Dorell Taylor

Born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, on September 14, 1934, to Ed and Leila Ridley, Dorell spent her early years in Prince Albert before the family moved to Regina during her teens. But throughout the many chapters and moves of her life, there was one place that remained constant: Waskesiu.

Dorell once described Waskesiu as her “second home”, her constant, her sanctuary and the place she went to re-vitalize. Her mother liked to say that Dorell had been going to Waskesiu every summer since before she was born, and for most of her nearly 92 years, that tradition continued.

Her family’s roots at Waskesiu stretched back to before Prince Albert National Park was officially established. The cottage became the keeper of generations of family history: photographs taken in the same places as children, grandchildren and eventually great-grandchildren grew; marks on the wall recording generations of heights; family gatherings, friendships, laughter and traditions repeated summer after summer.

Dorell understood instinctively that these ordinary moments were anything but ordinary. After experiencing the deaths of her brother, parents and others she loved, she wrote about returning to Waskesiu and keeping their memories alive through photographs and stories.

In time, she would do exactly that for an entire community.

Dorell attended the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in 1955. She continued her studies at the University of Manitoba, earning her Bachelor of Social Work in 1956. She returned to Saskatchewan and worked in child welfare for the Province from 1956 to 1964 before spending a number of years at home raising her two children.

After the family moved to Victoria, British Columbia, Dorell eventually returned to school at Camosun College, completing a Business Office Training certificate and beginning a second career in government. She worked with the federal government at the Canada Immigration Centre before moving to the Province of British Columbia, where her work included Orders in Council at the Parliament Buildings and, finally, the Ministry of Transportation and Highways. She retired in 1995.

Retirement gave Dorell the opportunity to devote herself more fully to Waskesiu and to preserving the stories of the people who had made it such a special place.

She was instrumental in founding the Waskesiu Heritage Group, a precursor to today’s Waskesiu Heritage Museum, and volunteered with the Friends of the Park, the Waskesiu Heritage Museum and the Waskesiu Library.

Her greatest contribution was Waskesiu Memories, an extraordinary three-volume collection of stories and rare photographs chronicling life at Waskesiu from its beginnings in 1928. Dorell spent years tracking down former and current residents, collecting their memories, identifying photographs and connecting people across Saskatchewan, Canada and beyond.

What began as a project became a legacy.

Her work even led to the reconnection of crew members of HMCS Waskesiu, culminating in a reunion at the lake in 2008. In 2001, Parks Canada presented Dorell with a Certificate of Recognition for her dedication to the protection of Canada’s national heritage. In 2023, her contribution was further recognized when she received the Everett Baker Award for Saskatchewan Heritage.

Dorell was, at heart, a connector of people.

She was also a legendary correspondent. In fact, she traced her love of letter-writing back to summers at Waskesiu, when mail arriving at the little post office was an event and she wrote copiously in hopes that replies would arrive during her two months at the lake.

That habit lasted a lifetime.

If Dorell believed there was a cause worth championing, an injustice worth pointing out or simply a good idea someone needed to hear, she sat down and wrote a letter. Prime Ministers, government departments, corporations, Canada Post and countless others heard from Dorell over the years.

Just as importantly, so did the people she loved.

Long after email became the easier way to keep in touch, and Dorell embraced that too, there were still birthday cards, thank-you notes and handwritten messages. People remembered that Dorell remembered. She noticed occasions, acknowledged kindness and took the time to express her gratitude.

She also had an adventurous streak and an enduring optimism about contests. Dorell entered them enthusiastically, and won often enough to prove that perhaps entering really was half the battle. Among the prizes was a family trip to Disneyland in 1971.

She loved dogs, and two in particular held especially important places in her heart: Major and, later, Booster. Booster apparently set the standard impossibly high; after him, her instructions to the family were unequivocal: “Do not get me a dog.”

Dorell was predeceased by her parents, Ed and Leila Ridley; her brother, Arthur Ridley; her beloved son, C.R. Shay Taylor; her partner of more than 30 years, Derek McNamara, who died in 2017; her former husband, James Taylor, who died in 2022; and many treasured family members and dear friends.

She leaves behind her daughter, Carolyne; her grandson, Russell and his wife Tamar; three much-loved great-grandchildren; and an extraordinary circle of extended family, friends and members of the Waskesiu community whose lives intersected with hers over nearly 92 years.

The family extends heartfelt thanks to the staff at Sunset Lodge, who cared for Dorell with exceptional kindness during the final two and a half years of her life. There, too, Dorell remained Dorell. A staff member affectionately called her “Miss Congeniality” because she was always reaching out to others, saying hello, checking on people and making sure everyone around her was looked after.

It was, in many ways, simply how she had lived her whole life.

Dorell collected people’s stories because she believed they mattered. She wrote letters because she believed one voice could matter. She sent cards because she believed people should know they were remembered. She built community because she understood that our connections to one another are worth tending.

And perhaps it is fitting that the woman who devoted so much of her life to preserving other people’s memories left behind so many of her own.

For Dorell, Waskesiu was the place where generations came together, where old friendships resumed as though no time had passed, and where those who were gone remained present through photographs and stories.

Her stories remain. And because of Dorell, so do the stories of hundreds of others.

In keeping with Dorell’s lifelong commitment to education, community and the preservation of Waskesiu’s stories, the family invites those wishing to honour her memory to make a donation, in lieu of flowers, to the Dorell Taylor Memorial Scholarship at Camosun College or to the Waskesiu Foundation, specifying the Museum when making your donation.

A Celebration of Life will be held at First Memorial Funeral Services, 4725 Falaise Drive, Victoria, BC V8Y1B4, CA, on September 14, 2026, from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm.

Waskesiu Heritage Museum: https://waskesiuheritagemuseum.org/home

Waskesiu Memories: https://waskesiumemories.com/

Everett Baker Award for Saskatchewan Heritage:https://www.skhistory.ca/baker-award-2023-dorell-taylor