We regret to advise of the death of Daniel McMahon, at home, in Courtenay, BC after a lengthy fight with cancer on 10 January 2015. Dan served a full career with the Canadian Military Engineers and retired as a Master Corporal.
Dan was born in Paisley, Scotland in 1949 and left home as a teenager to join the British Merchant Navy. He emigrated to Canada in 1968, arriving in Loon Lake, SK where he worked in the Department of Natural Resources. Dan joined the Canadian Armed Forces in 1969, with the Canadian Military Engineers – first as a Field Engineer and then in the Air Force as a Firefighter. He served in all three environments (Army, Navy, Air Force) with postings on the HMCS Iroquois and in Chilliwack, Edmonton, Germany, Shearwater and Comox. He transferred from the Regular Force to the Reserves in 1993. In the late 90’s he was contracted to CFB Esquimalt as Respiratory Protection Co-ordinator, then took a position there as a General Safety Officer and, finally, finished his career as General Safety Officer at 19 Wing Comox, retiring in February 2011.
Dan also served as a member of the Courtenay Volunteer Fire Department from 1992-2001 and was an active volunteer with the Department’s Fire Safety House at local schools as recently as October 2014. For a number of years he served as Local Co-ordinator and coach with the Comox Valley Special Olympics organization.
There will be visitation at Comox Valley Funeral Home, 1101 Ryan Road, Courtenay, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Friday, 16 January. A Mass of Christian Burial will take place at Christ the King Roman Catholic Church, 1599 Tunner Drive, Courtenay, at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, 17 January, followed by a reception in the Parish Hall where remembrances will be shared.
Those wishing to make a donation in Dan’s memory may consider St. Joseph’s General Hospital Foundation, 2137 Comox Avenue, Comox, BC V9M 1P2 (earmarked for the Cancer Care Unit) or Glacier View Lodge Society, 2450 Back Road, Courtenay, BC V9N 8B5 (earmarked for the Adult Day Program Project).
