Condolences
I had the pleasure of working closely with John at Direct Energy from 1989 to 2000. He was the finest, fairest and most pleasant boss I ever worked for - a real man of character, wisdom, faith and entrepreneurial spirit. Those years when Direct Energy was just starting out were the best and most enjoyable of my entire career. With John you always felt respected and accepted and like part of his family. He leaves a wonderful family and business legacy. See you in heaven John. We will have some great conversations and renew our friendship.
I had the pleasure and honour of meeting John many times during my career as an engineer. I always found him a true, honest and hardworking gentleman. I am a better person for having known John.
To John's family, friends, and colleagues, I am so sorry to hear of his passing. I had the pleasure of working for John when I was just starting out in my career. He was a fantastic businessman and a wonderful person. I wish I would have had the opportunity to tell him the positive influence he had on me as I developed my career. I admired his wisdom, his patience, and his kind heart. He was always there to listen to ideas and offer good advice. I will miss his warm smile and welcoming nature. Rest well, John.
We are sorry to learn of John's passing and extend our condolences to all in the family. John had such a positive effect on the lives of so many people, both in and out of the office. He will be missed by all who knew him.
I am one of his sister Marilyn's girlfriends who admired her big brother's good looks. I remember him as a great brother and a quiet thoughtful person.
My sympathies to all of his family.
Dear Connie, John K. Julie, Jill, James and families. My heart aches deeply with yours at John's passing... it is a very sad time for us all. As noted by so many, John was a true visionary, soundly grounded in the genuine interpersonal and work values needed to bring dreams to reality. Being his sister of 70 years, I can attest that he learned these values very early in life. In the tough economic times of the 1940's, John had the best reason to observe how commerce and people worked. Selling newspapers on street corners helped our widowed mother, whom he cherished. John sensed a real need, saw the opportunity, and embraced the responsibility. Our mother, and later my father, provided the best examples of strong work ethics... this was not lost on John. Growing up together, I can recall his sound brotherly advice (and his voluminous rock collections taking up precious space!), and my girlfriend's envy of his Everly Brothers good looks. He convinced our parents to purchase the piano that would instill in me a lifetime love of music, and to switch to natural gas heating despite the common apprehension at the time. John saw how things could/should be, and with great determination, respect and intention would seek to influence. And then along came Connie... Klutzy John needed stitches, and young nurse Connie saved the day, just as she would continue to do for the next 50+ years as John spread his influence wider afield. You do not have to look far beyond any successful man to find a crucial support. John and Connie chose each other wisely, and their strengths together have withstood the test of time. Their love blossomed with four children, and eleven grandchildren, all of whom brought such pride and joy to John. In order for John to inspire, create, and accomplish the way he did, and produce the multiple benefits to both society and his beloved family, sacrifices were made on both parts. So it is with this empathic understanding that a heartfelt "thank you" is extended to Connie for being "the wind beneath his wings". Rest in peace, John... you did well.
John and I were close frieinds at LTI,he was an usher at my wedding and we had great times in the Mining course at
Lakehead Institute. It is unfortunate we did not continue our connection after my wedding. I will always remember
him, God willing as I am a year older than he was. my sincerest condolences to all his family. Pat
Dear Connie, and family,
I am so sorry to hear of John's passing. His passing has left a hole in our hearts. It has been a privilege to have known John for 50 years, back when we first met at the Sherwood Park Newcomers Society to the times we shared with our very talkative Couples Bridge Group in Calgary. John was a successful business man creating new business ventures with his visionary ideas. However, despite his success, he had the ability to connect with everyone he met, be it the head of a multinational oil company or a Mexican fisherman on the beach. He was generous, kind, down to earth, and sincere. He loved his family above all else. Frank and I send our deepest sympathies to you, Connie and your beautiful family.
Fiona Cantafio
I wanted to reach out and offer my sincere condolences to your family's loss of one of the finest people I ever met!
