April 18, 1943 to November 10, 2023
It is with great sadness that we announce the sudden passing of John Harley Berringer on November 10th, 2023 at the age of 80.
John will be deeply missed by many, and most importantly, his wife, Rowena, his children Lindsay (Peter), Joanna (Eddie), and Kelly (Jordie) and his grandchildren, Annabelle, Felicity, and Stanley.
John was born in Fort William, Ontario on April 18, 1943. His father, Russel, was a lifelong railroader and John, his father and mother Hilda, moved from Fort William, to Edmonton, and then to Winnipeg, where John spent his teenage years attending Kelvin High school. In these years, John established numerous amazing relationships with friends; with whom he is still connected. Enduring friendships were his trademark.
Mrs. Berringer’s little (and only) boy Johnny graduated from Kelvin and started studying at the University of Manitoba in 1960. He joined the Phi Delta Theta fraternity, where he had too much fun. As a member of this fraternity, John continued to forge many strong relationships with his fellow brothers. These memories lasted John’s entire lifetime. John and friends would spend weekends at Lake of the Woods, and load their cars for ski trips to the west, however always coming back to Winnipeg to ‘attend’ his university classes, and check in with his mother.
Upon graduating, John spent time travelling Europe and beyond, but landed himself in Toronto, then Winnipeg, finally migrating east to Kenora, Ontario in 1976, becoming a partner in The Standard, where he worked enthusiastically for the remainder of his career. John bought property on Golf Course Bay, where he built his home, in which he and Rowena have lived since. One trip west to ski at Sunshine Village, Alberta was where John met Rowena and they married in 1982 in Winnipeg.
John was a savvy businessman, a spirited negotiator, a man of integrity and most importantly, passionate about making time for his family. He took tremendous pride in participating in the lives of his three daughters, and would be known to sprint into the dance recital at the last minute, pace hundreds of steps on the track above the hockey rink, and drive thousands of kilometers to deliver his kids to their competitions, activities and sleepovers.
John and Rowena made the Berringer home the gathering place for their kids and their friends; hosting many parties, pre-parties, post parties and sleepovers. He welcomed everyone in with a firm handshake or a big hug. John was adored and admired by all who crossed his path.
John loved Lake of the Woods and spent 50 summers sailing, boating, fishing and exploring with his girls, his friends and their families. Highlights were July long weekend sailing trips across the Big Traverse to Warroad, MN, marginal race results on the Lowisa regatta, camping with friends and family, fishing and shore lunches, night time boat rides home, dinners at Crow Rock Lodge, and projects on the dock in Golf Course Bay. John was an untrained tradesman and built most of his home, several boat houses, a couple of sheds and many, many sets of stairs. He was a measure once, cut twice kind of carpenter, and loved to share the building experience with any friends who had the patience for his style.
John was also an avid golfer at the Kenora Golf Club, and Bears’ Paw in Naples, Florida, where he spent much of his time after retirement. He continued to build friendships in these golf clubs, and was a regular member of 4pm golf in Naples, and Thursday Golf with the boys in Kenora.
John was vibrant, curious and engaged. He would never waste the opportunity to make a new friend or stop to hear someone’s story. He loved to walk, move and play and you could never find the man sitting still. There were always a lot of unfinished projects, because if something more important came up, like lunch with a friend, driving his kids somewhere or a conversation with a neighbour, these would always take priority over the project at hand.
John was kind, generous and eager to see change. He spent many years working on the Kenora Harbourfront Committee as well as with the Kenora Rotary Club initiative ‘Ripple Effect’ which builds and maintains schools in Guatemala. John and Rowena travelled to Guatemala many times and worked hard to support this program.
John loved life more than anything else and friends would know that he would greet the day with “terrific” even on the worst of days. This was his mindset, even until the very end.
John will be deeply missed and we are so sad that his life of exploring and contribution has come to an end. Many friends remarked that though he was 80 years old, he had the spirit of a much younger man, and he was always on the lookout for younger friends.
We will hold his legacy in our hearts and continue to make friends with strangers, share interesting stories and be the last one to go home from the party.
In lieu of flowers or gifts please consider in his name and honour a contribution to www.rippleeffectprogram.org or www.tripleplaykenora.com orwww.themusekenora.ca
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.brownfuneralhomekenora.com for the Berringer family.