DELBERT CRANDALL
1929 - 2010
Delbert Crandall was born on June 17, 1929, at Ponoka, Alberta, and raised along with his brother, Glen, on a farm in the Ferrybank District. His parents were Alva Crandall and Ada (Bjorklund) Crandall.
Del married Nola Friestad on July 4, 1948, and five children were born to this union: Blair (1949), Brenda (1951), Marilyn (1954), Cody (1961), and Alva (1965).
Del and Nola farmed and trucked in the 1950s and 1960s. Del also drove chuckwagon in 1958, 1959, and 1960. Del raced in Central Alberta, including the Calgary Stampede, and in the USA, including Cheyenne, Wyoming; Casper, Wyoming; and Great Falls, Montana.
In 1966, the family moved to Dawson Creek, BC. Del worked at the W.A.C. Bennett Dam, drove truck for Gavin Rosie, and worked on the farm. In 1968, Del and Nola moved onto a homestead in Alberta, northeast of Dawson Creek. They cleared the land and farmed there until 1971 when they moved to Rolla, BC, and started a water, gravel, and grain hauling business. In 1989, they sold their property in Rolla and moved to a quarter of land in Doe River, BC. They were farming there at the time of Del’s passing on March 14, 2010, at the age of 80 years.
Dad was a great machinery operator and maintainer; he could make anything work. There wasn’t a machine he could not run. He was a great truck driver; he could back a rig up as easy as driving it forward. Dad loved camping. In the 1980s, he purchased a 20 foot boat just so he could take the family fishing every weekend – but nobody worked harder when there was work to be done. In his later years, his love for horsemanship came full circle when he began building and selling harness. Dad never outgrew the excitement of Christmas morning and the opening of gifts.
Grandpa loved his grandchildren, and he lived to tease them. When he and Grandma would babysit Jason and Corey, he would wake them up in the morning by tickling their feet, and Amy and Cole were always accused of stealing Grandpa’s cookies. When Travis was five, Grandpa bought him a Ferguson tractor . . . because every boy needs a tractor. He also taught Allison how to play blackjack when she was ten. On one occasion, he and Grandma kidnapped Clint and took him for a week-long holiday to southern BC. Clint loved it. He had a soft spot for all children.
Del is survived by his wife, Nola; brother, Glen; step-father, Dave Noble; children, Blair (Marilyn) Crandall, Brenda (Terry) Sewell, Marilyn Sewell, Cody Crandall, Alva (Billie-Jo) Crandall, and Carl Sewell; seven grandchildren; five great grandchildren; inlaws, Violet Hoar, Phyllis Wood, Eleanor Bakke, Marvin Friestad, Dwight Friestad, Verda (Steve) Egbert, Myron (Lorraine) Friestad, and Dale Johnston; and many nieces and nephews. Del was predeceased by his parents, Alva and Ada Crandall; and in-laws, Joseph and Verle Friestad, Dorthea Crandall, Morris Hoar, John Wood, Harold Bakke, and Dianne Johnston.
For friends so wishing, donations may be made in memory of Del to the Dawson Creek and District Hospital Foundation, 11100 13 Street, Dawson Creek, BC, V1G 3W8.