THOMAS WILLIAM FORD
August 2, 1956 – March 7, 2017
Tom was a fighter but after living with lung cancer for three years, he succumbed to his illness. A very proud Toronto firefighter for 37 years, Captain Ford’s love of “the job” was readily apparent to all who knew him. He was particularly pleased that it made him aware of Camp BUCKO (Burn Camp for Kids in Ontario) where he volunteered as a camp counsellor and on the board of directors. Additionally, Tom worked part time at The Fire Department Employees Credit Union for several years where he met Judy (Snyder), his long time partner and best friend. Tom loved and is much loved by Judy and their furry “daughter” Haby.
Interests outside of family and fire were many and varied. Birding was his passion and he traveled to Trinidad & Tobago and Alaska specifically to see species he wouldn’t find anywhere else. All things “nature” were of interest to Tom from camping and fishing to canoeing and sailing to sitting outside and just watching. He loved to travel and would go to great lengths to plan surprise trips for some of Judy’s birthdays, which also included some birding, of course! Gourmet cooking delighted guests; he would spend hours making everything from scratch – none of that store bought stuff for him. He joined a men’s cooking group, Les Marmiton, took cooking classes and watched endless hours of cooking shows, always wanting to learn one more technique. He was excellent at woodworking, cabinetry, stone work and gardening.
Tom loved his family – sisters Barb (Dennis) and Kathy (Doug), and stepsister Jackie (Jack) and nephew and niece Keith and Erin (Jason) – and his “adopted” family, sister-in-law Kathy (Peter), brother-in-law Warren (Sara), and nieces Mieke, Lisa, Amy (Chris), and Jody, as well as his great nephews and niece. Tom was very close to his British cousin, Share (Allan).
Much appreciation is extended to everyone at the Joseph Brant Hospital Cancer Clinic for their care and concern, as well as the Emergency Department teams who often were required to get Tom back on the road. Our final days with Tom would have been much more difficult without the compassion and assistance of Dorothy, nurse extraordinaire, and the sweetest and most capable team of palliative care professionals at Carpenter Hospice. Although everyone was amazing, particular thanks goes to Wendy. As such, if you wish to make a donation to honour Tom, please consider Carpenter Hospice or Joseph Brant Hospital building funds.
Visitation will be held at SMITH'S FUNERAL HOME, 485 Brant Street, (one block north of City Hall), BURLINGTON (905-632-3333), on Monday, March 20, 2017 from 3 - 5 and 6 - 8p.m. A Funeral Service will be held at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre (440 Locust Street, Burlington) on Tuesday, March 21, 2017 at 1 p.m.