Tribute

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Pearl Davis. Pearl was born in Plain Lake, Alberta in July 1926; she grew up on a farm in Two Hills, with 14 siblings. Ukrainian was her first language, but she spoke English most of her life. Growing up she enjoyed school where she learned to play the violin, the mandolin and the accordion. Her best friend on an adjacent farm was deaf, so Pearl learned sign language. She also loved to play and watch softball – softball is the reason she ended up with dentures! After the war, she came to Powell River to visit one of her sisters who lived here. At a dance at the Lund Hall, she met Bob and they married on June 29, 1949. They set up house at the Shinglemill and Dallas was born in February 1953. Bob bought the old laundry there, de-constructed it and used the lumber to build a small house on Manson Ave, about one kilometre from his mom’s house. In December 1957, Shirley was born and approximately four years later, Bob bought a corner lot on a muddy Ontario Ave and built what was one of the first homes in the area. Bob and Pearl spent many hours working in the vegetable garden during the spring and summer months and they enjoyed sharing a cold beer on a hot summer day. In the fall, they enjoyed collecting and chopping wood together for the winter months. The family has many memories of fresh vegetables and fruit from the garden. In August and September, it was a joy to have some of Pearl’s Borscht with beets and dill from the garden. She always suggested topping it with a dollop of sour cream. There was always lots of sour cream in our house! The goodies continued into the fall and winter as she did lots of canning and pickling. Dill pickles, with lots of garlic were a favourite! There was lots of garlic in our house, too. In the spring, she would also spend days preparing an authentic Ukrainian Easter dinner with easter bread; she was a good baker and made fresh bread weekly. She also always had candy for the neighbourhood kids. And as always, she kept the house spotless! Her hair was also something she took meticulous care of, as this was one of the first things Bob noticed about her when they met. Some summer holidays were spent in Ladner, Vegreville, Edmonton and Prince Albert, where Bob’s family was from. Dallas and Shirley had lots of cousins to meet! After Bob passed in January 2019, it quickly became apparent how much her dementia had progressed. Not long after this, she suffered a stroke, paralyzing her right side and went to the Evergreen Extended Care, after a long stay at the hospital. She never lost her sense of humour, kindness, generosity or her graciousness, for which we are grateful. She leaves behind two children, Dallas and Shirley, and two grandchildren, Maranda (Bob) and Rob (Alicia). We would like to thank everyone from the Ontario Avenue/Field Street neighbourhood for all their love and support over the years – she adored you. We would also like to thank Dr. Awopetu and the staff at the hospital, as well as the staff at the ECU who took such great care of Pearl throughout the last three years. She loved you all and we are deeply grateful.