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Clifford MacDONALD Obituary
Clifford Ray MacDonald passed away peacefully at the age of 101. He was born on March 27, 1923 at the home farm in Hughton, SK, the sixth son of Alex and Della MacDonald, with two younger sisters to follow. He worked on the family farm and neighboring farms and then joined the army when he was 17.
Cliff joined the 67th Light Anti-Aircraft Battery in Rosetown and served overseas from 1941-45. He served on the front lines as a Bombadeer, second in command of their detachment, then as a small arms instructor and was in charge of their gun crew. In 1944, he joined the 65th anti-tank battery as a Bren machine gunner with 15 of the men who were still with him from the 67th. He did “ghost patrol”, getting close enough to hear the Germans talking, find out where they were and then slip back to their own lines. Cliff served in Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. He arrived home just in time for Christmas on December 23, 1945, taking his official discharge from the army in January 1946. He recently received a Legion medal of merit and was admitted as a Knight, the d’Honneur, the highest decoration that France can bestow (equivalent to the order of Canada).
After returning home, he bought the home farm from his parents in spring of 1946. Two years later, Cliff met the love of his life, Betty Anderson, and he would say that marrying Betty was the best decision of his life. On October 20, 1948 they were married and raised four children. Cliff was involved in the Hughton community serving on the RM Council, helped build the Hughton Curling Rink and was an avid curler. He helped coach ball and hockey and was a Legion member for 82 years, first at Elrose, then Rosetown and Nutana Legion. Cliff and Betty lived on the farm for 35 years before moving to Saskatoon in 1983, where they enjoyed curling, bowling, dancing and playing cards with friends. They also traveled, including a trip to Holland in 1995 with a group of veterans for the 50-year reunion of the liberation of Holland. They lived 27 years in their house on Montgomery Place before moving to Luther Heights (independent living) in 2010 and recently to Veterans Village, Sherbrooke Community Center.
After 76 years of marriage, Cliff passed away in his sleep with Betty at his side. He leaves behind more than 60 in his large and loving family: his loving wife Betty; daughter Donalda (John) Gerstmar, grandchildren Ryan (Denise) Gerstmar, Shannon (Rob) Forrester, Heather (Adam) Toews and Ashley (Grant) Gardner; daughter Barbara (Don) Sanderson, grandchildren Jamie Sanderson (Troy Martin), Marla (Ben) Mickleborough and Matt Sanderson; son Russ (Dianne) MacDonald, grandchildren Adrian MacDonald (Melanie Deveault), Evan (Morgan) MacDonald and Dane (Nadine) MacDonald; son Doug (Sandra) MacDonald, grandchildren Becky (Ryan) Giles, Jodi (Jaleesa) MacDonald and Jeff (Alysa) MacDonald, 29 great-grandchildren and his sister Vi Barry. He was predeceased by his parents, six of his seven siblings and one granddaughter Alyssa (Gerstmar) Noonan.
Family was paramount to Cliff. From his 100 years of wisdom, we will remember him saying “things will always work out” and “what you are worrying about right now won’t seem like such a big deal down the line”.
A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. Memorial donations in honor of Cliff may be sent to STARS Saskatoon Base, Hangar 21, 2475 Airport Road, Saskatoon, SK, S7L 1M4.
March 27 1923 February 21 2025 101 Years Old
Death notice for the town of: Rosetown, Province: Saskatchewan
death notice Clifford Ray MacDONALD March 27 1923 February 21 2025 101 Years Old
obituaries notice Clifford Ray MacDONALD March 27 1923 February 21 2025 101 Years Old
We offer our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Clifford Ray MacDONALD March 27 1923 February 21 2025 101 Years Old and hope that their memory may be a source of comfort during this difficult time. Your thoughts and kind words are greatly appreciated.