Annette Hagel

Annette Hagel passed away peacefully on July 16, 2025, after 84 extraordinary years. A woman of quiet strength, deep compassion, and unwavering faith, Annette built a beautiful life alongside her beloved husband, the late Bob Hagel, and their four children: Rosanne, Colleen, Michael, and Paul.

Annette was born Johanna-Ann McCoy on November 15, 1940, in Enniscorthy, County Wexford, Ireland. Raised at 11 Lower Church Street with her parents, Frank and Catherine (Kitty) McCoy, and her siblings Eugene, John, David, and Mary, Annette grew up in a home rich with love, faith, and curiosity, which she fed through her love of reading.

At 18, she moved to Dublin to train as a nurse at Dr. Steevens’ Hospital, attending lectures at the prestigious Royal College of Surgeons. She qualified as a registered nurse in 1961, later earning her midwifery certification from the Rotunda Hospital in 1964. Her career would become a lifelong vocation of care and service.

In 1965, drawn by a desire to serve abroad, Annette joined Wayfarers for Christ, an Irish Catholic NGO. From 1966 to 1968, she worked as a nurse and midwife in Nairobi and Zambia, providing maternity care in underserved communities.

Soon after returning to Ireland, she accepted a new post with the Canadian Catholic Diocese, bringing her to The Pas, Manitoba, to support First Nations communities. It was there she met Bob Hagel, a young dashing teacher from Alberta. Two months after they met, Bob proposed, and they married on May 9, 1970. Over the next five years, they welcomed four children to the world and began building a life rooted in faith, service, and love.

The Hagel’s eventually settled in Taber, Alberta, where Bob worked as a guidance counselor and teacher at St. Mary’s High School. Annette dedicated herself to raising their children and later co-founded the Taber Christian Store with Bob, serving the community for over a decade.

In 2010, after 40 years in Taber, Annette and Bob relocated to Courtenay, B.C., taking advantage of an opportunity to live beside her eldest Daughter, Rosanne, and her husband Peter Gerritsen. Sadly, Bob passed away just months later after they arrived in their new community.

With characteristic resilience, Annette embraced a new chapter of life on her own. She found deep purpose in local volunteer opportunities in Courtenay — whether regularly reading scripture during weekly mass at Christ the King Catholic parish, supporting church events, or helping out at the community kitchen serving the homeless. Her kindness was instinctive, her faith steadfast, and her presence deeply comforting.

Annette will be remembered as a devoted mother, wife, sister, aunt, and friend — a woman who lived with dignity, grace, and a profound sense of service to others. Her legacy lives on in the lives she touched and the values she embodied.

She is lovingly remembered by her children and their partners: Rosanne and Peter Gerritsen of Courtenay, B.C., and their children Pierce and Ava; Colleen Hagel and Sean French of Calgary, Alberta, and their children Kennedy and Ethan; Mike Hagel and Veronica Rogers and their kids Chris and Sam and her daughter Saige; and Paul Hagel and Paula King and their children Cooper and Catherine. She is also survived by her siblings John and Maeve McCoy and Mary and Jan Van der Stel of Ireland, as well as many cherished nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

Let us celebrate the remarkable life of Annette Hagel — a woman who gave so much, asked for little, and whose legacy of love and service endures.

A funeral service for Annette will be held Tuesday, July 22, 2025, from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM at Christ The King Catholic Church, located at 1599 Tunner Dr, Courtenay, BC V9N 8W5.