Obituary of Allison Norman MacEwen

On Thursday, November 28, 2024, Allison Norman MacEwen (70 years) of Charlottetown, PEI passed away peacefully surrounded by love with family by his side.

Beloved husband of Nora Lynn MacEwen, loving father of Jessica Lynn MacEwen (Daniel Bartlett), Miranda Gwen Eichberger (Eric Eichberger), Katrina Lauren MacEwen, (Dave Jameson), Cassandra Blythe MacEwen. Cherished grandfather of Ollie Bear Eichberger. Allison will be missed by his sister Maxine Elson. Predeceased by his parents Eric and Lillian MacEwen and brother Eric MacEwen.

Allison was born in Charlottetown, PEI, October 11, 1954, and spent his entire life living on islands on the East Coast. He lived and attended school in St. John’s, Nfld, but spent his summers growing up in North Rustico, PEI. His many trips across Nfld and the numerous ferry voyages left an indelible impression on him as a young boy. He would remain completely in awe of the ocean and was a lifelong enthusiast of the car ferries that took him across it. The summers spent with his grandmother in the little red house at the end of the North Rustico Harbour was one of his favourite memories. He would sleep in the attic and the only entertainment he had at night was listening to the Red Sox games on his little transistor radio. Days were spent fishing with the Court Brothers which reinforced his love of the ocean. We made many trips to the little red house over the years until Hurricane Fiona washed it out to sea. He finished his school days in NFLD where he received a plethora of awards. He went on to receive scholarships to attend Memorial University where he achieved his Bachelor of Commerce degree in 1976. He studied for his CCA and worked in Sydney, NS. While living there, his parents moved back to PEI and the pull was strong for him to move back there himself. He moved permanently to PEI in 1978. A friend (Gerry Johnston) from Cape Breton was also on the Island and Allison found himself with a plethora of new friends when he began attending a church in the city. It was there that he met the love of his life, Nora Lynn Bell. They were married in August of 1979 and built a life along with a few homes and a family. Jessica was born in 1983, Miranda arrived in 1985 and twins, Katrina and Cassandra were born in 1987. Allison was a natural at fatherhood. He was surely outnumbered by females, but loved every minute spent with them. He was completely invested in every aspect of their lives, from soccer games, music recitals, science fairs, choir concerts, snowboard competitions, driver’s ed, summer jobs, school papers, and really, everything they ever attempted. He was there to cheer them on, pick them up, wipe their tears, and tuck them in. He made life an adventure for us all. His cheerful temperament and positive spirit was hard to ignore and he could have us laughing in the midst of any hard moment. Allison worked tirelessly to support and provide for his family. He would go without to make sure his girls had everything they needed. His career path led to several jobs over the years. He was the area supervisor for PEI and NS with Texaco Canada and had an office right out on the harbour. He loved those days with Dave and Dick. The stories from those days were full of joy. He then went on to work with DP Murphy and Tremploy for a short time and then spent many years as a Senior Commercial Account Manager with the Bank of Montreal. He left the bank to work with Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission where he worked as the Director of Regulatory Services until his passing. With every position he held, he worked with diligence and wisdom to provide the best for those he served. Throughout those years, he became a very proficient and highly sought-after speaker at conferences, weddings and his church. He was always quick with a funny story or pun to entertain his audiences. His delightful sense of humour and ready smile will be sorely missed by everyone priviledged to know him.

Allison never took himself too seriously. His humble demeanor was authentic. He never expected anything from anyone and was always so quick to serve others. Allison was always incredibly appreciative of the little things in life like a beautiful sunset at the end of the day, a nice BBQ0’d burger, a drive in the country, a beach walk, watching the “Titanic”, a lobster dinner, a walk in Rustico, a warm fire, talking to his girls, and a snuggle with one of the many dogs to enter our family.

The past number of years he has enjoyed taking up walking and hiking adventures. He enjoyed comparing steps with his daughter, Jessica every evening, surviving the ascent to Gros Morne with daughter, Katye, sending Snoopy memes to daughter, Cass every night, and face-timing daughter, Mandi Bear out in BC. He loved meeting his grandson, Ollie. He was over the moon in love with him. He also enjoyed a renewed friendship with Nora which brought them both back to the steadfast love that built this family. He would acknowledge that God was the one who gave him the life and peace he enjoyed. He believed in prayer and would often comment on his attention to praying for his family. Though life has its ups and downs, Allison never lost his belief that things would work out all right. His positive hope, courage, and determination through his brief illness was evident to his family, and to all of the many skilled and kind healthcare professionals who worked tirelessly to save his life. His heart condition was one in a million, and there is hope that what we have and will learn from his death will benefit someone else who finds themselves with the same condition. Allison was also one in a million to his family who grieve at his passing but rejoice that they will see him again. The empty hole in our hearts can never be filled, but the memories of his beautiful life and love will last us a lifetime.

Allison had a strong faith in his Saviour and he knew that in God’s time, he would finally be home. Although we prayed for more time with him, we look forward to the day when we will see him again. “Well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of thy Lord.”

We extend our gratefulness to the Hillsboro Funeral Home for their excellent care of our beloved Allison, to his co-workers at IRAC, and to his family, friends, former colleagues and clients for their thoughtful sentiments and support at this sorrowful time.

Resting at the Hillsboro Funeral Home from where a celebration of life service will be held on Friday, December 6, 2024, at 1pm. A reception will immediately follow the service at Cornerstone Baptist Church, Stratford.   

Memorial donations in Allison’s memory to support cardiac care can be made directly to:

PEI Queen Elizabeth Hospital Foundation

NB Heart Centre at the Saint John Regional Hospital

https://qehfoundation.pe.ca/ways-to-give/memorial/

http://sjrhfoundation.ca/donate-now/

 

A recording of the funeral video is available by clicking on the Celebration of Life tab.