Wesley A. Dafoe

Funeral service for Wesley A. Dafoe Jr, 79, of Canton will be held on Friday, August 26, 2011 at 10:30am at the O'Leary Funeral Home, Park St, Canton with Rev. Bill Hart, officiating. Wes died on Tuesday, August 23, 2011 at home while under the care of family and St. Lawrence Valley Hospice.
Friends may call at the funeral home on Thursday, August 25, 2011 from 2-4 and 7-9pm. Contributions in his memory may be made to Hospice and Palliative Care of the St. Lawrence Valley, Canton Free Library or to the Madrid Golf Course.
He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Joan; four daughters, Darlene (Paul) Snell of Parishville; Karen (Jack) Claflin of Canastota; Kelly Conner of Topeka, KS and Dawn (Charles) Holmes of Topeka, KS; a son, Kraig Dafoe also or Topeka. Wes is also survived by 13 grandchildren, 4 great-grandsons; two brothers Roger and Richard, two sisters, Lola Wood and Esther Ashley and numerous nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by two brothers, two sisters and a grandson Kevin Conner.
Wesley was born June 1, 1932, son of the late Wesley A. Sr. and Ada Dafoe. He was raised and educated in the Canton area. He served in the U.S. Army as a medic, in Korea.
After his military service, he returned to Canton and on July 31, 1954 he married Joan M. Votra. He started playing fiddle at age 7, and continued to play until hearing loss forced him to stop. He never played from written music; his talent to "play by ear" was exceptional. Not only did he master the fiddle, he played flat-top guitar, steel guitar, mandolin and banjo. He performed in a number of different bands at local establishments over the years. He retired from Kraft Foods in 1994.
Throughout the many journeys taken during life, Wes enjoyed: softball, bowling, fishing, hunting, golfing, reading, cards, bingo, and playing country music.