JOHN ROBERT BIBERDORF,

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JOHN ROBERT BIBERDORF, (PhD) On April 20, 2012, John R. Biberdorf passed away at his home in Mesa, Arizona of pancreatic cancer. Although his body succumbed, his spirit never wavered. He was born in 1945 to John and Margaret Biberdorf in Winnipeg, Manitoba and was the youngest of four siblings. John received his primary and secondary education in St. James, making many life-long friendships during this time. He also attended the University of Manitoba earning a BA, a MA and a PhD in clinical psychology. The bulk of John's professional career was spent in the employment of the Province of Manitoba, beginning in the Eastman district in 1974. John and his family lived in the Steinbach area until 1987. They then moved back to Winnipeg where he worked with Manitoba Health, earning the respect and friendship of many of his colleagues. Toward the end of his career, John worked as a legislative analyst and actively participated in major amendments to the Mental Health Act in 2000. During this time period, John also maintained an office at the Selkirk Mental Health Centre where he found the direct patient contact greatly fulfilling both professionally and personally. After retiring with his wife Edie to Arizona in 2001, John worked periodically for Pearson Educational Measurement in Phoenix, AZ. As always, he quickly made his mark and was given the opportunity to participate in numerous projects, often as supervisor. His irreverent sense of humour and his relaxed, but efficient style of management made him a favourite with many of his colleagues. Although John was very competent in his professional life, he was also a complex man of many dimensions. He loved to work outdoors, landscaping and planting in his various homes. John was particularly fond of planting trees and left many in each of these locations to commemorate his stay there. Fruit trees were his particular favourite and in his final residence in Arizona, he was able to plant his own citrus orchard of orange, grapefruit and lemon trees. Harvesting his bounty each year brought him great satisfaction. He was also a natural handyman and was fearless in tackling home renovations of daunting size and scope. He completely finished whole levels in several of his homes, as well as designing and building a sunroom onto his Winnipeg home. Another particular joy of John's was driving around in sunny Arizona in his little Del Sol with the convertible top off. With the sun on his face and the wind in his hair, he was completely content. Collecting pipes from all over the world was another passion of John's. He amassed a large collection along with the knowledge and expertise to manage this interest. He often bought and sold pipes online making acquaintances worldwide. And John loved Elvis and his music. He knew every song that Elvis ever recorded and loved to sing along with great enthusiasm. Hearing Elvis music anywhere unfailingly brought John to mind to his family and friends and it always will. But John's family was his heart. John and his wife Edie (Raths) were married for 44 years and had two children, Rebecca (Rob) Brunton of Mesa, AZ and Sarah (Skye Surbey) Turner of Winnipeg, MB. He was a hands-on father before it was in vogue and was a constant presence in his children's lives. It was he who showed them how to tie their shoes, took them tobogganing, taught them to ride their bikes, drive a car, and gave advice on pretty much everything. He was always, without hesitation, there for them. His pride in his girls was often unspoken but, nonetheless, very great as was his fiercely protective love. In 2001, John became a grandparent to his first grandchild, Robert John. If John's parental love was great, then his love of his grandchildren was without limits. He took to the role of Papa with undiminished delight. The arrival of his last three grandchildren, Kayla Grace (Arizona), Chloe Eva, (Arizona) and Zoe-Ann (Winnipeg) brought him even more joy, endless pride and unrestrained love. John was large, not only in stature, but in spirit. He was born a loveable, loving, but very mischievous child - character traits that remained evident throughout his lifetime. Thus his life was one of many adventures and a few misadventures. He was well-known for his limitless energy and boisterous sense of humour. The word moderation never found its way into his vocabulary. He was an inexplicable combination of diverse character traits that drew people to him. But it was his innate strength of character that kept them close. John faced his fight with cancer with great courage and demonstrated to all, once again, what is truly important in life. In addition to John's wife, children and grandchildren, he is survived by his sister Carol (Barry) Duncan of Winnipeg, MB, his sister Jeanette (Leo) Treichel of Lillouet, BC, and his brother Ken (Sharon) Biberdorf of Winnipeg, MB. John also leaves many extended family members and friends who cherish his memory. A succinct but apt description of John would be: He was a good man but a great Papa . Condolences may be sent to edie14@hotmail.com If desired, donations may be made in John's memory to any cancer research foundation.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Apr 28, 2012