LUCAS, John

March 18, 1943 – January 14, 2025

With much sadness, we are sharing that John Lucas has passed away. John leaves his wife of 44 years, Jean (nee Archer), and daughter Kathleen. John was predeceased by his sister Lorna and brother Patrick. He leaves many nieces and nephews who will deeply miss their beloved Uncle John. Although John had battled some recent illnesses, he was in good form, celebrating with many family members over the holidays.

John was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and travelled to Canada at a young age with his mother Evelyn and sister Lorna. They sailed the Queen Mary and arrived in Halifax (and then onto Toronto) to begin their new life with father Leonard, whom Evelyn met during the war.

The family eventually moved to Singhampton, where John enjoyed "the best years of his life". Growing up John played baseball and other sports but was always more interested in books and the arts. After high school, he took photography at Ryerson Polytechnical Institute and became the family photographer. After a few years working for Hiram Walkers and a brief stint at steel working, he decided to return to Collingwood and first worked at Schuller’s Photography before joining McIntyre Bros. Construction, working alongside John and Don. John was the “details” guy – extremely particular about his craft and dedicated to making things perfect, or as close as they could be. He was a favourite to work with and many of the crew became life-long friends. They enjoyed lots of pranks together and they all had nicknames. John's included Luke, Lukey, and the Duffer.

John and Jean’s romance was a whirlwind. They met at the Tremont Hotel, where John apparently “saved” Jean from a “terrible reprobate” (his words when describing the story). Jean had recently broken her leg playing baseball (sliding into home plate) and was celebrating her first week back at work at Bendix. John was there with the boys for their usual Friday night drinks. That first encounter led to several dinner dates and married 7 months later.

They married in July 1981 and had Kathleen a few years later, the biggest joy and proudest accomplishment of John's life. They led busy lives with work and family – and in the last few years, taking their turn to host Friday night drop-ins. After retiring from construction, John did lots of small house projects and liked to ride his bike with Kathleen. He was also known to visit family and friends for a quick coffee.

To say that John was well-read would be an understatement; he was the smartest person we all knew. He loved his white wine, craft beer, sweets, and the Blue Jays. But most of all he loved his family, and it was John that delivered the memorable, sentimental, and thoughtful graces before family dinners. We will never forget those speeches.

John will be cremated, and a celebration of life will take place at a future date. The family thanks everyone, family, friends and the medical professionals for their support. In lieu of flowers, donations can be directed to the Collingwood General & Marine Hospital Foundation and the Salvation Army.