Robert Wade Heggie

Wade Heggie was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, to Bob and Evelyn Heggie. The only boy in the family, he had two sisters—Pat (seven years older) and Kathy (seven years younger). He quickly found his outlet in sports, spending every afternoon in the park across the street playing touch football with the neighbourhood gang. His expectations of teammates were legendary: “If you can touch it, you can catch it!” That competitive spark carried into basketball, skiing, baseball, golf, and hockey. He stayed on the ice well into his senior years and swung clubs until the very end. Even as melanoma made him weaker, he never missed a Leafs or Blue Jays game on TV.

In 1976, after a blind date that didn’t exactly set the world on fire, Wade surprised everyone (including himself) by proposing a few months later to Betty-Ann Schwandt. It turned into a lifelong partnership full of laughter, adventures, and more than a little dancing. Together they raised two daughters, Louise and Elizabeth. Wade was the dad who never missed a game or a swim meet, traveling near and far to cheer them on—whether his sideline coaching was appreciated is another story.

Wade’s work life was as colorful as he was. He started as a social worker in a psychiatric hospital, describing the experience as straight out of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. But his true passion was flying. With a friend, he launched a small fixed-wing operation—repairing planes, storing them, crop-dusting, and teaching flying lessons. Later, when Betty-Ann’s career took her around the world, Wade shifted gears to Manulife, balancing work with cooperative playschool duty and endless chauffeuring to kids’ activities. Fatherhood was, without question, his favorite role.

Once the girls were grown, Wade and Betty-Ann threw themselves into travel. He tackled every adventure with gusto: climbing Tiger’s Nest in Bhutan to hang prayer flags, Huayna Picchu in Peru to claim “oldest guy on the ledge,” the towering dunes of Sossusvlei in Namibia, and Mt. Etna to peer into its smoldering caldera.

In 2013, they moved to Toronto to be closer to family (and better flight connections), but their hearts stretched wide—summers in Prince Edward County, winters in Phoenix, and communities of friends wherever they landed. Wade is remembered for his wry smile, big heart, courage, and integrity. He was always the champion of the underdog.

Nothing, though, lit Wade up like the idea of grandchildren. He liked to joke that on any given day he was just nine months away from being a grandpa. His wish came true in 2025, when Louise and her husband, Mike Metcalf, welcomed daughter Romy Mae in Bali, and Elizabeth and her husband, Sean Chaudhry, welcomed son Idris Wade in Toronto.

Wade passed away at home in Toronto, surrounded by Betty-Ann, his daughters, their spouses, and his beloved grandchildren. A life well played, well-traveled, and well loved—just as he would have wanted. In true Wade style, he’d probably tell us all to quit crying, pour a good Caesar, and dance our hearts out.

The family will celebrate Wade’s life in the spring of 2026, when his ashes will be spread. If you’d like to mark the occasion with a gift in his memory, donations to Melanoma Canada would be warmly appreciated.