JAMES PAUL FRENCH

September 30, 1953 - September 27, 2024 This is a story about our brother. The son of Frances Mary French (nee LaBine) and James Patrick French. Brother to Chris (Cathy), Mary Fran (Brian), Paddy (Karen) and Michael (Colette). Cherished uncle of Britt (Ben) and Blaire, Emma (Peter) and Andie, Claire (Matt), Andrew and Thomas. Born in Toronto, raised in Edmonton and Georgian Bay, Paul passed away peacefully at home, in his beloved Thunder Beach. For those who knew his heart, Paul's embrace of life defined a man of compassion and curiosity. A friend forever. A revered brother. A cousin and uncle to nieces, nephews and families whose lives he saw as inextricably bound by gratitude for being born under a Canadian sky. The gleeful Paul was funny and not without vice. As a child in Edmonton, he introduced friends to cigars. As a teenager, he raced go-karts on the track and on city streets after dark. He played rugby and loved to regale his mother with bloody tales from encounters on the pitch. As the boy became a man, Paul arrived home dressed as a policeman. He explained to his parents that joining the CN Railway Police was about being part of the country's heritage. His time with the force was an adventure and a step on the road to charting his own course. Speeding away in his police cruiser with lights flashing, Paul tipped his hat to the neighbours. The shy kid in glasses had discovered his bravado to become one of the good guys, then and always. For those who knew Paul professionally in a construction career that began alongside his father, a civil engineer in the Northwest Territories, Yukon and Alberta, Paul's return to Ontario and York University marked a change in direction when he joined Parkin Architects, as one of only two employees who were not architects. Paul recognized the strategic opportunity at the intersection of art, design, engineering and management and never looked back. For almost 20 years, Paul's relationship with Parkin was the centre of his life. So proud was he to be affiliated with men and women who shared a commitment to create practical innovative buildings, including hospitals and medical facilities that improved the wellbeing of communities throughout Ontario. From the moment a child built his first sandcastle on the Georgian Bay shore, to the moment the boy learned to command the water and wind by sail, Paul intuitively understood the waters he found so enchanting would hold him forever breathless. This was his sanctuary. A place of endless summer where memories of winter were but the space between the long and precious days of July and August. Over the years, the children of summer returning to build castles at the water's edge included Paul's great-nieces. Recently, as an afternoon breeze arrived pushing waves into the shallows and engulfing the girls meticulously constructed creations in the sand, the warmth of Paul's embrace allowed them to work as one. The sandcastles were rebuilt and in two children, memories of a gentle man forged in time. The circle of life is unbroken on the beach in Georgian Bay. Gratitude was in the air Paul breathed on a road less travelled, where as a child, a boy and a man, he could move back and forth seamlessly through time in the embrace of those he loved. These were the memories of Paul we treasure in his life of accomplishment and purpose. In lieu of a funeral, there will be a gathering to celebrate Paul's life in the summer or 2025 in the beach community he called home. Charitable donations to your local hospital foundation or food bank would support Paul's commitment to those organizations.