It is with profound sadness, that we announce the passing of Beatriz (Bea) Gomes, age 96, on April 16, 2021, in Vancouver, BC. After a brief battle with pneumonia, she left us while sleeping peacefully, with her son at her side.
Born in Coutada, Portugal on February 15, 1925, Bea had many cherished memories of her early life with her parents, Maria Rosaria and Antonio Dias, her sister, Maria, and two brothers, Cesar and Joaquim.
She worked alongside her family, tending the fields and working in the family bakery. She loved her parents dearly, and her sister and brothers, her aunts and uncles, and the many cousins that were an important part of her everyday life.
At the age of 26, she married Jose Gomes and, one year later, they had their first son, Cesario. She was a loving mother and devoted wife and in 1958, following her brother Cesar, she immigrated with her husband and young son to Canada, to pursue better opportunities.
Life was not easy in the vastness of this new country. She dearly missed the closeness of the village community, as well as her friends and family. She found solace, however, in her strong Catholic faith, and in the many skills she so enjoyed like cooking, gardening, crochet, sewing, baking bread, and singing.
She loved the songs of Amalia Rodrigues and would sing them aloud, often accompanied by her husband playing the harmonica. She had a beautiful voice and singing brought her joy. She was a fearless woman and once shot a grizzly bear in the isolated village of Longworth, BC, to defend herself and her young son as the animal advanced towards them.
Eventually, her husband’s work would move the family closer to Prince George, to the community of Giscome, and in 1966 she gave birth to her second son, Cesar. In the early ‘70s, the family moved to Prince George where she got a job working in the kitchen at the Greyhound bus depot. It was a stepping stone to her next job at the new Elks Club lodge, where members enjoyed her passion for cooking until she retired. It was there that people affectionately called her ‘Bea’.
Cooking for people was her joy and she was just as comfortable feeding a table of two as a banquet of hundreds. Nothing made her happier than cooking for family and friends and, even after she retired, she continued to cater events.
Beatriz had a keen sense of observation and a great sense of humor. She was not afraid to share her opinion or give sound advice to those who would receive it. She was a hard worker, and rarely sat still. When not in the kitchen cooking or baking bread, you could find her in the garden planting and caring for a variety of flowers such as dahlias, roses, poppies, and peonies which she nurtured each year. She planted several vegetable gardens with beans, potatoes, Portuguese cabbage, and many more crops that filled freezers for the winter.
She never lost her love and affinity for Portugal and returned frequently over the years. She took pride in the house that she and her husband had built there and being back to see her family and friends always gave her comfort.
Hard-working, determined, and devoted to her family, Beatriz leaves behind her son Cesar; four grandchildren: Natalie (Tomasz); Nathan (Lauren); Peter; and Michael (Tess), and four great-grandchildren all of whom will miss her dearly. She will now join her parents, brothers and sister, her husband (Jose), and son (Cesario), and all the other cherished family and friends who predeceased her and await her in heaven.
Beatriz truly had a spark for life. Even with advancing dementia, she never lost her spirit and was always busy, doing what she loved. She warmly welcomed strangers into her life and made them feel like family.
She will be dearly missed by her son, family, friends, and all who were lucky enough to know her.
Her son, Cesar, would like to thank Joanna, Liz, Jamile, Fabiana, Raymond, and the German Canadian Care home team in Vancouver, where she resided for the last 5 years - in particular, Nina, Maria, Margo, Ewa, Dr. Iloreta & Dr. Chang, for their kindness and loving care of Beatriz.
There will be prayers on Sunday, April 25, 2021, at 7:00 pm at Assman's Funeral Chapel in Prince George. The Funeral Mass for the family will be held on Monday, April 26, 2021, at 1:30 pm at Sacred Heart Cathedral. The burial ceremony will follow at the Prince George Cemetery.
Instead of flowers, donations can be made to the BC Heart & Stroke Foundation in memory of Beatriz.
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