September 27, 1920 - August 3, 2023
In Loving Memory ~
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Henri Louis Rodrigue on August 3rd, 2023 in his 103rd year in the family home he loved so much. He was a devoted and loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather.
Henry will be dearly missed by his wife Clara; their children, Gary (Sherry) Rodrigue, Ellen (Marc) Nadeau, Joanne (Reg) Stortz and Keith (Amy) Rodrigue; nine grandchildren, Marc, Monique, David, Kristy (Jason), Terri (Tom), April (Joey), Shandel, Alexander and Tallulah; seven great-grandchildren, Sophie, Ellie, Theo, Matthew, Cody, Luke and Lincoln; and numerous extended family members.
Henry (Hank) was born in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec on September 27th, 1920 into a family with eleven siblings. At the age of fourteen he began his first job with his father's transport company bringing supplies from Lac-Mégantic to Montreal. He had several other jobs moving from Quebec to Ontario and then to British Columbia where he started constructing homes in the Okanagan and Vancouver.
Here in Vernon while he was visiting a good friend, he met his future wife Clara. After a short courtship, they soon were married in Vernon and then moved to Vancouver. They had two children in a cute little house in Burnaby that Henry built but then decided to move east to Welland, Ontario where two more children were added to the family. Here he built another family home where the children were raised.
Each summer the family would pack up and take an adventure travel holiday. The trips crossed Canada and some of the US northern States, but every few years, the family would drive to Vernon to visit Clara's family. They started out by car with tent, then a tent trailer, then a cabin trailer, and lastly upgrading to a motor home. Easter weekend would be a trip to Henry's home town to meet up with family at the sugar bush and have a large meal made with maple syrup, taffy in snow and desert being eggs cooked in - you guessed it - maple syrup.
In 1977 they decided to return to Vernon where they built their last family home. Henry continued to work as a machinist but his passion of carpentry dominated in his later years. He would notice a build site of a neighbour or friend, then immediately go pick up his tool belt and get to work.
Henry loved to build sheds. There were many roofs around the property and it was known that if you stood still for too long, he would build a roof over you.
As retirement age approached, Henry and Clara travelled south during the winter to soak up the sun in Arizona. They had several trips over the years driving by motor home with vehicle in tow, taking side trips to gather and collect rocks.
This past winter of 2023, they spent eight weeks in Arizona. During his time in B.C. as a young man, Henry was a member of the Greater Vancouver Motorcycle Club where he participated in motorcycle races and he also loved to race stock cars.
At the age of 102 (3/4) he saw many changes during his lifetime but he was always dedicated to his family. Henry, Dad, Father, Grandpa and Great-Grandpa, you will be missed but always in all of our hearts.
In respecting Henry's wishes he was cremated and a Celebration of his Life with family and close friends took place at Bethel Funeral Chapel on Thursday, August 10th, 2023 at 1:30 P.M. Reverend Dr. Teresa Charlton officiated and a Reception followed in the Bethel Tea Room.
Funeral arrangements were made with Bethel Funeral Chapel Ltd. 5605-27th Street, Vernon, B.C. V1T 8Z5
250-542-1187