Art passed away surrounded by his loving family. He will be deeply missed by his wife of 63 years, Gill, his daughters, Megan, Dena, Andrea (Brent) and his 5 grandchildren, Emily, Anna, Tai, Stewart and Shaina.
Art was born in St Johns, Quebec and grew up in Toronto. In 1942, at age 18, he joined the RAF and was trained as a pilot, flying the Lancaster Bomber in WWII. One of his proudest moments was during the spring of 1945, when he flew as part of “Operation Manna,” dropping food parcels to relieve famine in German-occupied Holland.After the war, Art attended UBC, and graduated from the School of Architecture. Summer jobs included working on the CPR rail line dishing out pie and ice cream and traveling up and down the west coast of Vancouver Island, working as a stevedore on the 71m supply and passenger vessel, the Princess Maquinna.
After he graduated, he met the love of his life, Gill. They married in 1954 and settled down in West Vancouver, where they raised their three daughters. Art designed their homes, the first in Glenmore and the second at Barnham Place, backing onto the “bunny trail”. Both homes are proudly standing today.
His first job as an architect was with H.H. Simmonds, where he worked on the Vogue and Studio Theatres on Granville Street. He then moved to the Vancouver School Board, and was involved with the design of Vancouver's first experimental “Open plan” school.
In 1969, Art joined the City of Vancouver as a Construction Coordinator and was soon promoted to Director of Civic Buildings. During his career with the City, Art helped preserve many important city landmarks, including the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, the Orpheum, and the old courthouse (now the VAG). He was instrumental in the preservation of the Roedde House and Barclay Heritage Square, the restoration of the Carnegie building to a Community Centre for the residents of the Downtown Eastside, the development of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, and the Vancouver Police Museum.
Art was devoted to his family and spent most of his free time with Gill and the girls. He took them tobogganing and taught them to ski on Mount Seymour. He taught the girls to swim during their memorable trips to Vaseaux Lake. He helped his daughters with their homework and taught them all to drive. He loved to spend an evening playing card games, crib, ping pong, badminton and croquet.
Art also loved to garden, barbecue, make wine with his good friend John, and play golf with Bob Ayre and their buddies. He was a long-time member of the YMCA and stayed healthy with the Fit Fellas.
“Ba”, “Papa” “Grandad” held a special place in the hearts of his grandchildren. He was fun, patient and loving. Family get-togethers at the grandparents were always a treat and summers on Hornby Island were something to look forward to with excitement. There he would take them to the beach, fly kites, teach them poker and just enjoy each other’s company.
We will miss him dearly but treasure all our memories.
A very special thank you to the staff and caregivers at West Vancouver Care Centre, who treated Art with warmth and compassion while he was there. A private family gathering for Art will be held at a later date.
Condolences may be sent to Hollyburn Funeral Home
www.hollyburn funerals.com
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