6954 Geoffrey Archbold RRMC RMC 1967
Ret. Cdr. Geoffrey J.H.E. Archbold, 81, of Saanich, BC, passed away peacefully on March 31, 2025, with his children by his side. Born in Vernon, BC, Geoff attended Royal Roads Military College and served with the Royal Canadian Navy from 1961 until his retirement in 1995. He returned to Victoria with his beloved wife Joan, who predeceased him in 2002.
He is survived by his children David (Melissa) and Alix, his partner of 20 years Heather Hanson, brother Tony (Maureen), nephews Chris and Andrew, and grandchildren Aiden, Zoe, Logan, and Courtney. A fixture in the neighborhood in his green cardigan, Geoff will be remembered for his kindness, quiet strength, and devotion to those he loved. “Green Cardigan”, knit by Joan, accompanied him one last time.
Special thanks to the staff at VGH ICU, RJH, and the Kidney Care Centre for their dedicated care. Donations in his memory may be made to the Victoria Hospitals Foundation.
To share memories and condolences, please visit: https://www.dignitymemorial.com/en-ca/obituaries/victoria-bc/geoffrey-archbold-12333695
Celebration of Life Notice for 3049 Frederick Gilbert RMC Class of 1953
The family of 3049 Fred Gilbert wishes to announce the celebration of life on 3 May 2025 at 1400 hrs at Wallstreet United church in Brockville. Mr. Gilbert passed away on January 14 2025. A link to his obituary can be found here: https://thewhig.remembering.ca/obituary/frederick-nelson-dodge-gilbert-1092558600
Norleen Isabel Hope (nee MacPhail)
Passed away peacefully at her home in Stratford on March 4th 2025, in her 87th year.
Dear mother of Dale Roe (Fiona Tetlow). Loving grandmother of Jason (Amanda) and Coulton (Kayla). Great Grandmother of Teagen and Shyanne.
She will be dearly missed by her sisters Debbie Newton (Gerry), Doreen O’Sullivan (Anthony) and Dora Birtch (late Ron), and her adoring nieces and nephews.
Predeceased by her husband, Bob Hope, and her parents Cecil MacPhail (d.1939) and Edith (Smith) and George Stanley.
Norleen enjoyed a long career as a civil servant with many years at the Royal Military College (RMC) where she made many life-long friends. She and Bob enjoyed many wonderful times with family and friends at their cottage in Seeley’s Bay.
Thanks to the attentive staff at Greenwood Court for their kindness and care. Cremation has taken place. A celebration of life will be held on May 17th. There is an interment ceremony being held at 1:00 at the All Saints Anglican Church cemetery of Greely, Ontario (just south of Ottawa). There is a further gathering that day at 2:30 at the Kemptville Legion (a little further south of Ottawa). All are welcome to join at both or either gatherings.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Alzheimer Society of Huron Perth, through W.G. Young Funeral Home www.wgyoungfuneralhome.com
3262 Henry Hank Bepple RR RMC 1954
Hank was born in Trochu, Alberta to a newly arrived immigrant family. With his parents and 7 siblings, he moved to “German Town” in Brocklehurst, Kamloops in 1934. Growing up on a farm, he was responsible for feeding the pigs, building apple crates, and pulling logs out of the river for firewood.
As a teen, he joined Air Cadets. That, plus a lot of studying, led to placement at Royal Roads, then Royal Military College and Queen’s University. He earned a degree in engineering as well as becoming a pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force. While stationed in Moose Jaw, he met his bride-to-be Irene at the Moose Jaw Library. From the Air Force, he went on to be a pulp mill engineer in Crofton and Kamloops, and then a small business owner. But his greatest joy was being the fixer and builder of everything, especially for his family.
He loved time with family in the outdoors: camping, fishing, and hunting. The time spent with family and friends was paramount. Being prepared for any eventuality meant tarps, ropes and ample food were the order of the day. His military training certainly played a role in family gatherings. He was a voracious reader of pulp-fiction Westerns and spy novels.
He was a fierce advocate for friends and family having difficulty navigating government systems. He kept abreast with the news of the world and did his best to master the juggernauts of the internet and computer technology.
