Graydon, Richard Westley (West) passed away on September 28th in West Vancouver at the age of 92. He was predeceased by Norma, his wife of 69 years, and eldest daughter, Sally Christine Soroka, and survived by daughters Sue and Shari (David), son Patrick (Jennifer), six grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
Born in Montreal in 1930, he spent early summers at Brome Lake, learned the value of money delivering newspapers and discovered his ability to make things with his hands in the workshop of his father’s small construction company. He studied Engineering at McGill, joined a fraternity where he played the banjo and made lifelong friends. He fell in love with Norma (nee Secord) a nursing student at the Royal Victoria Hospital who he met on a double date and married in 1953.
Upon graduation, West joined G.T. Graydon & Sons where he managed renovation and construction projects. Elected a town councillor in Montreal West where he and his growing family lived, he oversaw the building of the community’s new swimming pool and recreation centre.
In 1969, the family moved to Vancouver, where he took on a succession of construction management jobs, from the modular building industry to a ferry terminal and two campuses for Douglas College. The pinnacle of his career, however, was his responsibility overseeing the construction of Expo 86, Vancouver’s world fair.
West then accepted several overseas assignments which included building a hotel in the Bahamas and a condominium development in Maui. Upon retirement, he and Norma relocated to Mexico where he swam every day, played tennis and built sets for a local theatre company. In the early 2000s, they moved back to Canada, settling in Victoria where he reacquainted himself with old tennis friends, and took up painting. His masterpiece was a near-photographic rendition of the Bluenose in full sail, but his signature on his last two paintings was also notable: “G3” stood for “Great Gimpy Gampy”, as he was christened by his eldest granddaughter Shannon after tumbling from the roof and breaking his leg.
West laughed readily, enjoyed people and was without pretense. Despite the diminishments of aging, he was committed to remaining productive, taking over the shopping and meal preparation as Norma’s eyesight deteriorated, and applying his woodworking skills to everything from cabinetry and picture frames to pre-fabricated punts for his Ontario-based grandsons.
Eight months after losing his “bride”, grateful for the very good life he’d led, and aware of the increasing dependency his declining health guaranteed, he declared himself “ready to go.” Medical assistance allowed him to do so, in the company of loved ones sorry to say goodbye, but supportive of his desire to exit on his own terms.