James Darcy Warren died on the 29th of December at the Lady Minto Hospital in
Ganges, Saltspring Island.
Jim was born in Selkirk, Manitoba in 1934 to his parents Earle and Nora. Earle worked for the Canadian National Railway and Nora taught school. Jim was the oldest of four brothers (Kenneth, Philip and David) and the family lived in a variety of small communities in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. He played hockey and was a tremendous pitcher on the ball field. He graduated in Medicine from the University of Manitoba (MD 1957) and went on to study anatomy at the University of British Columbia (MSc 1961) as well as taking a graduate course in Classics.
In 1957 he married Joan Laura Sinclair at Saint Luke’s Anglican Church in Winnipeg. He trained for his fellowship in Orthopaedics in Vancouver and in Plymouth, England and passed his fellowship exams in Montreal (FRCS 1963). Jim and Joan have three children, Rob (Caireen), Anne and Ruth (David). Jim worked as an Orthopod for the Winnipeg Clinic before moving to Victoria, British Columbia to open his own practice and, over the years, moved from being a junior and an outlier in Victoria’s established medical community to becoming one of its great oaks. He was highly involved in the evolving life of the Royal Jubilee Hospital and the Joint Board of Management of the city Hospitals. He served as an integral member of the Council of the BC College of Physicians and Surgeons for 12 years. Jim was also the proprietor of the ugliest boat at the Oak Bay Marina – Warren’s Whaler – in which countless fish lost their lives and his young family explored the coves and marinas of Vancouver Island for many years.
Upon his retirement Jim began to write in earnest – his reflections on his own childhood, on the life of his family, his garden transformed into larger stories speaking to the meaning of ordinary lives in their sundry transformations.
Beyond his professional life Jim animated a growing family, and the communities of the churches to which he and Joan belonged over the years. Jim and Joan have five grandchildren, Hannah (Chris), Jonathan (Katie), Emma (Wade), Rebekah (Brendan) and Stewart (Ana) and a evergrowing flock of great grandchildren (Olivia, Liam, Harlan, Remy, Violette, Charlie, Briggs, Sasha and Lilly). He grew dahlias in copious quantities, and these were distributed freely to all who needed some colour in their homes. He became known for his kindness, his wide smile and a tremendous sense of humour.
Although Jim had suffered poor health for nearly fifteen years, he was comfortable at the end of his life, very much at peace and eager to take this next step. His family and friends feel blessed to have known him as husband, brother, father, friend, mentor, grandfather and great grandfather. He was a solid citizen. We love him and we will miss him.
A memorial service will be held at All Saints’ by the Sea in Ganges, British Columbia on Saturday the 10th of January at 1 P M. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Jim’s name to the Lady Minto Hospital Foundation (ladymintofoundation.com) with special thanks for their care and kindness.