Obituary of Bruce Hartley Osmond
Bruce Hartley Osmond passed away on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, in Red Deer, AB, at the age of 80 years. Bruce was born on January 15, 1943, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, to Edgar and Connie (Hartley) Osmond. He grew up in Virden, Manitoba, where he spent many days exploring, tenting and hunting with his “buddy Ron” and their faithful dogs, and playing hockey on outdoor rinks. After graduating high school, Bruce lived and worked in Thompson, Manitoba, and Regina, Saskatchewan, before making his way to Brandon, Manitoba, where he worked as a meat cutter while attending university. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Brandon University in 1971. During his time as a meat cutter, he met the love of his life, Joy Arbuthnott, and they were married on November 10, 1972. They raised son Warren and daughter Karen together, and moved to Lethbridge, Alberta, in 1980, where Bruce worked at an accounting firm. Bruce, Joy and Karen relocated to Red Deer, Alberta, in 1992, when Bruce took a job as a GST Auditor with Revenue Canada (now Canada Revenue Agency). He retired from that position in March 2008, and then enjoyed a number of years in his retirement job as a courier for Health Trans.
Bruce was a man of many talents. He was a numbers and details kind of guy and had a fantastic memory. He was fascinated by airplanes and would spend hours reading about various aircraft. He could effortlessly memorize their specifications and would explain them (at length!) to anyone who would listen. He would spot a plane in the sky and know exactly what kind it was. The rest of us could only assume that he was right since we couldn’t tell one from the other. It wasn’t until son-in-law Tim came into the picture that Bruce faced a worthy plane-identifying competitor. Bruce formed a close friendship with Tim’s father, Garry, who also had a love of planes, as well as his pilot’s licence. Together, Bruce and Garry would go flying all over Alberta in Garry’s plane, and even though Bruce wasn’t a pilot, he became a member of the Lacombe Flying Club and helped out at their annual fly-in breakfast. It was one of his favourite days of the year.
His love of planes was matched by his love of classic cars, with his all-time favourite car being his 1966 Dodge Coronet. As with planes, he knew every detail about the classics, and every story that he told from his days in Manitoba always began with what type of car he or his friends drove at the time. He attended many of the Cruise Nights that took place in Red Deer, often with one or more grandkids in tow, and loved to chat with the owners about their rides.
Once Bruce put his mind to something, there was no turning back. He decided years ago that he wanted a canoe, and after much research and raised eyebrows from his family, he bought one. He and Joy would go on to spend many enjoyable, sunny days (and a couple of stormy ones as well) paddling around various lakes in Central Alberta. The days when his grandkids joined them were particularly special.
Bruce was also a do-it-yourself handyman. After all, why pay someone else to do what he could do himself? His ability to do his own home and vehicle repairs probably saved him thousands of dollars over the years. He tackled yard and house repairs/maintenance without hesitation and had a way of recruiting unsuspecting family members and friends to assist with the bigger tasks. He took pride in coming up with creative ways to haul bulky and awkward supplies either on, in, or behind his car, and seeing his canoe strapped to the top of his Cadillac was a vision of perfection for him.
Bruce spent much of his time laughing. He was the King of Corny Jokes and gauged the quality of the joke by the size of the eyeroll it received from granddaughter Jillian. As grandson Gavin would say, “You don’t always understand Papa’s jokes, but you laugh at them anyway.” But the best laughs came when he was talking with his younger brother, Glen. After about 10 “real” sentences, the giggles and guffaws would start, and would continue long after they hung up the phone as Bruce replayed bits and pieces of the conversation in his head. In-person visits with Glen were the pinnacle for Bruce, as they would sip drinks, get caught up on current events and reminisce about days gone by, laughing and chuckling along the way.
Bruce and Joy discovered a love of travelling, thanks in part to Joy’s sister and brother-in-law, Gloria and Merv. In addition to spending time in Florida together, they went on three cruises, where Bruce marvelled at the vast ocean views and experienced a wide variety of adventures in the ports they visited. He was fascinated by the workings of the cruise ships themselves, and once inadvertently found himself in the ship’s galley kitchen while he was exploring. But being able to go skating on a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean and help a fellow passenger learn to skate was one of his fondest cruise memories.
Above all, Bruce was fiercely devoted to his family. He was supportive and encouraging, and was always ready to lend a hand or offer advice. He was an incredibly proud Papa to his grandchildren, and had a way of making each of them feel as if they were the most important person in the world. He was incredibly generous in so many ways, but he never gave himself enough credit. He always felt he could be doing more.
Bruce is dearly missed by his wife of 50 years, Joy, son Warren Osmond, daughter and son-in-law Karen and Tim Miller, daughter-in-law Anna-Marie Mista, grandchildren Kier (Desarai Forster) and Gavin Osmond and Abby, Jillian and Isaac Miller, brother and sister-in-law Glen and Pat Osmond, sister-in-law Gloria (and late Merv) Dillabough, as well as many extended family members and friends. We were so blessed to have you in our lives.
Special thanks to Dr. Odendaal, Dr. Heathcote and Dr. Rudolph, to the staff on units 22 and 32 at the Red Deer Regional Hospital, to the AHS Home Care team and to the amazing staff and volunteers at the Red Deer Hospice for all of the care, support and comfort that they showed Bruce and his family.
A private Life Tribute and Interment will be held in Red Deer. In lieu of flowers, donations to The Canadian Lung Association (lung.ca) or the Red Deer Hospice Society (reddeerhospice.com) would be greatly appreciated. Condolences to Bruce’s family may be emailed to meaningful@telus.net. Please indicate “Osmond” in the subject line.
Arrangements in care of
Meaningful Memorials Funeral Service
A locally owned cremation and funeral provider
serving Red Deer and all of Central Alberta
587-876-4944