September 21, 1940 - October 18, 2023
In Loving Memory ~
We are sad to announce the passing of Wayne Robert Sydney Johns on October 18, 2023, at Kootenay Lake District Hospital in Nelson, B.C at the age of 83, with his family at his side.
Wayne is survived by his wife of 61 years Margaret Johns (Hofer), siblings Stuart Johns, Gary Johns, Susan Wuthrich (Johns), children Mark Johns, Brent Johns, and Tammy Dunlop (Johns), 4 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren.
He was predeceased by his parents and one sister, Sally Brekkas (Johns).
Wayne was born in Prince George BC on September 21, 1940, the oldest son to Elspeth and Sydney Johns. Their family moved to Kelowna BC when he was just starting school. He had many wonderful memories of his time in Kelowna with both sets of grandparents close by, teaching him the critical skills of life.
His family then moved 40 miles north of Fort St. John BC in 1951 to open up / clear over 3000 acres of government land for farming where he spent the rest of his childhood.
He was married to Margaret on October 27, 1962, in Fort St. John and was just completing an apprenticeship as a carpenter at that time. Over the next couple of years, they moved to Surrey (where Mark was born) and then Squamish (where Brent was born) where he worked for Commonwealth Construction as a foreman before moving back in 1964 to Fort St. John (where Tammy was born).
He went back to farming there until 1976 when the family moved to Creston BC to operate a laundromat and dry-cleaning business. In 1983 they sold that business and Wayne started working for Pioneer Villa and then Swan Valley lodge as maintenance man and bus driver until his retirement at age 60.
Wayne and Margaret were very fortunate to have over 20 good years of traveling and adventures after retirement together. In 2015 they moved from Creston to Balfour in order to downsize and be able to see his boat from the living room window.
He loved sharing his stories, looking for gold, traveling, boating / fishing, and spending time with family and friends. He was continually thinking of ways to build something that worked better than what he could find out there. He had a great sense of humor and shared many laughs with everyone in his life.
The funeral will be held at the Balfour Covenant Church at 7741 Upper Balfour Rd, Balfour, BC at 2pm on Saturday November 11, 2023.
To leave a personal message of condolence please see Thompson Funeral Service website: https://www.thompsonfs.ca
Service Details
2:00 PM