Gordon Hugh MacMillan

Gordon was born to Ralph and Loretta McMillan in Berkeley, CA during the Great Depression, a very difficult economic period that would have a great influence on his life. His parents were both originally from Prince Edward Island in Canada, a mostly Scottish/Catholic province. He was very proud of his heritage/ancestry and thus changed the spelling of his name back to the original Mac (from Mc) when he turned 18. 

Ralph and Loretta blessed their only son Gordon with the arrival of two younger sisters. First Jean in 1932, and then sister Doris in 1940. A carpenter by trade, Ralph struggled to find work to provide for his young family. The Family eventually opened a small convenience store. As a young man attending Berkeley High School, Gordon felt it necessary to find steady work to supplement the family finances during those very difficult economic times in America. Once things began to improve, the family moved into a house on Spauling Ave that Ralph and Loretta would call home for the next 40 years. 

Following high school, Gordon was able to enroll at the University of California-Berkeley and began as a student fulltime while still maintaining his job. However, the Korean war was underway, and Gordon was certain he would be drafted like most young men his age. So instead, he enlisted in the US Marine Corps, where he served very proudly -- 2 years as an active soldier and 4 years in reserve. Upon his honorable discharge, Gordon returned to Cal-Berkeley and completed a bachelor’s a degree in Business Admin. He then took a job with a young apparel company, Jantzen Inc, headquartered in Portland, where he spent his entire career, ultimately retiring at 55 years of age as a very well-respected executive. 

1958 he met Caryl Coffey, a young elementary school teacher on a blind date. He had originally been scheduled to date Caryl’s roommate Diana, but she suggested Caryl go instead since the mysterious Gordon was Catholic. That date launched a beautiful, loving relationship that would last to the end of Caryl’s life. The couple was married in 1960, and were soon joined by sons Kevin in 1961, Steve in 1963 and Kent in 1965. They bought a home in NE Portland not far from Jantzen, where the boys grew up, eventually graduating from nearby Grant HS. 

Upon his early retirement, Gordon was able to follow his other passion, golf, and joined the brand-new Pumpkin Ridge golf club in 1992, where he would spend many hours over the ensuing 15+ years, not just playing golf but meeting many folks who became some of his closest friends. He and Caryl enjoyed travel, and had excursions to Europe, Australia and Africa as well as many places across the US and Canada. Locally, Gordon volunteered his time at CASA helping troubled kids find caring foster homes, for the Oregon Golf Assoc in rating golf courses for difficulty & playability, and also as a mediator for brokerage disputes that were eligible to be settled outside the court system. And of course, he remained an active parishioner in several Portland-area Catholic Churches throughout the entirety of his life.

Gordon’s heart was huge, as evidenced by his tender, loving care for Caryl in her 3 year struggle with Alzheimer’s & dementia, with seemingly non-stop visits to doctors, clinics and hospitals, only to see their effort end in sadness… he never complained once. He wrote the following to Caryl in 1990: “Honey, since we haven’t revised our will in a long time, and since I suspect I’ll go first, I thought I would write you this note which you will find after my death. First and most important I have always loved you with all my heart and soul. You are the greatest. I never could understand why I was so lucky to get you. You made life wonderful not only for me but for everyone around you. I hope that after I die you will remarry someday so that someone else will have the pleasure of knowing you as I have known you.”

Today Gordon is survived by son Steve (Chris), son Kent (Jackie), as well as Steve’s sons; Kevin, Matthew, Andrew and Parker, and Kent's children; Natalie (Antonio), Jack and Betsy, and by his youngest sister Doris. 

A Funeral Mass will be held at St Pius X Catholic Church (1280 NW Saltzman Rd, Portland) on Saturday December 21st at 11AM, followed by a reception & eulogy in the community center on the same property. A rosary will be prayed prior to the funeral services at 10:30AM.  

If you are not able attend in person, at 11AM on Dec 21st go to www.stpius.org … click on “Mass Livestream”

Private interment will be at Mount Calvary Cemetery in Portland.

The family asks that in lieu of flowers, remembrances be sent to the Kevin MacMillan Scholarship, c/o Oregon Community Foundation, 1221 SW Yamhill, #100, Portland, OR 97205