Jack Reginald N.P. Denning FCA (UK)

Beloved husband, father and grandpa, Jack passed away peacefully at 95 years of age, at home, on Monday June 2, 2025. Jack is survived by his son Anthony (Martha) and his two grandsons Nicholas and Ian. The oldest of three, Jack was predeceased by his brother David and sister Diana. Jack was also predeceased by his wife Hazel in 2024. Jack dearly missed his Hazel; his greatest wish was to join her, and now they are together again in heaven.

Jack was the eldest son of Lieutenant General Sir Reginald F.S. Denning, KCVO, KBE, CB and Lady Eileen V. Denning, OBE (née Currie). Jack was born in London, England, in September 1929. He was a quiet, shy boy who was good at math and, he shared, not so talented at French or music. Grandpa liked to tell his grandsons that during WWII he and his brother caught rabbits with their ferrets, providing meat for the family and selling the remainder to the butcher. He told them about living in India for part of his childhood, and how much he enjoyed roaming the English countryside near his parents’ home with his brother. Family was very important to Jack.

Jack spent his national military service in North Africa. Thereafter, he lived and worked in London, England, and obtained his Chartered Accountant (CA) designation with Binder Hamlyn. In what later proved to be a life-changing decision, Jack then accepted a position with Ultramar and relocated to Caracas, Venezuela, as a management trainee.

There, Jack met his lovely Hazel; they were both ex-pats from the UK enjoying their stay in South America. They had a whirlwind courtship in Venezuela and married in 1961 in Manhattan, New York City, at St. Bartholomew’s Church. They went from New York to St. John’s, Newfoundland, where they spent three happy years, and their son Tony was born.

Jack and Hazel spent 15 years in Montréal building their lives together and settling into a wonderful neighbourhood straddling Beaconsfield and Baie D’Urfe. The lifelong friends they met in Montréal and Newfoundland were very important in their lives. And the 12th night parties Jack and Hazel hosted every year were a highlight for them and their friends. They later made a new home in Thornhill, Ontario, where they met new friends through a newcomers group at Holy Trinity Anglican Church (Thornhill). Jack was a sidesman and bookkeeper at the church, and Hazel joined, and eventually led, the Flower Guild. The church was very important to them both, a quiet faith they passed down to their son and grandsons.

Jack was an enthusiastic bird hunter, fisherman (including a yearly salmon fishing trek to Québec), and sporting clay shooter (lately of Uxbridge Shooting Sports), interests he passed on to his son Tony and grandsons. His trips to Saskatchewan with his son Tony were the highlight of his year; he was disappointed to have to end these trips when he was 81. Jack was also a voracious reader and a very talented bridge player.

Playing bridge or going to the theatre with friends, yearly trips to the Shaw and Stratford Festivals, social engagements, lunches, dinners, and parties, yearly trips to the Caribbean and other locales far and wide (including France, Italy, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and, of course, England), and many other events were highlights of the long life that Jack shared with his Hazel.

By all accounts, but especially those of his family, Jack was a successful man. Successful not only in terms of materially providing for his family but also in providing them with the foundations to make their way in the world, find and give love, and contribute to those less fortunate and the organizations that serve them.

Jack will be missed by his family and friends. But we know he is with God now, reunited with Hazel, and at peace.

In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations be made to Holy Trinity Church Thornhill or the Heart and Stroke Foundation Canada.