Robert E. MacDonald
MACDONALD, ROBERT ERIC
It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Robert Eric “Bob” MacDonald, who died peacefully at Guelph General Hospital on December 12, 2025 at the age of 96.
Bob was born in Waltham, Massachusetts on January 28, 1929. The firstborn child of Robert Elmer “Mac” MacDonald and Elizabeth “Betty” MacDonald (nee Leadbetter), he spent his first years in Waltham and liked to recall memories of his early childhood there.
When he was five, the family moved to McNeills Mills, PEI, where Mac had bought a small farm. They later moved to a larger farm in Unionvale.
Bob was naturally inclined to work with his hands and make things. As a boy he loved working on radios and making models. He even made a motorbike by putting a small engine on his bicycle. He was very proud of it. When he was 17, Bob went to Charlottetown to learn carpentry. After working on the island for a couple years, he felt the urge to venture out into the wider world, and in 1949, he came to Toronto. He found work as a carpenter at Viceroy Rubber, and later, in the carpentry shop at British American Oil in Clarkson.
In 1952, Bob met Mae Sweet, a girl from O’Leary who had just arrived in Toronto. It was a perfect match, and they married in 1954. After a few years living on Keele Street in Toronto, they bought a house in Bronte and started a family. Percy was born in 1957, and John followed in 1959. While at BA, Bob started up a small cabinet making business on the side, and in 1965, he quit BA and went full time, making grandfather clocks.
In 1967, the MacDonalds moved to Erin, where Bob’s clock business expanded. In the early 1970s, he became a partner in Murray Clock Craft, and the business grew rapidly and thrived.
Bob sold his share in Murray Clock Craft in 1981 and he and Mae began a new phase in their lives, touring Europe, and travelling all across Canada and the US in their motor home. They wintered at Zephpyrhills, Florida, and spent time during the summer in Mill River, PEI. They golfed – Mae well, Bob not so much – and restored antique cars, but they found their greatest joy being grandparents to Kyla and Chelsea.
As years went by, Bob and Mae became fixtures on Main Street in Erin, living in the same house for 58 years. However, in August, 2025, they moved to The Village of Arbour Trails in Guelph. They were just beginning to enjoy their new home when Bob’s health suddenly failed and he passed away.
Bob said, many times over the last several years, “Don’t be sad when I die. I’ve had a wonderful and long life, surrounded by a great family.” Truer words have seldom been spoken.
Bob is survived by his beloved wife, Mae; sons Percy (Deb) and John (Rina); granddaughters Kyla Gorgon (Kyrstian) and Chelsea MacDonald (Taylor Kowch); great grandsons Landon Gorgon and Cameron Gorgon; sisters Joan Hartung and Barbara Edgar (Stewart); brother Charles “Chuck” MacDonald; and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his brother-in-law, Lyle Hartung, and his sister-in-law, Ingrid MacDonald.
A small, informal celebration of Bob’s life for close family will be held on Friday, December 19th, 2025 from 2:00pm to 4:00pm at Wall-Custance Funeral Home, 206 Norfolk Street, Guelph.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Bob’s memory may be made to the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
Arrangements entrusted to the WALL-CUSTANCE FUNERAL HOME & CHAPEL 519-822-0051 / www.wallcustance.com.
A tree will be planted in memory of Robert E. MacDonald in the Wall-Custance Memorial Forest.