April 12, 1942 - February 22, 2020
Leslie Semple Wilson was born in Paisley, Scotland, and moved to Canada with his family in the late 40s. Les grew up in Port Hardy loving the outdoors, his Scottish heritage, and especially the sea. Les is predeceased by his parents William and Jane, his beloved wife Jean (nee Hough) and brother Alastair and subsequent passing of his brother Eric. He is survived by his children Brent (Josie), Leah (Greg), and Angus (Sara); grandchildren Steven, Heather, Fergus, Gavin, and Hilda; siblings Hilda and Ian (Marg); nieces Lara, Krista, Jennifer, Amy, and nephew John.
A witty wordsmith and a stubborn Scot, Les was tenacious in everything he did from Scottish country dancing, to sailing, to perfecting the toast to the haggis, and to playing bagpipes in the rain at Remembrance Day ceremonies for many years.
His list of life experiences was daunting: being bombed in Paisley during the war, his ship being rammed by an angry whale, moose hunting in the Yukon to feed his family, and being aboard the Queen of the North when she sank. Perhaps his most memorable adventure was taking his family to Iran to work on a project in the 70s and travelling home through Russia and the Iron Curtain.
He was married to Jeannie for 50 years and spent 10 of those years as her sole care-giver as she developed Alzheimer's. He will be remembered as a wonderful father, a steadfast husband, a doting grandfather, and a faithful friend. Also, for incessant accordion playing, crossword puzzles, love for scotch, and demands for soup...!
A much loved 'grumpy bear' to his family, he now rests next to his dearest Jeannie. A Celebration of Life will be held in Port Hardy at a later date.