Our family is saddened to announce that Brian passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his family on Monday, August 10, 2020. Beloved husband to Nicole (Nicky) and loving father to Danielle (Matt), David (Tassan) and Mimi (Jeff). Grandfather to Emma, Phoebe, Madison, Dane, Danika, CassieAnne, Mackenzie, Cody. Brother to Stuart (Teresa), Bob, Dee Dee (Brenda). He was predeceased by his parents, Bruce and Vera and brother, Raymond.
Third generation Chinese, Brian was born and raised in Vancouver. He met Nicky at UBC over 57 years ago and they shared a beautiful life full of love and adventure. Many of their close friendships were formed at UBC and Brian, aka Sunger, was a mainstay in a group of friends known as the Summer Fun Club. After UBC, he obtained his MBA at the University of Oregon and then articled for his CA at Arthur Anderson in Toronto. In 1973 Brian and Nicky made the bold decision to move their young family to Tanzania as Brian was offered a job with the Canadian International Development Agency. They spent two years soaking up the experiences Africa offered and formed friendships that remain strong even today. Returning to Vancouver in 1975, Brian enjoyed a varied and interesting career and his proudest professional accomplishment was building Waterstreet Wealth Management with his son David. In 2004 David and Brian merged their company with Nicola Wealth and Brian retired in 2007.
Full of curiosity and passion, Brian created many lasting memories with his family such as: acquiring his pilot’s license flying a small plane into an African game resort on the Rufiji River, riding Harleys through El Paso, road trips with their beloved Porsche through Europe and North America, camel riding in the Empty Quarter Desert UAE (Sultan ‘Bin’ Brian) and the Sahara Desert Morocco, boating up the Mekong River into Cambodia, hunting in the Yukon above the Arctic Circle, canoeing down the Nahanni River and enjoying the mists of the Tea Plantations in Northern Sri Lanka. As exotic as these trips and many more were, Brian cherished his beachside vacations with his family and grandkids tossing them in the hotel pool and ocean for hours of fun.
Brian demonstrated his love for family, friends and his church through cooking. His daily routine included looking for new recipes and sharing them with his loyal group of digital followers. Over the years, he amassed an epic sized recipe collection which his grandchildren fondly referred to as “Papa’s Bible”. As a dear friend noted, “St Peter and all his hungry angels will now be fed forever by Chef Brian. Dishwashing staff needed - Apply at the Pearly Gates!”
Brian’s greatest pride and joy was his family. He loved them unconditionally and he lived true to his belief that when parents choose to bring a child into the world, they have a responsibility to help them thrive in life. Brian never stopped nurturing his children. As a devoted Papa, he loved to dream of what the future would hold for each one of his grandchildren. His devotion to his faith allowed him to live with grace, truly appreciate the beauty of life and transition to afterlife in peace. Brian will live in our hearts forever and his memories will weave into our future moments.
The family is grateful to the Pacific Spirit Community Health Centre with special thanks to Terri, Dante, Florence and Zach who provided compassionate home hospice care to Brian. We also wish to thank Dr. Bernhard Eigl at BC Cancer, Dr. Hans Frykman at UBC, Dr. Thomas Okech in Tubingen Germany and Dr. Saskia Biskup, founder of CeGat a laboratory specializing in genetic diagnosis.
A private Funeral Mass for Brian will be held at St Mark’s Parish at UBC on Friday August 14th. The family invites you to share with them your fond memories of Brian at: bdsmemories@gmail.com