Obituary for Dorothy Evelyn Bakker
Dorothy Evelyn Bakker (Dot), daughter of Albert and Mabel Menchions, sister of George was born September 28, 1933 in Vancouver, BC. On September 20, 2019, she quietly slipped out of bed, put on her best dancing shoes and climbed into the arms of her loving husband Richard (Dick) who has been waiting for her these past 7 years. She left this world bravely and with dignity and had the wonderful opportunity to tell us all she loved us and would miss us...such a lovely thought. We in turn were able to hug her, tell her we loved her and thank her for the role she played in keeping family at the forefront of her life.
Mom's greatest legacy will be that love of family and friends and all of the intricate details the swirled around all of us, our children and their children. She was complex and sometimes found life difficult but had the love and support of a dedicated husband and a caring family. In addition she had an amazing cadre of best girlfriends who remained an important part of her life whom she gathered in early childhood, elementary school, high school and teacher’s college. So dear were these women to her that on her last day she was thinking of all them and how she wanted to leave this world on par with most of the, so she said to me ....”when you do my obituary, write that I was 86 not 85, most of my friends are 86 and I want it to show I was the same". We laughed and said Mom, most people want to fudge on the younger side of things but she wouldn't hear of it, such was her love and connection to her life-long friends. As I write this Mom, your 86th will be tomorrow so in my tardiness in writing, your wishes will come true and you will be 86 when I post this.
Mom was a teacher in her early life, raised a family of 4 and then returned to teaching in an ESL role working with new immigrants and their children as she taught adults at night and then moved into the regular school system Teaching English as a Second Language. She was one of the early ESL teachers in School District #43 who played an important role for so many kids from all over the world as she was their first contact in embracing and learning a new language. Some have reached out to me and told me how much her kindness and efforts changed their lives as they moved into their new communities.
She and Dad retired to the Okanagan and had 20 wonderful years there right up until the day Dad passed suddenly in 2012. She reluctantly returned to The Coast but losing Dad left a deep hole in her heart that none of us were able to fill. Compounding that in the past few years were several falls resulting in serious injuries, followed by double pneumonia and then cancer. Her physical strength surprised us as she bounced back from all of these setbacks but cumulatively each challenge was a blow that diminished her light and made it impossible for her to carry on after falling again in August. Enough is enough she said.
We love you Mom and will miss you dearly.
There will be no service as per her request but the family will gather at some point in the future to share stories and reflect on her life. In lieu of flowers, donations to any charity of your choice would make her happy.
Mom's greatest legacy will be that love of family and friends and all of the intricate details the swirled around all of us, our children and their children. She was complex and sometimes found life difficult but had the love and support of a dedicated husband and a caring family. In addition she had an amazing cadre of best girlfriends who remained an important part of her life whom she gathered in early childhood, elementary school, high school and teacher’s college. So dear were these women to her that on her last day she was thinking of all them and how she wanted to leave this world on par with most of the, so she said to me ....”when you do my obituary, write that I was 86 not 85, most of my friends are 86 and I want it to show I was the same". We laughed and said Mom, most people want to fudge on the younger side of things but she wouldn't hear of it, such was her love and connection to her life-long friends. As I write this Mom, your 86th will be tomorrow so in my tardiness in writing, your wishes will come true and you will be 86 when I post this.
Mom was a teacher in her early life, raised a family of 4 and then returned to teaching in an ESL role working with new immigrants and their children as she taught adults at night and then moved into the regular school system Teaching English as a Second Language. She was one of the early ESL teachers in School District #43 who played an important role for so many kids from all over the world as she was their first contact in embracing and learning a new language. Some have reached out to me and told me how much her kindness and efforts changed their lives as they moved into their new communities.
She and Dad retired to the Okanagan and had 20 wonderful years there right up until the day Dad passed suddenly in 2012. She reluctantly returned to The Coast but losing Dad left a deep hole in her heart that none of us were able to fill. Compounding that in the past few years were several falls resulting in serious injuries, followed by double pneumonia and then cancer. Her physical strength surprised us as she bounced back from all of these setbacks but cumulatively each challenge was a blow that diminished her light and made it impossible for her to carry on after falling again in August. Enough is enough she said.
We love you Mom and will miss you dearly.
There will be no service as per her request but the family will gather at some point in the future to share stories and reflect on her life. In lieu of flowers, donations to any charity of your choice would make her happy.