Obituary of Kenneth Robert Gillett

December 18, 1929 - Dunstable, Bedfordshire, England

September 21, 2021 - Canmore, Alberta

Kenneth “Ken” Robert Gillett, 91, of Canmore, AB, passed away suddenly on September 21, 2021.

Ken was born in Luton Dunstable, Bedford, England on December 18th, 1929. He immigrated to Canada in ‘57 where he started his life here in Grimsby, ON. He then moved to Montreal, QC. After retiring he moved to Niagara Falls, ON, then to Cochrane, AB, back to Niagara Falls, ON and finally to Canmore, AB. Ken was an intelligent man with reading and writing skills of a first-year university student. He was very soft spoken but if you sat with him a while, he would tell you anything he knew, but mostly about animals or historical events that had happened throughout his lifetime. His careers included being a zookeeper in England, Lead Seaman First Class for the Royal Navy, Machine Operator at Gillette Ltd. in Montreal. While in the Navy, Ken was able to travel the world exploring with the Chaplin. Some of the exciting places he had the pleasure to visit or be deployed at included China, The Suez Canal, Spain, Malta, and Cypress. Travelling the world was exciting, but his main passions were his kids, working on wooden miniatures, camping, and holiday dinners, especially Christmas or if rice pudding was being served for dessert. He loved his children and would do anything for them, including getting them out of trouble when they were young. Ken had a steady hand which allowed him to do very intricate work when making wooden miniatures with wooden match sticks and other types of small wood for example a log cabin fully furnished, a church replica which Dianne was married in, a castle and much more.

He will be sadly missed by his children, Michael Gillett, David Gillette, Christopher Gillett, Martin Gillette, and Dianne Rogers (nee Gillett); their spouses; as well as nine grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and seven great-great-grandchildren.

In living memory of Kenneth Gillett, a tree will be planted in the Ann & Sandy Cross Conservation Area by McINNIS & HOLLOWAY FUNERAL HOMES, Chapel of the Bells, 2720 CENTRE STREET NORTH, CALGARY, AB T2E 2V6, Telephone: 403-243-8200.