The Honourable William “Bill” Rogers McIntyre, O.C., Q.C. was born in Lachine, Quebec on March 15, 1918 to Sidney and Pauline McIntyre and died peacefully in Victoria, BC on June 14, 2009. Bill was predeceased by Mimi, his beloved wife of 49 years; his daughter, Elizabeth Diamond and his sisters, Barbara, Jean and Eleanor Pilley (Trevor). He is survived by his brothers, Hugh and Jack; his son, John (Jennifer); his grandsons, Owen (Janelle Brewer) and Peter Diamond, Graham and Duncan McIntyre; his great grandson, Mahlon Diamond and eight nieces and nephews. He has left his life-long friend and wife of seven years, Dorothy McCully Parkinson. After growing up in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Bill attended the University of Saskatchewan where he earned a law degree in 1941. He joined the army and after training at Gordon Head in Victoria was sent overseas. He landed in Sicily in 1943 with the 1st Canadian Division and served as an artillery officer in the campaigns in Sicily and Italy. Bill was enormously proud of the accomplishments of the Canadians in Sicily and Italy and of the men under his command. He often said that one of the most memorable and emotional events of his life was the Christmas of 1943 during the battle of Ortona. Bill returned to England in 1944 and finished the war as an Air Observation Pilot in North-West Europe. In 1944, Bill met and married Mimi Reeves and in 1945, Elizabeth was born. After the war the family settled in Victoria where John was born in 1948. Bill was admitted to the British Columbia Bar in 1947 and practiced law in Victoria until 1967 when he was appointed to the British Columbia Supreme Court and then in 1973 to the British Columbia Court of Appeal. In 1979, Bill was appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada where he served for ten years. During his years in Ottawa, Bill made a point of selecting his law clerks from one of his old clients, the University of Victoria. He took great pleasure in teaching his clerks and his excellence was recognized by the University of Victoria when he was granted an honorary doctorate in 1993. Following his retirement from the Court, Bill returned to Vancouver where he continued to be active in the law as an advisor to fellow lawyers and a mentor to students. Throughout his life his love of the law, history, opera, literature, travel, spirited debate and good company earned him the respect and affection of countless friends and colleagues.
A Memorial Service will be held in Victoria at the Gateway Baptist Church, 898 Royal Oak Avenue on Saturday, June 27 at 1:00 p.m. with a reception to follow at 3:00 p.m. at the Union Club, 805 Gordon Street, Victoria.
A celebration of Bill’s life will be held at a later date in Vancouver. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Salvation Army, the Law Library at the University of Victoria or to the Law Library at the University of Saskatchewan would be much appreciated.
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Donna Greschner
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Gayle Jones My father always talked with great respect for Bill McIntrye. He valued his leadership of the Canadian artilery during the Italian campaign and was very proud to have known him. My father also was touched by Christmas in Ortona and the singing of Silent Night there.
My father was Sargeant Ronald Jones
Gayle Jones
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Carol Cardew Hi John, I am so sorry to hear about your father’s death. I will always remember the great dinners we had with “Mac and Mimi”. Your parents were wonderful people.
Sincerely,
Carol Cardew
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Fritz Schulze I am very sorry to hear of Judge McIntyre’s passing. My heart is with you.
Fritz Schulze
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Gerry Lister To Dorothy and Family.
Stephanie and I send our heartfelt sympathies, to all of you at this time of your loss.
We will be in Scotland at the time of Bill’s service, but, you will all be in our hearts and prayers that day.
Sincerely yours,
Gerry Lister
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Peter C.P. Behie, Q.C. I had the great honour of clerking for Judge McIntyre at the Supreme Court of Canada in 1985-86. Judge McIntyre patiently and persistenly encouraged debate and discussion on the law and the other great issues of the day. He opened his home to us and allowed us to learn lessons of the law and of life from him. He always demonstrated humility and modesty despite the lofty heights he reached in the law. I was changed by the time I spent with him. I stand on his shoulders every day that I make my way in the law and in life.
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Dominique Chapheau John and Jennifer,
I am so sorry to hear of the passing of your father. As you know he opened his door to me when I came to canada in 1965. I will never forget his hospitality and the fact he did not like when I spoke French with your mother. But he enjoyed the French language later in life and we had few good conversations in French. He was a true gentleman and I loved his dry sense of humour.
Please accept my sincere condoleances. I will not be able to be at the service on June 27. I am out of town.
My thoughts will be with you
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Bev de Leon I am so sorry for your loss. I have wonderful memories of Mr. McIntyre. As a legal assistant working with Allan McEachern and Lloyd McKenzie, Mr. McIntyre was a frequent visitor to their offices and I enjoyed very much their good natured banter on various topics. They were all wonderful people — of the ‘old’ school — gracious gentlemen. A favourite memory is meeting Mr. McIntyre while on a walk in Stanley Park. There he was, striding along at a great pace with his walking stick. Clearly enjoying his walk and making a point of greeting me and my friends. A wonderful person. He will be sadly missed.
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margaret Odishaw It was my deep privilege to meet Mr. Justice McIntyre . , his love of family , the Law and life generally was easily shared in his conversations. I know that you will miss your Father, Grandfather and Husband and Companion but knowing that he enjoyed a wonderful and full life will ease the loss . our prayers and thoughts are with you at this time…Margaret Odishaw and sons, Nicholas, Matthew and Daniel Charleton
On behalf of the professors and staff of the Faculty of Law, University of Victoria, I wish to extend our deepest sympathy to Justice McIntyre’s family. Justice McIntyre was a great jurist. He was also a warm and engaging friend of many faculty, a generous mentor to many students, and a model of integrity from which everyone took inspiration. The University was honoured to have benefited from a long association with him, and he will be missed.