Last Friday, as he had for more than five decades, Glenn Playter went to work at Roadhouse and Rose Funeral Home.
The longtime Newmarket resident and funeral home owner then had dinner with his wife, went to bed at about 9:30, and passed away peacefully in his sleep following a heart attack at the age of 72 on Saturday, Oct. 17.
“He worked to the day he died,” Jackie Playter said of her husband of 51 years. “He never stopped working, that’s dedication.”
While Glenn and Jackie had sold their Main Street funeral home to their son, Wes, and Gregg Davey in 2009, he had remained active in the business that he had guided since becoming a co-owner in 1974.
He was a well-known and well-respected public figure as the reserved, distinguished owner of Newmarket's oldest business and the third oldest funeral home in Ontario, who had also been an active volunteer with the historical society, museum board and local architectural conservation advisory committee, and sponsor of local hockey teams.
Not as well known to the public was his fun-loving nature, Jackie said, adding that he enjoyed telling jokes and teasing his family and friends — “he was the life of the party.”
While Jackie herself is renowned in the community for her acts of kindness, she said whenever she organized one of her regular community appeals for a small donation to help a family or individual in need, Glenn was always quick to quietly provide a generous donation.
“He was the kindest, gentlest, sweetest and most compassionate person I have ever known,” said Jackie.
When he wasn’t working, his focus was his family, children Wes, Allison and Brent, and in later years, his grandchildren, Stella, Charlie, Tommy, Watson and Millicent, said Jackie.
“He was such a good father, all three (of our children) worshipped him,” she said, adding with a smile in her voice, “I always knew he was the favourite parent.”
Beside his passion for Newmarket’s history, he enjoyed fishing and hunting — he had a hunting trip planned with longtime friends last Sunday — and time with family at their cottage on Kushog Lake.
He would often sit on the porch of their home in downtown Newmarket, enjoying a brandy and a cigarette, she added.
Close to 1,000 comments, many that are tributes to "the pillar of the community" and his kindness and compassion, have filled Jackie’s Facebook page since she shared the sad news Saturday night: It Is With A Very Sad Heart And A Little Disbelief That I Need To Tell You That Glenn Passed Away Last Night. He Had A Heart Attack In His Sleep. No Suffering Or Goodbyes He Just Slipped Away. Glenn Was A Very Kind And Generous Man And He Loved His Town And His Neighbours On Arden Avenue And His Family At Roadhouse And Rose And Most Of All His Family. He Was A Very Dedicated Father, Grandfather, Brother, Uncle, Brother In Law, Friend And Husband. He Will Be Missed So Much.
Jackie recalls first meeting Glenn in 1967 when she was 18, wearing her mini skirt while working at Perrins flower shop, just down the road from the funeral parlour.
“He came in to complain about a flower order. I smiled at him, and that was it,” she said with a laugh.
Two years later, they married and, for 12 years, lived right behind the funeral home, when all three of their children were born, she said.
“They say opposites attract, and we were like night and day,” she acknowledged, “but it worked out well.”
For as long as they were together, almost every day, they shared lunch — “usually tuna fish sandwiches,” Jackie said.
Visitation and funeral service will take place at the Roadhouse & Rose Funeral Home, however, due to COVID-19 restrictions, all services are by invitation only.
To honour Glenn’s memory, the family is requesting donations be made to the Newmarket Historical Society’s archives restoration fund.
Online condolences may be made at roadhouseandrose.com
