Eric was born in the Welsh coal-mining town of Abertillery in 1932. He grew up in a musical family and had an intense appreciation of classical music and opera, a passion that he shared with his older brother John, who in adulthood emigrated to Alberta to teach music in the public school in Athabasca.
Eric earned a BSc in Physics at the University of Bristol, but he was a polymath and a logophile with a wide range of skills and interests, from bridge, snooker, and chess, to philosophy, movies, the history of science, and the charms of the English language. In his youth he had an adventuresome spirit and once rode his motorcycle from Reading to Rome.
In 1962 Eric followed his brother’s footsteps to Alberta at the urging of his aunt Betty Mardiros, and in Edmonton he found a surprising career that suited his independent night-owl nature: for forty years he drove for Yellow Cab, mostly the night shift. His chess involvement intensified and he won the Alberta provincial chess championship in 1965.
A lifelong bachelor, Eric nevertheless was part of both his aunt’s and his brother’s families. He regularly had Sunday dinner with Betty’s family, teaching her kids bridge and chess. At holidays and throughout the year, he was a welcome visitor and beloved uncle to John and Bet’s children — Cathy, Gaynor, and Gareth.
Today, Gaynor reminisces that “he would arrive at Christmas like a second Santa, bringing thoughtful and carefully selected gifts for each of us. Very much the ‘favourite uncle’, he would always give us kids his time and go along with any games and activities we would rope him into, making us laugh with a twinkle in his eye. We played endless games of Happy Families and Authors and I can still hear the beautiful, mellifluous way he would pronounce the titles and authors – ‘Evangeliiiiine…’ He made them sound exciting – that must have influenced my love of reading and my library career. In later life I came to appreciate Eric for his erudition and quick wit, his humour and often cryptic birthday card messages. He was so modest and unassuming, having led a simple life without the need for many material possessions or being career-driven. He was kind, thoughtful, generous with his time, and genuinely interested in what we’d been up to. No matter the topic, he always had some insight and you always came away having learned something. He never lost his Welsh accent or forgot his roots but he clearly loved Canada, and never wanted to return to the UK.”
For the last nine years of his life, Eric lived at the Hardisty Care Centre in Edmonton, where he had fulsome praise for the care and kindness of the staff, and the excellent meals. He especially enjoyed the soups.
Eric died April 23, 2025
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