HALLEY JAMES RICHARDSON

Adjust Text Size: A+ A-

HALLEY JAMES RICHARDSON September 28, 1934 - April 6, 2015 Halley James Richardson passed away peacefully on April 6, 2015, at age 80, at Marjorie Willoughby Hospice House in Kamloops, BC. His son Geoffrey, and wife Sandy were by his side. Hal died from an occupational disease called mesothelioma which is caused by exposure to asbestos. Hal was born September 28, 1934 in Clearwater, Manitoba to William and Mary (Douglas). He was predeceased by his brothers and sister, Thomas, Douglas, and Eleanor. He was also predeceased by his first wife Grace (Teichroeb), and daughter Heidi. Hal is survived by his wife Sandy Devick (Gray), son Geoffrey Richardson (Diane), brother William, grandchildren Travis (Char), Megan (Peter), and Nicole as well as Sandy's children William (Donnelle), Lindsay (Aaron) and their children. Also left to mourn are Hal's best friend Don Bailey, and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins. Throughout his lifetime Hal worked at a variety of jobs - grocery deliverer, dairy worker, surveyor, CN railroad maintenance worker, taxi driver, plasterer, brick layer for 10 years and Control Room Operator at Inland Cement in Winnipeg from 1965 to 1969. In 1969 Hal and family moved to Kamloops where he started his 26 year career at Canada Lafarge Cement. For the majority of that time he was the Production Supervisor. He loved this job and the people he worked with. His favourite saying was "Cement is my life"! Hal met Grace in 1958 and it was love at first sight. They were married on November 1958. They had a wonderful 51 years of marriage. Hal was lucky enough to find love again with Sandy and they were married May 2013. Hal was a very giving, caring man and he demonstrated this by his many volunteer roles he took upon himself. He volunteered for Kamloops Minor Hockey as a coach and games scheduler. He supported his community by volunteering with Crime Stoppers and Restorative Justice. He had a passion for fun and activity and took the lead to organize many events for his friends and associations. There were bus trips to Reno, poker parties, and baseball tournaments. Hal was youthful and he thoroughly enjoyed life. He played racquetball, tennis, hiked, biked and even learned to cross country ski at age 77. He got great pleasure playing cards, especially Texas Hold'em. He loved to travel and Nevada was a favourite destination. He was very charitable and made donations to almost every request, especially pocket change to people on the street. His most powerful strength was his love for his family and he did everything he could to support them. A celebration of Hal's life will be held on Sunday, May 24 at 1:00 p.m. at the Colombo Lodge. Memorial donations may be made in Hal's name to Kamloops Hospice, 72 Whiteshield Cres., Kamloops, BC V2E 2S9 or the Canadian Mental Health Association, 857 Seymour St., Kamloops, BC V2C 2H6. Never once did Hal ever complain about his illness or situation and he was especially appreciative of the tender care and compassion given to him from the nurses and doctors at the Kamloops Cancer Clinic, We Care staff, Dr. Chip Bantock, Barry Ennis and Hospice Staff. He kept his great sense of humour until the end. "The most important thing in life is love. You must love and be loved."

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Apr 25, 2015