Obituary of Neil Charles Coir

Canton— Neil Charles Coir, 80, of East Drive, Canton, passed away peacefully Saturday, Feb 25, 2017 at Maplewood Campus while surrounded by his loving family. The family will receive friends on Tuesday, February 28th at Lawrence Funeral Home, Canton from 2-4 & 6-8 PM. His funeral service will be held on Wednesday, March 1st at 10:00 AM in the First Presbyterian Church of Canton with Rev. Michael P. Catanzaro officiating. Burial will take place in Fairview Cemetery. Neil was born March 14, 1936 in Morrisburg, Ontario, a son of the late, William & Nellie Droppo Coir. After high school, he attended and graduated from St. Lawrence University in 1958, where he played goalie for the SLU hockey team. He went on to attain his Master’s in Education at St Lawrence in 1960. Neil started his teaching career at Parishville, then taught at Norwood and went on to a distinguished career teaching mathematics for 25 years at Canton Central School prior to his retirement in 1991. He led the varsity hockey team as coach for ten years at Canton Central School. Neil’s teams were always a force to be reckoned with winning many league and sectional titles. He was most proud of his players who exhibited his philosophy that winning is a result of exhibiting the positive attributes of a scholar and an athlete in sport and in life. On August 20, 1960, he married Lois “Marilyn” Caloren in the Iroquois Anglican Church in Ontario, Canada. He loved his wife and cherished her endearing love right to the last moment and forever. He was so proud of his children Jenn and Greg and the people they have become. He was predeceased by his three brothers and his sister. Neil is survived by his beloved wife Marilyn of Canton; daughter, Jennifer (Douglas) Collins of Boston, MA; son, Greg (Alexandra) Coir of Newburyport, MA; and six grandchildren, Alexa and Devin Collins and Ethan, Griffin, Amelia and Duncan Coir. Neil was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Canton, a member of the St. Lawrence Golf Club and he was President of the Teacher’s Union. Neil will be remembered for his love of sports especially hockey and his beloved Montreal Canadians. He had a passion for coaching youth hockey and loved to mentor players not only in hockey skills but life lessons as well. He enjoyed watching St. Lawrence Hockey and loved all his trips to Boston with Marilyn to spend as much time as possible with the grandchildren. Memorial contributions are suggested to First Presbyterian Church of Canton or to Hospice & Palliative Care of St. Lawrence Valley. Condolences may be shared with the family by visiting www.lawrencefuneralhome.org