William E. Donovan
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of a wonderful Husband, Father, Grandfather, Great Grandfather, Uncle, Brother, and Friend of many.
Bill passed into the presence of his Lord and Saviour on November 7, 2021, with his daughter at his side, and awaits his beloved wife of 69 years, Marilyn (Wilson).
Dearly missed by his sister Jean Kirby and sister-in-law Donna Leask. Always remembering brother Bob and his wife Delores (Bertelsen) (predeceased).
Beloved Father, Grandfather, Great Grandfather of: daughter Marcia (Ken) Meyer and their family, Jonathan, and Stephanie (Josh) MacLeod and their children Maeve, Leisel, Declan; son Kim Donovan and his family, Tara (Moses) Towell and their children Revy, Hayden, Avery; and Brittany; and son Jeff (Amy) Donovan and their family, Kyle (Andie) Donovan and their son Kaje, Alexandria (Frank) Pirrone and their daughter Avie; and Andrew (Jessica), Lillie, Georgia, Aleyiah, Paytyn, Mia, Elliana, Margaret, Evie, Jackson, and Sophia.
Bill passed into the presence of his Lord and Saviour on November 7, 2021, with his daughter at his side, and awaits his beloved wife of 69 years, Marilyn (Wilson).
Dearly missed by his sister Jean Kirby and sister-in-law Donna Leask. Always remembering brother Bob and his wife Delores (Bertelsen) (predeceased).
Beloved Father, Grandfather, Great Grandfather of: daughter Marcia (Ken) Meyer and their family, Jonathan, and Stephanie (Josh) MacLeod and their children Maeve, Leisel, Declan; son Kim Donovan and his family, Tara (Moses) Towell and their children Revy, Hayden, Avery; and Brittany; and son Jeff (Amy) Donovan and their family, Kyle (Andie) Donovan and their son Kaje, Alexandria (Frank) Pirrone and their daughter Avie; and Andrew (Jessica), Lillie, Georgia, Aleyiah, Paytyn, Mia, Elliana, Margaret, Evie, Jackson, and Sophia.
In keeping with Bill’s wishes, cremation has taken place and a Celebration of Life will be held Thursday December 9, 2021 at 11:30 a.m., at the Tillsonburg Alliance Church, 270 Quarter Town Line, Tillsonburg, Ontario; preceded by a Visitation at 10 a.m. Masks are mandatory for those attending, and social distancing standards will be adhered to. We ask that you check Facebook.com/TillsonburgAlliance/ on December 8th for any possible changes on provincial limitations of guests. For those not able to physically attend, a livestream will be available on the facebook link above.
In honour of Bill’s giving nature and his wishes, please consider memorial donations to
Youth for Christ Tillsonburg https://yfctillsonburg.com/donation/general-account-tillsonburg or to the Alzheimer Society of Oxford https://alzheimer.ca/oxford, or donations may be made (by cheque) through Wareing Cremation Services, 346 Simcoe St., Tillsonburg, Ontario N4G 2J8, who have been entrusted with final arrangements. Your messages of condolence may be shared at wareingcremation.ca
Youth for Christ Tillsonburg https://yfctillsonburg.com/donation/general-account-tillsonburg or to the Alzheimer Society of Oxford https://alzheimer.ca/oxford, or donations may be made (by cheque) through Wareing Cremation Services, 346 Simcoe St., Tillsonburg, Ontario N4G 2J8, who have been entrusted with final arrangements. Your messages of condolence may be shared at wareingcremation.ca
Hi Donovan Families and Jean,
I want to express my sincere condolences to you all in the passing of the patriarch of the family, Dad, Grandpa, Brother, Uncle, Cousin. May the God or all comfort, comfort you during these days of “saying good-bye” to your loved one. I have many special memories of Bill and Marilyn especially when I moved to St. Thomas and they were living there on Sunset Drive. My husband, Don and I expect to be at the Celebration of Life on December 9th and hope to meet you then. Love and blessings, Eleanor (Grieve) Perkins (Harold and Hazel’s daughter!)
We were so sorry to hear of Bill’s death. Rachel and I had a close relationship with Bill and Marilyn and we usually went to dinner on Friday together.
I (Jack) played lots of golf together with him and friends. We ha d a great time, not because of the quality of the golf but the friendship. He was a wonderful friend to me and to many others.
I consider him my best friend and confidante.
May God Bless you all, never forget his principles.
Love forever- Rachel and Jack Parker
203 Quarter Town Line,
519 842 8122
He will be missed by many!
We rejoice that he is now in his Heavenly Home in the Presence of his Lord!
Bill gave the best bear hugs…ever!
Bill was a kind, generous, positive person with a great sense of humor .Our family was privileged to have known him. He will be greatly missed by friends and family
I’d like to send my deepest condolences to the family. Bill is my cousin. I’d like to share a poem I found and hope that it provides the family the same kind of comfort that I find it has given me.
“A Letter From Heaven.
To my dearest family, some things I’d like to say….
but first of all, to let you know, that I arrived today.
I’m writing this from heaven. Here I dwell with God above.
Here, there’s no more tears of sadness; here is just eternal love.
Please do not be unhappy just because I’m out of sight.
Remember that I’m with you every morning, noon and night.
That day I had to leave you when my life on earth was through,
God picked me up and hugged me and He said, “I welcome you.”
It’s good to have you back again; you were missed while you were gone.
As for your dearest family, they’ll be here later on.
I need you here badly; you’re part of my plan.
There’s so much that we have to do, to help our mortal man."
God gave me a list of things, that he wished for me to do.
And foremost on the list, was to watch and care for you.
And when you liein bed at night, the day’s chores put to flight.
God and I are closest to you….in the middle of the night.
When you think of my life on earth, and all those loving years,
because you are only human, they are bound to bring you tears.
But do not be afraid to cry; it does relieve the pain.
Remember there would be no flowers, unless there was some rain.
I wish that I could tell you all that God has planned.
But if I were to tell you, you wouldn’t understand.
But one thing is for certain, though my life earth is o’er.
I’m closer to you now, than I ever was before.
There are many rocky roads, ahead of you and many hills to climb;
but together we can do it by taking one day at a time.
It was always my philosophy and I’d like it for you too..
that as you give unto the world, the world will give to you.
If you can help somebody who’s in sorrow and pain,
then you can say to God at night, “My day was not in vain.”
And now I am contented….that my life has been worthwhile,
knowing as I passed along the way, I made somebody smile.
So if you meet somebody who is sad and feeling low,
just lend a hand to pick him up, as on your way you go.
When you’re walking down the street, and you’ve got me on your mind;
I’m walking in your footsteps only half a step behind.
And when it’s time for you to go….from that body to be free,
remember you’re not going….you’re coming here to me.
By Ruth Ann Mahaffey
copyright 1998-2002
Marcia, Kim, Jeff and families, we are so sorry to hear of your father’s passing. My parents had very happy memories of times spent with your parents when we lived on Simcoe St. Mom and Dad passed away in 2015. Please give your mom a hug from us. Kim, Randy and Rod Shaw
I am sorry to learn of Bills passing, another cousin has joined the host in Gods heavenly garden. Rest in peace Cousin
Extending our deepest sympathy.
Heart felt sympathies to the family. Many great memories of Bill and Dad and their silliness.
Hold the memories in your heart.
Nice Picture, Sad Times, Great Memories…