Donald Edward Welton
1933-2020
“And think of him
as living in the hearts of those he touched …
for nothing loved is ever lost and he was loved so
much.”
– Author Unknown
Our hearts are hurting
but feel comfort in knowing that our father, Donald Welton, has joined
our mom, only a few short months after losing her. On the evening of
Tuesday, December 22, 2020 our beloved father died peacefully at home
surrounded by so much love and after waiting for his trucking
grandson, Michael to make it there safely to say goodbye. Donald
Edward Welton was born on August 8, 1933 in Forest Home, Nova Scotia
where he spent his early years. He was a son of the late Alan and
Gladys (Butler) Welton. He left school as a teen because “he got
a job working for Harry Aalders so didn’t need to go to
school any longer” he said. His limited schooling did not prevent
him from being one of the smartest men we knew. He was a “jack of
all trades” and loved tinkering and fixing things. “If Papa
can’t fix it then it can’t be fixed”. He
truly was a very patient man in so many ways. When many would have
quit the task at hand, he would only try harder and spend more time at
it until it was completed or fixed. Nothing got thrown out because
“you just might need that part to fix something else.” As a
teen he fell in love with a young singing sister from South
Alton…our mom, Marjorie DeAdder. They married on November
25, 1953 at the ages of 18 and 20. Their love and respect for each
other continuously grew each of the 67 years they spent married and
was visible to anyone that knew them. They were a couple that were
usually together and looked after each other. Dad’s heart
was broken when she died a few months ago. We take comfort in the fact
they are together again, and that dad didn’t have to go
through a Christmas without her. Together they enjoyed many activities
such as the Alton Couples Club; seniors league bowling, Centreville
50+ Club, and South Shore bluegrass campouts to name a few, and even
worked for many years together as Centreville church janitors where
Dad also spent many hours helping with the construction and
renovations. Dad was also a member of the Centreville Men’s
Choir for many years and in his younger years was proud to be a Kings
County Counsellor. He was a faithful member of the Centreville Baptist
Church where he had been a Deacon and as well as at the South Alton
Baptist Church. Mom and Dad loved to walk to church together and to be
the “greeters” at the door on Sunday mornings. They loved
camping. We have so many wonderful memories of family vacations with
the Aalders family and even after we had grown, Mom and Dad continued
to enjoy many weekends of camping alone or with Uncle Bub and Aunt
Loretta, especially at Whites or at New Canada until this past summer.
He loved a good community breakfast or fundraising supper whether by
helping out the preparation, on clean up duty or just by having a good
meal. Besides the job Dad “left school for”, in his
younger years he worked a few different places such as driving a taxi,
working at Boggs Brothers (he and Mom both worked there) and the Port
Williams Agencies. He began trucking for TP Calkin’s Ltd.
(Sumner’s Ltd.) in 1961 until retiring in 1994 at age 61. We
(as well as a few cousins) have so many fun memories and stories about
going to work with Dad in the truck. After retirement for the first
time, he got to drive a tractor trailer truck part time for Chris,
which he loved, and Mom went on many runs with him. He had a great
love of trucking that was inherited by his sons and grandson and loved
to “continue trucking” listening to their
stories. It wasn’t until after retirement that he
found he had a couple new passions he had never tried: golfing and
curling. He was a member of Eagle Crest Golf Course and enjoyed
countless hours there, often starting as early as 6:00 a.m. to get on
the course so to not have a wait. He’d walk the 18 holes
every day until just a couple years ago. He enjoyed the
senior’s tournaments he and Laurie Hennigar attended and
then for the past couple years, enjoyed many mornings golfing with
friends, Vern, Wayne and Doug. Sometimes golfing overlapped with
curling season at the Glooscap Curling rink pending the seasonal
weather which he loved! His days were full, and Mom worked hard to
keep his schedule straight and to make sure a meal awaited him at noon
and 5:00 p.m. He was a “bit” spoiled like
that. Although a gentle and quiet man, Dad had a tremendous
amount of strength and energy well into his senior years. He loved to
be social, to go walking (especially important when there
wasn’t golf or curling that day!) and loved nothing more
than a good meal. When asked recently what he considered a
“good” meal he quickly answered, “One where someone
calls out supper’s ready!” He did odd jobs for Ted
around the complex where he and Mom lived, as well as for many
neighbours. Even though he was getting much weaker, one week before he
died, he insisted on going outside to properly straighten the compost
bins after the garbage truck came because it was what he always did!
