March 29, 1922 - February 25, 2019
Ercyl was born Mar 29,1922 in a farmhouse in Saltcoats, Saskatchewan to parents Ken and Winifred. To escape the dark times of the depression in Saskatchewan the family including sisters Audrey and Gloria headed west in 1934 eventually settling on a small farm on Unsworth Rd in Chilliwack. Here the family enjoyed rural life of mixed farming.
At age 17 Ercyl joined the navy and served from 1939 - 1945 in WWII. Returning to Chilliwack after Navy life he worked at various jobs until getting steady work at Orion Bowman & Son sawmill. Ercyl was a logging Truck driver and loved it. Since he was a fast learner and good with his hands many duties in the maintenance shop were also passed his way. He eventually met a young good looking bookkeeper, Rita Enns who also worked at the mill. They married and enjoyed over 50 yrs together.
After the sawmill was sold to Cattermole Timber in the early 70's, Ercyl drove truck for Jim Webster for many years. He would occasionally pull a few loads for Westform to various northern BC locations
Rita unfortunately passed in late 2010 and Ercyl shortly after moved to Hampton House where he resided for nearly 8 yrs. From there he could easily walk to the A&W every day to to enjoy coffee and friends. During this time, he met and became good friends with Delores enjoying many coffee dates together. With health beginning to fail Ercyl moved to the Glenwood Seniors residence in Agassiz in late 2018. Here he was well attended to but passed away peacefully Feb 25, 1 month short of his 97th birthday.
Ercyl was predeceased by his wife Rita, parents Ken & Winifred and siblings Audrey and Howard. Survived by sister Gloria, daughter Lynda, granddaughter Becci, 2 great grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews and sisters-in-law Bernie and Hardy Enns and Ted and Muriel Enns. Sadly, daughter Lynda passed away one day after Ercyl. He was very appreciative of friendship and support provided by Delores and nephew Bill.
Ercyl had a good, long interesting life, proud of his career driving truck and ability to make necessary repairs as needed. Following retirement Ercyl and Rita logged many trips in their travel trailer and enjoyed time spent at Birch Bay. They also enjoyed holidays to warm destinations and cruising. He spent a lot of time in his little shop being Mr Fix-it or assisting Rita entertaining friends.
Thanks to the home support staff at Fraser Health and also staff at both Hampton house and Glenwood Seniors residence. Your sincere help was greatly appreciated. There will be no service or memorial by request. No flowers please. If so desired donations can be made to #4 branch of the Royal Canadian Legion on Main St in Ercyl's name.