I have a lot of great memories about Ron. One of my fondest was when Ron and the kids and I took a road trip through the United States. It was quite a memorable trip because we were gone for many weeks and we had so many adventures. One day we were traveling through one of the northern states and a sack of potatoes flew off the truck ahead of us. A fifty pound bag of Idaho new potatoes. Ron insisted that we stop and get them. Shortly afterward, we were all eating potatoes and fried chicken, cooked on our Coleman stove. You know I can still taste those potatoes to this day. For many days afterwards, we added those potatoes to every meal we cooked. The kids still remember their Dad on the side of the road with those potatoes.

That reminds me of another food story. When the kids were young and we were living in Hamilton, my brother and family were coming to visit for Christmas. We had bought the turkey and instead of defrosting it in the fridge like I would today, I popped it in the cold oven and forgot all about it. When it came time to start cooking it, we found it stinking and quickly rotting. Here it was either late Christmas Eve or early Christmas morning. Company in the house. Everyone hungry. All the stores closed. Ron said he would go out and see what he could do. He came back a few hours later with a cooked turkey and all the fixings. It was like a miracle. He just happened to have a friend who worked at a big hotel in town and arranged some sort of deal. That was Ron, a man who could make a deal.

Today the Super Bowl will be on television. I know Ron would have watched it. He was such a great football fan. The day we were married just happened to be when the Grey Cup was played that year. Ron was so involved with the game that we couldn't leave for our honeymoon until it was over. That was Ron and I am going to miss some of his funny ways.

Just a note to him: I know that wherever you are you will remember the good times just as much as I do. There will be a void in my life because you are no longer here. I will miss knowing that you aren't out there for me to talk to anymore. I will go on but I won't ever forget.

I'm writing this with a heavy heart. The call I've been dreading came. My dad had died. I pulled my car over and the tears started. I live far away now and have for 20 years. I've only seen my father 5 times in that time. That's what really breaks my heart.

I have many memories of my dad but the ones I cherish the most were at Christmas. My dad was a holiday nut. Our tree was always as big as he could fit in the house. It was always gorgeous. We'd wake up and the tree would have more gifts under it than you could possibly imagine. He would always have his camera around his neck, and a big smile on his face. Us kids would come in and our faces would light up at the sight of all those presents.

Dad, I've carried on the tradition of a real tree. It is always as big as I can fit in.

Well Dad, I wasn't there when you passed on, but your passing will never be forgotten. You'll always be close to my heart, and who ever else you touched in your life.

Really sorry to hear the very sad news. Ron was a good friend and we spent many a great hour together during the days of Gallery Mason. It was during that same time that I got to know his wonderful wife Mary and family. Have great memories of being at the family table, seeing his children grow up and even experiencing and sharing the ups and downs of the family. Ron was the kind of chap once met, never forgotten. Only talking about him a couple of days ago, talking of some of the hilarious moments we shared. God Bless his memory. Ron will be sorely missed. My love and very best wishes to his family.

Peter Dawson in Duncan, B.C.

Moya & Family, I am so sorry to hear of your Dad's passing. It seems strange to me that he should be 76 years old, (where have the years gone?) and yet when I look at his picture I can so plainly see still, the young and vibrant man he was when we were all growing up together "in on the hill". It's sad that it takes an occasion as tragic as this to make contact with old friends. And yet, such is life. I can still remember how I loved going to your home on Waterford Bridge Road and what a wonderful house it was, especially with all of your Dad's artwork there. I know you will miss your father terribly but speaking from experience, both from my own perspective and Seth's, as we have both lost our fathers, your memories will be everything to you. Your father will always be alive in your hearts and as time passes you will smile when you think of him and be forever grateful to have had him in your life. I'll keep you in my prayers.

Love Betty.
St. John's, NL

Moya & Danny:
Accept my condolences. I only met Ron once, but I remember how you, Moya, talked about him with love.

St. John's, NL

To the Mason Family:

As I sit and read the Telegram in my home in Newfoundland and Labrador, I was shocked to learn of the passing of your father.

My time with Ron goes back to his days at the Arts and Culture Centre Gallery in St. John's. As a matter of fact, as I look around my house I see reminders of his work hanging on my walls.

My sincerest condolences are extended to his family and may he rest in peace.

Austin Haynes
St. John's, NL

Lisa, I am so sorry to read about the passing of your father. I have thought about you many times over the years and wondered how you were. I am happy to have this opportunity to send a message to you, but saddened that it has to be on such a sad occasion. I can only imagine the grief that you feel now with the loss of your father. My wish for you is to eventually find peace from this sad event and continue to have happy memories of your father. I hope to have the opportunity to speak to you in the near future.

Take care and know that my thoughts are with you and your family.

