GARTH LEES RUTHERFORD

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GARTH LEES RUTHERFORD

October 27, 1928 – December 17, 2025

You can take the boy out of the ’Peg but never the ’Peg out of the boy. Certainly, that was the case with Garth Rutherford. Born to Lillian Catherine (McMillan) and Dr William Gordon Rutherford of Winnipeg, in 1928, and younger brother of Burns (“Bun”) Rutherford (formerly of the Toronto Star), Dad’s family on both sides had been Scottish pioneers. They farmed at Margaret and near Bradwardine before second generations moved to “The City”. Dad, as with so many of his contemporaries, was deeply affected by his experiences growing up during the “Dirty Thirties” and then the war years. Times were tough and not always happy, living in a small two-bedroom apartment with extended family. As a result, he became a staunch social democrat and die-hard supporter of the CCF and then the NDP, values he passed on to his children. But despite the times all was not grim, for he loved and took great pride in his high school, Gordon Bell [then on Wolseley Avenue]. He would recall fun days playing road hockey in the dead of winter, using frozen horse manure as pucks. Or skating along the iced-over river. He loved the big skies and crisp, sunny, cold days of a Manitoba winter. And summers so hot you could fry an egg on the sidewalk. Trips out to the farm were also highlights. Dad graduated with a BSc and MSc (Chemistry) from the University of Manitoba, spending summers working in the Peace River District of Alberta doing geological surveys. He also won a geography scholarship which took him to Stanstead, Quebec. At his heart, he was a geographer, not a chemist, and would have loved a life out of the lab and out on the land. But in the mid-1950s the jobs were in the booming petrochemical industry, and he felt lucky to land a job with DuPont Canada in Maitland, Ontario. Before that, life gifted him a beautiful hand in the shape of one Rilla Reid of Rivers, Manitoba. They met at a dance, Dad cajoled into coming along with his first cousin Don McFadden who happened to be dating a cousin of Rilla’s. Instantly smitten, Garth and Rilla married in Winnipeg in 1955, and then made their home together first in Brockville, and then in Kingston, Ontario. They raised two children, son Tod and daughter Jill. There were family camping trips out West or down East, with a tent trailer towed by a much-loved Ford Galaxy 500. Those were formative trips for us kids, giving us an appreciation for the Canadian landscape, a gift Dad gave us. Later in life, he delighted in his grandsons, Jack, Jesse and Raphael, their funny ways and developing interests. He especially enjoyed spending several winters in New Zealand where daughter Jill and family lived. Dad also had a soft spot for his beloved cats, an introvert’s constant companions. A Dupont employee for 35 years, Garth’s professional expertise lay in gas and liquid chromatography. He ran his own lab, and, ever the perfectionist, spent hours maintaining meticulous lab reports. He was a dedicated and conscientious worker, determined to do his best, both as an employee and as a provider for his family. Dad made sure we had a good home and food on the table, no small thing for a child of the Depression. But Garth’s real passions lay elsewhere: maps, sports (Bombers, Jets, Minnesota Vikings, Blue Jays, Canadiens), the weather and The News. Even in his last year, bed-ridden, he’d have that TV on endlessly watching CNN or CBC. He loathed Trump and was definitely an “Elbows Up” Canadian to the end. Dad wasn’t a contented man – there was so much in the world to be angry about – but he kind of enjoyed a good rage. Well, Dad, you’ve “raged, raged into the dying of the light” and you certainly fought the good fight. May your spirit touch once more the rich black soil of Manitoba. Garth leaves his devoted and loving wife Rilla, son Tod (Yasmin Guevara) of Rochester, NY, daughter Jill (Dave Hanan) of Dunedin, New Zealand, and grandsons Jack and Jesse Hanan (Dunedin) and Raphael Rutherford (Rochester).

A Celebration of Life will take place at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, 3 January 2026, at the Township Chapel of the Gordon F. Tompkins Funeral Homes, Kingston, Ontario. In Garth’s memory, please consider a donation to the Friends of the CBC, the New Democratic Party of Canada, the University of Manitoba, the Council of Canadians or any social justice charity of your choice. Livestreaming of the service is available at www.GFTompkins-Township.ca

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Dec 27, 2025