1940 – 2024
Michael peacefully took his last breath and closed his eyes on July 16, 2024, at Mount Saint Mary Hospital in Victoria BC. He is survived by his wife, Frances “Fran” Perkins; his three children, Nicholas, Christopher, and Amanda; his sister, Angela; and five grandchildren Annabelle, Spencer, Sam, Charlotte “Charlie”, and Willow.
He first entered the world on February 28, 1940, in Plymouth, England, where he grew up with siblings Gillian, Angela, and Nigel. He lived in Malta for two years, from age ten to twelve, when his father was stationed there with the Navy. After returning to Plymouth, he attended St Boniface Catholic High School before going on to complete a degree in civil engineering at Plymouth Polytechnic.
Soon after graduating, he moved to Leicester to work for the water department. It was in Leicester that he met Frances, at the tennis club. They married in 1967 and emigrated to Canada in 1968 with their ten week old son, Nicholas. His son Christopher was born two years later, in 1970, and his daughter Amanda in 1974.
He held several engineering jobs — in Chatham, Newmarket, and Don Mills, Ontario — before moving North with his family to Elliot Lake, Ontario in 1976, where he remained employed as the city engineer until 2005. During this time he was instrumental in creating new infrastructure and new subdivisions as the town grew. Upon reaching retirement age, he was able to continue his work for the city of Elliot Lake as an independent consultant, which he did until 2017.
Michael stayed very active throughout his life, taking part in a wide variety of outdoor sports. In his youth, he played rugby for Plymouth Albion club, Leicester Tigers, and Toronto Scottish (Ontario champs 1970). He was a lifelong cyclist and competed in triathlons and adventure races. He was an avid cross country skier. He did a five week cycling tour of New Zealand in 2007. He went on many family camping trips, as well as hiking, canoeing, and rock climbing adventures.
In his after-supper leisure time, he kept his mind active by reading the newspaper, doing cryptic crosswords, sudoku, and chess puzzles. He also enjoyed tackling home renovation projects, which were never-ending as he took his time with them and completed each one with meticulous attention to detail.
Michael was a man of few words, though the words he did speak were always worth listening to, often revealing his keen insight, as well as a terrific sense of humour. As a father, he was patient and kind, never one to raise his voice in anger. He had great appreciation for music and would often sing Frank Sinatra or Gershwin songs around the house.
As Alzheimer’s took over his life in later years, when communication became more difficult, Michael’s appreciation of music only deepened and his spontaneous bouts of dancing became more frequent. After moving to Victoria in 2020, Fran and Mike found community with the Voices in Motion choir and sang with them regularly up until Mike went into long term care at Mount St Mary’s. The care and compassion provided by the dedicated staff there was beyond measure.
Condolences may be offered to the family at www.pacificcoastcremation.com