Valerie Kathleen Epp

The only child of Eileen and Harold Walker, Valerie (“Val”) Kathleen Epp (nee Walker) was born in Edmonton, Alberta on March 2, 1952, and raised by her mother in Altona, Manitoba.

As a talented pianist and a beautiful young woman, Val was deemed Princess in the Sunflower Festival Queen contest and at the age of 17, she met Victor (“Vic”) Epp who became her best friend and the love of her life. After graduating from the St. Boniface School of Nursing, Val married Vic in 1973 and the two eventually moved to Morden, Manitoba where they were active and happy members of their community and church. In 1980, after welcoming their two children to the world, Val and Vic made the bold move to leave their community in Manitoba behind and moved to British Columbia to start a new adventure. Val continued working as a Registered Nurse at Abbotsford’s Regional Psychiatric Center (RPC) correctional facility (now the Pacific Institution/Regional Treatment Center) for many years before transitioning to a nursing position in the Psychiatric Unit at the former MSA Hospital. When Val told stories of her time at RPC, she would often start them with “when I was in prison” which always got a laugh. After winning Abbotsford’s ‘search for gold’ contest in the early 1990’s, Val took her family to California for the vacation her kids had been longing for. Val was always up for an adventure including the odd street race behind the wheel of Vic’s ’69 Barracuda, parasailing in Hawaii and opening an antique store. Val and Vic shared their love of music, boating, camping, tending to their beautiful yards and gardens and helping their kids with all manner of projects and renovations. In 2011, Vic was diagnosed with cancer and embarked on a journey of health issues before passing away in July of 2017. After courageously living with her broken heart, Val’s health began to decline, and she was hospitalized in January of 2022. It is with very heavy hearts that we say goodbye to this incredibly well-loved woman who peacefully passed away on February 12, 2022.

Val is survived by her daughter Robyn Lane (Christian), son Derek (Leah), grandchildren Hannah, Emma and Jayden, her cousin Susan Loeppky, who was like a sister to her, and her many in-laws. Val will forever be missed but we take comfort in knowing she is again with her one true love, Vic and their fur baby, Shaggy.

“The story of love is hello and goodbye… until we meet again.” – Jimi Hendrix

At Val’s request there will be no funeral, but to honour her we ask you all to take a moment to reflect on the happiest times of your lives with the hope they bring you comfort, joy and warm memories. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to your local SPCA or to a charity of your choice.