Obituary of KATHLEEN PULLEN (nee KIRBY)

June 2, 1929 – Radway, Alberta
January 20, 2020 – Calgary, Alberta

It is with immense sadness that we announce the passing of Kathleen Margaret Susan Lorraine Pullen on Monday, January 20, 2020 at the age of 90 years. Kay died peacefully following a lengthy illness at McKenzie Towne Long-Term Care Home in Calgary.

Kay grew up on a farm in Northern Alberta, thriving on her family’s homestead, sharing work and chores with her parents, Mellecent, and Archibald, brothers, Erlyn and Robert.  Her older brother, Erlyn was a great inspiration to Kay. When he was serving in the RAF during World War II, she became his very own sports correspondent, writing long letters from home about the exploits of his favourite team, the Toronto Maple Leafs. Erlyn savoured these reports and encouraged her to become a sportswriter, a suggestion that thrilled young Kay. Tragically, Erlyn’s death in combat in 1942 left a giant hole in her heart that never healed. After high school, Kay met and married Jack Pullen, a geologist from Ontario, who moved west to build his career in the booming oil and gas industry. Together, they had four children and, during the 1950s and 1960s, the family moved often as Jack’s jobs changed. Kay was a resilient and resourceful parent who provided her children with the focus they needed to become strong, independent individuals, just like her. During those early years, Kay also found time to give back to the community, doing things like providing first aide through St. John Ambulance, and supporting programs aimed at introducing beginners to new sports and other pass-times. No one is sure how she did it all, just that she was multi-tasking, long before that concept was born. At the age of forty, with her children well on their way to being launched, Kay decided it was time to re-ignite her own dream. She went back to school and graduated from Nursing at Mount Royal, bringing a special blend of life experience and book learning to emergency medicine and psychiatry at Foothill’s Hospital. Meanwhile, Kay continued to broaden her horizons by learning and excelling at ballroom dancing, skiing, choral music, curling and golf. With Jack, she travelled extensively, playing some of the most prestigious and difficult golf courses in North America and Europe.

Kay was a generous soul and she honoured family members through scholarships for young people at three universities and a college. It was her way of showing support for individuals who deserve the opportunity to achieve their dreams. Above all else, Kay was a kind and loving person, who found beauty in the extraordinary and the everyday. She is greatly missed, and will always be remembered by her loved ones as a blessing in their lives.

She will be remembered as a loving daughter, sister, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother; and a dedicated nurse, community volunteer, athlete, musician and homemaker.

To quote a favourite harvest expression in honour of this dynamic farm girl, Kay ‘cut a wide swath’ during a busy and eventful life.

Kay leaves behind her children, Richard, Heather (Ken Fidlin) Pullen, and Stuart (Lola); grandchildren Amanda (Dan Dorey) Dacyk, Valerie (Bohdan Onyschuk) Dacyk, Tyler (Megan) Fidlin, Samuel Fidlin, Brendon Schmidt and Bronwen Schmidt; great-grandchildren, Madeson Schmidt, McKenzie Fidlin and Archer Dorey. Also grieving Kay’s loss are, David Dacyk (husband of Kay’s pre-deceased daughter, Carol Dacyk); as well as, many nieces and nephews; and numerous friends in the community.

A private memorial service will be held at McINNIS & HOLLOWAY (Chapel of the Bells, 2720 Centre Street North, Calgary, AB), on Monday, February 10, 2020 at 1:30 p.m. Condolences, memories and photos may be shared and viewed on Kathleen’s obituary at www.McInnisandHolloway.com. If friends so desire, memorial tributes may be made directly to Mount Royal University Faculty of Nursing, 4825 Mt Royal Gate SW, Calgary, AB T3E 6K6 Telephone: 403.440.611, or to University of Alberta Faculty of Nursing, 11405-87 Avenue Edmonton, AB, T6G 1C9 Telephone: 1-888-492-8089

In living memory of Kathleen Pullen, a tree will be planted in the Ann & Sandy Cross Conservation Area by McINNIS & HOLLOWAY FUNERAL HOMES, Deerfoot South, 12281 – 40th STREET SE, Calgary, AB T2Z 4E6, Telephone: 403-203-0525.