By Kevin Ma
It's appropriate that Morinville's Keith Norris died on April Fool's Day, said his son, Gareth.
"We grew up on Monty Python and British comedy, so it's fitting that he would choose April 1," he said.
Norris, 71, was an extremely active volunteer in Morinville who died in his sleep last Friday due to complications from cancer. He was one of the few regular audience members at town council meetings and an important figure in the 2014 debate and plebiscite on photo radar.
Coun. Stephen Dafoe said Norris was an active member of at least six community groups before he died, and was on the executive of Sturgeon Victim Services and the town's traffic safety committee, chamber of commerce, and library board (of which he was chair).
"Keith was a giant of a man who was one of the gentlest souls I've ever known," Dafoe said.
"He's that big teddy-bear of a guy who was always rooting for the underdog."
Born April 14, 1944, Norris was a proud Welshman who grew up in Cardiff, Wales, Gareth said. He was a big fan of rugby, attending all the games and singing along with the crowds, and served with that nation's Royal Marines.
His father was a stickler for the rules, but was also very forgiving.
"His attitude was I'll give you the freedom, and it's yours to lose it."
He also had an almost Dr. Doolittle ability to interact with dogs, Gareth said. Dogs would charge at him snarling on the street and he'd just stand in front of them and start petting them.
The family ran a pub prior to immigrating to Canada in 1982 on Norris's birthday, Gareth said.
"He was always a busy person," he recalled, regularly working 18 hours a day in the pub before moving onto other jobs in construction or plumbing.
"He used to say if you've got two arms and two legs, somebody will pay you to clean a toilet."
Norris worked as a business agent and vice-president of the Teamsters Local 362 before retiring to Morinville, where he volunteered for numerous organizations.
Gareth said he wasn't surprised that Norris was such an active volunteer. Norris couldn't stand bullies, and was the first one to jump in to help when he saw a need.
"If six (groups) wasn't enough, he would have picked up three more just to keep himself busy," he said.
"I think he just got pleasure out of helping people."
Dafoe said Norris was a straight-shooter who never messed around when it came to speaking his mind.
"He used to joke he was diplomatically deficient."
But Norris was always respectful in his deeds, and Dafoe said he never saw him lose his temper.
Gareth said Norris had a very dry, British sense of humour, and was always one to make a sarcastic joke.
He was also never one to complain, which may have worked against him, Gareth said – while he started feeling ill about four months ago, he didn't tell anyone for two months. His health declined swiftly, with his prognosis dropping from months to weeks very recently.
"We're all a bit shocked."
In his last days, he asked his doctor if he could have a drink of Guinness. When the doctor said yes, the big-time curry fan said he'd want a vindaloo to go with it.
"We joked about it at the end. 'No funeral, and if I don't get my curry, you guys have to have it for me,'" Gareth said.
The family plans to go out for curry later this week in lieu of holding a funeral, he added.
Norris is survived by his wife, Elaine, children Gareth and Samantha, and grandchildren Nico, Gwyneth, and Tia. The family asks that friends of Norris celebrate his life in their own fashion, and make donations in his name to the Stollery Children's Hospital, Alberta Children's Hospital, or the SPCA.
