Peacefully, at home, on Wednesday, 5 November 2025 at the age of 72. Deborah is survived by her devoted partner of thirty-six years Kevin Smith, her loving daughter Paige Raibmon, and grand-daughters Asha and Trudy Raibmon all of Vancouver. She is also survived by her sister Barbara Messenger, niece Meggin Messenger, and great-nieces Tallis and Ellery Messenger-Ford, all of Victoria. Deborah bravely and gracefully faced the indignities of ALS during the final year and a half of her life.
Born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba by loving parents Carl Oscar and Paula (née Marlyn) Wandal, Deborah recalled a happy childhood in the North End and summers at Victoria Beach on Lake Winnipeg. The daughter of a plumber, Deborah was a brilliant student from a young age who remained proudly working class throughout her life. She graduated high school a year early and earned a B.A. (Honours) in English and Philosophy from the University of Manitoba. She studied ballet and learned to play the piano and fiddle.
Like her mother, Deborah had an abiding sense of wonder towards the world of nature, a searching curiosity, and appreciation of the well-written word and thoughtful insight. She was never happier than when she was out on a canoe trip, or hiking or cross-country skiing through deep woods. Never interested in consuming the newest things, she loved to rise to the challenge of creatively adapting old things to new uses. Her apartment was full of those things, as well as sunlight, good smells and great meals, the pleasures of books and music, and lots of love. Deborah maintained a small “carbon footprint” long before the term was coined. Never without reusable containers and shopping bags on hand, she commuted by bike into her seventies to various jobs and other places through rain, sleet, and snow. She was always fit and active, with a daily yoga and meditation practice, gym workouts, and regular 10K runs. A principled woman, Deborah wanted little for herself and much for the world, often speaking out in her day-to-day life against the social injustices she was quick to observe in her own surroundings. As Deborah herself said “My own values are grounded in a fundamental respect for difference and a commitment to recognize and challenge systemic disadvantage and its consequences.”
Deborah’s enormous intelligence, tireless work ethic, and compassionate heart meant she excelled at whatever task she turned her considerable energies towards. She chose a life of service, working over the years in multiple careers focused on social justice and helping others. But her earliest “careers” in her birthplace were as a dancer and instructor for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and a server and cook at a local greasy spoon and a Danish bistro. She moved to Toronto where she eventually enrolled in Osgoode Hall Law School. She excelled and then withdrew when she found her calling as an advocate at the Parkdale Legal Clinic. She spent over a decade in the non-profit sector, mostly with poverty-law clinics as a caseworker/organizer and later working to develop and implement fairer tenant law and policy. She spent another decade very involved with running “Another Story,” a Toronto bookstore that focuses on diversity, equity and social justice. While with the bookstore she presented workshops to teachers, helping them curate their collections, wrote annotated bibliographies that integrated the books into their curricula, and wrote reviews for Books in Canada. Animated by a lifelong love of learning, she enrolled mid-career in a master’s program in Environmental Studies at York University. Along the way, she found time to grow a bountiful garden, backpack in Europe, and hunt annually for spring ephemerals on the Bruce Trail. These joys and successes didn’t come easily. Deborah courageously struggled with depression for a good part of her life, and this struggle contributed to the making of her amazing character.
Deborah and her partner moved to Vancouver from Toronto sixteen years ago to be with her daughter (with whom she was overjoyed to reconnect in 2008 after giving her up for adoption in 1971), and to assist with raising her two wonderful granddaughters. There, she volunteered in multiple capacities: at her grand-daughters’ pre-school, teaching literacy at their elementary school, and at SAIL (Seniors Abuse and Information Line) where she answered calls from older adults experiencing legal issues or “elder abuse.” Recognizing the great need for support workers in the public school system, at the age of sixty-five she returned to school again to acquire certification as an Educational Assistant. She subsequently began her final career supporting the learning and life-skills needs of neurodiverse students in schools across Vancouver. Deeply devoted to the children she worked with, Deborah excelled in this role (as she had in so many others), until ALS forced her retirement in 2024.
We will miss Deborah’s attentive and empathetic ear, her energetic company on family trips, and the many signature dishes with which she nourished us. We will all remember her wonderful capacity to appreciate a pithy remark, “drink in” a powerful painting, beautiful sunset, winter Solstice sunrise, or view, or enjoy a well-made meal and a good laugh with loved ones. For these small things she was abundantly grateful. And we are grateful to have loved her and learned from her example.
At Deborah’s request cremation has taken place and no formal service will be held.
In lieu of flowers, donations in her name may be made to a charity that you feel aligns with Deborah’s values.
