Dear Kevin and Meaghan and the entire Mulcair family,
My sincere condolences and sympathies on the loss of your dad (and grandfather/brother/uncle). May he rest in peace. I was saddened to hear the news from my mother (Dorice Walford) last weekend and wanted to reach out to you. I hope that the happy memories of your dad, and the comfort and solace in the company of and connections with family and friends, will help you at this very difficult time.
My oldest brother Rob was friends with Peter & Tommy up at the lake and therefore knew Peter much better than I did, but I do remember him well when seeing them all hang out and on a regular basis at or near the LMCC club or in/on the lake. I have many fond memories of times at Lac Marois, having spent over 1/3 of my whole youth up there, and the Mulcair family (being so large!) was a significant part of my childhood ‘country’ memories, either swimming, boating, playing tennis or hanging around with much of his family.
While I had not seen or known Peter for a long time now, and never knew of some of the challenges he faced, I am glad to have learned of them in his obit and to hear that he did not let the adversities stand in his way. Thank you very much for your candour in sharing this with others, as the stigma surrounding mental illness can only be eliminated with raising awareness and more people being open and willing to share their stories of both the struggles and especially the successes in the journey to recovery. In that light, as a mental illness survivor myself, I will be honoured to make a donation to the CAMH in his memory. I hope such an action and your inspiring decision to make that request will help others facing mental health struggles to find the information, resources and help needed.
Take care of each other. May peace, serenity and good health be with you all.
– Mark Walford
mental illness survivor, mental health advocate, peer support worker
J’Écoute, je soutiens et je sème l’espoir