John BAIGENT

I met John and Woinshet at Bob Clay's place on the Kispiox River and bumped into several times on the Bulkley and Copper Rivers. He was a gentleman and a remarkable person.

I was so sorry to hear of John's death. He was a true friend and a great, open soul, who made enormous contributions to Africa, both in West Africa during his years with CUSO, and later in Ethiopia with Partners in the Horn. He will be sorely missed.

I met Johnny when he joined our class at Loyola High School having just arrived from Toronto.Johnny WAS a free spirit (as pointed out by a fellow classmate, Jean Pothier), so we got on just fine. We had a lot of laughs in class, and outside,really a lot of good times together. I travelled to Toronto and met his delightful French Canadian mother and very funny Anglo father. What a pair! His aunt Therese here in Montreal was John's anchor, a wonderful woman.Johnny was a pretty good student,(as good as was necessary in those days)a great athlete,(he was the reigning 440(yards) champ at Loyola, this being the prestige track and field event. I spent my summers "up north" in the Laurentians at summer camps, and Johnny worked at Roland paper mills near St. Jerome so we got together on occasion and managed to get into trouble! Good times! Then all that changed when Johnny decided to join the Jesuit Order and left for Guelph to the Novitiate.
Johnny paid Anna and I a visit at our home in Beaconsfield about a year and a half before his passing. He was on a cross country tour with his wife, Woinshet on his way to the Maritimes. We kept in touch over the years,but realistically, geographically and otherwise(I was a dentist,he a lawyer, etc. etc.)we didn't keep in touch enough. I am so sorry to see Johnny go,the world will miss him.May he rest in peace.

As Neil Sterritt said this was a lovely obituary. Baigent was a lovely man who managed to avoid a tete gonflee in spite of his remarkable talents. Time spent with him was always well spent and he always provided a welcome sanctuary from life's challenges. I will miss him but look forward to joining with others on February 4th to celebrate his life.
I would like to convey my condolences to his family and hope that with the passage of time fond memories will overwhelm the sense of loss.

The Galimberti's are very sorry to hear about your loss. John was a good friend of my eldest brother Joey, my dad, Joe and mother Ida. All six of us enjoyed his visit for dinner when he would share his ideas during the family debate. John left for the Peace Core in Ghana Africa when I was about 15 and we three girls were in awe of his contributions to his community and the world. And such beautiful grandchildren.
Let the light of Peace and the hope for a better world shine in the eyes of children and grandchildren around the world.

Peace and solidarity.
[email protected]

It is with a very heavy heart that I learned John Baigent had passed away at age 75 from Acute Myeloid Leukemia. John was a veteran labour lawyer that I worked closely with when I was staff at the BC Federation of Labour as the BC NDP government of Mike Harcourt reviewed the BC Labour Relations Code issues.

Working with fellow special advisors Vince Ready and Tom Roper, Baigent was one of the "Three Wise Men" who wrote the 1992 Recommendations for Labour Law Reform that substantially change labour law for the better in BC after years of Social Credit anti-union legislation.

But John was involved in so much more of BC labour relations work with unions across the province - he was a truly compassionate and unique individual whose wisdom was evident every time he addressed an issue. And he also made a huge commitment to the people of the Horn of Africa in Ethiopia, spending much time and money helping create important development projects there to improve lives in one of the world's poorest nations. A great trade unionist, a true humanitarian - rest in peace Brother - well done.

What very sad news to learn that John Baigent has died. My deep sympathy is extended to his family and friends. John was a marvellous lawyer and did brilliant work for the BCGEU after we chose him and Marguerite Jackson to do the bulk of our legal work in the 1970's. His subsequent dedication to development work for the people was legendary and it was a privilege to support his work. I will never forget our lively conversations in his living room at Enderby. He and his work will be long remembered. May he rest in peace forever.

He was God's own hustler and consequently my hero.

We are very saddened to learn of John's passing. We so enjoyed our conversations , especially our "dog" talks as we do love our dogs. I remember when John brought Partners to Enderby and it was difficult to deny his passion and love for the Ethiopian people and he brought the awareness that we could indeed make a difference to. We will always be grateful for his kind and generous assistance when we were faced with crisis.
Our heart felt condolences are with you Woinshet and all of John's children and loved ones.
Moe and Dave

What very sad news. John was a fantastic guy. A brilliant lawyer and a true humanitarian. My sincerest condolences to his family and close friends.

My sympathy to John's family. Joyce Scotton

Johnny and I met at Loyola High school and quickly became friends. We spent a lot of time together, evenings with Aunt Therese and with my parents who found him charming.
Johnny was a free spirit. We were boarders at Loyola, we got caught sneaking out of Mass (he made me do it) and we were grounded at the school for the weekend, it was not to be the last time.
We spent weekends at his family's cottage at Lac l'Achigan. For some reason (I lost a bet) I had to do all the rowing.
He surprised us all by joining the Jesuits. Kenny DesRoches and I visited him in Guelph. Driving home we were both impacted by the experience.
When I learnt that Johnny was leaving the seminar I invited him to come spend time with me at Powter's Camp in Saint Donat
Leaving for Ghana to work at CUSO, he made me promise to take care of his girlfriend. Much to his chagrin, she and I soon became very good friends.
When he came back from Ghana, he brought back a unique coffee table supported by three large hand carved elephants which was a wedding gift to us. He always did things in a big way.
The last time I saw him was when he was here for his beloved Aunt Therese funeral. We had supper with my family at the Chalet Bar B Q, a favourite hangout of ours.
We did keep in touch but now I regret not doing so more.
This spring I will dedicate to his memory my walk on the Camino de Santiago in northern Spain.
He was special, I will miss him.

This obituary is a lovely tribute to John. John was a legal advisor to us, the Gitxsan and Wet'suwet'en peoples way back in 1977 when we began our march towards what later became the Delgamuukwcase, and our 1997 Supreme Court victory. He was a good friend, and a respectful resident of the Bulkley Valley, where yes, he loved to fish for steelhead.

We will miss him,

Neil J. Sterritt