April 13, 1927 – October 6, 2021

With sadness but also gratitude for the life he shared with us, we announce the passing of our father Roger Hadland at Polson Extended Care in Vernon. Dad was born in Woodnorth, near Virden, Manitoba, to parents Arthur and Beatrice, but raised on a farm in Baldonnel, BC where the family homesteaded in 1928. Life there was challenging, especially through the Depression, but he had many happy memories of those years. He attended UBC from 1945 to 1949, graduating with a BSc in Agriculture. While there, he met his future wife Grace Macindoe whom he married on July 8, 1949. They settled onto their own farm in Baldonnel.

Roger’s health forced a number of moves over the next several years:  to Fort St. John and Yellowknife where he worked for the DOT in airport management, and Vancouver where he returned to UBC to earn a teaching certificate. In 1959 he began teaching in Lumby at Charles Bloom Secondary, then moved to Seaton Secondary in Vernon where he taught until his retirement in 1982. He served one term as President of the Vernon Teachers’ Association.

One year he took a leave of absence from teaching to sell real estate. Although he returned to teaching, he maintained a keen interest in real estate, often enjoying a Sunday drive while scouting out potential purchases.

In 1961 Grace and Roger built a home at Beachcomber Bay on Okanagan Lake, and there they spent many wonderful summers enjoying the beach, waterskiing, and entertaining company who came to share it with them. We all have fond memories of Dad cooking pancakes or burgers on his cast iron griddle over a wood fire on the beach.  He maintained beautiful flower beds and a large, incredibly productive vegetable garden that fed our family much of the year.

With their children in high school, Grace’s and Roger’s interests shifted to horses and hobby farming, resulting in moves to the Coldstream and later Armstrong.  Dad loved his animals; he was truly a farmer at heart. After retiring, he began golfing, and with Grace, was a member of Spallumcheen Golf and Country Club for 30 years. Winters usually found them in Hawaii, Palm Springs, Mexico or Portugal where they golfed nearly every day.  They also travelled to Great Britain, New Zealand, and Australia, and especially enjoyed cruising to Hawaii, Alaska, Europe, the Caribbean, and the Panama. In 1992 they moved back to Vernon.

Beyond his family, his greatest passion was hockey! Go Maple Leafs! He never missed an opportunity to watch or listen to an NHL game – or “talk hockey.”

Dad was a wonderful man – kind, caring, humble, and thoughtful – and always a gentleman. He will be dearly missed by those he leaves to mourn his passing: son Grant (Maurlice); Elaine Pybus; Janet (Fred) Manson; grandchildren Sarah, Marissa, Andrew, Scott, Kathryn, Rebecca, Nadine, Elizabeth; and nine great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his wife Grace in August, 2019, his brothers Austin and Richard, and son-in-law David Madison.

The family wishes to express its gratitude to the many staff at Polson Extended Care who so kindly cared for Roger in his final years, and to Dr. Tim Gilhooly for his care over many years. Roger was cremated and a celebration of his life will be held in 2022. In his memory, donations to the Heart and Stroke Foundation would be gratefully received.

 

Funeral Arrangements have been entrusted to Pleasant Valley Funeral Home,

Phone: 250-542-4333

Condolences may be offered at www.pleasantvalleyfh.com