William Patterson

William was born William William Osachoff on January 15th, 1915 in Brilliant, B.C. to William and Molly Osachoff. He was the eldest of five children. He married Frances Patterson in 1940 and changed his name to hers in 1951 to avoid the prejudice of the day against the Doukhobor community.

William wore many hats throughout his life, owning his own sawmill, working as a farmer, miner, truck driver and carpenter before building and operating almost single-handedly Alpine Fishing Resort on Elbow Lake, north of Kamloops, B.C. He retired in 1976 and moved with his family to Avola and later to Olalla, B.C. He moved to Keremeos in 2009, where he lived at Mountainview Manor until his recent death.

William is survived by his sisters Mrs. Tena (John) Koozen of Appledale, B.C., Mrs. Annie (Marten) Springford of Shore Acres, B.C., his daughter Mrs. Barbara (Rory) Weston of Coquitlam, B.C. and many nieces and nephews.

He was predeceased by his sister Mrs. Polly (Ken) Martin and his brother John Osachoff.

He was an avid fisherman and had a keen interest in the gold mining history of B.C. He was fiercely independent, enjoyed cooking and loved to tell jokes. He had a long and eventful life and will be dearly missed by his family. A memorial service will be held in the Slocan Valley in the summer and his ashes will be interred according to his wishes in the cemetery in Perry Siding with his mother.

Donations gratefully appreciated by the family to the BC Lung Association, 2675 Oak Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6H 2k2

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Dr. M. De Vries, Jaret and all of the wonderful, supportive staff in the acute care unit of the South Okanagan General Hospital; Dr. G. Partridge and staff at the Keremeos Diagnostic Centre; Tara Wabnegger and the nurses and staff at Keremeos Home Support; and Joan and Brian Thompson, staff and all his friends at the Mountainview Manor in Keremeos who have shown such kindness and care to my father William Patterson. Thank you as well to Poonam Lal at the Maple Leaf Motel Inn Towne in Oliver for all of her thoughtfulness and assistance. Your care and compassion have made his passing easier to bear. Thank you.

Barbara Weston and family