Robert "Bob" Douglas Ferguson

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Bob Ferguson on November 29, 2023 at the age of 79 years, 12 days short of his 80^th birthday.

Bob was born on December 11, 1943 to John and Mary Ferguson in Winnipeg. He started his career with MTS in 1961 in Winnipeg, and then was transferred to Portage in 1964, where he quickly met the love of his life, a telephone operator by the name of Sharon Bergquist. On November 6, 1965, Bob and Sharon were married in MacGregor, MB and started their 58 years together in Portage.

Bob is predeceased by his parents John Barr and Mary Ellen (Watson) Ferguson, parents-in-law Albert and Ivy Bergquist, sisters Joan Moskal and Christine Galbraith, sister-in-law Arlene Ferguson and great grandson Colten Twist.

Bob lost his father at a very young age, growing up in the north end of Winnipeg where things were very tough for a widow to raise four children. He started working at a very young age to help support his family, and often talked about jumping trains to get to work at a bowling alley with his brother Jack where they would manually set up pins. Those tough times made Bob work very hard to make a better life for himself. He took great pride in his possessions, could fix almost anything and made sure everything was in great working order and put away properly. He was exceptionally good at math, getting 99% on his grade 12 math exam – the teacher docked 1% for writing his name messily. From that time on he printed, and always very clearly.

Bob is survived by his wife Sharon and their three children – son Scott (Jodi) Ferguson; daughter Robin (Dave) Bailey and their three children; Tegan (Cody) Twist, Taryn Bailey (Jordan Laramee) and Rhett (Alicia) Bailey, and five great grandchildren; Rory Twist, Ivy and Poppy Laramee, and Jett and Tripp Bailey; and daughter Linda Poole (Brent Dane).

He is also survived by his brother Jack Ferguson, brothers-in-law Ed Moskal and Bruce Gailbraith, sister-in-law Maxine (Darryl) Mutcher, and nieces and nephews Brenda, Michelle, Ryan, Darcie, Randy, Cathy, Tiffany, Brent, Brian, Bekki, James, Emily, Katie and Samantha, along with their spouses and children.

Dad loved his family, hockey, and driving. Growing up we spent a lot of time going for family drives which would often take us to the Selkirk area to get a hotdog at Skinners Half Moon. We also spent a lot of time at the rink watching Hockey when Dad was very involved with the Portage Terriers, and then the Portage Hawks, where he met many lifetime friends.

Once he retired from MTS in 1996, he started driving for Craig Dunn. He was always available to deliver or pick up a vehicle anywhere. He even got a trip on the day of his passing. He also looked forward to driving a combine for Fingas Farms every year at harvest.

Dad especially loved dropping in to see the great grandchildren who were so special to him. He never overstayed his welcome, though, often announcing after 15 minutes or so that, “Okay, it’s time to go.” True to form, he left us too early this time as well.

Memorial Service will be held at 1:00 pm on Wednesday, December 6, 2023 at McKenzies Portage Funeral Chapel. Private family interment will follow at Hillside Cemetery.

If friends so desire, donations may be made in Bob’s memory to the Heart & Stroke Foundation of Manitoba, 1379 Kenaston Boulevard Winnipeg, MB R3P 2T5.

A tree will be planted in memory and cared for by McKenzies Portage Funeral Chapel.  www.mckenziesportagefuneralchapel.com