Joseph Ernest was born Thursday May 13, 1976 in London, Ontario to Darlene (Funck) and Gordon Somers.
The waters of baptism flowed over Joe on Sunday June 20, 1976 at Faith Lutheran Church in Desboro, Ontario. Joe’s Godparents were his Aunt Lorna (Funck) and Uncle Jim Kingston. The presiding minister was The Rev. Lootsma.
Joe attended kindergarten in Chesley and then onto James A. Magee and John Diefenbaker Secondary school in Hanover to complete his formal education. While in high school Joe completed a co-op and worked a number of jobs, including one at Cuneo Carpeting, Kentucky Fried Chicken and at a gas station. When the appropriate time came Darlene gave Joe a white Ford Mustang, a beater of a car, for him to fix up and then drive. He did an incredible job!
Following high school Joe moved down to the Brampton area to where his friend Martin was working at Quality Moving and Installation. From 1995 until 2003, Joe diligently contributed to this company while on the side he worked for Martin’s business chimney sweeping. From 2003 and onward, Joe was trucking for Nimble Transportation & Warehousing of Etobicoke. Joe also went to work for Stage West Express out of Bolton, Ontario driving back and forth to Quebec and with Moore Brothers Transport out of Brampton, with mostly short hauls in the Greater Toronto Area. Over this period of time, Joe owned his own rig, two to be exact.
In 1995 and 1996 Joe was blessed with two greatest gifts he could possibly have had, Jordan Joseph and Aleasha Deborah Elsie. A great, and funny, story is told of how it was Jordan’s job to polish the chrome of his father’s rigs. Both Jordan and Aleasha have learned well from their father as he was a hard, hard worker. Joe was always on the move, seldom to never standing still. He was a perfectionist and there was a place for everything and everything had a place! Yet, no matter how hard he worked, Joe always wanted to be home to make supper every night!
And wasn’t Joe just the best of cooks! He loved to barbeque and his shish-kabobs and cowboy steaks were fantastic. Joe insisted that a salad be at every meal and his kids were to have only one glass of milk or juice, the rest being water. While with Tanya, Joe became a real health nut and Jordan and Aleasha benefited from this! Sunscreen and water became the two most important words!
Being with his family was most important to Joe. He had an incredible relationship with his mother Darlene and spent as much time as he could with his children who are exceptional human beings.
Growing up Joe played goalie and truly excelled at it! Not only was there organized hockey, there was also a lot of street hockey that was played. (Truly Canadian, heh?) He loved the Toronto Maple Leafs (of course) and collected trading cards. There was also baseball, karate and kung-fu. On one particular certificate Joe received for qualifying for the 5th KYU in the study of Karate it is written, In recognition of his diligence, honour, and sincerity in the study of Karate. He has proven himself to be mentally, spiritually and physically worthy of this task.
It was 1985 and already Joe had the attributes that stayed with him all of his life, no matter how short. The best words used to describe Joe? Very loyal, sociable, good looking (extremely), determined, passionate, hardworking, very selfless, generous, loving and very proud of his family. Now, he wasn’t so much affectionate as he was caring, but those in his life certainly knew they were loved by him. Joe had a real knack for picking just the right greeting card for any event.
Both Jordan and Aleasha have wonderful memories of time spent camping at Palgrave Forest and Wildlife Area near Orangeville. This was the site of the famous ghost stories told to scare as much as to entertain. Poor Aleasha, although she never did have nightmares from the stories! Time was spent fishing, camp fires, and barbequing are remarkable memories that will help to sustain those Joe loved. Other memories include swimming at Wasaga Beach and shooting BB Guns in the backyard.
Great stories are told as to the numerous radio contests Joe won. Being in the truck all day gave Joe the time to listen to his favourite stations 97.7 Hits FM and The Bull. Joe won so often that the stations had to call a moratorium! Too funny! The kids have great memories of playing a lot of games with their Dad, especially Crazy 8s.
