JEAN (GAYLE) BIDEN (WATT)

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JEAN (GAYLE) BIDEN
1933 - 2020

Jean "Gayle" Biden (nee Watt) of North Vancouver, BC, passed away peacefully Sunday, June 14, 2020, sharing her final hours with her family.
She touched many lives and is lovingly remembered by her husband of 63 years, Harry Biden; family of three children, Dawn (Brad) Martin of Lethbridge, AB, Dan (Alice) Biden of Calgary, AB, Doug (Vivian) Biden of North Vancouver, BC; two granddaughters, Kim (Nick) Friedman of Lacey, WA and Nicole (Jordan) Williams of Lethbridge, AB; four great-grandchildren, Colby, Amelia, Taya and Andrew; two brothers, John (Donna) Watt of Calgary, AB and Ted (Gladys) Watt of Regina, SK; two brothers-in-law, Len (Edna) Biden of Regina, SK, and Stan Biden of Regina, SK; sister-in-law Sharon Cameron of Edmonton, AB, as well as many nieces, nephews and friends.
Gayle was born on March 16, 1933, in Sintaluta, Saskatchewan, during the Great Depression to a Scottish immigrant father who was a First World War veteran and an English mother, Gayle grew up on a farm and lived in town during the winter months. For six years she attended the Qu'Appelle Diocesan School for Girls, an Anglican boarding school. Gayle was honoured to be the Head Girl during her 12th Grade.
Harry literally swept Gayle off her feet when they first met at a Sintaluta community dance and they married a year later in 1956.
Gayle and Harry lived in several cities during Harry's career with the CPR, including Regina, Moose Jaw, Saskatoon, Vancouver, Kamloops, North Vancouver, Winnipeg and finally back to North Vancouver where they stayed and eventually retired. They enjoyed travelling and cruising, but then discovered Mesa, Arizona and the warm winters and the warm friendships there.
Gayle volunteered whenever there was a need and she had many interests: playing bridge (especially with Aunt Maude and Uncle Jack), golfing, gardening, curling, playing tennis and shuffleboard, crafting, sewing, painting, composting, baking and decorating for Christmas. Gayle was a good cook and loved to entertain friends and family. Dawn, Dan and Doug will miss her turkey pie. Her granddaughters will always remember baking chocolate chip cookies with Nana.
Gayle was always up for learning and tackling something new. She built a floor to ceiling indoor brick fireplace and she built a rock wall. She was known as the "Puzzle Lady" at Amica Edgemont Village in North Vancouver where she and Harry lived the past three years.
Gayle was a kind, thoughtful, loving and caring wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt and friend. She will be greatly missed!
The wonderful staff at Amica Edgemont Village helped make Gayle's final years healthy and enriched ... with a special mention to Paz Dacanay who took Gayle under her wing and watched out for her.
Thank you very much to the kind doctors and nurses and staff at the Lions Gate Hospital in North Vancouver and at the Chinook Regional Hospital in Lethbridge.
A memorial service to celebrate Gayle's life is postponed until a time when there is less need for caution and social distancing. Gayle will be laid to rest in Wolseley, Saskatchewan.

Visit www.mbfunerals.com
to send a condolence.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jun 19, 2020