTIN as Canada's greatest photographer. A Viennese Jew who fled Nazism, he became one of the country's most successful photojournalists of the Fifties and Sixties.
His best-known image is probably also the best-known photograph of its subject, Glenn Gould. In it, the pianist, wearing a heavy overcoat and a driver's cap, sits in profile, hunched over the keyboard of a shopworn Canadian Broadcasting Corporation studio piano, his mouth slightly ajar, as if singing along with his playing.
Mr. Gould himself seems to have preferred a different Walter CURTIN shot.
Over the years, thanks to several CURTIN assignments, the two had become Friends. ("Walter," Mr. Gould once said, "you're as crazy as I am.") The Friendship had an opposites-attract element: the charming, gregarious and dapper Viennese and the unkempt, argumentative and reclusive Canadian.
During one conversation - possibly one of Mr. Gould's famous late-night phone calls - the pianist described a nightmare he'd recently had in which he was a passenger in a 747 jet. A flight attendant came to him and whispered that the pilot had just died and that only Mr. Gould could land the plane. He woke up in terror.
In his darkroom, Mr. CURTIN dug out the negatives from an assignment he'd done that included a shot of a pilot at the controls of a big jet. He printed an enlargement, then one of Mr. Gould with his head at a matching angle. Carefully, he substituted the pianist's face for the pilot's, framed the result and sent it to Gould. He heard nothing, but later learned that for years there had been a shot of Mr. Gould in a pilot's uniform, with someone else's hairy hands, hanging in the pianist's bedroom.
Walter CURTIN was born Walter SPIEGEL in the imperial Vienna of Gustav Mahler and Ludwig Wittgenstein, Arthur Schnitzler and Gustav Klimt. In that well-fed city, the SPIEGELs were food importers and wholesalers. The business ran into trouble, however, when Walter was about 15.
A few years later, in 1933, his father died, leaving him head of the family. In November, 1938, eight months after Hitler's Germany annexed Austria, the concierge in their apartment building saved the family during the brutal Kristallnacht pogrom by sowing such seeds of deceit and confusion that the Nazi mob who came for them went away empty-handed. The strategy gained precious time, and Mr. CURTIN and his brother, Otto, soon fled to Britain. Their mother would die in Poland along with thousands of other Viennese Jews.
In England, Mr. CURTIN worked at odd jobs, tried to enlist on the day war was declared in September, 1939, but was rejected as an "alien." After the fall of France, both brothers, along with 2,000 other German-speaking aliens of military age, were shipped to an internment camp in Australia. When British Prime Minister Winston Churchill changed the policy to allow "friendly aliens" to enlist, Mr. CURTIN joined the British military and was advised to change his name in case of capture.
The brothers served first in the 93rd Pioneer Corps, and then Mr. CURTIN joined the Royal Engineers "after passing a test that required putting together two bits of old-fashioned toilet chain. That's how I became an Army engineer," he once wrote. He served until 1946, mainly with the Royal Air Force.
Once out of the military, he decided to pursue a career in photography. It was an interest that had followed him through the years. In Vienna, he had studied photoengraving and worked briefly for a portrait photographer; in London, before he was deported, he had learned colour printing; on the ship to Australia, he and some had formed a keen if under-equipped photography club.
Returning to London, he talked his way into an apprenticeship at a busy commercial photo studio. He was soon behind a camera making copy photographs of paintings. In 1948, he set up shop on his own in Kensington, where such clients as Time-Life Books wanted his well-crafted photos of paintings and art objects.
Along the way, Mr. CURTIN became acquainted with a talented young British painter 10 years his junior whom he met through an old military friend. As it happened, his friend was married to a painter who had decided to play matchmaker. Invited to dinner, Mr. CURTIN showed up in all innocence to be introduced to a beautiful young woman named Isabel KANN. She was Catholic and he was Jewish, but no matter. As these things go, a relationship quickly developed and they fell in love. They married in 1949.
On visits to Paris, he made Friends with the founders of the Magnum photo agency - including Robert and Cornell Capa, Dimitri Kessel and Henri Cartier-Bresson - who were setting new standards in photojournalism made possible by the inconspicuous mobility of the 35 mm camera and the versatility of high-speed film.
