Obit Vinek with picture Richard Steven Vinek, of Cold Lake, Alberta was born on February 14, 1935 in Big Beaver (Bengough), Sask. and passed away on July 29, 2004 in Cold Lake, Alberta at the age of 69 years.
Richard is predeceased by his father: Hans Vinek in 1960. He is lovingly survived by his wife: Mary of Cold Lake, Alberta; three sons: Steve (Shannon) Vinek of Cold Lake, Alberta; Gary Vinek of Courtnay, B.C.; Bob (Jeanette) Vinek of Kelowna, B.C.; two daughters: Kathy (Gordon) Rose of Roseburg, Oregon, USA; Marie (Gary) Hargrove of Ottawa, Ontario; his mother: Myrtle Cummings of Bengough, Sask.; two brothers: John (Rose) Vinek of Lloydminster, Sask.; Wayne Vinek of Moose Jaw, Sask.; Four sisters: Viola (Russell) Hillier of Moose Jaw, Sask.; Ilien (Bob) Boyachek of Portage La Prairie, Manitoba; Doreen (Wally) Berg of Dawson Creek, B.C.; Sandra (Terry) Johnson of Calgary, Alberta; six grandchildren: Jennifer, Amanda, and Laura Rose; Cole and Tyson Vinek; Chad Hargrove. As well as numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
It is with a fair degree of sadness that I am called to deliver the eulogy for my older brother Richard, most often called Dick by his friends and Mary. I was also honoured when asked by Mary to deliver this eulogy.
I'm going to begin by reading parts of Richard's own life story that he prepared for the Big Beaver History Book in 1983.
As young as I was I can still remember the dust storms we used to have. The old storm cellar on the east hill was used quite frequently. All my brothers and sisters and I would be herded into it by our mother when the bad storm, lightning, and wind would threaten. Times were tough and extremely hard on our parents, whom we love and thank for getting us through those years.
One memory I'll never forget, and am not proud of, happened in February, 1944. We had no snow that winter and the prairie grass was very dry. On the way home from the old Ipsley Mound School, a friend and I were fooling around with matches. We started a fire that went up the valley, going through fields and burning straw piles. It jumped Highway 34 and took people from miles around to get it under control. It was a terrible experience!
The friend was Albert Volke. Albert writes in the history book. "My first day of school I walked in one door and out the other – next day Father walked behind me to school with a stick. When Richard saw Mr. Volke he thought it was Mr. Gus Fellmann coming to beat them with a stick, as a lot of the burned fields and grass were his. Richard ran into the school shouting Gus is coming, Gus is coming.
Our younger brother Wayne was not able to be present as he works all summer at a secluded forest fire observation station in Northern Alberta. But he has offered these comments to be read in his absence. Actually Wayne and I shed a few tears on the phone while talking about Richard.
"I would very much like to be here in person, but where I am in the Fire Tower, which has to be manned every day and I'm Helicoptered in and out. So please accept my condolences for now and I will pay my personal respects in the fall. I cannot even send my son Darren as he is in Dawson City, Yukon fighting forest fires."
"I see my older brother as a tough Grizzly Bear on the outside but inside a mild pussycat. I have many fond memories, like when he used to come home from Portage La Prairie to help harvest on the farm. And the times when he would come visit in Moose Jaw, and how a salmon from the Pacific Ocean found it's way onto the barbecue, and oh yes, you only turn the salmon one time. He'll be sadly missed by Brother Wayne and family."
"This spring I stopped in for a visit on my way to the Fire Tower in Slave Lake. It was a short visit and he asked if I would stop on my way out and I said I would and I still will only now I will look for him in a different like." - Wayne's message.
When Richard worked on the railroad CPR from age 16 to 19 us younger kids would catch a ride with him to and from school. This was ideal as he worked till 5:00 p.m. so we could stay in town for 1 1/2 hours after school.
He had a 1939 Ford Coupe with suicide doors. Next he bought a new 1953 Ford pickup truck, cherry red in colour. When he joined the Air Force at age 19 he sold the truck to our father. So now us younger kids could ride and drive in the new truck.
Early on in his air force career he was posted to France. Richard, Mary and daughter Kathy and twins spent 3 1/2 years in Europe. They lived in Belgium and Richard crossed the border each day to work in France. Their son Gary was born in France and as an infant he became very ill with spinal meningitis. This was a very difficult time and they had trouble finding an English speaking doctor and dealing with a foreign health system. So when Mary became pregnant with their youngest son Bob, Richard requested his posting be reduced by six months so that Bob could be born in Canada. The little Vinek children were actually bilingual when they returned to Canada.
During the few years they were in Europe the military Padre had to deliver bad news, as both our father Hans Vinek, and grandfather Emery Scott passed away. When the Padre came to the house a third time Richard said, "just cut the preamble, who is it this time? The third time it was Mary's father who had died.
I always looked up to and admired my older brother Richard as he was older and wiser and did a lot of things, acquired a lot of stuff and travelled to a lot of far off places. In talking with his children and Mary a lot of our sentiments and feelings are quite mutual.
