Robert Duff

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Robert Duff, born in Regina, SK on May 13, 1924 to parents James Duff and Margaret Hay. Bob (or Slim Bob as he went by) is predeceased by his parents, 6 siblings, and wife Maxine Duff (decd 2011). Bob leaves behind his 4 children and 9 grandchildren: son Bill Duff/Uncle IKEA (Wife Jean [decd 2014] and children Holly and Charlotte); son Gord Duff (Partner Elizabeth and children Dionne, Kristian, Cory, and Jason); daughter Marilyn Martin (Husband Armand and children Jean-Paul, Christian, and Andi/Little Ace); and son Gary Duff (single and ready to mingle), as well as 11 great-grandchildren. Bob will always be remembered for his boisterous laugh, witty mind, amazing sense of humour, and great story telling ability.

A child of the Great Depression, Bob always instilled in his children and grandchildren the value of a dollar and the importance of being grateful and generous to others. Along these lines, one of Bob’s funniest characteristics was that he would eat anything – he would just as soon eat boiled turnips as he would filet mignon. Nevertheless, he was an outstanding chef, known for cooking up epic feasts for friends and family. Ever adventurous, Bob’s family introduced him to sushi in his late 80s; he was particularly fond of, well, ALL sushi!

In his late teens and early 20s, Bob became a Navigator in the Royal Canadian Air Force. His grandchildren loved hearing all about his military training and navigation skills. In his 70s, Bob still remembered the telecommunication method “Morse Code”, which he taught to his granddaughter. For years, they would speak in “dits” (dots) and “dahs” (dashes) and relish in the fact that only they knew what they were saying.

Once out of the Air Force, Bob started his career with SaskTel as a lineman, where he retired as a Budget and Outside Plant Operations Supervisor in 1976. During this time, Bob entirely built his family home in Regina. Bob could build or fix anything – electrical, plumbing, carpentry, roofing, and more – he even built go-carts, playhouses, and catapults for his grandkids.

After his retirement, Bob devoted his time to his favoured and most important work: helping to raise his grandchildren – those who love him most. To his grandkids, he was always “Ace”(an ace card player); he loved teaching his grandkids card games such as Rummy, Cribbage, and Trump. If a card game was a point away from completion, his grandkids would ask: “do we bother with the last hand?”, and he would always reply: “absolutely, the game isn’t over until it’s over”. Ace had several incredible comebacks and 24-point hands in Cribbage!

Ace was the greatest example to his grandchildren that “you CAN teach an old dog new tricks!”. In his 70s, he got his first computer and email address so he could stay connected with his grandchildren. What’s more, he learned French in his 70s and would write letters and emails to his French-speaking grandkids weekly. Ace even continued to complete the daily crossword puzzle (yes, he always completed it, even the Sunday New York Times edition!) and solve Sudokus in his 90s. What’s more, Ace was the ultimate “ode” writer. He would write lyrical stanzas for every occasion; he even wrote one for his son-in-law who fell off a ladder and broke his back. Yes, there’s an ode for that!

Ace loved spoiling his grandchildren with love, laughter, and time. His grandchildren were lucky to see him nearly daily until they were grown. He would wait anxiously with hot chocolate and chocolate almonds for them to get home from school every day. He created scavenger hunts throughout their house in the form of riddles. He took them to the park, pushing them on the swings for hours. He taught them to swim before they could walk and dive before they could run. He never missed a hockey game or dance recital and helped with their school projects. He taught them math, spelling, physics, and the science of electricity. Everyday tasks were always an opportunity for learning in his eyes: he’d have his grandkids read all the street and business signs as they drove, calculate the total grocery bill plus tax before getting to the counter, explain positive and negative charges when boosting a car, or have them learn the inner workings of an alarm clock (if you’re going to use one, you should understand the origin, propagation, and properties of sound!). He took his grandkids to their favourite restaurant – McDonald’s – as often as they’d like (even when they were supposed to be “grounded” by their parents). To say he absolutely loved and adored his grandchildren, and in his later years, his great grandchildren, would be an understatement. He is deeply missed but we are thankful that we have boxes filled with his cards, letters, odes, and emails.

Finally, to know Bob is to know Lamb’s Rum – it was his gift of choice, buying it by the gallon (or specifically, 1.75L) for every occasion: birthdays, Christmas, Anniversaries. Most of us still have 3 or 4 in our cupboards! As per Bob’s wishes, there will not be a funeral service and a private family celebration will be held (with lots of Lamb’s Rum, of course). The family would like to thank the staff at Wintergreene Estates Retirement Residence for all of the outstanding care he received over the final years of his life.

An Ode to Ace

Goodbye Ace, it is now time to soar,

You’re truly the best forever more.

Beyond lucky we were to call you ours,

You’re where you belong now, amongst the stars.

Your humour, wit, and laugh we will surely miss,

But thanks for the memories that bring us bliss.

You gave us such a beautiful life so filled with love,

We know you are smiling down upon us from above.

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Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.leefunerals.com for the Duff family.