Donald Albert Hurst M.A.
September 19, 1935 – June 1, 2018
God saw you getting tired, a cure was not to be
He put His arms around you and whispered,
“Come to Me.”
Sadly, we share the news that Donald passed away at the Welland Hospital in the early hours of June 1st. Dear husband for 50 years of Mary Jane (Litwiller), devoted dad to Susan Jeffery (Todd) of Fonthill and Andrew Hurst (Jae) of Burlington. Proud and adored grandpa of Emma Kate, Tessa, Samuel, Lydia, Rachel Jeffery and Mackenzie Hurst. Don touched so many lives as an educator, coach, author, mentor, historian and volunteer. Don taught secondary school with the Hamilton-Wentworth Board of Education for 34 years. As he said, he loved his first day, his last day and most of the days in between! In keeping with Don’s wishes a private cremation has taken place. Thanks to Juravinski Oncology and Radiation; CCAC and his PSW Nadia. If so desired, memorial donations to the charity of your choice greatly appreciated by the family.
Mary Jane, Susan, Andrew & families! What a great picture of Uncle Don!! I remember so much fun in the basement of Grandma & Grandpa’s house – the pool table, Petula Clark singing “Downtown” (that will probably need an explanation for anyone under 60!) – soooo much fun! So sorry to hear about Uncle Don’s passing!! It has been a tough road for all of you over the past few years! Praying for the comfort of good memories and peace of mind & heart for all of you! It was so good to see how the grandkids loved their grandpa when we visited a few years ago!
I was very fortunate to have had Mr. Hurst as my grade 10,12 and 13 history teacher during my years at Orchard Park 1966-70. In addition he was my basketball coach as well, I loved going to his classes and I always appreciated his razor sharp sense of humour and enthusiasm for teaching. He was the reason I went on to university and eventually obtained 3 degrees and an A average. He also made me aware that history was truly a thinking person’s field and that we are all impacted by the past and ideally we can actually learn from it and make the world a better place. I saw Mr Hurst at the 40th reunion at Orchard Park in 2007 and we had a wonderful conversation and as always I walked away feeling something special had transpired. I was pleased to find out he had grand children and now that I too am a grand father I will make sure to tell them stories about the special people in my life and why studying history is so very important and that teachers that inspire are a wonderful gift to our way of life. I am sure his memory and those of his family, friends and students will live on.
I am sending this with respect, admiration and love.
Thank you Dawson, for your eloquent, heartfelt tribute. It was very gratifying to read such high praise about our dearly loved dad. We feel honoured and proud that he had such an exemplary influence upon you. Dad was our treasure and his loss is immeasurable. He was passionate about teaching and throughout his high school career, his courses were innovative, creative, challenging. When he retired and had grandchildren, he was also able to experience life in an elementary school where he volunteered with three of his grandchildren. His eldest, a granddaughter entering Grade 12, shares his love of history with a goal of teaching. She feels a special connection to her grandpa through this ambition. We saw first-hand how much time and diligence he devoted to his lessons, as well as his involvement in school sports and extra-curricular activities: he would be delighted to know that he had this positive impact on a student’s life. Thank you for taking time to write about our dad. While the sadness is indescribable, your tribute gives our family immense comfort. We thank you for sharing our sorrow. Sincerely, Susan, Andrew and our Mum, Mary Jane
So very sorry to find out about Donald. We were all part of a great little community on Govenors Rd.
Don, Mary Jane , Susan and Andrew came into our lives in 1985 when he had a teaching exchange year in our daughters’ High School, The Heath, in Runcorn, UK. A lifelong friendship has followed, daughters exchanged happy visits between Ontario and Cheshire, our older daughter and husband even beginning their honeymoon trip to Canada with them in Grimsby. Further visits followed and we always had a wonderful welcome on our visits with Don and Mary Jane. Don will be sadly missed by everyone who was touched by his life in any way. We are sending a donation in his memory to the wonderful charity Archway in Aberdeen which cares for my sister’s handicapped daughter Anest.
I know that Don was much loved by his wife (my sister) and his children and grand children. The preamble of this tribute says it all. He is now at peace but will be watching over his family. Sincere condolences and much love.