Tribute

Wendy Shaw (née Darbyshire) Aug. 15 1942 – April 11 2022

Born in “The North” in Prestbury, Cheshire UK near Manchester. The family had temporarily relocated there due to the bombing of Manchester. She was old enough to remember bombers flying overhead. She started school at four. She went to a Bill Haley concert in 1957, befriended Ringo, marched in campaigns for nuclear disarmament and she was not an anti-establishment hippie!

Wendy worked at a veterinary clinic and came very close to going to school to be a vet. However, she faced restrictions on how many women were allowed in at that time; even if they had better grades. She was also a competitive swimmer, a judo enthusiast and she loved language. Wendy was truly a Renaissance woman.

In 1965 she and her first husband Steve answered the call to schoolteachers in the English newspapers “Come to the land of the moose. No weaklings need apply!” They started off near Gift Lake in Northern Alberta with no running water, no indoor washrooms and having to light fires under the propane tank to keep the fuel flowing in winter. From Northern Alberta they went to the Kainai Nation Blood reserve near Cardston.

In 1974 the Shaw family moved to Alert Bay on Cormorant Island off the East coast of Vancouver Island, just by Port McNeill. They were now a family of four: Jonathan (1967), Sarah (1968), and the 1971 twins Adam and Jessica.

In 1979 the Shaws moved to Cobble Hill and ran Pacific Rim Kennels on the Old Victoria Highway, now known as Cobble Hill Road. Wendy became a single mother after Steve left in the early 80’s. In late 1982 she was a finalist in a Trivial Pursuit contest at the Cowichan Theatre. There was another finalist and his name was Pierre Noiseux and it was quite a contest! In February 1983 they met again by accident at the Bluenose in Cowichan Bay and this time sparks flew again, but they were very nice sparks this time! Wendy and Pierre have been through thin and thick since then.

In 1992 Wendy and Pierre purchased a 1911 home “the Cedars” on 1.1 acres on Telegraph Road (aka Old Schoolhouse Road) and have been there ever since. Wendy had been running a fleet of catering vehicles; the “Pink Trucks” but switched careers to become a Realtor® in 1993.

Wendy took her fiduciary duty seriously and was diligent about doing things the correct way for her clients. She spent most her time helping people less fortunate than herself with little or no expectation of profit. Wendy was a member of the Cowichan Symphony Society, a volunteer at Warmland House and on the board of the Canadian Mental Health Association Cowichan Branch. She had a fine observing and questioning mind and saw things that the rest of us missed completely. Wendy turned her hand, mind and talents to so many things and people that there just isn’t room for it all. [ Messiah, baseball, Red Sox, Endeavour, thrift shops, Knowledge Network, Yehudi, Janis, Jimi, NYT crossword, AC/DC, Concerto d’Aranjuez, family, the homeless, any Bob Dylan, RV travel, Monument Valley, the Goon Show, Venice, Trad Jazz, Yorkshire Pouds, any travel, Canada, Haight-Ashbury, Rock’n Roll, Magnificent 7 1960, July is Le Tour month, pastries, Blue Jays, Man U, Brian Cox, The Moors, cooking, Google Earth, garage sales, DQ ice cream cakes, auctions, paddling shoes, being a Lincoln Lady, ‘Where do you think that plane is going to?’, any crossword, Califooornia,  astronomy, C21, being Canadian, Fred Astaire, watching the ISS, Impressionists, NAIG 2008, West Coast wood carvings, Cannon Beach, Castleton Blue John, flowers, Jon’s band, SweetPea flowers, dog shows and dogs, Eres Tu, classical music, ‘I wonder where that road goes? Turn here!’, Great Danes, Tolkien, Canada Day, quail coveys, Canyon de Chelly, driving 40’ schoolbus in Alberta winters, mentoring and helping, Queen (both EII & Freddie), fireworks, MS carnation fund raiser with Betty for over 20 years, Pink Floyd, Waterton Lakes, Birthday surprises for Pèpé, ♫eggs sausages chips & beans♪,…and so much more! ] Wendy was a strong woman with a vulnerable little girl inside. She left us suddenly, peacefully and painlessly due to her cardiac problems. Wendy passed in the arms of her loving husband on their wedding anniversary! She always preferred the scenic route rather than the highway. Every Spring when the trees budded Wendy thanked God for letting her see another Spring.

Survived by (in no particular order!) her husband Pierre Noiseux, son Jon Shaw (Katelyn Owens) and granddaughter Gwendolyn Owens Shaw, daughter Sarah Klettke (Gord Klettke), son Adam Shaw, daughter Jessica Shaw, sister Frankie DeLange and her children Tara and Christian,  Frankie’s husband Joseph DeLange and his sons Tony, Peter and Jacob, daughters Moira Noiseux (Jill’n Chris) and Amanita LeMon (Chris Risden), son Jaran Noiseux-MacKay, granddaughter Lanaya Klettke, greatgrandson Alexander Klettke Platt, granddaughter Lia Rathburn, grandson Stephen Klettke (Taryn Constable-Klettke) and great grandchildren Dakota, Ellie and Ollie, grandson Danny Klettke (Kelly Klettke) and greatgrandchildren Liam, Aidan and Kieran, grandson Craig Klettke (Deanna Klettke) and greatgrandchildren Reese and Riley, sisterinlaw Claire Noiseux, the Kitt children: Joanna (Robyn A) Abigail (Murray B) and Philip, UK cousins Rob Morris and Kelly Hughes & their families, Pat Mackay, Stephen Shaw (Jane Bryony Shaw), Cidalia Plavetic, Betty Ayearst, Susie Apold and a cast of thousands! Predeceased by her parents Jack and Gwendoline, her brother Jonathan Darbyshire (Georgia P). Friends Ann, Delmere and Zoelle. Uncle Roy & Aunt Muriel Morris, Bill & Eleanor Thomas. We apologize in advance for the people we missed.

Wendy always said:

“When it comes to family there are no steps,

no step-children, no step-parents; if you’re in, you’re in.”

If your name is not here or your relationship description is vague or incorrect…you’re still in.

There will be a friends and family celebration at a future date.

A neighbourly way for you to help in Wendy’s memory could be to donate to the Duncan Food Bank. Details at: www.cvbs.ca (Cowichan Valley Basket Society). Just give. It does not have to be here and it does not have to be money. Give of yourself. Give with no expectation of reward or recognition. Give anonymously…just give!