David NICHOLSON

David will be lovingly remembered by his wife, Zenith, sons, David (Wilma) and Alistair (Kerri) and daughter, Kat (Dean).  He will also be fondly remembered by his two grand-daughters, Kayla and Quinn and numerous Nephews and Nieces.  Survived by his sister, Morag and brother, Ian.  David was predeceased by his mother, Catherine, brother, Alister and sisters, Catherine and Chrissy.

David was born on October 15, 1923 on the Isle of Skye, Scotland.  David started his career working as an Apprentice Engineer at the Kincaid Shipyard in Glasgow, Scotland and after the onset of World War II, enlisted in the British Merchant Navy.  He plied the dangerous waters all over the world and during one of these missions his ship was torpedoed off the Coast of Nantucket Island.  He spent seven days in a life raft with three fellow sailors until they were rescued by a passing ship heading to New York.

After the war, he immigrated to Vancouver, Canada, where he met and married his wife Zenith.  After working for many years in the Northwest Territories of Canada, David retired to Parksville on Vancouver Island.

David was a fluent Gaelic speaker and a strong supporter of the Gaelic Culture and Heritage.

“I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,

And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,

And a grey mist on the sea's face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide

Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,

And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,

To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's like a whetted knife;

And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,

And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.” 

                                                                                      ~ John Masefield