The Honourable Gerald (Bud) F. Lang, L.L.B., K.C., loved four things – his family, his friends, the law and the Regatta.
Born in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador to Beaumont-Hamel survivor James Patrick Lang and Jean Gosse-Lang, proprietress of Gosse’s Pub, Bud was proud of his humble roots. Educated at St. Bon’s, St. Francis Xavier University and Dalhousie University, life didn’t really begin until he met his true love and future wife, Yvonne Down. When Raylene appeared, it became “we three.”
Yvonne made their house a home. Everyday Bud would leave the courthouse and enjoy lunch with his wife. Their dedication and devotion to each other was unparalleled and an example to us all.
Bud said if you had a handful of true friends, you were blessed. Those five friends know who they are and his life would have been very different if it wasn’t for them. It’s friendships that have lasted through generations.
Bud ended his career at the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador, Trials Division, but his commitment to his work began on day one working as a lawyer with the Honourable Derek Lewis, K.C., Senator. As City of St. John’s Solicitor under trailblazer Mayor Dorothy Wyatt, he faced significant municipal responsibilities, not least of which was getting picked up in a snowplow during a winter storm so he could get to work at City Hall.
He was appointed to the bench by the Right Honourable Jean Chrétien, Minister of Justice. On the night of the expected call from the Minister, Raylene was ordered to stay off the phone – not easy for a 15 year-old girl. Bud’s appointment was one of Yvonne’s proudest moments.
“We three” became “we five” with grandchildren Claudia and James. Nothing made him happier than taking them every year to the Royal St. John’s Regatta, an event he enjoyed more than Christmas. It was mandatory to “play the wheel” with St. John’s legend, Edgar Hartery.
As a young man, Bud won numerous championship rowing races at the Regatta with the St. Bon’s Rowing Team. He volunteered as a member of the Regatta Committee for many years. As a result, later in life he was made Honorary Life Member of the Royal St. John’s Regatta Committee.
Among numerous other volunteer activities, he was Vice-Chair of St. Patrick’s Mercy Home and Honorary Solicitor for the Newfoundland and Labrador Command of the Royal Canadian Legion.
Yvonne, Raylene, Claudia and James are immensely grateful to the loving and devoted caregivers, nurses, doctors and all the employees at the Tiffany Village Retirement Residence. They were consistently so kind, tender, respectful and treated Bud as you would cherished family.
Bud Lang was a solid human being. He was ethical and principled. Despite the atrocities he saw as a judge, he was a man of immense religious faith. He believed in the saints, the church and the kindness of humanity.
He will always be loved and in our hearts.
Visitation: Tuesday, November 5, 2024, from 2-4PM and 7-9PM at Carnell’s Funeral Home, 329 Freshwater Rd, St. John’s, NL
Funeral: Wednesday, November 6, 2024, 11AM at The Basilica Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, 200 Military Rd, St. John’s, NL
Flowers are welcome and donations can be made to the Dr. H. Bliss Murphy Cancer Care Foundation