George Blanchard remembered by
daughter, Pat, and son, Ross
...
On behalf of myself, Joy, Ross and our family, I want to thank you for coming today to share with us not only the sorrow of Dad’s passing but the celebration of his remarkable life.  He told Joy and me on numerous occasions that when he “went to the man upstairs” no one was to stand around with long faces when they could be partying, because although he wouldn’t be here in body he certainly would be in spirit – and we all know how he loved a party - which is why the sailing community is planning to do exactly that as a memorial tribute on April 16 at TSCC.
 
Although the Life and Times of George Blanchard would fill a couple of CBC documentaries, I’m just going to share a few highlights with you.
 
Dad was born in the Algoma Region of Northern Ontario in 1913. Along with his parents, two brothers and sister Emily, he lived in a small wooden bungalow heated by a large kitchen wood stove. The house was lit by candles, oil lamps and lanterns, and an outhouse provided the other necessity. The family traveled by train to the nearest town of Sudbury for social activities, shopping and school.
 
Dad inherited his many talents from his father who was a carpenter by trade, having worked at the Thames shipyards in London, England. His dad was also a talented musician and artist. He could play the violin, mandolin, banjo, ukulele, harmonica and accordeon – instruments our Dad could also play along with the piano that was self-taught. His father won honors in England with his black pencil sketches of the British contenders for the America's Cup and their captains, so again Dad’s attention to detail whether designing a boat, a race course, a piece of equipment or researching a book was inherent.
 
In 1920 the family moved to Oakville where they had the luxuries of electricity and inside plumbing. Dad enjoyed many sports and excelled especially in hockey. He also skied, bobsled, played softball, basketball, tennis, golf, and of course the love of his life sailing.  His first sailboat was a dinghy that his dad built for him at age 13 years.
 
In 1928, Dad contracted rheumatic fever and was laid up for four months and as a result, missed his grade 9 year. By the time he recovered, the country had moved into a Depression so he hitch-hiked to Mount Dennis to look for a job. He was hired by the new de Havilland Aircraft Company at the age of 15 years because of the woodworking skills and experience he had learned from his father. His dream was to become a doctor, but that was not to be. He worked at de Havilland for 49½ years and is a member of its Hall of Fame. He was the oldest surviving employee of the Mt. Dennis facility. Actually, one of the more unusual early jobs he had at de Havilland was to ride in the new Dragon plane on its test run and crawl back and forth to check for centre of gravity. In 1935 he bought his first car – a Ford Coupe with a rumble seat.
 
In 1937 Dad again contracted rheumatic fever and beat the odds of survival after spending 8 months in Toronto General Hospital where I understand he drove the nursing staff to distraction.  His bouts of rheumatic fever likely contributed to a life living with asthma.
 
The church has always been an integral part of Dad’s life and is where he met our mother.  They were married in 1939 and began their family in 1942. 
 
It is very difficult to condense Dad’s life in to a few minutes. He had his share of tragedies, disappointments and frustrations, but he always had a positive attitude and would always see the good side of a person or situation. He was the consummate volunteer, diplomatic in his dealings with others, loyal to his friends and associates, patient, generous and innovative. No matter where in the world his job or sailing took him, he never forgot a birthday, anniversary or other special occasion.
 
I must share this anecdote with you. In 2006, he was booked for a hernia repair at the Shouldice Clinic. Joy and I decided to take advantage of his being out of the house for 3 days to do some housecleaning. Well, we worked our buns off and decided to go out to lunch at noon. We got to the restaurant and discover it was only 11 o’clock. We ate anyway, but upon returning to his place, we checked the clocks and discovered they were all an hour fast. When we went to visit him the next day, we asked about it and he logically said that since it would be daylight saving time that upcoming weekend, he had turned them all ahead before he left, so he wouldn’t be confused when he got home. He also shared with us that he was a little miffed to find out that he wasn’t the oldest to have had this type of surgery. The oldest was 95 years and he was only 93!
 
During his long sailing career, Dad received many awards as well as recognition for his achievements in racing and as a volunteer.  There are too many to mention them all today but a few of the most notable ones are:
  • his long association as a member of TSCC and the Boulevard Club
  • his committee works with the Ontario Sailing Association and the Canadian Wayfarer Association 
  • the founding of the Icebreaker Regatta at TSCC 
  • sailing in every Wayfarer world championship between 1974 and 2004
  • writing the history of the TSCC, the Red Ringer, as well as the OSA race management and club safety manuals as well as the Fleet-at-Sea handbook used to run the 1976 Olympic races.
The list is endless & although he has been called the Father of all Regattas, the Grandfather of a sailing club and the Yachtsman of the Year, he was still Dad to us.
  

From: Ross Blanchard
Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 12:36 PM

 

IN LOVING MEMORY OF MY FATHER

My DAD ... one of the classiest men I have had the honor to know and be with. As for my father, I spent a lot of my young years, sailing with dad, or helping him build sailboats at our house, in the garage, and even in the basement of our home, one of which ended up being too big to get outside. We actually had to take out the basement staircase to get it out. There are just so many memories of Dad - like removing an old tree from our front garden with a rope tied to the car and and taking all the sewage plumbing with it.

Dad and I spent time at TS&CC in the early 60s. He taught me how to race sailboats, flip them over and even right them. As time went on, Dad got involved in out-of-town racing. Dad was well known as a heavy weather sailor, When a gale was blowin', he was in his glory, as he would be the only one on the lake.

I had a small band and had the honor to play for Dad's birthday party at the TS&CC. He was so proud that I had taken an interest in music as he played piano. My Dad was always there for us and for anyone who ever needed help. His achievements in life were AMAZING!!

My last visit with him in Feb. 2011 was wonderful, as we spent quality time together. He was so happy I came home from BC to see him at Humber Village. The two weeks we spent together was heart warming and even life-moving.

I would like to send a Very Special Thanks to my sisters for being there to take care of him and all his needs as he needed the help. I want to thank everyone for the memories and support. Thanks to the whole sailing world who knew him as many did. George Blanchard will be missed. HE WILL BE IN OUR HEARTS FOREVER.

Love always and forever, Your son, Mr. Ross George Blanchard
PS. Thanks to Pat and Joy for making my last visit with my DAD possible