From an old school friend,
Patricia Lawlor
St. John's, NL

Moya, Danny, and family, I was so sad to read of the sudden passing of you dad. I know this will forever leave such a void in your lives but I know that your family and friends will help you through this difficult time. You will always have many happy and wonderful memories. Like me, you are very fortunate to have had such a wonderful and caring father. I will always remember my many visits to your home growing up and how welcomed I always felt by your family. My thoughts and prayers are with you all.

Love, Adriana
St. John's, NL

At 8:15 this morning I marked the one week anniversary of my father's sudden passing. I think he would be happy to know how much he is missed. On Wednesday my wife and I received my father's ashes and brought him home. He now sits on the window ledge of our sunroom looking out on our backyard. It is a room he visited just once when he was alive but one that we hope will bring him peace until he makes the trip to his final resting place in a few weeks. The sunroom is where my young son spends much of his time playing and I hope that wherever Dad is, he can hear Jack's laughter and his frequent references to his "Grandpa Bobo". One of my many regrets is that a time will likely come when my son will no longer remember my father or our many visits to my father's retirement home. But for the time being, I'm grateful for every time Jack reminds me that he loved and remembers his grandfather. To close, I simply note how profoundly sad it is to look upon my father's urn and think that so large a man with such a varied life could be reduced to so little. I only hope that somewhere he continues to exist outside of that small space with a new and better understanding of this world and this life.

Moya, please know you have had my thoughts and prayers today. My father died when I was 23 and his passing marked a change in my life. I'm thankful you had your father for as many years as you did. He sounds like a wonderful person. My regards to all his family and friends.

Memphis, Tennessee

I read this early yesterday morning, went back to sleep for a time and dreamed father dreams. Oddly, Jeff DeMarco's father died this week too and he had just posted an obit that he wrote. Both of you posted pictures of your fathers.

You may remember that my father also died unexpectedly and, in his case, in the night of a heart attack. Sometimes I think he was blessed to die at home in bed and not have to suffer the indignity of the hospital. Sometimes I'm convinced he should have and that he might have survived to live another 20 years and see his grandchildren grow.

He would be 87 this year but he died when he was 62, 25 years ago.

I don't know too much but I do know that none of us get to choose the manner of departure of a loved one and nothing feels so final and so unmitigated. There is no word for the sense you get that death is unjust and yet its very injustice is just. Vinnie would say we are all like the dust motes that fly the universe (or somesuch thing).

I have always felt a terrible sense of sadness at not seeing him that last year (I'd just moved away from Memphis after getting married). But I remember my last phone call which was about a week before he died and recently I found his last letter to me.

Parents, good parents, love you in a way that no one else ever does. I know you are feeling that love gone missing. People say that you will come to see it all differently with time and no doubt you will. No doubt.

Hang in there, Moya. It sounds like you are surrounded by loving people. Allow that love to bring some solace and know (FWIW) you are in my prayers.

Grace
Memphis, Tennessee

We were very sorry to learn of the sudden passing of Ron. The loss of a parent leaves a very deep void in one's life, which somestimes can be helped by remembering the happy times we shared.

Brian and I have not been in contact with Ron for many years but the memories we have of him are the times he shared with his family.

Life takes us on many paths, and somestimes we get caught up in our work and family so very much that we do not take the time to spend time with loved ones, especially relatives and this is very sad.

Our memories of Ron revolve around his family and how proud he was of each of you and how much he loved you.

Our prayers are with you all at this time and our deepest sympathy.

Ottawa, Ontario

I am so sorry to hear of your loss, Moya. I know from my own life that there is nothing so loving and comforting to a father as a daughter. I am sure that you were a comfort to Ronald.

Mill Valley, California

I never met Ron, but I could see that his last years were blessed by the support and care of his son Rob. Chantel would often tell me what a good son Rob was. I hope I'll be as a good a daughter to my parents when they need me.

My thoughts are with you at this difficult moment.

Hi Moya,

My sincerest condolences on your sudden loss, this must be an incredibly hard time for you and your family. Good parents are our gravity and therefore I can't imagine what you must be feeling right now. However, reading the messages that have been posted here I know you will find the strength to mourn your loss with the help and support of all that love and that you find will that gravity once more.

You are truely a remarkable woman.

Emma and Richardx
England

Less eloquent than others, I only have two words: I'm sorry.

When my mother died 20 years ago, I happened to be closest to the hospital, and she waited until I got there before letting go. I was sorry we all didn't make it in time, but awfully glad she could at least wait for one of us. It was a last great gift.

