It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of John Harry Stratford in the city of Port Moody at the age of 91.

Jack, as he was known to family and friends was born in Port Arthur (Thunder Bay), to Fred and Hannah Stratford.  He spoke often and fondly of times spent cavorting with his brothers at Boulevard Lake and McVickar’s Creek.

John moved with his family to Winnipeg where he would meet and marry his high school sweetheart, Shirley Christensen. The hard-working couple raised a family of 5, living for a time in southern California and Winnipeg before moving west to Vancouver in 1970, where John worked as Eaton’s Advertising Manager and then Sales Promotion Manager at Pacific Press before retiring in his mid-fifties to pursue his love for painting.

In his youth, John was admired for his athletic abilities in track and field, soccer, hockey, baseball and especially football, where he excelled. He also showed considerable artistic talent and was educated in commercial art as well as fine art, which he pursued throughout his life. John has created a legacy of artwork that he continues to share with his loving family.

John is predeceased by his wife of 52 years, Shirley, brother Erve (Grace) and son Glenn. Survived by brother Tom (Judy), children; John, Nancy, Lori Robertson (Rollie) and Rob, grandchildren; David (Jessica), Cori (Kyle), Naomi, Keith (Christine) and Kevin (Nikki), and great grandson, Dean.

John will be affectionately missed by all who have had the pleasure of knowing him in his life.

Let us remember…

Kavoos was a man that connected with all, for he loved everyone. His love echoed through his laugh, his words, and his eyes.

A caring father, a supportive husband, and a true friend to all, but words fall short of capturing his essence.

His love of life was contagious, and we remember him for that.

We remember and celebrate him through fond memories, not through places or even things.

We remember him for the lessons he taught with a smile.

He believed in staying strong, which meant understanding life goes on, to take nothing too seriously and to always be present.

He valued compassion, patience and understanding people.

He listened with his heart and always spoke the truth.

He remarkably stayed optimistic to the very end.

He never let illness, loss, or sorrow get under his skin, he would simply joke and dance.

He lives on through memory and music. He lives on through us.

While she fought hard to stay with us, our Mother, Annabeth passed away at 80 years of age due to complications of pneumonia.

Born in Peterborough, Ontario to Martha & Albert Batten; Devoted parents, Christians, and lifetime members of the Masonic Lodge.

One of 7 children, she learned the virtues of love, patience, perseverance, empathy, charity, and hard work of which she demonstrated on a daily basis throughout her lifetime.

True to her Irish/English heritage she was a spirited rebel at heart who lived life on her own terms.

As a young, beautiful, strong woman she both intrigued and wowed male suitors.  Unconventional for her time, she pleased audiences and won awards for her angelic singing voice and even raced stock cars.

In 1962, Robert Sioui (Deceased) captured her heart and together they would be blessed with 4 beautiful children.  In search of change and opportunity, in 1970 they moved their young family to B.C.  Most unfortunately, this union would not last.  Finding herself in a position of being a self-supporting, single mother she summoned the strength & smarts to educate herself and became a nurse.  For several years she worked at VGH in Geriatrics followed by Riverview Psychiatric Hospital until her retirement.  She was well respected by her co-workers and loved by her patients.  During her working life, she also fostered 2 children and housed & cared for 1 of her patients.

In the early 70’s, she found love again in Brian Emslie of whom she shared her life with until his sudden passing in June of 2020.  When Annabeth and Brian got together,  Brian’s daughter Holly also joined us, making us a family of 7.  Brian’s passing broke her heart and during the past year she struggled with feelings of irreconcilable loss.

Our mother enjoyed life’s simple pleasures and was an animal lover.  In retirement, she enjoyed her morning coffee and crosswords, spending time with her family, Sunday drives & window shopping, knitting, and bingo/casino with her gal pals in Maple Ridge & face timing childhood friends.

Her proudest accomplishment was her children; Greatest Treasure her Grandchildren; And Biggest Delight her Great Grandchildren.

Of regrets, she had none with the exception of not winning the Lottery!

Annabeth was predeceased by Brian, her life partner as well as her parents (Martha & Albert) and 5 of 6 siblings (Vernon, Jackie, Keith, Bobby, Ruth).

Survived by her children; Robin Sioui, Mark Sioui, Jay Sioui (Faye), Micheline Ciolli (Franco), Holly Emslie. And Grandchildren; Kyle Olar (Daria), Jordan Olar (Jessica), Braden Olar (Nicole), Julian Ciolli (Lynsey), Mia Ciolli (Domenico), Mishayla Sioui (Kyle).  Great Grandchildren; Lydia Olar, Jackson Olar.  Sister: Nadine Howard (Barry) of Kelowna and Nephew Teddy Howard of Ontario & his family & Niece Dena Howard & family of Kelowna & The Yukon.

