I was very shocked to learn of "The Legends" passing. I had been keeping in  touch with Doug because although he was retired he still wanted to read the Officers Position Report and I was his go to person for that task.He was a very kind and well respected Captain. He managed his ship and crew  very efficiently. He didn't take any chances when it came to the safety of ship and or crew. Doug's final sailing came way too soon. Rest in Peace my friend.

Good-bye Special Neighbour and Friend,
What a kind, generous and helpful neighbour who will be so missed. Doug and Penny were so happy and good together.  They had wonderful adventures  which often included friends and new places, documented with photos.  Doug cherished and supported Penny in so many ways and Penny so loved and catered to Doug's interests while supporting his health challenges more recently.  They tried out different eateries and then shared their experiences with us, often telling about breakfast possibilities.  John and I could not get ourselves out and about like the Early Birds, Doug and Penny so it was more often that we enjoyed lunch or dinner out,  with our wonderful neighbours.  Doug always made me smile when he appeared on the front deck or on the front lawn in his cheerful orange T-shirt.  He kindly, thoughtfully and regularly inquired how John and I were doing on that particular day.  Doug would frequently tease, if he saw I was heading out, about my regular visits to Walmart.  Apparently, he even extended the teasing to John, asking, if Doug didn't see me, "John, is Sharron off to Walmart, AGAIN?"  Of course, that teasing was part of Doug's jovial manner and included hassling Penny and I about the amount of time we could pass chatting across the front lawns.  Doug was that special and helpful neighbour who guided and helped John repair the wooden structure of our garden swing after  it was damaged by heavy winter ice a few years ago and would snowblow our driveway early in the morning. 

Penny,  Lorna, Chris, Jaime and Family,  please know that our thoughts and prayers are with you in the loss of your husband, dad and Pops.  May your memories and knowing that others share in your sorrow, bring you comfort.        John, Sharron and Family 
        

We will always remember Doug for his great sense of humour, his storytelling of his extensive travels, and his love for Penny and the 'girls' Rosy and Kay.

I will fondly remember our monthly breakfasts and lunches, where we would critique the local fare, and share our mutual love of curry. Sorry about that Penny.  Doug you will be missed. Thank you for the memories, these gifts will be cherished. 

Doug, I will always remember you with fondness. 
You would always come to physio with a smile, a story, great clothes and yes, the most amazing SMELL! 
Yes we would all have to smell which cologne Doug was wearing that day.  
You are a true gentleman and we will miss your company down here. 
HAPPY SAILING in heaven. 
Until we meet again!
Trish

We are going to miss our good friend Captain Doug , or Penny's Cabin Boy as we jokingly called him.  His gentle and kind soul,  warm smile, and unique laughter made us fall in love with him instantly when we met him for the first time.  Since then, we have enjoyed great food, awesome adventures,  and wonderful times together.  Rest in peace old friend.

Doug's sudden departure was a shock and our thoughts and prayers are with Penny and the family as you navigate these rough waters.

Doug's happy attitude  for life and food..I enjoyed making him strawberry jam as a surprise..he so enjoyed eating the perogi that I would surprise him with..
I will miss his large smile ,having great conversations  which we would solve the world problems...
Will miss you Doug...rest in peace

For the past 8 years I had the pleasure to drive Captain Doug from his ship to home and visa versa.  We always enjoyed each others company and never had a moment silence (unless Doug fell asleep en-route which he did quite often).  Captain Doug was most generous in many ways and quickly named me Doctor Phil because he always thought I looked and sounded like him.   I played a trick once when picking him up at the Pearson airport.  I held up a sign "DR. PHIL".  When he exited the doors there were over 50 people standing behind me waiting to see DR. PHIL.  Captain Doug laughed when he saw my sign at which point I told him he had better start looking like DR. PHIL or else all the people behind me would probably cause a mutiny.  We had a good laugh over that one.   Whenever he would call for a booking with Ontario Shuttle Service he would always ask for Doctor Phil.  A number of years ago I picked him up in Goderich at 11:00 p.m. to take him home to Aurora.  He did not want me to make the return trip so he called ahead to his true love, Penny and asked her to prepare an overnight stay for me.  When we arrived Penny had special snacks prepared, drinks and the hot tub ready to go for all of us to enjoy.  This is the kind of man Captain Doug was, always thinking of others as was Penny (a beautiful person).  I will miss my friend dearly and know he is now in a better place.  My heartfelt condolences to Penny and Captain Doug's family.  He was and will be remembered as a great man.  Dr. Phil    

