James "Jim" Stephen Cathcart

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Jim after a valiant struggle with his health these past few months. Jim is survived by his loving wife of 50 years Virginia (Ginny) Cathcart; three daughters Debra Cathcart, Wendy Cathcart (Partner Doug Buckle), Lori Lourens (Husband Peter) and Lori’s children Justin Cathcart (Wife Brittany), Mitchell Lourens and Kayla Lourens (Fiancé Elliott Allard.) Jim & Ginny’s 17-year-old Jack Russell Terrier, Annie, decided to join Jim in his perfect garden in the sky just six days after he passed.

Jim was born in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia. He loved our little cottage and English garden in Edgemont Village. Jim and Ginny shared many wonderful memories with his daughters and grandchildren at this home.

Jim was a pharmaceutical representative for Oral-B Company when he met Ginny, a Dental Hygienist, in Edmonton. It was love at first sight. He did not get the “brush off” as the story goes. Later he became an Office Furniture Consultant and Project Manager. He owned his own businesses, Cathcart Executive Offices (CEO) in Alberta and Hightouch Marketing in Vancouver until he retired twenty years ago. He loved working with clients to design, manage and create beautiful office interiors with them.

But it was in retirement that Jim found his true passions in life. Jim really enjoyed this passage where he could pursue his love for managing the home, researching his genealogy, painting, writing, cooking, gardening, renovating and walking little Annie in the Village.

As a bachelor, Jim traveled throughout Europe and North Africa and spent a “mandatory” period writing poetry on a Greek island. Another year was spent running in the shadows of Hemingway’s “bull” until he found his own Spanish Sun. His last frontier was the “True North strong and free”, and the Arctic misadventure where he found the spirit and soul of Canada. Jim has written many wonderful poems about his time in the Arctic.

One of Jim’s “fifteen minutes of fame” came when his poem “The Moon” was chosen by the New York Quarterly (1978 No 22) for its “Tribute to Allen Ginsberg.” Jim’s daughter Wendy recently published his books on Amazon.ca as a Christmas gift. They are truly his legacy. See Jim’s books at www.jamesstephencathcart.com

The family thanks all the caring and skilled Health Professionals at Lionsgate Hospital and the Vancouver Coastal Home Support Workers who kept him comfortable and safe at home.

The final interment will take place at a private ceremony at the North Vancouver Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family is grateful for donations to Harvest Project and/or the BCSPCA.

There will be a celebration of Jim’s amazing life at First Memorial Funeral Home and Boal Chapel in North Vancouver on March 22nd, 2024, at 2pm. For those who cannot attend the service will be streamed through the following link.

https://funeraweb.tv/en/diffusions/d579333e-dd4b-42ea-ade0-e727d0b64c28.