James Baillie passed away on March 23, 2020. He was born on January 18, 1924 and was 96 years of age. He was pre-deceased by his wife Sheila Baillie, who passed away on December 3, 2015.
He is survived by his son Gary Baillie, daughter Rosalyn Delaney and her husband Chris, and son Craig Baillie and his wife Leyna. Also his 7 grandchildren: Lisa Gormley and her husband Grant, William Delaney and his wife Stephanie, Louise Symes and her husband Sean, James Delaney, Christopher Delaney Jr., Kennedy Baillie and Madison Baillie, as well as his 6 great grandchildren Tyson and McKenna Gormley, Sean, Marina and Xavier Symes, and Jack Delaney.
James lived quite an adventuresome life. He was born in Scotland in a little town near Edinburgh called Bo’ness. He had 4 brothers and sisters. His father was a merchant marine, working on the ships out of Scotland. His mother was a homemaker who raised him and his siblings at a very difficult time during the depression. He grew up poor, but learned the value of hard work.
At the young age of 15 he had to leave school to be conscripted into the coal mines to supply fuel for the war effort, as all of the adult aged men had to fight. He worked grueling 16 hour days in the time before modern labor laws and safety. Miners routinely suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, silicosis and pneumoconiosus or black lung. He became determined to escape this fate and find a better life for himself.
His opportunity came when he joined the British Army at the end of the war and was stationed in Singapore. He became a sharp shooter, winning dozens of contests as an elite sniper. He was also a member of the swim team and won numerous awards competing against other divisions. He also played soccer and generally had a great time with his mates. After 4 years he chose to return to civilian life and went to back to work in the coal mines in Mansfield.
One evening while Sheila was “shopping around” James met his future bride. They were at a dance in Mansfield when James (or Jimmy as they called him) asked her to dance. The rest is history. They were married on July 31, 1954 and 9 years and three children later James made good on his promise to leave the brutal work in the mines for a better life in Canada.
He went to Canada ahead of his family and got a job at Carling Breweries in Vancouver. He stayed with Shelia’s cousins, Mildred and Alf Slack, until he was able to bring his family over to join him. They bought their first home in Dunbar on West 31st in 1965. They stayed in that home where the three children were raised, until they bought a bigger home in 1973 on West 29th. Once the children left, they moved to West Vancouver for a period, and eventually settled in North Vancouver Pemberton Heights.
James retired from Molson’s Brewery in 1988, where he had worked for over 20 years. He made the beer but never drank it, being a lifelong tee-totaler and shepherds pie connoisseur. He was a Freemason, with membership in the Vancouver Temple. He loved golfing, fishing, traveling – spending holidays in Hawaii and Reno, and spending time with his grandchildren. His favorite pastime was gardening, and his tomatoes were the envy of the neighborhood.
In his 90’s he travelled to Florida several times, to Australia for 3 weeks to see his favorite niece Fiona, and finally returned to his beloved Scotland hometown in 2018 where he was welcomed like a returning hero. He was extremely sharp right up until his last day, and could recite entire histories of battles from World War II with names, dates and places. He loved old TV shows – Gunsmoke, Bonanza, Wagon Train, Rifleman, Mayberry RFD and Mash. But most of all he loved his family, and was always there for them.
He will be dearly missed.
Nos plus sincères sympathies à la famille et aux amis de James Baillie January 18 1924 March 23 2020..
Décès pour la Ville: Vancouver, Province: Colombie britanique