Obituary of Kenneth Roy Dowd
Kenneth Roy Dowd (Ken)
Ken passed away after a short illness surrounded by family on Friday, December 13th at the age of 94. He is survived by his wife of 71 years, Della, children Ann (Dave) Hotson, Sean (Marian) in Spain, Tim (Amy), Joe (Aviva) in Nebraska, Mary Pat (Matt) McKay in Oxford Mills, 15 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren. He is also survived by brothers Jim and Gerry Dowd. He is preceded by infant son Patrick, and siblings Bill, Eleanor Mills and Marilyn Richardson.
Ken was born in 1930 in Hamilton, ON. Ken was active with the Catholic church and met the love of his life, Della, though the Young Peoples of St. Catharines. He had a sense of service for his community and a love of learning. Ken’s father worked for the Grantham Fire Department and in 1956 Ken joined him, working for 35 years and retiring at the position of Acting Platoon Chief. He was immensely proud when his son, granddaughter and grandson also became firefighters. Ken’s sense of service continued as his family grew. If he knew someone needed help, he was there. He started out helping friends with carpentry projects and soon he had a second job finishing basements, adding bathrooms and even refinishing furniture on his days off. He was always active in his children’s sports, coaching CYO hockey and Optimus fast ball. He also loved to hike and camp and enjoyed teaching his children to love the outdoors. When his kids grew older, they became active in rowing and Ken was right there with them. He became involved with the Rowing Alumni and could often be seen around Henley Island doing whatever needed to be done. He was a long-time volunteer with the St. Catharines Rowing Club and served as past President of the Rowing Alumni. He was involved at St. Alfred’s Church as a reader and later serving on the altar for many years.
When he retired, he and Della developed a passion for travelling and visited several countries. They stopped going on vacation and started going on adventures all over the world. Ken was an avid golfer, and you could always find him on the course playing a round or two. Saturday mornings were reserved for garage sales. He would plan his route and hunt for his next treasure. He loved spending time with family, and he could turn a party small visit into a party. Ken was a great storyteller and loved regaling his children and grandchildren with stories of how he and Roy Rogers won the west. He was proud of his Irish background and loved learning about Ireland and its history and culture. We would like to thank the staff at the Meadows of Dorchester for all their help and support throughout this challenging time.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Meadows of Dorchester or the Alzheimer Society of Niagara Region.