On a chilly Easter weekend morning, a beloved Dad, Gramps, brother and uncle, Kaarlo Jarvela, passed away in the Nipigon District Memorial Hospital at the age of 88. Kaarlo was born on October 16, 1936 to Oscar and Rauha Jarvela and was the oldest of 3 children. He was a life-long resident of Nipigon spending many years living on the family farm on Cameron Falls Road. His strong work ethic started at a young age while working on the farm. He cut wood for their saw mill and delivered milk, eggs and meat into town. From there he worked in bush camps, around Nipigon and Beardmore, building roads, camp buildings and stables before moving onto driving bulldozers and pulpwood trucks. He left the woodlands operation in June 1965 to start working at the paper mill in Red Rock, where he worked inside and outside on the heavy equipment in the yard. Dad was always happiest pushing a load of dirt with his bulldozer or hauling a load of logs with his trucks “Buzz” and “Clancy”. For approximately 8 years, Dad owned and operated Beaver Valley Tent & Trailer Park while working at the mill and raising his family. He retired in 2001 from Domtar and had 23 bonus years of retirement. Dad loved to travel with his children, sister, nephews and lady friend, Ann. He has seen most of Canada, the eastern coast of the USA and parts of Finland. Dad and Ann spent many years travelling, bird watching and blueberry picking together. His favourite pastimes were fishing, hunting, golfing, bird watching, bowling, crossword & jigsaw puzzles, and watching his grandchildren and nephews play their various sports. He thoroughly enjoyed watching the Toronto Blue Jays and saw 2 live games in the summer of 2023. He also loved to cheer on the Thunder Bay Chill soccer teams.
Kaarlo was predeceased by his parents, Oscar & Rauha Jarvela, brother Pentti Jarvela, and several aunts, uncles and cousins in Canada and Finland. He is survived by his children Kaarla Jensen (Ron), Karen Stravato (Claudio), Kristine Colistro (Tony) and Jon Jarvela, grandchildren David, Jana, Marco, Marcello, Andraya, Justys and great grandsons Trey and Tyson. He is also survived by his sister Sonja Kivilahti (Dale), nephews Marcus, Kyle and Todd Kivilahti and families, his cousins Art and Aune Alanko in Canada and several in Finland, and his special lady friend Ann Niemi and her family.
Cremation has taken place and a celebration of Kaarlo’s life will occur on Wednesday, April 30, 2025, starting at 11:00 am at St. Mary’s Anglican Church, 20 2nd Street, Nipigon, ON. As expressions of sympathy, memorial donations may be made to the Nipigon District Memorial Hospital.
On-line condolences may be expressed at www.sargentandson.com.
