Obituary for Douglas Edward Giles
When asked how he wanted to be remembered, our father, Doug Giles said, “That I loved people, I loved my family, and I loved my God, Jesus Christ.”
With great sadness we announce the peaceful passing of our father, Douglas Giles of Rainy River, Ontario on August 17, 2022. He will be greatly missed by us all as he brought much joy into our lives and we were made better because he loved us. Doug gave his all each and every day, living life loving friends, family and neighbours. Doug was easily recognized over the years as he pushed his bicycle on his daily trips to the Post Office or to walk around town, taking time to talk with people or give them a hug; favourite pastimes he was no longer able to do for the last several months due to increasing weakness.
Doug hired on to the CN when he was sixteen years old, a life-time commitment until his retirement in the late 1980s, only interrupted by a brief stint in the Canadian Army. Mom and Dad married in 1949 and lived in Stratton, Fort Frances, Rainy River and Brandon, Manitoba. While living in Stratton, Dad put out a weekly newspaper called “Town ‘N Country,” wherein he shared all the local news and encouraged people to eat healthy. Mom and Dad were active wherever they lived, attending church, joining the curling club and the Legion, playing baseball, attending local meetings, traveling to places like Hawaii, Aruba and Israel. Dad kept in touch with many of the people he met through Jews for Jesus and Bridges for Peace. Spending time together as a family around a good, wholesome meal was a cornerstone of our life.
After his retirement, Dad put his vast knowledge, skills and ingenuity combined with his love of people to good use across the Rainy River district, whether it was fixing plumbing problems or crawling around in basements and crawl-spaces to install central vacs or reverse osmosis systems, Dad was just a phone call away. Our Dad had a life-long commitment to health and loved to share what he learned with others, often setting up a booth at the Emo Fair. Dad loved to garden and was into all things organic long before it was fashionable. Dad was very proud to serve as the Town Crier in 2003 for Stratton’s centennial, and also for several years for Rainy River Railroad Daze.
Doug is survived by his twin sister Pat (Berg), and pre-deceased by his wife of 66 years, Lorraine (Lambert), his parents (Stanley, Mary), his brothers Archie (Mary) and Bill (Florence), and sister Enid (Alec). Surviving children are Rodger (Shirley), Pat (Joanne), Anita Marcotte, Gloria, and Peter (Sylvia). Grandchildren include Christopher (Barbie), Jeremy, Christopher (Monica), Paul (Melissa), Melissa, Ashley, Alicia (Emily), Kathy (Bruno), Jonathan (Kellie), Sarah, Rachel, Daniel (Raine), Micheal (Tiffany), John, and Christine, and many great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren, nieces, including ReNae Moran, and nephews, and many, many good friends.
A celebration of Dad’s life will be held on Saturday, September 3rd, 2022 at 2:00 pm at Northridge Funeral Home, Emo. We look forward to seeing you there and hearing your favourite memories of this beloved man who wanted no more than to bring joy into the lives of other people. Donations can be made on Dad’s behalf to the Alzheimer’s Society of Kenora/Rainy River District or to Wesway @ Wesway.com.
The live stream link for Doug's Service of Celebration is
https://youtu.be/gJSDUL2-9vs
With great sadness we announce the peaceful passing of our father, Douglas Giles of Rainy River, Ontario on August 17, 2022. He will be greatly missed by us all as he brought much joy into our lives and we were made better because he loved us. Doug gave his all each and every day, living life loving friends, family and neighbours. Doug was easily recognized over the years as he pushed his bicycle on his daily trips to the Post Office or to walk around town, taking time to talk with people or give them a hug; favourite pastimes he was no longer able to do for the last several months due to increasing weakness.
Doug hired on to the CN when he was sixteen years old, a life-time commitment until his retirement in the late 1980s, only interrupted by a brief stint in the Canadian Army. Mom and Dad married in 1949 and lived in Stratton, Fort Frances, Rainy River and Brandon, Manitoba. While living in Stratton, Dad put out a weekly newspaper called “Town ‘N Country,” wherein he shared all the local news and encouraged people to eat healthy. Mom and Dad were active wherever they lived, attending church, joining the curling club and the Legion, playing baseball, attending local meetings, traveling to places like Hawaii, Aruba and Israel. Dad kept in touch with many of the people he met through Jews for Jesus and Bridges for Peace. Spending time together as a family around a good, wholesome meal was a cornerstone of our life.
After his retirement, Dad put his vast knowledge, skills and ingenuity combined with his love of people to good use across the Rainy River district, whether it was fixing plumbing problems or crawling around in basements and crawl-spaces to install central vacs or reverse osmosis systems, Dad was just a phone call away. Our Dad had a life-long commitment to health and loved to share what he learned with others, often setting up a booth at the Emo Fair. Dad loved to garden and was into all things organic long before it was fashionable. Dad was very proud to serve as the Town Crier in 2003 for Stratton’s centennial, and also for several years for Rainy River Railroad Daze.
Doug is survived by his twin sister Pat (Berg), and pre-deceased by his wife of 66 years, Lorraine (Lambert), his parents (Stanley, Mary), his brothers Archie (Mary) and Bill (Florence), and sister Enid (Alec). Surviving children are Rodger (Shirley), Pat (Joanne), Anita Marcotte, Gloria, and Peter (Sylvia). Grandchildren include Christopher (Barbie), Jeremy, Christopher (Monica), Paul (Melissa), Melissa, Ashley, Alicia (Emily), Kathy (Bruno), Jonathan (Kellie), Sarah, Rachel, Daniel (Raine), Micheal (Tiffany), John, and Christine, and many great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren, nieces, including ReNae Moran, and nephews, and many, many good friends.
A celebration of Dad’s life will be held on Saturday, September 3rd, 2022 at 2:00 pm at Northridge Funeral Home, Emo. We look forward to seeing you there and hearing your favourite memories of this beloved man who wanted no more than to bring joy into the lives of other people. Donations can be made on Dad’s behalf to the Alzheimer’s Society of Kenora/Rainy River District or to Wesway @ Wesway.com.
The live stream link for Doug's Service of Celebration is
https://youtu.be/gJSDUL2-9vs