It is our belief, despite the official verdict that Walter, our beloved father, died from a broken heart. Born in County Durham his family moved to the South of England and settled in Langley (Berkshire). His early years were spent playing football with his mates, scrumping apples from the local orchards and of course going to school. Both his parents worked, so the role of mum was taken on by his elder sister, whom he adored. During the war and rations you’d find Wally and his brother queueing up with their coupons in hand. One look at Wally’s blue eyes would find an extra chocolate bar or a couple of biscuits being placed into the bag for him and his brother to share on their way home.
He was 15 years old when he met his future bride. It was love at first sight… destiny. What followed was a lifetime of adventures and family. Never a couple to walk away from a challenge, after Wally’s tenure with the REME corps was complete, in 1957 and at just 20 years old, he and Pat immigrated to Canada. After bouncing back and forth from Ontario to England (a few times), they finally settled with their growing family just outside of Vancouver BC.
They thrived in their community. Lifelong friendships were forged during league bowling, co-ed softball, golf, fishing, ice-hockey (of course) and friendly neighbourhood games of scrub. However, their small community was growing into a busy town, so they moved and in doing so they stumbled into their next adventure of buying and selling property. Eventually, this would lead them to Aldergrove where they would buy a farm. Wally continued to work while Pat studied husbandry and held the fort down. To their last days, this was one of the most enjoyable periods of their lives.
Not people to rest upon their laurels, there were a few more moves to come and in the early 1980’s they returned to the UK settling just outside of London with Wally working for the national airline. Their love of travel and adventure continued, only now it extended beyond the provincial or county borders, they had the world before them beckoning them to experience the different cultures, landscapes and yes, golf courses. After retiring, there was one final move in the works, they uprooted one last time and returned to Langley BC where they found a lovely little house, they had some wonderful neighbours and soon got to know many people in the area. Wally & Pat walked for miles every day, always ready to stop and chat with neighbours wanting to pass the time of day. Even when their health began to decline, they always made time for family and friends but mostly for each other. If they were out shopping, they’d be that elderly couple walking side by side holding hands. After learning that our mother had passed away, our father said. I’m not really sure now what I’m to do, we were one. Your mum and me, we were one.
Then after 70 years of being one, our father decided to slip away one morning, no doubt mum held her hand out and said, come on then, and with that, together, they went off on their next big adventure.
In lieu of flowers please consider donating to SAINTS Rescue the “Home for the Unadoptables” is a sanctuary for senior and special needs animals who have nowhere else to go. The donation information is located on their website saintsrescue.ca
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