Martin Dale Sask

It is with a profound sense of loss we announce the passing of Martin Dale Sask, son, brother, husband, father, and friend. We say goodbye to a great storyteller, and sadly family dinners are never going to be as loud or as much fun again.

Martin is survived by his loving wife of 31 years, Terri, and son Branden. He was sadly predeceased by infant daughter Shannen Sask. Martin is also survived by two of his sisters, Janet Henderson (Roy) and Donna Sask; sisters-in-law Judi Sask and Laurie Dusik (Bert); brothers-in-law Greg Dusik (Lori) and James Dusik (Kate); and many cousins, nieces, nephews and friends.

Martin was predeceased by his parents Walter and Agnes Sask; in-laws Jerry and Jolana Dusik; brother Bryan Sask; sister Elvina Sask; and brother-in-law Kurt Bonnes. Too many family members were taken far too young, and Martin was deeply touched by their passing.

Martin was born in Sexsmith, Alberta on October 12, 1951 and grew up in the small hamlet of Tepee Creek. Being only a year and a day younger than his brother Bryan, the two of them were quite the duo as they experienced life in a small town. Three sisters followed, Elvina, Janet and Donna, and Martin enjoyed being a big brother to all three. Martin attended elementary school and high school in Sexsmith, where he spent more time learning how to evade the strap than learning his school lessons. When the family moved to Surrey, BC in 1968, Martin attended North Surrey High School for his final year of school. He then went on to become an electrician, completing his apprenticeship in 1977 and receiving his Red Seal certification in 1984. Martin spent many years working as an electrician on everything from houses to hospitals to large commercial buildings as a proud member of the IBEW, Local 213. As the economy started to change in the 1990s and work became a little sparser, Martin was hired to take care of all of the maintenance needs at Holy Cross Regional Secondary in 1998. He remained at Holy Cross until he was diagnosed with cancer in 2017, and he soon retired so that his sole focus could be fighting this nasty disease.

Martin met his wife, Terri, in the summer of 1988 when they were both playing slow pitch for the St. Matthew’s Parish mixed team. As an avid and very competitive ball player all of his life, Martin was known to say that mixed church slow pitch was as low as you could get in the ball world, and yet they played on that team for four more years. Martin and Terri were married in 1992, and moved into his home in Port Kells, where they welcomed their first child, Branden, in 1993. In 1994 they sadly lost their daughter, Shannen, to the genetic illness Spinal Muscular Atrophy. While this loss was never forgotten, over time the wound healed and life continued on. They built a new home on that same property in 1999, and Martin was keen to tell people that they moved across the driveway.

Martin loved going on road trips to visit unique places across BC and Canada, and the family had many adventures. When Branden discovered a love for all things aviation related, the trips often included stops at flight museums, airports and the Boeing plant. While these trips took them in all four directions, home was definitely Martin’s favourite place to be. With his background as an electrician, Martin developed a love for tinkering with old radios, and his ability to fix almost anything amazed everyone. If something broke, just give it to Martin and he would either fix it or put it “into storage” to become parts for his next project.

Martin was raised as a Catholic, and while he strayed away from his faith in his early 20s, he was brought back to the church when he was asked to help out with some repairs to the original St. Matthew’s Rectory. He remained a faithful member of St. Matthew’s Parish, and a member of the Knights of Columbus until his passing.

While in remission from his first battle with cancer, Martin was diagnosed with a second cancer in March of 2023. This was not a reoccurrence of his original cancer, but a brand new one, and this time the cancer was incurable. Martin fought a valiant fight, always willing to try new kinds of therapies, but in the end, it was just too much, and he lost the battle on April 4, 2024.

Thank you to the many members of Martin’s medical team who took incredible care of him: Dr. Herman, Dr. Raval, Dr. Mackenzie, Dr. Kissock, Dr. Do, Dr. Jiang, Dr. Minhas, and the many nurses in the chemo room at BC Cancer, Surrey and in the SMH Palliative Care Unit. You always took the time to explain things well, answer questions and deal with the unexpected complications which arose regularly with Martin. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the BC Cancer Foundation.

The Mass of Christian Burial will take place at St. Matthew’s Parish, 16079 88 Ave., Surrey, on Saturday, April 20, 2024 at 10:00am, with Celebrant Father Hien Nguyen officiating. Reception to follow immediately after the service in the gym at Holy Cross Regional Secondary.
For the livestreaming video of Martin’s service, please go to; Kearney Funeral Services – Legacy Streaming.