Joseph (Joe) Michael McGrath
December 24, 1925 – July 27, 2022
Our dad is back in the arms of our mom, Margaret (Peg) McGrath who passed away in 2018. Predeceased by his siblings Bernard, Jim, Chuck & Bernadette. He married Peg, the love of his life in October of 1953 & was the loving father of Mike (Cathy), Colleen (Tim), Chris (Jim), Joe (Jayne), Jim (Christine), Ann (Murray), Mary (Steve). Proud grandfather of Jason, Justin & Johnathan, Jim (Sheri), Joe (Gaelle), Mathew (Laura), Brandon (Sarah), Jason (Jenny), Tim (Catherine) Scott (Tiffany), Andrew (Shauna), Christy (Jeff) & Nick & great-grand father to Emily & Kate; Noah; Natalie & Abigail; Emma & Luke; Grayson, Harrison, Briar & Maddison; Beau, Caleb & Emersyn who all lovingly refer to him as Papa & Great Papa. He passed with family at his side at St. Andrew’s Terrace. A heartfelt thank you to the staff of the Beechgrove wing for their love, care & compassion in looking after our dad.
As a young boy he joined the Boy Scouts, delivered The Prestonian newspaper for thirty cents a week, cleaned stalls & milked cows for Lang’s Farm & helped his brother Jim make deliveries via horse & buggy to customers throughout Preston for Rosemount Dairy, also made deliveries for Paetz Grocery on his bike & later worked for Kriegs Grocery. In 1939 as a young teen, he worked at Eastern Steel then enlisted in the Canadian Army during WW2 & was sent overseas, served in England & the Netherlands & returned home in 1946. Upon returning he became a member of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 126 in Preston, recently became the longest standing branch member at 77 years & was the Secretary-Treasurer for many years & served on several committees including the construction of the ball diamond. He also headed the committee to have the Preston Legion Branch construct a tiny version of itself for the Children’s Safety Village at Waterloo Regional Police Headquarters on Maple Grove Road. From that sprang a new project where he could share his expertise through his longstanding fellowship with Branch 126’s sister Legion in Jamestown, New York. Word got out & they decided to construct their own Safety Village that included a tiny American Legion Post 777. During his 10 years working at Canadian Office & School Furniture, he played both pitcher & centre field for the company ball team & led the league for 3 years in a row with an over 400 average & was an avid baseball fan throughout his life. Later he was employed at Galt Malleable Iron for almost 2 decades. He loved his sports & was a member of many teams & leagues. He bowled, played baseball, shot pool & played darts. He made his TV debut on Bowling for Dollars in 1978 & threw three strikes & won the jackpot.
Always wanting to be his own boss, in 1969 he & Peg purchased a corner store at Sherring & Church Streets & became shopkeepers for McGrath’s Variety where they were known for their hospitality in their South Preston community. Children from the neighbourhood who are now adults, still have fond memories of flocking to the store to purchase their penny candy. In retirement he never slowed down. He joined the Preston Senior’s Woodworking Shop at the Allan Reuter Centre where he crafted furniture & an assortment of other household items that many locals in Preston sought to give as gifts. Famous for arranging bus trips, he regularly whisked his friends & family to Expos games in Montreal, excursions to Florida & annual trips to the American Legion Br. 777 in Jamestown, NY. Both Joe & Peg loved to travel & their favourite trip was an Alaskan cruise with their longtime friends Gerry & Marg Scheuerman. Joe was a member of the Probus Club, the Knights of Columbus, he delivered Meals on Wheels & was a lifelong parishioner of St. Clement’s Church.
He was a living, breathing history book of the Preston community & left us with so many wonderful memories. We’ll miss that devilish smirk on his face, his dry humour, his stories of days long ago in Preston recalling antics with the friends of his youth & of course his “poker face”. But most of all we’ll miss the best dad & papa ever.
There will be no visitation. Funeral service to be held Wed., Aug 3rd at 11am at St. Clement’s Church, 745 Duke St, Cambridge (P) to be followed by fellowship at the Legion Hall, 334 Westminster Dr. N. Cambridge (P) from 1 to 6pm. In lieu of flowers, a donation to Lisaard & Innisfree House would be greatly appreciated or a donation to charity of your choosing
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Wednesday July 27th 2022
Nos plus sincères sympathies à la famille et aux amis de Joseph Michael McGrath Wednesday July 27th 2022..
Décès pour la Ville:Cambridge, Province: Ontario