Giving Thanks for Ron Bales
A thanksgiving for Ron's life and reflection from Bishop Charlie
This Saturday evening, April 24, 2021, to the shock of us all, the Lord Jesus called home and promoted to glory one of his precious saints, Ron Bales.
As well as husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and all his other roles, Ron has served ANiC faithfully for our entire history, most recently as Treasurer on our ANiC Council and Chairman of our Finance Committee.
He and his wife, Pam, have become very dear friends to me and Judy. I am already missing Ron very much, though it’s true, at this stage, I am still struggling to take in the fact that he is gone.
It’s not that we have known Ron and Pam all our lives. In fact, this unique friendship began less than twenty years ago, one Sunday in August 2004. Ron and Pam had recently moved to Oakville, Ontario and were searching for a church home. They ended up late for the service at St. George’s in Lowville, where I was rector, due to some confusion about our summer service times. The service was just ending as they arrived.
I apologized that the service for that day was over but invited them in for a brief visit. I couldn’t just send them on their way without telling them a bit about St. George’s, to at least make their drive of almost forty minutes not totally in vain.
I discovered that their search for a new church home had been underway for the last few months and St. George's was their thirteenth church. We had a nice little visit, I prayed with them, and let them know many of us would be away next week at a conference in Ottawa called 'The Way Forward’.
That was that, or so I thought. But, as it turned out, it certainly was not. Early at that very conference in Ottawa, among some 700 attendees, who should I bump into but the same Ron and Pam Bales. Somehow they had got information about the conference, felt led to attend, and found their way there.
Thus began a friendship and fellowship where not only did they join our church, but became very eager, and an active part of Anglican Essentials, and ultimately the Anglican Network in Canada.
Ron accepted the position as People’s Warden at St. George’s exactly one week before we voted to secede from the Anglican Church of Canada (February 2008), knowing the likelihood that there might be legal action taken against us by our former diocese; which in fact happened with his name, “R. Bales et al...” on every document against us.
Over one seemly innocent coffee at Tim Horton’s, I casually asked if he would be willing, among his many other duties, to help me set up an ANiC national or diocesan office and come on as a volunteer to walk us through these dramatic yet strategic days. He accepted and jumped in with all his heart, and he and Pam prayed fervently and joyfully for all that the Lord has done and is doing.
Ron and Pam’s prayerful, joyful, wholehearted, incredibly generous approach to following the Lord Jesus has been such a blessing and encouragement to me.
Ron laboured for the Lord right up to his final day on earth. The last time I saw him, a few days ago, he was signing ANiC cheques for us in his role as Treasurer of our ANiC Council and Chairman of our Finance Committee.
I can’t thank God enough for my dear friend, and I am much in prayer for his equally amazing and godly wife of nearly 60 years, Pam, and for their wonderful family.
I am so thankful today that, one day soon, I will see him in heaven because Jesus, his Lord and Saviour and mine, is the Resurrection and the Life and He has conquered death.
And I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Blessed indeed," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labours, for their deeds follow them!" (Revelation 14:13)
Due to COVID-19 the funeral will be family-only and then, at some future date, we will look forward to a celebration which their home church, Christ the King, Toronto and their rector, the Reverend Keith Ganzer, will host.
Thank you for your prayer of thanksgiving for Ron and prayer for much comfort for Pam and all the Bales family.
+Charlie
The Right Reverend Charlie Masters
Diocesan Bishop of the Anglican Network in Canada