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Dale Denney

June 25, 1932 - November 2, 2008


After a long life of devotion to his family and “getting things done” elsewhere, Dale retired to Yale with his second wife in 2003, assuming the identity of “Dale from Yale”. Having grown up with the old ways of hunting and fishing, Dale was a passionate advocate of sound wildlife management practices. He had always been “involved”, generally in a leading role, in innumerable community activities and campaigns. Seeing the re-introduction of elk into an area of the Chilcotin, and re-establishment of Coho Salmon in King Creek in Surrey, and personally envisioning and ensuring the construction of the lake in Green Timbers Urban Forest in Surrey were his greatest satisfactions. He was an organizer and mainstay of craft fairs with his unique whirligigs and collectibles display cases.

For forty years Dale fished trout in Crown Lake near Pavilion. He loved the Cariboo and Chilcotin and loved all of B.C. so deeply that he refused to go anywhere else. Dale set up his “Things with Wings” workshop in Yale in 2003 where he could hear the ghosts of the prospectors, teams and paddle wheelers, followed the Fraser River fishing activities turned his attention to studying history and supported the activities of the Yale and District Historical Society, especially the annual Strawberry Social. With great glee he personally saw to the organizing of the old-fashioned welcoming and “Great Train Robbery” of the “BC 150 Celebration Train” in June this year. Always a participant in popular politics, Dale was considering the need for a new political party and was helping in the current elections for Area B representative of the FVRD. He gave generously to Cops for Cancer, the Yale and District Historical Society and the annual Yale Halloween fireworks. Members of the Yale community feel honoured to have had Dale Denney among them. He will be dearly missed by his wife and friends.

If there had to be a memorial, Dale wanted it to be a “bang-up party” and there will be a gathering in his memory in Green Timbers Urban Forest in Surrey, November 22nd. Please call 604-863-2205 if you wish more information about this.



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