Cecil Gordon Kennedy

Posted Jul 25, 2024 | 3:47 PM by CookSFC

November 22, 1933 – July 22, 2024

Our dear Dad left us on July 22, 2024, to be reunited with his beloved wife Vivian. Although the world is a little less bright without him, we are happy Cecil and Vivian are together again, hand in hand where they belong. Cecil was born in Manitoba to Agnes and James Kennedy. He was the youngest of three, years behind his older brother James Jr. (Jim) and sister, Annie. The family suffered a great loss with the death of James Sr. at the age of 52, their lives deeply altered by this event. Agnes was left to support her family on her own. She sold the family farm to provide for her family and vowed to never re-marry. Cecil’s family lineage is of the great Lowland families of Scotland, tracing their ancestry back to Robert the Bruce. The Kennedy family’s castle in Scotland, Culzean Castle, dates back to 1659. Cecil’s grandfather, Alexander Kennedy, founded Castlebank Dyeworks, one of Glasgow’s oldest and largest laundries. Cecil’s father James, was given the choice to head up business in Mexico (mining), India (a rubber plantation) or to go to Canada to farm. He chose Canada and settled in Manitoba. Cecil’s mother Agnes was from Belfast. Her father worked in the shipyards of Belfast and was one of many men who laboured on the Titanic. When Agnes was a little girl, she watched the doomed ship leave the Belfast harbour. Agnes came to Canada at the age of 20 and married James in 1919. After James passed away in 1936, she moved the family to Saskatchewan, before finally settling in Waskada, Manitoba. With his brother and sister both serving in WW2, Cecil grew up as the “man-around-the-house”. He left school early to work and met his future wife Vivian, whom he married at the age of 23 on July 20, 1957. Cecil had a healthy curiosity and was adept at mechanics and carpentry. He went on to earn his heavy-duty mechanic ticket and spent his career working in garages all over Western Canada. He served as the Transportation Supervisor at the Berry Creek School Division in Southern Alberta until his retirement. Cecil had a bit of a wanderer’s spirit and the family moved often, with adventures in the southern interior and sunshine coast of British Columbia, in Northern Saskatchewan and the prairies of Alberta. Summers were spent in Manitoba at Vivian’s family farm where he fixed farm equipment and worked in the fields with his in-laws, enjoying being a part of a large, working farm-family. Cecil was active in the Legion and the Moose Lodge, among other charitable organizations. In Southern Alberta he served as a volunteer firefighter. Cecil was a good friend and neighbour wherever he lived, always ready to lend a helping hand. He had an inventors-mind, and spent much of his free time in his garage and workshop, tinkering, building and figuring how things worked. Cecil had a mischievous sense of humour and although he was a quiet man, he often had a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye. Cecil and Vivan were married for 65 years and were rarely apart, dubbed “the lovebirds” at the two care homes they resided in at the end of their lives. When Vivian fell and broke her hip in early 2022, Cecil unfortunately followed, breaking his hip a few weeks after her. They ended up in the same hospital room in Medicine Hat, thanks to their daughter-in-law and nurse Tracy. Cecil was by Vivian’s side when she passed on April 1, 2022. Cecil will be missed by his son, Sean and daughter, Payton Lynne; daughter-in-law, Tracy; six grandchildren: Chandra, Belinda, Mitchell, Raeme, Greyson and Leif; great-grandchildren: Olivia and Finley; all members of their families, the Kennedy and Bradshaw families, and the many friends he made over his life. Sean and Payton Lynne, adopted by Cecil and Vivan as infants, are forever grateful to be chosen and loved by their mom and dad. The family wishes to extend their gratitude to all the staff at South Country Village/Sunnyside Care Centre who took such good care of Cecil during the last two years. An internment ceremony for Cecil and Vivian will be announced and take place in future. Now and always, they will rest in love and peace together. (Condolences may be shared by visiting www.cooksouthland.com). Honoured to serve the family is Cook Southland Funeral Chapel, Crematorium & Reception Facility, 901 – 13 Street S.W., Medicine Hat, AB., T1A 4V4. Telephone: 403-527-6455 or toll free at: 1-877-528-6455.

Date : 2024-07-22
Location : Medicine Hat, Alberta