Marcia Elizabeth Capewell

We said goodbye to our dear mother Marcia Elizabeth Capewell on September 1st at Magnolia Gardens Retirement and Care Centre. She put up a courageous battle with cancer but succumbed with her grandson Michael and daughter Jane by her side. Mom was very fortunate as most of her immediate and extended family were able to spend time with her before she passed. She was also kept company by her dear friend Daisy, for which we are extremely grateful.

Born in Southampton England, on January 18, 1935, mom’s life changed dramatically in 1955 when she married our father and immigrated to Canada a few months later. Arriving as a new bride and expecting, Jane, (1st born!) they came to Smithers, BC to join dad’s family already living there. While in Smithers, our brother Mark was also born. Their travels weren’t over if anything they had just begun! Dad had trained as an aircraft mechanic in England, and as Smithers didn’t offer very many opportunities in this field they decided to move to Kitimat where dad got a job with the Alcan Aluminum company. They also expanded the family with the arrival of our sister Lynda. Still with Alcan the family then moved to the townsite of Kemano, where dad worked in the renowned Kemano power plant. After a few years in Kemano, dad accepted an opportunity with BC Hydro. This meant a move to the Lower Mainland in the newly established suburb of Mary Hill in Port Coquitlam. Shortly after, dad was offered a permanent position with the company which took us to South Shalalth, the company townsite in the interior of BC. Living there for a few years, the family decided it was time to return to Vancouver, partly due to school requirements for us kids, settling first in New Westminster and then in North Delta. From there it was White Rock where they built one of their ‘dream homes’ only to realize that Langley was where they really wanted to be.

That’s not quite the end of the moves for our mom though. After dad passed, she acquired a condo in Langley, but realized she missed having a house and yard, so she purchased a place in Cloverdale only to realize that wasn’t quite where her heart was. Back to Langley, this time to live with Lynda and Steve and family. Then one day mom profoundly stated that “her needs were deeper than housing”! She came to realize she needed a “community of people” and moved into Magnolia Gardens retirement home. An excellent decision as it became the longest period residing in one place! Sixteen years: and we will be forever grateful that she was able to live independently partly because, in her own words, she never wanted to be a burden on us!

Saying that mom had what she called “itchy feet” was a bit of an understatement. One thing throughout it all, wherever mom landed, she was a pro at turning a house into a home.

Predeceased by her beloved husband Michael, Marcia is survived by her daughter Jane (Uwe), son Mark (Wendy), and daughter Lynda (Steve) and grandchildren, Ashley, Michael, Megan, and Nicole. Marcia is also survived by extended members of both sides of her family, in England, brother-in-law Malcolm, nephew Peter, and nieces Helen and Sally, and their families. In Canada, nephew, David and nieces, Anne, Valerie, Jill, Jacqueline and Janet, and their families. Mom also enjoyed her status as both “step grandmother”, being fondly remembered by Scott, Rhett, Dane, and Jacy, and as “step great grandmother” to Summer and Marieke.

We will miss her forever, as mom was always there for us and was often the first person we called when we had news to share, both happy and sad.

The family wishes to express their deep thanks to all the residential and medical staff, who helped to take care of our mom over the last few and challenging months in particular Dr. Leo Wong, the Glover pharmaceutical team for their personal service, Comfort Keepers of Langley, and Sue Wilson, Manager of the Magnolia Care Centre. A most important thank you goes out to Pam Murphy and staff at the Magnolia Garden Retirement Centre with whom mom spent many wonderful years.

The family would also like to acknowledge the love and support mom received from her group of dining “table buds” Hilary, Helena, Louise and Daisy, mom’s very dear friend, and “garden partner” who made the last few months more bearable especially during the months spent in isolation because of Covid. We also appreciate those who have sent cards of condolence.

We hope our mom is continuing to do what she loved best: playing a winning hand at poker and tending to her garden.

A private cremation has been held with plans to scatter our mother’s ashes in a place that was special to her and her grandchildren.

Donations made in our mother’s name to The BC Cancer Society are greatly appreciated, as this is the charity that she supported.

You are invited to leave a personal message of condolence for the family.