Obituary of William Alexander Carruth
William (Sandy) Alexander Carruth passed away in the early hours of May 15th at the North Bay Regional Health Centre after suffering a severe stroke a few days prior. His longtime common law partner, Sandra Hoffman, was at his side. He was three months shy of his 77th birthday.
Sandy was born in 1947 in Welland Ontario. His father passed away when he was ten, leaving him and his brother to be raised by a doting mother in Dunville Ontario. As a youth Sandy played many sports including basketball, football, and hockey. He was boy scout, enjoyed fishing, had a mischievous side, and did not shy away from a fight. Sandy studied mathematics at the University of Waterloo for a year before changing course to become a machinist and millwright and thoroughly enjoyed a 31-year career at General Motors in St. Catharines Ontario as a machine repairman.
Beginning at age 22, Sandy had a 10-year marriage and became a loving father of three children. In his middle years he continued to play hockey, to fish, as well as taking up skiing and motorcycling along with actively coparenting his children. In his later years, he became a grandfather, realized his dream of early retirement and owning a cottage on a lake. He enjoyed the cottage life, making many friends, and travelled the continent with Sandra, with whom he snow-birded to the southern USA each winter.
Sandy is predeceased by his father William (1957), mother Eva (1994). Sandy is survived by his common law partner of 35 years Sandra Hoffman, children Bill, Bonnie (husband Bill Meek), and David (wife Lenka), grandchildren Dustin, Samantha, Anna, and Radek, Sandra’s grandchildren Jacob, Allison, and Maddy, brother Allan, and nephew Zac.
Sandy hardly, if ever, went a day without a few big laughs, having a few drinks, or telling a few stories. While an honest man, Sandy would never ruin a good story for the sake of a little truth. He was unique and peculiar man, but cared little about what people thought of him and lived life on his own terms. He loved his family and worked hard to provide for them. He was a big, bald, burly man with a bushy beard. If you met him, you would remember him. May he rest in peace.
In Loving Memory
William Carruth
1947 - 2024
