Gary Kenneth Dawson

On Thursday, March 27th, 2025 we said a sad but peaceful goodbye to Gary Kenneth Dawson a few days short of his 78th birthday in the Palliative Care Unit at Peterborough Regional Health Centre after a year-long battle with cancer.

Gary is survived by his loving wife and best friend of 55+ years, Diane (nee Poole). They were holding hands as his spirit left this world. He is now reunited with their son Michael (d. 2017).

Gary started his career with Elliot and Parr, land surveyors and then went on to work for Enbridge for the remainder of his working years.

Gary was born to parents, Jack and Margaret Dawson, in Peterborough. He is survived by his two sisters, Carol and Lynn, his sister-in-law, Linda Gordon (a pillar of support throughout this journey), and brother-in-law Bill, and his wife, Jolande. His loss is deeply felt by nephew Charlie Gordon and his wife, Caroline, and their children Huntley and Iris, and niece, Lisa Webb and her children Madison, Emmett and Scarlett. Gary will be greatly missed by his cottage family, Eric, Megan, Kevin, Shannon and Ryan – who have so many fond memories of our lives together at the lake.

Gary loved the outdoors. Hunting and fishing were always a big part his life. Besides family, Gary's biggest joy in life was being at the cottage (his happy place). It was the supreme outdoors life with every element he loved. He could fry up a mean pan of fish and no turkey dressing would ever be made without a Black Russian in hand.

Gary and Diane were very fortunate to visit many places in their travels over the years. It was always fun picking out their next destination.

Gary's years were also enriched by the company of his canine buddies. He could not remember a time in his life when there wasn't a dog. Mahalo remains ‘on watch’, waiting for him to come home.

A heartfelt thank you to our neighbours as we worked our way through the ice storm of spring 2025.

Cremation has taken place. A casual, informal get-together for family and friends will be held at Ashburnham Funeral Home on Saturday, May 3rd, 2025, 10:00 a.m. to noon.

If desired, any memorial donation can be made in Gary’s name to the PRHC Foundation in appreciation for their thoughtful and attentive care throughout his journey.