Gordon Edward Pirie

Gordon passed away peacefully on December 1, 2016 surrounded by his loving family. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Jean (née Nesbitt); sons Andrew (Colleen) and Jonathan (Nicole); sister Patricia; brothers Glen and Jack; and his many nieces and nephews. His grandchildren Michael, Katie, Matthew, Norah and Hazel will dearly miss their Grand-dad/Papa.

Gordon left his hometown of Senlac, Saskatchewan to study medicine at McGill. He met Jean while both were visiting London, England and they married in 1960 after moving to Vancouver. There he worked as a paediatric respirologist and a neonatology intensivist at the Health Centre for Children at VGH. He later spearheaded the building of the Intensive Care Unit at the newly constructed BC Children's Hospital in 1982 where he was the director until his retirement in 1993.

Having been born during the depression, Gordon insisted on building and fixing everything he could get his hands on, much to the chagrin of those family members forced to assist him. He will also be remembered for his passion of music and song, delighting the family gatherings with his skills at the piano. He will be mostly remembered for his keen but eccentric intellect which was so central to his character. His many inventive gadgets and lists were the hallmark of his lively and restless mind.

Thanks must go to the staff of the Sunrise, South Granville Park Lodge, and Arbutus care facilities for their compassion, kindness and hard work.

As per his wishes, there will be no formal memorial service. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the BC Children's Hospital.