CANAM, Wayne Howard - 82, Shiretown Nursing Home, Pictou, passed away peacefully in the Palliative Care Unit of the Aberdeen Hospital, New Glasgow on August 10, 2015.
Born in Peel, New Brunswick, on November 3, 1932, Wayne was the son of Harry and Grace (Quick) Canam.
Wayne's early years were spent living on his grandmother's farm; it is there that he developed his strong work ethic and principles. Wayne moved from the farm to Stickney to attend high school in Florenceville. At the age of 18 he joined the RCMP moving to Rockliff, Ontario, and Regina, Saskatchewan, for basic training. After graduation he was stationed in Toronto, Ontario, before starting his 'northern' stint in Aklavik, NWT, in 1952. From Aklavik he went to Herschal Island, Arctic Red River, and Sachs Harbour before moving back to Aklavik in 1954. In 1955 he was stationed at Great Whale River where he met his future wife and life companion, Ruth. Wayne and Ruth moved east and spent three years in Dartmouth, NS, before returning the north to Fort Chimo, Quebec, in 1960. From Fort Chimo they moved to Lake Harbour, NWT, Fort Resolution NWT, Elsa YT, and Whitehorse YT. In 1969, with (by then) four children and a dog and cat in tow, the last move from the north occurred when Wayne was stationed to Halifax. In 1971, in his final move with the RCMP, Wayne settled in Pictou where he was in charge of the local detachment. After 25 years with the RCMP, Wayne retired in 1976, living at this time in Braeshore.
Wayne was extremely proud of his career with RCMP as it provided him with the opportunity to make a difference in the communities he served. Wayne received a RCMP Veterans Long Service Award in 2014. After leaving the RCMP, Wayne started a new career with the Provincial Government when he accepted the position of Prothonotary. He was instrumental in organizing the department and was well respected by co-workers, lawyers and the judges with whom he worked. He enjoyed this phase of his career but after 18 years of service, Wayne retired from the government to begin 'real' retirement.
Wayne loved life, family, friends and his many dogs over the years (Scotch, Prince, Max, Keegan, Rex and Lily). Among his many talents, Wayne was a wood worker; he added on and enhanced not only the family home but his children's homes. He could plumb, do electrical work and work on motors, he loved to tinker on many projects. Wayne was an avid gardener and when he moved to Braeshore, he maintained a garden large enough to feed the community. He was life-long member of the Lions Club joining the Pictou club in 1971, where he served terms as King Lion and Secretary Treasurer and annually sold Christmas trees and Easter bunnies. He also enjoyed curling and spent more than 20 years maintaining the ice in the Pictou Curling Club. Wayne took great pleasure in his annual vacation to Barbados with Ruth. It was during one of the annual trips that he obtained his scuba diving license at the age of 65. He loved all things technical; especially his computers, working on email, searching the Internet, scanning, photo shopping pictures and working on the family tree. Wayne was an avid photographer and in the early years he captured wonderful images of the North, developing his own pictures. Wayne's biggest enjoyment was to sit back with family and friends, have a drink and tell a story. He had a great sense of humour and told interesting tales of his experiences in the North and growing up on the farm. Nothing put him out; he did not worry about the trivial things and was content with all he had in life. Although he lived through the varying stages of Parkinson's disease for over 15 years, he never once complained.
He will be sadly missed by all who knew him but especially his children, Tim Canam (Suzanne), Perth, Australia and grandchildren, Rebecca, Michael and their mother Elska, Yellowknife; Cathy Simpson (Stewart), Braeshore, and grandchildren, Jason and Sarah; Jill Griffin, Braeshore; Pete Canam (Denise), Pictou, and grandchildren, Bryan, Rayell and Alexandra; sister, Carol (Bob) Pichette; nieces and nephew, Denise, Lori and Bobby, Windsor, Connecticut.
Wayne was predeceased by his parents, Harry and Grace; his wife, Ruth, and his son-in-law, Mike Griffin.
Visitation will be held on Sunday, August 16th, from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. in McLaren Funeral Home, Pictou. Funeral service will be held on Monday, August 17th, at 2:00 p.m. from Pictou United Church, with Mike Simmons officiating. Family flowers only. Donations in Wayne's memory may be made to the local S.P.C. A. or the Parkinson's Society. Thanks to all Wayne's friends and family who made his life full over the years. Special thanks to those who took care of Wayne in the last five years during his illness: staff of the VON, Elsie Clark and Ethel Rudolph of Pictou County Home Health Care and staff of Shiretown and Ivey's Terrace nursing homes.