Parcourez la nécrologie de Richard Earl Russell Tataryn December 31 1931
August 31 2023 résidant dans la province Saskatchewan pour le détail des funérailles
Dick Tataryn (or Rick to his family) was born on December 31, 1931 in Humboldt in his parent’s bedroom on 6th Street. He was the last child of 6 in a blended family; his focus as a child was his dog, hunting and playing outdoors. He would often be seen in and around town wearing nothing but his overalls.
He grew up and worked for the railway shoveling coal into steam locomotives until he was hired as a Highway Patrol Officer. In 1957 while he was stationed in Moosomin, his best friend, Ken Burt, introduced him to Ken’s girlfriend’s sister, Alice Bott. The meeting took place in Nokomis. After a whirlwind courtship, Dick showed what kind of romance Alice should expect by proposing on a side street in Regina in his 1957 Pontiac while “Wake Up Little Suzie” played on the radio.
The two settled in Humboldt where Mom continued as a Public Health Nurse and Dad became a Public Health Inspector. They had 4 children: Tom, Russ, Susan, and Joe.
Dad had trouble convincing Mom that the family was missing an integral part: a family dog. He took a big risk in his marriage to correct this by taking Joey to Saskatoon in 1974 and coming back with a puppy without Mom’s permission. Pepper was the first of many family dogs that Dad would love; he and his last, Calla Lily, named after Mom’s favourite flower and adopted when Dad was 88 and a widower, were inseparable. His dogs were always well-behaved and welcomed at church and Masonic meetings.
Dad always strove to become a better person. Dad became a Mason in 1968 joining Prince Rupert Lodge No. 35 in Humboldt knowing the Masonic goal is to “make good men better.” He was proud of his membership, always wearing his Masonic ring and answering questions of anyone who asked. He was even more proud when his two younger sons both became Brothers. He and Mom were devout Christians who had great faith and trust in God; faith supported them both after the death of Tom in 2002 and Dad after Mom’s death in 2017. Their beliefs inspired their good lives and their kindness and charity to others.
Dad took great pride in helping others. He was always involved in his church, including vestry and building committees. He was on the Humboldt Public School Board for years, continuing past his kids attending, and the Scouts’ Group Committee where he filled in as a leader when none were available to take the troop to a Jamboree. Dad was a member of the Provincial Association of Resort Communities Saskatchewan and the East Watershed Advisory Committee. He also served as councilor for RM of Lakeland 521, often taking it upon himself to address issues that he thought weren’t being corrected quickly enough; things like removing a beaver dam from the culvert on the back road between Anglin & Christopher and clearing the park of debris after a storm. He was on the Fire Committee for decades, attending his last meeting only a few weeks ago. Through his experience with dogs, he took on and trained a Springer Spaniel pup before tearfully delivering him to a mentally challenged adult who loved both the dog and Dick. As a member of St. Christopher’s Odd Job Squad, he built decks, repaired roofs, cleaned chimneys, and refinished rooms for those unable physically to do it themselves or in financial positions unable to hire contractors; the modest donations went to the church. Dad’s selflessness was acknowledged in 2006 when he and Mom were named Lakeland Citizens of the Year.
Being in a rural area, he and Mom were members of the Citizens on Patrol Program. These volunteers operated their own vehicles equipped with an amber beacon and drove through the subdivisions to ward off would-be thieves. Mom and Dad were the only volunteers to become involved in a pursuit with B&E suspects, Dad operating his Sonoma pickup with Mom on the phone with the RCMP. The pursuit went most of the way to Emma Lake before the speeds rose beyond those that Dad was comfortable travelling with mom in the truck.
Dad loved hunting and shooting: from shooting vermin with his buddies as a teenager and young adult to goose hunting alone last fall. Hours spent travelling, digging pits, and plucking and cleaning resulted in his closest friendships: Watson, George, Warren and Gord will always be remembered as Dad’s hunting buddies and best friends.
Dad loved his family. No distance was too far to show his support. He and Mom drove for their kids’ swim meets, and football and basketball games. They were delighted to continue to show their support to their grandchildren, travelling thousands of kilometres to attend Luc and Logan’s soccer, Jill’s rugby, Danielle’s piano recitals, Taylor’s dance competitions, Alex’s basketball, Hannah’s fastball, and Chase’s hockey. He, with Alice, attended many graduations and convocations. When his first great-grandson was born a few years ago, Dad drove alone from Anglin Lake to Pincher Creek to greet him. More recently, he attended and raised a toast at many of his grandchildren’s weddings. He said he “felt so important when his granddaughters wanted to dance with him”. Two bonus grandchildren came with Susan’s marriage; he was eager to assist in the planning and preparation of the rehearsal dinner and enjoyed attending Sam and Maddie’s Jewish wedding ceremony in Ottawa in June. He and Mom routinely attended the Huckleberry Festival at Castle Mountain, which kept them close to their late son Tom and the Castle Mountain Community.
He was incapable of ignoring a family member in need. He spent weeks helping Tom build his house in Beaver Mines and continued even after running his thumb through a table saw. Over the years, Dad with Mom spent the equivalent of months in each of their kids’ houses painting and doing other tasks to help them make comfortable homes. He had recently transplanted 24 trees at Joe’s house.
In 2008, at 76.5 years, he further bonded with Susan by accompanying her on a trek of the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal, hiking well over 100 miles at altitude. His dog, Trekker, was adopted and named after this trek.
In 2016, he travelled to Israel with Alice, Susan and Harold to “walk in the steps of Jesus”. In Dick fashion he was so interested in the wild life that the tour guide added a garbage dump to see the fowl and a bird and animal sanctuary to the trip agenda.
Dad was active and independent until the end. He lived with Calla at Anglin, taking her for walks several times a day. He enjoyed chatting and storytelling with his neighbours; he was always willing to lend a hand. He loved the outdoors, line-hung his sheets for the fresh smell, was not much for house cleaning, but could make a more than decent meal. He loved to bake cookies and his famous rhubarb cake for friends at Anglin and the church.
It was Dad’s stubborn belief that he was not an old man that finally caught up to him. He would shovel snow off his roof, climb ladders to pick the highest apples, go on the roof of his camper to repair a vent. He participated as a father-son team with Russ in a fishing tournament just before his death, placing third and beaming ear-to-ear in the photo of him holding his huge catch. Refusing to wait for help to climb out of the boat resulted in a fall where he struck his head. Five days later, surrounded by family at Regina General Hospital, he succumbed to his injury.
A celebration of Dad’s life will take place in the spring of 2024 when his ashes will be interred with Alice’s beside Tom. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Canadian Cancer Society at cancer.ca.
The family would like to thank Dad’s favorite nieces and nephews and his “acquired children” (you know who you are) and most especially we would like to thank his friends at Anglin Lake and at St. Christopher’s Church; the love, friendship, and sense of community he had, especially after Mom died, were precious to him and reassured us that a stubborn 91 year old, living alone, was never really alone
December 31 1931
August 31 2023
Nos plus sincères sympathies à la famille et aux amis de Richard Earl Russell Tataryn December 31 1931
August 31 2023..
Décès pour la Ville: Regina, Province: Saskatchewan
avis deces Richard Earl Russell Tataryn December 31 1931
August 31 2023
necrologie Richard Earl Russell Tataryn December 31 1931
August 31 2023
Nous offrons nos plus sincères condoléances à la famille et aux amis de Richard Earl Russell Tataryn December 31 1931
August 31 2023 et espérons que leur mémoire pourra être une source de réconfort pendant cette période difficile. Vos pensées et vos mots aimables sont grandement appréciés.