I have some great memories of my Uncle Doug. He lived with us for a few years at the farm when he wasn’t on the ship and was definitely the Captain at home....Hahahaha. I haven't seen him for quite a few years but always thought we would one day meet up. His passing is an unfortunate reminder that life is too short to wait until “one day.” He will be remembered fondly by his brother Jim and sister, Joyce. Will see you on the other side, Uncle Doug. Love, your Ginger 

I will always cherish the memories of and friendship with Doug.  He was such a thoughtful person - like the time he found out one of our sons was interested in ships. "Captain Doug" took the time to send a number of photos of his ship.  A wonderful man who loved the open seas ... lived life to the fullest ... and loved his family.

Penny, my deepest sympathy to you at this difficult time.  You will be in my prayers. 

Love, Jacqui Chaulk

I was so saddened to hear of Doug's passing. I've worked with Doug for over 20 years and knew he was passionate about his job and loved working on the Lakes. He considered Algoma part of his family and the ship his home.  We will miss Doug and hearing "OK lovey".  Rest in peace my friend.

Our family knew Doug as Pops!  When we met Pops we could see how much he loved his family, including his grandchildren. Our memory of spending time in Muskoka with Pops and Chris a few years ago, will always be remembered. We enjoyed our time together that evening sitting on the dock and hearing stories of his adventures at sea.  We really enjoyed getting to know Chris's dad! We also had the pleasure of spending a McGee family Christmas together one year and having Pops join us. It was a wonderful experience and it felt like he was always a part of the McGee family. Pops will be missed, Love Janette, Derick and & Ariel

I've had the pleasure of knowing Doug for several years. He was always in good humour, and this lightened the days of us who spent time with him. A very fine man!

Hi everyone I’m Lorna Doug’s daughter!
I just wanted to thank you all for the kind words and some of the memories that you have shared with him. It warms my heart knowing that he was loved so much by so many people.
I didn’t get to see my dad much as I live in England. I only seen him a handful of times in twenty years. 


John and I have many memories of the hours we spent with Penny and Doug playing games. Doug was not particularly  fond of learning new games but was a huge fan of Euchre.  Penny and I teamed up against the boys often leaving them defeated in battle.  On one particular night I remember the boys had lost (again) and Penny and I suggested they might use a towel to mop up their tears. This became a ritual - an invitation to play Euchre and the crying towel to mop up the tears of the defeated team.  We will miss those games with Doug  but our memories will forever bring a smile to our faces.  Our condolences to Penny and family.
Donna and John Friedbacher

In the short time we knew Doug it was clear that he was loved and respected by many friends.  Penny and I have been friends for many years and I have never her seen her happier during her time with Doug.  He was big hearted, funny and had a smile for everyone.  We will miss our discussions about where you can find a really good cup of coffee.  Love always.

Doug (also know to us as “Bob the sailor”)
We will miss your many phone calls requesting help with this or that and always wanting to know what we’re up to.  You were a wonderful friend and will miss the great times we spent together.  

Penny
May you find peace, comfort and strength to face the difficult days ahead and treasure the loving memories the two of you had together.




Doug (Cassy)
My family home was Doug’s second home in Cornwall. Growing up I have many fond memories of a sun tanned sailor turning up for weeks when he was on leave.
My parents he always called Oxo and Barfus their nicknames, he thought of them as family and was treated like he was.
We will remember the many stories and escapades of his days in Boscastle with much laughter and fondness.
He introduced us to Brian a colleague from Sunderland, sadly Brian is no longer with us, but we are still friends with his wife Joan.
The friendship with Cassy has been going on for most of my life, so he will be sadly missed.
The photo is of Mechard a rock off Boscastle Harbour that he swam to, which got him a telling off from Dad as there are dangerous cross currents!
Debbie and all the family from Boscastle x

Goodbye My Friend
It was both an honor and fun to have known you. You were a mentor, a golf buddy and an all-around friend.
We had a lot of laughs together at the expense of each other. You teased me about wearing a toupee and I teased you abought turkey meals and gave you a hard time about using coloured golf balls because you could not see the white ones. I could never understand how you would be able to see a lighthouse if white was so hard to see.

