Paul Russel Birdsall
August 26, 1947 – June 5, 2021
On Saturday, June 5, Paul Birdsall, husband, father and grandfather, passed away peacefully in his 74th year in Collingwood.
Paul will be forever remembered by his soulmate and wife Liz, son Kevin (Alana), daughter Allison, grandsons William and Parker, and grand-dog Mocha.
Paul is predeceased by his parents, William and Grace, brother Bill, sister-in-law Barb, and father-in-law Tom.
He will be lovingly remembered by his niece Debby and great-niece Kaitlyn, nephew William (Emily), great-niece Taylor and great-nephew Wills.
Paul will be fondly remembered (especially around the card table) by his mother-in-law Jen, brothers-in-law Dave (Barb), Tom (Daisy) and Mike (Robyn), sister-in-law Laura (Mike), nieces and nephews. He will also be missed by the entire Hartwell family.
Paul was born and raised in Toronto and graduated from Ryerson University in 1969. He lived in Markham for 31 years and retired to Wasaga Beach.
He was involved in Markham men’s slo-pitch leagues as a player, captain and executive member. He loved draft days and looked forward to meeting his new teammates each year. After meeting Liz, he took on coaching in the Markham Women’s Slo-Pitch League. He enjoyed the social aspect, even though his third base coaching would be ignored at times. In all his involvement in Markham slo-pitch, he loved the friendships he made and support he received over the years.
Paul loved golfing, playing cards (especially Wizard), watching his grandson, William, play hockey and spending time with his family. He was active for many years in Scouting and was a member of the Markham Union Lodge no.87. In his later years, he excelled at training the backyard chipmunks and outsmarting the squirrels (or trying to).
In 2007, Paul received an organ transplant at Toronto General Hospital. This Gift of Life gave him thirteen extra years with his family, and allowed him to watch his grandson grow up. Paul and his family were forever grateful to the UHN Transplant Team, the donor and the family of the donor.
Memorial donations can be made to your local hospice. A celebration of life will be planned at a later date.