Rita Joan Dozlaw

When Rita Joan Dozlaw went to sleep on Friday, October 20, 2023 she went to be with her Lord. While we are profoundly saddened to see her go, we who are left behind can draw encouragement and comfort from the hope and the faith that she carried into her final moments. Having lived a rich, creative and inspiring life, she was eager to behold the very face of God, the divine author of all things.

Rita- or Joan as she was known to her immediate family growing up- was born in Baltimore, Maryland on April 23, 1940, the first of three daughters for her parents, John and Reta McLane.

In December of 1957, she met the love of her life, Jack Dozlaw in Cornwall ON, where they were married on May 2nd, 1959. They remained forever young and in love, even as a new son would show up in each new town to which the young family moved.. Darryl (’64- Edmonton, AB), Bryan (’68- Prince George, BC) and Leslie (’70- Kamloops, BC). It shouldn’t be that surprising, then, that they chose to just stay put in Kamloops from 1969 til the present.

Prior to having children, Rita had done secretarial work. In Kamloops, She began a small independent daycare which she ran out of the family home for a number of years before deciding to retool her secretarial skills at Caribou College in 1977. Her course had barely begun when an opportunity to do a practice job interview came up. She was hired at this interview to be an executive secretary with the Personnel Department of Afton Mines, where she was employed from 1977 until 1992 when she left to work with the 1993 Canada Games in Kamloops. Following this project, she and Jack moved to Indonesia to work for three years as Canadian expatriates until 1997. Following this, she and Jack participated in a number of missionary projects abroad. She and Jack deeply enjoyed coordinating travel and work.

Rita had many interests. She swam daily, played tennis, skied, and hiked. Over the years she was actively involved in her local faith-community- Free Methodist Centennial Chapel in Kamloops- attended theatre and concert performances, and even took on various challenges and projects. Having a fabulous ear for music, she decided to relearn piano. As an octogenarian, she also engaged with a writers’ guild, and even raised a spirited new puppy.

Although Rita tended to be the person that others were drawn to in a crowd, she was also a very private person. Her gregarious personality in public was balanced and recharged by time spent alone in quiet contemplation. In these recharging times, she was either swimming or writing. Rita wrote poetry, articles, memoirs and fiction. In addition to self-publishing many personal collections of her writings for that classic ‘friends and family’ audience, she also wrote for numerous papers, publications and anthologies. As a woman of deep faith, she wrote stories that tended to be inspirational, endeavouring to keep her ‘voice in unison with the music at the altar of [her] mental spirituality’. The written words were always decorative and well-chosen, leaving readers feeling warm and hopeful. This body of work is a rich creative legacy, left behind and affording rich comfort to those who love her and miss her now.

It seemed that she was eager to write down everyone’s story but wasn’t that interested in telling her own. Hopefully this quick and clearly insufficient summary serves as a reminder of the things we have all loved about Rita. She is deeply missed.

Rita Joan Dozlaw passed away in her sleep on October 20, 2023. She was predeceased by her parents, John and Reta McLane, her sister Bonnie Acciaio, and her step-brother Charles McLane. She is survived by her sister Judy Goegan. Rita’s loving husband Jack Dozlaw; her sons Darryl (Vonda), Bryan (Amanda Heff) and Les (Dayna Davoren); and her grandchildren Devon (Catarina Canales), Mark (Jasmine), Brandin, and Georgia Leonard; as well as her great-granddaughter Aubrey all survive her. The family wishes to offer deep thanks to the staff of Trinity/Overlander Residential Care for the heartfelt hospice care provided. In accordance with Rita’s wishes, there will be no public funeral service held. In lieu of flowers, please feel free to make a donation in Rita’s name to the Trinity Hospice at Overlander Extended Care.