Mom, may you finally be at peace.  We will love & honour & miss you forever. 

Matthew died suddenly at the age of 25 and our lives will never be the same. Matthew was born in Burnaby to Monica and Paul Archer. He was a kind soul, even from a young age.  Watching basketball, online gaming, and excelling his computer skills were his favourite pastimes. He even panned for gold at the river as a means of relaxation.

Matthew knew the responsibility of being an adult but he never lost his childlike wonder.

He did have a drive to be financially successful, but not for status or even for himself.

He had a desire to take care of the ones who he loved the most and protect them. Survived by mother Monica Archer, step father Russell Taschner, father Paul Archer (Cathy), grandparents; Josefa and Jose Lara, Norman and Mary Archer, siblings; Nicole Archer, Lauren McLeod, Dorion Archer, Kory and Brandy Child, girlfriend Caitlin Imbeau, and many other family members and friends.

Memorial Event to honour Matthew on Friday, October 15 at 4:00 pm at Jubilee United Church, 7591 Gray Ave, Burnaby. Due to Covid limitations, we require an RSVP from those who are planning to attend. Please RSVP with your name, number of guests and your phone number to RSVPMatthewArcher@gmail.com.

Matthew was a thoughtful, caring person, and he took pride in his loyalty to his family and friends.

Matthew had a love for music. He picked music that he could relate to. This one in particular, he mentioned “Even though I’ve been through hell, I go to bed happy knowing I have a good family”

In this life that I’m livin’, I pray I make it through the night

As I ride through my city, I’m thinkin’, lookin’ at the lights

For so long, we was hurtin’, I got the chance to make it right

Plenty times you done hurt me, I done been all alone tonight

They claim that they with me, but shit I know that they ain’t ride

Gotta stay down and get it, I know that it’s gon’ be alright

Can’t get knocked off my pivot, I gotta play my cards right

-YoungBoy

Matthews personal playlist that he created with their meanings to him:

Forever – Tory Lanez (“Best Friends I call family”)

Lemonade – Internet Money (“On top of the world”)

Diamonds – Youngboy (“This makes me think of my momma, and friends”)

Late Nights – Burnabands (“Current best friends”)

Myself –  Houdini (“Don’t need nobody but myself”)

Street Runner – Rod Wave (“Love Life”)

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to www.AnxietyCanada.com in Matthew’s honour.

Jeff died in Surrey, B.C., at the age of 54. He loved his family and the great outdoors, spending time fishing, camping, swimming and waterskiing at local lakes and beaches. Jeff was a social person who liked to gather with friends and family. He was a dog lover, including his dog Roscoe, who predeceased him and dog Louis, who outlived him. He was a great cook and was king of the barbecue. In his younger years, Jeff played football and was on the wrestling team.

Predeceased by father James, nephew Karson Storzuk and mother-in-law Ethel McAree.

Survived by loving wife Dianne, son James, mother Ruth, sister Kim Storzuk (Kevin), nephew Kolton Storzuk, sister-in-law Theresa McAree, brothers-in-law; Jim McAree (Audrey), Ray McAree (Melva) Mike McAree (Corine) and Craig McAree (Lena), father- in-law James McAree, nieces Ashley Trigg and Lauren McAree.

Well-loved for 52 years, this world has lost an exceptional human being. Jason was one of the good ones, a true gentleman and kind soul. Jason was well-spoken, witty, reliable, yet humble. He personified the ultimate combination of human decency and cool. He was an exceptional human being.

Always sensitive to others, Jason was a selfless and gentle man. He knew that the little things were the big things, playing the bass, sunny days at the beach or forest, secret breakfast with his boys, a good cuppa joe, being in nature hiking, drawing, and painting. With his wife, Clara, time was spent just chatting about the state of the world, planning for the future, creating a household of cherished traditions with experiences and customs of four different cultures: Japan, Canada, the UK, and China. His main priority really was his family, including his extended family. He was not someone who had a big social circle as he was a bit on the shy side. But he was well-respected by all who met him.

Jason moved to Japan in 1993 to teach English in Saga, Japan. After a year, he left for Osaka where he continued to teach, study and master Japanese, work in a bar and play in a band. In 2001, he made the leap to change careers and moved to Tokyo. People have described Jason and Clara’s meeting as a “meeting of souls”. As a couple enjoying life in the big city of Tokyo, each year, they travelled extensively to Australia and the UK, Asia, and Canada many times over as they have a large network of friends and family. Married in 2005, they finally started their family by adopting Tora in Japan in 2011 and welcomed Ryan by natural birth 9 months later. They moved to Clara’s hometown, Vancouver, in 2014.

