BRIAN WILSON

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BRIAN WILSON December 14, 1932 - May 9, 2010 Brian gently left this life at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 9, 2010, in the arms of his wife, Valerie, and surrounded by his son and daughters, Mark, Angela and Louise, eldest grandson, Justin, and son-in-law, Alberto. Beloved husband to Valerie for 52 years, admired father to Mark (Maryse), Angela (Matt), and Louise (Alberto), treasured grandfather to Justin, Laurence, Julian, Aidan, Jordi and Rowan; brother to Joan (Colin) and Terry (Jayne) in England. The family is bereft but at peace, knowing that Brian's suffering is over, and have no doubt that he has entered into the Kingdom of God. To his family, he was a confidante; respectful, supportive, encouraging, motivating and inspirational. He was an honest man-of-his-word, principled, non-judgemental and objective. He was full of courage and followed his convictions. Brian's passing leaves a great void in all our lives and he will be dearly missed by many others whose lives he touched. He was struck by leukaemia in February, 2003, and barely survived but miraculously did. He returned to his home in Thompson seven months later, classed as palliative with possibly three to six months to live. He confounded many by his inner strength and faith, returning to his civic duties as City Councillor in November that year, picked up the threads and continued on. He served on several City committees and was Deputy Mayor twice during his first term of office. A people-person', Brian enjoyed his time on the Race Relations Committee and Public Safety Committee where he worked to ensure that all walkways had adequate lighting. Latterly, he saw his desire met for the City of Thompson to form a much-needed housing authority. His quiet courage and perseverance gave hope to others struggling with cancer. His last outing was to participate in the Canadian Cancer Society Relay for Life on April 23. Although not strong, he insisted in attending as it was important to him to give hope to others and show that life carries on. Brian was born in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England, where he lived until coming to Canada in 1966 in order to teach in Saskatchewan where there was a teacher shortage. He had attended Acklam Hall Grammar School and then worked in accounting for a couple of years at ICI (Imperial Chemical Industries Limited) before being enlisted to do National Service in the RAF (Royal Air Force) from 1951 to 1953. He returned to ICI as a cost accountant until 1963 when he attended Newcastle University for teacher training, graduating with a major in Divinity and a minor in Social Studies. This qualified him to teach Religious Education, which was commonplace in England at the time. He and Valerie knew one another through attending the same congregation where they had a lot of mutual friends. They married in 1958 and had three children: Mark, Angela and Louise. In 1966, they emigrated to Canada (for two years) for an adventure. What an adventure it's been! The family was located in White Fox for three years where Brian taught in both the elementary and high schools. Unfortunately, his three-year teacher training in England was not recognized and he was assessed as having only two credits. The family had no prospects of improving financially so Brian decided to return to university to meet the necessary requirements. He worked hard at the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, receiving B.Ed., M.Ed. within two years, by which time the province was not hiring degreed teachers. Being out of work for six months, Brian answered an ad for an elementary principal position in Thompson and, as they say, the rest is history. Brian was hired as a principal but was reassigned to vice principal when the incumbent principal decided to stay. He was Vice Principal of Juniper School from 1972 to 1974; served as Principal from 1974 to 1978. He was appointed Assistant Superintendent in 1978 and, subsequently, Superintendent of Schools in 1981. He retired in 1998. Although he achieved much, Brian was a humble man and, if ever asked what he did for a living, would only respond that he was in Education'. Brian was kind and gentle; those who worked with him said he was always fair. He respected all people and treated them as equals. Every member of his staff, whether teaching, clerical or custodial, was important to him. He bore his affliction with grace, never complaining and left this world without complaint. His journey this past seven years has been aided by family doctors Dr. Joyce Sanchez and Dr. Fernando Martinez; oncologists Dr. Bow and Dr. Morel Rubinger; RCA Oksana Maslyak and the nursing staff of GD6 who guided him through the perils of the first three months; nurse Margaret Paradis in Chemo at Thompson General Hospital; primary care nurse and Home Care case coordinator Karen Cockerill; nurses Keri Gallagher and Shannon Sommerfeld; occupational therapist Cheri Murie; Home Care attendant Tammy Brophy. Brian received great care from all and the family is truly grateful. He was much loved by his family and friends who will miss his wisdom and knowledge but will never forget him. Funeral services were held on Thursday, May 13; 4:00 p.m. at St. John's United Church. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations to the Burntwood Regional Health Authority Community Cancer Program; CancerCare Manitoba; A Port in a Storm; or St. John's United Church, Thompson, Manitoba.

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As published in Winnipeg Free Press on May 15, 2010