Obituary
It is with heavy hearts that we announce the sudden passing of Dan Braun, at the age of 65.
Dan was born in Taber, Alberta, and was the oldest of 3 siblings. He lived his early years in Bow Island, Alberta and had to learn English to start school, with German being spoken at home. The family moved to Grimshaw, Alberta in 1969 and he completed all of his schooling there, through to high school graduation. After a brief and very loved move to Brooks, Alberta, he returned to Grimshaw and then on to Fort St. John, BC and back to Grimshaw.
He married while in Brooks, becoming a step father of 3 children, and was so happy to be blessed with a beautiful daughter, Nichole. After a move back to Grimshaw and later divorce, he and Nichole spent many years together in Fort St. John, BC. He always said that having her as his daughter was the best thing in his life.
His work life was a varied one over the years, from Corrections Officer to Wireline operator and others before settling into his career as Residential Support worker, caring for those with special needs. He was very highly regarded by his employers, peers and clients in this work and especially dedicated his time to volunteering with the Special Olympics Association. Through that he transformed into Santa every year which he was so great at and LOVED doing it! He always declined any payment for that and if people insisted he would ask them to make a donation to the Special Olympics.
He loved football, especially the CFL, and had an ongoing friendly rivalry with his brother over their favourite teams. Dan’s being the Edmonton Eskimos and Len’s being the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He often reminisced about the treasured trip he made to Regina to take in a live football game with Len.
When health issues forced him to stop working, he moved back to the Grimshaw area and resided in Autumn Lodge retirement home in Berwyn, then Heritage Towers Lodge in Peace River and finally back to Grimshaw at Stone Brook Supportive Living residence and briefly at Grimshaw Long Term Care. He was well loved, staff calling him their ‘big Teddy Bear’.
Dan is survived by his daughter Nichole in Nanaimo, BC, his parents Peter and Margaret in Grimshaw, his sister Betty Ponto (Larry) in Taylor, BC, his brother Len (Tiffany) Braun in Cranbrook, BC, his nieces Jodie Ponto (Noah) and Cara-Joy Bauer (Matt) as well as many cousins, aunts and uncles.
To honour Dan’s request, no memorial service will be observed. A private brief graveside service for immediate family at interment in the Grimshaw cemetery will be followed by a light luncheon for any wishing to join in fellowship with the family.
Friday December 30, 2022, 12:30 pm
New Horizon Senior Drop In Center.
5006 50 Ave, Grimshaw, AB
In lieu of flowers, donations to the Fort St. John Special Olympics are welcome in Dan’s honour.
www.specialolympics.ca/british-columbia/communities/fort-st-john
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We offer our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Dan Braun October 12 1957 December 23 2022 and hope that their memory may be a source of comfort during this difficult time. Your thoughts and kind words are greatly appreciated.
Chapel of Memories Funeral Homes & Crematorium
Death notice for the town of: Peace River, Province: Alberta