I met John back in the 90's and purchased a company from him. Since that first meeting he has become a coach, mentor and friend to me. I will look back fondly at the times we met over an after work beer or as in the past few years our grand lunches at the Blackfoot Inn buffet lunches.
When reading the obituary the author did a exemplary job in saying while John was a great businessman on a global basis at the heart of it all it was about his family. I feel I have met the majority of the family, children and grandchildren via the loving stories about the chaos and fun when all arrived at the lake house. I know you will all miss him terribly. However rest assured you are not alone in that sentiment as he has positively touched many lives for the better over his lifetime.
Dear Connie, Julie, Jill, John, James and families. I am so deeply sorry for your loss … for all of our loss … of the magnificent man whose impeccable heart belonged to all of you.
My God, John was force in this world – an unstoppable trailblazer with boundless imagination, fiery resolve, unquestionable loyalty, and those massive hands that could stop a train. The first time I met John he looked at me with his kind blue eyes and asked me how I put up with Dave. We both laughed heartily, knowing they shared many similar traits – not the least of which was stubbornness (he called it willfulness). From then on, I loved, trusted and respected John, just as anyone who knew him did.
To Dave and me, John was the real deal. He called things as he saw them; stood by his word; earnestly sought potential; took the high road; and he didn’t just dream – he was a doer - all the way. John lived fully and bravely – aptly matching his gift of brilliance with his generous heart. He was truly a great man and we felt lucky to know him and to learn from him.
I like to think that John and Dave are up in heaven plotting and planning their next great adventure. For now – sending hope for your aching hearts and a gentle reminder … love lives on. -Pat Fream
Geoff Chase
I had the pleasure of serving on the DEML Board and was its Chairman in the early days. It was then that I realized I was dealing with a truly exceptional individual in John. I have known other accomplished people but none of them could compare with John's sincere humility and downright human touch. We developed a special bond because of our roots in Northern Ontario and we could share a beer and swap tales about life in the bush in the fifties.
I will miss these sessions and hearing about his latest forays into the world of business. As he said, working IS my retirement.
Farwell John. R.I.P.
Geoff
As neighbors at Moyie Lake, Marilyn and I were honored to have known John for many years. John was one of those rare people that you could always count on for an intelligent point-of-view on any current topic. He will be greatly missed here at the lake.
Bill and Marilyn Sanderman
My sincere condolences to you Connie, John K, Julie, Jill and James and all of your family. I shall dearly miss John!
As the family obituary notes John was an instantly likable person whom you were quickly drawn to with his sincere warmth and kindness. My association with John started out about 15 years ago as a professional advisor to his companies. This quickly blossomed into a close friendship with a lot of time discussing politics, discovering that we thought virtually alike when it came to thoughts on how the country should be run. He a very astute businessmen, a visionary who could see where he wanted to take a business to. One of the things I most enjoyed were the occasional lunch time meal and beer at The Black Swan. It was also an opportunity to observe how John treated their staff. He was much beloved by them. When I was there just before Christmas they were asking about John and when I related that he was not doing well you could sense the sadness they felt. Such was John's impact on people!
Yes it is true that John is leaving a tremendous business legacy behind, however, what I admire most is the love and adoration he had for his family. With John's failing health in recent years, I have to come to know his children better and appreciate the impact he has had on them! They are truly a wonderful family!
I met John for the first time while I was working at NOVA Gas Transmission. My team had a meeting with Direct Energy and John attended. As the obituary says, John left an indelible impression on all of us. Years later, we would meet again at a Christmas party. Though he greeted me as "an enemy" because I was working for TransCanada PipeLines, it was all in jest. That night, John showed me that, on top of being an astute businessman, he was a very generous, friendly and welcoming individual. All our encounters after that were imbued with the same respect for one another and the same fondness of sharing moments together with his personal family and his work family. It is my wish that John will be forever remembered as a gentle giant of the North-American natural gas industry, a maverick in many ways and a perennial entrepreneur who did not understand the concept of retirement. I remember, from one of our conversations, John telling me that his purpose in life was to create wealth for his communities, his province, his country and his employees. He certainly achieved that. But personally, I will remember his innovative mind, his kindness of heart, his generosity and his loyalty. Farewell John. Thanks for everything you accomplished and everything you were.
