Obituary of Bill Lawrence, Glace Bay

The family of William "Bill" Lawrence, age 90 is saddened to announce his passing, which occurred at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital on January 1, 2024 after a brief illness.

 

Born in Glace Bay on November 27, 1933, he was the son of the late Walter and Cecilia (Gilday) Lawrence.

 

Bill was a former shareholder and employee of Lynk Electric Limited for 45 years, retiring as Chief Estimator and Vice President 25 years ago.

 

He was an avid sports fan, and enjoyed playing sports in his youth. He especially loved hockey and for many years could be seen in the stands of Centre 200 cheering on the Cape Breton Eagles. Bill was a former member of the Cape Breton Fiddlers Association as well as the Mira Fiddlers.

 

Bill was a man of great faith and was a life long member of St. Anthony's Church and later Holy Cross Church. He was a Eucharistic Minister for many years, as well as a member of the Parish Council and in the past co-chaired a number of church committees.

 

 He always possessed a great work ethic, working for most of his life, both at Lynk Electric Limited and at his home, spending many hours in his garage endlessly puttering and tinkering.

 

Although for most of his life, Bill lived on Highland Street, his favorite place on earth was the bungalow "Out on the Mira", where he and Betty enjoyed many summers.

 

He is survived by his wife of 70 years, Betty (Peters); sons, Doug (Judy), Port Morien, Rick (Cynthia) and Jamie (Wanda) both of Glace Bay; his daughter, Terria (Denis Pelland), Winnipeg.

 

"Poppy" is also survived by his grandchildren, Helena, Ryan (Adele), Justin (Kerry), Kyle, Ashley (Darian), Shana (Matt) and Evan (Jenna); his precious great grandchildren, Caelum, Brenna, Zachary and Zoey.

 

Also surviving are his sisters, Jeannette (Paul) Oulette, BC; Barbara (late Sandy) Morrison, Anne (Dave) MacLean, both of Sydney and Joan (Stephen) Churney of Glace Bay; brothers, Raymond (Anne); Teddy (Brenda) and Darrell (Anne Marie) all of Glace Bay; brother-in-law Ralph (late Ruth) Peters of Sydney; several nieces and nephews and his longtime friend, Julien Frison.

 

Besides his parents, he was predeceased by his sisters, Marie (late Billie) Koziel, Betty (late Jimmy) MacKenzie; brothers Joe (late Elsie), Duncan (late Irene) and two brothers in infancy, Douglas and Michael. Also predeceasing him were his sisters-in-law, Elinor (late Jim) Bryden and Jen (late Rusty) Rutt.

 

His family would like to extend their thanks to Dr. David Ley and staff for the care that was afforded to Bill for many years; also many thanks to Dr. Neil MacVicar, Dr. Diane MacLaughlin, Dr. David Wong and Dr. Emily Lehre and the staff of the ICU at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital for their kindness and compassion during a difficult time.

 

Visitation will be held in V. J. McGillivray Funeral Home, 16 Reserve Street, Glace Bay on Sunday, January 7th from 2 p.m. to 6 pm.

 

The funeral mass will be celebrated at Holy Cross Church on Monday, January 8, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. followed by a reception, Fr. Norman MacPhee presiding. Cremation will take place following the mass. Burial will be held at a later date in St. Anthony’s Cemetery.

 

Family flowers only please. Donations in Bill's memory may be made to the Heart & Stroke Foundation, the Kidney Foundation or the War Amps of Canada.

 

On line condolences to the family can be expressed at: www.vjmcgillivray.ca