James Alton MacLean

JAMES (JAMIE) ALTON MacLEAN Born in Moncton, NB, Jamie moved to Toronto with his family at the age of 9. He attended Sir Wilfrid Laurier Collegiate Institute in Guildwood and went on to attend Laurier University in Kitchener. Jamie became a Toronto Firefighter in 1989 and devoted his life to helping others. Jamie lived his life to the fullest with his passion, dedication; great sense of humour and strength of character. He beat the odds time and time again and has left an indelible mark on all lives touched along the way. Jamie's valiant effort to live life to the fullest ended peacefully surrounded by family on July 5, 2011 at the age of 48 at Southlake Regional Health Centre. Jamie leaves behind his beloved wife of 11 years, Milena and his little angel Madison, whom he adored. He will be sadly missed by his parents Alton and Shirley MacLean, his sister Patti (Kirt) Marshall and his brother Jason MacLean. Jamie will also be greatly missed by his in-laws Stan and Anka Jeremic, brothers-in-law, Nenad (Lisa) Jeremic and Milenko Perse, his nieces and nephews; Michael, Tyler, Meaghan, Cassandra, Julia, Caitlyn and Cameron as well as his many aunts, uncles, cousins and countless number of friends. When I am gone release me Let me go, I have so many things to see and do You mustn't tie yourself to me with tears Be happy that we had so many beautiful years I gave to you my love You can only guess how much you gave me in happiness I thank you for the love you each have shown But now it's time I travel alone So grieve awhile for me, if grieve you must Then let your grief be comforted by my trust It's only for awhile that we must part So bless the memories within your heart I won't be far away, for life goes on So if you need me, call and I will come Though you can't see or touch me, I'll be near And if you listen within your heart you'll hear All my love around you soft and clear And then when you must come this way alone I'll greet you with a smile and say "Welcome Home." We will miss him more than words can say. We wish to express our gratitude to Dr. James Perry and his entire team for providing Jamie with the best available treatment, and for the kindness and compassion demonstrated throughout the years. We also extend our deepest thanks to Dr. Cindy So, Suzanne Rowland and all of the nurses of the palliative care team at Southlake for providing Jamie with unsurpassed compassion and care during the last weeks of his life. Family and friends will be received at the Marshall Funeral Home, 10366 Yonge Street, Richmond Hill, ON, (4th traffic light north of Major Mackenzie Dr.) on Friday, July 8, 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. A line of duty funeral and celebration of life will be held on Saturday, July 9 at 11 a.m. in the chapel at Marshall Funeral Home, reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, donations in Jamie's memory may be made to the Sunnybrook Foundation, www.sunnybrook.ca/foundation; in memoriam, donations made to Sunnybrook will be allocated to the Corolla Brain Tumor Research Chair; to Southlake Regional Health Centre, www.southlakeregional.org, Palliative Care Unit: or donations in Jamie's memory may be made to the B-Strong Fund in aid of brain tumor research. Cheques payable to the B-Strong Fund can be sent to 12 Russell Court, Unionville, Ontario, L3R 2Y3. Online Condolences may be left at www.marshallfuneralhome.com