                                                          Captain, you have crossed the bar.
                                      May the seas be calm and the breeze to your back;
                                      May sunsets be magnificent and night stars glow;
                                      May the dawn mists clear and day skies be bright; 
                                      May your voyage be glorious and your rest be tranquil.
 				     Goodbye my friend, goodbye. 
My salute to you - one long blast and two short.
Larry Wright



We have been friends of Penny’s for almost 20 years and first met Doug in 2018 when he and Penny (and the girls) drove to the Maritimes and included us in their travel plans.  We had the privilege of getting to know this wonderful man in Penny’s life and knew from the start that they were soul mates.  When their visit came to a close it wasn’t like guests leaving – they were like family heading back home.  We were able to take in some of the sites in Halifax and saw how excited Doug was in pointing out the different ships in the habour – always the Captain!  We think the Mic Mac Tavern was close to setting aside a table especially for Doug as we had been there so many times!  We enjoyed their visit so much and we were overjoyed to see just how happy Penny and Doug were together.  Penny’s ‘heart of gold’ is truly broken – but we know that she will always hold Doug in her heart.  Rest in peace Doug – you fought the hard fight but you were never alone.  Deepest condolences to Penny and family.  Love Andre and Karin Walsh
 
 


I knew Doug as a Captain, a friend and a colleague. It's hard to believe he's gone. Doug was always looking on the bright side of things, always looking forward to the next adventure. Whatever stresses or outside pressures he was dealing with, he never brought it to the job. He never let it show. He was good at keeping a level head. 


One of the things I will remember most about working for Doug is the confidence he had in the people who worked for him. If he knew you could do the job, he let you do it. He gave you the space you needed to grow and taught you to trust yourself. He was a great leader that way. I was lucky to sail with him. 

Ship is in port, engines are on stop, crew is safe, time to rest. 

 I worked with Captain Doug Taylor for twenty years before his retirement and it was a pleasure to do so.  Doug was part of the "ISM Implementation team" when that was first being rolled out by the company which meant I got to see him every day in the office while he and the others were working on the project.  Some good laughs during that time I must say!   

Penny and family -  we are all thinking of you and wishing you peace and comfort during this time. 

Deepest sympathy to Captain 'Dougie', (as Gerry called him) Taylor's dear family.

Susan, Sabrina and Marc Kranenburg

Pops certainly brightened our day with his visits. On one of his visits to our place, with Jaime, Chris and family, it happened to be our family Christmas Day with our whole family. I felt Pops might enjoy a ‘good old fashioned Christmas’ with all of the little ones from Jaime’s siblings as well as Jaime’s and Chris’ children under foot, since Pops most likely missed out on many ‘family days’ of his own because of his busy schedule.
He appeared to tolerate or even enjoy the activity level quite well, at least from a distance. He complimented the dinner, then watched the little ones open their presents amid giggles, laughter, and minor disagreements. Perhaps the couple of drinks he had at the time helped. He sat back and observed all the activity while sporting a smile on his face. At least he appeared to be at ease with the active little ones. This was such a relief to me as I was afraid he might bolt out the back door when everyone began laughing and teasing one another, adults included.
Pops was a real trouper. 😏

I'm Captain Taylor's 3rd Mate on the Algolake. I worked with Capt. Taylor since 2011. He was so happy we called him legend. He helped me a lot! 
My condolences Penny.

Another memorable time was when I finally learned to understand what Pops has done for so many years.
In Pops’ world he was ‘top dog’. He ran his ships with order and precision. I thought, “Wow, how could anyone have the same job for so long? The scenery would always be the same, except for the weather of course, causing disruptions in his plans or days.”
Well, I was ‘schooled’ very quickly one day when I had the opportunity to sail from Goderich to Sarnia on a military ship with full military crew aboard. It was great and I thought, “No problem. I’ve got this.” 
When the ship sailed into open waters the story changed. I found it ‘very’ difficult to navigate my way across the deck without looking like a drunk person. After trying to eat and walk around on the deck, I found new respect for Pops’ profession. 
I’m afraid I did not admit my weakness to Pops. It was a matter of saving face and my pride.

