Obituary for Ian Robert Toal
Ian Robert Toal
April 23,1958 - July 17, 2022
Our deeply loved Ian left us on Sunday, July 17, 2022 after a sudden and devastating illness.
He leaves behind his wife Barb Eastveld, and his sister Allison Kornelsen (Wilf); his three sons, Sean (Lisa), Brendan (Diane) and Andrew Wylie-Toal (Junnel); and grandchildren, Nolan, Stella, Liam and Emelia, all from Ontario. Ian loved them and was immensely proud of them all.
Ian preferred the outdoors; nature was his panacea for the problems of everyday life. He has a degree in entomology and a passion for taking photos of wildlife and was very good at it. Ian was at the Red River bank on Churchill Drive every day, rain, snow or shine, walking with our dog Finn and taking photos of wildlife. He uploaded these photos to inaturalist.ca and became so prolific and expert in identifying genus and species - especially moths that he became a curator for the Canadian site. He made many friends over the years who belonged to the international website.
He was also known and admired for his frequent, balanced and well-expressed letters to the Winnipeg Free Press.
Earlier in his life, he was a Psych RN in Ontario and then came back to Winnipeg to care for his elderly parents, where he graduated from the Intensive Care Program. After nursing, he turned his mind to the University of Winnipeg Master's in Development Practice from which he graduated with high honours. Ian’s other lifelong interests were reading, writing, ecology, wildlife protection, militaria and good “peasant food”.
Ian has been cremated and there will be a small family memorial at a later date.
The family wishes to thank the wonderful doctors, nurses and unit assistants at HSC ER and Neurologist Dr. Michael Cossawy for their care of Ian and his family at the ER. They made sure that Ian was not in pain or discomfort. He died peacefully.
April 23,1958 - July 17, 2022
Our deeply loved Ian left us on Sunday, July 17, 2022 after a sudden and devastating illness.
He leaves behind his wife Barb Eastveld, and his sister Allison Kornelsen (Wilf); his three sons, Sean (Lisa), Brendan (Diane) and Andrew Wylie-Toal (Junnel); and grandchildren, Nolan, Stella, Liam and Emelia, all from Ontario. Ian loved them and was immensely proud of them all.
Ian preferred the outdoors; nature was his panacea for the problems of everyday life. He has a degree in entomology and a passion for taking photos of wildlife and was very good at it. Ian was at the Red River bank on Churchill Drive every day, rain, snow or shine, walking with our dog Finn and taking photos of wildlife. He uploaded these photos to inaturalist.ca and became so prolific and expert in identifying genus and species - especially moths that he became a curator for the Canadian site. He made many friends over the years who belonged to the international website.
He was also known and admired for his frequent, balanced and well-expressed letters to the Winnipeg Free Press.
Earlier in his life, he was a Psych RN in Ontario and then came back to Winnipeg to care for his elderly parents, where he graduated from the Intensive Care Program. After nursing, he turned his mind to the University of Winnipeg Master's in Development Practice from which he graduated with high honours. Ian’s other lifelong interests were reading, writing, ecology, wildlife protection, militaria and good “peasant food”.
Ian has been cremated and there will be a small family memorial at a later date.
The family wishes to thank the wonderful doctors, nurses and unit assistants at HSC ER and Neurologist Dr. Michael Cossawy for their care of Ian and his family at the ER. They made sure that Ian was not in pain or discomfort. He died peacefully.