Age 96 of Victoria, died on May 7, 2014. Born in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, Helen was the eldest daughter of David and Agnes Fairbairn. Helen is survived by her sister, Janet of Boissevain, Manitoba, and her three children, Cameron (Mary) in Halifax, NS, Jeanne (Wayne Newell) in Melbourne, Australia and Charlotte (Christopher Saville Sneath) in Poole, England. She was predeceased by husband, Adam and brother, Bill. She is also survived by 5 grandchildren, Megan, Peta and Claire (Australia), Sydney (Canada), Nolan (US) and 4 great-grandchildren. Helen was raised during the great depression in Portage La Prairie before she became a nurse and met her husband in Winnipeg. As a family they lived in many places, including Dauphin, Manitoba, Nutley, NJ, Edmonton, Burnaby and finally Victoria from 1981. Helen was a very generous person who had a positive outlook on life, always looking forward and never back. She left her love of politics and sports to Cameron, her attention to, and love of family to Jeanne and her social connections and love of friends and family to Charlotte. Special thanks to the staff at Berwick House on Shelbourne St. who were so kind and helpful to her and to Dr. David Bell for his kind care over the many years.
A Celebration of Life Reception will be held at Sequoia Gardens Memorial, 4665 Falaise Drive, at 2:00 pm on Friday, May 30, 2014. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to Saanich Volunteer Services Society, McRae House, 1445 Ocean View Road, Victoria, BC, V8P 1J8. Condolences may be offered to the family below.
McCall Bros. Funeral Home
www.mccallbros.com
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Mary Louise (Robertson) Rust
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Jim Bell I was very sad to hear of Helen’s passing. Although I have not seen her for many years I still have many fond memories of her from the time she spent in Edmonton. Her friendship and support meant a lot to all our family. My mother considered her to be one of her dearest friends.
She was a wonderful lady who lived life with enthusiasm and enriched the lives of all around her.
On behalf of all our family I pass our greatest sympathy for your loss.
Jim Bell
Thinking of all of you on this beautiful sunny day. Quite appropriate for celebrating your mothers life. My fondest memories are of course of our family times together at Dauphin Beach, many games of kick the can, treasure hunts, golf, exploring etc. I can still see your Mom scrubbing away on that wash board in the back yard. And yes, Charlotte you are right, she did have a wonderful long happy life,