Obituary of Orville Endicott

Peacefully, surrounded by his loving family, our dear husband and father the Rev. Canon Orville Richard Endicott died on May 6, 2022, in Toronto, after a brief illness.

Born in 1933 in Paddockwood, Saskatchewan, Orville was the eldest son of William and Elaine Endicott. He studied at UBC and was ordained to the Anglican priesthood in 1956. In 1957 he met and married his beloved wife Julianne Wyatt, an RN with many gifts, beginning a lifelong partnership grounded in their faith, devotion to family, and service to others. Their first parishes were Golden and Fernie in British Columbia, where Orville was made Canon in 1963.

In 1964, they crossed the country to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Orville served as the priest in charge of the parish of Jollimore while doing graduate studies in psychology at Dalhousie University. Moving to Yarmouth, he worked with the Nova Scotia New Start organization, rehabilitating and training adults, until 1974, when he moved with his family to Ontario to attend Osgoode Hall Law School. After articling at the Ontario Attorney General’s office, he became national legal counsel for the Canadian Association for Community Living while maintaining his work as an Honorary Assistant at St. James’ Cathedral in Toronto for 30 years, until he retired at the age of 83.

During his legal career, in accordance with the strong principles he preached over so many years, Orville was an effective and devoted advocate for people with intellectual disabilities. He was instrumental in extricating many from prison or from life in residential institutions, and successfully advocating protection against discrimination based on mental disability in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. His legal writing was widely respected, and he received the Queen Elizabeth Golden Jubilee Medal for his work on behalf of people with disabilities.

His work was consuming, but he found his pleasure and joy in his family, his wife Julianne and his five children. He loved camping and gardening and brewing beer, and was a great cook. His strong and sustaining sense of humor was the delight of his children and he had a gentle, joyful nature that made everyone who met him feel at home.

Orville’s daughter Azana Endicott died in 2000. He is survived by his sisters Dorothy and
Ann-Marie and his brother Brian; his children Marina (Peter Ormshaw), Timothy (Annalise
Acorn), Thyra (Jonathan Chute) and Sarah (Mark Wellings); his grandchildren Naomi and Peter

Endicott, Hannah Chute, Willow and Rachel Ormshaw, and Zoe, Charlotte and Rozie Wellings;
and his adored wife of 64 years and partner in all things, Julianne Endicott.

A funeral will be held at 1:30 pm on Tuesday, May 10, 2022 at St. James Cathedral. Condolences may be forwarded through www.humphreymiles.com.

© 2021 Humphrey Funeral Home A.W. Miles – Newbigging Chapel Limited. All Rights Reserved.