Joan Campbell

Joan Campbell was born in Chinnor, England in 1919, in the dawning, hopeful months after the end of World War I. Born a small baby with a heart murmur, Joan defied expectations from the beginning. Her resilience, tenacity, and humor would continue until her death, two weeks shy of her 106th birthday. 

Joan was the precocious middle child of Cecil and Viola Baldwyn, and sister to Tony and Richard. She grew up wearing pants, wrestling her beloved brothers, and generally causing her Victorian mother strife. 

Her father died when she was just a toddler, and her oldest brother was killed in a military training accident during WWII. She found purpose in her career. As a physiotherapist, Joan worked with children with polio and injured veterans and even demonstrated her skills to the Queen Mother.

She met and married a Canadian soldier, Pat Campbell, in 1944. While the marriage didn't last, it resulted in her self-proclaimed greatest blessings: three daughters and her Canadian citizenship. The Campbells were nomadic in their movements, following Pat's army orders and the search for greener pastures. Joan gave birth to Liz in England, Susie in South Africa, and Annie in Germany. 

Pat and Joan divorced in 1967 in California. Joan happily never married again, preferring to horrify her children and grandchildren by seeming to flirt with much younger men at inappropriate moments. She moved back to British Columbia, where she retired as a physiotherapist and set down roots that would last the rest of her life. In her golden years, she built a strong community of friends. She attended the South Fraser Unitarian Church, volunteered with the BC Schizophrenia Society, and sang in multiple choirs. She was a fearless member of the White Rock Sailing cooperative and enjoyed many activities at the local Senior’s centre. She painted beautifully, cooked questionably, and encouraged her granddaughters to do whatever the hell they wanted. Joan had the gift of cultivating friendships with people of all ages and became an adopted family member to many friends.

She was curious and interested in the world around her, independent, strong-willed, and hilarious to the end. 

Joan is survived by her daughter, Annie, her grandchildren Ezra, Kai, and Lizzie, and her great-grandchildren Luke, Caden, Bode, and Leta. A memorial is being planned and details will be shared at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests you honor Joan by going out and befriending someone much younger than yourself.