In truth, Joe had many passions. He truly enjoyed life and lived it to the fullest. He loved to eat, to tell ghost stories, to be playful, draw and doodle, classic rock, Johnny Cash, snowmobiling and downhill skiing, (even though he hated the snow!) and playing it up as in acting. Joe loved Chinese food and every time it was ordered he had the same thing to say, “Why call it a Dinner for Two when it feeds six!” Yet, despite his attempts at being honourable, Joe did commit the ultimate sin. He ate his mother’s Christmas gift, last year! (LOL) Darlene received pickled eggs and beets as a gift and, yes, Joe ate them all! So needless to say, Joe loved to eat and nothing seemed to fill him up. His famous words were, “Are you done with that?” were spoken at most meals. When Aleasha was really young, Joe would order a Big Mac Meal for her, knowing full well she could not possibly eat the whole thing.
Joe had a real love for animals and always had a dog once he was on his own. “Yukon” the boxer was a particularly favourite dog and Rottweilers were a favourite breed! Of course, there were all the cats when living with Tanya. Even though Joe loved music and would sing, he did not do a lot of dancing. To use the word “handyman” to describe Joe would not be a lie. He was exceedingly gifted with his hands and could be said to be a “Jack of all trades.” From bodywork to gardening, from cooking to drawing, Joe did it all, and did it well!
As a child he was taught to have manners and not to swear. A really cute story is told by Darlene of the time Joe was sitting on the couch with a friend. They were still pretty little, yet the friend asked Joe if he was a virgin. “No,” Joe replied, “I am not Catholic, I am Lutheran.” (I told you it was a cute story!) Joe served as a ring bearer for his Uncle Marohl and Diane Kuhl’s wedding as well as usher for Sue Laver’s wedding. What Joe didn’t have time for was belonging to any particular service club or organization. There just were enough hours in the day. Trucking took more hours in a day than he likely would have liked. Keeping his home brilliantly clean and organized, as well as tending to his well-manicured yard with the rose bushes and perfectly trimmed shrubbery.
Just this past year, February 23, Joe realized the third greatest gift in his life, the birth of his granddaughter Livia Elsie. Joe was really looking forward to family this Christmas as he did every year. He never wanted to let anyone down and perhaps it could be said that he cared too much. Even though Joe had been baptized and thus promised God’s unending love and forgiveness, Joe felt undeserving.
Perhaps that is what contributed to Joe “chasing the dragon.” Like so many others, no matter how much he wanted to quit, no matter how many times in rehab, no matter what heroic attempts, Joe could never seem to overcome his addition to drugs. Unlike numerous others, Joe was able to, however, maintain a style of living that equaled his hard work and love of family.
It would be a mistake to assume that Joe lacked moral principles or willpower and thus could not stop his drug use. The truth of it is, drug addiction is a complex chronic disease, and quitting takes more than good intentions or a strong will. Drugs change the brain in ways that make quitting hard and they do not discriminate – they will take anyone!
More and more families are speaking and writing candidly about their loved ones’ struggle with addiction and Joe’s family, in similar fashion, do not want their anguish and loss to be that of other families. Darlene, Jordan, Aleasha and Livia have been robbed. Please do not let this happen to you or your family.
Joseph Ernest Somers of Brampton, passed away suddenly at home, on Tuesday, December 20, 2016 in his 41st year.
Beloved father of Aleasha Somers (Joel O’Donnell) of Palmerston and Jordan and his fiancée Victoria Armoogam of Brampton and grandfather of Livia. Cherished son of Darlene Underwood of Chesley and brother of Gord Somers of London. Joe will be sadly missed by his many aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. He was predeceased by father, Gordon Somers.
Visitation will be held at Rhody Family Funeral Home, Chesley on Thursday, December 29, 2016 from 12 noon until the time of the memorial service at 1 p.m.
Memorial donations to HopeGreyBruce Mental Health and Addictions Services, to help others who are wrestling with addictions, Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities or the charity of your choice would be appreciated.
The reality of Joe’s death is devastating, and nothing can possibly justify the loss of this unbelievably beautiful young man who gave so much to family and friends, work and family time.
