Obituary of Mervyn William Leslie Jessop

Mervyn Jessop passed away on January 21, 2025, shortly after his 97^th birthday.  He is predeceased by his wife Margaret (2012), his brothers Clarence and Earl and his sister Viola McKelvey.  Beloved father of Barbara of London and Douglas (Laura) of Mississauga.  Proud grandfather of Samantha Meeks (Alex) of Cambridge, UK and Sydney Jessop of Waterloo.  He will be missed by his nephews David, James and Christopher (Juliet).

Merv was grateful for a full and long life.  He was born and raised on a farm near Bradford/Bond Head.  He met Margaret in high school in Barrie and they were married for 61 years.  They both attended the University of Toronto and after marrying in 1951, they moved to the farm.  There, they raised their two children.  While farming, Merv worked for Ontario Hydro, retiring in 1986.  They sold the farm in 1965 while retaining four acres and the farmhouse. 

Marg and Merv attended St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Newmarket where Merv was responsible for bringing the Loaves and Fishes Project to St. Andrews.  The Project supports the Canadian Foodgrains Bank, an agency that is a Christian response to help families around the world get enough to eat.  He also served as an elder, and Sunday School Superintendent.  Merv’s faith was shaped by a devout mother and time spent on a mission field in the Eastern Townships in 1949.

Marg belonged to Tec-We-Gwill Women’s Institute and was a member for many years.  She was so proud of her granddaughters ‘Sam’ and ‘Syd’.  She and Merv enjoyed travelling and spending time with family.  This is well documented through Merv’s love of photography.  Slide shows were a frequent family event.  They also enjoyed joining their walking group in different locations each week.  In their early eighties, they were the youngsters in the group.

Merv loved nature and was known for his green thumb.  He devoted much time and energy to establishing and maintaining the Scotch Settlement Arboretum, designed to preserve an inventory of Ontario’s tree species.  After his move to Amica in London in 2017, he could be spotted riding his red scooter along the Medway trails.  He took great delight in the deer that roam through the bush behind Amica.

A private family funeral will be held at a later date.   Donations to the Canadian Food Grains Bank (foodgrainsbank.ca) would be appreciated.

The family would like to thank the kind and caring staff at Amica, not only during Merv’s final days, but over the 7 happy years he called Amica home.