Obituary of Lawrence "Babs" MacNeil
It is with sadness, we announce the death of Lawrence “Babs” MacNeil of Westville, who passed away on Sunday, April 17, 2022, in the Aberdeen Hospital with family by his side.
Born in Trenton on July 7, 1933, he was a son of the late Angus and Genetta (Lucas) MacNeil.
Known to everyone as “Babs”, he was a machinist by trade, working at Trenton Works for 37 years. He was involved in hockey for most of his life, playing with Trenton Scotia Hockey Jr. Champions in 1951. He later played for the Westville Old Timers and coached many hockey and baseball teams, especially coaching the Westville Juvenile Miners (Groovy Juvies 1978 Nova Scotia Champions). He also was president of the Westville Rink Commission and one of the founding members of the Westville rink. He sharpened skates for many years at his home. In 1991, Babs was inducted into the Pictou County Sports Hall of Fame for hockey. Babs was the 2014 Volunteer of the Year for the Town of Westville. He was a true Toronto Maple Leafs and Blue Jays fan and was an avid bowler.
Married for 61 years, he will be dearly missed by his wife Carol (Henderson); children Laurie (Mary Ann), Linda (Colin), Keith (Ellen), Nancy Worth (Dave) and David; grandchildren, Ryan, Kristy, Gena, Erika, Reanne, Angela, Niki, K.J., Chelsea, David, Drew and Abbey; great-grandchildren, Jake, Ryan, Hunter, Abel, Jay-Lynne, Matthew and Makayla. He is also survived by brothers, Jim (Margie), John (Alma); sisters-in-law Verna MacNeil, Jewel Dorrington, Florence McNeill-Knoll and Margie Henderson and brother-in-law Jim Henderson (Bonnie).
Babs was predeceased by his parents; sisters Anna MacMillan (Ronald), Jean Martin (Bert), Mae Marcott (Henry), and brothers Alec and Daniel “Butch”; brothers-in-law Herbie Henderson, Bill McNeill and Dan Dorrington.
Babs is resting at Eagles Funeral Home, Westville with visiting on Wednesday from 2-4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. His funeral service will be held 11 a.m. Thursday from the Church of the Holy Name, Westville with Father Peter MacDonald officiating. Masks and vaccinations are required to attend both visitations and funeral service at the request of family. Interment will be in Holy Name Cemetery. Family flowers only. Donations in his memory may be made to the Westville Miners Sports Centre, the Palliative Care or a charity of your choice.