Obituary of Douglas Gunn
Douglas Gunn, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, May 30, 2017 after a courageous battle with Ocular Melanoma . He was surrounded by those he loved and who loved him. Beloved husband of Lori Dunn. Dear son of the late Graham Gunn and Wyla Gunn. Loving brother of Sterling Gunn and his wife Jacqueline Weber, and Peggy Luet and her husband Ford. Dear uncle of MacKenzie, James, and Alexander Gunn; Jessica, Mason, Taylor, and Paige Luet and doting ‘daddy’ to his kitties Pippa and Rowan. He will be missed by his Aunt Gene, Lori’s family, and friends and colleagues.
Douglas grew up in the Toronto suburb of Don Mills. He attended George S. Henry Academy and graduated in 1983. He then attended the University of Toronto, studying Physics and Math and then studied Computer Science at Carleton University in Ottawa.
Douglas returned to Toronto and started his software development career. Through the years, he worked for many software companies including MicroStar, Icontext, PCDocs, and Pivotal. His last employer was iter8, where he was Director of Development for 10 years.
Douglas had fond memories of camping each summer with his parents and two siblings. His father worked for IBM which afforded him 2 months of vacation time. The family spent many happy summers in Killbear Provincial Park and took road trips across Canada to British Columbia. He continued his interest in travelling when he met his wife Lori. They enjoyed memorable trips to Hawaii, Las Vegas, Florida and Bermuda and went in search of adventure on road trips in Canada and the U.S.A.
Douglas’ greatest joy was cooking and baking for family and friends. His Bajan Christmas cake was always an appreciated gift. He loved reading (especially with one of his cats curled up beside him) and enjoyed British crime books, historical non-fiction and fantasy fiction. He loved the Toronto Maple Leafs and was so excited when they got into the Stanley Cup. His favourite television shows were The Wire, Battlestar Gallactica, Justified, Band of Brothers and, of course, anything on the Food Network. He was very proud of his Fender Telecaster electric guitar and relaxed by playing it but his favourite listening music was progressive rock. He loved finding new restaurants. He wasn’t picky and loved to eat – junk food, good food – he just liked food. Before his diagnosis he had loved his Scotch whisky, particularly Laphroaig.
After his diagnosis, Douglas researched his illness and all possible trials and medications. He then kept all of his family and friends up to date, sharing the experiences of hospital wait times, frustrations and steps forward and steps back so that everyone could be a part of his journey.
Cremation has taken place.
A drop-in open house Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday, July 23, 2017 at at the 'eco Life Celebration Centre' of Urban Gallery between 1 and 5 p.m., with a time of focused tribute for Douglas at 3 p.m. Urban Gallery is located at 400 Queen Street East, Toronto (north side of Queen, east of Parliament). Street parking is available and it is fully TTC accessible.
Interment will follow the next day on Monday, July 24, 2017 at 10 a.m. at St. John's Norway Cemetery (256 Kingston Road, Toronto at Woodbine).
Please help to build a legacy for Douglas by sharing your stories, photos and memories of him here on this memorial webpage.
Click here to view memorial video.
Uniquely entrusted to eco Cremation & Burial Services Inc.
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