Peggy Peggy Van de Vyvere

Peggy Van de Vyvere was known by those who loved her for her ability to circumvent linear time. Most days by noon, she accomplished feats that would take the average mortal weeks to complete. It was a necessary superpower for a life led putting her family first; for making each of them feel like the centre of the universe.

Margaret Jean (Peggy) McRae was born in Winnipeg on October 1, 1943 to Alec and Jean McRae. She was their “Pebby.” They loved her; cherished her. And she, them. When Peggy first moved out on her own, she shorted her food budget to spend two week’s salary on a gold bracelet for her Mom. That was the kind of relationship they had. It was a deep love and friendship Peggy and Jean enjoyed all her life.

In the summer of 1966, Peggy met the love of her life on Winnipeg’s Portage Avenue. When he arrived to pick up Peggy for their first date, Jean said, “Don’t let this one go.” She didn’t. On February 17, 1967 Peggy McRae married Albert (Bert) William Van de Vyvere and the two began a lifelong romance and partnership.

These were busy years. In the next five years, Peggy and Bert had four children – Lisa, Tracey, Carolynn and Kris. Then, in 1975, the couple piled their young kids into the back of a Toyota Corolla station wagon and left their hometown, Winnipeg, for a new life in Kelowna. During the first month of this new life, the moving truck failed to show up, so Peggy cooked the family’s meals over a Hibachi and made a game of camping out in sleeping bags in their new house. Her kids had no idea this adventure wasn’t intended.

It was the kind of tenacity, smarts and strength that Peggy exercised throughout her life. The kind that enabled her to say “yes” when Bert wanted to build a house for the family in 1980; the kind that enabled her to care for four kids under 11 while helping to build a house from the ground up. And it was these attributes that helped her to keep a family afloat in the 1980s when mortgage rates rose to 22% and many families lost their homes. She filled notebooks with detailed budgets and stretched every dollar without ever making her kids sense they were doing without.

Peggy was an extraordinary mother. She made each of her children feel, not just special, but like the MOST special person. She would often pick up one of her kids from school in the middle of the day, just to take them for lunch and have time alone together. She stayed up nights sewing Halloween costumes and making birthday cakes. She taught her children to be kind, to love each other and to be strong. She was selfless in her love, tireless in her efforts and a ferocious advocate for her family.

For Peggy, the core of that family was Bert. Throughout their nearly 50 years together, the two were an extraordinary team, dear friends and very much in love. They held hands, had each other’s backs and enjoyed each other’s company, right up until the very end. As Bert said to his daughters: “She was a wonderful woman; a wonderful wife.”

Peggy passed away quickly on Christmas Day. She will be deeply missed by her husband Bert Van de Vyvere, her mother Jean Smyrl, her brother, Peter McRae (Lynda McRae); her children Lisa Green (Chris Green), Tracey O’Bray (Spencer O’Bray), Carolynn Van de Vyvere (Richard Maruk) and Kris Sutherland (Lisa Sutherland); and her grandchildren Ian, Norah, Adam, Holly, Cameron, Eli, Isabella and Caitlin.

A memorial service will be held at 1 pm on Friday, December 30 at First Memorial Funeral Services, 1211 Sutherland Avenue, Kelowna, 250-762-2299.

Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.firstmemorialfuneralkelowna.com

Arrangements entrusted to First Memorial Funeral Services, Kelowna, B.C. ph: 250-762-2299.