Obituary of Dr. George Arnold Pearce
It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Dr. George Arnold Pearce on October 14, 2020 in his 90th year at Westgate Lodge in Belleville, Ontario. George was the son of the late Hazel (Arnold) Pearce and Byron Pearce, and the beloved husband of Mary (Longhurst) Pearce since 1980. Most dearly loved by his daughter Susan (Rick) Ogilvie, and sons Keith (Karen Huffman), Alan (Nancy), Geoff (deceased 2017), and Bruce (Shawn Silver), and stepfather of Jeff Conner and David Conner. He was also cherished by his nine grandchildren, their spouses and ten great-grandchildren: Jacqueline Ogilvie (Brendan Garboll) (daughters Audrey and Lyla), Justin Ogilvie (Amberly Winger) (son Parker and daughter Quinn), Kurtis Ogilvie, Geoffrey Pearce (Athena) (daughter Rayna, sons Lincoln, Isaac and Max), Adam Pearce (Sylvia), Andrew Pearce (Julie) (son Lucas and daughter Victoria), Katie Pearce, Daniel Pearce and Calum Pearce. Of his Arnold family cousins in Brantford, Ontario, George is survived by Patricia Sinclair, Danny Arnold, Dal Arnold and Sandra Francis; and is predeceased by cousins Jack Arnold and Holly Jennings. He is also predeceased by his former spouse and loving mother of his five children, Gwen Dewar.
Born on June 8, 1931 in Hamilton, Ontario, George was raised solely by his mother Hazel, who came from a farming family in Beaver Meadow, Lambton County in southwestern Ontario. Throughout his childhood & youth, George often returned to this region to visit and work on the farm of his mother’s close friends, the Johnsons, in Brigden. After a few years in Hamilton and St. Catharines, George moved with his mother to Brantford, where he spent happy childhood and teenage years during the 1930s and 1940s. He saw firsthand how hard his mother worked to provide opportunities for him during the lean times of the Great Depression and Second World War, and it instilled in him a work ethic, spirit of generosity and love of family that he carried with him throughout his life.
After graduating from Brantford Collegiate Institute, George initially studied radio physics at the University of Western Ontario in London before pursuing medicine there, earning his M.D. in 1955 and interning in Toronto. While in medical school, he married in 1952 and welcomed his first three children: a daughter Susan, and then twin sons Keith and Alan. During the 1950s, he served in the Royal Canadian Air Force through enrolling in his university’s Air Training program, which involved summer training and five years’ service upon graduation – taking him to all regions of Canada. He received his wings as an Air Navigator in 1950 and, together with his young growing family, he reported to the RCAF Station in Edgar, Ontario, on the Pine Tree Line – one of the systems of radar stations operated by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) for Cold War surveillance. By 1957 he was serving as the RCAF Senior District Medical Officer at NORAD’s underground nerve centre in North Bay, Ontario, where he welcomed his fourth child, Geoff, in 1959.
George and his family returned to London in 1960 where he pursued his residency in Internal Medicine, and added a fifth child to his brood, Bruce, in 1962. With this growing family, he decided to leave his position as chief Resident and enter General Practice, bringing his family to the aptly named ‘Friendly City’ of Belleville, Ontario, where he became a longstanding family doctor, serving there until 1989. During his tenure in Belleville, he also undertook training in the anaesthesia certificate program for family physicians. In a 2015 County & Quinte magazine interview with his colleague Dr. Cronk, George described their approach in the caring professions thus: “Affable, available and able – that’s what we strove for!”
While living in Belleville, he enjoyed working locums in remote communities to offer medical services where needs were great, and to provide opportunities for his family to see more of the world. These included a placement running a tiny clinic in the Caribbean nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the late 1960s, and locums in the northern Ontario communities of Armstrong and Moose Factory during the early 1970s.
An avid outdoorsman and nature lover, George devoted much of his free time to exploring the countryside around Belleville and the wilderness beyond. In celebration of George’s 80th birthday, these adventurous excursions were lovingly described in the following verse titled Ode to Dad by his late son Geoff:
In safari gear we set off to explore,
Moira, Algonquin, and Sandbanks’ shores.
As a boy I remember treks to wild places – near and far,
Found only by dad’s topographic maps – and the family car.
The Viva, the Cutlass, the Monte Carlo,
Stocked with provisions, we found El Dorado.
Each time, a new adventure began:
Paddling Lake Mazinaw,
Sailing the Bay,
Shopping The Tambo,
Or hiking in Algonquin,
Kayaking the Madawaska,
Skiing in Marathon,
Or scuba-diving in Jamaica.
George remarried in 1980 to Mary (Longhurst) Pearce, and assisted her in raising her two young sons, Jeff and David Conner. This strong partnership lasted for the rest of his life, some 40 years. After his departure from Belleville’s medical community in 1989, George and Mary moved to London, Ontario, where he took up a post as the Senior District Medical Officer for Veterans Affairs Canada until his retirement in 1996. Shortly thereafter, he and Mary resettled in Belleville again, where he was an active volunteer promoting culture and heritage, later-life learning, active living and the natural environment; while Mary continued her nursing career until her retirement in 2008. During these happy years, the couple enjoyed the splendour of each passing season by making frequent daytrips to enjoy the sights and events of the Quinte Region, while also sharing special times with their friends, children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Some of George’s most noteworthy achievements during his later years in Belleville include his volunteer leadership to establish an ongoing series of Later-Life Learning lectures, and doing the original research that ignited the campaign to recognize Dr. James B. Collip, the Belleville-born co-discoverer of insulin – a campaign that involved Heritage Belleville, the Hastings County Historical Society, and the Hastings & Prince Edward Branch of the Canadian Diabetes Association.
His volunteer affiliations included: past-president of the Alzheimer Society of Hastings-Prince Edward, and of the Canadian Red Cross Quinte Branch; and memberships with the Lung Association of Hastings and Prince Edward County, the Quinte Field Naturalists Association, the Trillium Walkers, the Probus Club of Belleville, and the Federal Superannuates National Association’s Quinte Branch.
George passed away shortly after Thanksgiving, and his family members’ hearts brim with deep gratitude for all that he gave us: appreciation for the natural world, fairness, knowledge, curiosity, and all the many trips to see museums, galleries, plays and concerts. He was truly a Renaissance man.
George’s family sincerely thanks the care team at Westgate Lodge where he had resided since 2019, and offers special thanks to Dr. David Lisowski who assumed George’s family practice from him, and also served as his family doctor for many years. Thanks also to Lindi Pierce, whose 2015 article ‘House Calls’ in County and Quinte Living magazine helped share George’s life story with a wider audience.
Private cremation arrangements are entrusted to Steele Funeral Home, Moira Street Chapel, Belleville, Ontario (613-968-2273). A celebration of George’s life will take place at a later time. Memorial donations to Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre in Napanee, Ontario; or to the Belleville General Hospital Foundation (Dr. MacIntosh Cancer Clinic) would be appreciated by the family.
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Dr George
Arnold
Pearce 1931 2020..
Death notice for the town of: Belleville, Province: Ontario
Our deepest sympathies to Dr.Pearce’s family & friends. Our lives were connected over the years. The Cowan family were friends of the children growing up. He was our family physician. Our paths would cross when I nursed at the hospital always acknowledged by him. Then I became Dr. Lisowski’s nurse & again we were connected as he & Mary were patients. He would always mention our past. Loved to chat with him so much to share. He was an asset to our community. Loved that we could keep in touch. Thinking of you Mary. Sincerely Nancy Cowan Gulliver & family.