Deirdre Mary Kathleen Bickford was born in Ladybrook, Hampshire, England on June 12th, 1935. She was the first daughter of John Edmund Bickford, and Kathleen (Dinan), his third wife, after his previous two wives had sadly died in the Spanish Flu epidemics of the 1920s. They met while helping the sick in Lourdes, France. At age six she and her two sisters Mary Jacqueline and Valerie Gabriel went to a convent boarding school, “Poles” in Ware, Hertfordshire. MaryJac described a young Deirdre as “a bright little girl with dark brown hair arranged with a fringe.” During WWII they were evacuated to Broadstairs, Kent, a beautiful seaside region of England. Deirdre often told of the time a giant cooked ham washed up on shore, having fallen off a merchant ship. While excited at first, they became weary of eating only pork.
After graduation from Poles, Deirdre attended the Kingdon Ward School of Speech therapy for two years while living in London, and then took a secretarial course at London Polytechnic. After moving to Montreal in 1956, Deirdre and her friend Sara traveled extensively around the USA and Canada. In the early 1960s, Deirdre worked as a secretary at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Glenbow Foundation in Calgary, and at the British Embassy for the Seattle World’s Fair in 1962. Eventually Deirdre’s secretarial career and love of art took her to beautiful British Columbia.
While working at the Vancouver Art Gallery Deirdre met her husband, Jim Willer, a talented and renowned Canadian sculptor, painter and writer. With prize money he won from a major literary contest, Jim bought beautiful waterfront property, and built their home on Sunset Beach, where they welcomed their two daughters, Xanthe and Sophie.
While raising her children, Deirdre also excelled as a craftswoman and homemaker. She volunteered at the West Vancouver Museum, at several libraries in the West Vancouver School System, and at Christ The Redeemer Parish, where she was a vibrant and active member of the Catholic Woman’s League. Deirdre later won several secretarial positions on the North Shore and in the lower mainland. In the moments when she was not directly involved in the service of others, she enjoyed knitting, attending classical music concerts, reading, and photography.
Deirdre was proud to be a Canadian citizen for over 60 years. She especially loved the beauty of the West Coast; it’s wilderness and culture. She was fiercely independent, dependable and organized. Those spending time with Deirdre knew how she loved each one of her daughters, and her grandchildren beyond measure. Her parish family and long time friends meant the world to her. Always positive, she described everything and everyone as “just wonderful!”.
Deirdre was preceded in death by her two siblings John and Gay, five stepbrothers and son-in-law Steve. She is survived by her sisters, MaryJac Martin St. Valery and Anne Bickford, daughters Xanthe (Nik) Charov and Sophie Reen, eleven grandchildren and many nieces and nephews residing in the UK.
A Mass of Christian burial will take place at Christ the Redeemer Parish, 599 Keith Rd, West Vancouver, B.C. at 10:00am Saturday, September 14th. Reception to follow.