Nicholas Handfield-Jones died on August 2, 2024, in Ottawa, Canada. He will be deeply missed by his parents, Richard Handfield-Jones and Alexandra Heber, his brother, William Handfield-Jones, and his many friends and relatives.
Nick was born in Mississauga, Ontario. Over the years, he lived in Oakville, Toronto, London (Ontario), Ottawa and Amsterdam. He attended high school at Ottawa’s Lisgar Collegiate Institute (2010-13), Amsterdam University College for his BSc (2013-16), and Western University for his Masters in Neurosciences (2017-19). During the past four years, he worked first at the Wine Rack in Ottawa’s Hintonburg neighbourhood, then with the federal government in the Department of National Defence.
Nick was a natural-born and compassionate leader. He edited multiple school newspapers and journals, chaired university committees, and mentored fellow students throughout his time in school. He had a profound social conscience with a genuine belief in equality, the public good and the welfare of others.
As an athlete, Nick loved his many years with the Gefilte Fish Swim Club (later Swim Ottawa). He was very proud of his “Most Improved Swimmer” award. He was a runner, entering the Ottawa Run and Army Run races over many years. And he especially enjoyed downhill skiing – a big guy floating effortlessly down any slope.
Nick was a writer and a thinker. Since his earliest years, Nick has turned out millions of words – in his childhood stories, detailed study notes, scientific papers, social media posts, short stories, novels and, most recently, poetry. He enjoyed any opportunity to debate: politics, the role of social media, movies, medieval history, the latest pop music. You name it, he’d have an opinion, usually backed by extensive reading and reflective thought.
Nick was open and proud of being a gay man.
Above all, Nick was a lover of life and a giver of love and compassion. He had a huge heart – caring deeply about everyone around him. Nothing guided him more than his consideration for the feelings of others. He was always there for his friends and family when they were struggling. His quirky sense of humour made us all laugh. His relationships and friendships were true and life-long.
He was an enlightened soul in the modern age.
A memorial will be held at Beechwood Cemetery on Thursday, August 15th.
2:00 PM: Meet and Greet
3:00 PM: Formal ceremony
3:45 PM: Informal gathering
Dress Code: Casual to Business Casual
Nicholas’s ashes will be interred on a later date.
The ceremony will be live streamed to allow his many friends and relatives around the world to join us. REGISTER HERE TO ATTEND VIA LIVE STREAM
Digital Guestbook
Penny MacDonald
Jim & Katarina Gunn
Dear Alex and Richard,
Words cannot express how sorry we are for your loss. Please accept our deepest condolences.
Natasha Grizenko and Stephen Vida
We will always remember Nick with his enormous smile, gentleness, intelligence and wonderful conversations we had.
With time when we think of Nick all the happy memories will come to our thoughts before the tears that come to our eyes. And we will smile and he will be with us forever.
Lloyd and Josee
Alex, Richard and William. There are no words to express our deepest sympathies for the loss of Nick. We can only offer our support and know that you are in our thoughts during this difficult time. We still remember having your family over for Christmas in Mons and remembering a conversation with Nick on his studies in Amsterdam and his speed writing skills. We had to listen to Mike sing Saskatchewan but we endured. We wish we could be there tomorrow but we are leaving for a trip home to NL. Josee, Eugenie and I will be thinking of you tomorrow. Our sincere condolences to your family.
Darcy Elder
My heartfelt condolences to the entire family during this incredibly difficult time!
Colleen Forestier
Dear Richard, Alex, William , I am so very sorry for your loss. Nicholas will be deeply missed by all those who loved him. May you find some solace and comfort amongst family and friends.
Jocelyn and Medric Cousineau
Our condolences to you and your family. There are no words for a loss of a child
Irena Cirkovic
My deepest and heartfelt condolences to the family.
Nick will always hold a special place in my heart, along with the many memories I have of him. I will forever cherish our time together. He made our dorms in the Netherlands feel like home.
I will miss him dearly.
Murray Enns
Alexandra and family - I was so sad to hear of Nicholas' death. Such an awful loss. My deepest condolences to you all.
Mikey Grizenko-Vida
I remember Nick was always the biggest advocate that the world needs more acceptance and love. We lost a great source of love.
I had the pleasure of being Nick's graduate supervisor during his time at Western. He was a bright, talented, and hard working student whose loss we continue to feel in our lab. He was a fabulous communicator. Nick and I spent many hours together brainstorming and troubleshooting his projects. Often our meetings and conversations meandered into other topics where Nick's creativity, compassion, commitment to justice and to improving the world, as well as his humour and great laugh were revealed. He was a genuine person and always a straight-shooter, which few have the courage to be at such an early stage of life. He was generous to his colleagues and beloved by our patients. In fact, many still ask about him, a few became his friends, and I was not surprised to learn that for a couple he was an occasional, interesting, and charming dinner guest, as well as a shoulder on which to lean. My sincerest condolences to his parents and brother. My family (Hooman Ganjavi, Alex MacDonald, and Emma MacDonald), who also grew to be so fond of Nick, and I are thinking of you at this terrible time.