GARY WILLIAM MORLOCK

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GARY WILLIAM MORLOCK
November 14, 1953 - August 25, 2019

It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of Gary Morlock at St. Boniface ICU, at age 65, surrounded by his family. Gary struggled with a rare blood disorder for 20 years and on June 1, suffered a stroke while volunteering at his favourite event of the year, "Kids Fishing for a Cure". After coming home from seven weeks of stroke rehab at Riverview Health Centre, Gary suffered further complications from his blood disorder and was admitted to HSC and then St. Boniface Hospital, where he passed away from heart failure.
Left to cherish his memory are his spouse Tracey Halliday, mother Mildred Morlock, sister Karen Martin (Roy), cherished dog Pepper and cat Friday, cousins and many friends. Gary was predeceased by his father William Morlock and his grandparents.
Gary was born and raised in the north end of Winnipeg. As a boy he played hockey at WKCC where his dad coached his team. His father taught Gary to fish and they enjoyed many camping and fishing trips. Gary attended WKCI and RRCC, following which he did his apprenticeship in carpentry. In 1979, Gary relocated to Calgary where he worked in all aspects of the construction industry and for many years had his own construction company. Gary worked hard and played hard and lived life to the fullest and enjoyed his time in Calgary with lifelong friends. He had a wide variety of interests, including camping, fishing, hunting, downhill skiing, photography, astronomy and collecting art and clocks. He had a passion for flying and obtained his private pilot's license, bought a Cessna 150 airplane and spent many hours in the sky with his pup Smoker.
Gary met Tracey in Calgary in 1992 and they were inseparable from the first date. They did not have children, instead shared a passion for pets who all became their "kids". They moved to Winnipeg in 1995 when Gary started his "retirement job" at the Winnipeg School Division. Gary joined the Manitoba Wildlife Federation and was quite active, becoming a vice-president, writing many articles and working on the Sturgeon Creek Fish Ladder. Gary bought the boat of his dreams, fishing every chance he got.
Due to health issues, Gary was forced to retire at 60. Although his activities were limited, he was always able to get out every season with the help of his young fishing buddy, Tyler. His latest passion was frequenting all of the new brew pubs and he enjoyed his Friday brew pub lunches with good friends. He had a love of music and a favourite pastime was going to listen to his childhood friend, Leonard Shaw play at various venues. Gary was the opposite of shy and would talk to anyone, anywhere - his latest topic revolved around U.S. politics. You could always count on a spirited debate on any subject with Gary. He had very strong opinions and was always quite sure his opinion was the right one.
The family would like to thank Dr. J. Elkin, his "great" nurses at the Access Wound Care Clinic, Susan Zwarich, his lymphatic massage therapist who gave him hope when there was no hope, the staff at Dynacare, Riverview Health Centre, HSC and St. Boniface Hospital. Memorial donations may be made to D'Arcy's Animal Rescue Centre.
A celebration of Gary's life (a.k.a. a party) will be held at one of his favourite brew pubs to be announced at a later time - bring your most favourite Gary stories - there are many. As Gary said many times in the last few months "what a ride".
Cremation has taken place at Cropo Funeral Chapel.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Sep 07, 2019