November 5, 2023
John Long, 76, of Maple Ridge, BC, died on Nov. 5, 2023 at McKenney Creek Hospice.
John was born in St. Joseph's Cove, Newfoundland, the oldest of 6 children. Fishing and hunting from a young age were a requirement to help feed his family, but became a lifelong love for John, an avid outdoorsman.
John was a fighter who recovered from a spinal cord injury as a teenager, which temporarily paralyzed him. Despite this catastrophic injury, he became a logger, and later a professional driver, ending his working career as a heavy duty mechanic, a certification he was proud to receive in his fifties.
John was predeceased by his beloved wife Claire, and by his parents Gordon and Matilda, and his sister Juanita (Levi Organ).
John is survived by his 3 children, Gillian, Renita (Jeffrey Yu) and Garrett, and his cherished grandchildren, Josephine and Oscar, and siblings Marg (Jerome), Terry (Debbie), Colin (Sandra) and Clayton (Heather), and many nephews and nieces.
Prayers will be held at St. Patrick's church, Maple Ridge, on November 21st at 7 pm, and the funeral Mass on November 22nd at 11:30 am, followed by a reception at Holy Grounds Cafe, next to the church.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Ridge Meadows Hospice Society.
Expressions of sympathy can be made at www.gardenhill.ca