Gordon Henry WRIGHT

1922 - 2020

GORDON HENRY WRIGHT Gordon Henry Wright, of Toronto, passed away on January 3, 2020 at age 97. Devoted husband of Irene Wright (née Bint), dearly loved father of Mark (Mair), John (Barbara), Paul (Elsie) and Judith; cherished grandad of Elin (Tim), Huw (Joanne), David (Melana), Chris, Katherine (Robert) and Michelle; great-grandad of Jean-Jacques, Luc, Amélie and Freddie; well loved uncle and great uncle of nieces and nephews in England and USA and godchildren in England and South Africa. He was born August 9, 1922 in Abbey Wood (London), England to Herbert Wright and Phoebe Garnham. He married Irene Constance Bint July 10, 1948 at St Mary's Church, Woolwich. He was predeceased by his wife Irene (2014) and his siblings Armand (1922) and Jack (1999). Gordon was the last of his generation of both the Wright and the Bint sides of the family. After serving in the RAF during WW2 he entered the Technical Library field where he had significant influence in England, which was recognized in other parts of the commonwealth. He wrote a book on the role of the library in colleges of commerce and technology which was published in 1966. Hatfield Polytechnic (Hertfordshire University) recognised his contributions including the design of the new library by naming this library in his honour (The Wright Building). In 1969, he emigrated to Canada with the family following in 1970 to manage and grow the College Bibliocentre, one of the earliest Shared Service Organizations in Ontario to support the Ontario College Library System. He completed his career by retiring as Director of Planning, Budgeting and Administrative Services from the Robarts Library, University of Toronto in 1988. Gordon was a passionate painter, carver, stain-glass creator and archivist. He was a keen reader, writer and avid collector of books and he enjoyed walking, traveling and, most of all, cherishing family and friends. Funeral arrangements through his family.