Following a brief illness our brilliant, beloved Christopher was taken from us far too soon.

Chris was born in Toronto on May 22, 1981. He was a bright, happy child. Almost from infancy he loved people, parties, gatherings of any kind. At the age of five he mastered Lego. When his little brother, Rob, came toddling through his masterpieces, he sighed and rebuilt. Never an angry word, instantly forgiving, instantly back to the joy of making. His immense curiosity and wonder never left him. As a teenager he would sneak out the second-floor window of his house to lie on the roof and look at the stars. He was equally taken with the manufactured world of planes, trains, spaceships, city bridges and buildings. On family sailing trips in the Caribbean you were as likely to find him below deck, monitoring the navigational equipment, as you were to find him manning the sails and marveling at the water. His open, intelligent gaze missed nothing—shapes and their arrangements, colours and their aspects, your smallest gesture, what you were wearing, what you said. He could recall, verbatim, whole passages of movie dialogue.

His visual gifts brought him to Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts, New Media. There followed a highly satisfying career in television at Citytv, Rogers, Global and CBC. His sophisticated work won him the admiration of colleagues and viewers. His kind heart and enthusiasm won him many friends.

Twelve years ago he met his great love, Ashley Nelson. After only a few months they moved in together and made a life seeking out fresh food ingredients near their downtown condo, cooking fabulous suppers, growing vegetables on their balcony, following baseball and tennis, listening to music in Toronto parks, spending time with family, and generally just adoring each other.

Chris leaves behind not only wife, Ashley, but mother Beth Kirkwood, father David Kirkwood, brother Rob Kirkwood, stepmother Sarah Crawford, mother-in-law Cathy Nelson, sisters-in-law Alexis Stone and Becky Nelson, Aunts Mary Ngai and Barbara Gowdy, and a host of grieving cousins, uncles, aunts, and friends.

The family cannot express fully enough how grateful it is to the medical staff at St. Michael’s Hospital. Instead of sending flowers, we ask that you make a donation to the St. Michael’s Hospital Foundation.