James Collins

April 04 1949 - December 22 2015

It is with sad hearts that we, his family so fortunate to have had such an amazing man in our lives, announce the passing of James "Jim" Anthony Xavier Collins. Jim is survived by his wife, Linda Collins (nee Williams); his children, Kevin Collins and Tammy Williams; son in law, Donald Deans; granddaughter, Kelly Williams; sisters Lila Anderson (John Anderson); Sandra Collins; brothers Alfred (Debbie), and Robert Collins (Hugette), several nieces and nephews, grandnephews and grandniece, and his much loved dog, Max. He is preceded in death by his youngest son, Keith; and by his parents, Francis and Leona Collins (nee Munroe). Jim retired from the Canadian Armed forces in 1992, and worked for Agriculture Canada until his full retirement in 2011.

The above brief, and standard information does nothing to depict the great man Jim Collins was to us. For all of you who knew him, you may recall him as "tough", "gruff", and a "Tell it like it is", kind of man...and you would be correct, and putting it politely. For all of us who love Jim, we knew him to be fiercely loyal when it came to family. We also understood his gruffness. We knew that after a disagreement, when the dust settled, he would tell us he loved us (often followed by a bit more grumbling so as not to be called a Softie ). Sometimes Jim's very dry sense of humour could be taken the wrong way, but he always smiled when friends understood his humour. Gruffness and humour aside, when it came to his final wishes he was very specific. As per Jim's request, we are not holding a service...we are having a party. There will be a Celebration of Life at the Aylmer Legion, Branch 33 on Saturday, January 09, 2016, beginning with a Poppy Service at 12pm.