It is with saddened hearts that the loved ones of Deane John William Wright announce his passing on Friday, March 15, 2019 on his 75^th birthday. He has joined his parents Lorraine and Douglas.

Deane leaves behind his loving wife Patricia, daughter Laura (Jim), sons Troy (Loretta), and Patrick; grandchildren Spencer, Brock, Brianna (Randy), Leslie (Juan), Tyson, Rafael and Shirlita. He will be dearly missed by his brother in-law Burt (Brenda) and sisters in-law Joy and Dorothy; nieces and nephews – Deana (Lyle), Crystal, Wanda (Rene), Garry (Kim), and Dustin (Lauren), and many great nieces and nephews. He will be forever remembered by numerous extended family and dear friends.

Deane worked for almost three decades for the City of Kamloops, of which he was quite proud.

We`ll miss you, “Garbage man from hell!“

He had many interests including antiques and history, beautiful fast cars, and gardening. He loved getting his hands dirty and creating something wonderful. But his greatest passion was his family. Whether it was large gatherings or intimate one-to-one conversations, he cherished every moment. He loved having the kids running around, teaching something new, and teasing anyone who would listen.

We will always remember his booming voice, “My way is the right way!“

big bear hugs, grumpy, gruff and gentle heart.

A family gathering will be held at a later date.

Dora Marie Deslaurier of Kamloops BC passed away on Sunday, March 17, 2019 at 88 years of age, surrounded by her family.

She was predeceased by her husband Albert of 42 years in 1991.   She is survived by her children, Robert Deslaurier of Kamloops BC, Bernard Deslaurier of Kamloops BC, Florence (Lorne) Bunn of Edmonton AB, Denise Beenen of Kamloops, BC, Richard (Connie) Deslaurier of Chilliwack BC, Carol (Rob) Graham of Edmonton Ab, and Doris (Tom) Brugger of Chilliwack; sister Rita Brad of Shellbrook Sk., sisters in-law Agnes Watier of Kamloops BC, Tina Watier of Prince Albert, SK and Jean DeCock of Lloydmiinster AB.

She was also predeceased by her daughter Mary Deslaurier, son Raymond Deslaurier, son Maurice Deslaurier, grandson Bradley Graham, grandson Ryan Deslaurier, son in-law Rick Beenen and daughter in-law Bev Deslaurier.

Dora was born in Leask, SK and loved to work outdoors on the farm with her Dad and Brothers.  After she left Leask she worked in Prince Albert, SK, then North Battleford, SK where she met Albert. Their journey together began in North Battleford where they started their family and had 4 of their 10 children.  Then their journey took them to Lloydminster where they had another 5 children, but that was not the end of their family.  Their final destination took them to Kamloops in 1965 where they had one more child for good luck.  Mom worked part time while raising her big brood, taking care of a large garden and a beautiful loving home. The family continued to grow with the addition of 15 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren. Read More & Leave Condolences »

It is with great sadness and heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Shirley Ann Hessel, 69, of Kamloops.  Shirley passed away suddenly on Wednesday, February 20, 2019, at the Royal Inland Hospital, in Kamloops, after a short battle with cancer.

Shirley will always be remembered and loved by her family and friends.

Shirley is survived by her loving husband Roman, daughter Stacey A. Willis of Kamloops, BC, son Stewart J. Wunsch of Golden, BC, grandchildren Delray, Alexander, and Margaret-Jean, sisters & brothers: Barbara Petit (Mickey Pozdzik), JoAnn Coates, Mary (Brett) Hartshorne, Donna (Bob) Cave, Nancy McMillan (Gary Gardner), Ray Stewart, Charles (Kathleen) Stewart. Other Relatives; Mary Simpson (aunt), several nieces, nephews and cousins.

 She was predeceased by her father, Donald Stewart, her mother Elizabeth Shepherd, stepmom Lucienne Stewart, father & mother in-law,  Roman & Ursula Hessel, and her mother in-law O’Linda Hansen.

 Shirley was born in Victoria, BC to Donald & Elizabeth Stewart. Shirley lived in Victoria until 1954 when the family moved to Whitehorse, YT. Shirley moved to Calgary, AB where she worked at a local construction firm. She met her husband Roman in 1974 and they were married for 40 years. Shirley and Roman moved the family to Kamloops in 1981 to be closer to her mother. Shortly after moving to Kamloops, Shirley started working at a local tv/radio station and was still working for the same company when she passed away. Her greatest passion was her family, with her kids grown she became involved with her grandkids’ sports, she could be found keeping score at their baseball games and supplying snacks for the team.  She also spent her time attending school functions, volunteering on committees, baking, knitting, sewing costumes for all occasions and attending Sunday service at Lord of Life Lutheran Church.

