William "Kevin" Hammond

William "Kevin" Hammond was a modest man, quiet and observant in his ways. He was trustworthy and traditional in his approach to his life and in his relationships. He was tough-minded with the kind of “stick to it” attitude that earned the respect of all who knew him. He was also a man who was meticulous, carefully disciplined, and orderly in virtually everything he undertook. Realistic about life, he was always at the ready, prepared to take on responsibility.

William was born on August 5, 1925 at home in Bell Island, Newfoundland. His parents were Patrick Hammond and Jean Rees. William was raised in Bell Island, Newfoundland. He was brought up to be self-confident and dependable. These were traits that would serve him well throughout his life.

Growing up in the Hammond household was a bit different than most homes. There were good times to be had, but just as often there was a fair share of challenges as well. However, William was able to work through the usual family problems when they appeared, and he was the one person in the family who seemed able to keep the stress at bay. William was raised with five siblings, Frank, Ned, Buster, Edith, Patricia. William was constantly involved in activities with his brothers and sisters. William and his siblings may have had the typical rivalries while growing up but William was always consistently loyal to his family.

As a young child, William was never someone who needed to be the center of attention. He wasn’t pushy and never forced his way into games or other activities. William developed a variety of interests and the things he enjoyed doing, he did well. He was always curious about the world around him and was often eager to explore it. William took part in Soccer and Bowling. He was a Knights of Columbus. However, what William enjoyed most was simply playing and spending time with his family.

Always considered to be a solid friend, William was fortunate to have numerous acquaintances and several very close friends during his life. Since he disliked making generalizations about people and preferred to draw his own conclusions based on direct observation, William was able to see beneath the surface of relationships and became a true friend to those who knew him. He was committed to his friends and valued the trust he placed in them. It was not uncommon for William to go beyond the call of duty for others, and friends frequently sought him out for advice because he had a knack for coming up with practical solutions to any type of dilemma. While growing up, some of his best friends were Freeman King and Pat Ezekiel and later in life his best friend's were his children and although he had many acquaintances, he never let them in. He saved his thoughts and needs and shared them only with his children.

On August 23, 1953 William exchanged wedding vows with Mary Pearl Rose at St. Michael's Church in Bell Island, Newfoundland. Compassionate and devoted to Pearl, William held endearing, traditional values about marriage and family life. He took the responsibility of marriage to heart, giving it his total commitment. He was a source of strength to Pearl and using his gifts at nurturing one-on-one relationships, he worked hard to make his new family happy.

William brought the same traditional values in his marriage to bear on how he raised his children. He was a good parent to them, always firm yet fair in his dealings. He would always listen carefully and think things through before he acted, even when it was an adverse situation. William was also a walking schedule, always seeming to know what everyone in the family needed to do, where they needed to be and when they needed to be there. William was blessed with nine children. Bill, Wayne, Paul, Renee, Wanda, Terry, Marina, Kelly and Kim. He was also blessed with sixteen grandchildren, Nick, Lorraine, Bobby, Josh, Frankie, Tee, Jeff, Kristy, Jordan, Tyler, Terra, Kevin, Taylor, Jesse, Aaron and Leanne, five great-grandchildren, Brody, Aiden, Addison, Makayla and Michael.

William greatly enjoyed what he did for a living. He was a hard worker who expected the same in return from his co-workers. He was skilled at working effectively in small groups and in one-on-one situations as well as handling solo assignments efficiently. William enjoyed dealing with concrete ideas and could penetrate any amount of fuzzy information to reach the essential facts. Always able to attend to the task at hand, William was excellent at meeting deadlines. He was an efficient worker, one who paid careful attention to detail, allowing sufficient time to complete one task before moving on to the next. His primary occupation was Maintenance worker. He was employed for 24 years at Canadian General Tower and at Wabana Iron Ore Mines until 1966. William worked hard to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done.

William liked to experience things first-hand as well as learn about them. This trait carried over into his hobbies, where he was very methodical in how he organized his activities and categorized things. Since he enjoyed his private time, William always tried to allocate a specific time for working on his hobbies. His favorite pursuits were watching Hockey. William was content to enjoy his hobbies alone but was also willing to share his interests with others.

William was a man who was dedicated and devoted to his faith. He was a member St. Gregory's Roman Catholic Church for 45 years. During that time, he was making sure his children went to Church on Sunday. He was a sympathetic man who valued his beliefs and was willing to work tirelessly for them.

William enjoyed vacation time no matter where he travelled, William always had a backup plan at the ready, just in case. Favorite vacations were home with his children. He always wanted his kids around and with 8 children vacation was only a dream, as money was tight. As long as his kids were around, that was a vacation for him.

William was a lover of animals and cherished his pets. One of William’s favorites was his cat Minnie. They were best friends for 15 years or so. His family was rounded out by his dog Fergie.

When William’s retirement finally arrived in 1990, he was well prepared. He always trusted and placed value in what was logical and in the things he knew, so he was very confident in planning his retirement. He had begun the process early and had his retirement all laid out well in advance. His new life involved staying in Cambridge, where his children lived. In retirement, he found new pleasure in playing cards, but he was a sore loser, so we didn't let him play. We made him watch. He also liked to play the mini slots. Even in retirement, William continued to stay in touch with his old friends while making plenty of new acquaintances. He was active in his new community and felt fulfilled.

William "Kevin" Hammond passed away on November 30, 2011 at Cambridge Memorial Hospital. He is survived by his 8 children Bill, Wayne, Renee, Wanda, Terry, Marina, Kelly and Kim. Services were held at T. Little Funeral Home and Cremation Centre, Cambridge, Ontario. William was laid to rest in Mount View Cemetery, Cambridge, Ontario next to his loving wife Pearl.

Commitment is a key word that can be used to describe the life of William "Kevin" Hammond. He was committed to living the life of a good man who was both practical and trustworthy. He was committed to the traditional values that he upheld his entire life. He committed himself to being a hard worker who expected the same effort in return from those around him. Most of all, he was committed to those he knew and loved.

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Born August 5 th, 1925 - Bell Island, NFLD

Passed away peacefully surrounded by his loving family at Cambridge Memorial Hospital on Wednesday, November 30, 2011 in his 87th year, has now gone to be with his dearly departed wife Pearl. Loving father of Bill and Debbie, Wayne, Renee and Frank, Wanda and Whil, Terry and Karla, Marina and Dave, Kelly and Haidee, Kim and Gary. Predeceased by his parents Patrick Hammond and Jean Rees, son Paul, brothers Edward(Ned) and Patrick(Buster). Also survived by sisters Edith and Patricia and brother Frank. Cherished Grandfather of 16 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren. The family will receive friends at T. Little Funeral Home and Cremation Centre, 223 Main Street, Cambridge, Ontario N1R 1X2 (519-623-1290) on Saturday, December 3, 2011 from 12pm – 2pm with Service to follow in the Chapel at 2pm. Private interment Mount View Cemetery. As expressions of sympathy, donations to the Cambridge Memorial Hospital Oncology Medical Day Care would be appreciated by the family.

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