Lafayette, California

I know that there were times when Mr. Mason missed St. John's on "the rock". Over the past few years my husband, Rob, has been a rock for his father, offering him a foundation on which to lean as he himself grew more feeble and, due to a number of health problems, aged beyond his years. Communication, like other life-skills we take for granted, became increasingly difficult for him, and he was often frustrated to be so reliant on others, having been such an independent spirit all of his life. He loved all his children, even though he could not say this readily, and his gratitude for their different gifts and talents was more often voiced to others (I heard each child praised at different times). They are all suffering now, but I believe that Mr. Mason is himself in a better place, no longer suffering, and wishing that they, too, may one day be at peace with him leaving his pain, frustration, regrets and fears behind. Jack still pretends to talk to Grandpa Bobo on telephones, still says "Hi Grandpa Bobo!" at unexpected moments, to one of his teddybears or other toys. Ron Mason lives on in our children, refined like the finest gold.

Dear Moya

I was so sorry to hear about your Dad's demise.

I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.

love to you, aunt e
Lafayette, Louisiana

Dear Moya, Lisa, and Rob,

I am very sorry to hear of your father's passing and wish you each long and fond memories of his life.
It is the memories others have of us that make us immortal.

Moya, let your heart speak to your dad.
While your voices will be whispers like wind in leaves, it will console you. My pop died 15 years ago, but when I need him, he comes to me.

Philadelphia, PA

My father's passing has left a void in me that I am very sure will never be filled. He had been a very strong man all his life, who in recent years, suffered greatly. I am sure that his greatest joys of late came from the time he was able to spend with his grandchildren and talking with his children. He loved spending time with my son Jacob whom he had affectionately named "The Prince of Men" and his other grandchild Jack, affectionately called "The Little Prince". It is these times that my father most looked forward to because our children brought laughter into his heart. He would always tell me how happy he was that my brother Robert and his wife Chantal had visited him. They would always bring him a coffee and a treat and he treasured this time he got to spend with them and their son Jack. He had diminished lately from a serious fall he took a few years ago, he had difficulty speaking but seemed to have no problem communicating with the kids. They understood him easily. They enjoyed all the time he spent with them and looking back, these will be the memories I remember most. There was nothing he enjoyed more than watching Jack speed around on his walker and he loved helping Jacob put together his toys. His sudden death has affected all his children greatly as we all thought he would live a very long time. He had overcome so many hurdles we did not expect him to die of a heart attack, but he did. My father loved to get out of his residence and breath the fresh air. His favorite saying was "Free - Free at last." I am sure that he really is not suffering anymore, and he is Free -Free at last. We will miss him always.

Dear Moya.

My sincerest condolences on the sudden passing of your dear father. My heart goes out to you knowing how much you loved him.

I am wishing you and Louis the strength and serenity to see you through this very sad time. Hope your dad is in peace and god's love.

With love,

Blanka
New York

Dear Louis and Moya,



Moya, we were so sorry to hear about the sudden loss of your dad.

I know there is not much we can do for you two from here but offer our love and prayers

You are in our thoughts often and we miss you both.

Love

Karen and Owen
New Orleans, Louisiana

Several summers ago Moya, Danny, and myself visited Ron in Toronto, and we had a great time. A few memories stand out in particular; the first one is our journey to Ikea which was quite exciting, and the second was playing guitar for him. Danny and I played 'California Dreamin', and Ron requested that we play it for him over and over! He just loved that song and we were more than happy to play it for him. Though I only knew him for a short time, I came to learn that he was a very funny man, and I always enjoyed having a quick chat with him on the phone (a popular topic was the beauty of St. John's!). So although in one sense he is gone from this world, he will live on forever in memories like these through all of his family and friends.

Shannon
London, Ontario

My father left us suddenly on Friday morning with little warning. While he had been battling a physical and mental decline the last couple of years stemming from a serious fall that he suffered in November 2002, he had recently appeared to be in general good health. Less than three days before he died, he was up and walking around his retirement home with minimum of assistance. I had hoped he might be able to spend increasingly more time out of his wheelchair. But in a flash, he was gone. I received a call from his retirement home last Friday at 6:30 in the morning telling me that he had been rushed to the hospital complaining of chest pains. On my way to the hospital, he suffered his first heart attack and two minutes after I arrived he suffered a second attack that stopped his heart. As I stood by, the staff did everything possible to save him, and in fact was able to resuscitate him. For a few minutes it looked like he would survive - but then his heart crashed a second time and despite what I considered a heroic effort by the doctors and nurses for over 30 minutes, it was finally determined by staff that he was gone.

My father fought to the very end and I was comforted somewhat by having been a witness to his last struggle. While it is true that my father's life had been severely diminished in recent months and that his passing surely freed him from a body that had let him down, I am left with a lingering regret of not having made it to the hospital in time to speak to him, to squeeze his hand or look into his living eyes one last time. I just hope that in those last few minutes he was unafraid and not in pain. He will be missed very much by my wife and me and by our young son, Jack, who affectionately called my father "Grandpa Bobo". I believe that Jack, more than anyone else, brought my father the most happiness in his last several months, and we were fortunate that Jack spent an hour with him only a couple of days before he passed away.