Rita Louise (Diedrichsen) Woods

Rita Louise (Diedrichsen) Woods, 94, peacefully on Monday August 10th, 2026 at Comox Valley Seniors Village.

Rita is predeceased by her parents Hans Diedrichsen (born Sept 21,1905 in Akerby Germany) and Melanie Charlotte Gertrude (Bouiller) Diedrichsen (born Feb 29,1908 in Ammendorf Halle Germany), husband of 69 years William (Bill) Johnson Woods, older brother Walter Diedrichsen, brothers in-law Eric (Linda) Westwood and Dan (Irene) Creally.

Rita is survived by sisters Linda and Irene, and brothers Wayne (Sandy) Diedrichsen and Fred (Mary) Diedrichsen, and sister in law Carol Diedrichsen, sons Ken (Donna) and Gary (Kelly) Woods, five grandkids Alison (Jake), Kelly (Corwin), Robert (Shannon) and their mother Judy, Lauren, Jonathan (Amy), and ten great grandchildren, Addison, Avery, Alivia, Landon, Calvin, Mason, Dylan, Grayson, Josephine, and Walter.

Rita was born on June 8th, 1932, in the Diedrichsen family homestead located in the Northeast ¼ Section 28-21-16 West, McCreary Manitoba. No hospital insight for mother and child. Rita’s father Hans and mother Melanie performed the necessary task of doctor and nurse.

This pioneering family worked and travelled through the Great Depression ending up in north Kamloops. In May 1939 the family moved to the remote and sparsely populated Dunster in the Robson Valley.

Rita said “Dunster would be our home for the next seven years and would ultimately implant and condition life lasting ethics and patterns which would be with us forever”.

When a high school was needed for Walter and Rita the family moved to Nanaimo in 1946. After a one room school in Dunster, John Shaw High School was chaos. Rita had never seen so many kids and had never seen or rode in a school bus. Many changes to life in Nanaimo.

Rita and Bill Woods dated for a while and married on September 8, 1951. They moved to Vancouver’s west end. Rita worked for a customs broker preparing entry forms for trainloads of pipe for the Transmountain Pipeline. In 1953 they built a house at 250 West 17th North Vancouver. Every paycheck bought a few more supplies until the home was completed.

Ken arrived on March 26, 1954 and Gary followed on March 6, 1956. In May 1957 the family Woods moved to Courtenay and built the Collingwood Motel at 17th and Cliffe Ave. Rita supplied some flowers to Mrs. Kirk and Ken and Gary help plant and water the “Mile of Flowers”.

Traveling to Hans’ and Melanie’s farmhouse in Nanaimo for the traditional Diedrichsen family Christmas Eve celebration created wonderful memories. The summer bloom of many cherry and plum trees could not be missed.

Rita was at Bill's side for all business ventures. The Collingwood Motel, Woods Trucking, Woods Ready Mix, and Hyland Precast and Ready Mix. As soon as a driver’s license was acquired at 16 yrs (or 15 yrs without) Ken and Gary were also a big part of the ventures.

Rita left Hyland Precast to pursue an artist’s career in acrylic painting. Rita finished two years at North Island College painting and drawing and Art History (1980’s), then joined Elenor Williams group in 1990, now called “The Brushworks”. Rita became an accomplished painter with over 120 completed pieces. Rita’s commissioned paintings are in Prince George, Revelstoke, Mill Bay, Ladysmith, Comox, Courtenay, and Seattle. Rita had a one person art show at the Lemon Tree gallery in 1998.

Bill and Rita traveled to Germany, Hawaii, Japan, and motor homed to California for several years. Rita accompanied Bill on many fishing trips and boat tours throughout the Strait of Georgia and beyond.

Rita was dedicated to family and took great pleasure in the expanding family of grandkids and great grandkids. Rita loved her birthday parties, tea party with granddaughters, and any visits from the grandkids and great grandkids.

The Woods Family would like to acknowledge with deep appreciation Dr.Sara Sandwith, nurses and care aides of Comox Valley Seniors Village, for their compassionate care of Rita over the last five years.

A tribute to our mother, Grandma, and Great Grandma, the family does our best to honour Rita by being hardworking, honest, respectful, family loving people. The beautiful way Rita has lived her life. God bless Rita.