He maintained his work ethic and pride until his last days. For many
years he worked tirelessly many hours on “the kettle”
collecting money for the Salvation Army. He was always willing to help
people out any way he could, not to mention what he did for his
children and grandchildren. There isn’t enough room in this
obituary to describe how selfless he was when it came to
family. One of Dad’s favorite things to do was his
daily visits at the “lodge” to have coffee with his friends,
Gordie, Arnie, Bob, Finley and Reg to name a few. It especially became
more important in the recent months since Mom’s death. He
enjoyed the twice daily coffee breaks, conversations, sometimes treats
and the friendships he had there. Our family will always be grateful
to this place and the comradery he had with them. Dad had an
excellent sense of humor and always loved a good laugh even in his
final days. He will always be remembered by many of his expressions,
one of the best being “Dirty, dying whistling” if something
surprised him. He loved a good card game whether at home with family
or friends (especially Reg and Ellen Saunders), at the 50+ Club or in
Woodville on Wednesday evenings, doing Lexicon puzzles, visiting car
lots, puttering in his garage fixing things and watching The Price Is
Right, Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy and yes…The Young and the
Restless. He is proudly survived by sons, Donald
“Bruce” (Kathy) and Chris (Tabatha) and daughter, Janet.
“Papa Don” was adored by grandchildren, Leah, Michael,
Olivia, Mahaila, Kiara and Mataea and great grandchildren, Casey, Ian
and Everleigh. He is also survived by brother, Albert (Shirley),
Wirral, NB and only sister, Shirley Russell, Kentville and many
in-laws, nieces and nephews who loved dad dearly and have special,
personal memories of him. He will be sorely missed by us
all. Besides his parents and our dear mom, he was predeceased
by brothers, Tommy and George; several brothers and sisters-in-law who
were like siblings to him. Our family would like to thank Dr.
David Nunn, Janice and their office for the many years of taking care
of Dad and Mom. They both loved and appreciated you. We would also
like to thank Dr.’s R. Rendon (Urology) and P. Poyah
(Nephrology) for keeping Dad’s kidney functioning as well as
possible these past 20 years and to his Ambulatory Care
“girls” at Soldiers Memorial, especially Helen and Colleen.
Special thanks to each member of the Annapolis Valley Palliative Care
team for their valued expertise and support during this time. Also, we
would like to thank the Annapolis Valley VON (especially Sarah C,
Sarah K and Elke), as well as many folks who have supported Dad since
mom’s illness and passing and during his own illness. Our
sincere gratitude to White Family Funeral Home for the professional
support given to our family this year during such challenging times.
It takes a village! Cremation has taken place. Due to
COVID-19, there will be no visitation and a private family service
will be held on Saturday, January 9, 2021 in the White Family Funeral
Home, Kentville, Reverend Doctor Steven Hopper officiating. Interment
will be held at a later date. A video webcast can be viewed at 2:00
p.m. on Saturday, January 9, 2021 by visiting
www.whitefamilyfuneralhome.com. Donations are gratefully accepted to
the Centreville Baptist Church, the Carey Me Fund (c/o Valley Regional
Foundation) supporting palliative care at home or the Valley Hospice
Foundation. Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to the White
Family Funeral Home and Cremation Services, Kentville. On-line
condolences and inquiries may be directed to
www.whitefamilyfuneralhome.com.
“Go home, get some
rest trucker…we’ll take it from
here.”
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Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Donald Edward Welton 19332020..
Death notice for the town of: Kentville, Province: Nova Scotia