Goodbye my friend, it was my honour knowing you.  Our condolences from the crew of the Tim S Dool. Our Canadian flag is half masked in your honour. Our hearts go out to Penny and your family. 

I was Capt Taylor  chief  cook for 12 years  onboard the algolake  my prayers &thoughts are with you Penny & your family  R.I.P  captain  you will be missed 

Capt Taylor, you were one of the best role models in my career that I could have ever asked for. You saw my potential as a young 3rd officer and pushed me to become your chief officer. I wasnt the best at navigating the rivers, but you were ever so patient with me in giving me the courage and strength to do so. You were like a father to me out at sea.
Whenever I would call you at home, you always said "hello my friend," but I could never say the same back because you were so much more to me than that. Always my Captain, 
your chief officer,
Capt. Darren Pereira

RIP Sir, may perpetual light shine upon your kind soul forever. 

I had the great pleasure of sailing with Captain Taylor for several years aboard the Algolake.   We shared many laughs, and a few tribulations.  I can proudly state that the Captain was a good friend who I shall miss dearly.  My heartfelt condolences to Captain Taylor’s wife Penny, and all of his family.  Penny, you were by the Captain’s side always.  During his retirement, you got him travelling, and enjoying life to the fullest. True love.  For that I thank you.  Sadly, I never met Captain Taylor’s family, but he always spoke of you proudly.  Rest In Peace Captain.  You brought many smiles and much laughter to my life.

I have a very heavy heart as I begin to write this... I learned the news of Doug's passing with a very sad heart. He was a good man.

It didn't take long to realise he was a good man. Just a few minutes of watching his interactions with his wife Penny, as well as others and you knew he was a genuine and caring person.  

I really wish I was better at putting my thoughts into words... I wish I could tell him that he helped me. He helped my self esteem, in ways I can't even explain. My life is better for knowing Doug. 

Rest in peace, my friend. 

I am saddened to hear about Doug's passing. We shared the Algolake in his final year of sailing. It was a pleasure to have sailed with him. My condolences to all the Family. I hope you made it to Florida. 

Kind regards
Terry Viscount 

We were so sorry to hear of the captain’s passing. Our condolences to all the family.  We worked together for years on the MV Algolake. And, it felt like family on there. Everyone worked hard, but there was was always time for “yarns” and laughter. We’ve lost one of our own.   R.I.P. Captain. It was a pleasure to know ya!!!!!

Hi I’m Doug’s daughter Lorna I live in the UK so I haven’t seen much of my dad. Except every Sunday on FaceTime he’s like what is FaceTime?
I said dad do you have an iPad and he’s like yes? Ok well we can see each other as much as you like and it’s free! He said is it?? 
Oh let me tell you he was over the moon when I explained how to use it, and it made me laugh!
So mine, Paul’s and my boys memory of dad is seeing his smile and having a good laugh even though My family was going through a very hard time as we lost our 11 year old daughter last November in a traffic accident. 
Dad and Penny were on the other end just being there and it meant the world to my family and he will be missed so much. 
I love you dad your at peace now and your with my Emily 💜🖤💔


I remember sailing with him and every night he’d call down and ask for a sandwich.  First night I made one for him, I screwed it up good and he said “your mother is the best cook on the Great Lakes and you can’t make a sandwich”

I’ll always remember that and have a laugh.  Thank you for the memory Doug.

“Doug” you will be forever in our hearts.  You were a kind, generous man who was always opening your home and friendship. I am so pleased you and Penny found each other, even though your time together was cut way to short.  The love you shared will always be cherished.......never forgotten! 

Rest In Peace my friend! 

Tracey Martin 

OBITUARY

Douglas "Doug" Allan Taylor

July 25, 1947 – October 22, 2019

Thompson Funeral Home

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