Jason was a natural leader. He worked as Director of the Tokyo English Life Line in Japan for 6 years. In Canada, he started working for the Crisis Line Association of B.C., which provides online support for suicide prevention. In Canada, he started working for the Crisis Line Association of B.C., which is a network of crisis lines providing 24-hour support for suicide prevention and mental health. In 2017, he was one of the key leads in forming Canada’s first national suicide prevention service through Crisis Service Canada (CSC). He continued in this role as Director of Operations for CSC, until his death. Colleagues have described him as a gentle, diplomatic yet passionate and driving force who led a team to form something that has literally saved thousands of lives. He was a person who always revealed something interesting and new to them, bestowing stories of climbing Mt. Fuji no less than seven times, fighting ten opponents in a row to get a black belt in karate, playing his bass in a band in Japan, as well as sharing his love of music with his kids. He loved riding motorcycles and having a beer with family and friends at the pub.

Since his Myeloma diagnosis in 2018, Jay dealt with his disease in the same way he lived his life: with positivity, hope and grace. He never asked, “why me”, never complained and in fact, few people even knew of his battle. The final months were hard but in his last days, Jason was at peace to leave this world. He was ready and he was not afraid.

Jason was predeceased by his mother Mary in 2015.

Survived by loving partner of twenty years, Clara, sons; Tora and Ryan, father David (Pauline), siblings; Mark (Louise), Claire (Steven) Carter and half sister Natasha, brother-in-law and sister-in-law; Grace (Enoch) Liang, David (Sofie) Hung, father-in-law Philip Hung, nieces and nephews; Aimee, Jacob, Samuel, Helena, Madeline, Elijah, Dylan and Isaias.

Private funeral mass will be held at St. Francis of Assisi Parish. Donations may be made to GoFund.me/2913c08b in honour of Jay.

Dorothy was born and raised in Vancouver. She met and married the love of her life Richard Purvey in 1952. They were a great team and very devoted to one another. They moved the family to Coquitlam in 1960 where they became very active members of the community. Over the years she kept up a beautiful garden and a lovely home. Once retired, you couldn’t stop Dorothy from all of her social activities. She played tennis at Dogwood Pavillion, bridge with friends and she and Richard travelled overseas. They spent a month in Hawaii every autumn. Sadly, Richard died in 1997 leaving Dorothy a young widow. She carried on with the trips to Hawaii, with her sister as her new companion and continued to stay busy for many years until she was no longer able. She is survived by children; Larry and Nancy (Paul), grandchildren; Jennifer (Jeff), Courtney, Brad (Britanie), Stewart and Taylor, great grandchildren; Madison and Ava. Dorothy and Richard are gone, but their legacy lives on. Donations to the Alzheimer Society suggested in Dorothy’s honour. alzheimer.ca

It is with heavy hearts that we announce that Tyler passed in his sleep while at Forensic Psychiatric Hospital in Coquitlam, B.C. He was born in Campbell River, B.C. to proud and loving parents Rhonda and Karl. Tyler was predeceased by his father in 2001, and all of his biological grandparents over the past several years. He will be sadly missed and lovingly remembered by his mother Rhonda Johnson (Robert Grove), brothers; Derek Johnson, Clayton Steinthorson (Laura), Jonas Steinthorson (Cheyenne), nieces; Alexis, Payton and Emilie Steinthorson, aunt Kim Hilderman, great-aunt Cheryl Shirtliffe, great-uncle Stephen Miechkota, step-grandfather Donald Chadney, and many other aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends.
Tyler was a kind and amazing young man with a great sense of humor. He loved to tell jokes or make funny faces, especially when he knew somebody was sad. He was a father figure to his brother Derek, who he loved and missed dearly when he was away. When he was 13, he taught himself to play the electric guitar. When he was 15, his friends called him “Professor Steinthorson,” because he studied and learned to be a self-taught organic agriculturist. Tyler volunteered for numerous seniors and friends, helping them with different garden pest issues, grass cutting, or grooming their yards.
Tyler was diagnosed with severe schizophrenia in 2015 and struggled to get stable due to his hypersensitivity to the potent antipsychotic medications. Even during the most challenging times in his life, he was always looking out for others and sharing what little he had with those less fortunate than him. He fought two successful B.C. human right’s cases to advocate for the other mentally-ill who were struggling in the prison/forensic system, that helped to make a few positive changes. Tyler was a Warrior who fought a good fight in his thirty short years, but he will continue to make more changes in the system with His Passing. Donations may be made to the B.C. Schizophrenia Society, Homeless Shelter of your choice, or plant a tree in his memory. bcss.org