Hank started each day cooking bacon and eggs, welcoming anyone to the table who happened along. Hank and Irene opened their home to friends and family from around the world. They kept in touch with people from every decade of their lives who in turn became part of the fabric of their extended family.
Hank was predeceased by his wife of 62 years Irene, and daughter Janice Weeks. Also by his parents George and Katharine, his brothers & sisters Ron, Chris, Otto, Hilda, Frida, Oscar and Alma, his step-mother Martha and 8 step-siblings.
Hank is survived by his daughters Heather (Joe Mayrhofer), Nancy, Judy, and Alison Bepple, and son-in-law Doug Weeks; grandchildren Courtenay Reedman Parker (Erik), Ian Reedman (Jenifer), Don MacArthur (Kealy), Jennifer Brown (Sang), Elizabeth Keam (Kurt), Tyler Weeks (Bailey), Alexi Weeks, Arlin Weeks, Thom Keijzer (Silke), Peter Keijzer, Robyn Bepple (James) and Tyson McInnes; great grandchildren Austin (Kyley), Montana, Warrick, Greyson, Levi (Kitara), Emily, Nathaniel, Drew, Marissa, Oscar, Maeve, Paul, Kysen and great -great grandchildren Kalie, Jasper and Jake; step-brother Ernie Radies; brother-in-law Fred Harding and many nephews and nieces
He passed away peacefully at Marjorie Willoughby Hospice. Thank you for his care to the hospice, as well as RIH Cancer Centre, ER and 5-South, and Drs. Proctor, Cook & Sigalet over the last two years especially.
3329 William R. Vellevand RR 1952
With heavy hearts, we share that William R. Vallevand, Cdr (Ret’d) (RCN), passed away on March 24, 2025, at Montfort Hospital in Ottawa at the age of 95 years, after a brief illness.
Born on February 7, 1930, to Norwegian-Canadians Gotfred Vallevand and Ella Vallevand (Bjorgan) at the family farm in Demaine, Saskatchewan, William was the fourth of ten children.
In the fall of 1948, William responded to a recruiting drive by the RCN and began his Navy career as an ordinary seaman. With encouragement from his commanding officers, he upgraded his education and was accepted to the Royal Canadian Navy Officer Training Program in 1950. His cadet years at Royal Roads Naval College in Victoria, British Columbia were some of the best years of his life, where he made lifelong friends and met his future bride, Janet Bowden, of Victoria, BC, who he married, following graduation, in 1954.
His Navy career spanned 35 years, with postings in England and across Canada. In 1966 he received his most memorable posting, joining the Canadian Defence Liaison Staff in Washington DC where he served as an Intelligence Attaché. He spent the rest of his career as a Navy diplomat, alternating between postings in Ottawa’s foreign liaison office and two additional tours in Washington. He and Janet were perfectly suited for the diplomatic life and became fast friends with countless international attachés.
Following his retirement from service, he spent several years as an executive with Eastern Provincial Airlines before fully retiring in 1985. He and Janet took advantage of their airline perks, spending his first year of retirement travelling the world, with trips to Vancouver, Hawaii, London, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand. Retirement gave him the chance to indulge even more in his lifelong passion – oil painting. He was an accomplished artist and took pride in his craft. Many of his works hang in the homes of friends and family and are cherished heirlooms.
He and Janet always dreamed of returning to Victoria and moved there in 1995, where they spent 24 years enjoying life with family and many of his Royal Roads friends. Throughout his retirement they made countless trips back east to visit their children and grandchildren and to participate in Navy alumni events. In 2019 they returned to Ottawa permanently to be closer to their children.
He was a dedicated and devoted husband, having celebrated over 68 years of marriage to Janet, who predeceased him in 2022. He is survived by his children; Martin (Baohong), Stephen (Elaine), Karen (Michel) and Lynn Shabinsky (Mark), his grandchildren Jacob (Jess), Jenna, Emily (Trevor), Jessica (Dan), Kelly, Marissa (Zach), Claudia, Sarah (Max), and Nicolas, and eight great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his four sisters, Florence Lloyd, Vi Johnson, Marg (Terry) Middleton, and Sylvia (John) Ukranichuk, and his brother-in-law, Greg Bowden (Janice) and numerous nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his sisters Evelyn and Cynthia and his brothers Chris, Howard and Lloyd. He was also predeceased by his granddaughter Courtney and his great-grandson Joseph.
