SECRET: Lance Wendell , aged 83, passed away peacefully on Dec 1 2021 in Kelowna BC, surrounded by his family. He was born on Nov 19 1938 in Hudson Bay Saskatchewan and grew up in Fort Nelson before moving to Vancouver where he met his wife of 56 years, Pat. They joined Dance Club at UBC where they did ballroom dancing and met friends to last a lifetime. They settled in Richmond where they were married and their 2 children were born and grew up.
Lance started his lengthy IT career at Pacific Press as a systems technologist. From there he moved to the Edmonton Journal, IBM and Agrium. He often said he was a witness to the evolution of computers from a room full of banks of computers, to having more computing power in the palm of his hand. Education was very important to him and he eventually went back to school with Athabasca University and earned an Advanced Graduate Diploma in Management. Most recently he completed a four-year Education for Ministry program through the University of the South.
Lance enjoyed sailing around the Gulf Islands on his boat “Tamara” with family and friends. He loved to regale people with stories of eating oysters in Desolation Sound, and picking up anchor in a harbour and leaving under sail, earning him admiring looks from other boaters. When he wasn’t camping or reading, he was making and drinking his own wine (the best being an excellent “Port Gamay” say his Summerland friends).
Service and volunteering was an important part of Lance’s life. He could often be found doing odd jobs around the church or condo, doing presentations, and rallying others to give a helping hand. He was an elder in the Presbyterian Church, was on the board of the Okanagan Mission Senior’s Center, and was passionate about getting refugees settled as part of the Central Okanagan Refugee Committee. Lance willingly gave a helping hand to anyone who needed it, not for the recognition, but because it was the right thing to do. He loved social dinners, at home, or pot luck. An enjoyable evening for him would include playing card & board games, having a meal, good conversations and bad puns.
He began playing percussion when the conductor of the Delta Concert Band was missing a drummer and asked an audience if anyone out there could hit a drum and keep an even beat. Lance volunteered and did such a good job that the conductor told him to come to the next band practice and he’d teach him percussion. Lance went on to play in the Edmonton Community Orchestra, Kelowna city band, and most recently as part of a small group called Memory Lane that played at senior’s residences and hospitals, bringing smiles and tapping feet wherever they went.
His booming laugh and seemingly endless advice will be missed by all who knew him. Lance is survived by his wife Patricia (Dawson), brother Randy and his wife Myrna, daughter Cheryl and her husband Jay, son Lyle and his wife Kelly, and grandchildren Laurie and Connor. He is predeceased by his parents Laurie (aka Ernie) and Athelene, and his brother Ronald.
A Memorial Service to celebrate the life of Lance Secret will be held at Mountainview Church in Kelowna on Saturday Dec 11 at 1 pm. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the BC Cancer Foundation. Condolences maybe sent to the family by visiting www.firstmemorialfuneralkelowna.com.
Arrangements entrusted with First Memorial Funeral Services, Kelowna, BC 250-762-2299
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