Cecil Victor Wales, LDS 1951 (died 22 November 2016, aged 89)
Obituary kindly provided by R Brian Lowry, Canada
Victor Wales was born on 09 April, 1927 in Ballymoney, the fourth of five children. His father, who was a Postmaster, died of pneumonia when Victor was 8 years old. The local Minister suggested to his mother that some of the children could be put into homes to ease the financial burden of having five children. His mother would not hear of this and took in “boarders” in order to support the family.
After High School his first job was teaching in a 1 room schoolhouse but on the suggestion of his oldest sister’s boyfriend who was a dentist he applied and was accepted into Queen’s University Belfast. He graduated LDS (Licentiate in Dental Surgery) in 1951.
While in Belfast he met his future wife Christina (Chris) Morrison who was training to become a nurse at the Royal Victoria Hospital and they subsequently married in 1954. Chris had been to Canada visiting her sister and on return to Northern Ireland she suggested to Victor that they emigrate. Unfortunately, British trained dentists had to undertake additional training in Canada in order to get a licence, so Victor worked at a number of jobs (including a warehouse for a Vancouver Department Store) prior to enrolling for the 1956-57 semester at the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Dentistry in Edmonton. He graduated with a DDS (Doctor of Dental Surgery) in 1957.
Victor and Chris then set off for British Columbia (BC) where he had a job with the Ministry of Health as a travelling dentist to small communities who had no dentist. Chris was the nurse in this enterprise and they towed a trailer which housed a fully equipped dental surgery. Among the places they worked were Squamish, Britannia Beach and in the northern parts of Vancouver Island, Port Hardy and Sointula.
In 1959 they settled in Vancouver where Victor set up his own dental practice, lasting 33 years. He was a superb dentist, a perfectionist and many patients, including myself, were often told by other dentists what good work had been done on them. High praise from many unknown peers.
Victor and Chris raised four boys, Roger, David, Callum and Brian. Victor was a regular member of his Church choir and Chris taught Sunday School. They had many friends and enjoyed travelling and latterly Scottish Highland dancing. When the boys were playing soccer or rugby Victor could be seen on the touchline cheering though he was not averse to criticising the way rugby had changed into a game with too much kicking!
Victor made a success of everything in his life, his career, his marriage and child rearing. His perfectionistic nature was carried over into his hobbies of gardening and jam making but in a very pleasant way. He had a gentle and jovial manner with a nice “Ulster” sense of humour. Sadly, Chris died in 2003 but Victor carried on cheerfully living in his own home with the aid of care workers in the intervening years. His sons and their families were a great source of support.
Surrounded by his family, Victor passed away peacefully at his home in Richmond, B.C. on 22 November, 2016. He is survived by his sons Roger (Janet), David (Peg), Calum (Jacqueline) and Brian (Tracey), his four grandchildren Trevor, Andrew, Christina and Liam, his sister Phyllis (Tommy) as well as other friends and relatives.
R. Brian Lowry
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