 The MemorialService will be held on Saturday, April 6^th at 2:00 pm at Lord of Life Lutheran Church, 2481 Sunset Dr. with Reverend Andrew McDonald officiating.

 The family would like to express a very special thank you to Royal Inland Hospital Intensive Care Unit nursing team for all the care and compassion extended to the family.

 Memorial donations in memory of Shirley can be made to the Royal Inland Hospital Foundation or the BC Cancer Society.

Howard Baker,  October 22, 1923 – March 11, 2019

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of a great husband, dad, grandpa, great grandpa, brother, uncle and friend.

Howard was born in Wapella, Saskatchewan into a large loving family before moving to BC where Kamloops became his home.

After various odd jobs at age 18 he signed up for military duty, as many young men did at the time.  He served as a gunner in the 14th Field Division, Royal Canadian Army and was active from 1941 to 1945.  Upon his return he married his wife, Agnes, of 40 years.  They raised four children in Dallas.  Howard retired as a conductor for CP Rail.  He made many life-long friends there and saw them right up until his passing.

Howard had many hobbies, reading, gardening, camping, fishing, hunting, travelling and walking, to name a few.  He was very active in his retirement years:  walking along Rivers Trail at Pioneer Park and MacArthur Island.  He rarely missed a day of walking and in his 90’s he was still walking at TCC and using resistance machines.  He always said “you have to keep moving”.  Howard was an avid Toronto Blue Jays fan and rarely missed a game.

He had a gentle understanding way about him and made those close to him feel special.  Family was everything to him.  He regularly had visits with his kids, grandkids, great grandkids, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews and friends.  Howard had a great sense of humour and enjoyed a long life.  He never complained about anything and made the best of everything.  Dad always saw the good in people and was non-judgemental.  He was humble and thoughtful of others.

Predeceased by his wife Agnes in 1992 and siblings Eva, Francis, Hazel, Ethel, Margaret,  Ted and Tom and is survived by his siblings Bunny James, Pat Price and Bob Baker and numerous nieces and nephews; his children:  Louise Christie(Mark), Vickie VanJoff(Jeff), Brenda Edgeworth(Ron), Bruce Baker(Nancy);  grandchildren: Mandy (Grant), Tara (Brent), Ben (Penni), Cheryl (Jen), Jodi (Dan), Megan (David), Jennifer (Chris), Tyler and Maya; great grandchildren:  Cole, Emily, Noah, Travis, Linden, Lucas, Grace and Zack.

Service to be held at Kamloops Funeral Home, 285 Fortune Drive on Monday, March 18th at 11 am.  Flowers graciously declined.  Donations can be made to Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 52, Kamloops https://www.legionbcyukon.ca/content/give-legion-foundation

A special thanks to Dr. Frankie Mah, staff at Chartwell (Renaissance) and Trinity Palliative Care and Agnes Owens for their loving and compassionate care.

He will be missed by all who knew and loved him.  Goodbye Dad, you were such a gentle loving man with a great smile and a bit of stubbornness.  Mom and Dad, you will forever be  in our hearts

November 3, 1939- March 10 2019

Alan passed away peacefully in Kamloops on Sunday, March 10, 2019 at the age of 79.

He was born on November 3, 1939 in Vancouver BC. Alan retired from TRU (formerly Cariboo College) in 2006 where he was an Electronics Instructor since 1972. He received an Educator Emeritus in 2006. Many appreciative former students have kept in touch. Alan continued his connection with electronics students at Skills Canada until his stroke in 2015. With Skills, he travelled to every province and to Japan, Finland, England, Brazil and Germany. His other love was 3rd Kamloops Boy Scouts. He retired from that, again, at 75 years, when he had the stroke.

Alan is survived by his devoted wife of 23 years, Hazel, his two sons Joel (Heather) and Nathaniel (Amanda), and Joel’s children Dylan and Jacob. 23 years ago, his loving family grew to include three more children, Allan (Cherri), David (Leah) and Jenny. David‘s children are Ashley, Kaitlyn, Rylan and Alyjah. He was preceded in death by his parents Harry and Marjorie. Also, the death of his son Chad was heartbreaking.

The Celebration of Alan‘s life will take place at 2:00 PM on Saturday, March 16, 2019 in the Kamloops Funeral Home, 285 Fortune Dr.. Flowers gratefully declined but should friends so choose, memorial donations may be made to Scouts Canada or the Kamloops Brain Injury Association through the B.C. Interior Community Foundation.