Wesley "Wes" Marshall

He was born in Weyburn, Saskatchewan on March 30th, 1929 to Harold Benjamin Marshall and Elizabeth Marshall. His father came from Gloucestershire, England and his mother from Staffordshire, England. He grew up in Weyburn with three sisters, Joyce, Elaine and Bernice.

As a young man, Wes joined the South Saskatchewan Regimental Reserve from 1946 to 1951. Following that, he entered active service with the Regina Rifles of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry where he rose to the rank of Corporal and served for six years. He was trained as a paratrooper with the infantry which led him to later become a member of a parachute club in his civilian life.

Wes met Betty Routledge Bagshaw at her home in Manchester, England during his furlough to England. They met through Wes’s cousin, also a soldier with the PPCLI, who was dating Betty’s cousin. Six weeks later they married on November 6th, 1954 at St Barnabas Church in Manchester.

Shortly after their marriage, Betty and Wes were posted to a Canadian Forces base in Iserlohn, Germany so that he could continue his military service for the next two years. They moved to Canada in 1956 and took up residence in Calgary, Alberta where they had three children, Sandra, David and Pamela. After he was honourably released from the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry in 1957, Wes began working in various occupations in Calgary, culminating in a 21 year career as storekeeper for the Calgary Board of Education.

Upon retirement, they soon relocated to Cobble Hill, BC to be near their grown children. Betty and Wes took great delight in the arrival of their grandchildren, Samantha, Sean and Liam. Nothing made them happier than spending time watching their soccer games, ballet recitals and music concerts. Wes also loved gardening, building things with his hands, going for long walks and keeping in touch with school friends from Weyburn. He took great pride in his family.

Wes is survived by his loving wife, Betty, his three children, and his three grandchildren. He was predeceased by his parents and three sisters. He has nieces and nephews in Saskatoon, Vernon, Victoria and Tumbler Ridge and a brother-in-law in Tumbler Ridge.

The family would like to extend a special thanks to the staff at Broadmead Lodge for the care and kindness they showed to Wes in his last months and for their ongoing care of Betty.

There will be a service at St. Phillips Anglican church on June 2nd at 11:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Canadian Red Cross Blood Services if desired. Wes was proud of having given over one hundred blood donations to The Red Cross in his life time.