Obituary of Joseph Parisien
The death of Joseph “Joe” D. Parisien occurred on Tuesday, January 26, 2021 at the Saint John Regional Hospital, with his son by his side. Born August 29, 1936 in Glasgow, Scotland, he was the son of the late Joseph and Sarah McVey (Canning) Darwood Parisien.
In 1946, a 10-year-old boy left Kelvin Haugh, Glasgow, Scotland with his mother, bound for Montreal, Quebec. He crossed over on the S.S Morithania to Halifax, Nova Scotia. When the Red Cross representative first spotted Joe Parisien, he was wearing short pants. This caused some concern as it was in January and very cold, so they donated a pair of long pants to keep him warm on the remainder of his journey.
Joe, his mother and brother, then boarded a train for Montreal, where they stayed a short while before moving to Papineauville, where no one spoke a word of English. This caused some problems for Joe with his Scottish accent as well. After six months they moved to Brownsburgh, Quebec. This was not quite as bad; about half the population spoke English as well as French. Not speaking French at all, Joe was put behind 3 years in school. In spite of this setback, he continued his education here until 1953 when he joined the Canadian Armed Forces as a member of the “Queens Own Rifles” for three years. This group was disbanded after the Korean War as it was specifically set up for this purpose. Joe did not, however, make it to Korea. After getting a government discharge, Joe moved to Saint John where he worked for the railroad for 12 years as a traffic clerk. He then went to work for the Gladstone Tavern and in 1971 joined Rothesay Paper LTD.
In 1984 he then applied for a passport and was turned down as he was not a Canadian citizen. This came as a complete surprise to Joe, after having lived in Canada since 1946 and serving in the Canadian Armed Forces. However, this
should now been rectified as Joe went for his Citizenship on March 24, 1986. His only concern was whether his passport would show his real name of Darwood or his mother’s maiden name of Parisien. Joe finally became a citizen on March 24, 1986.
He is survived by his children, Brenda Parisien Allen (Barry), Daniel Parisien “Chipper” (Suzanne); brothers, Stanley Darwood Parisien of Montreal QC, Norman Parisien of Kitchener Waterloo, Ontario; as well as many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. Besides his parents, he was predeceased by his wife, Jennie (London); daughter, Sharon Grozik; sons, David, Norman, and Robert (Robin) and special friends Rena Saulnier and Jean Kirouac.
Arrangements are under the care and direction of Brenan’s Funeral Home, 111 Paradise Row, Saint John, NB (634-7424). There will be no service or visitation, a private family interment will take place in Cedar Hill Cemetery at a later date. Donations in Joe’s name may be made to Bobby’s Hospice or The Heart and Stroke Foundation of New Brunswick. Online condolences may be placed at www.BrenansFH.com
