Obituary of William "Hamish" Garland

William "Hamish" Garland passed away at the Pioneer House, Lloydminster, Alberta, June 19, 2019 at the age of 93 years.

Hamish is lovingly remembererd by: his two sons, Michael (Gala) Garland and David (Alice) Garland; his daughter, Lesley (Barry) Wilmot; his four grandsons, Andy Garland, Christian Garland, Ben Wilmot, Logan Wilmot; his two granddaughters, Olivia Garland and Rosaimee (Liam) Murphy; his great-granddaughter, Evangeline Murphy; his great-grandson, Jameson Murphy; Sister, Ishbel (Doug) Cormack.

Hamish was predeceased by: his wife, Anne; his son, Richard; his parents, William and Gladys.

The Memorial Service for Hamish will be held at St. John's Anglican Church, Lloydminster, Saskatchewan on Monday, June 24, 2019 at 2:00 PM.

Donations in memory of Hamish may be made to Pioneer House, Lloydminster Regional Health Foundation (Home Care) or a charity of donor's choice.

Hamish's memorial card can be viewed or downloaded from the link below.

https://indd.adobe.com/view/29eb3de9-e7e6-4dc0-a059-c90001fc95db

Hame’s Obituary

William “Hamish” Garland, 93, of Lloydminster, Alberta passed away on Wednesday, June 19, 2019 at his home.

Hamish was born in Regina, Saskatchewan to Bill and Gladys Garland on September 16, 1925.  He went to High School in Rosetown and went on to earn a Bachelor of Engineering at the University of Saskatchewan.  He worked for Husky Oil and Murphy Oil as an engineer for a combined service of 40 years.

He enjoyed the outdoors, hunting birds, fishing and camping.  Also, motorhome travel throughout Western Canada.

He loved his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren very much.

Hamish received many awards and recognitions over the years.  He was actively involved in the community of Lloydminster since 1950.

Hamish is survived by: his children, Michael (Gala) Garland and David (Alice) Garland of Sherwood Park and Lesley (Barry) Wilmot of Calgary; his grandchildren, Andy Garland, Rosaimee (Liam) Murphy, Olivia Garland, Christian Garland, Ben Wilmot and Logan Wilmot; his great grandchildren, Evangeline and Jameson Murphy. 

He was predeceased by: his parents, Bill and Gladys Garland; his wife, Anne Garland; and oldest son, Richard Garland.

The funeral service was conducted from St. John’s Anglican Church on June 24, 2019 at 2:00pm in Lloydminster, Saskatchewan with Archdeacon Michael Stonhouse officiating.

Memorial donations may be made to Pioneer House, Lloydminster Regional Health Foundation (Home Care) or the charity of the donor’s choice.

McCaw’s Funeral Service Ltd. administered the funeral arrangements.

Card of Thanks ~ The family would like to give a special thanks to the people that supported Hamish and supported our family.

Albert and Cheryl Hillaby

Fay Payne

Lynn and Vic Smith

Al Kissack

The Late Mo Price

Dr. Chan

Dr. Keynon and the Staff on the Medical Ward at the Lloydminster Hospital

Dr. duPlooy

Hearthstone Staff

Home Care Nurses

And all the Staff at Pioneer House.

 

Eulogy ~

 

Good afternoon. Thank you for joining us in the celebration of William Hamish Garland’s life. My name is Barry Wilmot and I’m the favorite son-in-law.

Hamish was born on September 16, 1925 to Gladys and Bill Garland in Regina, Saskatchewan.

 

Even when he was young, Hame had a passion for airplanes. His sister, Sybil, remembers him building balsa wood model planes, covering them with paper and hanging them in his bedroom. That passion for airplanes continued throughout his life, and when he was old enough, he tried to enlist in the Air Force in the Second World War. He was rejected due to medical reasons in Saskatoon, but he was undeterred. The very next day, he found some buddies that were going to Regina to enlist and hitched a ride, taking the long dusty trip in the rumble seat of a car. When he arrived, however, he was met by the same enlistment officer from Saskatoon who said, “I thought I told you yesterday! Stay in University!” He returned to University to finish his Engineering Degree.

 

As a bank manager, Hame’s father moved his family multiple times across the prairies and his final posting in Rosetown lead to Hame’s living out that classic “Engineer marries a Nurse” story. Anne was nursing in Rosetown while Hame was working at the refinery. His best friend, Philip, had met one of the nurses, and one day he brought Hame along for a double date at the tennis court. There he met Anne Wopnford from Big River, Saskatchewan.  And that, as they say, was that.

 

After marrying in 1949, they raised three sons and a daughter. One of the highlights in the family was the lot at Brightsand Lake, leased in 1966. Hame secured the lot and Anne went back to work as an RN to pay for the cabin package. Since then, all Hame and Anne’s kids have their own cabins to continue the legacy. Even one of Hame’s granddaughters is a cottage owner at Brightsand. Hame and Anne’s foresight in 1966 had led to many years of great times at the lake.  In 2017, the Garland family celebrated their 50th anniversary of summer get togethers at Brightsand Lake.

