Beverly Mae MacDonald

The reality of a life without our Mum feels impossible to accept… so much so that writing this announcement has proven to be a lengthy feat. It feels like the excruciating first step towards accepting this new reality.

A published obituary, two days after passing, is a strict tradition in the Reynolds, MacDonald and Chipperfield lines. At least, that’s what our research shows. And we broke it! But where do you start or end with a life so layered and a legacy so rich?

The fog is thick, our feet and hearts are heavy, but with Leonard Cohen playing in the background and the moon shining brightly, we take the first step in acknowledging and announcing the unimaginable.

It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our mother, our nana, our friend, Beverly Mae MacDonald (m.Chipperfield). Bev (71) passed away on December 24th, 2022 with family at her side, following a long and courageous battle with cancer.

Bev was born in Saskatoon, SK. She grew up in Aberdeen and Saskatoon attending Montgomery School and Mount Royal Collegiate. In 1971 Bev graduated from Saskatoon’s SIAST nursing program. She worked as a nurse in Boston, Vancouver then in Edmonton where she met Brian. In October of 1976 Bev and Brian married, and soon after built a beautiful home in Aberdeen where they resided for many years and raised their three children, Justin, Dylan and Katherine.

Like many women of her generation, Mum chose to say no to traditional roles and no to traditional rules, paving a new path that allowed more choice for all of us. It was a lot of work for her and all women who chose this path. And it was disruptive! In the home breaking cycles and patterns and rewiring everyone. Showing men how to be more present fathers, and sons that it’s okay to feel and express their emotions. Teaching daughters to be independent and exercise their choice - that they too could have it all, or not. All the while working full time inside and outside the home, often fighting a conflicting desire for the traditional household roles they witnessed growing up, and the simplicity they imagined came with that. Exhausting! Yet still, our mum found time to kneel down, make eye contact with us and say, ‘tell me more honey, let it all out’.

Mum courageously decided she had a choice, with every action in life, she had a choice.

This was the swirling, determined energy and example we grew up with; that we learned from and continue to benefit from. But within this determination to push back against traditions that held women back, mum was equally committed to carrying forward a different set of traditions. The ones that gave us a sense of belonging to a clan, the ones that honoured our elders, the ones that created and instilled lasting memories in us. Be it through the recipes that swept over our table, the presence of the MacDonald tartan on special occasions, the way a tomato was planted, harvested and preserved, the lovingly prepared picnics for our day trips to Peignton beach or pulling into the driveway of our family home shouting, ‘home is where the heart is!’.

Mum loved the community of Aberdeen, it was home and her heart was there…in the fall suppers, the street dances, the corn roasts, the hockey tournaments, the friendships and the children she watched grow. She taught lamaze classes, volunteered her time as a first responder, with the Aberdeen rink committee and in the town hall kitchen. Mum equally loved her summers in Waskesiu where she found joy in a quiet afternoon reading one of her favourite books on the deck, cookouts behind the cabin or at Birch Bay, a day trip to her favourite beach Paignton followed by an evening of singing folk songs with friends and family.

Mum was a dedicated and compassionate nurse. She worked for 30 years in the Neonatal ICU at Royal University Hospital, retiring in 2010. Caring for babies through their most vulnerable time was not easy; we can’t find the words to do this work justice. But it was evident her small healing hands and gentle touch were meant to be there. A life long caregiver both inside the hospital and out, Mum was known in Aberdeen as the town nurse; no knock on her door or call went unanswered. Caring for others was mum’s gift, her superpower.

In 2015, mum made her final move to Vancouver, where she worked with Justin’s mobile physiotherapy company and cared for her grandchildren. She really shone as a fun-loving Nana to her six grandkids. She talked with them about anything and everything. She encouraged them to feel all their feelings and always be themselves, to be kind, to have courage and faith. She made everyone feel important.

Mum proudly filled her walls with art created by her grandkids, daughter- in- law Kate, and dear friends Brian and Denis. Passionate about good food and cooking - she always welcomed you into her home and loved nothing more than to sit you down and offer you a home cooked meal. LOVE was always the main ingredient, ‘gotta add the love’, she would say. She made space for you and listened; oh how she loved a lengthy, soulful conversation. She’d break down politics and history, stock markets and news cycles. She was generous with her wisdom and stories, always flavoured with her humour and infectious laugh.

Mum’s life path wasn’t always smooth or well lit or without challenge. But she woke up everyday and she chose optimism, she chose gratitude and she chose to be resilient.

Mum is deeply spiritual and believes in soul contracts; that her soul chose our souls long before our time here together; that we will share many lifetimes together, continuing to teach each other many lessons. And so to you Beverly, our incredible mum, nana, auntie, friend, neighbour, sister and cousin we say - ‘see you later alligator’. Until then, you will be missed beyond words.

Bev is lovingly remembered by her children: Justin (Kate), Dylan (Danielle) and Katherine; their father Brian Chipperfield; her grandchildren: Euan, Isobel, Lily, Eve, Hayden and Kenzie; her favourite pups Phil and Fergus and many wonderful friends, nieces, nephews and cousins. Bev is survived by her sister Karen MacDonald and brother Rod MacDonald. Bev is now reunited with her parents Bette and Jack MacDonald; brother Scott MacDonald and favourite pups Bridges and Nena.

The family is eternally grateful to Trish Zarowny for the care and support she provided mum in her final days and to the BC Cancer Agency, Drs. Cheryl Ho, Neely Panton, Quinn Harris and the entire staff at St. Paul's Palliative Care for their incredible compassionate care. And to everyone near and far - thank you for the messages, cards, meals, flowers and gestures of support. Thank you for holding us in the moment.

A celebration of life will be planned at a later date. In lieu of flowers we invite you to make a donation in Bev’s honour to The Covenant House.