It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Edward Holmes Mash.  Ed was born in Ottawa, the son of John “Jack” and Ada Mash.  He was predeceased by his brothers, Ernie, John, Gordon and nephew Gregory.  Ed will be deeply missed by his children: Charlene Mash-Hadlow (Terry), Jennifer Mash, and John Mash (Tarran).  Papa, as he was known to all of his grandchildren, will be greatly missed by:  Carter and Morgan Hadlow, Keely Mash, Connor Grandbois, Emery and Maria Mash. He is survived by his sister-in-laws; Ellen, Sandy and Barbara along with his nephews and nieces; Gayle, Steven, Julie, Danford, Tania, Shana, Kristi and David.

 

Ed was an amazing father and extremely selfless and kind man who cared deeply for his family particularly his children and grandchildren.  He had a profound appreciation for family that developed while growing up with his parents and brothers in Ottawa in the 1930s, 40s and 50s. 

 

Ed is remembered most as a person who devoted his life to always working towards improving the lives of those dearest and closest to him.  He always treated everyone he met with kindness, taking the time to find out about people while speaking about the truly great and interesting things of this world.  An intellect, Ed was fascinated about many things and throughout his life his sense of wonder for the universe never waned.  He had a passion for the sciences, classical music, astronomy, history, chess and learning which he would often share with anybody within earshot.  

 

Throughout his life, Ed enjoyed travelling to London, England and would always return to share many stories of his long walking tours and the genealogical research he did while touring that great city.  Often he would recount his explorations of what he had discovered overseas adding in a bit of an English accent from time to time for added effect.  Ed loved to share stories of his adventures during the 1960s sailing the Atlantic with the Royal Canadian Navy as a Medical Officer.  Family never tired, or at least never dared admit to be tired of hearing his many tales of adventure he experienced with his fellow shipmates while visiting various port cities.

 

We all loved hearing about these enthralling locales along with what he described as the “exquisite routine” of daily naval rum rations in the salty sea air aboard HMCS Bonaventure.  These stories were the seeds of inspiration for his family to seek out adventure for themselves.  Following his travels with the Navy, Ed became a proud officer of the Ontario Provincial Police and moved to Red Lake, Ontario where he met his wife Wanda.  Later Ed would move with the OPP to Kenora raising his three children.  Following his time as a police officer he went on to work for Boise Cascade in security and as a Scaling Supervisor.  Upon retirement, Ed chose to remain part of the workforce and moved to Winnipeg to be close to family. 

 

Nothing made Ed more proud or gave him more joy than to see his children and grandchildren succeed through hard work and determination; traits that he so tirelessly modeled.   All who were close to Ed, both idolized and loved him fiercely.  Those he had only just met often felt his class, warmth and kind nature. We have always been tremendously proud of the great and hopelessly modest man that you were dad.  We will forever miss your warmth, your beautiful sense of humour and your inquisitive spark.  Your powerful spirit and gentle smile continues to thrive in all of us.

 

A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date with family and friends. In lieu of flowers,  memorial donations can be made to the Surfrider Foundation - Clean Oceans at https://pacificrim.surfrider.org/donate/