 

In 1987, Hame was honored as “Oilman of the Year” for his contributions to the local oil industry. He had worked for 25 years for Husky Oil and 15 years at Murphy Oil, and he enjoyed his career very much. Hame was a gentleman and a diplomat, never more so than in 1986. When tough times hit and the jobs of younger employees were in jeopardy, Hame told the head office to retire him rather than lay off someone else who was supporting their family.

After retiring, he devoted his life to the beloved acreage he and Anne owned outside of Lloydminster. He applied his engineering skills by organizing his yard work, drafting a scaled plan of the acreage and color coding it by which tasks he did on which day.

His thorough organizational skills were not always appreciated by Anne. If the daily tasks were completed, he’d always reach for the job jar he’d made to keep himself occupied, and thanks to his hardworking nature, the acreage was always immaculately kept.

One story that is fondly remembered while camping at Canoe Lake is an example of how kind Hame was. He had his boat out on the water and had bought new water skis for his sons.  The boys were very excited to take their turn on the skis.  When they had finished, Hame pulled up on the shore where a local boy was standing there watching.  He asked if he’d like to try and the boy nodded yes with a smile.  When finished, there were seven more boys waiting on the shore.  Hame happily took them all out for a turn.

 

In addition to his work ethic, Hame was also known for his generosity in spirit. Throughout his life he volunteered at the following organizations (and this is likely by no means a complete list): he was a Scout leader for 20 years, a Charter Member of the Lions club, he lent a hand to Meals on Wheels, the Slim Thorpe Recovery Centre and the Business Development Bank of Canada. He even worked on the transportation committee of the Alberta Winter Games. There weren’t many good causes that Hame didn’t support in one way or another… which makes his absence now all-the-more fully felt. Hame will be sadly missed by his family, friends and everyone whose life he touched, but I think we can all agree, he left this world a better place.

 

 

Now Andy Garland, Hame’s grandson would like to say a few words.

 

Good afternoon.

 

Like Barry said, my name is Andy Garland and I'm here to speak on behalf of the grandchildren. I'm Hamish's oldest grandchild, and unlike I think a healthy portion of the room here today, I don't make my living in the oilfield in one way or another.

Instead, I tell stories.

I was telling stories with Hamish just Tuesday in the hospital. I was sharing my tales from the West Coast with him and he was telling me all about fishing trips he'd taken. He was adamant that he was still fit to go fishing, to the point that he even told the doctor, as loud as he could manage "What, you don't think I can't land a forty pound salmon?" We'll come back to that in a bit, though.

Hey gramps.

Looking good.

Think you put on some weight.

My earliest memories of Hame Garland are always tinged in summer's light. It's late July, I've got skinned knees and more energy than common sense, as young kids tend to have, and there's a giant moving through the trees outside the family cabin at Brightsand Lake. Of course, the giant in question here is the old Bounder motorhome that signalled my grandparents arrival, the one that carried Hame and Anne down so many roads. Every time we visited, he'd always take me aside before leaving and sneak a toonie into my hand, "Don't spend it all in one place”. He'd always caution, like we were both conspirators sharing some kind of dangerous secret.

There was a wink and a grin on his face, most times I saw him when I was younger, like he knew some great secret he couldn't wait to share with you. Sometimes it was as simple as spoiling his grandkids rotten with chocolates and candies. I think I've got a few cavities that can attribute to him. Other times it was as elaborate as showing us the easiest, most efficient way to clear a hornet’s nest; with both barrels of a shotgun, fired with perfect accuracy. Or how any mechanical problem, he'd insist, could be fixed with the liberal application of duct tape and silicone. Or the way he'd suddenly accelerate when giving us grandkids a ride on the skidoo, sending us vaulting over snowbanks across the acreage and screaming for our lives.

And there's a thousand other tales we could tell, just like that. Everyone of us here carries a piece of him with us, in stories about Christmas dinners, hunting trips, renovation projects and that time, oh yes, that he landed that forty-pound salmon. Single-handedly.

And some tales may be taller than others, but nevertheless.

We live in the stories we've made.

And in that way, I think, my grandpa will be with us for quite some time yet.

On the subject of Hame's upcoming fishing trip, I think it's going a little like this. If you'll close your eyes and bear with me a moment, I think you'll see it too.

There's a diner, somewhere off the side of a prairie highway and inside, his wife, Anne, is waiting. She's been waiting more than a little while, she's already finished off a plate of french fries and a hamburger, maybe a milkshake, and she's just paid the cheque when that Bounder motorhome rolls into the parking lot. Hame just leaps outta that motorhome and runs inside. He's probably a little flustered at being late, wouldn't ever want to be an inconvenience to anyone, especially Anne, but she just hugs him, holds him close and says, "Well... you must've taken the long way around, didn't you?"

And Hame smiles. And Anne smiles. And then they drive off, towards an ocean of possibilities.

Thank you.