On August 13, 2012, with his wife, the love of his life, by his side, John Owen Kjelson of Heffley Creek, B.C., passed away peacefully in Vancouver, B.C., from rare lung complications following a successful stem cell transplant for Acute Myeloid Leukemia. He accepted his recent illness with dignity and grace.
The youngest child of Owen and Winnifred (Freddy) Kjelson, John was born in Kamloops, B.C., on May 12, 1955. John graduated from North Kamloops Secondary School and earned an Electronics Technician Certificate from Cariboo College.
An early employer was the B.C. Forestry Service, where he worked in fire suppression. He was later employed at Balco Forest Products before starting a 26-year career at the Kamloops YMCA-YWCA, the last 21 years as Maintenance Supervisor. John believed that the "Y" has an important mission to build strong kids, strong families and strong communities and was proud of his role in supporting its programs.
John enjoyed the outdoors. Amongst his greatest pleasures were hiking on a sunny, crisp fall day around his home near Heffley Lake, searching out firewood for the winter, and hunting and fishing with family and friends at Lac Le Jeune. He shared with Berta a passion for collecting and antiquing. His keen interest in the history of his hometown led John to become a collector of all things Kamloops.
John had a great affection for animals and they for him. He took particular joy in the companionship of the dogs, cats and horses that became such an important part of his life. At the home he loved, John enjoyed "puttering around," designing, building and making things work. Family visits to the house were never complete without a game or two of crib.
John was a gentle, kind and caring man who cherished his friends and loved his family most of all. His loving support of his parents and his mother-in-law as they reached the end of their own lives was a great gift, freely given. John's sense of humour stayed with him throughout his illness, providing needed comfort to his family and friends.
John is survived by his loving wife of 27 years, Roberta Kjelson, and his cherished sisters, Karen Fyke and Kathy (Bill) Kals of Kamloops. He will be sorely missed by his uncles, Norman Kjelson and Elwood Blogg of Penticton; his aunts, Margaret (Don) Taylor of Kamloops, and Shirley Knuff of Salmon Arm; his nephews and nieces, Bradley Fyke, Steven Fyke and Krista Kals of Kamloops, Shannon Derrick of Ottawa, Colleen Derrick of Calgary, and Kyle Derrick of Regina; brother-in-law, Roy (Angie) Derrick of Vernon; and many dear cousins and faithful friends.
