William Eugene Hook

Frogman, Bill Hook, passed away peacefully at home on June 22, 2021. His partner and soul mate Barbara Faulkner, daughter Denise Hook, grandchildren Mykah Stonley, Zach Stonley (and Amanda Sleeman) and great grandchildren Zoey and Kai Stonley, his brother Allan Hook (and Maureen), nephews Dell (and Sharie), Rick and Gary Hook and niece Dorothy Condon, and Barbara’s family Lindy and Tim England, their daughters Elizabeth England, and Catherine Duncan (and Spencer) and many more family and friends will remember his life of adventures and travel, and his wonderful sense of humour.

Bill was a machinist at Nicholson Murdie Machines of Victoria for 47 years. During this time he travelled to many different countries such as New Zealand, Australia, and Kenya. One of the highlights of his life was climbing Mt. Kilamanjaro in Kenya while on a work mission there. He photographed his days in Kenya and brought home many stories of living with the Kung Bushmen and other people of Kenya. At some point in Africa he attempted to be an ostrich jockey. His certificate shows he was successful! He also traveled throughout British Columbia to almost every small town that had a mill and took holidays in Tahiti (his all-time favourite place apparently), Mexico and Hawaii.  One of his favourite summertime travels was to Hornby Island Heron Rocks Co-op campground. He was one of the founding members and camped every year for almost 50 years. He will be remembered there for his pink dingy and pink speedo!

Thoughts from Barbara

I met Bill when I joined the Cross Canada Tour Society in 1994. He was usually right behind me on his bike. He would tell me I was “pedalling my arse” – his naughty sense of humour. We had many adventures during the years we spent together. In our early years we ventured forth on many cycling trips throughout North America, Cuba, South Africa, Mexico, and the Big Island of Hawaii. When long cycling trips became too arduous, we chose to go on all-inclusive vacations in Mexico – our favourite being Huatulco, south of Acapulco. Here we were regulars and were greeted by the staff of the resort as if we were long lost friends. Bill was amazing in the ocean; he taught me many things and gave me lots of confidence that allowed me to comfortably snorkel in deep water, with him by my side. We witnessed many amazing sights, including a group of four stingrays, baby octopuses, and hundreds of puffer fish hanging in the water like helicopters. Bill was always there for me every day of our lives together. He took great care of me. Bill had a very peaceful death, joking right to the end with the doctor and nurse. He will always be with me.

 Some thoughts from his granddaughter, Mykah:

There are a lot of people that make a difference in our lives as we grow from small wonder eyed children into hopefully respectable adults: people that influence our lives irrevocably. My grandfather was one of those people.

My grandpa Hook, or rather as he told us kids, Captain Hook, lived a life of vast, exciting tales with brass swords and exotic treasures. He climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, wrestled octopus and won, earned his ostrich jockey certificate (yes he rode an ostrich), swam in the rich biodiverse seas of Tahiti, New Zealand, BC, and many more. A well-known scuba diver in Victoria, nicknamed the frog man for his adept ability to hold his breath for what seemed like forever. His lungs as a senior were 30% larger than average capacity due to years of practice skin diving. He cycled all over and would sometimes surprise us by cycling from Victoria to Qualicum to visit, napping on the porch while waiting. He windsurfed until he was 72.  He was unreal.

He lived a life rich with love, adventure, excitement, passion and humour (until the very end).

He showed up for me, every single time. He was the dad I never got growing up. We would go camping every summer, he’d spend so long under water looking for an octopus for me that I’d wait, heart racing, staring into the ocean and watching for his bubbles, even the dog would get worried he’d be down so long. He always laughed at my cheeky, witty remarks of a child beyond her years. He inspired my love of the ocean and all the life within it. He spoiled me with pancakes with chocolate ice cream and grenadine syrup. Paid for my university and was the first to always tell me how proud he was of my achievements. Made sure I had a reliable vehicle. He always kept me supplied with good diving fins and a mask, teaching me to pressurize my ears when we would spend hours snorkeling.

No words nor endless stories will sufficiently explain the quality of this man.

There are some people who impact you for life; and my grandfather, Bill Hook was one of those people.

Rest in peace and may the adventure never stop.

Thoughts from daughter, Denise

Dad (Bill) was a well-known Victoria scuba diver and octopus wrestler. I remember gazing at the lineup of numerous trophies for bringing up the biggest octopus; no octopus were hurt in these competitions. He and his brother Allan made quite a name for themselves in their early years due to their diving accomplishments. He was known as “Bill Hook the Frogman” and even won a prize for best decorated float in the Victoria Day Parade. He performed a variety of rescue missions for people, cars and log boom chains with his diving skills. It was he that inspired my love of the ocean. We would go fishing every weekend, body surfing at Mystic Beach, learning to snorkel and seeing so many different sea critters, “walking” on the thick bed of jellies in Brentwood Bay and driving the boat out off Sooke so that he could dive and catch crab, scallops and spear fish for dinner. Dad was also an amateur photographer and so we spent many days hiking through the forests on the West Coast examining mushrooms, flowers and bugs.

His plethora of euphemisms, laughter and humour will be the happy moments we remember that he shared right through to his last day.

Lives Cherished and Celebrated