John Verden Buie

In Loving Memory of
John Verden Buie
September 27, 1935 - January 28, 2023

A resident of Kagawong, John passed away suddenly at the Manitoulin Lodge in Gore Bay on Saturday, January 28, 2023.

John is survived by his loving wife of 51 years Mary (nee Coomes)
and their three children Neil (Meghan), Robert (Kathryn) and Jennifer (Dwyne).

John is predeceased by his beloved parents Verden (1965) and Blanche (1987) Buie,
brother Joe (2016)
and parents-in-law Bob (1999) and Olga (2000) Coomes.

He is also survived by his two sisters Marg Smith (Bill) and Cathy King (Doug),
his uncle Ron Bock,
his brother-in-law Mike Coomes (Susie)
and many nieces and nephews, cousins and friends.

John loved his family very much, they were his pride and joy,
especially his grandkids, Simon and Sebastian (Neil), Charlotte and Juliette (Rob) and Chase and Brooke (Jen).

John’s love of life and family was contagious. You could find him with his grandchildren huddled around him, entertaining with his stories, eating peanut butter toast, and passing along so many unique sayings, funny poems and treasured family tales. Driving to BooBahLou with Grandpa in his prized 1956 Buick Roadmaster was always a special treat in the lives of his grandchildren. John was a generalist and over the decades worked as a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse, a bank messenger, a sandcaster forming molds in a foundry, a watchman on a freighter in the St. Lawrence River, a pulpwood quality tester at a paper mill and a self-employed bookkeeper.
He was a terrible snowmobile driver, ended up in the Mindemoya Hospital, and 9 months later married a British nurse. John and Mary built the family home in Kagawong and raised their 3 kids there. His children all remember how dedicated and generous a father he was. John had many interests. He was an avid reader, storyteller and cribbage player. He was the family archivist, making several trips to England and Scotland to research his ancestors and his family tree now has 7500 individuals! He enjoyed sharing his jokes in person or by email with his ‘favoured few’ which included, of course, the wonderful care givers at the Manitoulin Lodge in Gore Bay. John looked forward to Mondays when his favourite musicians would come to the Lodge to entertain and the calls from family when they were coming for a visit or to bring him home for the day.

A service will be held at the Kagawong Anglican Church
on Thursday, February 2, 2023 at 11:00 AM
with a reception to follow at the Kagawong Park Centre. Spring interment at the Kagawong Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family welcomes memorial donations to the Mindemoya Hospital Auxiliary.

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