David Richard Haggart was born in Brockville, Ontario, on July 31, 1949, and grew up playing by the shores of the St. Lawrence River. After briefly studying journalism at Ryerson in Toronto, he headed north to Yellowknife in the early 1970s to work in the remote wilderness, forming lifelong bonds with the people and the land. David then moved to Chilliwack, BC, where he managed an apartment building, worked at a bookstore, played drums in an amateur blues band, and assisted his friend Abraham, a renowned Inuit carver.
In the 1990s, David helped form The Stray Dog Poetry Project, touring the Lower Mainland, giving readings, and producing chapbooks before he moved to Ganges, BC, where he lived for over twenty years. Although he suffered from severe depression, he kept writing poems, and in 2021, he released his collection A Curious Happiness in Small Things (Raven Chapbooks) with the help of his publisher and dear friend Diana Hayes.
David never shied away from talking about his personal challenges. After struggling with substance abuse, he joined AA in 1986 and was still sober when he died, having helped many others on their sobriety journeys. He was not a fan of small talk, preferring to connect on a deeper level, and while he could be gruff and didn’t suffer fools, he loved his friends and family fiercely and had a wicked sense of humour, a tender heart, and a formidable intellect. He was also okay-ish at cribbage.
David leaves behind his daughter, Rebecca, grandchildren Jake and Eden, former partner Janice, cousins Bob (Diane), Pat, Melissa, Jenny, and Rachel Haggart, Shelley and Stev’nn Hall, and countless beloved family members and friends.
The family offers tremendous gratitude to the nurses and staff at Lady Minto Hospital, the Island Health home support staff, and to Dr. Ron Reznick, Dr. David Montalbetti, Jean and Wendy, and Anastasia Williams for their compassionate care. Thank you to Murakami Gardens Community Housing for providing a safe and affordable home with wonderful neighbours for David in his last years. Thanks also to the Copper Kettle Community Partnership for their amazing work.
A memorial will be held in Ganges in early October, date and time to be announced.
I will miss David very much, he was a great friend to me. Condolences to family and friends.