Obituary for Mr. Douglas James Pierce
Doug was a familiar sight running along the highway between Smithers and Telkwa for many years. It takes a great deal of discipline and dedication to run a marathon, and Doug ran many. One of the principles of running a marathon is to run your own race and not someone else’s. If you run faster than your optimal pace, in an attempt to keep up to someone else, you may not be able to successfully finish, or if you run slower than your best speed you will probably be disappointed with your finish time. Doug tried to live like that – to finish well whatever endeavour he pursued. On January 4, 2017, Doug crossed his final finish line in God’s perfect time. Born January 30, 1945, in Canyon Creek, Alberta, he spent much of childhood and youth between there and Prince Rupert. His childhood was challenging and drove him to make the most of the rest of his life. Doug was not afraid to try things and worked hard to master and excel at many things. He was an avid athlete, a gifted musician, and a respected tradesman first as an auto body painter/repairman and later in construction. In between those vocations he also was a realtor and worked for BC Hydro. Shortly before turning 40 Doug took up running. It was about the same time that he attended a Billy Graham crusade in Vancouver. There he accepted the incredible gifts of mercy and grace Jesus made available by his death on the cross. From that time on Jesus was always named as one of his partners in his running diaries. God’s grace was so amazing to Doug and he wanted to share it with everyone. For many years Doug’s journey included dementia. Even the dementia could not dampen his love for the Lord and his passion to share the good news. As his verbal interaction started to diminish he would simply hold up his cross that said it all: “Jesus saves”. In the latter years of his life his hat and the cross he wore were the two symbols that were synonymous with Doug. Doug knew the pain of losing his mother (Ellen Lainchbury), his sister (Marion Duruisseau), and his brother (Larry Pierce). Now those experiencing the pain of his departure are: his wife (Jacquie Pierce), his dad (George Pierce), his sister (Connie Gullion), his brother (Georgie Pierce) as well as a large extended family that loved and appreciated him. In lieu of flowers donations to Samaritan’s Purse Canada would be appreciated. Doug had a passion for children growing up in difficult circumstances and this was his charity of choice to try to make a difference in some of their lives.
Nos plus sincères sympathies à la famille et aux amis de Douglas James Pierce – January 30, 1945 – January 4, 2017.source
death notice Douglas James Pierce – January 30, 1945 – January 4, 2017 – mortuary notice Douglas James Pierce – January 30, 1945 – January 4, 2017