How do you quantify the moments that make up a person? Is a life measured by its beginning and ending dates or is it measured by the highest and lowest points that occur in between those dates? Should a person’s life should be measured solely by their accomplishments? Perhaps it isn’t the peaks or valleys that define a life as much as the millions of moments that fit in between those beginning and end dates.
Peter Robert Nickerson was born on April 25, 1959 and passed away at Joseph Brant Hospital on Tuesday, December 28, 2021 at the age of 62. However, these dates can’t define his life any more than the first or last word of a movie determines the number of awards it will win.
Peter worked at the Royal Bank for more than 40 years. Although his kids never truly knew what he did, his coworkers agreed that he was awfully good at his job. Throughout his career, he was nominated for multiple Leos, although he would be the last person to admit it or take credit for the significance of the achievement. His dedication and reliability shone through as things changed over the past couple of years. He continued to make his daily commute to the office while joking that it was basically him and the cleaning staff that they were turning the lights on for. He was quite proud that he could now get front row parking at the train station on a regular basis. As he shifted into a virtual-based role, he talked about how he enjoyed being able to take his lunch breaks at home, and marveled at how much had changed in such a short time. His irreplaceable knowledge will be greatly missed at the office. However, his work did not define him any more than a label on a shirt (unless that shirt was a specific hoodie).
As his family knows, the moments that define Peter’s life aren’t the single moments of great achievement or sudden loss. The moments that define his life were the constant mundane moments where he made the choice to put someone else ahead of himself. His life will forever be defined by those tiny interactions that showed the never-ending kindness of his heart.
The moments that everyone will remember are the moments where he would send a picture of something he noticed to someone, just because he knew that they would like it. He will be remembered for how he got up at 4:30 every morning to make sure that he was there for hockey practice. He was always there to take the picture of a game winning goal, whether that game was between 5 year olds, or university students. He always had his camera with him, and he’ll be remembered for how much joy he had in those moments when he was taking pictures. It was the moments spent on the dock at the cottage, trying to capture ‘just one good picture’ of a loon on the lake. The loon’s call haunting him as it dove under the waves. It was the time he spent in a photo lab, chatting about cameras and photography until 2 in the morning, even though it was a weekday. He’ll be forever remembered for the time he spent standing in a snowbank somewhere shooting pictures with his kids. There are so many pictures of him taking pictures.
He’ll be remembered for the moments spent laying on the floor with his grandkids, sorting Hot Wheels into endlessly long rows based on their colour. Or his time on the phone explaining that Santa’s reindeers wouldn’t only eat carrots, but they could also eat apples. There were hundreds of tiny moments like that. There were the moments where he stopped by for a ‘quick pit stop’ as he was passing through. The moments when he made sure that he was with family for Christmas. The time that he started a conversation by saying that he had ‘a few’ kids. The moments he spent on a date at Canada’s Wonderland. He’ll be remembered for the countless moments spent helping someone move in freezing weather, fixing a sink, installing a dishwasher, attending a first birthday party, being there for you on graduation day, or visiting someone’s new place. It was the fact that distance never seemed to be a problem when he needed to be there for something. These tiny moments are the moments that will live on.
A perfect weekend for Peter would be a series of these tiny moments all strung together. It would start with an early morning trip to Tim Hortons to grab coffee for everyone. Sometimes, he’d let you come along, but he’d always drive, and he’d always get the order, telling you that you could get it ‘next time.’ He’d make sure to visit Canadian Tire as it opened to browse the aisles and see what was on sale this week. He would bring Hazel out for just one more walk to Lasalle Park, camera in hand, her head out the back window of the truck. Perhaps he would fill the afternoon with a motorcycle ride, or just some puttering around the house. A dinner of steak, potatoes and green beans would be required. Then, he’d finish off the evening pitching for the ball team, his kids in the stands, the sun setting behind him. A string of perfect little moments.
His life will forever be defined by the moments that he was present for, and our hearts will forever be heavy in those moments where he can no longer be with us. Peter used to always tell everyone to “Commit it to Memory.” while admiring the scenery on his various road trips. Today, we grieve and acknowledge that his life has come to an end. We recognize that those tiny moments that made up his life aren’t gone. Those mundane moments have crystallized into memories. When viewed together, these tiny moments of time paint the picture that defines his life. These memories will be the things that we hold dear over the years.
We are ‘Committed to your Memory’ Peter… Son… Husband… Dad… Grandpa…
Peter Robert Nickerson was the beloved husband of Jane Hunt. He was the loving father of Kris (Jenn), Desiree, Brittany, and Jesse. He was the proud grandfather of Summer and Scarlett. He is survived by his mother Isabel and predeceased by his father Robert. Peter is survived by his sister Susan and brother Brian.
A private cremation will be held. For those who wish, donations in memory of Peter can be made to the Heart & Stroke Foundation or The Canadian Cancer Society.
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Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Peter Robert Nickerson Tuesday December 28th 2021..

smiths funeral home

Death notice for the town of: , Province: Ontario

death notice Peter Robert Nickerson Tuesday December 28th 2021

mortuary notice Peter Robert Nickerson Tuesday December 28th 2021