BROWN, William (Bill) Stephen On Sunday, March 24, 2019, Bill, loving husband and father of three, passed away peacefully at the age of 82.
Bill was born May 19, 1936 in Greenfield Park, QC to Edward and Ellen Brown. He graduated from St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY in 1958 and worked in the Canadian Forest Products Industry throughout his career. He has three children, Dwight of Boston, MA, Cory of Portsmouth, RI and Jody of Delta, BC. In December 1994, Bill married Lise Richard and lived in Toronto until retiring to the Peterborough area in 1996.
His early life revolved around sports in Greater Montreal where he played football and hockey for Chambly County High School and area teams. Despite the years and distance, he counted his boyhood friends from Greenfield Park and St. Lambert among some of his closest throughout his life. He received a hockey scholarship to St. Lawrence University, where his prowess on the ice earned him a reputation for speed and productivity. His sub-three-minute hat-trick stood on the record books for many years after his graduation and he was later proudly inducted into the St. Lawrence Athletic Hall of Fame. Post-college and hockey, his working years were equally successful: He held a number of executive positions in the paper industry and led two national industry associations for whom he frequently represented Canada on trips to Europe and Asia. Most of all, he maintained close relationships with many of his former colleagues up until the time of his passing.
Bill had a passion for the written and spoken word. He was a voracious reader. He leaves a tome of speeches and poems, which he penned over the years and which range from the hilarious to the inspirational. He loved to work with his hands – the gentleman’s farm of 60+ acres that he and Lise renovated in Norwood, Ontario gave him endless days of hard work as well as opportunities to learn new skills.
Bill was preceded in death by his older brother Birt and younger sister Cheryl. He is survived by his wife, three children, three grandchildren, and his two brothers Robert of Victoria, BC and Gordon of Collingwood, ON.
In lieu of flowers, a donation to the Peterborough Regional Health Centre is appreciated. www.prhcfoundation.ca