Gary Evan Garrity passed away from death unto life on Wednesday, June 17, 2009 on his beloved mountain in Chilliwack, BC. Gary was born on December 14, 1952 in Hamilton, Ontario in his parent’s kitchen.
He grew up in an impoverished neighbourhood and was no stranger to hardship and pain and then one day in 1979 Gary gave his heart to Jesus. His life struggles continued, but now he could always come to the Father for comfort and guidance and he reached out to minister to the hurting and the lost.
Gary was a lover of classic cars and was in the car industry for 40 years. He also ran a scrap metal business for a time and enjoyed that time in his life immensely. He loved to cook and dance, he loved card games, dice and nature’s beauty, but mostly he loved doing things for people. Gary was always well known wherever he went because he always took the time to talk with people. He was known by his smile and his clever sense of humour.
His favourite thing to do was talk about his “beautiful wife”, as he referred to her. During the summer of 2003 Gary had met and fallen deeply in love with Corinne, the woman he had been waiting for so long. They married on June 4, 2005 in Alliston, Ontario.
In May 2009 Gary and Corinne accepted an invitation to move to Chilliwack, BC to live near friends, Pat and Sue Truscott and live the life in the country they’d always dreamed of.
Gary and Corinne settled right in to church life and were excited about several ministry opportunities including Ruth & Naomi’s Place, a street ministry that captured the essence of the type of ministry Gary had always done. They never got a chance to get involved; they had always known Gary’s health was very poor and he suffered a serious heart attack on May 31, 2009. He suffered several more heart attacks over his nine-day hospital stay, then was discharged to his family.
His death a few short days later was as memorable as his birth. The family puppy was lost in the dark and afraid, and Gary who never ignored a cry for help, climbed up the mountain to rescue and comfort her. Only brief moments later, he left this world and entered into eternal life and unspeakable joy.
Gary will be sadly missed by his brothers: Raymond, Gordon, Tommy and Gerald Garrity; his sister, Melody Garrity; two step-daughters Theresa and Tammy Shebib.
He is predeceased by his parents Vernon and Caroline (nee James) Garrity and his oldest brother Phillip James Garrity.
A Memorial Service in celebration of Gary’s life was held on Tuesday, June 23, 2009, 7 PM at Gary and Corinne’s residence.
In lieu of flowers, we would like to honour Gary’s memory by suggesting that donations be made to Ruth & Naomi’s Place.