In 1952, hard economic times in Britain, together with the needs of a young family, led the CURTINs to emigrate to Canada.
Settling in Toronto, Mr. Walter decided to follow the lead of his Magnum Friends and began shooting people and events rather than paintings and sculpture. Within months he had sold a cover to Liberty magazine. It was a portrait of the hockey giant, King Clancy. Not long after that, the National Film Board in 1953 commissioned him to document the first season of the Stratford Festival.
It soon became apparent, though, that photojournalism would not support a growing family that by 1963 would number six children. So, according to his colleague, John Reeves, "Walter did this amazing thing. He unleashed that Viennnese charm of his on the ad agencies and somehow convinced them that his kind of shooting was just what they needed. All of a sudden, these black-and-white, available-light images started showing up in magazine ads and at the art directors' shows."
It was during this period that he worked with the journalist Peter C. Newman, who was then a senior editor and columnist at Maclean's. In a hand-written dedication, Mr. Newman wrote: "To Walter CURTIN, the most brilliant photographer in Canada. With admiration and best wishes. Peter Newman, May, 1961." It was a respect that was to remain unchanged through the years.
By then, Mr. CURTIN had moved the family back across the Atlantic to again try his luck in London. There, he replicated his Toronto ad-agency breakthrough, most memorably in a series of ads for Wills cigars. Each one featured a large informal close-up portrait of a man, clearly not a model, usually working-class - one was a street sweeper - each in his working garb and almost off-handedly holding a cigar. Freed of their ad copy, the series still stands up as a vivid collection of genre portraits.
Eight years later, the CURTINs returned to Toronto, where he would soon begin an obsessive personal project to document the major figures in Canada's classical music scene. In concert or rehearsal, in their homes or sometimes his own, he shot them all, from an aging Wilfred Pelletier in 1971 to a just-unpacked-from-Finland Jukka-Pekka Saraste in 1994. His Canadian Brass look slimly resplendent in the bell-bottomed, peacock tailoring of the early 1970s. Lotfi Mansouri of the Canadian Opera Company gesticulates, soprano Teresa Stratas clasps her hands to her mouth in embarrassment, the Huggett family clutter the floor with their many wind and string instruments. In 1994, some 80 of these images (from tens of thousands of negatives) finally became a book, Curtin Call, published by Exile Editions.
One reason Mr. CURTIN could indulge in this labour of love was that just as he was reaching retirement age in the mid-1970s, his wife, Isabel, took up painting again and was soon a success in major galleries with calm canvases that always included a vase of flowers, a colourful swatch of fabric and a sun-shot view through a window. Increasingly, in paintings made in winter, the window looked out on a corner of Cannes or Albuquerque.
The six CURTIN children also flourished. All of them have worked in the arts, but as one son, John, said, "We keep out of each other's way." One daughter paints, another sculpts, another writes poetry, another designs stage sets. John CURTIN makes award-winning documentary films. Joe, a designer and builder of concert violins and violas, recently received a $100,000 "genius" fellowship from the MacArthur Foundation for advancing the science of his field.
At the age of 80, Walter CURTIN, an agnostic Jew, converted to Roman Catholicism - primarily, his Friends speculated, to be buried with Isabel. Characteristically, he took Israel as his baptismal name. Until his early 90s, he seemed to live as energetically as ever, though, travelling whenever possible, especially to Europe, at home running errands for Isabel, entertaining Friends and eating heartily in the Viennese style, always with a glass of port before dinner, music after. He loved walking the dog, Bertie, and sitting in Isabel's overflowing garden of lilies. In the last year or two, though, he loved more and more to sleep, claiming it was preparing him for "the eternal snooze."
Walter CURTIN was born Walter SPIEGEL, on August 16, 1911, in Vienna. He died of age-related causes in Toronto on October 21, 2007. He was 96. He leaves his wife, Isabel KANN, and two sons and four daughters. He also leaves four grand_sons.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPIEGEL - All Categories in OGSPI

