Dale Young

Dale Young, loving mother and grandmother, died peacefully with family by her side six weeks before her 90th birthday.

Dale is survived by her daughters Joan Young (Ford Macdonald), Carol Young and sister Marion Krupka. She was predeceased by her son David, grandson Adam, former spouse John and former partner Al. Dale leaves behind grandchildren Jessica Leblanc (James McDermott), Denise Maude (Glenn Maude), Joshua Varley, and great grandchildren Brodie, Ciara, Justin and Jaylean as well as her good friend Gavin Hearn.

Born overseas in London, England to John English and Olivia (Belcher) English while her father served as Canada's Trade Commissioner to Great Britain, Dale lived in many locations throughout the world including Johannesburg, Washington, DC, Ottawa, Montreal, and Sarawak, Borneo, until she eventually made BC her home living in Keremeos, Campbell River, Cobble Hill and Victoria.

Dale was exceptionally intelligent, strong, and determined. She graduating high school at age 16. She was not content to follow the expected path for a young woman in the early 1950s and instead attended McGill University (BA 1955) where she got very involved in the student newspaper moving from cub reporter to being the first female Managing Editor of the McGill Daily Newspaper. After graduation she worked for Montreal's Weekend Magazine as an editor 1955-1959 while concurrently doing all the coursework (less one credit) to obtain a B.Sc in Zoology. In 1959, she met her future husband John while he was working in Borneo under the Columbo Plan and she was editing an article for Weekend Magazine about him. In a whirlwind romance, she flew to Singapore solo where they first met at the famous Raffles Hotel. A few weeks later they were engaged and then married in Hong Kong with a honeymoon in Egypt. She spent the next several years with John in the jungles of Borneo working with the "Headhunters of Borneo" where she learned to speak Dayak and spent her days teaching, nursing, providing medical care, and delivering babies.

She and John returned to Canada in 1961. Moving to Keremeos, then to Campbell River where John was principal of CARIHI, Dale was her own force in the community. In these heady days of the 1960s, Dale was very involved with the social justice movement and women's liberation, Greenpeace, UNICEF, Oxfam and the hospital auxiliary. After a move to Victoria where she and John divorced, she started up a new life becoming Newport Realty's first nominee, then opening her own real estate agency Red Rose Realty until she was no longer able to work due to the disabling effects of multiple sclerosis, which took her ability to walk and left her hands constantly numb. Dale was undeterred by her disability serving as a longtime volunteer on the Camosun College Board (2-terms), MS Society, Governor of the Real Estate Institute, editor of the Lower Island News for over 25 years, NDP volunteer, Victoria constituency riding member, and long-term strata council member.

Despite her physical limits, it never defined her and she lived life to the fullest remaining at home to the end.

She led her life with integrity, honesty, courage, and a strong commitment to social justice. She loved murder mysteries, talking politics with her "Red Hens", world affairs, Siamese cats, gardening, the CBC/PBS, and a donut over coffee with her daughters. She never stopped being curious.

She is terribly missed by her family and good friends who knew and loved her. A Celebration of Dale's extraordinary life will be held in August. Contact: joan.young@shaw.ca for details. Donations to MS Canada in lieu of flowers.