Dorothy O Buckley

Dorothy O. Buckley

Our dear Mother, Grandmother, and Great-Grandmother, Dorothy Buckley, went to be with her Lord and Saviour on December 13, 2023, peacefully while at home.  She had reached 100 years of age and was due to celebrate her 101^st in less than 3 weeks. 

Born in Sheffield, England in 1923, Dorothy was the elder of two children.  As a teenager, she met Tom Buckley while riding the same bus to different schools in Sheffield.  They kept in touch intermittently during the Second World War in which Tom served as an RAF pilot and, not to be outdone, Dorothy served in the Women’s Royal Navy Service - affectionately known as the WRENS.  The war years were challenging with hardships such as food rationing and enemy bombing raids.  Dorothy’s job involved sending naval personnel to their assignments around the world.  Tom and Dorothy were eventually reunited after both were demobilized at the end of the war and were married in 1950. Sons, Paul, and John were born in England, before Tom and Dorothy elected to emigrate to Canada in 1954, where daughters Gillian and Jane were later born.

Although Dorothy had taught for a few years as a primary school teacher in England, once her family started, her main role became that of a full-time mother to four active children.  Much later, when the family was living for a time in South America, Dorothy was forced to reprise her role as teacher to her children, as there were no suitable schools nearby.  Her son John often joked that it was at that time that she nearly ruined his career as a mathematician by teaching him that “pi” was a rational number. 

Tom and Dorothy had adventurous spirits which led them to many different locations as Tom’s career advanced.  Their most intrepid step was made early in their marriage when they decided to make a better life for their family by moving to Canada.  Over the years they lived in Sheffield, England; Toronto, Ontario; Guyana, South America; Barbados; back to Toronto; West Vancouver; and Regina, Saskatchewan.  The pair eventually settled for about thirty years in Tsawwassen, BC., before finally moving to Richmond in 2000.

During this time, Dorothy was active in the churches which she attended and in which she served.  Her love of teaching was evident as she ministered as a Sunday School superintendent and led numerous women’s Bible Studies over the years.

Dorothy’s time in Tsawwassen was among the happiest of her life.  She and Tom were avid gardeners, and she spent many satisfying hours tending to the roses and other flowers in their delightful gardens.  They had also installed a beautiful swimming pool which, set among the gardens, turned her backyard into an oasis.  She spent many happy hours enjoying these surroundings with her children and grandchildren, most of whom learned to swim there.   Much fun and frivolity ensued, and it was here where her sense of humour would often reveal itself.  Once, when she and some of her children were hosting a party of young people, Dorothy decided to enliven the proceedings by playfully depositing a bucket of water over the head of a young man whom she had just gotten to know.  The party became very lively after that.

Dorothy loved her Lord and had a close personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  She had a deep and abiding faith in God’s love and grace which she shared with others.  She committed her life to Jesus at a Billy Graham event in Regina in the late 1960’s and was baptized several years later through the Tsawwassen Alliance Church.

Her family is immensely grateful for the way in which God took care of her during the final years of her life.  She and Tom had moved to Richmond and shared a house with daughter Jane and her family.  Initially, this enabled Dorothy to be present to help look after her young grandchildren. Later, following Tom’s passing in 2005, and as her health faded, Dorothy was able to stay in her home as Jane and her husband Wayne provided care during the last years of her life.  Gillian, John, and Paul also contributed.  In 2023, upon the occasion of her 100^th birthday, Dorothy was presented with a certificate of recognition from King Charles III.  Her family celebrated at a memorable reunion in July of that year.

Dorothy’s sons Paul (Jackie) and John, her daughters Gillian (Tom) and Jane (Wayne), her grandchildren Sharon, Sean, Allison, Christopher, Geoffrey, Beth and Mark, her great-grandchildren Logan, Ada, Ruby, Oliver I., Callum, Lachlan, Mason, Luca, Oliver B., Amelia, and Audrey will miss her love, prayers, and sense of humour.  They are grateful for the legacy she has left them.

A Celebration of Life will be held at the Tsawwassen Alliance Church, 4951 - 12 Ave, Delta, BC at 1:30 pm, Saturday, January 27, 2024.