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Barbara Arlene Kingswell (nee Law)

March 15, 2021

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November 27, 1930 - March 15, 2021
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our mom, Barbara Arlene Kingswell on Monday, March 15, 2021.
Mom was predeceased by her husband, Bill; her first son, Craig; grandsons, Matthew and Zachary; and great grandson, Damian. Barbara is survived by her children, Neil, Ian, Susan, Penelope (Bob), and Elizabeth (Colin); grandchildren, Calum, Gavin, Bryce, Alexandra, Samara, Taneesha, and Mackenzie; great grandchildren, Adison, Chloee, Jack, Hayley, and Oakley; brother, Dave (June); cousin, Mattie (Bill); and many extended family members and friends.
Barb was born and raised in Birmingham, England where, as a young woman, she joined the WRENS. It was during this time that she would meet her future husband, Bill.
In 1955, they came to Canada along with their son, Neil. Twelve years later in 1967, mom and dad packed up the family, which now included five children, and moved to British Columbia. Here they lived in a number of different communities and enjoyed many happy times.
In 1975, they relocated once more to the Yukon Territory where mom began her career as a Special Child Care Worker. 1979 saw them returning to Vancouver Island where mom continued her work with the children. It was during this time that mom developed a lifelong love of big dogs starting with Jackson, and her Newfoundlanders, Dhobie and Dani.
In her later and last years, mom filled her time with her family, her dogs, her bears, and in the backyard gardening.
Here are some thoughts and words from Barb's younger brother David.

My sister Barbara and I for most our lives lived far apart, due to different careers and circumstances. Yet whether she and her family were living in The Yukon and I was living in New York, or she was stationed with her husband Bill at Shearwater air base in Dartmouth, N.S. and I was working on a newspaper in London, England, we kept in touch across the thousands of miles.
So it was in these last years, and in these last days of her life in Parksville - my family and I in Halifax, N.S. and both of us linked by phone or e-mail or text. However I visited Vancouver Island several times over the decades, the last being the fall of 2019. Barbara and her family ended up caring for me after my hospitalization in Nanaimo - a rather unlucky tourist far from home - but we still shared tales of long ago.
Barbara's jolly laughter, her sense of service to her community, her love for and from her extended family, will be part of what remains of my own life. Scenes spring to mind from Birmingham, from southern England, rural Nova Scotia, and our adopted homeland's West Coast. Good times, eh Barb?
She will be dearly missed by all.
A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date.

To send a condolence to the family please visit www.yatesmemorial.ca
Yates Memorial Services
250-248-5859
"Lives Cherished and Celebrated"
Yates Memorial Services


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