Gordon Wallace Reid

It is with sadness that the family of Gordon Reid announce his passing at the age of 85 on Saturday, August 9, 2025, at Hospice Cape Breton in Sydney.

Born on January 25, 1940 in the family home at 21 Lorne Street, in North Sydney, Gordie was the 10th child and youngest son of Fred (1895-1986) & Lottie (1906-1987).  

Growing up, his playground was Lorne Street, a short dirt road that ended at North Sydney’s Main Street and the ocean; where doors opened directly onto the street and his grandparents lived at the end of the lane. Born just months into World War II, it would become a source of his lifelong interest in history as two of his brothers served in Europe. Gord often recalled that it was as a five-year-old, he finally met his oldest brother Bert once he returned home from overseas.

He sat next to Earl Luffman at Central Elementary. The pair would remain close friends for the rest of their lives. In high school, they played on a variety of sports teams together at Thompson High School, hockey, baseball, and track – devising their own training schedules which included running beside racing horses at the Exhibition grounds on Regent Street. One night, the pair jimmied the lock at the Thompson gym doors so they could throw some hoops. The noise of the basketballs bouncing in the empty gym soon brought the janitor who lived nearby. He took pity on the pair and allowed them to stay, as long as they promised to lock up when they left.

He graduated from Thompson High School in 1958 and headed to Mount A in Sackville, N.B to study science. When money ran out before he could finish his degree he returned home to North Sydney to paint houses with his father and work at the CN Express Office, shifting parcels and freight from the train station to the ferry dock.

An injury during that time, sent him to St. Elizabeth Hospital, where he met Lexie, then a young nursing student. They wed in August 1965 and days later headed back to Sackville, NB to ‘Normandy Hall’, the married quarters at Mount Allison where Gord continued his studies while Lexie worked at the Sackville hospital. The friendships they made in Normandy Hall remained throughout their lives. Visits to and from Ed & Marion Smith and family in Newfoundland, The Slaunwhites in New Brunswick, Norm Hines in Truro and Mike & Linda Shreve in various places around Nova Scotia were always a highlight of summer holidays and trips to teachers conferences.

He attended Teacher’s College in Truro with Earl Luffman, the pair hitchhiking around Nova Scotia to teaching jobs. The tales of these trips would be regaled for each other and the next generations at get-togethers throughout both their lives.

He taught junior high and high school science and math in Windsor, Stewiacke and Truro, N.S returning to North Sydney and Thompson High in 1971 to teach chemistry. He spent 20 years at Memorial High, as head of the Science Department and summer school coordinator, teaching chemistry and computer studies, before retiring in 1995.  A highlight of any outing to the mall was seeing former students and learning about their lives after high school.

He was an engaged and loving grandfather. Attending cadet ceremonies, history fairs and band concerts. He was especially proud when he attended these events at Memorial High. Trips to Nannie & Grandad’s in North Sydney and in Benacadie always included cool science toys, mechanical puzzles on the coffee table, tons of marshmallows, hotdogs & Nerf gun battles around the bonfire, long lazy days at the beach and stargazing into the summer nights.

Since their Nannie died, the kids, now adults with partners, helped Grandad to stay at home through his final illness, watching late-night football games, getting groceries and dashing to Wendy’s or Bette’s for hamburgers and fries. They helped their ailing Grandfather to live his best life, always bringing a smile to his face, to the very end.

“It sure has been fun watching them grow up,” he said recently.

Mourning his loss are daughter Jocelyn (Norman) Bethune, Baddeck, and cherished grandchildren Rob (Keagan), Baddeck; Anna (Kit) Halifax, and Jonnie (Kali) North Sydney.

He is survived by his sister Elaine (Gary) Smith, Dartmouth; in-laws Ann Daigle (Rexton, N.B.), Rose Dean (Sydney) John MacLean, (Sydney) and Eileen Urhe (B.C) and many nieces and nephews who enjoyed his hospitality through the years.

Predeceased by his wife Lexie (MacLean) Reid in 2021 and parents Fred & Charlotte (Young) Reid, North Sydney, brothers Bert, Bob, Larry, Lloyd, Donnie (in infancy) and sisters Edna (Howard) Hilton, Gladys (Rod) Ferguson, Margie (Brian) Killen, Marion McBurnie, and Charlotte (Jim) Erskine.

The family is forever grateful to the Julia, Palliative Care nurse extraordinaire, Doctors Fitzgerald, Poulus, Waver, Adams, Oja and Kohdadad. He was able to stay at home because of the care from RN’s, LPNs and personal care workers at Northside Home Care and the VON. His final days were spent in Hospice Cape Breton, a very special place, where he was cared for by Dr. Anne Frances D’Intino, a wise guiding light; nursing & support staff who became like family – especially Anne Louise, Lenore, Denise, Lois, Lucy, Kim, Mary, Ruth and others whose names may be forgotten but whose impact is not. Hospice Society Staff, including Corrie Stewart and Lisa McNeil Campbell who arranged for a meaningful conversation with astronaut Chris Hadfield, a highlight for Dad and all of us.

If Gord ever inspired you to learn something interesting, please consider honouring his memory with a donation to Hospice Cape Breton. You can find more information and donate directly at  www.hospicecapebreton.org .

Cremation is under the care and direction of  W.J. Dooley Funeral Home, 107 Pleasant Street, North Sydney. Interment at Lakeside Cemetery at a later date. Words of Comfort can be sent to the family by leaving a message on the tribute wall of the obituary at www.wjdooley.com.

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