December 10, 1928 – November 26, 2015
Lore was born in her beloved home town of Rummelsburg, Pomerania, Germany on December 10, 1928, and spent, as she described it, “a happy, trouble-free childhood, filled with a love of nature, books, art, and especially a great love of music.” In post-war Berlin, Lore enjoyed the rich cultural life around her while employed in such diverse trades as carriage building, hand weaving and secretarial work. Her passion for learning, which she maintained throughout her life, found an outlet in night school, where she completed her interrupted education and where she met her future husband, Reinhold, whom she married in 1954. In 1956 she and Reinhold emigrated to Canada, finally settling in Kamloops. They raised four daughters, and Lore became a dedicated homemaker.Lore was a great music lover and music maker. As a girl she played the accordion and the recorder. Later in Berlin she studied piano and sang in choirs. In Kamloops she sang with the Bel Canto choir. In the late 1960s she took up the cello, joining the dedicated contingent of Kamloops musicians who commuted bi-weekly to the Okanagan to play with the Okanagan äSymphony Orchestra. She was a founding member of the Kamloops Symphony Orchestra, with which she played for many years.
Gardens and gardening were another of Lore’s life-long passions. Her work yielded a bountiful harvest, and her colourful flower garden was an oasis in the hot Kamloops summers. She modelled a regard for all living things, rescuing struggling insects from ponds, halting her work to grant safe passage to frogs, toads, earthworms and other small creatures, carefully removing strays from the house. A former member of the Kamloops Arts and Crafts Club as well as of the Weavers Guild, Lore built on the skills of her early years as a weaver’s apprentice through workshops, mentoring, and practice on her looms at home.
Lore passed away quietly on November 26th after living with Parkinson’s disease for many years. She was predeceased by her husband Reinhold and sister Ursula. She will be deeply missed by her family: daughters Sabine “Sandy” Day (Jim), Kathrine, Annette, Barbara (Steven Rogak); grandson Dean and granddaughters Thea and Pippa; her niece Bettina Wolfmueller; her lifelong friends Bruni Kulagina and Christa Thorau; her goddaughter Marianne Thorau; close friend Ted Smith, and many other family members and friends. Lore’s daughters would like to thank the staff at Overlander Extended Care Facility for their care and kindness. At Lore’s request, no funeral service will be held. In memory of Lore, please consider making a donation to the Kamloops Symphony Orchestra.
2 Tributes
A heartfelt message on the passing of Lore, a wonderful friend and neighbour for so many years on Renfrew Avenue. Lore was such a kind, caring and talented lady. Our sincere thoughts are with her wonderful daughters, and all other family and friends.
Marcia Madryga, Roxanne, Rod and Mark.
Lore left a life-long impression in me as a youngster growing up in Kamloops. My parents moved to the interior when I was six and settled into the same neighbourhood as the Dominiks. Because these new neighbours loved serious music, literature, and art, my parents were soon friends with them and I soon came under their influence, despite their unfamiliar European ways. Quite inadvertently, Lore taught me about dachshunds and kohlrabi when the former, beloved pets, chewed up the latter, beloved garden produce. Lore introduced me to pfeffernusse, lebkuchen, and marzipan, creating in me a lifelong taste for these treats and perhaps teaching me my first German words! She showed me how to sit still and let Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony touch you deeply. Lore showed me that friends and neighbours could be musicians, but it took a little work and dedication. Even more, I learned that art and artists were to be cherished. In my mind, Lore was do-it-yourself personified: one year, I was told, Lore made herself a rowboat so she could go fishing. Another year, Lore planted mulberry bushes so she could raise silkworms and obtain her own silk. She also taught me some eco-friendly household tips, like boiling laundry to make it extra clean. (Of course, at the time I found this practice highly amusing, but in hindsight I know she was right!) Above all, Lore showed me how kind she could be to a youngster who was sometimes a little shy. (Later, she showed the same kindness to my father by including him in her recorder group despite her much better skills. I know that my parents cherished Lore’s friendship immensely.) I will always remember her life-lessons and personal example, and especially her kindness to an impressionable child and adolescent.
My condolences to Annette, Barbara, Sabine, and Kathrine, their families, and friends of the Dominiks.