Oldest daughter Kathy shared these comments. Their Dad was always very generous and liked to help them out in many ways. He also offered to help others. He didn't need to be asked he just did it.
Richard was a great storyteller. He loved to socialize and be in a group of people and tell stories. This story telling ability likely came from our mother's side of the family. The Scott's were all storytellers so Richard either had to copy or compete with his Scott Uncles around story telling. He could tell some good ones and like Kathy said he could take something unusual about the days events and make it funny yet interesting.
Youngest son Bob tells of the time his dad was hauling some hogs up to Merville on Vancouver Island and he got a flat tire. While changing the tire somehow the hogs got loose on the highway. Bob has heard the story many times yet can't remember how the hogs were rounded up again or if they ran away into the forest.
Richard loved to hunt. He went on many week long hunting trips with friends to hunt big game.
Richard loved his family very much and later his grandchildren. His children all lived very far away, with only Stephan and Shannon and sons Cole and Tyson living in Cold Lake. So telephone calls were there way of staying in touch and never missed calling on their birthdays. He always knew what the grandchildren were doing and was proud to tell of their achievements.
Kathy says it seems like her dad was always gathering and cutting wood to burn in the winter. Wood gathering started with the boys and later the grandchildren would help. Richard and Mary liked to go to dances especially at Alexander Hall. Richard always included any widows at their tables in the evening of dancing.
Kathy says her dad was not a very fancy guy. He did not take himself too serious but he never sat around much, he was always building, fixing or puttering around with something. It was important for Richard to be working and productive. More recently it was taking the dog, the cat and the pet goat for a walk. Cole and Tyson heard from friends on the school bus that they had seen this old guy walking a cat, a dog, and a goat. "That's our Grandpa" they said.
One of his resourceful achievements was importing a 1957 Ford 4 door when they returned from Europe. He modified a roof top carrier for that car and Richard and Mary and their four children travelled all across Canada. He later made this 57 Ford into a truck by cutting off the roof at the back. Back then Rancheros were popular so Richard had a modified Ranchero with two side doors to the truck box.
He later sold a young couple this old 57 modified truck for $40 as they were in need of a vehicle. Turned out they had lived in the Comox acreage before Richard and Mary bought the car.
Richard's work career included several types of work Age 16 - 19 Railway section man; Age 19 - 45 Airframe Technician in the Air Force; Retired 1980 from Airforce after 26 years; His goal when he joined the Airforce was to retire after twenty-five years at a young age of 45.
In 1982 Mary and Richard moved to Medicine Hat and ended up managing the apartment block they lived in. The owner said, run it like you own it. So one of the first thing she did was lower all the rents, as a lot of repairs were required.
Also while in Medicine Hat he drove a truck hauling water for oil rigs. Bob rode along one day near Christmas in -30° weather and everything was freezing up. That day they only made four trips instead of the usual ten trips. Richard's comment at the end of the day to Bob was that this is how, not to do it. He also worked on Highway construction, twinning highway #1 from Medicine Hat to the Saskatchewan border.
In 1985 they moved back to Cold Lake and Richard spent a couple of years hauling crude oil to Edmonton.
About 1987 Richard started working for Northwest Industries where he used his Airforce trade doing airframe technician work again for a private contractor to the Airforce.
About 1997 he started to work at the Grande Center Ski Hill, running the chair lift. He really enjoyed this as grandsons' Cole and Tyson were frequent customers at the ski hill. They kept him on longer than he wanted to work at the ski hill, as he was one of the few with the proper ticket to run the equipment. Richard finally retired at about age 63 and then did more travelling. In 2001 Richard and Mary travelled by car across Canada to Gander Newfoundland. Actually they were in Gander on September 11th when the World Trade Center was bombed in New York. Then in 2002 they headed for Alaska and toured the Yukon again by car.
Bob says his dad was notorious for showing up unannounced. In 1993 they drove all the way to London Ontario to visit Mary's brother and showed up without any warning. Bob says when he was attending University of B.C. he came home and there was his dad. He also showed up a few times unannounced when Bob lived in Powell River.
Richard and Mary would have been married 47 years this November 3rd.
Richard's life style was occasionally hard on this body and the last few years he has had major surgeries, been on multiple medications, plus had failing eyesight and we could see his health was slowly deteriorating, yet dying was not in his plans. When Rose and I visited them two weeks ago after the Air Show he did not complain. He still told a few good stories and talked of his grandchildren's achievements and Bob and Jeanette's upcoming marriage on October 16th. He also talked of visiting us and another trip to visit mother in Bengough this fall. They had just bought a new Buick in anticipation of travelling. The acreage was listed for sale and an apartment rented for August 31st.
Like brother Wayne says he was the tough guy right to the end and he went his way. "Richard is not dead - but flying higher. Higher than he's flown before, and earthly limitations will hinder him no more."
The Funeral Service was held on Wednesday, August 4, 2004 at 2:00 p.m. at Cold Lake Legion Branch 211, Cold Lake, Alberta with Reverend Darryl Levy officiating. Last Post by Sgt. Jeff Gay, Reveille by Sgt. Jeff Gay and Piper's Lament by Sgt. Chris Yeo. Cremation followed the Funeral Service.