Obituary of Don Lillico

Obituary Eulogy for Don Lillico We are here today to say good-bye to Don Lillico but as in all good stories it is best to start at the beginning... Born in March 1927, the best way to describe Don as a child was: "Dennis the Menace" with curly black hair. Along with his beloved father Tom; his sisters Mae, Ruth and Grace all played a role as mother while his sister Betty, and brothers Doug and Walter were his playmates. To be honest it also took many of their neighbours in Kelliher, Saskatchewan to limit the havoc he could create. Don was thrifty from an early age: it was the spare change given to him for treats he saved in tobacco cans (and the ability to split gopher tails to double the bounty), which allowed him to buy his first quarter of land and 20 cows by the age of 14. In 1945 at the tender age of 18 his need for adventure (after failing to successfully lie and join the army under age) caused him to sell his land and move to Chilliwack British Columbia where he lived with his sister Grace and her husband. While living in Chilliwack, Don worked many different jobs almost all of them two or 3 at a time. Perhaps this was an early form of multi-tasking but it was certainly when Don became a jack of all trades and a master of many... In September 1950 while visiting family and friends in Saskatchewan, he met a young school teacher named Rosalyn (Rusty) Burns who was boarding with his sister Mae and sparks flew (more like a bonfire). On April 30 1951 they were married and the honey moon was the train ride via the CNR to Chilliwack. It was here that Don started his career: becoming a 4th Class Power Engineer while working at the Army Camp there. More importantly Greg was born in 1952 and Garda in 1954. In 1956, Don and Rusty moved the family to Agassiz, British Columbia (a stone's throw from Chilliwack) where he became the Chief Engineer and Maintenance Superintendent for the Harrison Hot Springs Hotel. He continued his studies and obtained his 3rd. Class Power Engineer certificate. The family also continued to grow with the birth of Doug in 1959. Later in 1959, the job market, Garda's health problems (which required a move to a drier climate) and the dream he shared with Rusty to raise horses in the Peace River country took the family north to Fort St. John. Or maybe it was the call of the northern moose because hunting was one of his lifelong passions... For the next 30 years Don pursued his power engineering career at the McMahon Plant complex in Taylor. He became a 1st, Class Power Engineer in 1982 and worked in a number of postions in the Power House, Gas Plant and Refinery units and was the training coordinator for the facility for a number of years until retirement. More importantly Don managed to integrate his career with many of his other interests: none more so than hunting. Over the years his moose hunting progressed from a frozen hunter wrapped in a tarp with his old 303 (trying not to get stepped on by a moose), to a string of horses and the largest sleeping bag known to man. But to get there he had to practice his packing and diamond hitches on who other than his assistant engineer John Booth. The best way in the world to pass a night shift... .. But it didn't stop there by any means. The family continued to grow with the birth of Derek in 1961 who passed away in 1962 and the birth of their youngest child Dwight in 1963. And Don's ability to multi-task was maintained while he managed his full time job as a training coordinator for Petro-Canada, instructing 4th and 3rd Class power engineering courses in Fort St. John and Dawson Creek and of course farming, cattle and forage with the odd crop of grain or canola thrown in to make sure he didn't get bored. Due to health problems (angina) Don retired from Petro-Canada in 1989. But retired is a relative term: he became a full time instructor at Northern Lights College for Power Engineering and was instrumental in establishing the Power and Process Program that is still offered by the college. Between 1996 and 2007 Don focussed on geneology (no, no not gynecology) during which time he wrote 3 family histories for the Lillico, Burns and Hood families. It was a huge amount of work and the resulting books were summed up best by Rusty when she said: "BS never weighed so much." More importantly he continued to farm, although usually in shares. The last of his cattle were sold in October 2009, shortly before his passing. In 2007 Don started his battle with cancer which even with his courage and determination he was unable to win. But please remember Don for who and what he loved: · Rusty, his wife of 58 years· His family and friends· The outdoors· Farming, horses and cattle· Poetry and literature (at least a good who dunnit)· Politics Finally, Don should always be remembered for his ready smile, quick wit and willingness to rush in where only fools dared - and always came out alive and with a heck of a story to tell. Services