I Made It Home
I just wanted to let you know that I made it Home.
Everything is so pretty here, so white, so fresh, so new.
I wish that you could close your eyes so you could see it too.
Please try not to be sad for me. Please try to understand.
God is Taking Care of Me. I’m in the Shelter of His Hands.
Here there is no sadness, no sorrow, and no pain.
Here there is no crying, and I’ll never hurt again.
Here it is so Peaceful, when all the Angels sing.
I really have to go for now… I’ve got to try my Wings!
P.S. I’ll be the first face you see when you get here.
Love, Ty

It is with heavy hearts that we announce that Paul died March 11, 2021 at the age of 51. His illness was a long struggle. May he find peace. Paul was born in Prince George to loving parents Erin and Maurice. He spent his youth in Vernon, and moved to Victoria to complete his studies at UVIC. He and his family moved to the Lower Mainland in 2002. Paul was a social being. He loved to host parties with great friends, music, dancing, and food- Paul was an accomplished and creative cook. He was always into whatever new toy the tech industry brought his way. Paul was innovative, playful and will be remembered for his quick-witted comments. But what really matters most is that Paul was a caring and loving friend and father. He was full of love and helped a lot of people throughout his life. Paul was predeceased by his mother Erin. He is lovingly remembered by his father Maurice, his children, Connor and Dionne, their mother, Nicole and his former partner Karin Vengshoel, brother Jody and so many friends and relatives.

Theresa died peacefully in her sleep on March 4, 2021, at the age of 98. Born in Rockland, Ontario to Dora and Rene. The family moved to Maillardville when she was 12. She will be missed, but family is glad that her wish has been fulfilled to be reunited with her husband Albert. Family and her faith were paramount to Theresa. Even when she was limited in her speech, you could hear her attempting to pray the Hail Mary as she felt connected to Mother Mary. She and Albert were married in 1939 at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish. Later, as a founding member of Our Lady of Fatima Parish, she was extremely involved in parish activities, such as Les Dames de Sainte Anne, bingo canteen and the choir. Theresa sang solos for weddings and funerals for over 50 years. When her children attended Our Lady of Fatima Elementary she volunteered making costumes for pageants and was member of the PTO serving in positions from President/Secretary/Treasurer.

Theresa was a longtime blood donor and volunteer for the Blood Donor Clinic sharing the stories of being awoken to give blood in the middle of the night, as the process was different in the past. She and Albert shared a love for music and passed this on to their children, with the piano in the front room and Albert right beside with his violin. Making made-to-order meals for her family brought her joy. Who could forget her baking? Theresa loved to sew, knit and crochet all whilst humming a tune. She had a flair for fashion only leaving the house fully done up and often wearing her signature pink. Many an afternoon was passed joyfully playing cards. She was the cribbage queen. Back in the day, her dailies included mass and visiting with her sister Joan and close girlfriends. You know who you are.

Theresa was predeceased by her husband Albert, son Ronald, siblings Charlie, Joan, Gerry & Trudy, grandchildren Joseph and Stephanie and great-grand-daughter Renee. Survived by children; Fr. George OMI, Lorraine (Maurice) Hurtubise, Dianne (Bert) LeChasseur, Mark (Lola), and daughter-in-law Gail. Grandchildren: Michelle (Steve), Alan (Stepanka), Richard (Wendy), Melissa (Kevin), Heather (Fred), Myles (Jay), Jennifer (Craig), Joss (Nadine), Laurie (Dave), Bree (Kevin), Matthew (Danielle), Lance (Krista), Karen (Chris), Jillian (Paul), Sarrah (Brad), Adam (Kendra),and April. Great-grandchildren: Shayna, Isaac, Justin, Jairus, James, Kristian , Alyssa, Haley, Caleb, Julianna, Vanessa, Audrey, Mitchell, Elliot, Benjamin, Allan, Taryn, Jacob, Logan, Laura, Liam, Jaxon, Tyler, Sophia, Zoe, Chase, Jacob, Kamryn, Sydney, Matteo, Lynden, Sienna, and Paisley. Family wishes to acknowledge the caring staff at Belvedere Care Centre. Donations may be made in Theresa’s honour to assist marriage and family ministries in the archdiocese at https://support.rcav.org/donate-lmf/.

Funeral  mass to honour both Theresa and her son Ronald, on Saturday, September 25, 2021 at 11:30 am at Our Lady of Fatima Parish, 315 Walker St., Coquitlam. If you wish to join us virtually, email to: RSVP@ANORAlife.com for information.