Obituary of William "Bill" Harris

It is with deep sorrow and much love we mourn the sudden passing of William “Bill” Norman Harris (also known as “Billy” or “Wasyl”) on January 18, 2021, at his home in Unity, Saskatchewan, at age 74. 

Bill is survived and lovingly remembered by his son David (Suely) Harris and granddaughter Rebecca of Saskatoon, and daughter Corrine Harris of Ottawa. He is also survived by his great-aunties Anne Harris of Medicine Hat and Lena Ticehurst of Port Coquitlam; sisters-in-law Lorraine (Jim) Morton of Loon Lake, Joyce Studer of Loon Lake, Sharon (Duffy) Studer of Loon Lake, Deborah (Murray) Dyck of Lloydminster; stepmother Fabiola Harris of Meadow Lake; stepsisters Carol Rediron of Meadow Lake, Cheryl (Cliff) Hagan of Drayton Valley, Bert (Don) Durgan of Slave Lake, Lillian (Doug) Cheze of Meadow Lake; and stepbrother Mike (Shelley) Rediron of Meadow Lake. He is also survived by numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews.

Bill was predeceased by his wife Linda (Boehler) Harris, mother Joyce (Burns) Harris, father Olie Harris, mother-in-law Petra “Pat” Boehler, and father-in-law Reinhold “Ray” Boehler, as well as many treasured uncles, aunties, cousins, and friends (who were family) that left us too soon.

Bill was born on July 15, 1946, in Big River, Saskatchewan. He lived there throughout his school years and moved to Meadow Lake with his mother and father after graduating from high school in 1964. He started working for the CIBC straight out of high school, quickly accepting a position in Loon Lake. This is where he met Linda Boehler, who became his bride on September 3, 1966. They moved in with his parents in Meadow Lake while he worked at the CIBC, and they started their family, welcoming David in 1967. Bill worked his way up to the role of CIBC Bank Manager and started his string of many transfers working for the bank, beginning in Kelvington (1969), where they had their second child, Corrine, in 1970. They then moved to Laird (1972), Wadena (1973), Kincaid (1974), Cudworth (1977), Regina (1985), Kelvington (1986), Meadow Lake (1987), and finally Unity (1994). Sadly, his wife passed away unexpectedly in Unity on June 30, 1995, but he continued to live there and work until his retirement from CIBC in 2002 and full retirement from consulting in 2006, when he finally put his calculator (and pink papers) away.

Bill was an active Lions member in every town/city he lived in as he enjoyed the comradery, friendship, fun, and the work that this organization did in the communities he lived in. He was also very active in sports as a youngster and through his career in the bank. He especially loved to golf all summer and curl in the winter. He cherished the social aspects of these sports and made some of the best friends in his life through these pastimes. Golfing also allowed him to spend time with some of his favourite people in the world, his father Olie, son David, and Uncle Dave. He was also very passionate about watching the Saskatchewan Roughriders, with some of his favourite memories being the games attended in Regina in the 1970s with his cousins Sandra and the late Bob Kaytor. He continued enjoying and watching CFL and NHL games with his son and numerous friends throughout his life. 

Throughout most of Bill’s life, he loved to be the life of the party. His goal was to make sure everyone was laughing and having fun. He loved to host and attend parties with Linda, but also cherished: curling, golfing, watching movies and sports, visiting with family and friends, playing board games with his family, listening to music, and playing cards (especially Kaiser and Fire) with family and friends. Some of our favourite memories include camping at Wakaw Lake in the summers while living in Cudworth (mostly from the entertainment of Bill and Linda putting up the tent trailer), listening to Bill sing and/or tell jokes and stories to anyone who would listen, watching Bill get way too excited or mad watching the Riders, and laughing with him until you cried. Bill was also known for loving a good meal (or just ketchup), and after his lovely wife passed, he was known to pester and nudge his Ukrainian relatives for cabbage rolls and homemade jelly, and his Unity friends for their special dishes or meals. 

Throughout his retirement, his interests expanded to include a broader range of sports he liked to watch on TV (e.g., tennis). His music preferences also expanded to include a few particular Celtic artists, and he became an unapologetic “Swiftie” over the last few years. Although his physical activities decreased, he was continually broadening his other interests and still trying to make people laugh.

Bill inherited his love for animals from both of his parents, and instilled this love in his children. He cherished all the animals that his kids brought into the family (even the catties and birds), but in particular, had a special place in his heart for his daughter’s German shepherd, Jesse, who has surely greeted him with much love and many kisses. 

Over the years since Linda’s passing, Bill survived multiple serious health scares, so that he was commonly compared to a cat with nine lives. He could sometimes have a grumbly exterior, especially as he got older and went through these traumatic experiences, but it would only take a moment to get him laughing and joking again.

Our most important memories of Bill centre around his capacity to love, care for, and support those in his life. Bill loved his children more than any child could wish for and he extended that love and more to his daughter-in-law and his cherished sole granddaughter. He also adopted some friends and their children into his life as if they were his own. He loved being a dad, grandpa, uncle, brother, friend, cousin, and husband and put everything he had into making sure everyone felt loved and special. 

We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to the community of Unity for embracing our dad all the years he lived there. We send special thanks and love to Doug and Denise Zunti, Jay and Jo-Anne Beasse, and Ron and Kathy Ireland for their love, care, and support of our dad over the years. There are so many other people our dad spoke of and was touched by, but too many to mention. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Bill’s memory can be made to: The Heart & Stroke Foundation, Saskatoon SPCA, or charity of your choice. A celebration of life will take place at a later date, when groups can gather safely to remember Bill and the impact he made on our lives.

“Death leaves a heartache no one can heal; love leaves a memory no one can steal.” - Irish proverb