Obituary of Donald Andrew Rae

A Tribute written by Fraser Rae Donald Andrew Rae April 25, 1952 - March 03, 2016 My uncle was born in Montreal, Quebec, and two years later moved from Verdun to Greenfield Park (South shore of Mtl) Quebec. In the mid 60's you didn't need a high school diploma or a University degree to land a job, so he left school without completing high school. His first job he got through Uncle Bill, at a paint factory. Years later he would laugh at all the current health and safety regulations, that didn't exist back then. Uncle Donald embraced the 60's and 70's, grew his hair long, experimented with various substances, and began an appreciation of wines that would span a lifetime. From the first day with the moving company "Allied", his spacial reasoning skills made him stand out from all the other newly hired staff. On his first day on the job, he and a few other newbies were standing outside the house they had just removed all the furniture from, but suddenly the housewife came out and handed them a cuckoo clock and some linen. The others just stared at her; the trailer was full, they'd had difficulty closing the doors. My uncle jumped into the trailer, unloaded enough to accesses the deep freeze. Wrapping the cuckoo clock in the linens, he placed it in the freezer, and then repacked the trailer. His boss just stared at him, laughed, and asked how many years he'd been working as mover. My uncle replied it was his first day, his boss stopped laughing. He started off as a packer, and a swamper, learning all the nuances of the freight industry, eventually he would get his class 1 drivers license. It was his romanticized version of working as mover; working all day drinking all night, but in a different city everyday that enticed his cousin Glenn Forest to start working in the furniture moving industry, and later pursue a successful career as a transport specialist. In the mid 70's my uncle followed the exodus of Eastern Canadians to the economic mecca of the time; Alberta. In 1980 he followed his brother back East to the newly established family headquarters in Toronto. He worked locally within Toronto, and was home every night. The 1980's ushered in a new era to both mainstream society, and to him personally; fitness. He went to the gym every night, bodybuilding was a huge part of his life, he trained hard, and ate incredibly healthy. Never much for running, unless on the tennis or racquetball court, most of his cardio endurance came from his love of cycling. He was initially a speed bike (road bike) enthusiast (his Cannonade was one of his prized possessions), then later as he aged he began to appreciate mountain biking. When not training, he would relax with one of his cameras, taking pictures of everything from wildlife, or antique automobiles, to pretty women who smiled at him (or even if they glared at him, the old pervert didn't care as long as they were scantily clad). My uncle was very good with his hands, carpentry to small engine repair, to home renovations, nothing was too big or too small for his vast skills. From the living room table to a refinished .22 rifle, there was undeniable proof of his hand's on abilities throughout the household. He was a pillar of support to my father, and to all his entrepreneurial ventures. Even when we didn't live in the same Province anymore, my uncle would visit often (generally to spend time with out two dogs, lol). His employer would fly to Florida, but pay him to drive his luxury sedan to and from Florida, and then pay him to vacation in Florida for a week or two. He would vacation in Florida at least once or twice during the winter months, every year. After some kind of corporate acquisition in the mid 90's, he was forced to change employers, and he was no longer able to work locally. As always he continued with trucking, but long distances. Eventually he switched from hauling freight, and started working for a celebrity touring company. Departure and arrival hours were irregular, although catered, and the food was very good, but it was not necessarily healthy. My uncle's health began to decline. He made a few unsuccessful attempts to regain his former fitness, and in the process discovered Chi-Gong, and archery. Far from being a drunk, he was an exceptional wine connoisseur. He was one of the few people who truly loved intense dry heat, it's a shame he didn't get to retire in Arizona, he loved it there. Despite having left school at an early age, and subsequently having a limited education; he was a voracious reader. His books were either hardcover non-fiction, or paperback fiction. He didn't have a favorite author, on any given day you could find him reading Clive Cussler, Louis L'Amour, or an unknown sci-fi author. Because he would finish a paperback in an afternoon to a few days at most he was constantly buying and giving away books. He LOVED his Cannonade bicycle, and though my Uncle's lifestyle wouldn't really allow him to have any dogs, he viewed all of my fathers dogs as his surrogate children, from Bumper in the 70's, Bandit and Daisy mid 80's-late 90's, Quincy and Spencer early 21st Century. He was very proud of some of his automobiles he'd owned over the years. His first vehicle as a teenager was some kind of old tow truck (it was old in the 60's!) . I guess my grandfather was pretty fed up with my dad having car parts all over the garage. So when my uncle started working on this particular "classic", a normally calm man, he lost his temper and forced my uncle to part with his relic. In the 70's he had an impressive Chevy Impala, that he always described as "my baby". Towards the late 70's and early 80's my father and uncle had an old V8 Malibu, that kept getting sold back and forth between the brothers. In the 80's he had a Chrysler sedan (i think it was a Dynasty, and Chevy Cavalier Z24. And finally; 2 different Ford Pickup trucks; a Ford ranger, and a Ford F-150. He is survived by his brother; Stephen Rae, his mother's younger sister; Brenda Forest, his nephew; Fraser Rae, his two cousins Blake and Glenn Forest (and their respective children and grand-children). In accordance with his wishes, cremation has taken place and he will his ashes will be scattered in one of his favourite places. Please share in your memories, photos and condolences of him here at his Memorial Webpage. Your participation in creating his legacy is greatly appreciated. Uniquely entrusted to eco Cremation & Burial Services Inc. Life Celebrations. Done Differently.