Thank you Neil Jamieson

Neil Jamieson, a prominent businessman and community booster died at his home in Penticton on Saturday after a courageous two-year battle with cancer. He was 60.

Thank you Neil for your support of local business, for employing a large number of people and for offering great service to your customers during your many years with Underwriters Insurance in the heart of downtown.

Thank you Neil for your involvement with the

Penticton Vees junior A hockey team and support of the South Okanagan Events Centre.

Being in the back room, very few fans realized the great commitment you had for the team. Penticton is always a contender. If the Vees don’t win a BCHL championship, our team is always in the hunt. You were a big part of the team’s success.

Thank you Neil for keeping an eye on the community.

When the City threatened to sue Elvena Slump for writing letters to the editor, you supported her. In 2013, you were the first to predict letting Ironman go was a mistake because it had a powerful brand name. You were right. You were the first to predict — long before anyone else — that a waterslide in Skaha Lake Park would anger the public. Indeed, it did.

Thank you Neil for your incredible generosity. Much of the money and time you donated was anonymous. You supported sports, your first love, but also the arts and humanitarian causes. Thank you for helping fund The Herald’s all-candidates forums and asking nothing in return. Thank you for supporting local business, whether it was through the restaurant you would choose for lunch or small operations that were new or struggling to stay alive.

Thank you Neil for remembering those who were good to you. When your former viceprincipal Bruce Johnson was first diagnosed with his cancer, you phoned him, treated him to lunch and told him how much you appreciated what he did for you when you were a student. So many others forget their mentors from childhood and adolescence. You never did.

Thank you Neil for being a great family person. You were always proud of your Mom and Dad. The unconditional love for your wife, son and siblings — as well as all of your friends — is something we can learn from.

Finally, thank you Neil for being brave through a series of surgeries, chemotherapy treatments and pitfalls. You never lost your sense of humour and maintained a positive attitude. We can all learn from your bravery and dignity.

— James Miller Penticton Herald