January 15, 1930 - June 5, 2025
In Loving Memory ~
We are very sad to announce the passing of Robert Day. "Bob" to a lot of folks, "Rob" to family and many friends, was born in Victoria and enlisted in the Royal Canadian Navy at a young age. He began his career on HMCS Ontario and his last ship was HMCS Saskatchewan; he celebrated "crossing the line" on both ships. It was an emotional day when family and friends gathered with him to watch his beloved Saskatchewan slip beneath the waves to form an artificial reef off Nanaimo.
Rob had a passion for working with wood and for projects. He built and renovated offices, shops, houses, cabins, RVs, boats and furniture; he built and operated two sawmills. As the caretaker on private gulf islands he expanded houses, replaced decks and patios, installed generators, geothermal systems and sand septic systems, and built a tennis court, a large in-ground swimming pool and a boat harbour. One kindred spirit island owner freely admitted he couldn't match his "trusty caretaker Bob" (aka "The Chief") in pace of ideas or action.
Rob had other pastimes he truly enjoyed: He had several H.O. model train layouts over the years, building and deconstructing then starting again from scratch when he and Dot moved houses.
He loved going for drives with Dot, especially on old logging roads and to enhance the adventure (and to Dot's chagrin) he wasn't afraid to get stuck in the middle of nowhere and wait for help to arrive. Rob loved to "shove off" with Dot; they explored the anchorages and inlets of the coast in their trawler, "Island Fantasy", and then toured B.C. in their various RVs until they were 90. He loved to tease and to be teased and when he got that mischievous twinkle in his eye you just knew trouble was brewing! And of course, he loved Fords - he once told us he'd had 40 over the years. He bought his last one, a shiny new red Ford Ranger, at age 91, days before he had to do his ICBC road test, which he passed with flying colours.
Rob is survived by his loving wife of 71 years, Dorothy (Dot), 3 Children: Terry, Larry (Karen), Bill (Jackie), 4 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren.
Per Rob's wishes there is no service but anyone wanting to pay tribute to Rob may consider taking on a challenge, doing something mischievous or spontaneous, or giving a friend or family member a good-natured ribbing.
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