Died peacefully at home in Guelph on Tuesday, October 26, 2021. Ben was 97 and outlived most friends his own age. But he was still so active he had countless younger friends. “Keep smiling,” he regularly told them.
Ben and his wife, Norma, were teammates – as parents and grandparents, world travellers, Sudoku and crossword buffs, and volunteers. When Norma died in November of 2019, they had been married 72 years.
Ben is survived by their four children: Janet of Oakville; Jon of Kitchener and his sons Sean Fear (Xuyen Tong) of Leeds, England and Thomas Fear (Jesse Lu) of Toronto; Jeanne Kenney-Dunn of Cambridge and her sons Kristopher Kenney (Allanah Perissinotto) of Guelph and Jeffrey Kenney (Alli Diskin) of Kitchener; and Jeff Fear (Kim Baldwin) of Warwick, RI. He was predeceased by daughter-in-law Caroline Oliver of Kitchener and son-in-law Garr Dunn of Cambridge.
Ben was born February 24, 1924 in Niagara Falls, ON, the only child of Fred and Loretta (Heximer) Fear. In a science class at Stamford Collegiate, he was assigned to share a lab with young Norma Elliott. The chemistry was good and they began dating. While in high school he landed a part-time job delivering for a drugstore. That led to him starting a three-year pharmacy apprenticeship program.
The Second World War began in 1939. When he was old enough, Ben enlisted with the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps and was assigned to the 4th Field Ambulance, a medical unit in the 1st Canadian Division. In July of 1943, he took part in the Invasion of Sicily, then moved on with his unit to mainland Italy. Just south of Ortona, he became ill with hepatitis (jaundice) and was transported back to the Canadian Army’s No. 5 General Hospital in Sicily. After recovering, he was suddenly reassigned to help out in the hospital’s short-staffed pharmacy and remained with it for the rest of the war, mostly based in Rome. He then came home, graduated from the Ontario College of Pharmacy, married Norma (now a teacher) and became a retail pharmacist. With partners Ken Muisiner and Frank Johnston, he became a co-owner of Thornburn Drug Stores Ltd. in Niagara Falls.
Ben and Norma moved to Guelph in 1997 and together did volunteer work with numerous groups including the University of Guelph Arboretum, Guelph Public Library, River Run Centre and Harcourt United Church. Ben sang and helped manage the Village Singers chorus at the Village by the Arboretum (VBA) where they lived. In 1999, he and Norma travelled to Uganda to help build a rural school and for the next 15 years they made return visits. They created and administered the NorBen Student Scholarship Fund, raising funds in Canada to help dozens of deserving Ugandan students pay tuition and living costs.
Ben’s children are grateful to the caregivers from Bayshore and CarePartners who became Ben’s newest friends in recent months and to their own friends and the many Harcourt Church members and VBA residents who offered assistance and have shared loving words of support.
Cremation has taken place. A memorial service to celebrate Ben’s life is being planned. Arrangements entrusted to the WALL-CUSTANCE FUNERAL HOME & CHAPEL 519-822-0051 / www.wallcustance.com. In lieu of flowers, donations would be welcome to the Harcourt United Church General Fund, the Guelph Public Library, Guelph Little Theatre, Guelph Chamber Choir or a charity of your choice. Keep smiling!
A tree will be planted in memory of Benjamin D. Fear in the Wall-Custance Memorial Forest.