After a brief illness, Bernie died peacefully with daughters Lynn (Simon) and Tamara (Bartz) at his side.

Born in Blackpool, UK, Bernie learned to fish at an early age, supplementing the family food rations during and after World War II, and developing an interest in the ocean world that would last a lifetime. His youthful interests lay more with fishing, soccer and table tennis than in academics, but after his required National Service in the RAF, Bernie joined Eagle Star Insurance and began a career that would span six decades and two continents. In 1957, he emigrated to Canada with two friends, big dreams, 50 quid and a beer in his pocket, and began a new life in Toronto, where he worked for the Royal Insurance Company and was a founding member of the Toronto Insurance Soccer League which continues to this day. Hearing the fishing was better out west, he moved to Vancouver in 1960, eventually joining Brouwer and Company Insurance Adjusters as adjuster first, then partner. In 1977 he served as the President of the Insurance Institute of British Columbia and opened B.P. Hanby and Associates General Liability Adjusters in 1982. Throughout his career, he thoroughly enjoyed the role of instructor and mentor for those pursuing a career in adjusting. He retired a few years after selling his firm in 1997.

With Sue, his wife of 48 years, they raised two daughters, and family vacations centered around their beloved cabin in Pender Harbour or navigating the stunning BC coastline, life jackets, fishing rods and charts in hand.

Outside his professional life, Bernie remained an avid fisherman, wrote articles for fishing magazines, and took an active role in the Sport Fishing Advisory Board and International Game Fish Association. A boater, he joined a yacht club and served in various leadership positions during his 54 years of membership. In 1975, in response to a breakwater crisis at the yacht club, he took up SCUBA diving, and discovered yet another lifelong passion. His love of the ocean increased as he explored the underwater world, and he quickly mastered the art of underwater photography.

Diving led to an increasing concern for the conservation of the marine environment, and he became a founding member of the Marine Life Sanctuaries Society of British Columbia, proudly attending the opening of the first Marine Protected Area in Canada, at Whytecliff Park, in 1993. He sat on the Conservation and Education Committee at the Vancouver Aquarium and received the Vancouver Natural History Society’s 2003 Davidson Award for Conservation.

After 25 years of diving, he and long-time dive buddy Andy Lamb began work on their best-selling book, “Marine Life of the Pacific Northwest”, published in 2005. He celebrated his 80th birthday diving in Howe Sound, and dedicated his retirement years to actively promoting marine conservation in British Columbia and throughout Canada.

Bernie was predeceased by his parents, Harold and Norma, siblings Leonard and Maureen, and wife, Sue. He is survived by his daughters, two sons-in-law, eight grandchildren and a great-granddaughter, three sisters and many nieces and nephews.

The family wishes to thank the medical professionals of St Paul's Hospital Kidney Clinic, Lion's Gate Hospital and North Shore Hospice for the great care they took of Bernie over the years.

A funeral Mass will be held at Christ the Redeemer Catholic Church in West Vancouver, on January 4, 2024 at 11:00 am, with a reception to follow at Eagle Harbour Yacht Club.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Lions Gate or St Paul's Hospital Foundations, Pacific Salmon Foundation, or Marine Life Sanctuaries Society of British Columbia would be appreciated.

In one of his last conversations, Bernie shared his philosophy, “It doesn’t matter who gets credit for the work, as long as the work gets done.”