Mr. Liam Canty

Obituary

Our wonderful son, Liam Samuel Canty was taken from us much too soon.  Born in Oxford, England on a rainy Saturday, October 21, 1995 Liam spent most of his life in Toronto.   He was a fun-loving child but always a little reserved.  He didn’t have huge numbers of friends but he was intensely loyal to those he did have at Cedarvale Elementary and Arlington Middle School.  He struggled in a large high school but thrived at Inglenook Alternative School from where he graduated as an Ontario Scholar in 2013.  Although highly intelligent, Liam was not suited to college or university. He worked in a number of bar and restaurant kitchens in Toronto, Montreal and most recently Hamilton.  In that work he developed a love and talent for cooking and had recently talked about going to culinary school.

Throughout his life Liam loved 3 things – reading, music and travel.  He made many trips with his Dad to Ireland to see his paternal grandparents and aunts often including side trips to England or the Netherlands.  He also loved cruises and trips to Disney World with his mother and Nain, Pat Coady.  In Canada he loved visits to Kingston, Ottawa, Montreal, Haliburton and Port Carling.  When he left us he was very excited for his next adventure in Edmonton where he was due to go on February 27.  He had very wide ranging tastes in reading and music.  He could switch from hard philosophy books to biographies to fiction as the mood took him.  He was never without a book!  He also developed a love of music, particularly early punk such as the Clash and Ramones.  On our trips to London, England he liked nothing better than spending time in places like Tower Records and the Virgin Megastore.  He also loved live music and attended many shows.  Most recently he took his Dad to see Iron Maiden in Hamilton and both had a wonderful night!

Liam struggled throughout his life with intense anxiety and this got worse as he grew older.  Sadly, as he reached adolescence the effects of his anxiety resulted in addictions to alcohol and drugs.  In recent years he had made great strides towards combating his addictions and anxiety but these diseases are strong and powerful.  Sadly he was ultimately unable to win that hardest battle of all and succumbed around February 24, 2024.

Liam was very much loved by his mum, Stella; dad, Angelo; aunts Ruth, Petronella and Johanna as well as his Oma Joke, Nain Pat (deceased) and granddads Frank and Tim (both deceased).  We will all miss him dearly and are shocked at his passing but we take comfort in the knowledge that he knew he was loved and that he loved us all.

An informal memorial gathering with music will be held on Sunday March 10 from 12 to 2pm.  We are very grateful to our musician friends who have agreed to play live for us that day.  In lieu of flowers we ask that donations be made to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health where Liam got wonderful support and care during his battle. Donations can be made electronically at CAMH Donation site.

Visitation

Service

Cremation