print this page
close this page

William Walter Tupper

1933-2021

William Walter Tupper William Walter Tupper

A great Nova Scotian and Annapolis Valley elder has passed away. Bill Tupper was a loving husband, a loyal brother, a dedicated father, and a stalwart community member. A long-standing member of Centerville Baptist Church, Bill was a man of unshakeable faith, a beacon and role model to all who knew him.

The son of the late Gertrude Frail and Elmer Tupper of Scots Bay, Bill was born in Canning, and grew up in the community of Scots Bay, where he was as familiar and beloved as Cape Blomidon. His talents were both practical and creative; as a young man he developed valuable skills as a sewing machine technician, eventually becoming well-enough known as an expert repairman and collector that, until his final illness, people brought their sewing machines to him from communities throughout Nova Scotia. A versatile musician, Bill made his own instruments, became a self-taught guitarist and fiddler in the Maritime tradition, and eventually held the position of Inaugural President and lifetime member of the Kings’ Fiddlers. In addition to these uncommon gifts, Bill was a great storyteller, as well as a repository of local knowledge, and a competent artist who captured many historically-valuable scenes of vanished Valley ways of life in his drawings, paintings, and vibrant rug hookings in the ‘Primitive’ style. Impressive as these gifts were, it is Bill’s generosity, his support for those in need, his talent as a father, and his great heart, that are perhaps best remembered. As an old friend of his once said, "They don’t make ‘em like that anymore."

Bill is survived by his wife, Olive Goodwin Tupper and her children, Diane, Jeff and Judith, as well as by his daughter, Sheila (partner of Wally, Coldbrook N.S.); sons, Brian (husband of Heather, Rothesay, NB), Robert (husband of Belinda, Scots Bay, NS), Alan (husband of Junie), Gerald Vidito (husband of Darlene, Port George, NS); sister-in-law, Althea (Scots Bay, NS); grandchildren, Ian, Jodi, Chad, Melinda, Robert, Travis, Kristin, Tamara, Connor, Carson, step-grandchildren Zac, Jacob, and Ally; eleven great grandchildren, and his beloved feline companion, Callie.

Bill is predeceased by his first wife, Winnie Caldwell, as well as by his brothers, Weldon and Donald, and his sister, Elma, in infancy.

Due to Covid-19 pandemic and travel restrictions, a private service for Bill will be held in the White Family Funeral Home, Kentville on Tuesday, August 10, with Reverend Jeff Milne, Reverend Doctor Steve B. Hopper, and Reverend Doctor Judith Saunders officiating. A video webcast of the service will be available at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 10, 2021. Donations may made to Valley Hospice or the Centerville Baptist Church.

Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to the White Family Funeral Home and Cremation Services, Kentville. On-line condolences and inquiries may be directed to www.whitefamilyfuneralhome.com.

>Click here to View Condolences
Service Location
White Family Funeral Home

Visitation
There will be no visitation, by request

Burial Location
Canard Burial Ground

Requested Charity
Valley Hospice or the Centerville Baptist Church