John Charles Pezzack

1948 - 2021

Age 73 of Waterloo, passed away December 30, 2021, with family at his side from complications due to brain cancer.
Born October 4, 1948 in Toronto, he was the pride of Albert and Irene Pezzack (nee Bailey). John was the loving husband of Yvonne Pezzack (nee Spencer), proud father to Anne Pezzack (Olivier Quesnel) and Matthew Pezzack and beloved 'Grampa' to Maelle, Arlo and Odin. He was a caring son-in-law to Joanne Spencer, fond brother-in-law to Gloria and Roger Faulkner and uncle to Chris, Jenny and Heather.
John moved to Waterloo to pursue his studies and thus began his long association with the University of Waterloo. While there, he was a member of UW's tennis team and later coach as well as a past President of Waterloo Tennis Club where he met his wife Yvonne. Upon completing his master's degree, John built a life and career in Waterloo. He was passionate about teaching in his role as the senior lab demonstrator for biomechanics at UW and prided himself in always making time for his students to guide them in figuring out concepts.
John enjoyed spending time outdoors, playing tennis, gardening, golfing and in earlier years camping. He always had a project on the go, woodworking or otherwise, and he took great pleasure in creatively planning and solving problems related to these projects. His projects were completed with the utmost attention to detail and always over-engineered to his sturdy specifications. John's love of painting and drawing have left us with many special works to remember him by. Although he endured many health challenges throughout his life, he faced them all without complaint. Above all else, John loved his family. He spent countless hours researching and compiling the Pezzack family tree and always put his family's needs above his own.
Those who knew John will remember him for his early adoption of the Birkenstocks and socks movement, for his love of Dad's cookies, Diet Coke and TV, and especially for his hearty laugh and legendary bear hugs.
An outdoor Celebration of Life for family and friends will be held in the spring.
Our family is grateful for the friends and family who have shown such love and support during John's illness and since his passing. Those who wish to make a memorial donation may choose to support The Nature Conservancy of Canada (natureconservancy.ca), Right to Play (righttoplay.ca) or Doctors Without Borders (Doctorswithoutborders.ca).
"Love one another."