He will be sorely missed, always remembered for his kind heart that touched everyone he met. He heads to his final posting “Ready, Aye, Ready.”
Our family is grateful to the staff at the Montfort Hospital and Chartwell Rockcliffe Retirement Residence for the care and attention that they provided to him.
3764 Garry Savage CMR 1957
On March 28, 2025, Garry McAllister Savage looked his three children in the eyes and said, “Be good to each other, be safe.” Kimberley (Robert), Richard (Lisa) and Lynn (Michael) – Wynken, Blynken and Nod came to Calgary to celebrate Garry’s ninetieth birthday, sixteen days later they held his hands, listened to his last words and ushered him on his way. “While he sailed off in a wooden shoe – sailed on a river of crystal light, into a sea of dew.” When asked by his grandchildren – “what wisdom can you impart?” Without hesitation he said to live by the golden rule. By his grandchildren he will be greatly missed: Steven and Davis (Brook-Lynn) Halverson, Jack and Benjamin Savage, Cedric, Charles, Fiona and Amanda Ludlow, Margaret McMillan; and great-grandchildren, Jace and Wyatt Halverson. He is also remembered by his sister, Jane “Pinky” Cowley; and former wife, Susan, the mother of his children. He was predeceased by his wife, Barbara. Born on March 12, 1935, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, to Dr. Alfred Savage and Mary Norquay, Garry was proud of his Métis heritage. He was the great-grandson of Honourable John Norquay, the first Indigenous premier of a Canadian province and namesake of Mount Norquay in Banff. He lived by the family motto: “Strong and all so faithful,” carrying that spirit through every chapter of his life. A gifted student and athlete, Garry twice earned the Governor General’s Academic Medal at St. John’s-Ravenscourt. Though offered a hockey scholarship to Princeton, he chose instead to attend Collège militaire royal de Saint-Jean, and later studied at the University of Manitoba. As a young boy, Garry spent his summers at Lake of The Woods and later raising his own family there. Lake Life revolved around sailing, waterskiing, cookouts and exploring the Lake in his beloved “Bones Boat,” a 1952 Chris Craft Sportsman. Garry’s career(s) were as varied as all other aspects of his life. As a territory representative for General Motors , stock broker for “The Guess Who,” GM dealership owner and a professional driver. Being a Truck Driver, connecting with people and listening to the Morningside Program hosted by Peter Gzowski on CBC Radio1 led Garry to the most fulfilling work of his life. Evident by the countless Alberta driver of the year awards and ultimately achieving two million miles accident free. For more than two decades, Garry volunteered transporting the Calgary Stampede mobile stage and he sat on the board of his Condominium Association. He was recognized for outstanding contributions and was quietly proud of his commitment to these organizations. Though he would downplay the role he played during his many volunteer endeavours, the instinct he had to connect with people was thematic throughout his life. This was noticeable in the significant impact he had on many in his community. Garry’s mind was sharp, he was a beautiful writer and a gifted poet. Above all else, He was the light in a room with a special twinkle in his eye and a wonderful smile. The family would like to thank each and every person on every medical team who supported them so incredibly on this brief journey. A special thanks to Dr. Al-Aquel and Dr. Oelschig in their respective capacities provided compassionate care. If so wished, a donation in Garry’s memory may be made to The Bomber Command Museum Of Canada in Nanton, AB. Garry will be laid to rest in the Norquay Plot at St. John’s Anglican Cathedral in Winnipeg.
Celebration of life notice for 2888 Ian McKee RR 1952
Pease join us for a celebration of Ian’s life Friday, May 2, at 2:00PM First Baptist Church 1300 Oxford St., Halifax, Nova Scotia. You can attend virtually at: Worship Online – First Baptist Church Halifax
Following the church service, a reception will be held at the Saraguay House at the Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron 2310 Purcells Cove Rd., from 3:30pm to 5:30pm.
All are welcome. For Ian’s full obituary see https://www.dignitymemorial.com/en-ca/obituaries/halifax-ns/ian-mckee-12128805