Apr 6, 1924 - Mar 7, 2018
John Roderick Bawden Brett passed away in the early hours Wednesday March 7, 2018 at the age of 93 in Campbell River North Island Hospital. He was born in Grimsby, England on April 6, 1924 to Collan and Mary (nee Spain) Brett.
John is survived today by: his wife Yvette (Ketty), brother Bill, his children Clare, Patricia (Bonnie), Kathleen and Kevin and his grandchildren Colin, Sara, Arlene and Alexandra.
John served as a Sapper in World War II with the British Royal Engineers where he held the rank of Captain. He was a proud Veteran of the Normandy Campaign, later immigrating to Canada in 1958 where he continued to serve in The Canadian Scottish (Princess Mary's) Regiment in Courtenay BC. He lived in Saskatchewan for 3 years where he certified to become a school teacher before moving to the West Coast where he would teach at Quadra Elementary and a number of other schools in the Campbell River area. He worked both as a teacher and a principal until his retirement in 1987.
John is perhaps remembered most for the ease and speed with which he made friends and gave generously of his home, his thoughts, his good humour and his beloved poems. Here is a passage from one of his favorites:
I must go down to the seas again,
to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way
where the wind's like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn
from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream
when the long trick's over.
There will be a memorial mass (11:00 AM - 12:00 PM) followed by a celebration of John's life (12:00 PM - 2:00 PM) on Saturday, April 7 at St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, 34 South Alder Street, Campbell River BC.
The Brett Family would like to extend their gratitude to the doctors, nurses and staff at the Campbell River Hospital for the kind care and compassion they showed to all of us and to our Dad in his final hours.
We would also like to extend our heartfelt thanks to Sandy at Boyd's Funeral Services for her sensitivity and attention to detail in helping us take care of Dad's final journey.
The family asks that in lieu of flowers donations be made to The War Amps or to the Wounded Warriors.http://www.waramps.ca/ways-to-give/donate/ https://woundedwarriors.ca/ways-to-give/