WHITTEN, Roy Harold - June 21, 1923 – December 14, 2019
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved father and grandfather, Roy, at Sunnybrook Hospital on Saturday, December 14, 2019.
Born in 1923 in Essex, England, Roy was the oldest of four children of Thomas and Isabelle Whitten.
His early years were spent in England, except for two years, when the family lived in Australia, a time that he remembered with great affection.
In 1942, he enlisted in the Royal Armoured Corps and was subsequently posted to the Officer Cadet Training Unit at Sandhurst College in 1943.
He graduated as a Second Lieutenant before seeing active duty and distinguishing himself in battle. He was an active participant in D-Day and was subsequently wounded later in the year.
He served in the Far East from 1945-1946 and later left the armed forces in order to join the police force in London.
During this period, Roy married Jeanette and they had two sons, Alan and Kevin, before immigrating to Canada with the support of the Canadian Army, whereupon he took up his duties with Canadian Intelligence for four years. In 1970, Roy married Anne, a loving union that was to last for 42 years until her passing in 2012.
Throughout his life in Canada, Roy showed a strong entrepreneurial spirit and was extremely successful in the Security and Protection industry, as well as with purchasing and developing commercial real estate.
Roy was the cherished father of Alan and Kevin, their wives, Laurie and Ja Soon, and the loving grandfather of David, Peter, Julian, Jordan and Jamieson.
His courage and farsightedness in moving his family to Canada meant opportunities and a quality of life that would not have been possible otherwise.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to The Canadian Cancer Society.
A celebration of life will take place at a later date.
{fastsocialshare