JOHN NELSON MITCHELL

1934 - 2024

JOHN NELSON MITCHELL BSc.Ag. p.Ag. On November 27, 2024, in his 91st year, John died with his family beside him at Queen's Gardens in Hamilton, Ontario. John was born in Montreal on July 6, 1934, to Howard Scott Mitchell and Elizabeth Mitchell (Yates). John and his sister, Jane, were raised in Montreal, with early years also spent at the Mitchell family farms in Listowel, Ontario. He graduated in 1958 with a BSc in Agriculture (Bacteriology) from MacDonald College, McGill. John loved expounding revolutionary ideas, and he enjoyed listening to and debating new ideas and concepts, long before those ideas were in the mainstream of broader society. John was an avid advocate for food security, sustainable agriculture, and the environment. John was captivated by the natural world and all things living, including anything and everything about horses. John valued talking to people and was often recruiting people to support his ideas, such as building a stack wall house in Dalkeith, starting the Salvation Army's Blue-Bag-IT recycle program, planting trees and bulbs, growing squash for local food banks and gardening at Interval House. John was predeceased by both his first wife, Jane Mitchell (Quintin); and Jean Haste Mitchell (Osborn), his second wife. John is survived by his sister, Jane Ellen Henderson; his children, Neil Quintin Mitchell (Darla), Stephen Yates Mitchell (Sheila) and Clare Elizabeth Mitchell (Clare); grandchildren, Cameron (Sarah), Samantha, Graeme, Andrew, Michael, Alex (Caitlin), and Carissa; and his great-grandsons, Leo and Carter. John spent the last seven years of his life at Queen's Gardens, where he was lovingly cared for. Thank you to the entire Queen's Gardens team, especially the Mountain Brow family. In lieu of flowers, please donate, stating in memory of John N. Mitchell to the Hamilton Regional Indian Centre's Urban Indigenous Homeward Bound Program (www.hric.ca/) or the People's Food Institute (peoplesfoodinstitute.org/donate/). Family and friends may visit at the L. G. Wallace Funeral Home, 151 Ottawa St. N., Hamilton, on Friday, December 6, 2024, from 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., followed by a service in the Chapel at 12:30 p.m. Private cremation to follow. Please visit www.lgwallace.ca for online condolences and for a link to view services via livestream.