Obituary of Peter John O'Brien
Peter passed peacefully away with his family surrounding him on November 5, 2017 after a long and brave battle with Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. With him through this difficult journey and now forever saddened are his wife of 42 years, Cindy, his son Bill (Elizabeth), daughter Sara (Darryl), and grandchildren Robert and Evelyn. Peter will be missed by all of his family, including his brother Terry, father-in-law Cyril and brother-in-law Karl (Marie), his friends, and the many graduate students he took pride in supervising over his career as a professor and scientist at the Memorial University of Newfoundland and the University of Toronto.
Peter was born in London, England. He grew up with his Dad (John), his Mom (Anne) and his brother (Terry). As he was born in 1937, some of his early memories involved World War II years. One particular memory involved being taken away from his parents in London during the Blitz and how much he missed them. His strongest childhood memories were of bicycling with his mom and dad, who were avid cyclists. The love of cycling formed during his childhood stayed with him throughout his life. During his teenage years, he had many bicycling adventures. Until he was well into his seventies, be continued to bicycle every day, even during the winter.
Although Terry, Peter’s brother, lived in the U.K. and they were separated by distance, their times together were marked by lots of humour and gentle teasing.
Peter met his wife of 42 years, Cindy, in Newfoundland in 1972. They were married in 1975 and had two children, Bill and Sara, who brought Peter joy and pride throughout the remainder of life. The family enjoyed many happy times together, often when travelling. Peter and Cindy shared a number of hobbies including, in later years, running 10 kilometer and half-marathon races. This occurred only in the later years because this was the first time that Cindy could successfully compete with Peter’s running times. Peter’s love of running also started at an early age. He loved competing with his own earlier running times, as well as with anyone who was younger that was on the running trail at the same time as him. Peter also ran well into his seventies. Cindy’s parents brother and other family members loved Peter unreservedly and times spent together led to numerous happy memories.
Anyone who know Peter was aware of his dedication to science. He helped establish the Biochemistry Department at Memorial University of Newfoundland in the late 1960s and continued to work there until 1986 when he joined the Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Toronto. His career there continued until Peter was well past 70 years of age. During this long career, he held several appointments, received several recognitions and rewards, researched enthusiastically, published more than 360 research publications and taught thousands of students. He took great pride in supervising graduate students and helping shape their future careers.
Peter loved classical music, especially chamber music. He was himself an accomplished pianist, having studied at the Guildhall School of Music in London. He passed on his love of music to his son Bill and was Bill’s biggest fan.
It was very late in Peter’s life that he was blessed with the opportunity to get to know grandchildren. Robbie, Bill’s son, and Evie (Sara’s daughter) were both born late in 2015. While Peter’s illnesses prevented him from fully enjoying this new experience as he would have done earlier, he took joy in their arrival and was able to hold them on a number of occasions. The family is grateful for these memories.
During the last two years of life, Peter could no longer live at home. Family times continued at Lakeshore Lodge, with the support of very caring staff. The family will be forever grateful for their professionalism and kindness.
Cremation and a small family gathering have taken place. A celebration of life will take place at a later date in the park along the Humber River where he loved to jog and bike. Donations in his memory can be made to any of the following charities – Parkinson Canada, the Alzheimer Society of Canada, the Vasculitis Foundation Canada, or The Kidney Foundation of Canada.
To make such donations and to share in memories of Peter, please visit his memorial webpage at www.ecofuneral.ca.
Uniquely entrusted to eco Cremation & Burial Services Inc.
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