A rich man once gave £5,000 each to an Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman with one condition: upon his death they had to agree to each put £100 into his coffin for the afterlife. When the time came the Englishman and the Irishman dutifully laid down their shares – which the Scot swiftly scooped up and replaced with a cheque for £300!
How does a good Scotsman pass away on St. Patrick’s Day? The same way St. Patrick did!
To his many dear friends and loved ones, Jock Hermon was a jovial spirit. Even at age 89, with almost no remaining hearing, sight or mobility, Jock still expressed only happiness and a deep appreciation for people.
Jock had enjoyed a wonderful childhood in Kerrisdale, despite the fact that in 1934, at age six, he’d lost his left eye in a playtime accident. It simply wasn’t in his nature to hold a grudge and the loss never fazed him. He could drive, dance, and excelled at football throughout his mischievous school years and into the responsibilities of adulthood.
Jock’s grandfather was one of the first men to survey Vancouver, and both Jock’s father Jim Hermon and twin brother Hamish took up the surveying profession. Always one to make his own way in life, Jock spent 22 years working for the Canadian Fishing Company.
In his 30s, this dashing bachelor who loved people, parties, and sports cars finally surrendered his heart to Miss Evans Smith, a flight attendant for Trans-Canada Airlines (now Air Canada) and a registered nurse. The couple married in 1962 and had two sons, Bruce and Michael.
Wanting to raise the boys in the country, the family moved to Pender Harbour in 1970 with Jock’s newly widowed mother, Marjorie. Evans took a job at St. Mary’s Hospital (now Sechelt Hospital) while Jock co-founded Pender Harbour Realty and Insurance with John Breen (now Harbour Insurance and Royal LePage.) When Breen retired, Jock joined forces with Bill Hunsche. Their new office in Madeira Park quickly turned into a gathering place for locals to share stories and enjoy Jock and Bill’s latest batch of happenings and colourful limericks.
It also didn’t hurt that the boys liked to enjoy a glass of rye or two, now and then. Or a pot of tea. Once, after a particularly uncomfortable drive home from Sechelt, he’d been inspired to write this:
Tea leaves, tea leaves, tea leaves.
Gosh, how quickly tea leaves!
A natural charmer with a nimble mind and wry gift for wordplay, Jock had a knack for spinning a yarn or turning a rhyme, such as:
A careless young lady named Potts
Swallowed a leopard and broke into spots
In a fit of remorse, she swallowed a horse
And sat up all night with the trots!
“I like having strange things happen to young ladies in limericks,” he’d once said. “In limericks only, I hope!” Evans replied. To which he answered:
A careless young lady of Kater
Was once swallowed whole by a gaiter,
To answer her shouts of Please, let me out!
He said, Well, of course! But later.
For 14 years the Hermon family made many happy memories exploring the coastal waters from the deck of their 29-foot sailboat, the Cloya. Jock made a fine captain with Evans as first mate, and together they instilled their love of the sea and nature into their sons, who both developed a passion for sea kayaking and mountain biking.
Jock had an abiding love for playing mandolin and harmonica. In retirement, the couple moved to Sechelt and Evans took up the autoharp. The pair joined Katie Angermeyer’s Friday night bluegrass group. Then, with the help of Lorna Klein, they started the Inspirations band to entertain patients at extended care facilities like Totem and Shorncliffe. That group has grown and is still going strong.
Jock adored battles of wit. He was quick on the draw, but also light on his feet: he and Evans both loved square dancing and would take their little RV all around B.C. and Alberta for jamborees, and to Vancouver Island for cherished family reunions.
Family was always of great importance. Jock was a favourite uncle to his nieces and nephews and greatly missed his sister Edith Chadwick and brother Richard (Dick) when they passed. He’d maintained a special relationship with Hamish and his wife Jackie, as well as his sister Constance deCocq. Above all else, the siblings loved to kid each other. At age 83, after Jock had survived two strokes, he’d assured them that he’d gotten a bargain: two for the price of one!
In Jock’s full, happy life, he considered his sons to be his greatest achievement. Two years ago Bruce moved back to Sechelt from Vancouver so his dad could continue living at home, and Mike regularly drove in from Gibsons to run errands and make household repairs.
Bruce and Evans took turns being with Jock in Sechelt Hospital, where Jock would sometimes serenade the adoring hospital staff with his harmonica to thank them for their loving care and attention.
He was holding Evans’ hand as he welcomed the angels.
– By Berenice Freedome and Evans Hermon
