Memories of Lillian Beck
December 16, 1924 – November 3, 2020
Lillian Irene Beck (nee Carlson), age 95, passed from this life in the morning of November 3, 2020 at Overlander Extended Care Hospital in Kamloops. She was fighting dementia at the time and complications from a stroke a few days earlier.
She is survived by Bill, her husband of 75 years, by her children Karen Gilbert (Lloyd) and Brian Beck (Dawn), and by 4 grandchildren and their families. Grandchildren include Teri Lynn Finch (Darren), Deanna Gilbert (Tina), Michael Beck (Christie), and Christie Beck (Steve). Great – grandchildren are Nathan and Sarah Finch, and Sagan Gilbert.
Lillian was predeceased by her mother, Alma Carlson and father, Martin Carlson, and all her siblings.
Lillian was born on December 16, 1924 in Swift Current, Saskatchewan. She spent her early years on the family farm in Stewart Valley, the youngest and last survivor of 14 children. In her late teens (early 1940s), Lillian moved to Prince Rupert, BC to live with her sister (Alice) and family, and to attend secretarial school. She met her husband, William (Bill) Beck, who was a member of the Royal Canadian Navy in Prince Rupert. Lillian and Bill married in September 1945.
Karen, their daughter, was born in October 1947, and two years later, their son, William (Brian) was born in November 1949.
In the early 1950s, Lillian and her family moved to Kitimat where Bill worked on the beltline during the construction of the Alcan aluminum smelter. During that time, the highway was pushed through from Terrace. After two and a half years, the family moved back to Prince Rupert.
In 1963, Lillian and her family moved to Kamloops where she spent the remainder of her life. Dad came to Kamloops early to look for work, and Mom and the kids moved after the school was finished.
Mom started working for Weyerhaeuser in 1963 and retired in 1985. After retirement, they spent the next several years as “snowbirds”. This continued until it became too difficult to travel to Arizona during the winters and returning to Kamloops in the summers. After leaving the “nomadic life”, Mom and Dad put roots down in Kamloops to be close to their family.
Lillian worked for the early part of her family life in the home. She took in boarders in the early years and looked after her own family as well as a couple of men who became family friends. Later, when the kids were old enough, she began working in the office at the Prince Rupert Fisherman’s fish plant, putting her secretarial training to work. After moving to Kamloops in 1964 Lillian became the first secretarial hire for Allen Park who would become one of the founders of Kamloops Pulp and Paper, later becoming Weyerhaeuser Canada Limited. Mom had a penchant for numbers, and she took her role as payroll administer very seriously. She was exceptionally good at her job and had a reputation for “doing the job right”. She joined her husband in retirement in 1985.
After moving to Kamloops, Lillian and Bill became members of a local square dancing club. They spent many evenings dancing and socializing with folks who had similar interests. She was a very friendly woman, and because of this, their social lives grew to include several long-term friends in Kamloops. She also worked hard to maintain the connections to people she had met, who included close friends in Prince Rupert and in other parts of North America.
Some memorable trips for Lillian include their trip to Montreal for Expo 1967, and in 1970 to Expo in Osaka, Japan along with a 6-city tour with the Rube Band. Then they went to the Mardi Gras in New Orleans shortly afterwards. Later, it a cruise to Alaska, and still later, their lengthy cruise from Vancouver, through the Panama Canal and on to the Caribbean and Florida with their children that stood out for her. She always enjoyed traveling to Arizona for the winter, and then returning home for the summers.
Lillian is missed terribly by her husband, Bill, by her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, and by the many nieces, nephews and friends that knew her and had spent time with her. Family was a very important part of her life.
Due to COVID there will be no service for Lillian. If you wish, please donate to the Royal Inland Hospital in Lillian’s memory. Condolences can be left online at www.drakecremation.com.
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Death notice for the town of: Kamloops, Province: Colombie britanique