SPILLER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-10-06 published
CASS, Irwin
It is with great sadness that the family of Irwin CASS announces his passing on Friday, October 5, 2007. He is survived by his wife Jennie, his sister Arlene (Honey) SPILLER, his children Steve, Debbie, Howard, Ellen, Mark, Karen and Marty, and his grandchildren Gillian, Adam, Kim, Melanie, Ian, Michael, Anne and Lauren. For funeral service information contact Benjamin's Park Memorial at 416-663-9060 or www.benjamins.ca. Donations in Irwin's memory are encouraged to be made to the Princess Margaret Hospital - Palliative Care Unit, 416-946-6560 or Israel Elwyn, 416-787-1151 ext. 591.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPILLER - All Categories in OGSPI

SPILSBURY o@ca.on.middlesex_county.london.london_free_press 2007-01-03 published
SPILSBURY, James " Jim"
Peacefully at Parkwood Hospital on Tuesday, January 2, 2007, Mr. James (Jim) SPILSBURY of London in his 85th year. London in his 85th year. Loving husband of Isabelle SPILSBURY (née HAMILTON) for 59 years. Loving father of Donna (Mike), Doug (Monica) and Paul. Dear grandpa to John, Stacey, Michelle and Andrea. Great-Grandpa to Kody Jacob. Predeceased by his parents John James and Margaret SPILSBURY and brothers Louis and his wife Alfrieda and Jack and Eva SPILSBURY. Jim will be greatly missed by all his family and many Friends. He was a member of St. George's Lodge #42 for many years. The family will receive relatives and Friends at Memorial Funeral Home, 1559 Fanshawe Park Rd. E (east of Highbury), from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. Thursday. The funeral service will be conducted in the chapel on Friday, January 5, 2007 at 10 a.m. In lieu of flowers those who wish may make memorial contributions to the Parkinson Society.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPILSBURY - All Categories in OGSPI

