POLMEAR, Helen Louise

Love of so many, a china doll to all the Aunts, and a short stop with a heart twice her size left us and started a new journey.

Despite her celebratory 90th birthday last summer then moving into the Lakeside Lodge, where she had been thriving, Mom succumbed to a fall and pneumonia. As always, the staff at KGH provided the best of care.

Helen wore many hats within her family Mom will be lovingly remembered by her children, Tom (Pat), Gary (Donna), Larry (Wendy), Beverly, and Elizabeth (Roger).

Daughter to ‘Pete’ and Selina (Swift) Wakefield. Sister to Joan (Middleton), Lorraine (Simpson). Predeceased by brother Gordon and sister Shirley. Mom was also wife to her predeceased husband of fifty-one years, Kenneth James Polmear.

Helen leaves behind her grandchildren Bryan, Davis, Diana (Nate), Collin (Alisha), Chad (Tanya), Jayna, Karlee, Jeremy (Kate), Brandon (Beata) and Mitchell (Courtney), and great-grandchild Quinten.

Also missing her are several great-grandchildren, Salome, Ayra, Gabe, Leo, Nova, Ryder, Oliver, Jencie, Emmett, Malia, Carter, and Rory. Plus, an Aunt to numerous nieces and nephews.

Mom was born in 1935 in Smithers, BC. The family farm was in the beautiful Bulkley Valley near Telkwa. The Wakefields pioneered the land beginning in 1905.  Much later on, Helen met our father Ken in a one room school house at Quick, BC. Grandpa Jack Polmear, after farming in the valley for a decade and being a British veteran of WW1, moved Ken’s family to Victoria. Not only to farm in the area, but to re-enlist in the Canadian Home Guard during WW2. It was there where Ken met up once again with Helen, who had come to Victoria for Secretarial school. Going to work at the Naval base in Esquimalt. As you can see by the family list, the rest is history.

Ken’s work caused the family to move a number of times in the early sixties. From Vancouver Island to Burnaby/Port Moody and eventually settling in Kelowna, BC in 1963.

Being a country girl at heart, Helen loved camping, fishing, and gardening, as well as cooking. On Okanagan nights, when the day was cooling off, she could be found up late canning fruits and vegetables with a bit of help from one or two kids. Mom also liked swimming, making sure we all got lessons. Playing softball in her younger years was another favourite pastime.

Mom really loved large gatherings of family and friends, where her wonderful belly laugh was always on display. She would insist on putting ‘another potato in the pot’ for strangers, and the door was always open. Her empathy and huge heart was never ending. But then, if you ever got on her wrong side, the nickname ‘Helen-on-wheels’ truly meant something. She never appreciated those who punched down. Despite the work of raising her kids (one handicapped) Mom found time to give back to the community. Volunteering for United Way and supporting programs for those who were challenged. In the early years, some of these programs faced drastic cuts: The names went from Sunnyvale; to Kelowna and District Society for Community Living; then the creation of The Pathways Abilities Society came to be.

Helen’s wishes were to be cremated. There are plans for a community service at Springfield Funeral Home in early May, and plans are also being made for a Celebration of Life on August 16th.

We ask in lieu of flowers or gifts that you donate to Pathways Abilities Society (pathwayskelowna.ca) at 123 Franklyn Road, Kelowna, BC, V1X 3V4 or KGH Foundation (www.kghfoundation.com) at 2268 Pandosy Street, Kelowna, BC, V1Y 1T.