JACKSON, ROBERT JOHN January 17, 1930 – September 30, 2020 Peacefully, in his sleep, Bob passed away in his 91st year. He leaves his beloved wife of 69 years, Anne, his 8 children, Bob Jr. (Justine), Valerie (Bruce), Jeff (Wendy), David (Sandy), Bruce, Tim (Lynn), Dan and James (Arlene), his 12 grandchildren, Christopher (Marta), Danielle (Dave), Kaitlin (Cassie), Steven, Laura, Vicky (Curtis), Devin, Samantha (Geoff), Taylor, Hunter, Courtanie (Bryan) and Sarah, and his 5 great-grandchildren, Alexander, Violet, Sean, Henry and Knox.
Bob was born in Montreal, the middle son of George and Edna. He was predeceased by his parents and both brothers, Peter and Stuart. His family moved to Toronto when he was a child and he lived his entire life in the city’s west end. He met the love of his life, Anne, in Grade 9 at Humberside Collegiate. He married Anne in 1952 and by the time he was 36 they were raising their 8 children. He had a successful career, working at Canada Packers in labour relations for 17 years, then moving to the Hospitals of Ontario Pension Plan where he rose to Executive Director. His retirement gave him more time to spend on the things he loved, working in his garden, managing his many house projects, reading his math and physics books and taking long country drives with Anne to hunt for antique Royal Doultons and new bakeries to visit.
And, of course, his children and grandchildren. Bob was intelligent, logical, curious and always interested in learning more about the world. His introduction to the internet brought him hours of enjoyment exploring his passions and listening to music. He worked to remain as independent as possible through the challenges of aging, trading his car for an ATV called “the beast” that he rode up to his death.
He was a loyal and caring husband and a father his children could always count on. As the patriarch of a huge and growing family, he will be greatly missed. As a result of gathering restrictions, a service for immediate family only will be held on Wednesday, October 7th at 2 p.m. In lieu of flowers, a donation to the Alzheimer Society of Canada in Bob’s memory would be greatly appreciated.