Article content As the funeral procession pulled out of St. Mark’s Anglican Church on Saturday, the sound of a hundred hockey sticks tapping the sidewalk filled the air. It was a final tribute to Walter Gretzky, the world’s most famous hockey dad, Lord Mayor of Brantford, community booster extraordinaire, and all-round great guy, who died on Thursday evening at the age of 82. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. Try refreshing your browser. Community pays tribute to Walter Gretzky, man with a 'heart of gold' Back to video “He was a beloved national treasure,” said Rev. Tim Dobbin, who conducted the service. “Walter, in many ways, belonged to us all.”