On Tuesday, Sept.13/22, the small, picturesque, tight-knit
community of Glendale, Cape Breton lost an icon. RODERICK
(ROY) NEIL OLSEN passed away just two days before his 75th
birthday. He was well-known and greatly respected, and his
loss will be felt far and wide.
Roy was born in Sunnyside, and grew up there and in
Melford. He briefly lived with his loving wife Kay in Point
Tupper before settling in Glendale. Roy was a Cape Bretoner
through and through, although he did tolerate the occasional trip to
Halifax to visit his family.
Roy was an upstanding, hardworking family man. In
fact, all his hard work over the years was in order to provide a good
life for Kay, and their four children Kim, Ian, Nancy, and
Megan. Nothing gave him more pride than his beautiful
family.
Always curious, he grew up a tinkerer wondering how things
worked. Whether it was taking apart the family clock and
putting it back together again with leftover pieces, or building a
homemade working gun, he frustrated his father to no end.
Needless to say, he grew up to be a great mechanic and
jack-of-all-trades. While on the one hand he would tell Kay
to turn up the car radio to drown out the odd engine noise, on the
other he spent countless hours fixing other people’s
cars.
Roy worked hard, but it was difficult to make a living at the
time in the area. In the early 80’s he operated
Roy’s Irving in Glendale which gave him great
pride. Later on, he made the difficult decision to travel
and work at different mines across the country to provide for his
family. It was tough on everyone, but the pay was good, and
he was able to provide a better life for his family. He was
proud of his work, and made many life-long friends. With a
wink, he’d tell you to refer to him as Dr. Roy, the drill
doctor. He started a trend in Glendale and surrounding
communities of travelling out west for work that continues to this
day.
Later in life, when Roy and Kay experienced the joy of
grandchildren, Drew, Molly, Noah, and Johnny became the recipients of
the warm, loving embrace of their beloved grandparents. They
will always fondly remember Booboo and Mema.
Kay and Roy had an open door policy. Whether you
needed a drive, a meal, some advice, or a chat; the doors to the
camper, Kay’s kitchen, or Roy’s garage were open
and waiting for you. An open car door and a “come on
in” or “jump in” and you were off for some fun or
adventure or just a good old chat. Listen carefully over the
next few days and you’ll be sure to catch a story or two
that’ll get you laughing or crying (or both), or shaking
your head.
RNO enjoyed the outdoors. He loved camping,
off-roading, and “hunting”, and
“fishing”. Oh the stories he could
tell. Roy, like Oreo, used up all of his nine
lives. He heroically won the battle with Captain Morgan,
survived being attacked by an angry beaver, almost crashed
Robert’s 18-wheeler several times trying to figure out how
to drive it, just about froze to death with Gordie in Ashfield, was
saved by Fred who took an extra week off work to stop Roy,
¢yril, and Adrian from starving to death on a hunting trip,
recovered with the help of “Dr.” Bernie in Inverness, and
his long swim and rescue from drowning in Lake Ainslie by
Merle.
Surviving all of this demonstrated Roy’s strong
will and determination, with a little bit of luck thrown in.
It gave his family, friends, and neighbours many more years to spend
with him, and for this we are eternally grateful. On
Tuesday, he made the brave choice that he was done with ambulances,
hospitals, and doctors; and on his own terms chose his own
path.
Roy comes from a large family, and will be sadly missed by
his brother Murdock and sister Rena. Countless nephews,
nieces, and cousins will remember Roy fondly.
They’ll never forget good ‘ole Uncle Roy.
His son-in-law Jeremy is proud to be an honorary
Olsen.
He is predeceased by his parents Alfred and Annie, his
brother Oscar, sisters Betty, Jean, and Marie, niece Nancy, wife Kay,
and daughter Nancy.
Special thanks go out to his caretakers over the last year,
Erin, Loretta, Donnie, and Tara. The family
couldn’t have done it without you.
Roy will be accompanied on his final journey to lay at rest
with Kay and Nancy by some of his beloved nephews and his
grandchildren.
Roy’s booming voice could make you stand at
attention. Although he appeared gruff and tough on the
outside, inside he had a heart of gold. He is now at peace
with his beloved Mema and Nan, with Oreo warming his lap, Bear sitting
at his feet, country classics playing on the radio, and a good card
game to look forward to.
Nothing was more important to Roy than family, friends, and
good neighbours. Thank-you all for being a part of his
life.
Visitation will take place on Saturday, September 17, 2022
from 3 – 7p.m. in Dennis Haverstock Funeral Home, Port
Hawkesbury. Graveside service will be on Sunday, September
18, 2022 at 11 a.m. from St. Mary’s of the Angels Parish
Cemetery, Glendale with Father Duncan MacIsaac officiating.
Reception to follow in St. Mary’s of The Angels Parish Hall,
Glendale.
Words of comfort may be forwarded to the family at www.haverstocks.com
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Roderick Neil ‘Roy’ Olsen 1947 2022..
Dennis Haverstocks funeral homes
Death notice for the town of: Port-Hawkesbury, Province: Nova Scotia