Greg Laska –
71, Maitland. It is with great sorrow that the family of Greg Laska
announce his passing in Maitland, Hants County, Nova Scotia in June
2022. Greg was born in August 1950, the third of seven children to
Philip and Martha (Palubiski) Laska in the historic polish settlement
of Wilno, Ontario. Greg moved as a very young child with his
parents to Kellys Corner, and was part of the last graduating class
from Cobden & District High School in 1968.
After a brief study at University of Ottawa in Physical
Education, Greg started to work first for E.B. Eddy in Hull,
Québec, and then as an underground hard rock miner in
Sudbury, Ontario, Lynn Lake, Manitoba, and Yellowknife, Northwest
Territories. This led him to an exciting career in exploration
drilling with Canadian Longyear. He worked in locations as far afield
as Haiti, Iran, Alaska, Colorado, the Northwest Territories and
Northern Saskatchewan.
In between exploration drilling work, he spent some time as a
harness maker and racehorse owner in Barrie, Ontario. He would also
help his best friend Dave Taylor deliver multiple freighter canoes
loaded with supplies to Moosonee on James Bay via a series of rivers
starting at Highway 11. Greg was also a keen outdoorsman and enjoyed
activities such as fly fishing and deer hunting, though his luck was
often compromised when hunting with his brother, Dominic. Greg was a
notorious tinkerer, hobby mechanic, tour guide, conversationalist, and
all-around creative problem solver with limitless projects and
imagination.
Greg met Sharon Phillips while working in the wilds of Quebec
and they wed in Toronto in 1980. They moved to Saskatoon where their
son John was born, and then later relocated to Nova Scotia to be
closer to Sharon’s family. Here, Greg drilled freshwater
wells across the province for a time, and later worked as a driller
and blaster for Fundy Gypsum Company, all the while helping in various
capacities with Sharon’s fused glass studio and fine art
career, and keeping a hobby farm with award-winning Nubian
goats.
In his later life, Greg faced many medical conditions and
chronic pain with much courage and strength. Even in great pain and
suffering, he always had a smile on his face and a joke on his lips.
Greg’s determination to live on his own terms never wavered,
and we will remember him for it.
Greg leaves many to mourn. His son, John Laska and
daughter-in-law, Robin (Henbrey); his former wife, Sharon Phillips and
her daughter, Karen Tremblay (Steven); his brother, Henry Laska (Trish
Mahoney); his brother, Dominic Laska (Colette St-Aubin); his sister,
Elizabeth Laska (William “Bill” Wolff); his sister, Mary
Laska (Samuel Loghrin); his sister, Gemma Laska (Don Barz); his
sister, Dorothy Laska (Grant Dobson), and all of their children who
were his nieces and nephews, their spouses and their children, his
grand-nieces and grand-nephews.
Greg’s loved ones will organize a celebration of
his life at a later date. Memorial donations may be made in
Greg’s memory to your own local food bank.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Mattatall –
Varner Funeral Home, 55 Young Street, Truro. Private messages of
condolence may be sent to the family by viewing Greg’s
obituary on-line and selecting “Send A Condolence” at:
www.mattatallvarnerfh.com
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Greg Laska 1950 2022..
Death notice for the town of: Truro, Province: Nova Scotia