Sharon Arilyn Whittla

Born in Duncan, BC, Sharon was the fourth of five children, the only daughter for Vera and Lloyd Lundquist. She had a happy childhood, growing up in Youbou and the surrounding communities on Lake Cowichan. As a teenager, she moved with her brothers and parents to Victoria, where she attended Oak Bay High School and was a successful basketball player and competitive swimmer. While in high school, Sharon entered and won a sewing competition sponsored by Eaton’s, designing and sewing her outfit from scratch.

She married Edwin (Ned) Whittla and started her family, moving from Victoria to Vancouver, to Saskatoon. After their divorce, Sharon moved her family back to Victoria in 1974. She met Anthony (Tony) Keeler in Duncan in 1980, and they lived in Toronto for 8 years, both returning to Victoria to be closer to her family.

Sharon was active in the community, serving in many roles and executive positions with different branches of the Royal Canadian Legion in Toronto and Victoria. She was a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles in Victoria, and was an enthusiastic curler in Saskatoon, Toronto and Victoria.

She loved her family and always supported them – she valued attending school events, dance, cadet, or sporting activities that her children and grandchildren were involved in.

Sharon was predeceased by her partner of 35 years, Tony Keeler, her former husband Ned Whittla, her parents Vera and Lloyd Lundquist, her brothers: Carl, Wayne and David, and her grandson David McKenzie.

Sharon is survived by her older brother Jack (Maureen), her four children: Brett (Ray), Derek (Karol), Louise (Philip) and Grant (Martha), five grandchildren: Owen, Tonya, Rowen, Curtis, and Mitchell, and seven great-grandchildren.

No service will be held. A private interment will be held at Royal Oak Burial Park in Victoria at a later date.

A donation in Sharon’s memory may be made to the Alzheimer Society of British Columbia