It is with great sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Sharon Rose Stapleton. Sharon passed away on April 24, 2024 from pneumonia while on holiday in Croatia.
Sharon had a varied work career that took her everywhere from Vancouver to Newfoundland, the Carribbean and even China, making lifelong friends along the way. As a teenager, she started out at Army & Navy in Vancouver. Rumor has it, she fibbed about her age to get her foot in the door at her next job at Canada Revenue Agency, as she wasn’t quite old enough. Working her way up through the ranks, in 1988 she became the first female District Office Director in Canada (Thunder Bay). After leaving CRA, she operated a B&B in Costa Rica, worked for the Canadian International Development Agency, and was Assistant Dean at Ross University of Veterinary Medicine in St Kitts. Sharon returned to the cold in Canada to work at Sprott Shaw College in New Westminster, BC and to be closer to her mother.
After her mother passed, Sharon set off on a new challenge to teach English in Xiamen, China. It was there that she was diagnosed with leukemia and had to rush home to Canada for treatment. She was very fortunate to be put in the care of Dr Frank Mechelis, Dr Jamie Lui and other medical professionals in Toronto. Each member of Sharon’s medical team had a special place in her heart.
As soon as the covid travel restrictions began to ease up, Sharon hit the ground running, visiting old friends, making new friends and seeing new places (Iceland, British Columbia, Portugal, camping in Tory Hill / Wilberforce Ontario, Niagara Falls, Isle of Wight / England, Spain, British Columbia (again), South Africa, Zimbabwe, Croatia – all in the span of 3 years!
Sharon loved to travel and to laugh with friends and family. She will be remembered as a kind, generous, spiritual soul, who lived life on her own terms, and liked to help people whenever she could.
Sharon is survived by her brother Blair Stapleton, brother Glenn Gould & sister-in-law Judy Agnew, and friends far and wide around the globe.
Celebration of Life to honour Sharon will be held June 11th, 2024, 2:00 pm at Kearney Funeral Chapel, at 219 6th St New Westminster, BC. In lieu of flowers, please donate in Sharon’s memory to The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation - Bone Marrow Research & Transplant Fund (located in Toronto Ontario), or the charity of your choosing.
For those who wish to join the service virtually:
https://www.legacystreaming.com/kearney/