Peter Joseph GOSLIN

1931 - 2023

January 15, 1931 - February 15, 2023

Peter was born in Tottenham, London, England where he lived with his parents, Joe and Dolly, and his aunties, Rose and Florrie. WWII was raging during his young years. He had many stories to tell about bombs in the night and sitting in the air raid shelter in his backyard until the "all clear" sirens went off. One of his favourite tales was about the time the dog ate all the week's meat rations while the family was in the shelter. There was a requirement after the war for all young men to do a two-year stint in the army; it was during those two years that Peter honed his skills as a draftsman.

He met Maureen at a friend's party and they married in March of 1954. Their son, Robert was born in England and not long after, Peter saw an opportunity for a better life in Canada and travelled here to take a job with Canadian General Electric in Sarnia where Janine was born. A transfer to Peterborough in the early 60's and the other kids, Mark and Lisa completed the family; as well as some dogs (Mandy esp.) along the way. Peter worked at the GE until he retired.

Always the family man, Peter was a full participant in his kid's lives. He was a Cub Scout leader for many years at St. Paul's church and then at Five Counties Children's Centre. He was a coach at the Trent Swim Club and the Peterborough Track Club. Together with Maureen, he took the family camping (The Otonabees) and to cultural events like the ballet and the theatre. Peter was always up for a 'Stupid Family Walk' before a big family meal. Pretty sure he was the inventor of the "Dad Joke" - they were frequent and always groaners.

When the grandkids (Michael, Nicholas, Amanda, Melinda, Peter, Laura, Paxton) came along he went to soccer and t-ball games, volunteered at their school and in general acted silly for them - sitting at the dinner table with a fork stuck up his nose until someone noticed was a classic. There were great-grandkids too; Ethan, Zoey, Josh, Leah, Cohen, Kylar, Milo, Kayden, Sawyer, Max and Wesley.

Peter was a bit of a ham. He performed in several plays with the Peterborough Theatre Guild - Cinderella, Pip, Guys & Dolls. He was also a whistler; you could hear him coming up the street when he got off the GE bus because he was always whistling a tune as he walked. If you told someone that you were related to Peter, their comment was always, "Oh, I just love him, he's such a lovely man", and he sure was. He liked to golf and he liked the Leafs, but we won't hold that against him - lol!

When he was in his 70's, Peter volunteered at Fairhaven teaching computer skills to "the old people". In his 80's, he joined the Activity Haven Choir and went on tour with them to many of Peterborough's long-term care facilities to sing; one of his favourite tunes was Three Old Ladies Locked in the Lavatory.

Peter and Maureen were married for 68 years; the last few were spent together at Extendicare Peterborough. They would sit side by side, holding hands, fast asleep, most of the day until Maureen passed in April 2022. Even though Maureen had dementia and didn't know who he was anymore, Peter still held her hand, stroked her hair and spoke to her lovingly until she left this world. He referred to her as "a lovely girl".

Peter will be sadly missed by his kids, grandkids, great-grandkids and all the "hangers on". We are most grateful for the care shown to both of our parents by the Extendicare staff these past several years; their kindness was most appreciated.

A Celebration of Peter's Life will be held at Nisbett Funeral Home, 600 Monaghan Rd. S., Peterborough on Saturday, March 11, 2023, at 1 p.m. with visitation for one hour prior.

Please, no flowers, but if you feel so inclined, a donation to a Charity of Your Choice would be appreciated.

For online condolences, please visit www.nisbettfuneralhome.com