Marlene Joan Fenn Fisher

Born December 13, 1931 in Rangoon, Burma. She passed peacefully on Sunday, May 14, 2017 at Westhaven care home in Port Alberni, BC after a long struggle with dementia. Daughter and son-in-law Jennifer and Stephen Fisher-Bradley were with her on her final journey, as well as the caring staff at Westhaven, many of whom were very fond of her.

Marlene was predeceased by her parents, Victor Fenn and Katherine Fenn, nee Nichols. Also her siblings, Gloria, Gordon, and Peter. Peter died in White Rock, BC on April 10, 2017, only 5 weeks previously. They had been very close throughout life. Peter is survived by his sons Peter Junior and Sean, and daughter Linda, all of whom Marlene was very fond of.

Marlene is survived by her sister Ann Snell of UK, daughter Linda Fisher, grandchildren Charles and Aletheia, all of UK, and daughter Jennifer Fisher-Bradley of Port Alberni, BC and grandchildren Daniel, Leona, and Robin, and great granddaughter Maggie, all of Vancouver, BC. She is survived by many nieces and nephews who she loved and adored as well.

Marlene’s father was a public health doctor in Burma. At the outbreak of World War Two, they lived in Lashio, in northern Burma. As the front lines pushed from China into Burma, she was, at age 13, evacuated by air to India with her mother and siblings. Her father evacuated Burma on foot on the infamous trek to India through the Valley of Death. Once safely in India he volunteered to return to Burma to study mosquitoes behind enemy lines, with his Gurkha guards, because malaria was a second enemy.

Marlene attended boarding school in Darjeeling, in the foothills of the Himalaya, where Mother Theresa was the mother superior and her biology teacher.

Soon after returning to Burma, threatened by the Karen rebellion, and, as people of mixed British and Burmese blood, no longer welcome in newly independent Burma, the family went by ocean liner to England to start a new life. Marlene attended St. Martin’s School of Art in London. At this time she met reconnected with Patrick Fisher who had walked her home after extra tuition with his Aunt Dorothy when they were young teenagers. They had been neighbours in Maymo. They married in England. Patrick joined the Canadian Air Force, daughters Linda and Jennifer were born, and the family was stationed in France, Belgium, and Germany, before being reassigned to the Montreal area. They sailed on the Cunard ship the Saxonia to Halifax, and drove to Montreal through a raging snow blizzard in their unheated British car. Marlene said that she felt like a pioneer.

While in Quebec, Marlene took a correspondence course in dress design, setting up a workshop in their basement. Patrick went to work for Rolls Royce aircraft engines. Marlene’s parents had settled in Acton, Ontario, and, as a result of the Separatiste movement, they moved to Acton, Ontario. Patrick went to work for Arenda aircraft in Malton, Ontario. Marlene was unable to find work in dress design, and was hired as a trainee bra designer by Lovable Bras in Toronto. They moved to Bramalea so that her commute to work was only 1 hour, each way.

After separating from Patrick, Marlene was offered work in either New York or London. She asked her daughters to choose, and London was unanimous. After working for Exquisite Form for a year, she decided to return to Canada to work for Formfit in Toronto. Marlene was a trailblazer in the foundation garment industry and designed the first body suit using a newly invented fabric – stretch lace. Marlene was innovative and highly creative. While in retirement she continued to work on her artwork, making video recorded light shows and became competent at film-making in the home studio. She was visionary and thought about re-cycling the photographic work of her earlier designs. She predicted old adverts would one day be re-cycled and often we see they are. She continued to work on one design in particular for a brassiere which she believed in so vehemently she patented it. To this day that design has not made it onto the world stage. It was her dream to make it happen but her illness prevented this.

Both of Marlene’s daughters left home in 1971, Linda to UK and Jennifer to Vancouver Island. By the early 80s Marlene retired and traveled between British Columbia and England for the next 15 years in order to spend time with both her daughters and grandchildren, whom she adored. Her brother Peter lived in White Rock, BC and Marlene eventually moved there too. Marlene passed away in Westhaven care facility in Port Alberni, 5 weeks after her brother Peter had passed away in White Rock.

Marlene had a strong entrepreneurial spirit which has been and is an inspiration. She was also a humanitarian at heart and donated to causes like Covenant House in Vancouver for many years. She was dedicated to the democracy movement of Burma and did all she could to support the cause. She took an interest in everything including politics and was always properly informed.

Marlene was dedicated to her spiritual development. She studied authors like Kahlil Gibran and Krishnamurti. She believed undoubtedly in a spiritual dimension to life. She also religiously said the Rosary in later life and this gave her great consolation particularly when declining in health.

She was kind, generous, loving, fun loving, and an amazing dancer. People could not take their eyes off her when she took the dance floor. We are all unique but Marlene was unique times three. To her family she always was and still is a star.