It is with great sadness we announce the passing of our Father, Husband, and Grandpa, Hugh Mackenzie at the age of 85. Hugh had a short
battle with cancer and after a period of home care, moved to the Invermere Hospital where he passed away peacefully with family and friends.
Hugh was born in Toronto, Ontario. He graduated from Ontario Agricultural College (now
University of Guelph) with a B.S.A. Degree in 1955; he then attended the University of Toronto earning his B.S. Degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1956. Hugh joined International Harvester in Hamilton, Ontario in 1956 as a Test Engineer and then transferred to the design group to work on windrowers. From 1957 to 1967 he was Product Engineer in charge of tillage design. From 1967 to 1974 Hugh refused to stand behind his work as the Engineer in charge of manure spreader development!!! In 1975 Hugh was appointed Chief Test Engineer at Hamilton and held this position until transferring to J.I. Case in Hinsdale, Illinois in 1981. After going to Hinsdale, he became deeply involved in Reliability Engineering for Axial-Flow combines and continued in that activity until his retirement in 1992.
Hugh and Carolyn raised their family in the lovely town of Ancaster, Ontario from 1960 to 1981. Then as empty nesters, accepted a work transfer, and moved to Naperville, Illinois. After retirement Hugh and Carolyn moved to Post Falls, Idaho to be closer to their daughter’s family in
Invermere. In 2013 they made their final move to beautiful Invermere.
Hugh had a passion for Steam Locomotives and the Railway in general since the age of 17 when he traveled across Canada by rail for a summer work position on a farm on Vancouver Island. He was a member of Ontario Rail for many years, helping refurbish old Steam Locomotives. He was also a Model Railway “Nut”, as his family would say. He loved history, the outdoors, and working out at the gym.
Hugh was known for his wit and somewhat dry sense of humour, both of which were very present until his last days. Please honour Hugh with a shot of scotch whiskey with a little splash of water, some friends, and a joke!!!
Hugh is predeceased by his parents John and Katherine Mackenzie who immigrated from
Alness, Scotland. Hugh is survived and will be sadly missed by his loving wife Carolyn Mackenzie of 58 years, his son David Mackenzie (Toronto), his daughter and son-in-law Kathy & Daniel Zurgilgen, his granddaughter Emily Zurgilgen, and many other extended family members and long-time friends.
Special thanks to the extraordinary people who supported us with their knowledge and
compassion – Dr. Gooch and staff including Dr. Mantha, Invermere Hospital Staff, Home Care Staff, Lambert-Kipp Pharmacy, Hospice Society, and countless friends. We live in such a beautiful caring community.
The family will be privately celebrating his life. Any condolences or memories can be offered to the family at – rememberinghugh1930@gmail.com