Obituary of Fred Peach

Fred Peach, 85, died peacefully at Digby General Hospital on Thursday, November 3rd, 2011. He was born on July 13th, 1926 at Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, England, the only child of Fred Watts Peach and Alice (Marsden) Peach. He attended Moor End school and passed the 11+ exam for entrance into Accrington Grammar School where he completed Fifth Form. He began work at 16 in the lab at Broad Oak Print Works in Accrington. Soon after his eighteenth birthday, in 1944, he was called up to serve in the army. When he was discharged in 1947 he again worked at Broad Oak and also attended night school to qualify as a textile chemist. Fred married Nora Tomlinson on June 5th, 1954 at Hippings Wesleyan Chapel (Mount Pleasant) in Oswaldtwistle. They had four children: Martin Richard born in Rochdale Lancashire in 1956, Alison also born in Rochdale in 1958, Judith born in Abergavenny Monmouthshire in 1961 and Anne (Kate) also born in Abergavenny in 1964. The family moved from Lancashire to Monmouthshire (South Wales) in 1960 as Fred was working at British Nylon Spinners in Pontypool. In 1966 the family moved to Sorel, Quebec, Canada where Fred set up and managed a dye house for Celanese Canada. The family moved to Otterburn, Quebec in 1969 and Fred moved to Celanese Canada's head office in Montreal soon after. He continued with Celanese until his retirement in the mid 1980s. Fred and Nora moved to Mansonville, Eastern Townships, Quebec in 1987. Fred continued as a textile consultant until 1995. In 1996 Fred and Nora moved to Nova Scotia where they lived at Clementsport. They moved to Digby Neck in 1998 and then back to Clementsport in 2011. Fred always enjoyed music having joined the choir at Mount Pleasant when he returned from the army. In Quebec he and Nora led a choir at St Andrew's United Church, Beloeil for several years in the 1970s and 80s. He was very interested in languages and was fluent in French and German and spoke Spanish and Italian. An avid reader, Fred was particularly interested in history, theology, and current affairs. He enjoyed the outdoors - hiking, camping, and gardening. Fred was very proud of his ability to educate himself and do well in life, coming from the working class of Lancashire's cotton industry. He leaves his wife Nora; son Martin Richard in Montreal; daughters Alison in London, England, Judith in Clementsport, NS and Kate in Bragg Creek AB; grandsons Owain Roland in Victoria BC and Liam Alexander in Bragg Creek AB. Fred wanted his body cremated and the ashes scattered on his great-grandfather Joseph Peach's grave at Emmanuel, New Lane, Oswaldtwistle where there will be a gathering of family and friends in the spring of 2012.