March 21, 1940 - December 1, 2022
In Loving Memory ~
With great sadness, we share the passing of Barbara on December 1st at 11:35 p.m. after a long battle with cancer.
Born Barbara Winifred on March 21st, 1940 in Vancouver, B.C. She was the last remaining Whitehead in her immediate family, predeceased by her parents William Joseph and Edith Mary and her four brothers William (Violet), Donald (Jean), Duncan (Adrien) and Norman.
She is survived by Joe, her husband of 64 years, her daughters Anna (Giuseppe), Teresa and her son, Joe (Teresa Lee), her grandchildren, Cristina, Michael, Joseph and Kenneth and her great-granddaughter, Jasmine.
Our mom was the strongest woman we have ever known and a role model to all who knew her. She had high expectations of herself first and foremost.
She was loyal to her family and friends and always there when you needed her, bringing you hot soup if you were ill or driving you to an appointment if you could not drive yourself, or just sitting with you if you needed company. Her friendships that spanned decades are a true testament to that.
Once she had married Giuseppe (Joe) Fornari, her life became a series of adventures.
They lived in Vancouver and had three children. After the birth of their third child and whilst the youngest was still in diapers, dad moved the whole family to the then Queen Charlotte Islands (now Haida Gwaii) where they stayed for two years.
It was there that our mother came into contact with nature and learned about solitude and inner peace.
From there they moved to Kitimat, B.C. and remained until 1983. In Kitimat, she worked part-time as a secretary at St. Anthony's School and participated in many of the charitable events going on.
She also embraced her husband's Italian culture and became a wonderful cook providing meals for all and sundry experimenting with all sorts of recipes. Her dream was to one day publish a cookbook.
One of mom's favourite memories was of all her travels around Europe with her husband and children. Not only did she learn Italian but she also perfected many of our family's favourite Italian recipes.
Gardening became another of her hobbies and she could often be seen in the early hours of the morning tending to her shrubs and flowers in Campbell River.
A very special thank you goes to Dr. R Ramsey for such great care of mom over the years as well as in her final battle with cancer. We would also like to thank Discovery Senior Care for going above and beyond with our mother's care in her final months.
No service by request.