Thompson, Edward Robert
31 January 1927 – 7 February 2011
After a tragic accident, Dad passed away in Victoria General Hospital. He was an amazing man with an interesting past history. He was born in Sefton, Lancashire, England and had 4 siblings – Patricia, Ron (deceased), Francis (deceased) and Margaret; along with many nieces and nephews, he was the oldest in the family. His beloved wife, Isobel, predeceased him 2004. His daughter Barbara and son-in-law Brian survive him. As a child, Dad was witness to the Second World War, which broke up his family. He joined the British Navy when he was 15 – the little devil lied about his age. While in the Navy, he served on the HMS Reaper supporting the US troops in the Pacific Region, seeing such places as Pearl Harbour, Guam, Midway, Ulithi and Iwo Jima. After the war, in 1946, Dad was assigned to the HMS Vanguard. The maiden voyage of the Vanguard escorted the King, Queen, and Princesses (Princess Elizabeth became Queen) to South Africa. He was so proud of that assignment. After that, he immigrated to Canada in 1947 where he met my Mom. He started work with BC Electric as a streetcar driver then going on to be a supervisor/manager with BC Hydro and finally Metro Transit as a Divisional Manager. He retired in 1983, and moved to the summer home Mom and Dad built in Ladysmith with the help of wonderful relatives. Friends and relatives fondly know him as “Fast Eddy”. My Mom and Dad travelled the world extensively. In later years, we took Dad to Hawaii for several weeks each year. At 83, Dad maintained his home, driver’s license and managed a PC and Mac, he was one of the kindest and most generous men you could ever meet. He will be greatly missed.
Our special thanks go out to the Campbell River Paramedics, emergency room Doctors and Nurses, Dr. Reid, and the nurses of Victoria General South Tower 6a/b, my cousin Sandi/David and friend Barbie. Dr. Kennedy and Claire – my Dad thought the world of you and trusted you so much. Red and Millie – Dad loved the golfing and always thought of you as special friends. To all our friends and family, we could not get through this time without you. Richard and Rhondi, without saying you were always special to Dad. We will finish off by expressing deepest gratitude to Marion, George, Margaret, Al and Gaetan – you were his second family.
Celebration of Dad’s life will be held on the 17th of February at 1:00pm until 4:00pm at the Page Point Inn Bistro on Breton Page Road in Ladysmith Harbour.
In lieu of flowers, Dad would appreciate donations to the JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation), or Heart and Stroke (BC Region) for research.
Telford’s of Ladysmith
250-245-5553