June 30, 1928 - July 17, 2021
We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of Gabrielle Cartlidge at the age of 93 in Qualicum Beach, BC.
Gabrielle was predeceased by her husband Michael in 2001. Born Gabrielle Mary Bond in Wigan, Lancashire she was one of eight children. Educated at a convent school in Bournemouth, Gabrielle vividly remembered being woken up in the middle of night at school at age 11 to serve tea and sandwiches to English soldiers after they had been evacuated from the beaches of Dunkirk during World War II.
After leaving school she pursued business courses in college, including typing and accounting. Her high standards and meticulous attention to detail were noteworthy. After graduating from Pittman College she packed her steamer trunk and sailed off to Lagos, Nigeria to join her brother David, who was serving with the British Army there.
She worked for the British Police in Nigeria at an important and pivotal time, as Nigeria was becoming an independent country. For her services to the British Empire both she and her brother David were awarded a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) by her majesty, Queen Elizabeth II.
It was while serving in Nigeria that she met and fell in love with a striking British police officer, Michael. After happily living in Nigeria for a number of years, she and Michael moved back to England. Wanderlust struck again and the two accepted an invitation to visit her sister Helen, in Vancouver, BC.
Exploring the area they eventually found their forever home in Nanoose Bay, BC, where they enjoyed fishing, boating, hiking and camping in the summer and skiing at Forbidden Plateau in the winter.
One of her neighbors remembers her skiing down the steep road to her house during a particularly snowy winter. From her deck Gabrielle enjoyed watching the deer and wild rabbits, as long as they stayed out of her vegetable garden.
Gabrielle was very active within the Nanoose Bay community, and had many friends in the Probus Club, the Catholic Church, and in the local Power Squadron, where she was awarded a lifelong membership. Her wit, wisdom, inexhaustible energy, and perfect memory were greatly admired and she will be missed by all, including her family and friends all over the world, and never forgotten.
Many thanks to all the staff at Eagle Park Health Care Centre for their kind, compassionate care over the last two years of Gabrielle's life.
Catholic funeral mass and reception to follow on Friday August 27th, 2021 at 1200.
The Church of the Ascension, 887 Wembley Road, Parksville.