On March 18, 2021, Gordon Tansley, a resident of White Rock, BC passed away at the age of 83.
He was surrounded by his loved ones as we all sadly said our goodbyes. Gordon is survived by his wife Diane, his three daughters Lisa, Lana (Tim), and Julie (Harvey), his nine grandchildren Brittani (Everett), Brooke (Kyle), Brandon, Jordan (Taylor), Riley (Devan), Madison (Jordan), Dawson, Liam, Jack and great-granddaughter Trixie. He is also survived by his brother, Marvin Tansley, and his sister, Sheran (Marvin) Munro, along with nieces and nephews.
Gordon was born on Jan 10, 1938, in Provost, Alberta, to Doug and Sylvia Tansley. After a few relocations, the family settled in Kamloops in 1948. His love for hockey began at the age of ten when he spent endless hours at the Memorial Arena. He then quit high school to play junior hockey in Melville, Saskatchewan, and attended the Montreal Canadians training camp in 1958. He returned to BC, where he played in the Western Hockey League and went back to school. At this time, he met Diane Veness, the love of his life. He then played for Seattle Totems in 1960/61 before being drafted by the Boston Bruins.
Feeling unsettled, he returned home to pursue his education; he married Diane in 1964 and graduated with a Bachelor of Education at UBC in 1966. Following his graduation, he started a teaching career in Richmond, BC and then moved to Kamloops with his wife and daughters where he continued his teaching career and also completed his Master's degree before retiring in 2000.
Gordon and Diane shared a love that most people long for, through thick and thin. He absolutely adored Diane, and he never held back from making that known to us all. They loved to pack a lunch, get in their car, and drive with no destination in mind until they arrived wherever. This was their 'means of therapy' some days to work through life's challenges. Together, they created so many happy memories for their three daughters. The family grew with grandchildren and even more memories. Gordon's love for life included his trips to Hawaii, his road trips to Saskatchewan (in the beloved 1987 motorhome "Franklin") with whichever grandchild was up for it, and his camping trips to Golden Ears Provincial Park. He made us all laugh along the way, and each day was an unpredictable adventure.
Gordon's faith in God was prevalent through his day-to-day living. His days started with devotions and prayer time. He brought an abundance of peace and strength to each of us no matter what was going on in our world.
He was a lover of all things sweet. There would often be chocolate bar wrappers under the seat of his car. He had his own candy/twinkie cupboard that we all liked to raid upon visiting. His love for books, the Mary Tyler Moore Show, Two and a Half Men, and wall-to-wall pictures of family members are just a few things that come to mind when thinking about him. He loved to surprise Diane with random dinner guests when he would pick up hitchhikers between Kamloops and Rayleigh. He would share his love for God with them, feed them dinner and send them on their way. He would amuse us all with his mispronunciation of people's names or misuse of words, which would sometimes land him in trouble. He managed to redeem himself through his charm. He believed that Gorilla Glue was the fixer of all things, including the frame of his 1987 motorhome, which raised a few eyebrows. He was not a fan of line-ups or traffic jams and would reroute no matter how much time was added to the journey. If someone passed him in traffic and ended up at the same stop light, it was guaranteed that he would honk and wave.
As a principal and teacher, he deeply cared for his students. He was known for his walks past the student's smoke pit to stop and chat, chasing the occasional unwanted guest off the school grounds and, of course, the "no drug/alcohol speech" at the start of every school dance.
Gordon was loved beyond measure, well respected and admired by his family, friends and his former students. He will be greatly missed by all.
