William Richard FERGUSON

1937 - 2024

WILLIAM RICHARD FERGUSON, CPA December 4, 1937 - February 10, 2024 It is with much love and fond memories that we mourn the passing of William "Bill" Ferguson, who passed away February 10th, at the age of 86, at the Teresa Dellar Palliative Care Residence, Kirkland, QC. His battle with his health in recent months showed his courage in facing life challenges with humour and love. He was generous and kind and lived a life giving to others. Born in Saint John, NB, December 4, 1937, to the late J. William and Elizabeth (Lirette) Ferguson, he met the love of his life, Mary Ann (Foley). Married 61 happy years, together they raised five children: Bill (Donna), Terence (Monique), Elizabeth, Robert (Danielle) and Shannon (Mark), who lovingly will cherish memories of his kind heart and generous nature. Predeceased by his sister, Elaine Manning; and two brothers, Robert (Gwen) and Bart, he will be fondly remembered by many nieces and nephews. 'Grampy' and his famous 'Grampy Treats' will be lovingly remembered by his 19 grandchildren: Jennifer (Graham), Gregory (Nichelle) Nicholas (Jennifer) Christopher, Kathleen (Eamon), Matthew, Liam, William Melissa, Aidan, Sara, Kyle, Norah, Ryan, Alexia, Ashley, Colin, Fiona and Taylor; and his four great-grandchildren: Ella, Evan, Maty and Jack. While attending Saint John Vocational High School, he captained the Rugby, Hockey and Track and Field Teams, earning him Athlete of the Year in 1956-57. He continued his education on a Hockey scholarship at Clarkson University in New York, and later achieved his CPA designation in 1969 from McMaster University. Moving from a few years in PEI to Montreal in the seventies, Bill worked for the late R. Howard Webster at Imperial Trust. His business career was extensive and he served on many Boards, including Danesco Inc. (Kirkland, QC), Eric T Webster Foundation (Pointe-Claire, QC), NewLook Vision Group (Montreal, QC) and the Confederation Centre of the Arts (Charlottetown, PEI). Bill was also a member of the Board of the Toronto Blue Jays prior to being appointed Chairman in the early nineties. He later assisted in the eventual sale of the Blue Jays to Labatts Breweries. He remained an avid Blue Jays fan and often wore Blue Jay fan apparel. He was also a big fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs and was hoping he would live long enough to see them win a Stanley Cup, but alas. Bill enjoyed a majority of his Montreal summers and Florida winters golfing with friends and family. In addition to his hole-in-one talent (he had four of them!), he also organized many gin, bridge and golf groups. He formed many lasting friendships as a member of the Royal Montreal Golf Club, and member and Chair of the Board of Governors of the Club Pelican Bay (Naples, FL). We would like to express our sincere appreciation to the doctors, nurses and staff at the Teresa Dellar Palliative Care Residence for their heartfelt care and dedication towards Bill while he was with them. We also thank Family Doctor, Dr. A. Dowell and Dr. Shen Li of the Lakeshore General Hospital Oncology Department who followed Bill's health for many years. Visitation will take place on Thursday, February 22, 2024, from 3:00-7:00 p.m. at the Rideau Funeral Home, located at 4275 Sources Boulevard in Dollard des Ormeaux. A burial ceremony will take place at Saint Joseph's Cemetery in Saint John, NB, at a later date. In lieu of flowers, remembrances can be made to the Teresa Dellar Palliative Care Residence (Kirkland, QC) or the Lakeshore General Hospital Foundation (Pointe-Claire, QC).