Obituary of Timothy Garside

Timothy P. Garside, a carpenter, passed away suddenly at the Lahey Clinic Medical Center in Burlington on Sunday night, March 15, 2009. He was only 50 years old. Tim was born in Winchester. He grew up and was educated in Burlington. He served in the Air Force in the early 1980s. He worked as a carpenter with Shawnlee Construction and Sheppardville Construction in Plainville. After his marriage, he made Billerica his home. Tim was an extremely likeable individual, who would do anything for a friend, neighbor, or family member. He enjoyed working around his home and maintaining his yard. He was always willing to lend a hand to someone in need. His workshop in his garage was a common gathering place for the guys in the neighborhood, who needed some carpentry assistance or just place to talk and hang around. Since the Shawsheen River abuts his back yard, Tim took great interest in helping clean up the river. He was a member of the Shawsheen River Watershed Association and the group would often use his yard as an access point to the river during clean up days. Over the years, he saw the steady improvement of the water supply. He enjoyed canoeing, kayaking, and fishing from his back yard. He truly appreciated nature and the abundant wildlife around the river. He was a big Red Sox and Patriots fan. He was a devoted husband, father, son, and brother who will be lovingly remembered. Tim was the loving husband of Kathleen (Gregor) Garside. He was the loving father of Elaine Misuraca of Billerica & her fiancee Saul Santana and Amber Garside of Billerica. He was the son of Frederick & Shirley (Bamberg) Garside of Burlington. He was the brother of Donald Garside & his wife Michelle of Derry, NH and Lynn Garside of Littleton, MA and uncle of Alicia and David Garside of Derry, NH. Funeral services will be held at the United Church of Christ Congregational, 6 Lexington St., Burlington on Friday, March 20 at 12:30 p.m. Visiting hours at the Edward V. Sullivan Funeral Home, 43 Winn St., BURLINGTON (exit 34 off Rt. 128, Woburn side) on Thursday from 4-8 p.m. Interment in Chestnut Hill Cemetery, Burlington. Memorials in Timothy’s name may be made to the Shawsheen River Watershed Assoc. (SRWA), 682 Chandler St., Tewksbury, MA 01876 or www.shawsheen.org. For directions, obituary, and online guestbook see www.sullivanfuneralhome.net or www.uccwebsites.net/uccburlingtonma.html Timothy Paul Garside May 24, 1958/March 15, 2009 Good afternoon. On behalf of our family, I want to thank you for your love, support and prayers during this very difficult time. The past several days have been a blur to our family, and to many of you, we know. I’d also like to thank all of you for your kind words about Tim. It was nice to hear your stories and experiences with my brother and it helped to console us as we try to cope with this huge loss. We know that it’s not just our loss, it’s a loss that affects all of you as well. My brother Tim was a big part of our family. He was the oldest of us three kids, a very strong person, and he helped all of us through good times as well as bad times, and we always knew we could count on him. As kids, we bickered and fought as siblings do. But we always had each others back when the chips were down. I was proud to call him my brother. He was a loving son, brother, husband, father, uncle, cousin, and friend. And whether you just saw him last week, or hadn’t seen him for years. To Tim, if you were a friend, coworker, neighbor, or just a nice person, you were part of the family. Timmy had a great sense of humor, and could make you laugh no matter how mad or sad you were. And if you were already laughing, he could make you laugh even harder. His ability to make people feel better, even in the worst of times will be sorely missed. I experienced that ability this past December, during the big ice storm up North. We had been without electricity at our house for almost 8 days. One night, he and Bryan (his neighbor) called me on the cell phone to see how things were going. I admit I was not in the best of moods, and my nerves were wearing thin at that point. But, they were having a couple of beers, and decided to give me a call. I always knew that when he called and Bryan was in the background, it was going to be an experience. I grabbed a beer from the fridge, and walked outside to chat with him over the rumble of the generator, That was when Tim came out with a revelation. He said; “You New Hampshire cow-tippers just don’t get it, do you? If you hadn’t pee’d on that electric fence, you wouldn’t have short circuited the whole damn state!” We laughed so hard! That was typical Tim! He made me laugh so hard, I almost choked on my beer, but it was a laugh that I really needed at the time, and it made me feel better. Tim was a master of non-conformity. He marched to his own drummer a lot of the time, and I always respected that about him. He preferred a nice soft flannel shirt over a stiff dress shirt, a comfortable pair of jeans over a pair of Dockers, and he always had a well worn baseball cap on. That was the way he was, and there was no point trying to change it. When he did dress for an occasion, I would take him aside and tie his necktie so it wouldn’t end up only half way down his chest. That was just who he was. We all knew it, and accepted it. Tim was an Air Force veteran, an Airman, and he flew all over the world in military C-130, and C-141 transport aircraft, to support our forces with heavy equipment and supplies. His unit supported many missions and operations during his 5 years of service to our country. He returned home and we were so happy to have him back, but he was a changed person from the one that left. A better person. In the late 1990’s I went to flight school and got my pilots license. It’s something I had always wanted to do my whole life. when I asked Tim if he wanted to come flying, he said. “Bro, I spent 5 years flying around in a loud, freezing cold tuna can. The last thing I want to do is go up there and drill more holes in the sky. Thanks, but no thanks”. I understood. He loved his wife Kathy, and was a dedicated husband to her for 22 years. He and Kathy raised Elaine to be a fine young woman, and he loved her very much. In 1995 Amber came into the world. She was the apple of her fathers eye. He loved her, and he was a great father to her. They always knew that he had everything under control. Their house was his “this old house project”. He continually worked on that house, and made improvements as finaces allowed. He also loved nature, and anything to do with the great outdoors. Ever since we were kids, he had some sort of pet. He enjoyed birds especially. He loved living in his house with the Shawsheen River running thru the backyard. We spent endless hours just hanging around there, watching the wildlife come and go. Tim loved the river so much, he became a member of the SRWA (Shawsheen River Waterway Association). He allowed the association to use his yard as access to hold cleanup operations. They would drop a huge dumpster in his driveway, and they would walk, or canoe up and downstream pulling tires, trash, and anything else that didn’t belong there out, and filled many dumpsters over the years. To me, Timmy was an example. From the time we were kids, I had him to learn from. He was a hard worker, a true craftsman, a dedicated father and husband, and a loyal friend. He was a loving, caring, generous, and personable man. He’d always greet you with a smile and offer you a cold beer. He was a “Mr. Fixit” to his neighbors, as our father always taught us to be. If you needed help, he had the tools and would do his best to help. He was a home-body and loved to be home where all of his stuff was. And to me, he typified the definition of a proud American. His wife and Daughters I know, are proud of his accomplishments over the years, and his ability to deal with life’s challenges. He truly was a rock. I could talk for a long time about Tim, but there’s only so much time here with you. So now, with a heavy, grieving heart, we have to say goodbye to you Tim. Your loss has left a huge hole in all of our lives. I don’t know why, and I may never fully understand why you had to go. This was all so sudden. I know, and believe in my heart you didn’t want to go so soon, but you didn‘t have the choice. None of us were ready for this to happen. All that I can say is it must have been God’s will. There must be an important job for you in heaven. Sometimes life isn’t fair. Again, I learn from you. Rest in peace Big Brother, I love you, I’ll miss you, and I will never, ever forget you. Love, Your Little Brother. DG