May 28, 1932 Helsinki, Finland to Jan. 19, 2014 Victoria, Canada.

A good and gentle man, a proud Finn, a faithful follower of Jesus Christ, Paul died in peace at Victoria Hospice.  He is sadly missed by wife Deirdre, children Heidi (Craig), Jari (Kaija), Katrina, and step daughter Erica (Dylan) as well as sisters Inge and  Kristina (Sweden) and Rode (Finland) and grandchildren and great grandchildren in Canada.  He was predeceased by father Nestor Blomkvist, mother Tynna Keinanen, and sister Lisbet Virtanen.

Paul came to Canada in the 1950s, working first in mining, then opening Paul’s Bakery in Sault Ste. Marie before being called by his Lord to work for seniors.  When in his 30’s, he upgraded himself from Gr. 9 to a Masters in Social Work and began work as a nursing home administrator.  He developed seniors housing in Ontario, Saskatchewan and BC for not-for-profit boards.  His family is proud of all he accomplished, although he did his work for the glory of God.

Grateful thanks to Dr. T. Rosenberg, Dr. E. Swiggum, Dr. E. Fretz, Heather and the Home Care Nurses as well as to the kind and caring staff of Hospice Victoria, the Red Cross Loan Cupboard, and Pastors A. Hewlett and D. Fuller of the Open Gate Church and Pastor Jukka Joensuu of Emmaus Finnish Lutheran Church.

Memorial Service to be held at Grace Lutheran Church, 1273 Fort Street, Victoria on Thursday, March 6, 2014 at 11:30 a.m. followed by a private family inurnment at Royal Oak Burial Park.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the charity of your choice or to Threshhold Ministries/Victoria StreetHope, 105 Mountain View Drive, St. John, New Brunswick E2J 5B5.

McCall Bros. Funeral Home
www.mccallbros.com

 

  • celia chassels

    To Deirdre and Katrina and Erica and all our Western family. The Chassels of Ontario all had the privilege of meeting Paul on several occasions. He was delightful and wonderful to be with. His dry Scandinavian humour was a constant delight to us, and we loved to debate world issues and spiritual interests with him. His baking was such a wonderful and generous example of his spirit. He did so much good in the world, and was the ideal supportive family guy. . His work was especially valuable for the disadvantaged. He will surely have had a blessed journey to the his creator. We all wish we could be there to support Deirdre but we know there are many friends there for her. Lots of love and thoughts from Celia, Ian, Jeremy, John Peter, Cameron and Rob. The Cousins from Ontario.

  • thea nation

    dearest Dierdre, i wanted to tell you i am thinking of you after seeing your husband’s obit in the paper.You have been caregiving for such a long time now , starting with your dad, then your mum and most recently your husband. It required a lot of heart work and hard work and i take my hat off to you.May he rest in peace and you as well knowing what a wonderful job you have done with each and every one. much love thea nation

  • Linda Mooney

    Hi Dierdre, I was sad to hear of your loss.

    Paul was such a wonderful man. I felt honoured to have had the chance to travel with you two in Israel and so glad that he was able to go. He was such a blessing. His love and support of Israel was heartwarming.

    God by with you.

    Love and blessings,

    Linda

  • Cathy and Alan Coode

    Dear Deirdre and Family,
    We thank our God that we got to know Paul in Saskatoon and then continued our friendship with him on visits to BC. He was a wonderful person and he will be missed. Your and his help when our son was rowing for Junior Canada in Victoria was greatly appreciated and it left an indelible mark with David – especially when it came to investing! Paul’s memory will remain with us as a gentle and wise friend and we share with you his loss.
    Our love is offered to you and your family.
    Till we meet again, Cathy and Alan

  • David Valentine

    Diedre;

    My thoughts and prayers are with you. Remember the good memories and they will help you through this terrible time!

    David

  • Sylvia and David Sinclair

    We were so sorry to see of Paul’s passing! Sincere condolences to you, Dierdre and family.

  • Erick Hinton

    I Pray for Peace for all of Paul’s family and friends.

  • wendy lloyd

    Paul was a wonderful brother-in-law, so easy to get along with-we always enjoyed being with him. when visiting our home, He was a helpful visitor and on his last visit, spent a long time sitting at my counter, sharpening all my dull knives! Of course, his poola was such a treat and he always blessed me with a loaf when he saw me. Then there were his imaginative salads and yummy casseroles. A gentle and spiritual person, paul will be missed!

  • Fiona Delargy

    Dierdre,
    We are so sorry for your loss. Meg and I have you in our thoughts and prayers at this sad time. Sad that we never got to meet your Paul.
    With love,
    Fiona & Meg

  • Lucy and Jack Schembre

    Dear Deidre and family

    Once again, on behalf of my family, my sincere sympathy. It’s never easy to lose someone we love. The truth is, you never lost him. He will always be with you in spirit. May God be with you through this very difficult journey. He sounds like a wonderful man, we are sorry we have not had the opportunity of meeting him, one day we will when we meet in our Father’s home. However, we will meet you soon and look forward to it. Take care Deidre. God is good.

  • Laurel DeGruchy

    Dear Deirdre and family,
    We were so sorry to hear about Paul. Such an encouraging man of God, when he prayed it really felt like he was touching God’s heart. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.
    Love from Laurel & David

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