Yvonne Eckersley Parsons Obituary

Yvonne Eckersley Parsons, 77, of Victoria, BC, Canada, passed away on Dec. 18, 2023 after a valiant battle against COPD. Yvonne and her family want to thank the VIHA Home Palliative Care nurses, VIHA Home Support workers, her family physician, and her pharmacists for their amazing, empathic, and professional care.

Born on May 19, 1946 to Arthella and Seaver Eckersley in Ogden, Utah, USA, Yvonne was lovingly raised by her mother, her grandmother Oceana Farr, and her two older sisters, Joanne and Carolyn, after her father died when she was a toddler.

Yvonne met her spouse-to-be, Joe, in their eighth-grade Spanish class, when the teacher asked her to perform the daily attendance roll call, purportedly because there was no Spanish version of “Yvonne”; Joe thought it was because she was the prettiest girl in the class (see photo 1).

After graduating from Ben Lomond High School in 1964, Yvonne turned down a scholarship offer from BYU and worked in retail at The Colony in Ogden. Yvonne and Joe married September 1, 1966, after which Yvonne worked as a Deputy Treasurer forWeber County.

Yvonne gave birth to their firstborn, Greg, in 1968. Baby Greg passed away just 32 days later, not having come home from the hospital. Shortly after Greg’s death, Yvonne and Joe moved to Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, where Yvonne worked for the local newspaper and Joe pursued his doctoral degree in experimental psychology. In 1970, Yvonne gave birth to a healthy, happy second son, Brent. It was the first birth at the hospital that allowed the father to be present; Joe managed not to faint.

In 1973, Yvonne, Brent and Joe moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, where Joe was an assistant professor at the University of New Mexico and Yvonne was responsible for practically everything else. When Brent started school, Yvonne enrolled in the UNM Architecture program, while also working part-time as a secretary at the university and then for an architectural firm. Yvonne loved design, and flourished in the program.

In 1980, Joe accepted a position at the University of Victoria. Yvonne selflessly put aside her own professional ambitions and the family emigrated to Victoria, BC, Canada. Once she received her work permit, she worked at Wade-Williams Architects and later in commercial property management. Following her true passion, Yvonne completed a diploma program in Interior Design and subsequently worked in both commercial and residential interior design until she retired. Then, Yvonne took several workshops in painting, and created an art studio of her own design as an addition to her home. Yvonne’s most prolific artistic period coincided with her involvement in the Windsor Art Club serving as its treasurer for many years. Looking today at the scores of paintings that adorn the walls of her home, one can see how Yvonne absorbed the skills of both guest artists and fellow members of the club.

After Joe retired from the university, Yvonne and Joe would take their motorhome south to California, Arizona, and Mexico, where Yvonne would bask in the warmth of the sun and paint.

Unfortunately predeceased by her sister Joanne, Yvonne is survived by her husband Joe, her son Brent, her sister Carolyn and a large extended family.

Yvonne did not want a funeral, but rather wanted her friends and family to celebrate her life at a garden party at her home which will be held in the spring or summer of 2024 (TBA).

She will be missed.