SPINDLER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-08-14 published
SPINDLER, Joan▼ Elizabeth▼
Died peacefully, at Toronto Western Hospital, on Friday, August 10, 2007. Beloved wife of Herbert Oscar SPINDLER. Wonderful▼ mother of Eric (Daphne), Rob (Marilyn), Paul (Caroline), and Scott (Cheryl). Loving grandmother of Jessica, Lindsay, David, Spencer, Sarah, Meg,▼ Evan,▼ Summer▼ and Hayden. Dear sister of Sibyl (Bob) STAIRS. A funeral service will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday, August 24 in Grace Church-on-the-Hill, 300 Lonsdale Road, Toronto. Condolences may be sent c/o Rob SPINDLER, 94 Heath Street East, Toronto, Ontario M4T 1S4.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPINDLER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-08-17 published
SPINDLER, Joan▲▼ Elizabeth▲▼
Died peacefully, at Toronto Western Hospital, on Friday, August 10, 2007. Beloved wife of Herbert Oscar SPINDLER. Wonderful▲▼ mother of Eric (Daphne), Rob (Marilyn), Paul (Caroline), and Scott (Cheryl). Loving grandmother of Jessica, Lindsay, David, Spencer, Sarah, Meg,▲▼ Evan,▲▼ Summer▲▼ and Hayden. Dear sister of Sibyl (Bob) STAIRS. A funeral service will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday, August 24 in Grace Church-on-the-Hill, 300 Lonsdale Road, Toronto. Condolences may be sent c/o Rob SPINDLER, 94 Heath Street East, Toronto, Ontario M4T 1S4.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPINDLER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-08-20 published
SPINDLER, Joan▲ Elizabeth▲
Died peacefully, at Toronto Western Hospital, on Friday, August 10, 2007. Beloved wife of Herbert Oscar SPINDLER. Wonderful▲ mother of Eric (Daphne), Rob (Marilyn), Paul (Caroline), and Scott (Cheryl). Loving grandmother of Jessica, Lindsay, David, Spencer, Sarah, Meg,▲ Evan,▲ Summer▲ and Hayden. Dear sister of Sibyl (Bob) STAIRS. A funeral service will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday, August 24 in Grace Church-on-the-Hill, 300 Lonsdale Road, Toronto. Condolences may be sent c/o Rob SPINDLER, 94 Heath Street East, Toronto, Ontario M4T 1S4.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPINDLER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-09-11 published
SPINDLER, Herbert▼ Oscar▼
Died peacefully, at Toronto General Hospital, on Sunday, September 9, 2007. Herb, beloved husband of the late Joan Elizabeth. Wonderful father of Eric (Daphne), Rob (Marilyn), Paul (Caroline), and Scott (Cheryl). Loving grandfather of Jessica, Lindsay, David, Spencer, Sarah, Meg, Evan, Summer and Hayden. Dear brother of Marigold BUGDEN. A funeral service will be held at the Humphrey Funeral Home - A.W. Miles Chapel, 1403 Bayview Avenue (south of Eglinton Avenue East), on Friday, September 21st at 3 p.m., followed by a reception in the Leaside Room. In lieu of flowers, donations to the University Health Network, 190 Elizabeth Street, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2C4 would be appreciated by the family. Condolences may be sent c/o Rob SPINDLER, 94 Heath Street East, Toronto, Ontario M4T 1S4.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPINDLER o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-09-18 published
SPINDLER, Herbert▲ Oscar▲
Died peacefully, at Toronto General Hospital, on Sunday, September 9, 2007. Herb, beloved husband of the late Joan Elizabeth. Wonderful father of Eric (Daphne), Rob (Marilyn), Paul (Caroline), and Scott (Cheryl). Loving grandfather of Jessica, Lindsay, David, Spencer, Sarah, Meg, Evan, Summer and Hayden. Dear brother of Marigold BUGDEN. A funeral service will be held at the Humphrey Funeral Home - A.W. Miles Chapel, 1403 Bayview Avenue (south of Eglinton Avenue East), on Friday, September 21st at 11: 00 A.M., followed by a reception in the Leaside Room. In lieu of flowers, donations to the University Health Network, 190 Elizabeth Street, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2C4 would be appreciated by the family. Condolences may be sent c/o Rob SPINDLER, 94 Heath Street East, Toronto, Ontario M4T 1S4.
Note Change In Service Time

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPINDLER - All Categories in OGSPI

SPINNEY o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-12-29 published
PETERSON, Oscar E., C.C., O.Ont., LLD., D.Mus.
Peacefully at home on Sunday December 23rd, 2007 with his loving wife Kelly and his daughter Celine by his side. Oscar is also survived by his children Norman, Joel, Gay PARR, Lynn SPINNEY and the late Sharon BLACKBURN and Oscar PETERSON Jr. Dear brother of Daisy SWEENEY, May PETERSON, Phil PETERSON; and the late Fred and Chuck PETERSON. He will always be remembered by his grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. A private funeral service was held. A public Celebration of Oscar's Life and Legacy will take place in the future. Information regarding the details of this Service can be found at www.oscarpeterson.com or www.neweduk.com. In memory of Oscar, donations to World Vision Canada or the Christian Children's Fund of Canada would be greatly appreciated by the family.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPINNEY - All Categories in OGSPI

SPIVAK o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2007-12-15 published
SPIVAK, Evelyn
It is with profound sadness that the children of Evelyn SPIVAK announce her passing on December 13, 2007, in her 88th year beloved wife of the late William (Stoney) SPIVAK, cherished mother of Brian (Aline,) Sonya KOCH (Peter) and Nancy JARNICK (Stephen,) adoring Nana to Gillian FENSKE (Tom,) Charles and William, loving Aunty Evelyn to many nieces and nephews. Our Mother died peacefully with the same grace and dignity that she lived her life. Thank you to Doctor ZAYID and the staff at Oakville Trafalgar Hospital. Private family arrangements entrusted to The Simple Alternative Funeral Centre - Mississauga. In lieu of flowers please honour her with donations to the War Amps and the Salvation Army.

  S... Names     SP... Names     SPI... Names     Welcome Home

SPIVAK - All Categories in OGSPI