February 13, 1931 - April 15, 2024
A loving wife and mother, world traveller, gifted athlete and great beauty, Dee passed away on 15 April following an extended period of frail health. Dee's life was her family.
Born in London, Ontario, Dee spent her early years in California and Vancouver where her father Gilbert, an engineer, worked in mining and civil projects. Following the untimely early death of her mother Moira in 1940 by a stroke, the family returned to London where Dee resided until her marriage in 1953.
Dee married twice. Her first marriage ended in tragedy when her husband, Lieutenant Neil Anderson, a Canadian Army officer, was killed in a flying accident in August 1954 while attached to the United States Air Force in Korea. The marriage produced a son, Neil junior, who was born in October 1954.
Dee's grief was assuaged when she met Frank Clegg, also a dashing army officer, in 1957. They married in 1958 and prospered together until Frank's death in September 2021.
Frank and Dee had two children, Shelagh in 1959 and Geoffrey in 1966. Typical of army life, the Clegg family lived all over Canada and in Germany (1962-65), and in 1971 returned to Vancouver, they eventually relocated to Chilliwack, where they lived until 2020.
A gifted athlete, Dee was eliminated in the final Canadian heat in 1950 for the 100 Freestyle woman's swimming race. Her defeat meant she did not travel to Auckland to compete in the British Empire Games, a lingering regret, and a good story, for the rest of her life. A gifted golfer, her swing was "poetry in motion". With Frank, she enjoyed golf visits to the USA and Mexico in later life
Predeceased by her husband Frank (2021) and her siblings Peter (2014) and Maureen (2023), Dee is survived by her brother Andrew (aged 96), children (Neil and Tina, Shelagh, and Geoffrey and Janelle), three grandchildren and a great-granddaughter.
We shall miss her in all our remaining days.
We will hold a Celebration of Life in the early summer and will reach out soon to family and friends to confirm details.