Donald McDiarmid Vicary was born at Bethesda Hospital, London, ON, on May 17, 1929, the son of the late Arthur Vicary and the late Alice (McDiarmid) Vicary. He is predeceased by his wife of 68 years, Elizabeth (Beth Turner), his sister Jean (Vicary) Barr and his granddaughter, Veronica Vicary.  And he is survived by his children Alison (Dave Davidson), Jamie (Jo Purvis), Glenn (Jacque), and Leigh as well as 7 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren. 

A lifelong farmer, Don attended Kemptville Agricultural College and later farmed on both the Vicary and McDiarmid farms.  He was proud of his heritage and the fact that his ancestors were early settlers to the Fingal area. In 1965, he was one of two Canadians chosen to receive a scholarship from the Nuffield Agricultural Society to study farming practices in Great Britain for 6 months.

At home he was an active member of the community, singing in a number of choirs including the St. Thomas Rotary Choir, the West Elgin Community Choir and the choirs of both Knox Church, Fingal and later Knox Church, St. Thomas.  He was an active member of the Elgin-Lampton-Middlesex Jersey Cattle Club and served a term as president.  He was also a director of the West Elgin Mutual Insurance.  He was a dedicated Sunday School teacher at Knox, Fingal and later served as an elder at Knox Church, St. Thomas.  As a member of this church he was instrumental in organizing the raising of funds for the Canadian Food Grains Bank, an effort that still continues today at Knox.

Don will be greatly missed by family, friends and community members. A very special thank you goes out to the staff of Oneida Long Term Care Home for the outstanding care they gave Don.

A memorial service will be held at the Mcfarlane & Roberts Funeral Home, 2240 Wharncliffe Rd S., London, on Saturday, January 3, 2026, at 3:00 pm., followed by a luncheon at the Fingal Knox Presbyterian Church, Fingal, ON.

Private interment of ashes at a later date.

Donations in Don’s memory may be made to the Heart and Stoke Foundation/https://app-hsfdonation.heartandstroke.ca/, or the Canadian Food Grains Bank (through Knox St. Thomas) https://knoxstthomas.ca/foodgrains/ or to the charity of your choice.

Livestream will be made available at the time of service by clicking on the following link:

https://vimeo.com/event/5623515/034c780cb3