With great sadness, we announce the passing of our dear Dad, John Van Deurzen Sr, unexpectedly, but peacefully in his sleep on Dec 13, in Lethbridge.

Besides the three of us (Joyce, Shirley, and John Jr), Dad is survived by the love of his life, our mom, Myrna, his stepson Barry Ericksen (Cindy) and his two adored grandsons, Nathan and Kyle (Ashley), and his great grandkids, Logan, Hayden and Amelia.

Dad was born on June 22, 1933, in the Netherlands, the oldest of 10. He came to Canada with his parents and 8 of his brothers and sisters, in May 1953. Dad and his parents and oldest siblings worked together on a sugar beet farm in Barnwell. Dad’s trucking career started two years later when he paid five dollars to receive his class one license and a few days later he was on the road all over the US and Canada.  Dad proudly held that license until he was 85. 

Because of Dad’s love of farming, he was able to convince Mom to leave their new little house in Lethbridge to move to a small farm at Stewart Siding to a house with no proper indoor plumbing and only an outhouse.  Dad’s brothers joined him in farming a few years later and in 1967 more land was acquired and we moved to Broxburn.  Dad continued trucking and farming until 1972 when the farm was bought at Tyrrell Lake and he was finally able to farm full time. Dad loved that place and the ranch on the ridge that was later added, and he loved being part of the Warner and New Dayton communities.

He was a true entrepreneur and was great at recognizing and building opportunities, later adding the Warner Shell, Lakeside Transport, Chinook Liquid Feeds, and the school bus to the farming business. No one worked harder or with more enthusiasm than Dad.

Dad got us involved in 4-H, first at McNally, and then the Warner Beef Club, where he served on the advisory board. He also enjoyed going to Johnny’s hockey games. Back in those days there wasn’t much money but somehow Mom and Dad scraped together the money to send 11-year-old Johnny to the Bobby and Dennis Hull hockey school in Taber.  Dad drove him to it the first day, but the next day he handed Johnny the keys to the truck to drive himself there, unbeknownst to Mom. This was a pattern Dad repeated in life with his grandsons who also learned to drive at a very early age.

Dad finally retired from farming at the age of 82 and has resided in Lethbridge since then.

Dad was compassionate and generous, keen to help people whether it was with a meal, utilities paid, feed for their livestock, a ride to church, or supporting someone in reuniting with their parents

Our sister Shirley provided so much care and comfort to dad throughout his life but especially these last 20 years. Because of her, dad was so well looked after, and we are grateful for that. Dad appreciated her more than words can say. Dad was our biggest cheerleader and supporter, and he taught us a lot. We will miss him very much.

We will have a private family remembrance of Dad.

We ask that you remember Dad with a smile, and we love hearing any stories or special memories you have of him. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to 4-h-Canada.ca or a charity of your choice in memory of Dad.