Ron Singleton

Obituary:  Harvey 'Mac' Canada

Published by The Richmond Times-Dispatch on August 23, 2023

CANADA, Harvey 'Mac' McNair, Harvey 'Mac' McNair Canada, 73, of Midlothian, VA, passed away on August 14, 2023. Mac left behind a lasting legacy and will be missed every day.

He was born on March 22, 1950 and was a loving, devoted husband, father and grandfather, a true 'people person. He thrived on the energy of those around him, and sought out opportunities to befriend everyone he met. At an early age, he helped support his mother and younger brother while his Dad traveled often for work, a trait he extended to many others throughout his life. His family was the center of his universe. He married his high school sweetheart, Ann, and together they raised three boys which they relished and took head on. He was fortunate enough in this life to find true love a second time, and his wife Cindy and he enjoyed seventeen years together as true friends and partners and were always known to be together. An avid reader, especially of The Bible, he was apt to deliver impromptu sermons and advice to those in his life. He felt the best way to share a part of himself with others was to relate his own experiences as a way of connecting. He had a great sense of humor, and set the example of how to be a great father and husband.

A Celebration of Life service is planned for Wednesday, August 30th at 11 a.m. at Bon Air Baptist Church, 2531 Buford Road, Richmond VA 23235.

Mac is survived by wife Cynthia Walker Canada 'Cindy', sons Matthew Brandon Canada (Daniella), Justin McNair Canada (Amy), Nathan Stuart Canada, brother Douglas Owen Canada, ex-wife Ann Hague Guizzardi, stepdaughters Jennifer Moss, Rebecca Moss and grandchildren Alyssa, Carter, Tyler, Raegan, Reese, Everett, Damian, Ava, Shaniah, Dominic and Simo'n.

Mac had a strong faith in God, having been born again in Christ in 1978. He was an active member of his Church community at Bon Air Baptist Church serving as Deacon, Sunday School teacher and unappointed greeter.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks if you are so inclined to make a donation in Mac's name to the Endowment Fund at Bon Air Baptist Church 2531, Buford Road, Richmond VA 23235.

Mac Canada will be greatly missed.  Like others, he was much too young to leave us.  My friendship with Mac extends nearly 60 years and, interestingly, I was more connected to him during the past couple of decades than I was during our years together at Huguenot – even though he was my cousin Bubba Phillips’s best friend, who was also a member of the Huguenot Class of ’68.

During the last couple of decades, Mac was in my father's Sunday School class at Bon Air Baptist Church - a class made up mostly of 80 and 90-year-olds, in which he thrived as a respected leader. He was a deacon at the church and was often called upon to deliver the class lesson each week.  My father, John E. Singleton, who passed away last year at the age of 97, was one of his greatest admirers.  In fact, Mac delivered the featured testimonial and tribute at my father's funeral since they were such good friends, despite an age difference of nearly 25 years.  

Mac was a devout Christian in his latter decades in every sense of the word and lived an exemplary life, and will be greatly missed by the members of Bon Air Baptist Church.  At my father’s funeral, he told the story of visiting Dad at Johnston-Willis Hospital a few years ago after my father had back surgery.  As Mac walked into the private hospital room, Dad said, “What do you think of my friend?”  It was obvious to Mac that no one else was in the room but the two of them, so Mac immediately began to think my father was seeing ghosts and having hallucinations.  Dad asked his question again, and as Mac turned to find a doctor for assistance, out from under the covers popped my father’s pet dachshund “Rusty,” his constant companion.  Needless to say, Mac was surprised, but not overly so.  The doctors had allowed my father to keep his pet in the room during visiting hours as a way to help with his recovery.  It worked.  Dad was out of the hospital in just a few days. 

Mac, through his work with the church, was always able to find the bright side in life and he particularly enjoyed comforting the elderly.  He easily could have chosen to be a member of a Sunday School class closer to his age, but he chose to go where he was needed most.  As a result, he had a significant impact on the lives of many -- those who were in their later years, widowers like my father, in many cases, and enthralled to be the object of attention of a “youngster” like Mac.  There was so much more that Mac could have done, and he left us all too soon, but the impact of his life on others will be remembered and appreciated by families like mine for years to come.

Bob Keaton was an excellent trumpeter and an amazing entrepreneur.  He put together a Tijuana brass band at Huguenot during our last few years of school and handled all of the bookings and arrangements.  I was the second-chair trumpeter to Bob for a couple of years and we played such venues as the Commonwealth Club in Richmond and Fishing Bay Yacht Club in Deltaville and at numerous clubs in the Richmond area.  Bob even booked us for a “live” performance on one occasion at Channel 6-WTVR and we performed for the morning show.  Being selected as a member of his band was one of the highlights of my time at Huguenot, and I am indebted to Bob for having given me that opportunity.  Bob and I also were members of the Huguenot concert and marching bands for our five years at the school, where he was either first or second-chair trumpeter each year.  And, like nearly everyone in the band, he was faithful in his attendance at football games and numerous parades in the Richmond area and throughout the state when the band performed. It was a demanding schedule.  Later in life, he used his skills as a musician to move into the field of computer science and ascended to upper-level management positions with the State of Virginia’s IT division.  I didn't see Bob’s obit in the newspaper, but these are my memories of an exceptional individual who worked hard and made a significant contribution to life at Huguenot High and afterwards.     

Ron Singleton, Fredericksburg, Va.    

As I recall, Wylie was part of a group of us who went through 12 years of school together, culminating with Huguenot in '68. He will be missed. His time on this earth ended much too soon.  

Bubba Phillips was my first cousin on my mother's side of the family (Eileen Phillips Singleton), and as indicated in the obiturary from the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Bubba passed away on Nov. 13, 1993.  Submitted by Ron Singleton, '68.