(March 21, 1949 - July 13, 2017) - Born in Toronto into the Sunnucks and Reynolds families on the first day of spring; lived over the years in Etobicoke, Arkell and Guelph. Ron loved a good chainsaw: he could position an empty pop can and drop a tree on it. He loved nature, made friends with the one-legged robin who hung out on the back lawn, with the two cats from next door, with any dog he met. He loved his wife Hedy, his son Jason, playing shuffleboard with his friends at the Red Chevron Club, going for breakfast at the Airpark Café. Over the years he worked on the renovation of the Fergus Market, on the construction of the Guelph Dam, and in building maintenance; he drove long-haul trucks, and snow plow for the City of Guelph. He restored old furniture and sold it out of a booth at the Aberfoyle Antique Market. He knew every rock and roll song from the 1950s and 1960s and who was singing it on the radio. He loved vintage trucks and cars, could tell you on sight a vehicle’s name and year of production. He loved his 1995 banana-yellow Mustang, which he bought three months before he died. He was generous and open-handed with people, especially in times when he had next to nothing. He paid his bills on time. He never sulked - five minutes after a quarrel, he was cheerful again. He was funny and could make people laugh. A very private person, he hated drawing attention to himself, yet wherever he went in Guelph, people knew him, stopped him and talked. Like every person, he went through tough times. His century farmhouse in Arkell was burned down in an arson last October. He lived with a broken heart and died suddenly, of a heart attack. A good way to go. Beats lingering in a hospital, he used to say. He remains deeply loved by those who knew him. A celebration of Ron’s life will be held at the Red Chevron Club, 34 Elizabeth St., Guelph on Wednesday, July 19, 2017 from 4-8 p.m. Dress Code: informal. Memorial contributions to the Guelph Humane Society would be appreciated.
A tree will be planted in memory of Ronald J. Sunnucks in the Wall-Custance Memorial Forest, University of Guelph Arboretum. Dedication service, Sunday, September 17, 2017 at 2:30 pm.