Obituary of Gordon Ewin Jones

Gordon Jones passed from this good earth on the morning of November 4th, 2015, at peace with himself and the world. Born in Montreal in 1923, he and his wife Reggie, who predeceased him by three years, lived long productive lives as members of what has been called by many “The Greatest Generation” there ever was. As a child and a youth he and millions of others endured the privations of the Great Depression without complaint and with the stoicism so typical of the time. Having successfully navigated this tumultuous era, the Second World War then descended upon the population and once again the call to arms was answered by the young men of the Dominion with the women of the day in a support role without which no battle can be joined. As a young pilot (as they all were) in the RCAF and as a crew member with 437 Squadron (part of Transport Command), he flew in operations in support of the D-Day invasion and, as the front pushed further to the East, the crossing of the Rhine, operation Market Garden, the invasion of Sicily and the evacuation of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. Ever the modest gentleman, he maintained that the real heroes were not the men flying the airplanes but those who jumped out of them. At war’s end he returned to civilian life as a pilot with what was then Trans Canada Airlines and married his pre-war sweetheart Reggie to whom he devoted the rest of his life. He retired as a Boeing 747 Captain with Air Canada after some 37 years of service. He spent much of his career as a flight instructor mentoring hundreds of other flight crew at Air Canada. He was also the last of the World War Two veterans at Air Canada to pass, marking the end of an era the likes of which we will never see again. Gord was a talented athlete and his exploits as a fisherman have been well documented. He and Reggie raised five children all of whom lead happy, active lives in their own right. They blessed Gordon and Reggie with 9 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren who became the joy of his life. He lived what can only be called a Christian life and while it has fallen out of fashion to speak in those terms it is an exact descriptor of how he conducted himself and how he and Reggie raised their children. He was a regular church-goer throughout and brought up his children in a disciplined fashion. His children thank him for that. His sense of community was powerfully ingrained in him and no matter where life’s uncertainties carried him and Reggie they threw themselves with gusto into the local community to lead and help wherever they could. Gordon’s sense of humour and unerring good judgment made him a man to be respected, and he will be missed by all who knew him. His children feel for the moment to be adrift on the sea of life, rudderless and without an anchor. Gordon and Reggie have given them the tools to overcome this temporary shortcoming and to carry on, blessed with a thousand memories. In the end it is this gift that matters the most. A private ceremony for family only will be held in the near future in Bobcaygeon, Ontario