JOHN ALEXANDER JOHNSTONE ADDISON

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JOHN ALEXANDER JOHNSTONE ADDISON February 6, 1930 April 26, 2015 Battling Alzheimer's for seven years, youth soccer coach legend John Addison passed away, peacefully, on Sunday, April 26, 2015, at the age of 85. Remaining to cherish John's memory is wife of 58 years, Wilma, sons, Keith (Lucille), Neil (Loreen), Ian (Doreen), grandchildren, Courtney, Mitchell, Emily, Sean, Kate, sister Chris and niece Helen. Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, John knew Sean Connery before he became "Bond, James Bond". John spent most of his youth playing soccer and was a member of the Musselburgh Union FC team that won the Scottish Youth Championships in the 1949-50 season. John served two years, 1951-53, in the RAF in Germany where, as he recalled, the only action he saw was on the pitch playing soccer in Germany or flying back to Scotland to play in weekend matches. John met his wife to be through Fate, deciding last minute to go to a dance hall different from his usual one, where he met Wilma and she danced into his heart. They were married and soon after immigrated to Canada with other players sponsored by the renowned Winnipeg Scottish soccer club of Charlie Caithness. A pipe band and television network met them at the train station to welcome the players to Winnipeg, Canada. A trained carpenter and cabinet maker, John's first jobs were constructing buildings in Winnipeg, most notably the famous Paddock restaurant that once stood on Portage Avenue across from the Polo Park Race Track. With a child on the way John needed a more regular pay cheque and so hung up his hammer and saw and went into sales, where he succeeded, being Salesman of the Year in 1979 for Kelvinator and eventually retired as Regional Sales Manager for White Consolidated Industries. John and Wilma raised their three sons in a sporting environment, with John passing on the skills for soccer and Wilma, being a champion figure skater, the skating skills for hockey. In addition to numerous soccer and hockey memories, perhaps the fondest memories of growing up were the summer vacations at Hermanson's Resort in Detroit Lakes and the daily rounds at the Ironman Golf course. While John was one of the lucky few that have had the fortune of experiencing golf's ultimate prize, a hole in one, he was most proud of his soccer coaching experiences. A superb soccer player himself, his ability to play the game was exceeded only by his ability to coach winning teams. He is unquestionably Manitoba's most successful youth soccer coach, with his Sir John Franklin teams dominating youth soccer in Manitoba for a decade, capturing City and Provincial Championships from 1969-1977 and both 1973 and 1975 National titles. Throughout he instilled in his players a winning spirit and a never give up attitude. In his later years John swung to Frank Sinatra, played golf with long time friends and followed soccer, particularly his favourite team Manchester United and its legendary coach Alex Ferguson. According to John's wishes, cremation and a private family service took place on Thursday, April 30. In lieu of flowers, if friends so desire, donations may be made in John's memory to the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba. John's family would like to extend their appreciation for the care and compassion shown by the staff of the Charleswood Personal Care Home where John resided since 2012. For those who wish to sign the online Guest Book please visit our website. Chapel Lawn www.chapellawn.ca 885-9715

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on May 02, 2015