Cleric.
Born at Toronto, Ontario on 17 June 1929, son of Ralph Miles and Jessie McRae, he attended Knox College and graduated in 1953. After being ordained as a Presbyterian minister, he was appointed to a small church at Oshawa, Ontario.
After spending ten years there, and at Listowel, he came to Winnipeg in 1963 where he was the minister at First Presbyterian Church for the next 26 years. During this time, he had a daily radio program “Moments of Meditation” on CJOB for 29 years. In 1970, he chaired a Pioneer Recognition Committee for the Manitoba Centennial Corporation. He worked for many years with Alcoholics Anonymous. He received an honorary doctorate from the University of Winnipeg (1973), a Manitoba Good Citizenship Award (1975), and a City of Winnipeg Community Service Award (1983).
He was married twice, first to schoolteacher Mary Marjorie “Marni” Gulston (1928-2011) and they had four children. The family lived at 209 Oxford Street. Around 1991, he married cleric Peggy Josephine “Jody” Malyska Toogood. He enjoyed golf, curling, gardening, and cycling. He was a fan of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
He died at Winnipeg on 29 May 2025.
“First Presbyterian Church,” Winnipeg Tribune, 6 April 1963, page 8.
1974 Voter List [209 Oxford Street], Ancestry.
Obituary [William Malyska], Winnipeg Free Press, 7 June 1978, page 67.
Deloraine Scans A Century: A History of Deloraine and District, 1880-1980 [Malyska family] by Deloraine History Book Committee, 1980, page 558.
Obituary [Shirley O'Fallon Malyska], Winnipeg Free Press, 20 October 2007.
Obituary [Marni Miles], Winnipeg Free Press, 19 May 2011.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 19 July 2025.
Obituary, Richard Rosin Funeral Director Ltd.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 19 July 2025
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