July 7, 1934 – April 9, 2024  

On April 9, 2024, at approximately 9:30 p.m., Doreen Isabelle Veale (Tarzwell) passed away in Royal Inland Hospital, a facility where she first trained as a nurse and started her nursing career. She is pre-deceased by her husband Les in 1997, her parents, Matt and Elsie Tarzwell, and by her younger sisters Myrna and Ardith. Doreen is survived by her sons Grant and Greg, his wife Wendy, their son Aaron (Alyssa) and daughter Lindsay (Michael), by her brother Herb Tarzwell, his wife Peggy and their children, along with numerous other nieces, nephews and cousins across Western Canada. 

Mom was born July 7, 1934 in Grandview, Manitoba, the eldest of four children born to Matt and Elsie. From there, the family made the journey west to BC, with stops along the way (in no particular order) in Williams Lake, Salmon Arm, Chilliwack, Merritt (where she and Les met and Mom graduated from high school in 1952) and finally, Kamloops, where Mom entered Nurses’ training at RIH in 1952, graduating in 1956. Les and Doreen were married that same year and welcomed son Greg the next year, followed by Grant three years later, completing their immediate family. During our school years, Mom supported many activities, from baking cookies for school bake sales, attending school concerts and other events, being the Cub Camp Nurse for us, driving us to and from our many extracurricular activities. Outside our home, Mom worked initially at RIH and her Nursing career also saw her work for what is now Interior Health as a Home Care Nurse, in a doctor’s office and finally, as a Nurse at Ponderosa Lodge, retiring from there in 1995 to work at home in her garden, producing flowers and vegetables, and playing bridge and travelling. Dad passed in 1997 and his passing was soon followed by the arrival of Aaron, then Lindsay. On the arrival of grandchildren, Mom undertook the role of family daycare provider, until each grandchild was old enough to go into the office with Wendy (where they had their own office!) and after that, into school. 

In 2004, Mom moved out of the family home she and Dad (with help from family members) had built in Valleyview and into a shared home with Grant, where she remained an energetic gardener (raised gardens were installed, which allowed Mom to sit and garden) and bridge player. Throughout her life in Kamloops, Mom was a member of the Kamloops United Church congregation, working in their thrift store after retiring, and was an active member of the Adah Chapter No. 16 of the Order of the Eastern Star. 

Physical health issues compelled Mom to reluctantly give up living at home in 2018/19, at which time she began living at Berwick on the Park, where she enjoyed the company of fellow bridge players and the staff, who were most accommodating to her and we thank them for their care of Mom. Sadly, her physical health issues continued to persist, but her mind remained as sharp as ever to the end, when she entered RIH for the final time on the Easter long weekend, passing away on the night of April 9th. Ever being the one to be looking after others, she knew what kind of demands nurses face on the job and she generally would not “want to be a bother” while in hospital, and we thank the doctors, nurses and care staff at RIH for their care of Mom in her final days. We also want to thank Dr. Alice Huang, Mom’s doctor, for her tremendous care provided to Mom, including house calls, which Mom greatly appreciated. 

Mom always said that she did not want a formal ceremony, but since she is no longer able to say otherwise, we are going to have one for her for family and friends at a future date in the Summer of 2024. A date will be announced in due course, which would be in keeping with Mom’s view of things, as she never liked to rush into things anyway! 

You may offer a message of condolence at Schoening Funeral Service for the Veale family. 

• Date : 2024-04-09
• Location : Kamloops