DUNKLEY, Rev. George A. C. - (Mus.Bac., M.Mus., A.R.C.T., F.T.C.L.) - Of Mississauga, Ontario, passed peacefully into the arms of his Lord in the early morning of Saturday 10 November 2018, after a difficult struggle with pancreatic cancer, which, even in the last few months of his life, did not diminish his zeal for helping others in their times of need.
He was born in Toronto and lived in his early years on Oakwood Avenue, not far from where his father, Albert Wesley Dunkley had been a teacher at Oakwood Collegiate, and where his mother, Gladys Elizabeth Comba, was able to watch over his budding interest as a musician.
He was happily married for 57 years to Dr. Colleen Rose Dunstan, who was able to watch over and care for him during his last few weeks in their new residence in Mississauga, near St. Peter's Erindale Anglican Church, where he was an associate priest, with a particular ministry visiting the sick and the dying.
They were the doting parents of three marvelous sons: George Gregory (grand-daughter Codi-Lyn and grand-son Christian); Derek John (wife Wendy Pak and grand-daughters Adela and Sierra); and David Michael (wife Caminee Blake and grand-daughters Sahana and Sitara).
George's interest and talents in music, especially the pipe organ, were in early evidence. He even performed during a tour of well-known organ sites, under the aegis of his teacher, Gordon Langlois, when only 16 years old. He documented these talents with a Mus. Bac. from the University of Toronto, and later a Master in Music from the Rochester Eastman School of Music. He added later studies in Divinity, as he was preparing to be ordained as a priest in the Anglican Church of Canada.
He taught Music at Etobicoke Collegiate for two years, and then was Head of Music (and a teacher of mathematics) at Vincent Massey Collegiate Institute in Etobicoke from 1961 to 1980, and then, from 1980 to 1993, he was Director of Music at Ridley College in St. Catherines, Ontario. All this while, from 1962 -1980, he was organist and director of music at the Church of Saint-Martin-in-the-Fields in west Toronto.
It was while he was teaching at Ridley College that he firmed up his early desire to become a priest in the Anglican Church (following on a family tradition). He was ordained deacon and then a while later he became a priest, in the Anglican Church, all the while busily studying and being involved in working in the Diocese of Caledonia, including work among the Indigenous communities in northwestern B.C., working in Kitimat, Greenville, Prince Rupert, and other parts of the Diocese of Caledonia.
Among his other interests were the family cottages near and in Kincardine, which provided great enjoyment for both Colleen and him, and where he was a regular summer-time musician and priest. They were also able to make several trips overseas in Europe, traveling to some of the musical sites which they loved so much.
Funeral Service will be held at St. Peter's Erindale Anglican Church, 3041 Mississauga Road, Mississauga, ON, on Friday, December 7th, from 1pm to 2pm. Followed by a reception at the church at 2pm.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that persons wishing to remember George in a special way do so by donating to the refugee family fund at St Peter's Erindale Anglican Church and/or to a charity of their choice, in George's memory.
TorontoObituaries.com
Add new comment