Gilles Fournier, Calgary
John and I shared the memory of working together and succeeding in a number of projects at the Ontario gas utility which result made considerable contributions to its shareholders. Meanwhile he was always dreaming how to put it together on his own. With his extreme foresight and extra ordinary business logic he very successfully struck out on his own. He was a visionary and I eventually managed to copy his initiative. Not quite as successful as his model, however, the competition was interesting.some say "nice guys do not win".
John broke that rule. A nicest most intelligent person with tons of logic and always offering to help. We will miss John.
Our condolences to Connie and family. Love Sandra and Paul Waque.
We are all heartbroken in the McCarroll household at the news of John's passing. We enjoyed many years sitting shoulder to shoulder at the Flames games. To be honest, John and I spent waaaaay more time just chatting about "Life, Family & Business" than actually watching the games as anyone who attended with John or I could attest to. I was honored to call John my friend and will miss him dearly. Till We Meet Again ..... Godspeed. Jonathan, Connor, Connor & Taylor
We have known John and Connie for 50 plus years. John was an institution in my life. The Lagadin's and Callow's families lives have been intertwined since the beginning. From camping, fishing, golf, skiing, eating Connie's perogies and business we spent five decades. John and Connie were Godparents to my daughter Stephanie.
What words would describe John. Integrity, honesty, visionary, brilliant, stubborn and humorous are some words that come to mind. John would never swear, however, he insisted on using an open bale fishing rod and several times a day he had a real birds nest. That's the only time he allowed himself to curse. It was soo funny.
It seemed like on many many trips that I would have to call Connie. She would immediately say what hospital are you calling from. From John getting hurt skiing to going Canada Geese hunting where he nearly cut his thumb off with a machete, to John playing a joke on Gord by throwing a rock in the trees to scare him and seeing it bounce off three trees and hitting Gord and cutting his head open we seemed to make many trips to emergency. We continued our guy's trip to Panorama with incredible stories much of what should be left there. We continued our trips having our Municipal Gas board meetings with Frank Klees, John and myself in Panorama, and those annual meetings continued after Municipal Gas was gone right up to last year. John was a valued Board member of Wow Factor Desserts and I enjoyed my time as a Board Member of Direct Energy. Many incredible stories about that experience, from electronic trading systems for natural gas to the Alliance Pipeline it was never dull and through it, all John was the visionary with the strength of character and personal charm to carry it off. I could go on and on but I will stop here.
Some people wore a bracelet with WWJD. For them, it meant"What would Jesus do ". For me, it was always "What would John do".
John set high standards in terms of Integrity, Honesty, and Hard Work among many other traits. I tried to live up to his standard. I wasn't always successful but I tried.
He was my mentor, my role model, and especially my friend.
I will be eternally grateful for the decades that we had John. The World is a lessor place today then it was a few days ago. He will be sorely missed.
To Connie and to the immediate and extended family of our friend John, we extend our heart-felt condolences. We knew the time was approaching when our friend would have to move on and leave his legacy for his family and friends and colleagues to celebrate. And so we will honour John through cheerful remembrance of our times together - the enjoyment of Panorama ski trips and apres ski debates over politics and business, the intensity of boardroom deliberations, our admiration for John's visionary perspectives on a multitude of projects and his stubborn determination which was always at the foundation of his many successes.
Above all, we celebrate John's kindness, civility and generosity of heart. Never to be forgotten, always to be fondly remembered.
Frank and Jaine Klees, Robert and Alissa
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